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FYI: New blog. Check it out here.

Grassroots int'l (fail) in Canada

The JET Programme taught me a lot of things about Japan and myself. "Grassroots internationalization" was part of my day-to-day job within the Japanese countryside. I exchanged my Canadian culture with my Japanese community. And in turn, the Japanese would share their unique cultural norms with me. Then, BOOM! We all realized we are all just human beings. So, I got used to the stares from my tiny six-year-old students, who would initially scream in Japanese: "Gaijin da!" This loosely translates into "The foreigner is here!" But after the first shock, the kids would get over themselves and invite me to look over their prized pet hamster and play tag in the school yard.

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The other night, a new acquaintance looked me over and decided to play the "Let's-Figure-Out-Her-Nationality." He was a bit tipsy, so I entertained the guessing game even though the premise gets old. He guessed that I was "Filipina." And in turn, I mentioned that my parents were from the islands but I was born and raised in the suburbs of Ottawa. He continued shooting off culturally-ignorant questions like "Do you eat food like us? Or do you eat rice every day?" In my head, I was wondering what buddy meant by "us"? I didn't mention I lived in Japan for three years, because it would've further opened the flood gates. I wasn't in the mood to answer a barrage of questions like "Can you use chopsticks?" Blargh. I was mostly turned off by the way he approached the subject of culture with me. It also didn't help that I didn't have a finger of Bailey's in my coffee at the time.

I proudly identify myself as Canadian but with Filipino roots. I understand my parents' dialect, but sadly I don't speak it. Growing up, my parents spoke it with each other and my ear could pick it up yet I'd reply in English. I was part of a Filipino folk dance troupe in town, but I never really fit in with the other kids. And my parents have lived longer in Canada than in their homeland! 

Last night, I should've educated the kid in "grassroots internationalization." But I wasn't feeling motivated enough to subvert his strange notions about the cultural mosaic within Canada.

I'll bring out the lesson plan next time. I guess I'm just flabbergasted people can be so dumb. End rant!

JET Programme Application Process

Oct. 15, 2012 : They revised the JET Programme Application Programme. Please check the latest guidelines on jetprogramme.ca!

I've written a short piece for a newly launched online community called "JETProgram.me." It's a website designed for aspiring, current and alumni participants of the Japan Exchange and Teaching Programme (JET). Every year, thousands of people all over the world scramble to assemble their applications.


Read my article on how to prepare a standout application on http://jetprogram.me/jet-programme-application-process/. And if you click the "Facebook like" button, you'll increase my chances of winning the JETProgram.me's essay contest.


I'll admit that the JET Programme Application Process can be daunting. To name a few details: there are tons of information boxes to be completed, specific guidelines for reference letters, a two-page Statement of Purpose and reams of supporting documents.

I've been an applicant and even a screener sifting through the hundreds of application packages from Canadians interested in JET. There are tons of online resources to help aspiring JETs. I think I've got two shiny cents to pitch in as well.

Thanks for your support! And don't forget to "Facebook like" my paper. (Did I just transform "Facebook like" into a verb?)

Top 20 List: Things to do before leaving Japan

Of course, Air Canada has a launched 50%-off seat sale for round-trip flights to parts of Asia. I totally miss traveling, but it's not the right time for me to peace out. I do remember the days I used to pay upwards of $2,000CAD to make my round-trip journey from Japan back to Canada.

I reckon most newly minted JETs are getting ready to jet off to Japan! I met some of them earlier this month. They seem bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, which is the kind of positive energy a successful ALT needs to possess. It was very natsukashii... I wasn't able to volunteer at the orientation sessions, but I did go to the bar. We fielded the standard questions: "Is anti-perspirant and toothpaste available in Japan? What should I wear to work? What are the students like?" I absolutely remember being in their shoes - they're in for a life-changing experience, for sure!

I have a lot of fond memories from my time in Japan. Indeed, I'm still updating this blog with old thoughts! But I also made some faux-pas, namely in the fiscal world. I'm still tackling my Japanese resident taxes, which is pretty unfortunate. I won't rant about it online, but it has led to quite a pickle.

