Of Course I Eat Raw Fish

Miyajima

(11/5/2011)

This past weekend I took a day trip to Hiroshima with some of my co-workers from one of my elementary schools. We met in the parking lot of the elementary school at 7:30 in the morning and immediately boarded a large bus and set off for Hiroshima. I had been asked by one of my co-workers to bring my guitar along so that we could do some live karaoke, but I completely forgot about it. Luckily, the bus came equipped with a T.V., microphone, and DVD player with around 1,000 abbreviated versions of some popular Japanese songs. I didn’t know any of them unfortunately. I actually know the lyrics to very few Japanese songs. I have memorized a few Monkey Majik songs, but they weren’t featured on the DVD. There were a couple of dozen English language songs so I ended up singing Frank Sinatra’s “My Way” and The Beatle’s “Hey Jude”.

We arrived in Hiroshima’s Miyajima area around 9:30 or so and walked through a gift shop to the boarding area of the ferry that would take us to the main Miyajima island. It was raining. It rained all day long. While slightly inconvenient because I had to juggle holding my camera, umbrella and bag it did create a rather unique mood for the day that augmented the beautiful things we would end up seeing on Miyajima. It was a rather quick trip on the ferry to the island. As we approached I could see through the thick mist in the distance the iconic Itsukushima Shrine’s torii (gate). It was an image I’d seen a countless number of times in photographs and on film and to finally see it approaching in person was rather surreal. It is often iconic objects such as this torii that help create the notion you have of a country before actually visiting it. It is images of these things that you see in photography books and used in films. Seeing it in person is almost like seeing something out of a dream become reality.

As we docked there was a neighboring ferry from which people were already getting off. Miyajima’s architecture and landscape has remained rather archaic and this view, with the Itsukushima Shrine and pagoda tiered ancient temples in the background, looked as if it were from the Edo period. For a moment I was caught up in all the romance of Japan that movies and television had created for me during my childhood and young adult years. Of course, it’s easy to forget all that when you actually live here, work 40-hour weeks, are connected to the internet 24 hours per day, and are afforded all of the luxuries that modernity has to offer; but it is nice to see places like this that have retained that direct connection to the Japan of old. You really can feel the history in a place like this.

Walking through this area I immediately was reminded of Nara since there are dozens upon dozens of domesticated deer walking around. Many people were feeding them out of their hands and some children were petting them. A few were waiting with the visitors under awnings to get out of the rain.

Our first stop was at a place called Yakida-ya (やきだ屋), which was a desserts bakery that specialized in Momiji-Manjuu (紅葉饅頭), or maple leaf shaped manjuu, a type of red-bean paste filled (or sometimes chocolate filled) confection. We were invited upstairs where we were given a tutorial on how to make these treats. Then each of us was allowed to make four ourselves, two red-bean and two chocolate. Mine turned out looking really good but I didn’t eat them since I’m planning on giving them to someone as a gift.

After making the manjuu we headed to our lunch destination. It was at a restaurant that specialized in anago (穴子), the conger eel. The meal consisted of a salad, deep-fried oyster, miso soup, and anago-don (穴子丼), anago on top of rice. It was delicious and kept me full for most of the rest of the day.

After lunch we went to Itsukushima Shrine. Along with the Five-storied Pagoda, which sits behind the shrine, this shrine is what the island is most famous for. We paid a small admission fee and entered the shrine’s grounds. I walked through the covered halls and admired the various views of gardens and lanterns that could be seen along the route. The constant rainfall provided an ever-in-motion backdrop to the environs; the rain splashed on the roof over head with a woody plop, which then fell to the hanging lanterns, the stone troughs used for purifying ones hands, the rocks, the crabs that found their way inside without admission fees, and the soaked earth. Children laughed and ran thru the halls and around the legs of the adults, unaware of the history around them or of its significance. At almost every point I could see the torii off in the distance. Despite the beauty of the shrine structure itself I couldn’t help but feel that I was walking a path that ended at this torii, as if the torii was the final destination. While this is no doubt the main attraction of the place nowadays, it is quite an odd way of thinking considering in the past the torii was the gate by which you would enter the grounds via ship. The gate is very wide and allows what would have then been a normal sized passenger ship to pass through. Now, because of its age it is treated as sacred and one cannot help but look upon it with reverence.

