Korea Day 1

Woke up super early to catch the flight >.<
Arrived in Seoul @ 12pm
Korea was cold!!!!! -10C. Wasn't really expecting that.
+

We got a flight & hotel package, so there was a tour guide who took us to our hotel on a bus ride.
On bus, she just kept on talking about Korean BBQ, and B.B. Cream.
Everyone on the bus seems to be very interested in those 2 topics.
We laughed at "B.B. cream", whenever the tour guide mentioned about it. We had no idea what it was, but the name was funny.
+

First meal in Korea: Myeongdong Gyoza recommanded by Alex

Our meal came with kimchi.
I have never ever had kimchi before because I am bad with spicy food.
But since I was in Korea, I decided to give it a try.
God... it was SOOOO spicy! It had a very strong flavor to it too.
Afterwords, my breath smells of kimchi.
I brushed my teeth and chew gums, but nothing takes away that smell!
My kimchi breath continued to last till the next afternoon.
+

Later, we went to see NANTA performance.
The artist try to make music out of random objects such as pots, knifes, kitchen utensils.
The performance was also very funny too, I had a good laugh.

+

After the performance, we just walked around the Myeongdong area.
There were tons of cosmetic stores and designer shops.
There were 2-3 same shops with the same block too. And cosmetic shops called "Skin Food" and "The Face Shop".
I found the area very similar to Taipei. Especially with the night market and the food stands along the street.

12/25

Went to Niigata city to get my Japanese driver's license this morning.
Had to wake up super early >.<
It costed about 5000yen to get my Jap driver's license. Which is pretty lucky because I just have to show them couple documents and an eye test in order to get my license.
But for some other countries, ex: USA citizens, they will have to take a complete road test in order to get their license. People usually fail on their road tests.
And here is my new license!
+

And more snow :]

12/23

Received another email from Sota yesterday.
Always happy to receive his email.
He writes the best emails, I think.
His emails are always funny.
I must say he's the coolest Japanese guy ever.
+

Recently, I have been thinking about what I should do after JET.
I will stay for another year in Japan for sure. But time goes fast.

Here's the option that I came up for myself:
1. Go back to school and get a teacher's license.
2. Go back to school and study interior design.
3. Go back to school and study restaurant management (want to run a sweet shop/ tea house/cafe).

And my analysis:
1. Probably the safest option. But don't know if I want to teach for all my life. Besides different countries probably have different requirements. If I want to travel, I could probably teach at an international school.
I even thought about teaching Chinese. My Chinese level is probably not up there... but teaching foreign people Chinese might be really fun!

2. Still fascinated by the interior design. This will be a huge investment of my time and money, since I probably need to stay in school for couple years. I am awared that appreciating something is not the same as creating something. It could also be a stressful job. But then again, if I don't try I wouldn't know.

3. Probably not a possible option at this time. Maybe later on in my life...if the world doesn't end in 2012...

12/21

Office day today. Since I had a lot to work on today, time passed pretty fast.
+

During lunch, I had lunch together with Chris, Mark, Jei, and Jordan. In order to get to the ramen shop, we all hiked through the heavy snow. ALl of us wore rain boots, except Mark. Felt like a gaijin parade.

Was a bit disappointed at the ramen shop. They didn't have miso flavor.
+

Went to Ishizaka Elementary for a seminar in the afternoon.
+

Around 5:30pm, I met up with Daisuke to help him with his graduation film project.

I met him at the film club. He asked me to be in his movie project.
I told him, if it's within my ability, I could help.
He gave me a very minor role--- deliver something to the main character.
I thought I just have to hand the actor something and then leave, so I agreed to help him.

So we met up, his team brought all the devices.
I felt I wore the wrong outfit. I should wear something that is more cool because I am supposed to be the boss lady of the main actor.
Regardless, we went ahead with the filming process.

I had 5 lines to say.
Somehow I just couldn't get the 1st line right. Although my Japanese was correct, somehow the feeling just didn't seem right to me.

Anyway, at the end, I felt so sorry for him to have picked me to be part of it. I probably should have asked him for more detail before I agreed to help me >.<

I hope his project till turn out well.
If my part is still in his film, maybe I will update you guys later.