If you like lists, here are some tips as you prep for your departure:

1. Assorted bills. Get your finances sorted before you leave. I thought I was squared away, but I've been having problems with my Japanese resident taxes. Ask 2+ people at your Contracting Organization to confirm your payment plan. Most everything else was pretty easy to cancel, and I simply had to visit a conbini to make final payments.

2. Kuro Neko sells sturdy cardboard boxes and delivers them right to your door. I lined them with bubble wrap and plastic bags to protect my belongings. I also used copious amounts of clear tape to protect the outside of the box. You can also ask for empty boxes from work. Free-99! But I had to do lots of reinforcing and measuring.

3. Eat at your favourite places, because Japanese food (well, in my city) is less-than-stellar and overpriced. A couple months prior to my departure, I created a hangout called "Tasty Tuesdays." I invited my neighbouring ALT friends to join me at one of my favourite local eating spots every Tuesday night. I enjoyed tucking into that one last chicken tonkatsu from Jintei's in Koriyama; the greasy but cheap food from Marumatsu; the master's recommended okonomiyaki in Motomiya; and that last burger at MOS Burger. I paid my first-ever visit to a cute soba place during my last days in Fuku; I couldn't believe I discovered that gem too late.

4. Buy last-minute omiyage for yourself. Don't forget your friends and family! Treat yo' self, 2012.

5. If you've got the money, treat yourself to one last trip with a couple friends around Asia (or wherever you please) before you head back to your final destination in August. You deserve it. And it's a nice way to end your JET career. I had a lovely time visiting Taiwan with my two of my fave Fuku girls. I also spent a few days in Tokyo, meeting up with my fave Tokyo peeps and even one crazy Aussie kid.

6. Leave a few -man in your Japanese bank account, and have a trustworthy person hold onto your bank card. If some surprise bills turn up after your despedida, they can access your funds and pay it off easily. Ask them to wire your leftover yen with your pension refund's tax in the future. (I closed my bank account, because I thought that was the norm. Apparently, most other JETs were encouraged to leave theirs open. Whoops).

7. Pack up/clean your apartment early. I started sending stuff back home in early June - I'd ask the Japan Post delivery person to pick up at least one parcel almost every week leading up to my departure. But I still had to pull an overnighter to pack up my apartment towards the end. Bad news bears!

8. Assume that you won't have a moment of free time during your last week in your town. Colleagues and townspeople will want to throw soubetsukais (good-bye parties) for you every night. I remember taking the daiko (special taxi service with two drivers, so one can drive your car home after those drunken nights) every night one week; the drivers gave me a slight discount when they realized I was leaving forever.

9. Take the time to write thank you notes for meaningful colleagues, friends and students. I had a small JHS, so I wrote personal postcards to every kid. (Only a few of them keep in touch with me via e-mail, but it's nice that those ones still think of me a year later!) Before leaving Fuku, I even texted some of my students who had already moved onto high school; they still made an effort to pay me a visit. Tear, I know! I had a delightful chat with my old speech contest kiddo at Starbucks. I had some of my favourite girls visit me after school at 2chu. And three of the boys even met me at the local train station to bid me adieu! So sweet. That's what I miss about being a teacher - making really cool connections with your kids.

Don't feel pressured to write cards for every teacher in your staff room. I did. What a time-consuming idea - poor form. I handed out postcards (with a generic farewell message typed out in Japanese, but I made an effort to write their names) and even included in my e-mail address; my base school, my two visit schools and my BOE all received thank you notes from me. But in reality I only keep in touch with 2-3 former colleagues via Facebook and e-mail. Quantity over quality rhymes true in this case!

10. Recycle shops are a godsend. I got rid of many clothes, a gigantic Pooh bear, two drawers, a kotatsu table and much more. They only gave me a few yen here and there, but it was better than letting the items collect dust. (I also donated tons of stuff to neighbouring ALTs. Ben raved about the long laundry stick I left behind for him - it spans the entire room, making indoor hang-drying pretty easy.