As I approached the center of the shrine I could see a ceremony of some kind going on in the main temple area. A priest was facing away from a congregation of people kneeling towards the altar ahead. They would periodically bow their heads at the word of the priest before returning to an upright, attentive position as the ceremony continued.  Immediately behind the ceremony and off in the distance was the torii. On either side of the final path leading to the waters in which it sat were two statues resembling some animal that was half lion and half dragon. I passed their gaze and wasn’t blasted into pieces by lasers from their eyes or some other horrible childish nonsense – that I truthfully can’t help but feel every time I pass between two facing statues (thank you The  Neverending Story) – and made my final approach toward the torii. The water had subsided enough to walk to the sand just before the water but I opted to stay on the comparatively dry dock and admire the view from afar. I was very thankful for the experience and would love to return for another view during another season.

We next decided to head to the Miyajima Aquarium. There were a wide assortment of sea life on display and it was interesting, but not worth the 1,500 yen entrance fee. I’d been to better aquariums for a fraction of the price.

We were all quite exhausted from the walking and the rain and headed back to the ferry which returned us to the mainland (which is actually just another bigger island isn’t it? – this is Japan after all). Our bus was waiting for us and took us into Hiroshima City proper. We walked around for about half an hour before going to our dinner destination. We ate at an okonomiyaki restaurant. I ordered a soba noodle and shrimp concoction that was delicious. I was actually still somewhat full from the lunch earlier in the day but managed to eat every last bite.

We headed back to the bus and a number of the teachers sang karaoke almost the whole way back. I tried to sleep a little but wasn’t too successful. It was a full day and a very good experience. I can’t wait to go back again and see more of Hiroshima City and Miyajima, hopefully on a bright sunny day.

*Please watch the short video montage I made of the trip. I will post it in the following entry. 

I’m alive, I swear!!

Hello world! No, I did not drop off the face of the planet. The reason for the HUGE lull in blog updates is due to good old fashion procrastination gone too far. I can’t believe that the last time I updated this blog I hadn’t even started teaching classes yet. Now I’m three months into my first year on JET and so much has happened. I don’t even know where to begin so I guess I’ll just briefly talk about teaching. Here goes…

ELEMENTARY AND JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL ENGLISH CLASS

As I’ve mentioned before I teach at 5 elementary schools and 2 junior high schools. My junior high classes follow a fairly strict curriculum and 1st, 2nd, and 3rd graders use a textbook called Total English 1, Total English 2, and Total English 3 respectively. My responsibility for the most part is to come up with with games, activities and/or worksheets that allow the students to effectively use the target grammar and vocabulary for each lesson. Also, since I am the native speaker of English in the classroom I am expected to use as little Japanese as possible while in the English classroom. It’s important for the students to get as much native aural input as possible and my being there is a great opportunity for them to get used to natural English sounds. 

I do, however, use a little Japanese if the students ask a specific question related to a difficult grammar point or if they need help with a translation. If at all possible I’ll have the JTE (Japanese Teach of English) do the explanations in Japanese but it isn’t always possible since they are often busy helping other students.

All in all, the classes go pretty smoothly. There are always a few star students who seem to know all of the answers and are really excited about learning English; then there are the few students who can’t be bothered to even open their textbooks during class or repeat after me when I’m doing reading or vocabulary practice. Other than these few students things seem to be going really well.

I really like all of my junior high school students and we get along really well outside of class. At all of my schools except one I eat with the students either in the lunchroom or classroom depending on how the school is set up. Lunchtime is the one time during the day that I allow myself to use Japanese freely with the students; it is a great opportunity for me to get to know the students and for the students to get to know me. They don’t have to feel nervous or self-conscious about speaking in a foreign language. Often I use this time to talk with them about foreign language learning and my own experience with learning Japanese. I can give them advice about learning English in their own language so that they can readily apply it in the classroom and on their own time.

Elementary school is set up a little bit differently when it comes to English classes. 5th and 6th grade, as of recently, does follow a curriculum and uses a textbook so with those grade levels my responsibilities are very similar to those of junior high school. 1st through 4th however does not follow any particular agenda and so it is up to me and the homeroom teachers for those grades to decide on what to focus on for each class. At their young age the most important thing for them is not so much to be able to pass English exams and ace all of their homework, but rather to get used to hearing and using a foreign language and, perhaps even more importantly, to get used to interacting with someone from another country and culture. Often my lessons will focus on various cultural differences between America and Japan. Also, at lunchtime the kids will teach me all sorts of games that they play  that I’ve never seen played in America so I too am learning about their culture each day.

