I just wrapped up my first week of English classes for some more Daikin students. This week was different from my previous intensive courses because the students are already scheduled to travel overseas. The class sizes are much smaller (I only have two students) and the English level is much higher than the new employees I taught last month. Another difference is that the classes take place in the staffing company classrooms, so I’m teaching on my own turf. I took the train into work with Kuniko every morning, ending up in Yodoyabashi in Osaka to teach most of the day, and then I head home just about the time that Kuniko gets back.
Teaching in Yodoyabashi is nice because of the urban setting – the area is all big companies, salarymen and business. There’s a high finance feel to the area, and so it is fun to put on my suit and tie and walk around like I belong there, even though I don’t.
At lunchtime many of the workers in the area come streaming out of the office buildings and hunt down a bento lunch box, and today I was walking around with my students to catch some sun and get some exercise. People set up temporary stands to sell bento boxes, and it seems the competition is quite fierce. We noticed one stand that had an unusually long line, and as we walked by we saw that the young woman selling the lunches was quite well endowed, and she wore a blouse with a very deep neckline to show off her assets. Each time she bent over to get a box of rice or some chopsticks the view got even more dramatic. She didn’t look Japanese, I was guessing Korean or Filipino, but she spoke fluent Japanese to the customers as they waited for her to bag up the lunch. I think she had carved out a niche market, as there were five old Japanese guys waiting for a lunch (and a peek) while the other stands only had one or two people waiting.
I have tomorrow off, so I’ll be doing some errands and meeting up with Anthony (not Antoine) in Kobe for some Thai food. He and Risa are planning a trip to America this summer, and he’s looking for some insider tips. Should be fun…