11. Relish your last hangouts with friends. I totally miss the tight-knit community in Fukushima. We all worked at least 8-4, but we were especially genki for hangouts on the weekend. It wasn't a big deal to travel a couple of hours to visit friends in another city. And it was easy enough to invite yourself over to crash at someone's place; it was fantastic having slumber parties even as twentysomethings. Someone always had a futon available!

12. If you're planning on doing some travel post-JET, ask a friend to kindly post your large suitcases to the airport on your behalf. (Narita doesn't usually hang onto bags for more than a couple days during the summer peak season).

13. Remember all of the cheesy stuff you learned from Leavers' Conference. It'll help you face reverse culture shock.

14. Take lots of photos before you leave!

15. Start arranging hangouts with your friends and family before you go back home. I'll admit that I was really thrown for a loop when I got back to Canada (still am, at times!)

16. When you produce an itemized list of your boxes at Customs in your home country, don't be surprised if the officer laughs at your taste in music or books. "Miss, do you really have a piano book for Lady Gaga?" Yes, yes I do. And I indeed wrote it on my list of things packed away, because I was afraid customs would later open my precious boxes and take stuff. (Someone's Fuji walking stick and folding chair was delivered to my house. I guess we both came from Japan, so they just lumped our stuff together.)

17. Make a copy of your gaijin card. It's a nice keepsake before you surrender it to the immigration officers in Japan. I also needed it for my application for some TEPCO compensation.

18. Check if your money wiring service has any maximum caps.

19. Exchange snail mail info! Most of my Japanese students can't be bothered to e-mail me. But it's nice finding a cute card or purikura in my mail!

20. Bask in the last few weeks of your placement. The JET Programme is definitely a once-in-a-lifetime experience!

I've been e-mailing one of my senpai this week, because he recently returned to Japan. He used to live in my city, too, so he gave me some quick updates of our mutual friends - mainly, my lovely ex-supervisor's family. I can't believe I've been away for almost a year.

Tacking "reverse culture shock" has been an interesting experience over the past year. It's really quite sad, but I'm not exactly quite over leaving Fuku. Don't get me wrong! Life in Japan wasn't always viewed through rose-coloured glasses, but here are some of things that I miss the most:

- The friendships made in Japan. I should really make a concerted effort to keep in touch. But I'm hoping that my good Fuku friends know I still care about 'em, even if my correspondence skills are a major fail. Last summer, some friends even organized a surprise party for me at my local beer hall because I would already be out of Japan by the time my actual birthday rolled around in August. (I also "celebrated" my birthday here in Ottawa. I invited my closest friends out for a dinner. Everyone was 40 minutes late. Maybe I was feeling self-centered and jet-lagged, but I felt it was a weak way to ring in my homecoming. On my actual birthday, I didn't want to talk about it. We were celebrating my cousin's engagement on an elegant rooftop patio in Toronto. SWAG. Wish I had that!)

- Iced coffee. People often grip that Japan doesn't have a good cup o' joe. But the country sure knows its iced coffee. When we had lessons at the community centre, I often quenched my thirst by drinking Georgia's iced "cafe au lait" in a can. I realized I was the lone person who drank that drink selection dry from the nearby vending machine. At the convenience stores, they sold delicious Mt. Rainier iced coffee in neat plastic cups. You puncture the aluminium top with a plastic straw. Oh, iced coffee... so bad, but so good.

- More beverages: Long island iced teas (and nomihoudai), oolong tea (iced or hot), umeshuu
- Festivals
- Wearing yukata

- Karaoke (Specifically any Montell Jordan track)

- School life

- Carrying wads of bills in my wallet 

- Trips to Tokyo for the weekend... just because 

- Karaage teishoku at the mom and pop's shop along R4 in Motomiya

- Riverside snack bar in Motomiya
- The Meiji Shrine

- Convenience stores stocked with anything and everything

- 100 yen stores (good enough to furnish my apartment!)
- Blaring Drake tracks from my old kei-car, Haruto
- Driving a kei-car

