Ladies and gents-
One of my best friends Mother died this week, so in her honor there will be no formal post this week. Take care all of you,enjoy the time with your families and happy new year! Ake Meshite Omedetoo!
-Scott
Thursday, December 30, 2004
Friday, December 24, 2004
Message from SkyMail
let me be the first to wish u all a merry christmas!its 1202 christmas morn here!thanx for reading!
Tuesday, December 21, 2004
Merry Christmas three days early!
I'll be home for Christmas, you can count on me, there'll be snow and misletoe and presents on the tree... blah blah blah, (but does anyone actually remember the last line of this song?) BUT ONLY IN MY DREAMS. I finally understand the song. Im not home. Im missing the turkey, cookies, pine tree smells, christmas songs (ok, i hear those here ALL the time), the family being together, football, gifts under the tree, the tree itself, and the hassle of shopping (yeah i do miss it). BUT... I cant complain about where I am. Im having a great time over here, and its a once in a lifetime experience, so my gift to all of you are these three pics. Enjoy! And merry Christmas! I will miss all of you, and I wish you all the best during this holiday season, whereevr you are in this crazy world.
Now on to the last week and a half...
I traveled to Hakone last Wednesday and Thursday. Hakone is a very popular japanese tourist destination, due to the many beautiful views of fuji, the onsens (an onsen is a natural hotspring bath, heated naturally by underground magma), the museums, and the escape from the city life of tokyo. Because i went in the middle of the week i missed most of the craziness. one of The other great things about hakone is the method of transportation. Once you get to hakone you can take: A double backing mountain train, cable car, two different ropeways AND... a pirate ship? where did the pirate ship come from? turns out that the japanese LOVE fantasy, so they made the lake ashi ferries into three pirate ships and one mississippi river paddle boat. Yeah, those are SOOO japanese.
I took the whole tour, which was great and very relaxing. My favorite things were the onsen baths (damn those were hot, try 45 celcius), The AMAZING hakone open-air museum (The museum is a collection of hundreds of sculptures by numerous artists like Rodin as well as paintings by picasso, all of which are situated in a beautiful flat area on a mountain side)(I stayed two hours but could have stayed longer), Owakidani (the crater of a volcano that blew its top 3000 years ago, which is still active and has many bubbling water pools(think yellowstone), where they cook eggs in the waters which then turn black and are said to extend your life by 7 years. Yum. I ate two.) And the transportation with breathtaking views of Fuji. Amazing.
The photos below are from the hakone trip.
In other news...
My roommates are both gone for at least a month. which means that if i clean now, the place will be clean for a month. of course, cleaning a years worth of filth takes awhile.
I have also moved into my new room. its bigger, has a closet, access to the porch, and a jack for the TV, but i dont have a tv so it doesnt help.
I watched the last samurai for the sixth time yesterday. Its tough to watch movies when they are all in japanese, so i rewatch the movies we have on hand (o, and USA DVDs dont work on japanese dvd players) which are: Kill Bill Volume 1 (watched 5 times), The Last Samurai (6 times), League of Extrodinary gentlemen (twice), Windtalkers (once. That movie sucks.), Dreamcatcher (twice) Snatch (four times), and Office Space (7 or 8 times).
I will be going to see the Incredibles though tomorrow. should be good.
My two favorite people from work are leaving the end of january. im sad, because i really cant stand some of my other coworkers.
Over the new year break i will be traveling to Hiroshima, Osaka, and possibly Kyoto. It should be a very solemn and humbling experience.
Political two cents: I had a nice talk with a student the other day, and since it was one on one, we talked about more serious issues. I asked her about how japanese people feel about americans now. her answer actually made me sad and i really couldnt think of how her views could change in the near future. she said: after the iraqi war started, the japanese people not only felt disappointed, but also felt that their dreams were gone. It turns out that in this uncertain world, the one country that japanse people really looked up to (yes she said that) was the US. The US gave the japanese a feeling that anything was possible, that the american way of life was greatest on earth, and it was something to strive for. since the iraqi conflict, these views and dreams have been shattered. Makes you think of a older sibling that has done something to lose the trust and role-model status in the mind of a younger sibling. Two more cents: Look up the Kyoto Protocol and find out why the US doesnt want ANYONE to be part of it, just because their not.
