Sayonara Japan

Here are some pictures from my last day in Japan. Emotional as it was, it was also amazing and a day that I will never forget.

Amanda and Moka Chan (9 months)
Amanda with 4 and 5 year olds singing at the surprise Sayonara Amanda Sensei!! party
Amanda and Miki (4 years) saying goodbye

Sayonara Japan

Friday, June 27, 2008

Coming to Japan I knew what was at stake. I knew that I was going to gain a lot, but I also knew that I could possibly have a lot to lose. As I reflect on my journey this year, I am reminded over and over again that every journey has its ups and downs because that is just a part of life. I am also reminded that there is a bigger plan out there for me, for everyone. This year has been full of happiness and sometimes laced with sadness, but above all I have grown to know myself better as a person and my true purpose in life.

The people I have met and the places I have been this year have proven to be invaluable experiences. The people I have lost in my life will forever be etched upon my heart. Japan was a theme park of emotions with so many different people from so many different walks of life contributing to feelings on a daily basis. I was always on a rollercoaster, riding a wild and thrilling ride, never knowing where it would take me next.

This has been one of the hardest weeks of my life. It ranks up there with some of the worst and some of the best. If you have never been in a situation like this, leaving a place where you have made friends and even been part of a family, to go somewhere else you will never understand the pain and the joy that are mixed together. My words can’t even describe this feeling. There are only a handful of people I know who can understand what I am going through right now.

This week I started saying my goodbyes. I have been so good to keep my chin up and not cry, but as I sit on the train, my last train ride to school, I find myself breaking down. I see the familiar faces of the people who I ride with every day. I have never spoken to them, but we know each other and we notice the absence of each other. I wonder of next week they will notice that I am not here. Will they wonder where I am when I don’t show up for a few days?

The schools that I go to are full of amazing people. The teachers are full of life and yearning to always learn knew things. They want me to tell them stories and they love to ask questions. Saying goodbye to them was very hard. We have become more than colleagues, we have become friends. The little English that they had in the beginning has grown to where now we can have conversations and even tell jokes. They understand my personality and have learned to lose the uptight Japanese stature and laugh along with me when something is funny. These strong women have learned from me that it is okay to relax a bit and just talk sometimes; you don’t have to spend every minute of the day working so hard.

The children that I have been blessed with the opportunity to teach will forever be in my heart. As I said my goodbyes to all of my classes this week, they each gave my little hugs and kisses. Every class gave me a homemade present with pictures and drawings. These are my treasures from Japan. Telling them goodbye was heartbreaking because I know that I probably will never see them again. Seeing their little faces, hearing the goodbyes, and even seeing some tears really touched me. I have impacted these children in a way that not many people can understand. We might not speak the same language when it comes to out national language, but we definitely speak the same language when it comes to love. We have made books, pizza, bubbles, soup, costumes, played games, and so much more. I have so many documented memories with pictures, but it has also been documented in my heart. I have seen babies come to school for the first time at 6 months and watch them learn to roll over, sit up, crawl, stand up, and walk. I am forever a part of these little lives and I thank God for this experience.

It’s not easy to leave this world that I leave in and go back to my other life. I am scared to go back. I have been gone for a year and the people I love have been living their lives without me, just as I have been living without them. Some of them have moved on and have not included me. As much as this hurts, I have to accept it because in my heart, I just wish for everyone’s happiness. Others are eagerly anticipating my arrival. I am nervous to be with all of these people again because of all of the changes that I have made in my life this year. I worry about being a different person and others being different from a year apart.

I trust that God will lead me down the right path. So far He hasn’t failed me. Sometimes I question why, but then I have to remember that this is just a little part of my life and I need to just ride it out. Not to sound egotistical, but I am not an ordinary person. I have accomplished many things and I know that I am meant to do much more. My choice to come to Japan was not a hard one except for when it came to leaving the people I loved. I had a great friend say to me, “Amanda, if you don’t get on that plane, I will PUT you on that plane.” I am forever grateful of the support of my family and friends and all of those in my life who have helped me through this.