LookBook

Snow

Snow in Nagaoka!
I left my car in the parking lot for 2 days, and it almost got burried by the snow.

Flowers from Soph

12/17

My MSN is not working!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
#@*%&#%!&*^%$@#%!!!!!
I don't know what to do about it................................................
+

Snowed pretty hard today.
+

Mary went back to America today.
And Sophie is going back to England tomorrow.
Other ALTs are also going home soon >.<
iina~
Eventhough I will be going to Korea soon, it will still be nice if I could go home, just because everyone's going home at this time.
+

Natasha asked me to take care of her fish and plants while she's back in South Africa.
+

Don't feel like doing much today...as usual...

12/16

Today Kamiya-sensei was absent, so I had to teach at Higoshi elementary by myself.
The lessons went really well.

Then I had lunch with one of my 1st grade classes.
I was being treated as a super start in that class! I was surrounded by the kids and they just kept on firing questions at me. They even lined up to ask for my autograph. One of the girls even drew me a picture. And the teacher just kept on taking pictures of me and the kids.

This little boy who was sitting with a different group came to me while we were eating lunch,

Boy: What is your favorite color?
Sabrina: Purple!
Boy: (went back to his own seat & came back to me after a minute or two) So... what's your #2 color?
Sabrina: Black!
Boy: (went back to his own seat for the 2nd time & came back to me after a minute or two)So... what's your #3 color?
Sabrina: mmmmm...I don't have a number 3 color...I like purple and black.
Boy: eeee!..... (then went back to his seat for the 3rd time & came to me again after a minute or two) So... you like dark colors...
Sabrina: yes I do.
Boy: So... you are like a boy, you like dirty colors.
Sabrina: DIRTY colors!!!!!???? ..................

I guess the boy really wanted to hear me say red/ blue/ pink/ orange/yellow, something bright.

X'MAS Party at Mark's

Mark held a small X'mas party at his.
Me, Sophie and Chris were invited.
We arrived at Mark's around 1pm.
Since the meal was not ready yet, we decided to open presents first.
It was great fun opening the presents :D


After exchanging presents, we started to prepare for food.
Here's our X'mas Menu:
- Baked chicken (substitute for turkey)
- Roast potato
- Yorkshire pudding (something British)
- Cabbage and carrots
- Minced pie
- Apple pie
- Strawberry tart
- X'mas cake (made by Mark)




After the big meal, we watched X'mas movies and played games till night.

Sabrina's Ikebana of the Day

Here is the purple glass I made from last time.
The white rose is really cool.
It's supposed to be blue when the room temperature is cold.

Hundred Sacks of Rice

Here is an embarrassing story.

At night, both me and Chris wanted to go and watch Sophie's play at the Lyric Hall.
We drove to a concert hall near our office.
The car park was full, and there were so many old people! We thought they must be those children's grandparents coming to see there play.

We walked into the concert hall building and tried to enter. The staff stopped us from entering and was trying to collect our ticket.
But Yoshikawa-sensei told us that the admission was free!
Me: We are from the Board of Education.
Staff: Doesn't matter who you are, you need a ticket.
Me: But Yoshikawa-sensei told me that we don't need tickets.
Staff: I don't know Yoshikawa-sensei, and I don't care... you need a ticket!

Then, me and Chris thought it was really odd. But we walked to the ticket booth and asked for the tickets.
Me: How much is the ticket?
Staff: 4000 yen please.
Me & Chris: *wait a minute...don't think we want to spend 4000 yen on a children's play*

THEN!!!!! I saw some posters far far way! It was posters of this Japanese Enka singer.

We finally realized that we are in the wrong place >.<
+

Sophie's school was having a play called " Hundred Sacks of Rice"
It was a big thing for the school every year.
The school (Sakanoue)was built 140 years ago because of the hundred sacks of rice.
As far as the story goes, after the war, people in Nagaoka were starving. They didn't have enough rice to share among everyone.
One day their neighbour supported them with 100 sacks of rices.
People were happy about receiving the rice, but this person suggested that they instead of eating the rice, they should sell it for money and use the money to build a school for education.
However, after seeing the play, I still believe that they should just have eat the rice.

12/9

Had my X'mas lesson at Higoshi Elementary today.
I gave the grade 2 students a X'mas quiz in the beginning of the class.

