We spent Sunday morning tucked into the kotatsu watching movies, and we especially liked Nacho Libre – it was the right kind of stupid movie at the right time. As Meg Ryan says in her coffee commercials on TV in Japan, “Ii asa ni naru!”

After a simple lunch we caught a train and went to Kuniko’s school to sneak in and do some guerrilla paper cutting. I had some heavy cardboard that I needed to cut for my classes next week, so Kuniko volunteered the use of her school’s big paper cutter.

It was actually the first time that I have been around inside the school – before I spent some time in the waiting room but today we looked around Kuniko’s new staff room, and I walked the (very clean) hallways of the school. It has to look nice – it is a private school and they want it to be nice for visitors and prospective students.

They had two fishtanks in the hallway, and I was very interested to see that they had guppies. The guppies were really beautiful, and someone had separated all the males and put in the in one very crowded tank. Maybe there were a hundred guppies all freaking out in one tank hoping I would feed them. It kept me occupied until we got the papers cut and then got out of there.

We walked back to Kobe station to get some more exercise, and then took the train to Akashi. There we crossed the street and went into Akashi park to walk around and enjoy the cherry blossoms.

It was really good timing – just about a day or two past the peak time, and the rain from yesterday had moved on. The weather was a little cloudy, but I guess we had to take what we got. I took quite a few pictures (you can see them in the photo gallery), but I didn’t go crazy. I know I have hundreds of pictures of cherry blossoms at home from the last few years – no need to go wild this time.

We walked the park for about half an hour, and then headed back home to get organized and have dinner. I picked up some takoyaki from Vivre (it is supposed to be famous) and we snacked on that (it was really good).

After dinner Kuniko did battle in the kitchen and ended up with two dessert dishes – sakura mochi (my favorite) and mini strawberry cheesecakes. She’s taking the desserts to work to give to her new coworkers. I think that will make a good impression.

We took some of the desserts with us to her parent’s house tonight in the evening. They were just wrapping up dinner, and we sat around the table talking about Niro’s new computer (he’s really excited about that) and the upcoming rice planting. We promised to come back next weekend to help him set up the computer.

As usual we came back home with lots of vegetables, and after putting everything away we wrapped up the day with a hot bath and then we crashed out. Starting tomorrow we’ve both got new students and new classes to teach. Can’t wait…

Today was the first day in a long time that Kuniko and I could spend relaxing together with nothing really that we needed to be doing. Man, it was nice.

We slept in, had a nice relaxed breakfast, and then took a trip on the slower train to Sannomiya to walk around, do some shopping, and spend time together. We both had a couple of errands to run so we walked around casually and knocked them out.

For lunch I was tasked with choosing the restaurant. While walking towards Chinatown, I spotted a sign for yakibutadon down a alleyway, so we took a chance and went there. It paid off with a really good lunch in a nice atmosphere. The place was the kind of place I love to hang out and drink: a wooden bar with a couple of tables, a low ceiling, and a little bit of a dark atmosphere.

I had the yakibutadon, which is barbecued pork over rice with a half-fried egg and onions. Kuniko had the bibinbadon, which is a Korean style rice dish with lots of lettuce, kimchee, and bits of pork. Both our dishes were really good, and they came with a half-order of ramen so we had some soup along with it. I wouldn’t mind going back again sometime. It’s one of those back alley places that nobody will ever find, but you can take your friends there and show them how well you know the city.

While we were walking around, the weather got gradually worse, instead of getting better as the forecast had predicted. We had brought our umbrella, and that was a lucky thing. We ended up walking around Harborland near Kobe station, and enjoying the slightly wet scenery. I even did some wine tasting at a “winery” there. The wine was mainly imported from California and France, but they did have some Japanese wines made in Nagano. I asked the clerk how much it was to taste, and she said it was free. I stepped up and tried a few wines.

It wasn’t really free – in Japan there is a huge pressure on the taster to buy what you taste. Kuniko saw me tasting and warned me that we were in Japan – we have to play by their rules. Luckily, they had a good California Sauvignon Blanc that was cheaper than what we’d pay at the local grocery so I bought that and made everyone happy.