Blah blah blah...
Ok folks, merry Christmas. I love you all and believe me you will be in my thoughts on Saturday.
Take care!
Scotto San
Now on to the last week and a half...
I traveled to Hakone last Wednesday and Thursday. Hakone is a very popular japanese tourist destination, due to the many beautiful views of fuji, the onsens (an onsen is a natural hotspring bath, heated naturally by underground magma), the museums, and the escape from the city life of tokyo. Because i went in the middle of the week i missed most of the craziness. one of The other great things about hakone is the method of transportation. Once you get to hakone you can take: A double backing mountain train, cable car, two different ropeways AND... a pirate ship? where did the pirate ship come from? turns out that the japanese LOVE fantasy, so they made the lake ashi ferries into three pirate ships and one mississippi river paddle boat. Yeah, those are SOOO japanese.
I took the whole tour, which was great and very relaxing. My favorite things were the onsen baths (damn those were hot, try 45 celcius), The AMAZING hakone open-air museum (The museum is a collection of hundreds of sculptures by numerous artists like Rodin as well as paintings by picasso, all of which are situated in a beautiful flat area on a mountain side)(I stayed two hours but could have stayed longer), Owakidani (the crater of a volcano that blew its top 3000 years ago, which is still active and has many bubbling water pools(think yellowstone), where they cook eggs in the waters which then turn black and are said to extend your life by 7 years. Yum. I ate two.) And the transportation with breathtaking views of Fuji. Amazing.
The photos below are from the hakone trip.
In other news...
My roommates are both gone for at least a month. which means that if i clean now, the place will be clean for a month. of course, cleaning a years worth of filth takes awhile.
I have also moved into my new room. its bigger, has a closet, access to the porch, and a jack for the TV, but i dont have a tv so it doesnt help.
I watched the last samurai for the sixth time yesterday. Its tough to watch movies when they are all in japanese, so i rewatch the movies we have on hand (o, and USA DVDs dont work on japanese dvd players) which are: Kill Bill Volume 1 (watched 5 times), The Last Samurai (6 times), League of Extrodinary gentlemen (twice), Windtalkers (once. That movie sucks.), Dreamcatcher (twice) Snatch (four times), and Office Space (7 or 8 times).
I will be going to see the Incredibles though tomorrow. should be good.
My two favorite people from work are leaving the end of january. im sad, because i really cant stand some of my other coworkers.
Over the new year break i will be traveling to Hiroshima, Osaka, and possibly Kyoto. It should be a very solemn and humbling experience.
Political two cents: I had a nice talk with a student the other day, and since it was one on one, we talked about more serious issues. I asked her about how japanese people feel about americans now. her answer actually made me sad and i really couldnt think of how her views could change in the near future. she said: after the iraqi war started, the japanese people not only felt disappointed, but also felt that their dreams were gone. It turns out that in this uncertain world, the one country that japanse people really looked up to (yes she said that) was the US. The US gave the japanese a feeling that anything was possible, that the american way of life was greatest on earth, and it was something to strive for. since the iraqi conflict, these views and dreams have been shattered. Makes you think of a older sibling that has done something to lose the trust and role-model status in the mind of a younger sibling. Two more cents: Look up the Kyoto Protocol and find out why the US doesnt want ANYONE to be part of it, just because their not.
Blah blah blah...
Ok folks, merry Christmas. I love you all and believe me you will be in my thoughts on Saturday.
Take care!
Scotto San
Monday, December 20, 2004
Message from SkyMail
im still here! had a great week last week so ill give a full rundown with photos wednesday!
Sunday, December 12, 2004
I didnt Spend it All!