Sabrina: "Quiz #1: When Santa comes, where does he put the presents?
A- On the table
B- On the bed
C- Under the X'mas tree"

I told the students that the answer is C- Under the X'mas tree
But most of the students voted B- On the bed
Then the students got really really upset.

Students: No way!!! You are wrong!!! Santa puts the presents on/near our bed!
Sabrina: ............
Homeroom teacher: ......*panic*......eee...In Japan Santa puts the presents near the bed, but in Canada Santa puts the presents under the tree.

Those kids really believe in the existence of Santa, so we tried not to ruin it...
+

Sabrina: "Quiz #2: What do we leave for Santa when he comes?"
A- Milk and cookies
B- Miso Soup and Onigiri (Rice ball)
C- Cake and tea"

Student 1: It must be cake and tea
Student 2: No!!! Santa will like miso soup and onigiri since he's in Japan!

Special Needs Students

Had a special needs class today in highschool.
They weren't my first special needs class.
A month ago, I had even been to a special needs school where all the kids that I teach were both physically and mentally handicapped. Many drool and couldn't look up or speak properly. Some even needs plastic tubes or be tied on their wheel-chair. Each one of them needs a personal assistant.
Imagine walking into a class with 15 of them, I almosted cried...
I wasn't teaching, I was there to make them happy so they could enjoy their life more (I thought...)

Today at my usual junior high, 2 of the girls with better conditional came up to me after class and asked me to play with them during lunch time. I didn't think I could handle, so I said I will be busy during lunch time.

Just thinking that I don't think I am the kind of person who can deal with special needs kids.
I have no patience and I just can't smile all the time when I teach them.
Sometimes I feel like a hypocrite. It's like I have to pretend like I care and keep on saying "good! very good!"

Sometimes when I look at them, I feel sorry for them and for their parents.
Maybe I am not supposed to. Maybe they didn't feel sorry for themselves.
But what IF it happens to me..... think I will kill the baby and then kill myself.
It's a terrible thought

Cleaning day in office

Stuart was sick. He didn't come to the office today.
I had micro-teaching presentation on my own.
But it wasn't as bad as I expected.
+

More meeting in the afternoon, and then cleaning the office.
Everyone was responsible for a section in the office to clean.

I hate cleaning >.<
Hate dust, the smell of detergent, touching the wet rag, and everything about it.
We even had to wipe each picture cards.
But it needs to be done...I guess...

The JLPT

Today, at last, was the day of my JLPT 2 exam. After months of reviewing (or more accuratly thinking about reviewing >.<) I was looking forward to getting it over and done with.

Woke up early, Chris gave me a ride to the test centre. Thought it would take us 2 hours to get there, but it only took 1 hour.
After we arrived, we weren't allowed to park in the university eventhough there were a lot of parking space. I thought it was stupid that we weren't allowed to use the parking lot.

Think I bombed my reading test... Didn't have enough time >.<
+

After the exam we went X-mas shopping,
Got both Sophie and Mark a present and managed to spend enough money in the department store that we got 6 parking vouchers.

12/2

I had a good day today at Higoshi Elementary.
We had a couple X'mas lessons where I had to wear Santa outfit, sing songs and make crafts with the kids.
+

We also had 2 lessons on traveling to countries with the 6 graders.
Thinking that would be my favorit lesson to teach.
I got to hear about which countries the students want to travel to and the reason why.

Lots of the boys said:

"I want to go to America
I want to play baseball
I want to see XXXXXX (the name of the baseball player which I could't remember)"

Both the student and the teacher would then ask me "do you know XXXXX?"
Gragghhh, I don't know and I don't care. I HATE baseball because everyone likes it.
+

One of the boys said:

" I want to go to Egypt. I want to 砂をとってくれかえる."
I found this one really funny. He wants to go to Egypt because he wants to take some sand back home.
+

And many students would say the following:

"I want to go to Italy. I want to eat pizza"
"I want to go to France. I want to eat bread"
"I want to go to Korea. I want to eat kimchi"
"I want to go to India. I want to eat curry"
"I want to go to America. I want to eat hot dog"

Seriously... all they can think of is eat.
I must say it's a Japanese thing. Whenever you talk about something, they will think of food. On TV too, so many programs related to eating food...