- Purikura
- Reasonably-priced tights in cool designs

- UNIQLO

- The views from skyscrapers in Tokyo (I don't like heights, but I do miss peering down at sprawling cityscapes)
- The smell of burning rice fields
- The cheerful "Harro, Gemma-sensei" greetings from my former kiddos
- My bedazzled purple keitai (That's a lie... that ghettomaphone still cost me more than $100 in final bills!)
- My taxi drivers
- The 21st of each month
- Highway express buses
- Buster the Maine Coon
- Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo Disney Sea
- The hum of the cicadas
- Having students as my neighbours
- No tipping and high-quality customer service
- The vast selection of Nikes
- Sleepovers at Soph's old apartment (20 people in her tatami rooms? No big deal)
- Shinkansen rides
- Local trains
- Meeting up at Hachiko before partying in Shibuya
- Ageha nights
- Fake eyelashes from the Daiso
- Pooh-san novelties
- J-pop recommendations from students

I could go on, but this blog post is already quite emo and natsukashii!!

Homecoming 2011 -

A friend recently told me she enjoyed getting my e-mails from Japan, updating family and friends on my adventures at karaoke boxes, at school and so on. I rarely update this blog, despite having loads of anecdotes that I should write down somewhere. These days, Fuku is still very much an experience that sticks in my head every day. (Being funemployed gives you time to think about things.) Do I sound emo? It happens when I get all natsukashii about Fuku. On a daily basis, little things remind me about my old life. The other day, two of my former students started sending me tweets. Yesterday, little Hiroka sent me a text saying she got third place at her recent swimming competition. And I'm terrible at keeping touch by e-mail, but it's nice to check up on old friends through Facebook.

After 3/11, things were quite uncertain. Some people stayed. Some people left. It was an unprecedented situation, so people did what felt right for them. My parents were in the Philippines, and had initially made plans to visit me again in Japan on March 12. After lots of reflection (and talking with my cousin's Maine Coon, Buster), I called my boss and told him I would go back home for a bit with my parents. He expected me back after two weeks in time for the start of the April school year. Whoops. I don't guilty about leaving, since it wouldn't have been fair to my family and friends back home. I think a lot of us subconsciously knew we'd be heading voluntarily fleeing; if we were able to do so, we all chucked our passports into our bags. But I do feel pangs of "what-ifs."

I was one of the last ones to come back to return to Fuku. My JTE wrote me when she had time, updating me on school life and how her family was coping. During my lengthy absence, I got a few e-mails from my Fuku friends wondering when I'd be coming back. There were quite a few heated debates with my family when I was back in Canada, but they finally gave me their blessing to return at the end of April. I think that a lot of my friends here thought I was a little crazy for going back. But unless you live(d) in Fuku, it's difficult to describe the deep connection you have for the place. When I left in July, everything felt rushed and pretty surreal.


April 30 marked a year today that I hopped on my familiar Ottawa-Toronto-Narita flight. After a six-week stay in Canada/US, I finally made my way back home after 3/11. Upon my arrival, I checked into a Toyoko Inn near the Narita Airport since I didn't want to risk getting stranded at night as I made my way up to Tohoku. It's a good thing, too. The following day, I took a highway bus from the airport terminal to Koriyama. There were many delays, because roads were bumpier than usual and we had to make a detour through Iwaki since the main highway into Koriyama wasn't feasible at the time.

When I got back to my apartment, things looked messy but it was good to be home. I felt bad for my newspaper delivery person, because there was a stack of Daily Yomiuris set in a paper bag next to my door. (I guess they never received my e-mail to put a hold on subscription). Inside, my place looked as I had basically left it. Fortunately, I didn't have any rotting food left in my apartment since I had thrown everything out during my quick clean-up efforts in March, before I fled to my friends' apartments. Sesame oil still permeated the air, because a bottle had broken onto the kitchen rug during some aftershocks in my absence. And all the papers, books and knicknacks from my bookcases and closets were still scattered on the floor. When my Japanese father dropped by my apartment, his eyes grew wide at the mess. Whoops. I also begged him to help me get my upstairs neighbour's shower from leaking into my shower below. My car wasn't in its usual spot in the parking lot, because I had left it at Ben's when we fled to Aizu after hearing about the explosions at the nuclear complex. All in all, though, being back in my apartment was amazing.