Ha! Here it is the end of my pay month, and i actually didnt spend my entire paycheck! Its really not that tough to do to tell you the truth (saving and spending). I was actually able to buy an mp3 player that can upload songs by a direct connection to a stereo. good since i dont have a computer. in case anyone is wondering its the iRiver H320. pretty cool.
my brother mike asked me a good question the other day. for those of you up on your history, December 7th was the 63rd anniversary of Peral Harbor, and mike asked me what it was like to be here in Japan. Truthfully, all the americans knew it, and im sure some of our students did too, but NO ONE MENTIONED IT. thats number 2 on the list of taboo topics, number one being the a-bomb, so no, it wasnt that bad.
lets talk about the real bad day... Two days ago I had my strangest day to date. First off, one of our students is having a mental breakdown. He followed the teachers into the teacher area and kept on saying 'I understand, I understand'. turns out that he thinks he can be an english teacher, because he memorized some old english (think 1600's) novel. Due to this fact he speaks like shakespere (Tis a tad brisk on this eve shant it not be?) Wha? OK. well, he also thinks he found the cure for cancer, and doesnt understand why the newspaper is written differently from the english he learned.
part 2- A student walked out on me the same day. It was the nightmare class. no way that it was going to work, an 11 year old indonesian girl that doesnt talk because shes bored (she skipped 20 classes in a row, but was finally caught when we called her mother to ask where she was and realized she had been dropped off for class 20 times, but hid by the vending machines outside for the 40 minute lesson), and an eccentric chinese woman that says she was a director, actress and a teacher, yet she can never explain which job she actually holds right now. The chinese woman was getting most of my attention, and the little girl was content not to talk, but we dont work that way, so when i talked to her, i was accused of going to fast for the chinese woman, who then got ticked. the girl almost started to cry, and the director refused to talk as well. blah blah blah, she then stood up and left the place. bummer. dont worry, im not in trouble, and i have become one of the fav teachers, so they cant touch me.
Quicks-
-No one posts here anymore
-karaoke again last night. got home at 5 this morning. ugh.
-i received my first letter from the states! Thanks Angela!
-I officially have a japanese friend
-Watashi wa biru ga nomitai
-I need to sleep
- No skiing, going to hakone this week. should be very relaxing. onsens here i come!
take care
scotto san
my brother mike asked me a good question the other day. for those of you up on your history, December 7th was the 63rd anniversary of Peral Harbor, and mike asked me what it was like to be here in Japan. Truthfully, all the americans knew it, and im sure some of our students did too, but NO ONE MENTIONED IT. thats number 2 on the list of taboo topics, number one being the a-bomb, so no, it wasnt that bad.
lets talk about the real bad day... Two days ago I had my strangest day to date. First off, one of our students is having a mental breakdown. He followed the teachers into the teacher area and kept on saying 'I understand, I understand'. turns out that he thinks he can be an english teacher, because he memorized some old english (think 1600's) novel. Due to this fact he speaks like shakespere (Tis a tad brisk on this eve shant it not be?) Wha? OK. well, he also thinks he found the cure for cancer, and doesnt understand why the newspaper is written differently from the english he learned.
part 2- A student walked out on me the same day. It was the nightmare class. no way that it was going to work, an 11 year old indonesian girl that doesnt talk because shes bored (she skipped 20 classes in a row, but was finally caught when we called her mother to ask where she was and realized she had been dropped off for class 20 times, but hid by the vending machines outside for the 40 minute lesson), and an eccentric chinese woman that says she was a director, actress and a teacher, yet she can never explain which job she actually holds right now. The chinese woman was getting most of my attention, and the little girl was content not to talk, but we dont work that way, so when i talked to her, i was accused of going to fast for the chinese woman, who then got ticked. the girl almost started to cry, and the director refused to talk as well. blah blah blah, she then stood up and left the place. bummer. dont worry, im not in trouble, and i have become one of the fav teachers, so they cant touch me.
Quicks-
-No one posts here anymore
-karaoke again last night. got home at 5 this morning. ugh.
-i received my first letter from the states! Thanks Angela!
-I officially have a japanese friend
-Watashi wa biru ga nomitai
-I need to sleep
- No skiing, going to hakone this week. should be very relaxing. onsens here i come!
take care
scotto san
Friday, December 10, 2004
Message from SkyMail
and now the quik update:i bought an mp3 playr yesterday AND a student walked out of my class today!