It’s been a really wonderful experience teaching at these schools so far and I’m looking forward to the coming months.

EIKAIWA CLASSES

Melody and I also teach a free English Conversation Class twice each month. Most of the people who attend are adults in their late 30s to late 60s, but one of my JHS students and one of the adult student’s nephews does regularly attend as well. We’ve had about 3 classes so far and they’ve all gone really well. The first class was spent introducing ourselves to our students and having them introduce themselves in English. Each lesson after that has started with Melody and me talking about how our weekend or previous two weeks went and then allowing the students to talk about theirs. 

Our second lesson’s theme was American English idioms. We taught them all sorts of expressions that are commonly used. Examples include:

“When in Rome, do as the Romans do”
“Like finding a needle in a haystack”
“Preaching to the choir”
“She’s/he’s hot”

and many others. They really enjoyed learning these and it was interesting to hear how many of these expressions had Japanese equivalents. It was uncanny how close they were and really shows that, despite our superficial differences, people are people and we all have more in common than we may initially think. We all experience the world through the same human faculties and try to make sense of it to the best of our ability. This is reflected beautifully in the miracle of complex human language.

The third class was kind of similar to the second; we focused on natural English as opposed to “proper English” or “textbook English”. We taught them how most American English speakers don’t annunciate each and every word in a sentence. For example:

“Whaddya gonna do?” or “Whatcha gonna do?”
 etc…

They actually found this quite difficult but learning that these casual forms of speaking exist and are actually quite prevalent in everyday speech is important since they will encounter it quite often. The normal textbooks don’t teach this and so having us there to expose them to it is very beneficial. 

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So what do I do when I’m not teaching English?


KAMOTAISAI (加茂大祭)

A couple of weekends ago I was fortunate enough to be able to participate in one of the three biggest festivals in Okayama, and also one of the oldest. It is called Kamotaisai (加茂大祭） and is considered a living tradition in Japanese culture. Other than a 200 year period where it ceased to be held the festival has happened every year since around 1053. 

The Thursday and Friday before day one of the festival was spent getting to know the other participants. Each of those nights I went to the shrine from which we would depart, called Kamojinja (鴨神社) for about an hour and met the others. I drank a little sake and played Tebyoushi (手拍子), small hand cymbals, to the complicated rhythm of the taiko players (something I never quite perfected).

The Saturday of the first day of the festival we met at the shrine at 11:00 AM and we (around 12 to 15 men) proceeded to lift the portable shrine, called an Omikoshi (お神輿) into to the air, then down the steps leading out to the street and about a half a kilometer to a grassy area on the side of the road next to the river that runs through Shimogamo. We then celebrated with beer and food and many other local people came to enjoy the festivities as well. A couple of hours later we carried the Omikoshi back to the shrine and went our separate ways.

The next day, Sunday, was the main event. I woke up at 2:00 AM and met at the family’s house who had invited me to join the festival at 3:00. We ate breakfast and went to the shrine at 4:00.  It was still dark and the early morning air was cold; brisk, yet refreshing. The stars in Kibichuo shine brightly since we’re so far up in the mountains and away from the big city lights. It was a beautiful morning. We lifted the shrine again but this time we carried it a much further distance before resting. A large crowd of both people on foot and in cars followed slowly behind us. Some were playing the small cymbals, others the taiko drums, and others a traditional Japanese flute. The rhythm of the percussion and the melody on the flute was repeated thousands upon thousands of times as the day went on and it really helped put you into the spirit of this ancient tradition.

Our first resting point was at the foot of the mountain road, soon to lead us all the way to the top. We drank Nihonshu (日本酒) and ate some food prepared for us by local families. After the short break we loaded the Omikoshi into the bed of a truck and drove to the very top of one of the mountains in Kibichuo. A long time ago this distance was traversed on foot, the Omikoshi being carried the entire way. This would take several days. I respect the effort that that must have taken but have to say that I’m glad we used a vehicle. 

Once at the top of the mountain we again were greeted with a group of people who had lit a bonfire and had more Nihonshu for us to drink. On the day of this festival this alcohol is said to provide the participants of the festival with extra strength. I drank quite a bit of it.

As we descended the mountain the sun was beginning to rise and I could see the mist covered peaks of the surrounding mountain slopes. With the hypnotic rhythm of the taiko, and faint, whispy melody of the flute just barely reaching my ears from the vehicle behind us it was quite a haunting and beautiful moment.

