Rainy Season

The rainy season appears to have gotten underway. We have had rain showers off and on for the last few weeks - often at night, but over all the weather has been pleasant. A couple days ago, it started raining with a vengeance. There are definitely dry patches - and sometimes it is only really drizzling, but there are a few good down-pours every day now. I'm not sure how rainy season works... will this last a week? Two weeks? Will it come and go? I don't know yet. The temperature has been around 75-78 degrees - not too hot - but the humidity has been just below 90% at the same time. Walking outside isn't exactly comfortable. We are starting to keep the air-conditioner on more regularly.

Our Favorite Mountain... Again

You may remember that the last time we went up Mount Maya, it was to scout the terrain for a visit with the American study abroad students who were coming. Well, they came and we we took them this weekend. The end goal was the Mount Rokko Pastures - a destination on a neighboring mountain, but the fastest way up is to take a bus from downtown to the Mount Maya cable car, and then take the cable car, followed by a gondola and finally a bus from Mount Maya over to Mount Rokko. Its not a short trip, but every leg of it was amusing. For example: While we were waiting for the bus, we got to gawk at this poor fellow. Got to love Japan.


The draw of Rokko Pastures is the chance to feel the spirit of a dairy farm and the pastoral beauty of - well, I guess the Alps? This is not where you go for Japanese culture and history, but it is entertaining. While we were there, we had the opportunity to see a goat tied to a tree, share our picnic space with real, fluffy (and cleaner than average) sheep, and make ice cream from scratch. In spite of feeling a little far to the left of reality, we enjoyed ourselves.

We hiked across the grassy knoll to the main building where ice cream lessons were being given. I had made ice cream before in an electric ice cream maker, but this was much simpler and took much less time (and was perfectly delicious.) We just put all of the ingredients in a metal bowl, nestled that bowl in some ice in a bigger bowl, whisked the ingredients, mixed some salt into the ice, spun the bowl of ingredients until they started to freeze to the side of the bowl (about one minute) and then started scraping the frozen part off the bowl repeatedly until it was all ice cream consistency. About that time, the hosts came around with a generous number of ice cream cones and we all dug in. Each bowl made 5-8 small cones of ice cream. Some of you may recognize Airi from OSU last fall. She was among several university students that came to have a good time with the American students.

And the results.

After making ice cream, we had free time. The American students all clumped together in some shade and chatted, but the rest of us wandered around and got to watch the sheep dogs getting some training. They give a sheepdog show on week days, but Saturday wasn't show day. They were just exercising. We left the Pastures at about 5:30pm and went back to the gondola. The original plan was to kill time until nightfall so we could catch the highly rated night view from the top of Mount Maya. We were still a good hour or two away from any such view, though, and we were all getting hungry. We decided it would be more prudent to return to the city for dinner and forgo the view. While we were waiting for the gondola, though, Russell did enjoy some Takoyaki.
I can't remember if I explained these previously. "Tako" means "octopus" and "yaki" means "grilled." Unlike "yakiniku" which I did post about back in May (grilled meat) "Takoyaki" is not straight grilled octopus. It is actually a kind of grilled, savory, pancake ball with vegetables and bits of octopus in the middle. The end result is a little fried ball of dough with tasty bits of vegetable and octopus inside. Its hot, though, so you have to be careful. The balls look like they are just the right size to pop in your mouth whole, but it wouldn't be prudent to do so (as I discovered the hard way during the cherry blossom festival earlier this year). No, the inside of a takoyaki ball is like molten lava - and the outer crispy casing keeps it that way for far longer than an amateur might guess. If you pop one of these lovelies in your mouth straight out of the box. you're either going to be spitting it back out again or sitting for a very long time contemplating your mistake as you wait for it to cool enough to bite into in your mouth. - A very long time. There might be tears.

If you are more clever and simply nibble away at your takoyaki ball until it is cool enough to finish off, it really is a delicious treat. Its a bit rich for my liking, but as an occasional treat - say from a vendor at a fair - its awesome. If you are familiar with Abelskiever, Takoyaki is made in a similar way. If I can talk Russell into acquiring an additional household item, a Takoyaki pan is totally going to be it. Of course, if there is anyone who knows how to make truly traditional octopus balls, its my favorite canine. Enjoy.