From there we headed back home, and did a few errands around town before coming back to the apartment. Now Kuniko is getting a trim at the local beauty salon, and I’m waiting for the Tigers game to come on. When Kuniko gets back, we’re going to go rent a movie and watch it tonight.

Tomorrow the weather is supposed to get better. That will be the day where we go see the cherry blossoms. I hope.

I awoke to good news – the cold that I have felt just the edge of seemed to be staying where it was – and not turning into a full blown sickness. Still, today I drank lots of tea and orange juice and had a simple soup for lunch.

Kuniko has a school dinner after work tonight, so she’ll be coming home a little late. I’m taking advantage of the situation to sneak off to the yakitori for some hot meat on sticks and cold beer. I had flirted with the idea of going to a new yakitori I found down the street, but it is a little far away from all the people, and I’m afraid it will just be full of old men. I like the yakitori near the station – it is small, cozy, the master is really nice, and there are a lot of interesting people coming and going.

Good news for Kuniko – it looks like she’ll have two days off (in a row, even). Saturday and Sunday she doesn’t have to go to school, so we’re going to go see some cherry blossoms and try to get outside and enjoy the end of the spring holidays.

Speaking of the end of spring holidays, I had some good ideas today about my lessons for next week. I was really trying to figure out something good that wouldn’t intimidate them early on. Something fun and lightweight, since we don’t have to stick to the textbook. For the new learners I’m going to just do simple introductions, and then we’ll make name cards (so I can start to learn some names). Rather than trying to cram too much into the lesson, I’ll just try to make them feel comfortable with me and the environment. Gradually I’ll teach them classroom English, and then we’ll be in good shape for May when the textbook kicks in.

For the students that are coming back from last year’s lessons with Miki sensei I’ll also need to make name cards, but we’ll do some creative decorating, and also play some drawing games. The biggest challenge for these students will be getting used to a new teacher and my style, which I have a feeling will be (a lot) more laid back than Miki sensei.

We’ll see how it goes. For now I’m going to go get my weekend on and I’ll see you on the other side…

Greetings from Thursday. Today was very quiet – Kuniko was gone at work and at a party so I had the place to myself all day. I originally had planned to take a trip out to Port Island to see the new college(s) they built out there. I saw a TV show saying how nice it is to walk around because they built a lot of parks and walkways. But, I have what feels like the precursor to a cold. Instead of going out I stayed home and stayed warm, just eating some leftovers and drinking lots of orange juice.

I’ve had this “I’m getting sick” feeling for the last two days, and so far I’ve escaped any actual sickness. Let’s hope I get away with it again.

In the afternoon I was sick of being in the house, so I took a long walk to north Okubo and then walked back. It was nice to get outside and enjoy the great weather – lots of sunshine.

Since Kuniko was off partying with her ex-coworkers from Kunei, I just worked on the leftovers from last night (lots of cheese and crackers) and watched the Hanshin Tigers fight a losing battle with the Yakult Swallows. The Tigers have a new pitcher this year from America, and he was pitching tonight. He looked really nervous but got through six innings giving up just one run. They brought in a reliever to pitch the seventh and he promptly gave up three runs. Ouch.

The fun thing about watching a foreign guy pitch was that the commentators talked all about foreign players and the experience of coming to Japan to pitch the whole night. I learned a lot of interesting things – mainly about how these players are perceived by regular Japanese people. I also like to imagine what it is like for the players themselves getting used to living in Japan. That must be a real tough adjustment.

One of the commercials during the game featured the wife of the new foreign pitcher, an American woman who was doing a promo to remind people not to drive to the ballpark, because there is no parking there. I think that is pretty much true, but the sponsor of the commercial was the owner of the team, the Hanshin railway company, who happens to own the only train line that leads to the stadium. Of course they want you to take the train.

