Last Day

Well, our last day in Tokyo was spent doing 15 minute presentations for each group's city homestay. We were finished by 3 p.m., so with two friends, we went to Harajuku to see the Meiji Shrine (http://www.meijijingu.or.jp/english ) and the Harajuku girls (http://www.japaneselifestyle.com.au/tokyo/harajuku_girls.htm). Being that it was Halloween and all, we really thought the outfits would be outrageous, but they weren't. Here is a photo of me with a couple of Harajuku girls near the shrine, some just stood at the bridge and blew bubbles.

The Meiji Shrine is "the" shrine in Tokyo as it is dedicated to the Meiji emperor family

"Meiji Jingu is the Shinto shrine dedicated to the divine souls of Emperor Meiji and his consort, Emperor Shoken. Emperor Meiji passed away in 1912 and Empress Shoken in 1914. After their demise, people wished to commemorate their virtues and to venerate them forever, and so this shrine was constructed, and their souls were enshrined on November 1, 1920"

We ended the evening with a sayonara buffet, that included Japanese food, fruit and drink. I would have to say my favorite food that was introduced to me in Japan are the Asian Pears. They are so crisp and delicious!

I am saddened to be leaving tomorrow, but am happy at the same time. This is a wonderful land with wonderful, hardworking people, who are not afraid to show all their sides, good and bad. The Japanese I encountered were always looking for ways to better themselves, and were not afraid to ask for our opinions and suggestions. I also learned a great deal about other parts of our own country by interacting with the 200 teachers that traveled to Tokyo.

I know I am a different person as a result of this experience. The more I learned about this culture, the more I came to understand I know nothing about this culture. Our sterotypes of Japan are full of traditional images of kimono, kotos, and samurai to name a few. Although those are part of the Japanese culture, there is a contemporary culture that exists, a culture that demonstrates its strengths through its kindness to strangers in the hopes of building a more peaceful world. This country, only a short time ago (62 years), experienced first hand what hate and ignorance could do to a nation-both within the country and from other parts of the world. I have come to understand that through diligence and patience, a nation could foster peace in the world one person at a time, one teacher at a time. The diplomatic policy of bringing teachers from the U.S. to study in Japan, to gain a better understanding of this nation and to foster better relationships is brilliant. The Japanese government understands the importance of education, and that it is the most effective way to foster understandings between countries. Understanding the differences can halt actions that are born out of hate and ignorance. For this, I am grateful to the JFMF program.

See you soon!

kw

Rolling Green Tea - An art in itself!

A fun video of that 91 year old rolling green tea leaves.

October 30

Well, we had a later start to the morning, so I ventured to the Zojoji Temple next door (http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3010.html) to the hotel. There were these little statues with knitted hoods on them, signifying that someone came to pay respect to their child who died. There was also a tomb to a samuri who had committed hari kari. You can see from the photos there are rows and rows of these little statues.

Our speaker today talked about art tradition in Japan. Traditional Japanese art had been looked down upon by the Japanese, and not as superior as the art found in Europe. As a result, traditional Japanese art has not been stressed in the school system today. We made some paper toys during this session. We were also told that becuase Japanese eat with chopsticks, create paper toys or origami, that they have great hand and finger dexterity. By the time a child is three until they are six, they have folded origami thousands of times, and are origami professionals in the first grade.

After this session, I decided to head out solo for lunch, to experience what it was like without a group of Americans. I was somewhat uncomfortable, as I kept getting stared at, especially in the restaurant. The hostess was kind, but the customers pretty much stayed away. I ate my food (fried shrimp and rice) a bit faster when the tables filled up because someone came in and the hostess was about ready to seat that person by me, and he refused. So I got up, paid and left as I was about done anyway. I noticed the women eat in seperate restaurants than men - so I ended picking out a restaraunt that men went to, and down the block as I was walking around, I saw only women in another restaraunt. So I was stared at either because I was female in this place, or an American in this place, or both!

Well, I am off to our final session today, then to Harjuku and Oriental Bazaar tonight - our final free evening in Japan. It will be sad to leave in 2 days, but it will be good to get home too. It has been so warm here, I am afraid it will feel very cold at home!! Later, kw

Home Stay Weekend

I had a great time with my host family from Saturday to mid-afternoon Sunday. I spoke very little Japanese, and they spoke some English, but between my phrase book and thier electronic Japanese to English dictionary, we survived.

