Recapping a Few Facts

• Japanese people really do enjoy looking at your photos.
  
• Japanese people really do enjoy gift giving, wrapping everything.  Care is taken in wrapping and unwrapping each item. 
• You really do need an empty bag to return home with all the treasures you've been given.  If you liked the family fortune and mentioned so, it would probably be given to you!
• Sleeping on tatami mats with a futon is not all it's cracked up to be.  Basically, you're still sleeping on the floor.  OUCH!
• I love the Grand Prince Hotel Akasaka with its beds and heated,noise making toilets!!!
• Beanbag pillows...forget it!
• No reading groups.  You either get it or you don't.  Thanks goodness for Juku schools!!!  Basically, after school, private tutoring, which many kids go to.
• This particular group of teachers fills in a lecture room from front to back....Some strong personalities I'd say!  My group prefers the back....Go Tanabe Group!
• Bees are big here...picture a three inch yellow jacket.  Scary!!!  You never have the camera when you most need it!  Imagine getting stung by it?  
• Turtle racing has become part of the Japanese culture.  Thank you BK.
• Our cute Japanese guide informed us many times to "Buckle your seatbelt."  The law changed on June 6th.
• In addition to taking a good deal of money with you while hiking Mount Fuji, JFMF insurance doesn't cover many other things.
• Always wave out the bus to the left when leaving.  There's a line up of well wishers waving back upon leaving every where you visit.
• Stilts and unicycles are really cool to play with at recess.  Mary, can we get it in our budget?
• There are no Japanese that can use chopsticks the way I can, but they all try!
• Baseball fans are more fun to watch than the game.
• Total confusion as to what slippers to wear and when.  I did get it down by the end of two weeks!
• Skyping keeps you sane.
• Not all toilet seats are heated, but even the squat toilets make noise while you're using them.
• Packing and unpacking becomes an art when you do it five or six times a week.  I finally mastered it on the final day of our rather hectic week.  Figures!
• It's okay to make a fool of yourself at Karaoke in Japan!

Tomorrow's agenda...group presentations. 

Picking Ume in the Rain...but so worth it!

Turtle Racing Comes to Japan

Back In Tokyo

What a week it's been!  To begin with, Sunday night was spent at a traditional Japanese inn or ryokan named Musashi in Shirahama, Wakayama.  It was right on a white sandy beach about 300 miles south of Tokyo, overlooking the Pacific Ocean.  Evidently it is one of the nicest in Japan!  It has the largest hot spring spa, which is over 1000 years old.  Needless to say it was beautiful.  For dinner we had a tradional meal, sitting upon a tatami mat, dressed in our kimonos.  Talk about good food, lots of sake and ume wine (my favorite), laughter and silliness...my goodness, it was all fantastic!  

The previous night I had a home stay with a family in which both parents were teachers.  Megu (the mom) is a fourth grade teacher and Masa (the dad) is a high school social studies teacher.  They both spoke english (we only had to get the Japanese/English dictionary out once).  They have two sons, both going to universities, so they weren't home.  They took me to Masa's elderly aunt's house.  She has a forty year collection of  very intricate paper Japanese dolls she makes, hundreds of them mostly displayed in glass cabinets.  She gave me two very beautiful dolls.  She wanted to put them in a box for me, but each one she opened had more dolls in them, some "under construction" as Masa explained.  We sat and had tea while Masa fanned her the entire time.  Can't wait for my nephew to do that for me!  We also went ume (green/yellow plumbs) picking.  I don't think we have them in the US, but the juice from them is delicious and the wine is even better.  Afterwards we took our plums to a place that's set up to make juice from them.  Basically what you do it clean them all the put them in a large jar and cover them with sugar.  For ten days you gently shake the jar..."like you would treat your husband" according the the instructor...twice a day.  After ten days you strain it and drink it, then make jelly out of the fruit.  I have some to take home, but don't know if it will make it through customs or not.

We also had a Japanese barbecue at a park.  We brought our own food, sat under a pavilion at a table that had a grill in the middle of it.  The charcoal was actually handmade on the sight.  It's an incredible process of wood fired in huge earthen ovens for six days.  Afterwards the blackened wood is removed, covered in sand to cool for a few days then ready to use.  It's very expensive to buy, about $30 for one three foot stick that's less than an inch in diameter.  Needless to say, Japanese don't barbecue much!  Lunch consisted of corn on the cob, cabbage, peppers and onions, chicken and strips of the most tender beef I have ever had, all cooked on the grill.  Oh and of course tea!  Mmmmm, Mmmmm. 

The flight back to Tokyo was uneventful.  It was a bright sunny day, so we enjoyed smooth flying.  Once back in Tokyo a group of us headed out to do some shopping and get a bite to eat.  We were all hungry for some good old fashioned American cuisine and did find a...Wendy's.  Not one for fast food burgers for the most part, but I do have to admit it was good!!!  Not that I have had my fill of sushi yet, but...!  Anyway, Kathleen, can't wait for the cookout!!!  I'd like my burger rare please.

