Friday was an easy day for me – no classes, except for my adult class in the afternoon. I spent the day planning lessons and grading papers. Many people came up to me to ask what I thought of Arnold winning in California. The people here are highly amused, and I think that I probably feel the same way. Finally after six o’clock we drove into Kakogawa to have a birthday/birthday/congratulations party at an Italian restaurant.
The food was good – there was an appetizer of spring rolls, chicken sashimi, a fried foods platter with french fries, fried cheese and potato balls, shrimp and fried chicken. As for the main course, we had a pizza, which really only had cheese, basil, and tomato sauce on a very thin crust. It tasted great, but as a pizza it wasn’t really satisfying. I tried to describe a Mary’s Pizza to everyone, but they couldn’t comprehend something with that many ingredients.
It was “all-you-can-drink”, and a couple of the teachers took advantage of that. We had a great time – making a lot of noise and carrying on. Most of the good stuff was in Japanese and I missed it, but I got the general gist of the conversations and we had fun.
Afterwards, the group wanted to go to a “Snack” bar, which I haven’t been to yet. I’ve heard that it is similar to strip clubs in America, just no stripping. You sit down with some girl who you buy drinks for, and in exchange they talk to you and make you feel important. I begged off that trip, and jumped on the train for home. I got the “Survivor” download going, and this morning I watched the latest episode on my computer.
Sara called around 8:30 this morning to wish me a happy birthday, and we talked for a bit. Nancy and Lynn called and I got to talk to them for the first time since I left San Diego to go to the airport in Los Angeles. It was great to catch up with them. Melanie left a birthday card in my mail slot, and I got some great e-mails. Thanks everyone!