After they picked me up from the hotel, we went to Fujieda - a town about 30 minutes from Shimada. After we dropped my luggage off, we were off to an artisan museum and craft center called Takumi Shuku (http://www.shizuoka-cci.or.jp/english/kanko_06.htm) , up in the mountains. There were many soft tennis paddles with paintings of each stop on the Tokkaido road at this museum, plus local history that stressed how this area became the lacquer making center of Japan. Fujieda was the 22nd post town on the old Tokkaido Road, while Shimada was the 23rd (for more on the Tokkaido Road, go to: http://www.pbs.org/empires/japan/traveltokaido.html At this craft center my host mother made some shoes, the second oldest daughter made a bear, and I decided to make a bamboo bug cage - it took me about an hour to complete it, but the real challenge will be to bring it home

in one piece! Here is what it looks like

After "arts and crafts time" we at dinner at this place. More sushi, fish, miso soup and green tea. It was a great day to come here because it was raining so hard. When I watched the news Saturday morning, they kept saying "taifu" - here is a photo of the TV

Yes, it was a typhoon - so I got to experience one of the common weather ailments of Japan, now if I could feel just a teeeny tiny earthquake. We did not get the winds that Tokyo did, which was to the north of where I was staying. After we got back to my host family's house, I took a while to communicate if it was ok to take a one hour nap, that was an adventure in itself :) ! They had a two level home, that was both contemporary and traditional Japanese style. I stayed in what seemed to be a den area, I had my own closet/computer (I didn't use) in one room, and the futon closet, alcove in another. Both were covered in tatami floors, which after having slept in two nights of them, I don't care for the smell. But, at this house I slept on a futon on the floor with a buckwheat and normal pillow with no problems. The alcove had a beautiful scroll and flower arrangement. It was somewhat sad that there was a little dog house in the back, they just lost their dog in May. They had a beautiful Japanese pine in the front and lots of flowers to the side. I felt uncomfortable asking to take photos, so I only took ones of the room I stayed in. Oh, this home also had shoji doors. The family consisted of the mother, who is the vice-principal of the commercial high school we visited, the father who works in the city office in Shizouka for the private education sector, one daughter who lives in Osaka, another who is a first grade teacher, and a son who is in college. The son worked at a convenience store while I was there, but I came to learn he loves baseball - he was rooting for the Hokkaido Ham Fighters, who were playing the Dragons in the Japanese World Series, that started Saturday night. Everyone I have asked here LOVES the Boston Red Sox!

We ate a traditional Japanese dinner at the home, where I wrapped rice and raw tuna with a nori sheet (students: what is nori?) - It was quite good! There was also more green tea. I have drank so much green tea here, all different styles and strengths. That must be one of the secrets as to why the Japanese live so long and always look young for their age.

On Sunday, after a homemade traditional Japanese breakfast - which is ususally salad, fish, rice and egg - they took me to a Tea House, where I actually rolled some green tea leaves - my hands smelled good and turned green. I put up my hands and said "look, I am the Incredible Hulk", to which they just stared at me, not understanding the reference. I worked alongside a tea roller who was really good. I couldn't get the technique down - and it evidently takes 2 hours to roll by hand. There was a man there that was working and he was 91 years old! He looked like he was loving every minute

We walked around and took part in a traditional tea ceremony here as well, but it was very strong powdered green tea. It was beautiful, as the leaves were turning color and there were koi ponds everywhere. If you clapped your hands real loud, the koi would swim over to you looking for food. That was amazing!

Then we took a drive further up the mountains to see the tea fields, which was amazing! It is so incredibly steep here. We headed back down to an authentic soba noodle cafe for lunch. I have a video of that. The soba comes from Hokkaido and is a different tasting noodle that is eaten cold. You dip your noodles into a cup of soya sauce and slurp it up with the help of your chopsticks. I believe I provided great entertainment to my host family as the chopsticks were real smooth and my noodles kept falling off, so I had to use wooden ones that have more grip. Again, more green tea.