Meetings today, but we finish relatively early, 3:30 so that will give us time for some late afternoon, early evening adventures.

Hope all is well at home and I miss everyone!

Substitute Shortage...take note Mary!

Kaiten-zushi is a sushi restaurant where the plates with the sushi are placed on a rotating conveyor belt that winds through the restaurant and moves past every table and counter seat. The conveyor belt is narrow, but long.  Customers may place special orders, but most simply pick their selections from a steady stream of fresh sushi moving along the conveyor belt.  The final bill is calculated based on the number and type of plates of the consumed sushi.  Plates are color coded for price.  At the end of the meal the waitress uses a scanning devise along the edge of your piled dishes.  It calculates your final cost, then she scans a card similar to a credit card, which is your bill and you bring it to the register.  It was fun guessing what everyone's bill would be.  I imagine they have them in the US, and although they're relatively inexpensive here, that would probably not be the case at home.  It was pretty cool though!  We're in a seaside village so the sushi can't get any fresher than what we had.  It was by far the best I've ever had...you name it, they had it.  Mmmm, Mmmm!

We finished our school visits today.  Yesterday was elementary school.  Our custodians would love it here.  Well maybe not, they would probably be out of a job.  The students do all the cleaning!  Seriously!  They even do toilets and windows.  First graders don't clean to well, so they only do their classrooms.  The funny part is, the teachers aren't present while they clean and they all actually clean!  Okay, so if that's not wild enough, today while at the high school we walked into a history class.  When asked where the teacher was they said he was out on business...for the whole day.  In other words he wasn't at school at all...and there was no substitute!!!.  Just 35 or so kids (some classes have just over forty) all quietly in seats reading, studying or doing homework.  A couple of kids were talking, but very quietly and no one was fooling around.  Needless to say we were totally amazed.  Our escort teacher thought nothing of it.  Strange, but clearly it was working.  

Tomorrow, Saturday, we leave the hotel for our home stay, each of us with a different family in Tanabe.  I do know the couple I'm staying with have no children at home and are both teachers.  We'll be with them for one night.  Sunday night we will be staying at a ryokan, which is a traditional Japanese inn.  Needless to say I'm looking forward to that....hot spa, massage, relaxing!  Monday we head back to Tokyo for the final leg of our stay.

Terry's introduction speech

Ohayo gozaimass.  Watashi no namae wa Terry Samokar dess.  On behalf of our group of sixteen teachers, all from different parts of the United States, it is my pleasure to thank the staff and students of Tanabe Daisan Elementary School for extending such a warm welcome to us as your guests.  We are both honored and excited to have this opportunity to serve as Cultural Ambassadors between the United States and Japan.

We are living in a period of time where world peace in not just a wish, but rather a necessity.  The people of Japan serve as role models in promoting world peace.  Your dedication to this venture is an inspiration to us all.  It is with great pleasure and honor that we have been awarded this opportunity to work together.  Our group has traveled half way around the world to learn about your culture, your schools and your beliefs.  With our enthusiasm and commitment to teaching, we are excited to be able to share our new knowledge of your country with our schools and communities.  Our lives have been changed as a result of visiting your country.  For many of us we will begin a life long journey working with the people of Japan to promote world peace.

As educators we share many of the same problems.  As educators we strive to instill in our students a better understanding of life to come.  As educators we want the best for our students.  World peace is an important component of this.  Our trip to your country has not only reinforced the need for peace, but also the need to teach it to our students, staff and communities.  It is our hope that together we are able to accomplish this.

Again, I would like to express our heartfelt thanks and gratitude to the people of Tanabe Daisan Elementary School, Tanabe and Japan for inviting the people of the United States into your country in hopes that together we can make the world a better, more peaceful place for us and for our children. 

Domo arigato gozaimass.

Origami, Division and Calligraphy

Middle School Visit

Today was such a great day spent at Meiyo Junior High School.  Upon arriving at school we were escorted to the gym where the entire school population was waiting for us.  The students were all seated on the floor.  It's amazing how they were all seated in such neat rows.  After we entered the students all stood and bowed to us in unison.  Welcoming speeches were given as usual and the band played for us.  It was great to hear all of the Disney songs!!!  After a quick orientation we were sent out into the classrooms.  We were allowed to roam from room to room freely.  Sometimes teachers and students would acknowledge us, other times we just milled about the room as class went on.  We were allowed to take as many pictures as we wanted, however we cannot post them on the internet.  I began in a seventh grade English class.  The regular teacher was teaching with a British assistant.  It was fun to watch and listen to the kids repeating the teacher, then trying to say the words on their own.  They appeared extremely nervous to speak English in front of us, but did so at the teacher's insistence.  I visited a variety  of classrooms, taking pictures in each.  The kids were very much into holding their fingers up to symbolize the peace sign for each photo.  Gym classes were held in the pool.  I watched about ten minutes of free time in which the kids were all running in the same direction around the pool.  Some were on backs of others and dunked backwards.  Others were pushing for fun and everyone was having a great time, lots of laughter.  The two gym teachers were sitting watching, not saying anything.  With all the fooling around going on, the kids did seem under control and just having good old fashioned kid fun.  