As I thought at this time last year, a chapter of my life is closing and a new one is about to open…except I don’t really know it that’s true. Nothing ever really closes; it is all open for you to come back to. I hope to one day show everyone the world through my eyes because it truly is a more beautiful place to be.

Lemonade

I just made a new pitcher of Crystal Light lemonade (my favorite drink in the whole world). I realized I didn't have any PINK left (the BEST kind), only the YELLOW so that got me thinking about how much I actually had in total. I checked my supply and I only have enough to make 30 more quarts...that's 15 pitchers. I can drink that much in about 6 hours (seriously)! My American comforts are starting to run out and I still have two months.

As the Japanese teachers at my school would say, "FIGHT! FIGHT!"

Update

Wednesday, April 23, 2008

My birthday party at Moby Dick's

I got these ROCKIN' sunglasses (shaped like red lips)

and a TRIANGLE!!!

This is Tapio (from Finland) and me. He is responsible

for giving me the triangle for my birthday.

My other friends were mad at him... haha

Since my last post on February 24 (about what I did the night of January 19), my hair has probably grown a good inch and I am now 27 years old. A lot has changed in my life since my last post. Sorry I have been really bad about blogging.

Let's see...here's a quick run through of some things that I have done:

Jan. 26 was Australia Day and I played Cricket. I despise that game by the way.

Feb. 8-11: I went to Sapporro in Hokkaido (far north of Japan) for Yuki Matsuri (The Snow Festival). It was AMAZING! People from all over the world go to it to see these ice sculptures that are HUGE and just mind blowing. I have pictures and I'll try to get them up here as soon as I can. I promise! I also went snowboarding in Niseko. The snow was so great. It was like a fine powder and the slopes were so much fun.

Feb. 16 was the Naked Man Festival here in Okayama. Interesting to say the least (and no, they were not really naked).

The entire month of February I was sick. It started in Hokkaido and just got worse and worse. Sometime in there I got the flu and was home from work for about a week. I thought I was knocking on death's door, but I managed to survive. I DID have to go to the "hospital" several times (what they call the doctor). It was terriflying and I do not have much confidence in the Japanese medical system. If you want to hear my stories, we can talk later...much later.

March was pretty low key as for doing anything. I stayed in a great part of the month and kept to myself. As the weather has been changing from cold to a little warmer and there has been a lot of rain I just didn't feel like getting out there much. No time off in March to travel either so Tara and I hung out a lot. She's been a great friend while we've been in Japan.

March 26: Mom arrived in Japan! I was so excited that she had come. I was thinking about catching the next flight home, back to warm Alabama weather, but Mom came here instead. Probably better since I had to work if I wanted to get paid. :) I was off for the first week of April so she and I traveled around Japan. We celebrated her birthday and my own. Fun times.

It's not the end of April. I can't quite believe it. I will be home in two months and five days. One week of that is a holiday for me here. I am going camping with my friends at Shokoku Island.

That's the best I can do for an update right now. I hope everyone is doing great!

Love, Amanda

Dinner and Bowling

Dinner and Bowling
Saturday, January 19, 2008

Tonight we met up with some of the teachers from one of Tara’s schools. We went to dinner first and then went over to Joypolis for some bowling fun. Along with the teachers, some of our friends met us there so we had a great group.

I chose my ball even before we had gotten our shoes. I spotted it from far away: Hello Kitty. I swear, in Japan you find her on everything, even the bowling balls.
In America you tell them your size and the people hand you the tattered old shoes. Not in Japan! In Japan you go to a little machine and put in some money, press the size that you want, and out pop the shoes! It’s great.

Me returning my shoes
Amy and Amanda have TWIN SHOES!!
Don't know what's going on here, just happy to be bowling.
Bowling was a fun event for the evening. I’m not great at bowling by any means. Over Christmas I went bowling with my friends at home and I was one of the lower scores on the screen. But in Japan, I was second only to Tara (and just by a few points). The Japanese people were terrible at bowling but they were so much fun to be with.

