Dec. 22nd was the Christmas enkai for Jusan MS. As usual I had a lot of fun and enjoyed seeing all the teachers in a more relaxed setting. Part way through the night one of the teachers came out wearing a Santa costume and carrying a bag of presents. In order to get a present they played a trivia game about the school. Of course, it was in Japanese and I don’t work there full time so I didn’t really have much of a shot but they were kind enough to include the question: “What state is Jusan’s new ALT’s from?” which naturally I could answer, so I was able to get a present from the bag.
For Christmas Eve I went out to dinner with Katie, her boyfriend who is visiting from America, Mariko, and Mariko’s friend. We went to a delicious Italian place and I had great pizza. It was snowing really hard so we didn’t go see the Christmas lights like we had planned but I still enjoyed the dinner and just hanging out afterwards.
Christmas morning I woke up to a snow covered Himi. I opened up the presents I got from a few people here and Skyped with my family. It made me really happy to see everyone crowded around the webcam telling me about the delicious meal they had (since it was still Christmas Eve in NC) and just catching up with everyone. I don’t get to talk with Gregory, Allan, and Theresa that much so it was especially nice to see them.
During the day Katie, her boyfriend, and I enjoyed a Japanese Christmas tradition: Christmas Cake. Earlier in the week Katie and I had ordered one for us to eat. We went with a smaller, less expensive one but it was still quite delicious. Unfortunately, we had to go pick it up ourselves and the weather was still rather treacherous but Katie and I successfully made our way to the shop. However, on the way back the cake got jostled a bit and wasn’t in perfect condition. I didn’t really care because it still tasted fantastic!
That night I went to a Christmas party with Alex and Joe. As usual, good times were had by all and I think it was a fun way to end my Christmas Day. Despite this being my first Christmas away from my family I wasn’t sad like I was worried I might be. I've really been helped by the fact that I've made some good friends here and that I have kept in touch with my family through Skype.
Since then I’ve been taking it easy and relaxing. I did have a couple of days that I had to go into the Board of Education building for work but even then there was nothing to do. It’s been great to just be a bum for a few days and the weather has really contributed to my just wanting to laze about…not that I need a reason :P
Don’t worry I won’t spend the whole winter just locked in my apartment. I have a trip to Hokkaido (Japan’s northernmost island) planned for the week before I go back to work. Jeannie and Diane both live up there and Jenni will also be visiting so I am very excited to go! So be prepared for a blog entry about that with many pictures.
New Year’s Eve was another party night. Wyatt had a Countdown Party that Alex and I went to. It was a lot of fun and after the party ended Alex and I went out for a late night snack (some might call it breakfast) with the owner and the bartenders and a few other of their friends. I’m glad to be making friends with Japanese people, especially because it seems to be helping my Japanese improve.
Well that’s all for now. I’ve had some requests for pictures around town so I’ll work on taking those to show you all in the future.
Happy New Year! 2011, here we come :D
1 comment:
Dear Cynthiawhatareyoueatingchu,
What was in the red bowl in the last plate photo of the fried pork? Glad you were around friends for Christmas and New Years. We missed you bunches.
Love,
Daddy
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