During lunch we ate in classrooms.  A handful of kids, dressed in white type lab coats, masks over mouth and nose, and hair covered with net type hats went to the kitchen to get pots of food...rice, bean sprouts and what seemed like stew (beef, chicken, onions, potatoes and carrots in a light gravy).  Milk was also served and no dessert.  The best part...the kids also served their classmates.  They brought each student a tray, then walked around the bowls of food to each peer.  The teachers were in the hallways during all of this.  The kids were very orderly and when the serving was done the teachers came in.  At that point we all began eating with very little talking, maybe only a whisper or two.  The only thing you could hear were the chopsticks hitting the sides of the bowls.  Yup, the kids all cleaned up their dishes and trays in a very orderly fashion afterwards. Oh, it gets better later in the day!!!

After lunch we did more classroom observing.  At 4:00 club activities began.  All students are required to take them.  Club activities consisted of softball, swimming, gymnastics, instrumental, running and other similar sports.  I watched the girls warm up for softball.  I didn't get to see them play and would have loved to, but we had to leave and by now we all know that punctuality is key!  I did watch for about half an hour though and I do have to admit they were good!!!  These girls were really into it and it was clear they knew how to throw a ball.  Warm up was much different than that in the US.  These girls were doing all kinds of stretching, running, calisthenics with throwing in there too.  They meant business when they threw the ball though!  I'm sure they could teach the kids back home a few things about how to handle a softball.  The best part...yup, more cleaning.  The first year students, which were the seventh graders were cleaning!  Some were working in the vegetable gardens while others were scrubbing and washing down the sidewalks.  Not just hosing them off, but making sure no dirt was left on them...at all!  Take note students who will be in my class next year!!!

On our way home we were treated to viewing some ping pong and judo.  Wow, you should have seen this one girl throwing around this rather large fellow, hitting the floor with a loud thump.  They had a few good laughs over it.  It was work though, as one girl was bleeding from the mouth kept at it and did not complain at all.  Ping pong was fast!  My eyes had a hard time keeping up with the ball at times.

The night was rather uneventful...dinner with some friends, organizing and reviewing my speech for the next day.  

A few things to catch up on:  Sticker shock...when calculating yen to dollars.  A round of golf...30,000 to 40,000 yen or 300 to 400 dollars;  Broadway play (traveling troupe of course) 60,000 yen or about $600 or more depending on the show.  Of course everything is imported adding to the cost;  two beers and a soda...3700 yen or about $37, there's usually a cover charge at the lounges.  Oh, how could I have forgotten this...early on, when we first arrived in Tokyo coming in from the airport, this is so the truth...as we were going over the Rainbow Bridge, corny but true, there was a rainbow over Tokyo.  That could only mean good things!  So far, so true!...Oh yes, the hundred yen shop, translation...dollar store!  They're so huge here.  Well, I guess they are at home too, but not like here.

Thanks Kathleen for checking over my speech, it went great today.  Thanks Bob for long distance help with computer.  Thanks Marie for emergency shipments.  Thanks Claudia for the last week of school and the laughs I received in your email.  You're a saint!

The Fun Doesn't Stop!

First I'd like to thank you Julie for your comment.  Your daughter is in my group and we're having a great time as I'm sure she's told you.

The day started like any other day, a wonderful breakfast and off to catch the bus.  Of course promptness is a priority and our group is good at it!  We arrived at our destination, Tanabe Citizen's Center, to meet with the Superintendent of Schools and BoE a bit early, however they were ready for us.  Again, it was greetings, questions and answers from both sides, closing remarks and then an intermission while tables were rearranged for our meeting with the PTA.  We each shared our school's problems and concerns hoping the other had answers, yet feeling comfort in knowing we are not alone in what we strive for.  The PTA spoke of their "monster parents", not something they were proud of, and shared their school experiences, both good and bad with us.  Discipline, truancy, report cards, grades and school conflicts seemed to be the most discussed topics.  Did you know that in some U.S. schools parents have direct access to all grades, not just report card grades, at all times via the internet?  I was surprised to learn that, however I suppose we'll be there shortly too.

