 |
| First view of Tokyo-Rainbow Bridge |
 |
| Tempura over rice, soba soup, and salad |
Those three words (good morning, good afternoon, thank you) more or less sum up my Japanese language skills as of now...and luckily enough, after being in the country just under a week, I'm surviving! I've decided to give this "blog" thing a try in an attempt to share my experiences with the Japanese culture, along with teaching and coaching at an international school.
 |
| Slippers waiting for us |
I arrived in Tokyo last Wednesday evening and was thrown into the culture immediately when my colleague who picked me up asked me what I wanted to eat for dinner. Me, wanting to soak up the culture as soon as possible exclaimed, "Japanese food, of course!" So off we went to a Japanese restaurant near my hotel and upon our arrival, before being seated, we were asked to take off our shoes. We then were led up a few steps to the platform we were going to be seated on, with cushions on top and even a place below the table for your feet! I'm pretty sure that in all of my travel thus far, I have yet to encounter this...and have come to learn that in seeing over 20 apartments, as soon as you enter, your shoes come off, and slippers put on. Now in most restaurants you aren't required to take off your shoes, but I definitely felt like it was a great introduction to the culture! I've been trying as much Japanese food as possible, and have loved everything, so no complaints there!
 |
| Shibyua at night...filled with people! |
There are about 10 or so new staff members at my school and its been fun getting to know them and go through similar experiences together. I have hung out quite a bit with two other single Irish girls in their mid-twenties that will be kindergarten teachers so that's been an added bonus to adjust with. We headed into town this past weekend for an adventure with only a metro map, nothing else. We were pretty certain we would end up lost, but as expected the Japanese were so kind and always willing to help, even if the communication was purely gestures due to the language barrier! We sat down in an Irish pub for a drink and wanted to find an English book shop, so figured people there spoke English and it would be possible to figure it out. Our server told us where Tower Records was located, however, we had not a clue on how to get there. He told us, "One moment, one moment," and next thing you know, he had gone to the back, printed off a map from google maps and had marked where were located and where Tower Records was. It was such a kind gesture, and completely unexpected!
 |
| Me and the two Irish girls, Michelle and Nadine |
I could go on and on about the adventure of grocery shopping, the massive amount of people, the heat and towels that the Japanese carry with them, my school and the kids I've met, but I'll save that for another time. Until then, I'd appreciate your prayers about the offer I put out on an apartment today and continued adjustment to life here!
 |
| Sushi on a belt! |
| Japanese pose at the Meiji Jingu Shrine |
No comments:
Post a Comment