Typical Japanese photo-PEACE!
Tara...always three points ahead.
Probably another strike or something.

Always posing for the camera...I tried to take candids but she wasn't having it.

Bernie and her pink ball. Bernie was trying out speed bowling.

Amy is sad because Amanda is a better bowler than she will ever be. Amy actually lost to Amanda and had to make her breakfast the follwing morning. :)

Every time we hang out with the different teachers we have such a great time. Our friends were really impressed with them too I think. We all laughed and cheered and danced to the old pop music that was playing. I think the bowling ally staff had more fun that night then they had had in a long time.

Merry Christmas...Yeah, It's Late

When I came to Japan, one of the biggest misconceptions I had was that I was not going to get to celebrate American holidays. That was not true in the least. Here are a few shots of just a little Christmas cheer around town.

This is the tree in front of Okayama Station.
These are some more decorations in fromt of Okayama Station.
This is the same tree when it turns white.
This is a tree in one of the little malls.
And finally, this is my tree.

The first day it stood up straight and then it fell over...I used tape but it just didn't work. Check out the little oragami flowers on it though! I made them.

Snow yet AGAIN!

Snow Again
Thursday, January 24, 2008

I think I’m sick. Actually, I know I’m sick because it’s the same stuff that I had before I went home for Christmas. Now it’s a month later and I still have it…yuck. BUT, that’s not the topic of today.

I left my apartment to head to work and I was feeling really sluggish. I opened my door and…it was snowing! That woke me up. I had to ride my bike to the station in the snowy weather. Granted, it’s not like a blizzard or anything, it’s just flurrying, but it’s still fun to see.

When I got on the train and we were zooming through the cities (it’s my long train ride day) I was watching the snow fall. I feel like a little kid sitting here looking out the windows (yes, I’m writing this on the train).

They sky is really white with a little bit of a dark shadow. I keep hoping that maybe they will have to send me home early due to weather conditions. I doubt it very seriously, but I can dream, right?

Snow Again!

This was a few nights later!

This is the view from my balcony...Snow over Dr. Drive. It's so beautiful. :)



Too bad this isn't my car...

Snow!

Snow
Sunday, January 20, 2008

It was a gross day, too gross outside to do anything. My friends had spent the night last night so we were all lying around. We decided that we wanted to go get some food and since I had not gone to the grocery store in over a month and a half; that meant that we had to go get something. It was raining out so we made a quick trip. When we got back to my apartment, my friends decided that they had better head home. We said our goodbyes and I snuggled in for a nap.

Later that evening when I woke up, I talked to Tara. We had to go get out bikes from the station. We had left them there and taken a cab home the night before with all of our friends. It sounded like it was still raining so I peeked out the window. It was all foggy so I had to go out on my balcony only to realize that it was snowing! It was snowing really hard too.

I convinced Tara (from Iowa, so it was not humorous to her at all) to go for a walk in the snow to get out bikes. By the next morning there was a lot of snow on the ground. Sadly though, there are no school closings. The Japanese people seem to work no matter what the conditions.

My Balcony Ledge
Jolly Pasta in the Snow
Bikes at the Station
The Red One is Mine!

Nekoyama Snowboarding Trip

Snowboarding
January 12, 2008

On Friday, I scrambled to get a trip together for Tara and me to go snowboarding. It wasn’t impossible, just hard since I don’t speak Japanese. I had to enlist the help of some of my teachers and, of course, Naoko. It all worked out though and come Saturday morning, we were on the bus headed to Hiroshima prefecture to Nekoyama.

We left our apartment at 6:20 and had to turn around only once after realizing that I didn’t have my ticket. I was just so excited that I forgot to pack it. J Back on the road, we headed to the bus station where we leaded the bus (in the dark, mind you) and started on our 3 hour way.

When we got close to the ski resort, there was ice on the road. Being from Alabama, I was not familiar with this and it scared me. I swore I could feel the bus sliding off the road, but Tara (from Iowa) told me that we weren’t. It was so cool to see snow! I haven’t seen snow in so long and it was so pretty. I think a lot of it was fake (from snow machines) but it was still awesome.