After discussions we boarded our bus and headed out to lunch.  We ate at a traditional zashiki style restaurant, seated on the floor.  Of course shoes are taken off at the door.  I can only imagine the waitress' back at the end of the day.  OUCH!!!  Actually, they serve kneeling quite often, without knee pads of course!  Still OUCH!  Lunch was tempura and wonderfully light.  Regardless if I know what I'm eating, I do at least try it.  Sometimes it's great, other times I wish I wasn't so adventurous.  Thank goodness for water.  I always make sure if it's something new I don't try it last.  That way I have food to change the taste in my mouth if I need to.

The afternoon was spent riding on the bus to various shrines along the Kumano Kodo Pilgrimage Route.  Tanabe is the heart of the ancient Kumano Region, the land of the gods, and has been worshipped for centuries by followers of Shinto, Buddism and Shugendo.  While we were at one of the shrines some followers, dressed in traditional clothing had walked a portion of the trail and were performing a ceremonial ritual.  It was pretty cool to see.  You also have to know that this is a very mountainous region and not easily traveled by bus let alone on foot.  These men had walked all day and looked it!  They were happy to stop and talk to us though.   There was lots of walking, lots of stairs and lots of riding a rather large bus along mountain roads very close to the edge of huge drop offs.  I was a nervous wreck to say the least.  Bob, my seat buddy, was only slightly better than I was.  He was often just about in my seat as he had the window side!  We decided together that looking at the beautiful scenery should not always be an option for either one of us!  We did have a great day and all of us spent an afternoon laughing together, enjoying the day and thanking the Great Buddha that the sun was shining...it is the rainy season. 

A few facts...When the bus departs, everyone waves to us...even the wild monkey we saw!  Along our drive though the mountains the typical scenery was woods, woods more woods...vending machine;  woods, woods, more woods...vending machine;  woods, woods....well, you get the picture!  According to Harumi (our guide for our stay in Japan)  if you eat then lie down you'll turn into a cow.  She stated that Brent will be the first one.  (See photo at top)

Tomorrow...Middle School!

Some Very Big Fish, Octopus, lots of Sushi and Bigger Octopus...Yummy!

Beautiful Countryside

The Infamous "Squat Toilet"

Arriving in Tanabe

Meetings are lots of fun!  No, seriously.  Who would have ever thought anyone would make that comment.  However, when you're treated as special as we have been you find them fun and interesting.  I think the people that greet us are as excited for us to be in their town as we are to be in Japan.  This morning started with a trip to Wakayama University.  I was told that its sister school is in Connecticut.   It's actually Eastern Connecticut State University where I graduated from.  Wow, of all the universities in the world.  How crazy is that.  After being welcomed by the President of the University we shared a question and answer session with current students and alumni of the university.  Japan faces many of the same problems in education as we do.  The respect for teachers has greatly diminished over the past 15 years.  Truancy his a huge problem for both teachers and students, while school violence and bullying are on the rise.  Evidently truancy is due to the fact that many people have a school phobia.  They have a name for it, but at the moment it eludes me.  Many don't go to school  or work at all.  Instead they choose to stay at home, never leaving their house and play video games the better part of the day.  The government is looking at ways to decrease truancy, but have no laws that are presently enforced.  We were asked many questions as to how our society handles this problem.  They seemed quite surprised to learn that parents could be fined or arrested if children do not attend school, as it is the parents responsibility to ensure their children attend school.  Also, children could be taken from their home and put into foster care, as parents are considered neglectful.  I guess that seems extreme to them.  Japanese teachers are currently not required to take any professional development classes.  Once they get their certification it is good for life.  However, this is changing and the government is looking at what would be our equivalent of CEUs.   I found it interesting that Japan has dropped its ranking in math from fourth in the world to sixth.  The media made quite a big deal about this.  However, they rank second in the world for science.  The media also made quite a big deal about this asking why they did  not rank first.  Talk about pressure!  

Next on the day's agenda, an hour or so bus ride to Tanabe, our host town for the remainder of the week.  We arrived at town hall for a visit with the Mayor.  After a warm welcoming and newspaper photos we learned a great deal about their town.  The population of the town is about 83,000.  Chief products are agriculture, oranges or yuzu (very sour in taste), forestry, tourism and service industry.  We were taken on a tour or as our guide stated "inspection" of the city.   It's not a huge town, but not small by any means.  Tanabe is a Pacific Ocean, waterfront community with an abundance of shops, restaurants, houses and hotels, complete with train station in the middle.