Sunday, December 05, 2004
The Crazy country that is Japan
i know many of you think that i am crazy, but check out these doozies from the japanese.
First off: The Ice Cream Man-
Every Tuesday, wednesday, thursday and saturday morning i hear the icecream man. you know, the tunes that play throughout the neighbor hood, to let children know that a big truck with a scary looking man is on his way to sell you a tasty summer treat. well they have it japan too, but here the scary looking man is actually the driver of the garbage truck. They japanese actually place music throughout the city to let you know that the trash is being picked up. i hate it. on my days off i wake up to japanese music pouring out of A GARBAGE TRUCK!!! at 8 in the morning. ughh.
Hooker Boots:
In the states we call them hooker boots (or stripper boots). the tall black boots with high heels that come up to a girls knees, followed by some gratuitous leg then a short skirt. Perverts...welcome to japan. i would be willing to say that 50 percent of all women wear these outfits. by the way, japanese women CANT WALK in high heels. i cant count the number of times i have seen a japanese woman fall on her face because of the awkward walk they do in the boots. how about this... TAKE THEM OFF!!!
The Tim Allen effect:
all people in japan make a strange noise. i call it the tim allen. why you ask? ever seen home improvement? you know the EEeaaauuuiii? noise that he makes? the japanese have mastered it, and it is part of their language. It is extremely annoying. i think i can translate. it means: Really? No Way! Are You sure? i dont believe you. What? I just went to the bathroom! You did what!? Who? What? Where? When? Why? How?
I just dont get it, but i have mastered it... like i said, i now understand about five percent of japanese, and that word constitutes 99% of that understanding.
Finally... The Wow Japanese girls:
A friend here once asked me what i though tof japanese girls. i said i thought that it was about the same as in the us. some were actractive, some werent. He said it one step better: 'I see a beautiful japanese girl and i think 'Wow!', then she opens her mouth and i see her teeth, and i think 'Wow'.
enjoy. laugh. merry christmas.
scotto san
First off: The Ice Cream Man-
Every Tuesday, wednesday, thursday and saturday morning i hear the icecream man. you know, the tunes that play throughout the neighbor hood, to let children know that a big truck with a scary looking man is on his way to sell you a tasty summer treat. well they have it japan too, but here the scary looking man is actually the driver of the garbage truck. They japanese actually place music throughout the city to let you know that the trash is being picked up. i hate it. on my days off i wake up to japanese music pouring out of A GARBAGE TRUCK!!! at 8 in the morning. ughh.
Hooker Boots:
In the states we call them hooker boots (or stripper boots). the tall black boots with high heels that come up to a girls knees, followed by some gratuitous leg then a short skirt. Perverts...welcome to japan. i would be willing to say that 50 percent of all women wear these outfits. by the way, japanese women CANT WALK in high heels. i cant count the number of times i have seen a japanese woman fall on her face because of the awkward walk they do in the boots. how about this... TAKE THEM OFF!!!
The Tim Allen effect:
all people in japan make a strange noise. i call it the tim allen. why you ask? ever seen home improvement? you know the EEeaaauuuiii? noise that he makes? the japanese have mastered it, and it is part of their language. It is extremely annoying. i think i can translate. it means: Really? No Way! Are You sure? i dont believe you. What? I just went to the bathroom! You did what!? Who? What? Where? When? Why? How?
I just dont get it, but i have mastered it... like i said, i now understand about five percent of japanese, and that word constitutes 99% of that understanding.