It was Golden Week, so I didn't report to work until the Friday morning. I had no idea what to expect, especially since my base school had transferred to a makeshift home at the community centre. When I entered the "staff room," everyone looked a bit surprised but generally happy that I re-appeared. I'm guessing the BOE forgot to inform them about my return, because the vice principal called my new boss in a frenzy. ただいま！！

Some kids were able to approach me again like my absence was nothing. Others took a few dayss to warm up to me again, and whispered in the halls "Gemma-sensei ga..." (Ms. Gemma's here...) Some teachers came up to my small desk in the makeshift staff room, saying they were happy to see me again. The lovely rookie teacher tried to converse with me. Her ice-breaker? Making me try something that looked like dog poo, but she convinced me it was a delicious candy.

Still can't believe it's been a year.

Graduation 2012: Warm fuzzies in the form of letters

For the past few months, I've been diligently checking my mail every day in the hopes that the Japanese pension fairy would replenish my depleting bank account. When I finally got that important slip of paper, I stopped checking the mail with such eagerness. But the other day, I got an oversized enveloped from Japan. This time, it was stuffed with almost 80 letters written by my former students. My heart melted! It was so nice to have a positive reminder of the warm-hearted people in Motomiya. 

It turns out that my co-teacher included me in her lesson planning. She asked the 3年生 students to write me a letter. These kids are now teenagers, getting ready to enter the fast and furious times in scattered high schools. I still can't believe I met them in 2008, when they were still bright-eyed "seniors" in elementary school. On March 13 earlier this month, they graduated from Motomiya 2nd JHS. They couldn't walk across the usual stage in the school gymnasium, since everything was condemned after 3/11. I think the buildings were even completely torn down, because they are looking to rebuild a new school by 2013. I kept in touch with S-sensei, who was my other co-teacher, as well as the new ALT. It turns out the graduation ceremony was held at Sunrise Motomiya, the city auditorium. I'm glad they were able to find a good space to have the tradition. (Though, the actual ceremony is pretty solemn itself. The best part is snapping photos with the kids afterwards). 

Anyways, I was really glad to get a little piece of Japan in the mail. Surprisingly, I can still match names to students' faces! Their broken English is quite endearing. It seems like they were each given a piece of light green stationery and a dictionary to write their messages. Many of them expressed anxiety over their upcoming entrance exams. (In Japan, even public high schools require JHS students to write competitive tests. Their results decide if they get into their dream school.) Everyone kept concluding with "I look forward to seeing you again!" But we all know that we will probably never meet again. A lot of them obviously copied off each other, but there were some gems in there. 

Here are some interesting excerpts:

"Hello!! Ms. Gemma! How are you? I'm fine because I am Genki!!" (He's trying to make a pun here. His name's "Genki," which loosely translates to "I'm fine.")

"Dear Ms. Gemma. I passed the examination. I'm going to be an engineer. I want to study hard." (M-kun, I want your self-confidence!)

"I'm looking forward to seeing you again. Please come here in my country occasionally." 

"Dear Ms. Gemma, Hello. You're quite a stranger. You are out of this school since a Ms. _____ come to this school. She has golden hair. Is her hair by nature? This is a mystery to me." (This letter made me burst into giggles for a while)

"I could pass the entrance exam. I go to Adachi high school. I'll play baseball there, too. I hope you are fine. I'm looking forward to seeing you again." (Oh, H-kun. I remember how I used to tease that kid about his big "fan club" of JHS girls. He always blushed when I said that.)

"It was fan (sic) for us to study with you. I learned a lot of things. I want to play games which was made by you." (Flattery, K-kun? I'll take it.)

"I want to go to Canada in the future. Because I want to see a reindeer." (AKB48-kun)

"I like Hello Kitty. How about you? Picture for you. I don't speak English. but I study English very hard!! You don't have forgetten me. See you again." (Oh, M-chan! She was a funny kid.)