Dinner was on our own.  Although quite tired, the majority of our small group wanted to take in the city.  Some brave soles soloed out, while others went exploring in groups of two or so.  I hung with a group of six.  We mostly walked the streets circulating in and out of small shops, checking out the local inventories.  Similar to home, being Monday many restaurants were closed.  Now don't laugh when I tell you this....we settled on an Italian restaurant and had beers and pizza.  Ordering wasn't easy as the menu had no pictures, no English other than the word pizza and the waitresses spoke no English at all.  Okay, she may have been able to say hello, but I don't think so.  We ended up ordering four pizzas..they were small, but only got three.  The waitress didn't quite get that we ordered four, we were only charged for three and left it at that.  Needless to say, we didn't over eat last night.  The funny part was that as we were leaving the restaurant we noticed a Chicago Pizza restaurant across the street.  Maybe tomorrow night.  At $38.00 for a large pizza we probably won't eat pizza too often there though.

By the way...did you know in Japan people drive on the opposite side of the street?  Hmmm, and I thought that was only in England, Ireland, Scotland and Australia. 

On The Move

Today was a travel day.  Our large group of 160 broke up into groups of 16 by host city.  Our group was one of only a few that was flying.  After an early start, we traveled by bus to the airport, ate a wonderful Japanese boxed lunch and boarded the plane.  We barely made out Mount Fuji as the clouds were beginning to thicken.  Yes, it got pretty bumpy!!!  The flight was just over an hour and as you can tell we did land safely.  Thank you Buddha! 

Our bus ride from the airport took us another hour to Wakayama City.  A few facts we learned along the way...The population of Wakayama City is 1.1 million.  There are about 2.5 million in Wakayama Prefecture (State).  Cities are expressed in the units or bushels of rice they produce (3.1 million a year in Wakayama City).  And of most interest...When someone sneezes no one says anything to you.  However, if you sneeze once it means someone is talking about you.  If you sneeze twice it means someone is talking ill of you.  If you sneeze three times it means some is talking about you and likes you.  If you sneeze four times you're getting a cold.  If you sneeze five times you should go to the hospital.  I think our guide made the last two up though!  She does have quite a sense of humor.

Once at the hotel we got our room keys and had just about exactly five minutes to return to the lobby.  Next adventure...Wakayama Castle.  Originally built in 1585, Hideyoshi Toyotomi ordered his brother to construct the castle.  He did begin building it, but left before it's completion.  His vassal, Kuwayama, was paid in koku (bushels of rice) to complete the castle.  It changed hands a few times, always in exchange for koku...if it was only that easy for us now!  The castle today is not original as it was destroyed during the war and reconstructed in 1958.  Anyway, it was pretty cool and tonight I will post a picture of it.  But, right now I have to get my umbrella, jacket, kick off the slippers, put on the shoes and head to meet friends for dinner. 

Fish Market, Buddha and an Earthquake all in one day!

It's been quite an eventful day.  A few friends and I started the day by catching a cab at 5 am and heading to the fish market.  Now you might think "What possible excitement could there be at a fish market and why would anyone even want to go there?"  It was great!  The taxi dropped us off at the entrance to the market and, with cameras around our necks and lugging our backpacks we headed across the parking area.   Certain that the man calling to us was going to tell us to leave, that we were not supposed to be there, we stopped, trying to understand his Japanese words.  What he actually wanted us to do was hop onto the back of his small, flatbed truck.  Fools that we were, the four of us jumped on.  You have to realize it's slightly bigger than a golf cart, so not a lot of room to sit down on it.  Oh but no, he insisted we stand.  We figured out why afterwards...it's generally stacked with fish.  Kind of stinky!  Okay, nothing to hold onto, but we conformed.  Our new best friend took us on a wild ride through the market place to the auction, dropped us off, smiled for a few photo opportunities and took off, leaving us surrounded by the biggest fish I've ever seen, lots of men with their hands stuck into the fishes' bellies and dozens more of the flatbed carts literally zooming all around us.  One slight step into their path and we might be the next dead item on the auction block.  Suddenly a bell began to ring and then the shouting started.  They were auctioning off all of the fish.  It was so great being right there in the middle of it all.  We stayed for about an hour then headed back to the hotel.  

The plan was to grab a quick bite, shower and meet in the lobby at 9:00 so we could head out for another subway adventure on our way to Kamakura for the day and an opportunity to see the Big Buddha.  Being that punctuality is key on this trip I readied myself quickly and had a bit of time on my hands.  I decided to relax and organize my treasures that I had purchased during the previous days.  I wondered where the strange typing noise was coming from since I hadn't heard it before and knew that the business room was 14 floors below me.  Now being on the 34th floor the building can move at times, but it seemed to be moving more than usual.  So much so that I began feeling a bit like seasickness was setting in.  Wow, was it that windy out?  It hadn't been windy at all earlier.  Wait....could that typing be the building?  Could the swaying be....Nah.  After about five minutes I began to wonder if I should get the hardhat and flashlight out.  Mild panic was beginning to set in.  Did I really know what to do if we did have an earthquake?  I decided to leave the room, the creaking was getting louder.  Do I take the 34 flights down the stairs or use the elevator.  I chose the elevator thinking if it were really an earthquake they would have turned it off, so I waited, hopped on when it arrived and began talking to about 10 others inside with me.  They were telling me there had been an earthquake north of Tokyo that registered at around 7 and we were feeling the effects of it.  WOW, I experienced and pretty large earthquake!  I was about 250 miles from it, but certainly felt it.  How crazy was that.  Needless to say I made my way to the lobby and it was all the talk down there.  