Our group (Kamojinja) was the first of nine to arrive. Each shrine in the town starts at a different location but eventually ends up at the same point in Kamogawa. We carried the Omikoshi to what would be it’s resting place for the duration of the festivities; though it wouldn’t be the last time we would have to lift it on our shoulders. Throughout the day we would be called on to pick the Omikoshi up and bounce it up and down on our shoulders as we carried it. We would take turns standing at the front four and rear four positions; these positions took the bulk of the weight. We would then occasionally have to lift the portable shrine high over our heads while yelling at the top of our lungs. It was an exhausting, sometimes painful, experience. But it made me discover that there is so much hidden strength inside me that I can summon when necessary. There were times after lifting the Omikoshi that I was just praying for it to be the last time and when it wasn’t, rather than be disappointed or want to give up, I was immediately overtaken by a sense of obligation to my fellow participants who were just as tired as I was, and this commiseration bonded us together. 

Thousands of people came out for the festival and there were food stands set up all along the road selling everything from takoyaki to hot dogs to desserts. I saw a ton of my students and a few of my coworkers as well.

At the end of the festival we loaded the Omikoshi back onto the truck and we took a bus back to Kamojinja where we awaited its arrival. Before taking the Omikoshi back up the stairs to its resting place in Kamojinja we carried it a little ways down the street to the Retirement Community and had a small festival for the residents there. It was a very touching experience watching them light up when they saw the shrine, the musicians and the Dragon Dance. 

I really feel fortunate to have been able to participate in something so old and honored as the Kamotaisai and plan on doing it again next year.

Halloween Party Weekend

This past weekend we went to Okayama City for the annual Halloween Party at a local place called Gorilla Bar.

There’s a big gorilla outside one of the windows. It’s not real.

Well over 100 people showed up for this 4 hour, all-you-can-drink Halloween bash and it was a lot of fun. We stayed the night at our friends Jessica and Brian’s house.

The next day we woke up and walked to the local convenience store to buy breakfast from their bakery. We then spent the rest of the day downtown eating delicious foods and window shopping. The highlight of our food adventures was an absolutely delicious ramen place (whose name I forgot…sorry!). The noodles were extra thick and the broth had a ton (but not too much) garlic in it. I’ll definitely be heading back there again soon.

So, it seems that every time Melody and I go off driving somewhere new we end up getting lost. We’re both brand new to this area and new to driving in Japan so it’s to be expected. We’ve both decided to just accept anything that happens, gladly embrace what our life in Japan throws at us, and be happy for the experience. 

It keeps us sane and keeps life interesting.

Melody and I decided it was about time for us to head back to Kibichuo so, after dropping Brian off at his place, we started to head back. We weren’t driving for 5 minutes when we noticed that there was smoke coming out from under the hood and the thermostat reading was maxed out. We pulled into the parking lot of this hair salon and popped the hood. There was red coolant everywhere and the tank was almost empty, but we couldn’t find the source of the leak. We called Brian and he rode his bike to meet us. He told me where a car parts place was so I rode his bike there and bought some coolant. 

I returned, wiped off as much of the spilled coolant as I could from the engine block and under the car, and filled the tank with coolant. We decided to go for a drive and see if it would overheat again and within minutes it did. We randomly pulled into the parking lot of this outlet mall that had a beauty parlor, bakery and yakitori restaurant called Yakitori Genki (焼き鳥元気). We happened to park in front of the beauty parlor. We called Brian and he rode up the street to meet us. 

We knew that we weren’t going to be able to drive the car anywhere far and all of the auto repair shops were already closed anyway. Well, it turns out that Brian was a frequent customer of Yakitori Genki and knew the owner. We went inside and asked him if it would be okay if we left the van parked there until the morning.

He came out and said that the beauty parlor was going to be closed the next day so it wouldn’t be any problem.

On top of that, he was good friends with a mechanic who didn’t live far away. He called him for us and he came right over.

When he arrived he popped the hood, took a look and immediately found a hose that had come disconnected; the clasp had failed.

He told us that he believes that Daihatsu had issued a recall for the part and that we should take it to the dealer in the morning.

Luckily there was one about 5 minutes away. 

We walked back to Brian and Jessica’s and stayed the night again. 

Talk about good luck!

