Busy Bee

November 28-30, 2014

This past weekend was a fun yet busy one. Friday started off with an unexpected dinner date at a pasta place near my apartment called, Baby Face. The name alone was pretty entertaining but the inside of this restaurant was even more amusing! The decor was a confused mix up of Christmas and Indonesian style statues and wall frames but the music was a little more suiting to the name. This place actually played RnB! RnB that I like!! And the booths were also rather interesting with a curtain to close the table off and a take-your-shoes-off style sitting arrangement. Nonetheless, the food was good, company great and a wonderful way to start off the busy weekend.

On Saturday I had previously made arrangements with Kiyoko and Mayumi to go visit their English class. I was really excited to go, not only to see Kiyoko and Mayumi but also the students. They told me the students range from first to fourth grade in a variety of elementary schools in the area. So that meant that some of the students I may of have taught before! Their class started at 2 and I had to commute to the town in which I work to get to the building where the class was held. About thirty minutes before I was suppose to leave my place, the weather got really grey and wet. Kiyoko called me and said I didn't have to come because the weather was bad and she felt bad I would have to be out in it. I agreed but wasn't satisfied with staying home just because the rain. I was really excited to see my friends as well as the students. So I said a few prayers and waited to see if it let up, and it did!! God is good I tell ya! So I made it to the class on time, not before running into a handful of my students along the way!

So I have never been to the town in which I work on the weekends, and now I know it is probably for good measure. Being that it was Saturday, I was in my casual clothes and look a bit different than my usual work attire. So as I was getting on the train from my station, I turn around and I see a whole group of girls from one of the junior high schools that I teach! They were shocked to see me and it was funny watching them watching me. Sometimes I feel like an alien here in Japan, this was one of those times. The girls were watching me with smiles of interests on their face, pulling out what English they know to ask me about my colored contacts and nose piercing. I could feel my face getting hot from shyness or embarrassment, probably both. The short train ride was interesting. From the conversation, I got that they were coming back from volleyball practice. After we all got off the train, they said bye like a million times which is pretty common in Japan.

When I got to Kiyoko and Mayumi's English class, I wasn't sure where to go because the building was new to me. But to my surprise, the whole gang of students was outside the doors waiting for me. It was so cute!! During class, I got to watch Kiyoko and Mayumi do a simple English lesson for the students. Remember, Kiyoko and Mayumi have been teaching for years! So it was really nice to be watching someone else do the teaching for a change! Also Mayumi made her flashcards herself which were really awesome and colorful! The kids were a bit rowdy but they are young so it was understandable. After the class was done, Kiyoko had the students ask me any questions they wanted, of course with a translation from Kiyoko. I got some normal questions, like what animals do you like and how much do you weigh (that was kind of strange) but the questions that really stuck out for me were from a young boy named Tomoki. He asked me the strangest questions for a young boy but from his questions I know he's going to be a special kid. He asked me if I  believed in aliens and then asked me if I believed in ghosts! I thought his questions were so intriguing. I wish I could speak Japanese so I could ask him more about these interests.

After the students had left, Kiyoko, Mayumi and I took a rest with some coffee and juice at the near by cafe. Chatting with them is always really fun but because I had plans in Osaka shortly after class, our chat time was a bit short. But as always, I enjoyed their company, smiles, energy and was glad the rain had stopped for me to make it out to their class. Nice work ladies!

On Sunday I had a really busy day as well. I had gotten a freelance gig through my company Interac, to be a guest speaker at the Yamaha English School in Osaka. The day started really early being that it was an hour and a half train ride to get there! But once I got there and met the ladies I'd be working with for the day, everything was pretty smooth. I wasn't sure what I would be doing when I agreed to the job but being in a new place, I told myself I would say YES to everything. Everything and anything could be a chance to learn or met someone new that could benefit my future or present so this was another one of those times. It turned out that my job was to be a sort of guest speaker or announcer. I would announce the upcoming acts as well as ask the students questions in English and hand out gifts. That part seemed not so bad. I did theatre in high school and in my teaching this year, those skills have really come in handy. Teaching or being on any stage is all the same, you just gotto act and put on that show. The part that actually made me nervous was they told me I would have to sing...a solo! I read in the email previously I would be singing the theme song from the movie Frozen but what the email didn't say was that I would have to sing a part solo! If you don't know, I'm not the best singer so this made me a bit nervous. But as the day went on and the performers went up, it was really fun and entertaining to see these Japanese kids study English so hard and practice to do well in their performances. These kids ranged from 2 to 14 years old and were memorizing and comprehending songs, skits, and conversations. I was really impressed! When it came time for the teachers, including myself to sing, I kind of just tried my best and hoped that the student's singing on stage drowned out my voice. Anyway, the work day was long but out of it I had a new experience and met two other ladies who spoke great English and were excited to become friends with me as I was excited to be friends with them. More Japanese friends, yay!

So cheers to a busy weekend! And on top of all that, it's December!!! Only a few more weeks until I get to see my family and friends again! So a couple more weeks of teaching, holiday shopping, then it'll be Houston bound for about ten days. Excited! Happy December yall!!


xx
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