"If I enter high school, I want to challenge Eiken test 2 grade." (Lovely girl, that Y-chan)

"I passed the examination the other day. Take a Motomiya high school entrance examination. I am a pleasure!" (Go, Nana-chan! I coached her a lot for her English proficiency exams. Girlfriend is trying out new words?) 

One of my students even promised to visit me in Canada. Kawaiiiii. She's the one who ended up in Tokyo this fall to compete in the national English speech contest. I'm always proud of that kid. She wants to end up at NYU for fashion design. We used to chat about Justin Bieber and Lady Gaga during lunch hour recess. 

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I'm really thankful to have been a part of that school. Every year, I got to know the kids pretty well since the school was filled with less than 300 students. My elementary school visits also let me connect with them before they entered JHS. The kids will naturally forget me as time passes, but it was nice to be part of that community when I was there. 

Getting back into the grind

The following was tucked away in my computer files. It was supposed to be published on May 15, 2011. I have a lot of unpublished posts. I wrote out my thoughts, but I wasn't exactly ready to leave my mark online with these stories about the earthquake. One year has almost passed. I've been invited to be a guest speaker for the Canada-Japan Society of Ottawa's monthly dinner event, but I still don't know what to talk about. So, I've been sifting through my old notes and trying to organize my thoughts. My experience was just the tiniest fraction of what happened in Tohoku. But the people and everything I've left behind - they're always on my mind. You can take the girl out of Fuku, eh. 

Temporary classes at Arako

I can tell you the three AKB48 girls that my fifteen-year-old male students love the most. I also know the boys who have the biggest "fan clubs" at school. I loved walking down the street yesterday with Nasienas, running into two of my kids on the way. We had spooked Shohei-kun, who was biking along on the cracked road in front of the destroyed school building. We also saw Kana-chan, who shrieked when she dropped her new pink cell phone as she was chatting on her keitai while biking. What a multi-tasker! (She could never understand my order in English when I saw her at MOS Burger). Anyways, I find myself making an increasing effort to re-acquaint myself with the kids, knowing that I only have two months left in Japan.

I'm just finding it really good to be back at work.

The kids are still upbeat, and seem to be dealing well with life after the Tohoku disaster. My city wasn't devastated by the tsunami, and we're at least 57 km away from the nuclear plant. But our school still has to find its away again, too, after getting hit by the 9.0-magnitude earthquake in March. I'm still weary about drinking tap water and eating Fukushima veggies. Even the schools in my city, as well as surrounding areas, are scraping off the topsoil from school playgrounds. They are carting irradiated dirt away with dump trucks, so that the kids have a "safe" environment to play. We aren't really allowed to open windows for a lengthy period of time, so the board of education has kindly bought us several big fans to help keep us cool.

Ten homerooms are crammed into "temporary" classrooms set up in the community centre and the connected gymnasium. Our old building has been classified as unsafe, so we have to hold our lessons elsewhere. I've heard it will take two years for my school to be completely rebuilt. I'll be long gone by then, but I'm happy the kids will get to enjoy a safer school in the future...

Right now, the first- and second-year students have their classes in the gym attached to the community centre. Each homeroom is split up with thin wall dividers and curtains acting as doors. The students' old desks were moved into the community centre, and sit atop plywood and tarp flooring. Many teachers have adorned their walls with newspaper clippings with the motto du jour: "Never give up, Japan. Never give up, Tohoku." C-sensei has posted photos of sakura in bloom around the old school building, as well as the dilapidated view inside our old school building. (In one photo, the wood tiles curl into waves on the second-floor.)

The community centre has somewhat transformed into something that like looks like a school, but sound travels everywhere. In essence, you have seven teachers trying to talk over other lessons. I find myself yelling at times, just so that the kids can hear me. There is a cluster of outhouses available for the younger students, even though I'm pretty sure there are regular bathroom facilities inside the gym! A lot of change is happening, transforming school life into something I never imagined. We also teach in a small building, which houses an onsen for the elderly. We hold some lessons in the tatami room.