We headed back to their home to pick up my luggage before going to Rengeji Ike Park. Before leaving, I was given many gifts by the family, which completely surprised me. I had given them gifts the night before, as it is customary to give many gifts to people in Japan, particularly if they have done something nice or you want them to do something nice in the future. Then, if that wasn't enough, I was packing and the mother left, to come back with stacks of paper that had Japanese black water ink artwork on them. I was told to pick one I would like - the neighbor across the street is an artist who painted them. I had to choose one? How could I choose? There were about 9 different options! I decided on a hydrangea as I have one at home. Then my host family took me over to the neighbors because I wanted to personally thank the artist. We went across the street, took off our shoes, and the host mother handed him my chosen drawing. He stamped his family name below in red, and on the top right was a red stamp that meant "old friend". This guy had to be at least in his 80s, perhaps older? After we took a photo, I bowed deep for at least 3 seconds, to show my respect and honor. After much "gushing" on my behalf, he went to a curio cabinet and handed me a hand stitched ornament, I was completely taken by surprise. To add to that, I was told his grandmother made it! My jaw must have dropped, as I was in such disbelief that he would give me such an heirloom! Then the wife gave me another one and said it was for my husband! Between the gifts from my hostfamily - a chopstick wrapper with the chopsticks I ate breakfast with that morning, a handstitched drawstring bag and apron, in addtion to the rides and entry fees to places and food - and these neighbors, I was speechless. After the farewells, we went to Rengeji Ike Park - which housed the museum of Fujieda.

Rengeji Ike Park (http://www.kandou10.jp/en/spot/spot353_e02_10.html ) has a beautiful wisteria display in the spring - these plants are enormous here compared to where we live! After visiting the museum, which housed items found in archaeological digs hundreds of years B.C. we walked around the lake, taking in the warm sunshine after the typhoon rains the day before.

I was dropped off at city hall in Shimada, where I met up with the group again. We all had interesting stories of our host family stays, each one unique and special. It was hard to leave, as the homestay reminded many of us about home. But, we had one more adventure to experience before our Shimada group reunited with the 10 other groups back in Tokyo for our final days. We went to a Japanese ryokan in Yaizu city, where life was just divine! Students: resarch what a ryokan is at http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2029.html

I had two other roommates in this ryokan, and I did everything it had to offer! I wore the yukata everywhere, went into the onsen, visited the stores and had a gorgeous view of the bay and Pacific Ocean from our window. We had at least a 9 course meal, including beverages, sitting on a tatami floor, hearing the karaoke going on next door! There was sooo much food! The next morning we could see the shrimp boats out on the bay at sunrise and had a wonderful breakfast. It was the first time in about 5 days I had coffee, not green tea, and it tasted good. We left the ryokan to go to a viewing spot on top of the mountains to view Mt. Fuji - we were so lucky it was a clear day! The mountain was covered in more snow than when we first went to Shimada, because the typhoon had dumped alot of precipitation the day before. Below are photos of our ryokan stay, wearing the yukatas and Mt. Fuji. We then took the bullet train back to Tokyo, where I went with some others to buy Japanese books in English. I chose to get Doreamon - the gadget cat from the future. This is a Japanese comic book that has both the konji and english language. I read part of the first one at my host family's house, and it was good :) . After, I went up the Tokyo tower to view the city...it is quite large!

It was a fun weekend. I am hoping to have some time here to at least label the photos from the days I missed, and blog a bit about them. The photos are up, and I am still working on uploading the videos. Tomorrow is a fairly easy day, and our last independent night on the trip. I have to repack a bit tonight, as this is the first time all of my items are in one place since a week ago. Take care, kw

October 26

Today we visited Shimada Commercial High School. Here you see a school t-shirt with their school logo - we each got one, which was so very kind! Once again, we had our introductions and an overview of the H.S. This H.S. is incredibly competitive to get into, as they have won numerous awards for academics and athletics. Their volleyball coach was just named #1 coach in volleyball for the entire country of Japan! Since this is a commercial high school, the "elective" courses (which make up 33% of the students day) focus on business and computers - 100% of students who graduate from here who do not go onto college get employed by companies immediately - so there is much focus on school work such as math, computer applications and accounting. You can find more about this school on a powerpoint made by the principal on the google groups files page.

In the Japanese history class, they were studying the 226 uprising in the 1930s and the "invasion" of Manchuria. Again, the sensei drew a great map on the board of Asia. Students: can you tell what countries are where? Japan is not on this map.