We woke up around 9:00 or so and walked back to the van. We arrived at the dealer and they immediately came out, offering us umbrellas for the short walk to the entrance and coffee and cookies once we sat down. They confirmed that there was indeed a recall for the part and asked if we needed it fixed right away. I told them that we didn’t live in the city and if possible we would like it fixed today. They got it right in and fixed it within a half an hour. There wasn’t even a repair order made or any paper work to fill out. They just did it. 

I’m constantly amazed at the kindness of Japanese people and at the same time the efficiency with which their businesses generally run. I feel really blessed to be in such a country with wonderful people all around me.

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Okay, so I know I say this all the time, but I’ll try to be back again soon with another update. My goal is to write a lot of frequent small blogs instead of waiting so long and having to write these biographies. 

Thanks for reading!

Onidensai, Bizenyaki, Taki, Blueberry狩

鬼伝祭

This past Saturday (August 27th) was Kibichūō’s big summer festival, Onidensai (鬼伝祭). It was held at Kibi Plaza and lasted from 2:00 to 9:00. I drove to Melody’s place and parked my car there. We decided to avoid having to look around for parking and just walk from her place to Kibi Plaza (about 25 minutes away by foot). It was a beautiful, sunny day: blue skies filled with fluffy, cotton cumulus clouds. It was hot but a perfect day for a nice stroll through the Japanese countryside. Then it started to sprinkle. I was filming some huge caterpillars on the sidewalk when I felt the first drops. It was still so sunny; there was no chance it could come down any harder than this, right? 

Then it came. 

I quickly put my camera away and Melody and I tried to find some cover under some sparse trees on the side of the road. They didn’t do much and we were drenched within minutes. After standing there like a couple of lost gaijin we decided to just make a run for it. We ran toward Kibi Plaza, under the beautiful rainbow that bridged the highway, and, dripping wet, finally arrived. A few other people were standing there out of the rain and they started talking to me. They asked in Japanese if Melody was my translator and looked surprised when I responded in Japanese. This happens every so often: Melody is Chinese-American and so it’s natural for Japanese people to assume that she can speak Japanese and I can’t, but it’s the opposite. She’s doing well though and picking up a lot already.

After a while the rain died down and we were able to go to where the festival was actually taking place.Around the plaza were all sorts of food and souvenir vendors (屋台 - Yatai) selling all kinds of delicious treats. I purchased some sugared redskin potato fries. 

During the daytime the festival consisted of mainly dancing and music. There were some traditional Japanese dances, some hip-hop routines, a pair of girls who did a really good Michael Jackson-style number, and wave after wave of Uraja dances. If you’re in Okayama for any length of time you’ll hear and see the Uraja music and dance. It seems to be a staple at festivals. 

The musical performances consisted of a couple of junior high school bands including a rock/brass group and a concert orchestra. There were also some solo singers who I heard from afar as I was checking out the paper lanterns that the various schools in town decorated and set out on the lawn.

Feeling a little tired and still wet from the rain Melody and I decided to head back to her place for a bit. We were watching some Curb Your Enthusiasm when I got a call from both my co-worker, a 1st year teacher at one of my elementary schools, and from a lady who will be coming to my English Conversation classes twice per month. They were both at the festival and wanted to meet up so we headed back there, by car this time. 

We arrived just in time for the fireworks and they were some of the best I’ve ever seen (and I’ve seen a lot of fireworks - Jackson has them multiple times a year). We were really close to the launching point and they took up a huge portion of the sky. Very, very nice time.

Work!?

So, I have to say that we Kibichūō JETs are very spoiled. Today (August 29th) was a work day. I had to show up and I was getting paid. Here was what I did.

9:15 - Got picked up and drove to Melody’s house

10:00 - Arrived at a local pottery place where we were instructed in the philosophy and technique of Bizenyaki (備前焼) potter making.

11:00 - Made my own leaf-shaped plate and bowl

1:00 - Went to a nearby market, ate zaru-udon and then bought some fresh, locally grown grapes from the shop next door.

2:00 - Drove to Narutaki (鳴滝), a waterfall and hiking trail. We climbed the entire trail and got to enjoy being out in nature for an hour or so

3:00 - Finally, we drove to a local blueberry farm where we were able to pick our own blueberries, eating as much as we’d like as we picked and filling a container that we could take back with us. 

4:00 - Dropped back off at my house.