I know there are massive problems in the other affected areas, especially along the coastline. But it still makes me sad to see how the earthquake has broken down 2chu.

The old school building sits abandoned in my neighbourhood. I walked by the other day, and saw the outer walls and roof further crumbling. I had the chance to go in last week, and pick up a box and a garbage bag that my co-worker had filled with some of my belongings that I had left behind at my desk. I'm sure everything had spewed out of every drawer, and ended up on the floor after the quake.


It was eerie going back; the school was in absolute silence. I took a peek inside the teachers' room, and saw that it was stripped bare. Dust floated in the air, garbage bags were tossed into the hallways and framed certificates were hanging askew on the wall. My English bulletin board still remained, proudly displaying various photos I had snapped of the recent grads over the years. I decided to tear it down, so that I could keep the photos with me.

It is sad to see that this building, which has meant so much to so many people in my neighbourhood, will probably be torn down this summer. On any given day, kids would be doing their club activities all over the place.  I could see the baseball and soccer teams running up and down the stairs; the brass band girls tuning their instruments in the hallways; the kendo club making their wailing cries in the Japanese gym.

When someone in the community mentions the 2chu building to me, we both sigh while saying in Japanese: "Hidoi..." ("It's so terrible.") I'm hoping we can move into the new satellite soon, so that the kids get some sense of normalcy again.

Quakes

It's been exactly ten months since the big 9.0-magnitude quake. In those early days, I remember the constant tremors in the days immediately following March 11. Everyone's sense of balance was pretty much lost. In the following weeks and months, the slight aftershocks kept us on our toes. Even today, I noticed on Twitter that another big shock just hit Japan.

I had been chatting with B., my "big brother" who is still living in Motomiya. He was probably sitting at school on Tuesday morning, and described it as being pretty noticeable. No damages or disasters followed, though. What a relief.

I still feel funny when I feel "tremors" in Ottawa. I was sitting in my car yesterday, and jumped a bit after I felt the parking lot slightly bounce. In fact, I was just feeling other cars bumping along. I'm guessing that the Tohoku earthquake will remain forever etched in the minds of whoever experienced it.

Ganbarou, Tohoku!

2011: The Rundown

At the close of every year, J-chan likes to reflect on his life events. (Isn't he so wise in his old age?) Roretta-chan has recently posted a list that really tugged at my heartstrings, so I reckon I should write my thoughts down as well. 

Here's the general flow of my year - I'll write inside jokes and better details in another post.

2011 was quite the blur. I flew back to Japan after my dad's birthday in early January, then worked for a few weeks at my three schools in Motomiya. I signed my re-contracting papers, indicating I wanted to wrap things up by July 2011 and head home. It was an easy decision, because I felt like Japan had already shared so much with me in three years. I visited my parents and extended family in the Philippines, taking myself out of classes for two weeks in the middle of February. When I returned to Fuku in late February, I worked for a few days then hit up a "leavers' conference" in Yokohama. I returned to Fuku, and eased back into my ALT responsibilities. 

March suddenly crept up. I had many elementary school visits scheduled then, so I fortunately missed the clapping practices for the upcoming graduation ceremony. On March 11, I rocked up to school and parked my car on the soccer field like a boss. (Unlike in my first year, when I parked in my usual spot in the teachers' car park; my JTE would let me know the kids' were going to have their procession there after the ceremony. Whoops!) Songs were sung, speeches were said and the graduates got their diplomas. We snapped some photos outside, and I said good-bye to the kiddos. After lunch, Fuku got rocked by an 9.0-magnitude earthquake and the coastline would be overcome by a tsunami. Some of us stayed. Some of us left. I ended up fleeing the country for longer than anticipated, especially since there were radiation concerns and living conditions weren't really clear. Ganbarou, Fukushima...

March and April were hectic months for me as well. I was here, I was there, I was everywhere. I was lucky enough to attend my cousin's wedding, which took place on picturesque Mt. Hood in Oregon. We also travelled along the west coast. We stayed in Portland, Seattle, Vancouver and even Victoria. I ended up flying back to Toronto, so that I could use my return ticket bound for Japan during Golden Week. 