Next mission...conquering the subway once again.  It was still quite a feat, but we did it without any wrong turns this time.  Much easier with only a few people navigating through the stations.  Kamakura is a fishing village south of Tokyo.  It is home to an 800 year old, very large copper Buddha.  VERY LARGE!  We acted and looked the typical tourist type.  Lots of pictures, lots of walking, lots of shopping, lots of people and lots of food.  What a great day!  What great experiences!  How lucky am I?  Tomorrow I'm off to Tanabe for a week!  Will write from there next.

I know school is over, but I have homework for my graduates...Write me and email!  I miss you all.  tsamokar@sbcglobal.net   Hope the last week was a good one and everything went well.  Hope you continue to check my blog.  Will post more pictured tomorrow night. 

Hugs to all.

Dinner the first night

Arriving in Japan

Meetings and a Ball Game

Sitting is definitely not a teacher’s forte!  After another yummy breakfast, the better part of yesterday was spent listening to speakers presenting Japan’s Economy, Educational System and Government.  Diet members Yuji Tsushima (House of Representatives) and Wakako Hironaka (House of Councillors), two of the most prestigious members of Parliament, spoke to us for an hour and a half.  They actually left the Parliament, which was in session, to join us.  It was all very interesting.  Japan faces many of the same problems and concerns as the United States.  Although a relatively safe country, the crime rate is on the rise, the division between rich and poor is widening, suicide among young people has grown, the country struggles with educational issues and budgets (per pupil expenditures are very low compared to the US), single family households are on the rise and young people are losing traditions along with respect for elders.  There was a good deal of statistical number crunching relayed to us in relationship to Economics.  The Japanese population is about 127 million people.  Ten percent of this population resides in Tokyo.  Japan is a country with very few foreigners living here…600,00 Koreans, 560,000 Chinese and 51,000 Americans.  One million Japanese live abroad with about 370,000 of them residing in the United States.  The population of Japan is on the decrease.  Currently, about 18% of the population is over 64 years old.  This percentage is expected rise to 35% by the year 2050.  Japan is self sufficient in rice farming and poultry products, however, just about everything else is imported resulting in the high cost of living.  Animation and technology are also big industries here.   Cell phone technology is very advanced domestically however Japan has been unable to gain success though exportation.  I could go on, but I'll spare you for now.

Baseball...You have never experienced a game like 68 of us did last night.  To begin with getting there was quite a feat in itself.  Although the subway is like every other subway around the world, try reading it in Japanese characters!!!  WOW!  Some stations within the major parts of Tokyo have the words also written using the alphabet we're familiar with, however, further out is another story.  It was fun though and we all laughed quite a bit.  The day's lesson....Travel in groups of four or five.  Trying to maneuver a group of 40 or more was a bit on the ridiculous side, but loads of fun.  The game itself was like any other professional baseball game, but the crowd was ...enthusiastic!  There were two bands playing, lots of cheering from the crowds with all kinds of noise makers and balloons flying around all at once.  Yup, they blew them up and let them all go at the same time.  Everyone seemed to know what they were doing, when to blow them up and when to let them go.  I just happened to be video taping when it all took place.  It was during the sixth inning and seemed comparable to our seventh inning stretch, but WAY more fun and excitement.  Much like high school football in the US, you sat on the side of your team.  We were on the blue side, The Lions, as opposed to the yellow side, the Tigers.  The hour ride back on the subway was as eventful as going, with fewer people in our group though.  It made it much easier to ask questions, although everyone we met and asked a question of was more than willing to help us out, leaving their station to escort us to where we needed to be regardless of distance within the subway.  

Today's agenda...we're breaking out into smaller interest groups in the morning, then by area groups  or host cities in the afternoon.  We will also be treated to more traditional Japanese theatre later in the day.  

Hope all is going well with everyone.  Enjoy the last day of school.  Miss everyone, but am truly having the experience of a lifetime here in Japan.  I just feel so lucky to have been chosen as a....Cultural Ambassador.

I'm Here!!!

Physically anyway! I don't ever recall being so tired in my entire life. But, it's all worth it. I have to keep telling myself, "I'm actually in Japan. How cool is this!" We arrived yesterday, which was really a day later than we left SF so we lost a day in transition. We'll gain it back when we return to the U.S. though. I will arrive in the U.S. around the time I leave Japan. I realized if I just keep flying around the world I'll never get any older! Oh my gosh, I can't believe I'm talking about leaving Japan already. We have so much ahead of us in the next two weeks.