Anyway, this American woman was explaining all this in English, and they had subtitles underneath, but they were in English too. I think they were relying on the commentator at the beginning of the commercial and at the end of the commercial to take care of the comprehension, and just use the American lady to grab your attention. Interesting…

I’m off to bed pretty soon – I need to get some rest before the cold catches up with me. Tomorrow is another off day, and it is actually my last day of spring break before school starts on Monday. If I’m feeling good I might go try a new yakitori in town…

Last night Yamaguchi sensei (a teacher at Kuniko’s school) came over after seeing a movie with Kuniko after work. Kuniko cooked up some homemade gnocchi with a creamy gorgonzola sauce. This was the second time that she has made the dish, and just like last time it was really good. There was also plenty of cheese and crackers, bruschetta and a salad. A lot of food to eat.

We sat around the kotatsu to stay warm. Lately the weather has gotten a little colder, and we already finished off the kerosene and decomissioned the heater for the year. I hope it starts warming up soon. We just sat and talked, mainly about the school and the teachers that work there. I could listen in and hear some good gossip and really practice my listening skills. When it came to talking I made lots of mistakes, but eventually got my point across. I guess that is what communication is all about.

It wouldn’t be a party without working out on the Wii, so we played a few games of tennis. Yamaguchi sensei likes real tennis, so she was determined to get better at playing on the Wii. She did much better this time – we even played some baseball and bowling to broaden her skill set a little.

We walked Yamaguchi sensei back to the station around ten, and then came back and crashed right out. Too much food tonight…

While hanging out the laundry today I noticed this car pull up at the gas station across the street. I’m not sure what was stranger – the car with two life sized dressed up Hello Kitties, or me standing out on my patio taking the picture of it.

Now you know how much free time I have this week. I was getting tired of the same old website, and it has been almost four years since I made it. Today I just went out and grabbed a template off the net and modified to suit my needs. Hope you like it…

Here’s our latest contact information:

Address:
660-13 Okubo
Okubo-cho Akashi-shi Hyogo-ken
Japan 674-0051

Our phone number is 078-935-2825

You can email me at: bryan (at) fredricks.net

In Japan, beer is very popular. I’m very happy with the quality of beer that I get to drink living here. There’s lots of things I wish for – more microbrews, more dark beers, and by god I wish for an ale.

Lager is what it’s all about in Japan. The big 3 main breweries – Kirin, Sapporo, and Asahi are all producing lagers – bottom fermented beers that are pretty good. Unfortunately, for one reason or another ales haven’t caught on.

That’s why I was so glad to bump into Kirin’s “Grand Ale” – a premium bottling that they have done that tastes to me like the best beer on earth. Every once in a while I get an ale from an import shop or a nice bar, but that’s not so often. Now I can just walk across the street and buy bottle after bottle (no 6 packs available) for 240 yen a pop.

Until I get my hands on another bottle of New Belgian beer, this will do just fine.

Today I got a chance to teach some classes for the first time in a long while. Today was an unusual class – officially the school is on holiday. Today’s classes were an exchange for a holiday at the end of the month. So, both Miki sensei and I showed up to teach the classes.

It went pretty well – Miki sensei was very helpful in helping me plan the lessons, because she has worked with the students for a long time and she knows what they’ve been working on. I did notice that Miki sensei was quick to jump in and guide the lesson in the direction she felt it should go. I guess that’s natural, I didn’t mind. It’s her last class.

After the classes I got a chance to chat with Nozaki sensei and talk a little about doing some small classes for junior high students five times a month. She’s paying even more for those classes, so now I’ll be making exactly the same amount of money working part time as I was working full time in Nishinomiya. We worked on the logistics of the new classes, and then it was time to head back home. I got home around eight p.m., and for the first time in a long time Kuniko had arrived at home before me.

This week will be pretty busy for Kuniko, but pretty quiet for me. We’re going to have a friend over for dinner on Wednesday night, and then Kuniko has a series of get-togethers with co-workers and ex-co-workers at the end of the week. We’re going to try to squeeze in a visit to see the cherry blossoms in Akashi park sometime this week. I’ll try to get some pictures of it – it’s always pretty dramatic.