What struck me was how quiet the students were compared to the elementary and Jr. High schools, and their class sizes that ranged from 33 - 40 students! Note taking is done with attention to precision, and multiple colors are used when the teacher uses different chalk colors. Also, a few students seemed to be very good at twirling their pencils, almost an art form - quite mesmerizing! We traveled between classes, seeing a variety of teaching styles. The most fun part of the day is that I played volleyball in gym, in my skirt and socks - evidently they were impressed :) here are photos...what a back set!

Another nice thing was how every student would bow their head and say hello to you in the hallway, with a smile - very respectful! After the classes, we observed the club activities - which we would call sports teams. There was volleyball, basketball, baseball, soccer, running, badminton, tennis, archery, judo, kend, accounting, music and computer programming. The students choose what sport to be in during the first year of H.S. and they stay in that sport or activity, year round, for all three years of H.S. (H.S. here is grades 10-12). We saw the accounting club, which is working hard to be #1. They have competitions such as how fast they can calculate the "books" - these kids were incredibly fast on the calculator! They "practice" from 4-9:30 every day and 9-7 p.m. on Saturdays - WOW! This school has won many awards for accounting and sports. I have posted photos to see and will upload video of the various practices after school. What was interesting is that the band kids stood outside in the halls that were covered between the buildings to practice!

This day went very fast, as there was so much to see. In all the schools we had to take off our street shoes and wear slippers - I wore my Crocs as slippers which was very comfy. I had to laugh as the Social Studies teacher was the only adult at the school who also happened to wear Crocs - must be a social studies thing?

I am off for my over night stay with a host family. It just so happens I will be staying with the vice principal of the high school we visited today, in a town about 30 miles away. I have no idea what they have planned for me, but I told them I am open to pretty much anything! I probably won't have internet access again until Monday. On Sunday we are going to a Ryokan - a Japanese style hotel which is like a spa. Take care, time is just flying by! There are some video links below.

KW

October 25

Is it the 25th already? Today we visited the Ikumi elementary school up in the mountains and it was just gorgeous! Plus, there are only 15 students in this school, which definitely provides a close teacher-student relationship. This is a rather unique school, in that it hasn't shut down because the Shimada City mayor and the ministry of education realize the value of this school. It focuses on utilizing the rich environment that surrounds it. The older kids help the younger ones and the younger ones look to the older ones as role models. This also helps develop leadership qualities. It is a k-6 school, then the students attend a Jr. High in town, which can prove to be a difficult transition, similar to when the 8th graders move to 9th grade. Students: why would there be an evacuation area?

This school has a fish hatchery, buckwheat field, silky chickens, gardens and flowers everywhere that the students help take care of together. The school itself is 150 years old, but the building were new about 20 years ago. It had up to 300 students one time too. It is located next to a river, surrounded by the town of Ikumi and tea fields. Students from Shimada city come to this school for field trips and camping. Their were 3 first graders, 7 sixth garders 2 fourth graders and 2 fifth graders (one was sick today). The fourth and fifth graders were together in one room and the 6th and 1st graders their own room. No second grade at this school. About half the kids are bused from Shimada, while the rest live near the area. Parents in Shimada can send their kids here, without additional cost.

I also loved this school because there were maps everywhere you turned (see photos). A teacher was absent, and it was amazing because the students did everything by themselves - no substitute necessary! The students also have a special backpack that they use from 1st - 6th grade. They use the same one all those years, and they cost around 16000 Japanese Yen (how much is that in US dollars?). They are very sturdy and nice. When you think how U.S. students usually will get a new backpack every year, the cost comes out to be the same.

The teachers played a game of prison ball against the students, which was a blast. Before and after each activity - such as class, lunch, or a game, the students line up and express their greetings and thanks. During one recess, I taught some girls a few tricks with the basketball, until they ran away from me screaming towards a boy. I went over there and saw he had gotten his "pet" out. A praying mantis-I assumed it was his pet, and not something he grabbed from outside, but I could be wrong. I took the plunge and had him put it on my arm. Oh, and I asked about the killer hornets, and our interpreter said they were just up the hill from where we were. They are about 3 inches long....eeeks!