Regulated

On the way home from the grocery store, Russell had a run in with the police. Just as he was stepping out to cross against a red light, a bicycle cop whizzed passed and and said (in Japanese) "Please obey the signal". The best part was that said cop looked jolly enough to be a beardless Santa Claus. Yes, his message came across with a twinkle in his eye.

Russell was appropriately sheepish and waited for the signal.

An unexpected evening

Russell and I both had eventful evenings - but since I am possessed of a linear mind, I have to start at the beginning and work up to the adventure. What can I say, its a disease...

So things got started yesterday afternoon when Michelle asked me if I knew anything about Macs. Of course! Then I found out she was asking because one of the visiting American students had a Mac that was only showing a file with a question mark when she tried to start it up.

I don't know that much about Macs...

I looked online and found several reassuring posts that claimed this could be overcome - but of course, I didn't have the expertise to follow the directions, so I called Russell. Russell was pretty sure her hard drive was shot. No, no, no, the Internet disagrees, I assured him. Finally we decided that Russell would make an appointment with the Mac Store in Osaka and he would go with Amanda and also have them look at my computer (which has been requesting reboots 8 times out of 10 when it wakes up.)

Russell managed to get an appointment for the next evening (today at 5pm) so he and Amanda set off for Osaka around 3:30. At this points our stories split.

I was on my own, and while I almost just went home, I thought, "No! Russell is always waiting at home for me, this is my chance to go out and have fun!" I invited my coworkers, and my coworker from Singapore took me up on dinner. We went to a Vietnamese restaurant Russell and I had vetted and then went to take the train home. Since my coworker (I'm avoiding names as much as possible since blogs are more public than I care to think about) was working on a full stomach, she decided it would be fun to go exploring in her neighborhood up around the northern station (which was the same train line I take) so we happened to be riding together. About this time, Russell informed me that he was not going to get home until about 9pm. I decided to invite myself along for some exploring.

Now, this particular coworker and I are seriously bad influences on each other's waist-lines. We both have sweet tooths, and we seem to amplify each other. As if of one mind, we both decided that more than an exploration of mere places this should really be an exploration of dessert shops! Much more interesting. She took me around to all the places she had spotted in her neighborhood, and finally we decided to buy a slice of roll cake from a shop she had previously been too intimidated by to try. Roll cakes are very popular in Japan - at least in this region of Japan. They generally consist of a thin layer of sponge cake layered with a generous helping of whipped cream (the real stuff, not the sugary stuff we usually get in the US) and then rolled up and topped with gorgeous glazed fruits. (Note stock picture).

Each slice was wrapped up for us in an intricate little box with a compartment for ice to keep it chilled until we could get home. I was quite thrown off when the cake seller asked me how long I would be carrying the box. At first I thought she was asking what time I wanted to come back for the cake... Anyway, Michelle figured it out and we got a nice big helping of ice packets.

Next we went in search of a Bento for Russell. I can't remember if I ever explained Bento before. If I didn't, it is basically a lunch box that you can get at all convenience stores, grocery stores and train stations - most typically with a bed of rice and a variety of fried treats on top. There are of course, many variations. We tried several stores and finally found one that still had some reasonable selection (remember, it was getting late). I was just about set to say my goodbyes and head home when it occurred to me to check for my keys - nope, no keys. My coworker insisted she stay with me until Russell got back into town (I had just got a message that he was picking up the computers (the student got a new hard drive, and nothing was found wrong with mine) so there was still a good hour to wait until he got home. Considering our weaknesses, we found ourselves choosing between a bakery with matcha smoothies or Mr. Donut. The smoothies won out. We sat for about an hour and chatted over our drinks. I can't believe how lucky I was. If we had gone our separate ways at any point in the evening I would have been spending a very long time sitting outside my apartment waiting for Russell.

We eventually met up and headed home. Russell had spent the better part of the evening running around the Osaka train station trying to find a subway that had been renamed - then waiting for hours while the Apple folks poked and prodded the computers. All the service was free, though, so it was worth the trip. The student lost all of her pictures and work up to now, but at least she has a new hard drive and therefore somewhere to save anything new she generates. Hopefully, though not ideal, that is good enough for now. In the meantime, Russell has to put together a presentation for tomorrow morning for something that still isn't working.

Its going to be a long night.

