Today was the Sports Day practice at our school. It’s a way to get the students used to the ceremony, and also to do some preliminary heats for the running events. The students have to sit out in the sun and cook, and the teachers are free to find shade under tents or trees. We did several walk throughs and there was plenty of paramilitary marching going on. I don’t think I could march if I had to, but these guys did great!
I was wearing shorts and T-shirt, Mr. Casual, and also some sunglasses to keep the glare away. Students loved the casual look, and the sunglasses were a big hit. Last year at this time I walked around chatting with the students, but I didn’t know what they said. This time I could do a lot more, and it was much more fun.
After a full day of sitting out in the sun, everyone headed back in. There were some severe sunburn cases out there. I got a little sun, but mostly I was tired. Not so bad, really.
I walked from floor to floor, dropping in on classrooms to see how their class flag was coming along. The students were happy and surprised to see me, and it was fun to comment on their flags. I really enjoy that time when they are surprised to see you, but they still give English a try.
After school Mr. Maeda, Mr. Ikeda and I walked over to Mr. Maeda’s house to kill some time before the get-together in Takasago. Mr. Maeda’s wife greeted us at the door and really made us feel welcome. She served us snacks, beer, and even a tofu dish that had squares of cream cheese in it as well. Excellent. Mr. Maeda’s kids were so cute – they are really well behaved (at least when I’m there) and I hammed it up for them so they must think all foreigners are insane.
A while later we walked down to the izakaya, a place right near the train station that I use every day. They had a table ready for us, on tatami Japanese style. I barely fit under the table, but it worked. It was a little tough on the legs, though.
Listening to Japanese among drunken teachers is a lot different that listening to the standard Japanese on my CD’s. I was lucky to get one or two words a sentence. The teachers were debating, and occasionally arguing (in a very non-confrontational Japanese way). Mr. Yamamoto sat next to me and gave me the blow-by-blow and so I was able to at least keep up with the topic if not the gist of the conversation.
We ate a ton of food – all kinds of strange things both raw and fried. I drank some beers and then switched to Oohlong tea around ten o’clock. Finally, I decided to throw in the towel and head home. Everyone was really nice and they even dispatched two escorts to walk me from the restaurant 100 feet to the station. I wasn’t even nearly drunk enough to need them, but it was a nice thing to do.
Now I’m back home and ready for bed. I can tell I’m going to be exhausted tomorrow!