We got off the bus and went to the lodge, careful not to slip in the icy street. In the lodge, we picked up our rented gear (boots and snowboards) and then changed into our snowboarding clothes. Thank goodness I spent so long in Mountain High Outfitters while I was in Alabama. I had everything I needed to look amazing and professional AND stay warm and dry.

Tara and I got some lessons at the resort. The lesson was for just the two of us and it was for two hours. It was great! The best part was when our instructor came out and looked at me and said, “I know you!” I did know her. I had met her before in my city when we had all gone out one night. She is friends with a group of people that I know. She is Japanese but speaks some English so she ended up being a great teacher!

First she taught us how to stretch (we should have done more of that). Then we learned how to strap ourselves into the bindings on the snowboard. She attempted to teach us how to walk. I was TERRIBLE at it. I kept sliding all over the place and falling down. It was quite hilarious, but frustrating at the same time. Then she taught us how to slide with two feet on the board, distributing our weight and using our toes to stay in control. It was hard but fun.

Next was the ski lift. That was like going on a ride at Six Flags. J I did a great job the first two times on the lift. When it was my turn to get off, I aced it! I slid right off and was really graceful. Tara, on the other hand, got off and fell. It’s okay though, we were beginners.



We walked our way to the top of the mountain and strapped in our other foot and then learned how to stand up on our snowboards. Then we were off. It’s all about balance, which is funny, because I could snowboard okay and control myself and stop and start pretty well, even though I can’t walk across a room without falling down. haha I would get going pretty well and do fine for a little while but then I would go fast and it would scare me so I would throw myself down in the ground instead of trying to stop. I did that for awhile until I finally got the hang of it and started using my toes.

We went down the mountain a total of four times. For beginners, I think that was a pretty good amount (or maybe it wasn’t, who knows). The first couple of times were really hard and I wiped out quite a few times. The last couple of times I did much better and even had some long runs on the snowboard!

I am so glad that I got my first time over with and had lessons with Yoko. When I go to Hokkaido next month I will be ready to try again. I will also know to take a HOT bath every night because of the pain that I am in today!!

Sweet Home Alabama

Leaving Japan for a Much Deserved Vacation
Saturday, December 22, 2007

Tara and I did not go to bed last night, but instead we spent the time cleaning, doing last minute packing, and just staying awake. Our theory was that if we stayed up all night, we would be able to sleep through the whole plane ride. Here I am on the plane…not sleeping. That’s not really fair to say though because I have slept about 6 hours of the ride which is half.

It was so surreal actually making the journey to get to the station. It wasn’t like just driving to the airport at home; it was much more extensive than that. First we have to go to the train station in town. Then we rode the Shinkansen (fast train) to Osaka. From Osaka we switched trains to a local train line that took us straight into the airport. That took us about two hours.

When we got here we had to go pick up all of the luggage that we sent ahead. It was well worth the money I spend to send my bags earlier in the week. They were so big and bulky that trying to ride and change trains with them would have been a nightmare.

We got in like to check out luggage. Between the 6 of us going to America, there were 15 pieced of luggage. I am not going to tell you how many of those were mine! That was terrible but we did it. We thought we were going to have a long time to shop around duty free, but by the time we grabbed lunch and got through security, it was past time to board out flight.

Tara and I didn’t fare too well with security today. We had SO much stuff that had to go into separate trays…cell phones, computers, our liquids baggie, coats, purses, etc. It was comical. Then Tara kept setting the machine off. She has to undress piece by piece…belt, shoes, scarf, etc. She STILL was beeping so they had to do the wand. While that was going on, I was setting the thing off with my shoes. I had to take off my shoes and go back and forth through the thing. Finally I stopped beeping and then he had to run my shoes through. Tara and I were thinking, “We don’t want to hurt anyone. We just want to shop duty free!!!” That idea was shot though; there would be no duty free shopping in my future today. :( Probably for the better though.