Summer Heat

Starting yesterday, the weather has gone from beautiful hot sunny days with a cool breeze to muggy. The rain last night probably won't help things today, either. It is amazing how uncomfortable humidity makes things. The temperature itself is not so hot, but your cloths stick to you as soon as you walk outside. Apparently, once the rainy season is over, the temperatures will really start going up - and that's when everyone wishes they were somewhere else. I, myself, and perfectly willing to start complaining now - even though I know its going to get a lot worse. I am so, so thankful we got an air conditioner installed in time! It not only cools the house down, it also de-humidifies it. I should probably be worried about electricity bills... but being comfortable at home is feeling pretty worth the expense right now. Thankfully the nights have been cooling down enough that we can turn the AC off and open windows before we go to bed. That isn't going to last long, though. Ugh.

Updates:

Roaches
We have not had a repeat visit thus far. Last night I wiped every surface of our apartment down, so hopefully there will be nothing to attract them. We are keeping our fingers crossed.

Ring Allergy:
I had another appointment with the dermatologist and while my fingers haven't itched in two weeks and are no longer swollen, there is still a little bit of discoloration. I therefore must return in two more weeks. It appears he will not be satisfied until my hand looks 100% normal again. I both appreciate his thoroughness and am a little bit annoyed. I am very ready to just move on. It is clearly almost healed. Ah well. Now that it is better, though, the hunt for a new ring has begun in earnest. We found two nice jewelers yesterday and we are going to look for a few more before making a final decision.

Learning Japanese!

After three months it finally looks like I might be able to learn some Japanese. You might be interested to know that yes, even when you are surrounded by a foreign language, you can absolutely fail to learn it. In fact, you can quickly backslide in your language abilities. Seriously, my Japanese has been getting pitifully bad.

Why is that?

As it turns out, I spoke more Japanese in Oregon that I have been speaking here. In Oregon I had an hour of Japanese four days a week. Here, I get the set conversation at the convenience store for about one minute a day (which I can now successfully navigate even though I don't really know what they are saying). I do get a lot of listening. I hear my students using Japanese all the time, and I try to understand as much of the study abroad lectures that my coworker gives as I can - but otherwise I pretty much speak English to my students, English to my co-workers, and naturally English to Russell.

Hopefully, that will now begin to change. I have several good prospects starting up for real Japanese practice. First, I offered to give Kei (the friendly cafe owner down the street) English lessons, and I am hoping she will exchange Japanese lessons with me. She is not Japanese, she is Korean, but her Japanese is far better than mine. Maybe she will teach me some Korean too.

Next, I just started my free Japanese lessons today. They will go until December. My teacher is a web designer who is about my age - maybe just a tiny bit older - who speaks very good English but is happy to chat in Japanese. Our two hour lesson flew by. It was nice to meet someone so friendly and outgoing. I will try to organize the lessons to make sure I'm learning grammar, too, but hopefully this will help me learn vocabulary and speaking fluency.

Just using Japanese again feels really good. I was starting to worry that I would become one of those lame foreigners who spends years in Japan but can't say a darn thing in Japanese. It could still happen, but hopefully things are looking up.

Gambarimasu

Our Midnight Visitor

I had heard rumors that along with searing hot sun and suffocating humidity, summer would also likely bring cockroaches. For anyone reading who has lived in humid and or hot climates, this probably doesn't sound so daunting... but I had only ever seen live cockroaches in insect exhibits at the zoo. Getting a brief warning from Russell before seeing one running at me - while I was laying on my futon on the floor, no less - that just wasn't welcome. When I jumped up, the roach changed trajectory and hid behind our refrigerator. I went and got one of Russell's shoes and tried to hand it to him, but he wasn't having any of it. I got him to pull the refrigerator out and when our not so little friend when scuttling across the kitchen floor, I hit him. I didn't get him directly, but I stunned him enough so he stopped running. Then, on Russell's suggestion I covered him with a paper bag (killing something that looks large enough to be a pet is new to me) and beat the hell out of it. I'm sure our neighbors downstairs were thrilled.

We quickly researched roach prevention on the Internet. We have been doing our best to keep the house spotless - but frankly, we live in a pretty run down neighborhood. There are plenty of places for roaches to nest, so there is probably only so much we can do to avoid them. We do need to get a garbage can with a lid and covers for our sinks. We have already made sure all food is in plastic bags or kept in the refrigerator and we wiped out all our cabinets so there wouldn't be any tasty crumbs or residue. We also made a midnight trek down to the grocery store and discovered that roach hotels and roach spray were an end-aisle display (and getting rather picked over). We pretty much got one of everything and hiked home. We will be in deep-cleaning mode this weekend.

