We woke up early at Kuniko’s apartment, and after a quick shower we had a quick breakfast together. Breakfast is an important part of Kuniko’s routine, so we try to have it together as often as possible. It can be a very simple breakfast – the important thing is to get something in your stomach.
I made it to school at about 8:30 a.m., just a little before my normal time. I checked in with everyone and then asked the vice-principal to make a map for me to find the prefectural office in Kobe. He had me fill out some papers, and then said that I could leave school anytime I wanted. I took him at his word and left.
On the way out of school I bumped into Mr. Hayashi who was just coming in, and I told him that the vice-principal said I could just leave. Mr. Hayashi was impressed. I’m under orders not to tell him anything about the secret project, so I couldn’t really tell him the truth.
I went into Kobe, and made the short walk to the prefectural office. The weather was gray and windy, and while we rode the train along the inland sea we could see huge waves smashing against the concrete piers… it was very dramatic. There is a typhoon warning for tonight, so I was hoping to get this meeting over with and get home safe and dry.
I arrived at the prefectural building a little early, and enjoyed the chance to walk around and scout the area out a bit. The prefectural building is the equivalent of a state capitol in America. There were lots of government workers walking around, and several museums and parks to check out.
The meeting went just fine – we are preparing to interview prospective teachers in Hyogo prefecture. Our role is just to moderate discussions, but it was quite a complex explanation. We did a few role plays, and we hammed it up a bit. It’ll be interesting to see how it goes for real at the end of this month. Struan was also there at the meeting, so it was good to see him, too.
When the meeting was over we went off on our separate ways. I went with one of the ALTs from Harima town back to our neck of Japan, and now I’m safe and hunkered down as the wind blows like crazy outside.
I’m going with a simple Japanese style dinner tonight – rice and miso soup. I found some tiny carrots at the store, so I’ll have some of those on the side. Yum!