The first lesson of the day...If you climb Mount Fuji higher than the fifth station be sure to bring lots of money with you. It will cost you about $5000.00 for the rescue team to find you when you get lost. I think I'll just do a drive by.

Today we went to the Diet. This is comparable to our Capital Building in Washington D.C. I was surprised to see that it is very similar in the way it's set up and the way it looks inside in the chambers. They also have a House of Representatives. They serve the same purposes ours does. We weren't allowed to use cameras unless we wanted to donate it to the government. Anyone caught taking photographs has their camera permanently taken away. It was incredible to see so many school groups there. More so was how well behaved they all were, quite a few hundred students. They were all so orderly and quiet, but clearly enjoying themselves.

We had a typical Japanese lunch in a lovely restaurant in Asakura, tempura, rice, miso soup, tangerine, salad....mmmmmmm. We sat on mats on the floor after taking off our shoes. I did have my slippers with me. Don't leave home without them! Afterwards we did some shopping, then headed back to the hotel. We travel by five coach buses. Every thing is planned for us, so there's no thinking involved. Later in the day we attended Japanese theatre. Yes, our days are packed with very little down time.

I learned today that the Japanese government cost for hosting us is $20,000, not yen, per person. WOW, that blew me away, but I must say they go all out. We each have our own room, king size bed, a generous meal allowance for meals when we're on our own and paid admission to the various tourist spots. And...get this, I now have the title of "Cultural Ambassador", helping to promote a more peaceful world.

Something else I learned today...Japan is the most seismically active country in the world. So, to make us feel less worried our room is equipped with a hard hat and flashlight. And I thought it was for bathroom runs in the middle of the night. Speaking of the bathroom....Heated seat, bidet, and something else that squirts water all over your bottom. The really neat feature is the noise it makes as soon as you sit down. It's a very private country in the aspect that outward bodily noises are extremely inappropriate. You can make all the inward bodily noises you want though so I guess it evens out. Anyway, to keep from others hearing what you're doing in the bathroom they cover it up with toilet noises. Not a bad deal. I'm getting one for Kyle!!!

I have so much more to tell and pictures to upload, but have to get to dinner. Punctuality is key here in Japan. The time you see on my this blog is not correct as I haven't changed it yet. So, just think 13 hours ahead! Will hopefully write again tomorrow but not sure if time will be there. We won't be visiting schools until Monday so I won't be able to post teaching until then.

Be good people in room 1. I keep thinking about all of you and miss you this last week of school so much. I'll have lots to share when I get back. We'll plan a Japanese Day this summer.

San Francisco

It was quite a day yesterday.  Long, exiting, exhausting, fun and more.  I think Jackson Brown's song "Running on Empty" pretty much sums it up.  The flights went well with some bumpiness out of Chicago.  We were rerouted around it, adding another half hour to our flight.  In Providence I met two others JFMFers, both as excited, yet as tired as I was.  Most of us got very little sleep the night before, doing our last minute this and thats.  Believe it or not one guy was even mowing his lawn at 10 PM.  Okay, I wasn't that bad!  Once in San Francisco we were shuttled by coach bus to the beautiful Sheraton Hotel near the airport.  With little time to change, I made my way to my room, freshened up and headed directly to orientation.  A few of us from the east coast got here after lunch so we missed out, but they did have boxed lunches for those on later flights.  Directly from the orientation we boarded four very large coach buses and made our way to the Japanese Consult General's mansion.  Wow, were we made to feel honored.  There were speeches and dinner, Japanese Cuisine of course...Lots of yummy sushi!!!  Mmmmm Mmmmm,  We were thanked over and over for becoming part of the exchange program.  Imagine, thanking us after feeling so honored to be chosen.  The thanks truly goes the other way for allowing me this wonderful opportunity.  Every single person in this program is upbeat, excited and friendly.  We all have so much to talk about and so much to share from our classes and families to expectations and plans once in Japan.  Not that we have much time to ourselves, but there is a little.

So, what has been instilled in me so far...Don't let the bath water out!  Others will use it after me.  Strange but true.  You soak in the tub, but definitely don't wash in it.  Be prompt for everything.  Don't walk and eat.  It's considered very rude.  Needless to say at dinner last night I caught myself on only one occasion.  I sat on the floor after that thinking it would keep me out of trouble.  Chopsticks have not been a problem, although I don't use them conventionally.

Sorry to cut this short but the bus is here and I'll update further when possible.  Don't want to be late.  Hugs to all and especially my family and class.

Getting Closer

The time is flying by and multitasking just isn't working. The end of the school year brings enough added responsibilities. With the additional preparations for my trip, I've had many late nights the past few weeks. I'm too old to be burning the candle at both ends, but it's so worth it!