I suppose I was getting a little bit too cozy and comfy here - the food has been outstanding, my work is good, we are close to all sorts of wonderful things to do - there had to be something to balance that all out.

I hope no one will mind that I am NOT including a photo. Our little friend was at least as long as the palm of my hand, though. Awesome.

Ganban'Yoku

I had a delightful relaxing treat yesterday! One of my coworkers (Mel, who I mentioned before has been in Japan quite a while and knows all sorts of useful stuff) invited all the English speaking girls from work to try Ganban'Yoku. Its a kind of detox spa treatment where you lay on hot stone tiles and sweat for set periods of time. The idea is that you sweat out all of the impurities in your skin and leave all warmed up and refreshed. That sounded lovely to the rest of us, so we willingly followed along.

When we arrived, we paid for the treatment, registered as members (because it was cheaper to buy a membership than to pay for one treatment as a non-member), left our shoes in the entrance and stepped up into a hallway where we were presented with tote bags. Inside each tote was a pair of cotton - well - pajamas for lack of a better word, two small towels and one big towel. Mel showed us to the locker room and then told us that we could choose to shower before the stones or after. She recommended before, so we followed suit. We scrubbed down in private showers and changed into the "pajamas." After we were all clean, we followed Mel into the resting room. This room has benches to sit on, an oxygen bar in the corner, and lots and lots of purified water (purified with black silica from Hokkaido, no less). We drank a bunch of water and then headed into the hot room. The humidity was oppressive (but what would you expect?). We had four stalls in a row, each with four large slate tiles lined up body-length on the floor. Mel showed us how to arrange our towel on the stones so that we wouldn't bur ourselves and then instructed us to spend five minutes on our stomach and ten minutes on our back - then we would meet out in the resting room again. To judge time there was both a small clock and a five minute sand timer. The sand timer was way cooler, so I just used that. After fifteen minutes was up, we met out in the resting room and sat for five minutes before round two. One of our compatriots decided to experiment with the oxygen bar. She put 100 yen in the machine (about one dollar) and scented oxygen blew out of a little nose piece she hooked around her ears like earphones. The novelty wore off quickly, though, and she was soon trying to get one of use to spell her because she was bored. Too bad. She didn't seem to sense much benefit from the experience.

We repeated this cycle - fifteen minutes in, five minutes to cool down - three times. Each time we would come out sweatier than before, but dry off most of the way before going back in. By the last time we emerged we were all mostly soaked through. We returned to the locker room, and toweled off. Next we moved on to the primping room - where there were moisturizer products and blow-dryers. Once we were all fancied up, we moved on to our last stop - the tea room. We had a choice of two complimentary teas and two complimentary jellies. The tea choices were yuzu (a citrus gel that is dissolved in hot water) or ginger tea. The jellies were agar agar in cubes in a cup. There were hibiscus flavored jellies and another plain but slightly sweet jelly that had this powder on top that I absolutely love but can never remember the name of. It has a vaguely peanut butter taste, though there isn't any connection to the nut. I opted for the yuzu tea and powdered jelly. It was delicious.

Since we became members, we also got a gift certificate for an inexpensive facial with our next ganban'yoku treatment. I would never have ventured into a place like this on my own, but for $15 all told I may just have to go back.

A few other random things

I thought I would share a few other random things. First: a view of the bridge I walk everyday to work. I am trying to walk to and from work all the way from my house. It is about an hour each way, and I am not consistently doing both ways every day. Its beautiful and refreshing, though, so I will try to keep it up as long as I can. I was informed that once the rainy season and following humid season hit, it would be wise to give this activity up. I doubt I will need much convincing. The weather is gorgeous right now, though. It feels like it is about 80 outside and just a touch humid. Its funny (terrifying?) to think this is just springtime.