My first day back at work was that first Friday in May. The staff room and kids seemed surprised yet happy to see me return. We were crammed into a community centre, because the old school building was badly damaged. In June, our crew hit up Tokyo to celebrate John-chan's entrance in his dirty thirties. He had rented a serviced apartment with a rooftop patio overlooking his baby, the Tokyo Tower. We partied until the wee hours at alife, a hip club in Roppongi. Later that month, my friends would dupe me into a stellar surprise birthday. (p.s. My actual birthday would take place two months later in August, but they knew how meaningful it would be for me to celebrate with my Fuku friends one last time). June and July involved lots of running around. I think the Japan Post Office came by my house at least once week, because they picked up my boxes to be shipped back to Canada. One of the delivery ladies even thanked me for living and staying in Fuku for three years. Precious! July was filled with lots of good-byes and sleepless nights. I locked up my pretty in pink apartment on July 31, ending my time in Fuku. I found myself in Tokyo for a few days before embarking on an epic trip to Taiwan with Roretta-chan and Jam C. It was the perfect way to end our JET experience together. 

I spent another week in Tokyo, spending afternoons hanging out in Shibuya and Ebisu with K-chan. In the evenings, I'd check out a different restaurant with my older cousin (who shares his birthday with me!). I flew out of Narita on August 12, and made sure to call Sanpei-san (my supervisor otherwise known as my Japanese father) one last time. I was really sniffly. I anticipated the difficulty in leaving all that had been familiar to me. I got back to Canada on August 12 as well, just in time for my mom's birthday! I have spent the past few months trying to re-adjust to life and times in Ottawa. It's definitely taken some time to ease back into my lifestyle here. I miss my students, the convivial atmosphere, the food, my old car (RIP Haruto!!) and my apartment. The list goes on. But Canada ain't so bad. I'm living back at home with my fam, meaning we spend a lot of quality time together. I've got a short-term contract at the Japanese Embassy. I keep in touch with a group of friends. (I should make a bigger effort to be sociable this year.) I am ever so thankful for my cousins! I especially relished time with my family over the holidays. It feels like Christmas when I am simply hanging out in my pajamas. We sit around their white oval-shaped kitchen table, picking at leftover goodies from all of the fam jams. The family keeps growing, with the addition of babies and significant others. It's crazy how time flies. 

Here's to a wonderful 2012. Gotta stay focused, man.

Memories galore

More highlights and lowlights from 2011:

- John-chan's dirty 30 shenanigans in Tokyo. ("I make my bed on the floor, then lie in it!!")
- My surprise birthday party
- The move-in day for 2chu (brand-new satellite school)
- Tasty Tuesdays
- Reuniting with my cousin in Tokyo in November (we went out for a nice steak dinner, then he met my friends at dirty dirty Gas Panic)
- Locking up my hot pink apartment for the last time
- My last week in Tokyo
- Roretta-chan's apartment
- Giving up Haruto
- Catching up with S-chan, one of my former students
- Dinners at the Sanpeis
- Getting an obscure letter from my old city tax office
- Yokohama Conference (late night hangout in the Toyoko Inn lobby - 2jikai?!)
- Japadogs with the brother
- Snowball fight in a forest on Mt. Hood with the Villy kids
- Conversations with the gym teacher
- My JTEs serenading me at karaoke with English songs. (Madonna!)

The list goes on...

2011: A year to remember

I meant to do a quick recap of the past year. As per usual, I have procrastinated! So, I'm tapping this out on my iPhone en route to my cousins' friends condo NYE party.

Quick highlights and lowlights:

- Tohoku earthquake and tsunami
- Taiwan trip with Roretta-chan, Jam C. and Dave
- Visiting the Philippines, specifically my parents' hometowns
- Saying good-bye to my kids
- Getting letters and e-mails from my kids
- Moving back to Canada
- My final enkais
- Ramy wedding. Villanueva reunion.
- Meeting new friends, re-assessing old ties
- Karaoke nights