That was a great day of work. Tomorrow I visit my final elementary school and then the day after tomorrow classes officially start. I’ve been working hard on preparing my self-introduction lesson. I’ll have to give it so many times! I have 7 schools and each school has between 3 and 6 separate classes. I’m going to be so tired of introducing myself by the end of it but I know that it might be the most important lesson I give since it will be all of my students’ first impression of me and I want to make a good one.

I’ll be back again in a couple of days with another update and let you know how my first few days of classes went. Until then!  

Kurashiki and Ikebana

Hey everyone, sorry I haven’t updated in a while. Not a whole lot has been going on so I didn’t want to bore you with content-less blogs. I spent last Sunday and Monday in the hospital again getting tests done and, again, they couldn’t figure out the problem with my pain. But, they did prescribe me some more anti-inflammatory medicine and they’re having me wear support stockings to help with blood circulation. I’ve been more or less pain-free the past 4 days and the swelling in my ankles is almost completely gone. So, hopefully you’ll never have to hear me complain about this again or read boring blogs about hospital visits. I have a final checkup tomorrow and that’ll be that.

While I’m in the city tomorrow I’m finally going to buy a guitar! I’ve been wanting to play music so bad since I got here and it’s about time I quench my musical thirst. There’s a Yamaha instrument store inside the Symphony Hall building in Okayama City. I’m going to just buy a cheap acoustic guitar for now (probably around 30,000 yen) and  maybe upgrade later on. I’m really looking forward to utilizing my guitar in the classroom. I’m going to learn a bunch of fun songs that the kids can learn the lyrics to and sing along with. I think having a live instrument in the classroom will be more fun for them than listening to a CD. Hopefully…

Last weekend one of my best friends from when I studied abroad in Fukuoka came to visit me. His name is Takafumi and it was the first time I had seen him in over a year. He arrived late Friday night and brought me an omiyage from Fukuoka, the delicious 博多通りもん （Hakatatoorimon) that is such a popular sweet from there. Delicious. I’ve eaten the whole box except for one already.

That night we decided that we wanted to eat sushi so he told me about a kaitenzushi place he had heard about. We found one in Okayama City and decided to make the drive that night. After about an hour drive we finally arrived…and had only a half hour before they closed! I had 10 plates of sushi. It was great.

The next day Takafumi, Melody and I drove to Kurashiki (a nearby city) and walked around exploring. We found the famous Momotaro Jeans shop and stopped in to look at their 22,000 yen jeans. Super pricey but they are also some of the best quality jeans I’ve come across.

After that we made our way over to the the Bikan (美観) district. This is what infomapjapan says about it:

Still extant 17th Century granaries, white walls, latticed windows and black tiles contrasting with the green backdrop of elegant willows shadowing the Kurashiki River, created a visually striking and evocative impression on any visitor. The much admired Japanese sense of austere beauty is lovingly maintained in designated (1979) Bikan Historical District, a nationally treasured area of white walled ’namako’ (plaster lattice) storehouses with black roof tiles, traditional private residences and wealthy merchant mansions.

I loved the Bikan district. It was so great walking through a part of Japan with such a deep history. It was great seeing the wide variety of shops that occupied the old buildings too. Everything from souvenir shops to traditional Japanese inns (旅館) to French inspired cafes. My favorite spot in Bikan was the area that had a beautiful tree lined canal running through the middle. I definitely plan on returning to do some more exploring.

This week I visited a few more of my schools for the first time. I still have one elementary school left to visit. At my base junior high some of the kids who were there for club activities already knew my name and had quite a high opinion already (re: 「うわぁ、クリス先生かっこええ」) (“Woah, Chris-sensei is so cool”). It made me smile. 

Today my workday consisted of going to a little florist and cafe on the top of a mountain (right near one of my elementary schools) to do some traditional Japanese flower arranging (生け花). The place was called Ivory Flower Design Works. I’m not sure how well mine turned out, but it was definitely a fun experience. 

Here is a link to their website and blog. If you check the entry from 8/26/2011 you can see a picture of us doing our arrangement.

http://hanaivory.exblog.jp/
 
Tonight the plan is to head to Takahashi with Melody to meet up with a fellow JET (Jessica) who lives there and offered to show us around the city. Tomorrow is the annual Onidensai festival (鬼伝祭) that is unique to Kibichūō and I’m really looking forward to a day of festivities.

I’ve been taking some video footage the past week or so and will definitely take more tonight and tomorrow. I’ll put together a video within the next week or so and upload it for you all.

Thanks for reading and I’ll be back again soon.