The next thing I found were these jelly cups you can get at the grocery store. They are either grape, apple or peach flavored and are rather filling without being full of calories (i.e. the perfect munching food for Russell while he is coding.) They are also fun to eat. They kind of slide out of their little cups into your mouth and are just slightly denser than jello. We avoided then at first, though, because of the large circle on the front with the two faces - both with Xs for eyes. Was this a cultural misunderstanding? No. On further inspection, it is a caution not to give the cups to children or the elderly, who might choke to death on the throat-sized gelatin balls. To be honest. I am well aware of the choking hazard every time I eat one, and I don"t have to be a child or an elderly person to feel threatened. But then again... they're really damn good!

FInally, I had the opportunity to try Japanese pizza again. I had a very distinct memory from my first visit to Japan years ago of an overpriced, tiny, not terribly tasty piece of cardboard with mayonnaise and tuna on it. Don't get the wrong idea, I'm not fussy about toppings - I loved the tuna, corn, tomato pizzas in Spain - but Japanese pizzas were just way too expensive for the end result. Even so, we decided that it would be fun to have a pizza party in the staff room to celebrate midterms week, so we got down to ordering toppings. We ended up with a meat-lovers pizza, a three cheese pizza and a margarita pizza (meaning tomato and basil - not tequila and salt). I have to say, while the price was still exorbitant ($28 for a Japanese large, which is equivalent to an American Medium) the particular place we ordered from definitely beat my expectations taste-wise. The three cheese pizza was especially tasty with little chunks of brie on top. If I ever feel so overwhelmed with the need for pizza that I am willing to part with a decent chunk of change, at least I will enjoy the result. Thank you, Japan!

Weekend Adventure in Osaka

Now, Russell has been working at home these last few months and while I think it was going well for him when he was using Internet at the school where I work, since he has had Internet at home, he has been developing some serious cabin fever. He has been combating this by running in the mornings after he finishes with teleconferences, but he's still often pretty house happy by the time I get home. This weekend, we both agreed it was time to get out of Kobe. We didn't go far - but we did manage to spend an entire day in Osaka. 

The main draw to Osaka as the aquarium. I had heard that it was outstanding and not to be missed, but previous trips had been taken over by guitar shopping. Not this time. The aquarium was our first stop - almost. We arrived around lunch, so we ducked into an all-you-can-eat vegetarian buffet (incidentally, all-you-can-eat buffet's in Japan are referred to as "Vikings"). 

So next we went to the aquarium - I will mostly let the pictures tell the story. To set it up, the first thing you do when you walk in the door is take a picture with the giant plastic shark. These pictures are professional (similar to the kinds taken on roller coasters) and you can pick your picture up when you exit for a jaw-dropping fee. Russell and I played foreigner and bypassed the line as if we didn't understand. 

Once we got into the proper aquarium, we went up and up and up an escalator. At the top of the display were a variety of sea mammals - river otters, sea otters, seals, dolphins, etc . Very cute, as is the prerequisite. The cool thing about this aquarium, though, was that it was modeled after the Pacific Rim and each ecosystem had a common mammal at the top and then deeper and deeper ecosystems (still in the same pool, but deeper down) as you descended. This meant that sometimes the mammals from above would decide to play and you would see them again deeper in the water - but it also it gave an idea of how the ocean changed as you went farther and farther down. It was a very cool effect. So anyway, on to the pictures:

Here some other aquarium patrons were playing with an octopus. The octopus was following their finger. Its amazing to see them move in the water. Incidentally, I had heard rumors that instead of saying "pretty" when they see tropical fish, Japanese children say, "oishii!" or "tasty!" I never heard this during our trip this weekend, but the girl playing with the octopus did say, "kawaii!" or "cute!"


The main attraction at this aquarium is the center aquarium. It is about three stories deep, and is in the very center of the building. You continue to skirt the tank for most of the aquarium and it is filled with huge schools of fish, enormous sharks and sting rays. It was also feeding time when we arrived, so we got to watch a scuba diver taunting the rays with dead squid (yes, they were hand fed - note the picture.)

This fellow was enjoying doing summersaults through the bubbles put off by the scuba diver. He pretty much just looped and looped and looped and looped. Sometimes he would come out of his reverie and change directions, but then back to looping. He was one happy, happy ray. I don't remember if you can see it in this pictures, but there was a fish hovering just over his back that would do all the loops with him. At first I thought he was trying to dislodge the fish, but in the end I didn't get the impression that the fish was attached.