We had another delicious lunch where everyone chipped in to serve and clean up. After clean up, was a school-wide clean up during homeroom. All the students clean the rooms and common areas - vaccuum, dust, wash, etc! They did this at the Jr. High as well. I am starting to naturally grab chopsticks as though it were a fork. The food was some fish, soup and vegetables with milk to drink and a piece of walnut bread. Mmmmmm

The school finally showed us their operetta, where all the school kids particiapted. It was taped, then played in front of the kids, where they did a brainstorming session after to improve it as there was an upcoming competition.

We also learned Ikebana flower arrangement, which is quite complicated for something that looks simple. To find out more, go here: http://www.ikebanahq.org/whatis.html I was provided with all the materials and instruction...it was quite fun!

The air was so crisp, with pines and tall bamboo everywhere, and the crystal clear river water made this school so cozy. What a cool place to go to learn!

Well, off to a high school tomorrow, then an overnight visit on Saturday with a host family. The mom is the vice-principal of that high school and the dad is a government official in Shizouka City. I am actually going to another town 30 miles away called Fujiata. Fun, fun!

Students: try to look at the photos from today and come up with the different geographical regions you see.

Later, kw

October 24

Hi again. Today we visited Shimada City Daiichi Junior High School for the day. Let me tell you, we got the royal treatment! Once getting inside, we had to exchange our street shoes and wear slippers. Wearing slippers is the rule inside schools, homes and some businesses. Wearing shoes inside makes it very dirty. So, once we got on our slippers, we went to the gymnasium, to be greeted by the entire school, and a band that was amazing - made up of students grades 7-9. They placed us on the stage, and once again we went through introductions. I have mine memorized by now: Konnichiwa. Watashi wa Minnesota no Dilworth kara kimasta Kerri Westgard des. This school is up to date and environmentally friendly - it uses solar power to regulate the indoor pool.

Here I am in front of the art they made for us and the students all in nice rows. You can tell the girls by thier stripes, they sat in rows of girls and rows of boys.

We observed three periods of classes today, which last about one hour each. I checked out the social studies and the 7th grade (called first year middle schoolers). They were learning about the time between the Edo and Meiji periods, and when the Europeans came to open up trade. I wonder if that was coincidence or not? They had just talked about Commodore Perry the day before (students, who was Commodore Perry?). The class was completely in Japanese, but I could follow along as the teacher had photos on the wall, and wrote some dates down. I also watched a math class and art class, where they were learning calligraphy. In front of the principals office, was a gorgeous flower arrangement. I asked if something like this was here everyday, and they laughed and said no - only because we were visiting. There are some of those photos below. One thing to point out, these kids were not that much different than American kids in class, which totally blew me away. They asked me questions, we laughed when I could not pick up the last bit of salad with my chopsticks, and were surprised that I wore Crocs. I played a bit of volleyball with some girls in my dress, and they lined the city streets to wave us goodbye when we left. They were really practicing their farewells with "see you" :)

Here in Japan, students do not leave their classrooms to change subjects, teachers move between classes and the students stay with eachother all day. Students also eat lunch in their rooms! I ate something I thought was deep fried fish, come to find out it was fried squid! I never would have tried it if I knew it was squid, so I am glad I didn't know what it was at first. It didn't taste too bad. There was also delicious melon bread, a lightly sweet soft dough bread.

Each room had a balcony where students could go onto between classes and the doors to the hallway slid and they could hang out there. They don't have bells to signal a class change, rather they play soothing classical music instead! We should do that!!

After classes in Japanese, English, Science, Math, Social Studies, FACS and art, the students spend 2 hours in after school activities. Then many will go home for supper and then attend the "crammies" usually from 7-10 pm. I thought my days here were long...

*Students* : below you will find photos of various activities Japanese Jr. High kids participate in. Can you tell from the photos what they are? Some you may have to research a bit or look very closely. In addition to the ones shown below, there is after school band, choir and art. Students do not get bused to school - all of them walk (no bikes either). The principal told us one student walks about 2 hours to and from school each day. It costs about 10000 Yen a year to participate (like our activity fee). Figure out how much that is in U.S. dollars :) About 80% of students participate in afterschool activities. It is a goal of this school to increase the participation. The school motto follows the national governments goal of promoting "a wealth of heart and wealth of mind".

The activities below can be put under "E" for entertainment. You may have to click on the photos to get a larger view.

Well, that is about it for now. I have a very early morning. We are visiting a small, rural elementary school that has only 15 students and is in the mountains. Take care, and perhaps I will have time to get more photos uploaded!

bye bye...kw