I have continued to receive a number of emails from my new travel friends. We have already set in place a baseball game and a few side trips. Not that we'll have much time to ourselves as our schedules will be tight, but we've managed to work some "touristy" fun into our schedules. And yes, I am very excited.

I will be pod casting from Japan. Kathleen (Currie) Smith and I were awarded a LEAF Grant for the purchase of a 42" television in the library. We picked it up this weekend. Hopefully it will be mounted and ready to go for my trip. Scary that I'll be larger than life in the library! How great it will be for my class, family and others to be able to "travel with me."

Usually a night before packer, I have continued packing the past week or so. I'm trying to pack as lightly as possible, so planning is a must. Three weeks is a long time and we're only allowed one check-in bag. Can I do it? It won't be easy, just ask my husband! I'm up for the challenge though. There are certain things I need to bring with me. Nylons...can't even remember the last time I wore them. Band-aids...no visible tattoos. Umbrella...it's the rainy season. Business cards...thank you Mrs. Reinschmidt for the Japanese translation. Post Cards...my class made them in both languages. I will hand them out to the classes I visit. State Quarters...another little keepsake. Gifts for the family I will be staying with...the Japanese love wrapped gifts I am told. And of course computer, cameras and a tripod...speaks for itself. The list goes on, but I'll spare you from it!

Next on the list...Report Cards.

Overwhelmed

Friday night I sat down to check my email.  After logging on I found I had well over 60 new emails.  My first thought was "What the heck, am I now on a list for some reason?"  Each email was from a different address.  My next thought..."How am I going to get off this list?"  Had my computer malfunctioned?  Upon further investigation and against my better judgement I decided to open one of these infamous emails.  Wow, it was from a fellow JFMFer!  How cool and where did they get my email address.  Looking over the list, I realized just about every email was from a different person that I would be traveling to Japan with.  What fun I had as I sat for about an hour reading each one.  I had plenty I should have been doing as I was being honored at a dinner party that night, but just couldn't pull myself away from the excitement in each message my new friends had sent me.  Everyone wanted to meet everyone else.  Everyone wanted to make plans.  Everyone was so excited.  What a support group!  Needless to say, I can't seem to stop checking my email.  Each time I log on I find I have another 20 messages or so, well over 100 to date.  

The anticipation of the trip seems more real each day, however I keep thinking "Is this like Bob Newhart?  Will I wake up and find it's all a dream?"  Let's hope not.  So, yesterday I got out my suitcase and started packing.  Even though my departure is three weeks away, looking at my suitcase on my bedroom floor keeps it real!

I have had such a great amount of support not only from program members, but also from my district, particularly Ledyard Center School colleagues, students and families.  Thank you all so much for all you have done and offered to do for me.  I am so honored to have the opportunity to represent Ledyard Public Schools and especially Ledyard Center School in Japan and can't wait to come back to share my experiences with you all. 

Sushi anyone?

Homework class...What mountain is Japan famous for and why?  Can you name a company that uses this mountain in its advertising? 

For students in my class you may bring me in the answer.  Students from other classes visiting this page may email me at...           tsamokar@sbcglobal.net

Konnichiwa

Japan...Preparation...Where do I begin?  My first thoughts after being selected as a participant in the Japan Fulbright Memorial Fund Teacher Program.  I am officially a "JFMFer", translation: JFMF Teacher Program Participant.  I will be traveling to Japan for a three week emersion program, which focuses on education, culture and people.  In answer to my initial question, reread my application and begin building the plan I had laid out.  I have begun as you can see with my blog.

My plane leaves from Providence on Sunday, June 8, 2008.  My first destination; San Francisco for orientation.  I will be joined by 159 other participants from around the country.  On Monday, June 9th will we continue our journey together to Japan.  Once in Tokyo we will spend five days attending lectures, seminars, traditional art performances and have one day to explore on our own.  On Sunday, June 15th we will break down into smaller groups and head to our host cities.  I will travel with 16 other Teacher Program Participants to Tanabe, Wakayama, a small seaside village on the east coast, south of Tokyo.  During this time I will visit schools and experience a homestay and Japanese culture.  On Monday, June 23rd I will journey back to Tokyo for Project Resource sessions, debriefing and presentations.  Thursday, June 26th I will return to the United States and will most likely be home on Friday.  Wow, sounds like a lot in three weeks!

I will keep everyone updated on my experiences as often as possible.  Needless to say the camera is ready.  I will post photos, film clips and journals to keep everyone informed.  You can imagine how fortunate I feel to have been selected for such an exciting adventure.  

So, the first assignment for my class is to find Tanabe, Wakayama on a map and show me where it is.   And you thought you wouldn't have homework!  Students from other classes are welcomed to join in, come down to my room and show me where I'm going.

I'll post again as I continue further preparations.

Sayonara