This isn't one of my more dramatic photos, but its one of my favorite displays. Sardines and anchovies in large numbers. I have seen such displays in other aquariums before, and I can spend hours watching them dash around and around a tank in huge droves. Its hypnotizing. Unfortunately, the seating areas were in other parts of the aquarium - or perhaps fortunately, since I would probably still be there if I could have gotten comfortable.
Near the center tank was another, smaller, but equally deep tank that housed a variety of tropical fish and HUGE SEA TURTLES. It was feeding time for them too, so we watched as the turtles munched down on squid that were slowly thrown into the pool and then the fish around them would eat the bits that the turtles didn't finish chewing. If the fish at one level missed a bit of squid or sardine, the fish at the next level would get it. The biggest turtle got first dibs on what entered the tank, and the smaller turtle mostly hung out towards the bottom of the dank and ate what made it past the bigger turtle.

These fellows were especially fun to watch. They were in a huge school in the center tank. Under normal conditions, they were sleek and fish-like (for lack of a better description), but then they would suddenly change directions as if of one mind and unhinge their jaws into SILVER BANSHEES. It was hard to catch this in a pictures, but you can see a contrast between the open and closed mouth fish. As far as I could tell, the open mouths were a feeding technique - Its certainly what I would do at meal time.


And what would a good Japanese attraction be without an extensive souvenir shop? Here you can see the sea-life shaped utensils on display. Excellent.

After the aquarium, Russell and I went back toward the center of the city (the aquarium is more on the outside downtown by the docks). We were both tired of being on our feet so we enjoyed and ENORMOUS parfait complete with fruit, vanilla and matcha ice cream, fresh fruit on top, whipped cream and a cherry. After that, still not relishing spending any more time on our feet and yet also wanting to hang around long enough to enjoy dinner in Osaka ('cause what else do you focus on after a viking and a parfait the size of a house??) we decided to watch a movie. We had already come to terms with paying Japan prices to watch Star Trek. We had heard it was good, and while it seemed to be everything I would expect to dislike in a Hollywood movie, we had heard so many recommendations, that we decided to see it. It also seemed best suited to the big screen, so we gave up and paid the $18 each to see it. Granted, its a lot of money, but the experience of going to a movie in Japan is much superior to that of the U.S. The seats are more vertical (like newer fancier theaters in the U.S.) you have reserved seating, there are theatre workers everywhere to guide you, clean up after you and wish you well after the show, and the theaters are truly spotless. Not that I plan to go often (or possibly ever again) but it was fun to go once. In terms of the movie, I was very impressed. While a few parts seemed somewhat overdone for the sake of playing with the CG - it was clever, entertaining, and respectful of the original - even though the characters were recast to be played by younger actors. I expect to see many more movies in the franchise.

After the movie, it was finally dinner time. After so many hours in an aquarium, how could we eat anything other than sushi? We found a kaiten sushi joint (carousel sushi) and dug in. The fish was, as I'm sure you can guess, tastier and fresher than what I am used to in the U.S. and all of the plates on the carousel were only $1.30. Russell and I each polished off more than ten plates and were quite pleased. For those of you who have never tried kaiten sushi, the sushi chefs prepare a variety of sushi and put them on plastic plates which are then arranged on a moving carousel. The diners sit on the outside of the carousel and grab whatever they want off as it shuffles by. At the end, the waiter counts your plates and you pay accordingly. Definitely an entertaining way to eat.

The New Addition to Our Apartment

At long last we were able to get an air conditioner! Russell had planned to tough it through the summer as best he could and just buy fans - but we were cautioned by just about everyone that such an idea was folly. Russell was pretty much convinced that we needed an air conditioner (I was ready to get one long ago) and the stern lecture from my boss that we should buy one now because it would take months to get installed once it started to get hot tipped the scale. We went shopping.

Now, we had briefly looked before, but frankly, choosing an air conditioner seemed to be akin to choosing a fine wine. There were a million different options in a million different price ranges and there was no clear way to tell them apart - though like wine, I was definitely more drawn to those with cute animals on the label. We went home and did some research. Russell found a good website that explained what to look for and what all of the numbers meant. We also took pictures of the space where the air conditioner would go and anything else that seemed pertinent. Armed with this knowledge, we set off to the electronics store.

We chose the electronics store that was across from my dermatologist because unlike other electronics stores we had been to, one of the clerks at Joshin really went out of his way to work with us. He wasn't intimidated at all to walk us through his sales pitches, and he carefully examined our pictures and drew a mock-up of our room before telling us that there was really only one model for us. Since it wasn't the most expensive model, we pretty much just went along with him. After a little more research and a few repeat visits to the model he recommended, we ended up buying it. It was installed maybe two days later and is just about as slick a gadget as I have yet come across. It has a remote control to rival any TV, it doubles as a heater, and it totally unfolds like a transformer when you start it up. Fascinating!

Russell was at home for the installation (yes, we decided to let the professionals take this one on, since we had even less of an idea of what to do than we usually do at home.) Russell reported that we made the right choice. It involved a great deal of wiring, bundling, wall mounting, puttying and compressor priming. We happily paid the extra $200 and haven't regretted it. The weather is not quite hot enough to warrant using the air conditioner yet, but the temperatures are definitely rising. Once the humidity catches up in July I have no intention of turning our new friend off.

Japanese Lessons - for FREE!

Hello again. Unfortunately, I didn't think to take pictures today, but I did had an interesting experience.

Early on in Kobe, Russell and I were directed to the International House to get help setting up our daily needs in Kobe. They helped us find a bank and set up our cell phones when all the cell phone providers said it was impossible. That sort of thing. While we were visiting, we also discovered that they offer free Japanese tutoring. There are some criteria, of course. You have to be able to stay for six months of tutoring, you must have been living in Kobe for at least a month, and you have to understand that your tutor will not be a trained professional, but a volunteer from the community. After your six months is over, you cannot reapply for four more months. During your six months, however, you meet for two hours a week. All lessons are one on one. Seems pretty good. Russell started last month and has been meeting with a retired elementary school teacher for the last two weeks. I was not able to sign up last month because the open registration was on a day when I had to work all morning (registration doesn't start until 10:00, and all forty slots fill up in the first hour or so.)

This month, however, the first fell on a Monday - so I had the first period of the day free and was able to sign up. I thought the office opened at 9:00, so I arrived at 8:00 and went to take the elevator. No luck. I could go to the 21st floor and the 19th floor, but not the 20th floor - they weren't open yet. I went to the Starbucks on the corner and waited until closer to 9:00. At ten-to, I tried again and this time I was able to go to the 20th floor. There were already two other people in line ahead of me, and more came on my heels. The office didn't open until 10:00. Around 9:45 some of the workers came out and gave us forms to fill out with our contact information and hours of availability. At 10:00 we were paraded into a waiting room where we were eventually called out for a short interview. The interview consisted of questions like, "Is it alright if your teacher speaks English? Is it alright if your teacher can only speak Japanese? How much writing do you already know?" Things like that. I was able to do the whole interview in Japanese, which I was very proud about. This may have qualified me for a teacher that only speaks Japanese, though, so we'll see. Now, my general background goes on their website with everyone else's and I wait until one of the tutors who is available chooses me from the list. Hopefully I will hear in the next couple of weeks. I'm excited to start learning Japanese.

To be honest, I feel like I have lost quite a bit of Japanese these last two months. I pretty much only speak English with Russell, and I am not allowed to speak Japanese with my students. I don't really know anyone else around these parts, and my Japanese is bad enough that most clerks will try to help me with their broken English. While I regularly use two or three verbs, I really need little else for basic survival, so I haven't really learned anything else. Its not the best situation. I am also hoping to find some conversation partners soon. The International House has a board where you can post a greeting and hope someone wants to meet for a language exchange. I tried to write to one woman, but she never wrote back. I will try a few more people. I also want to see if Kei from the cafe down the road might be interested in a language exchange. She is Korean, not Japanese, but she speaks fluent Japanese (far better than I do) so maybe she will agree. That would be fun.

I will keep you posted!

In other news, I received a care package from my mother. Along with other things I needed, she sent me several bags of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups - a treat I have been wanting to share with my students. Reese's does not exist in Japan (even though almost all other American treats do) but we have a picture board at the school with a picture of Peanut Butter Cups. Only one of my students has tried then before (when she was in Canada) and she was lamenting with me their total absence in Japan. My plan is to save the treats for the last midterm this week (the worst one) and then give out the peanut butter cups as rewards for surviving. I hope they like them. I'm anxious to see their reaction. I will definitely post about it.