Finally... The Wow Japanese girls:
A friend here once asked me what i though tof japanese girls. i said i thought that it was about the same as in the us. some were actractive, some werent. He said it one step better: 'I see a beautiful japanese girl and i think 'Wow!', then she opens her mouth and i see her teeth, and i think 'Wow'.
enjoy. laugh. merry christmas.
scotto san
Friday, December 03, 2004
Wednesday, December 01, 2004
Either a Cool Japanese or an American fool
I just got my haircut, the first time since i have been here, and I either look like a cool Japanese person or just a dumb fool. because in the states i think that this style might get laughed at. i would post a photo but it doesnt seem to want to let me right now, sorry folks. I walked into the place expecting a disaster, because most haircuts around here run about 50 bucks, this one was ten. the guy took 45 minutes. he had no clippers. thus my neckline, sideburns and ears were all cut by... A STRAIGHT RAZOR!!! ARRRGGHHH! actually, it wasnt bad at all, and after he was done he wiped my brow with a hot towel, and took another 15 minutes twisting many of the hairs together, brushing out all remaining hair, and finishing by cementing it all together with hairspray and gel. i actually like it.
lets see... the week that was for scott... Thanksgiving I chowed down on tuna, beef and chicken... in the smallest portions i have ever seen. it was fun, we ate at a restaurant that had all the booths shaped like eggs. the floor was see through glass with a zen like sand/rock garden beneath. nice place and amazing ly enough fairly resonable.
Friday-Tuesday not much. I worked, went to my lesson, and my teacher asked me out!!! If you think im serious, i feel sorry for you. Two more weeks until i move to the better room. i cant wait.
went to disney land yesterday. almost exactly like the other parks except that it is much more crowded and no one can speak english. strangly enough the characters NOT in full face covering outfits (ie. mary poppins, cinderella, snow white, the mad hatter, alice, etc.) were ALL either american or australian or british. hmmm.. future job possibility? I went with my roommate and his girlfriend (the mistress) and her friend. Neither one speaks english, so my listening comprehension ability for japanese has now increased from 4% to a whopping 5%.
i have finally decided that it is best, no matter how dirty, for me to stay in my current living arrangements. It would cost way too much to move if im not staying beyond next may or june. Stay tuned for next weeks entry "How I traveled to Japan to become a maid"!
the shorts-
-Fuji has snow on it, magnificent cant describe its beauty.
-The word for 'cute' and 'I hate you' are one letter apart and sound VERY VERY similar, which might explain why none of my pick ups are working. heh. kidding, dont worry mom, im not even looking.
-i have amassed enough friends to keep me busy, and my money disappearing.
-Who is coming to visit? and when? I already have info from one person.
-Sunday is dans BD. wish him a happy one
-i have once again forgotten the crazy little things that happened to me during the week.
have a good week.
scotto san
p.s. yes, students do call me scotto san, turns out that japanese words never end in a letter other than 'n' or a vowel. so, they cant understand how to say it without adding the o. I have actually seen a student add the 'o' to my WRITTEN name because they thought I had written it wrong! also, san means Mr.
I responded to you brett on the comment thread.
lets see... the week that was for scott... Thanksgiving I chowed down on tuna, beef and chicken... in the smallest portions i have ever seen. it was fun, we ate at a restaurant that had all the booths shaped like eggs. the floor was see through glass with a zen like sand/rock garden beneath. nice place and amazing ly enough fairly resonable.
Friday-Tuesday not much. I worked, went to my lesson, and my teacher asked me out!!! If you think im serious, i feel sorry for you. Two more weeks until i move to the better room. i cant wait.
went to disney land yesterday. almost exactly like the other parks except that it is much more crowded and no one can speak english. strangly enough the characters NOT in full face covering outfits (ie. mary poppins, cinderella, snow white, the mad hatter, alice, etc.) were ALL either american or australian or british. hmmm.. future job possibility? I went with my roommate and his girlfriend (the mistress) and her friend. Neither one speaks english, so my listening comprehension ability for japanese has now increased from 4% to a whopping 5%.
i have finally decided that it is best, no matter how dirty, for me to stay in my current living arrangements. It would cost way too much to move if im not staying beyond next may or june. Stay tuned for next weeks entry "How I traveled to Japan to become a maid"!
the shorts-
-Fuji has snow on it, magnificent cant describe its beauty.
-The word for 'cute' and 'I hate you' are one letter apart and sound VERY VERY similar, which might explain why none of my pick ups are working. heh. kidding, dont worry mom, im not even looking.
-i have amassed enough friends to keep me busy, and my money disappearing.
-Who is coming to visit? and when? I already have info from one person.
-Sunday is dans BD. wish him a happy one
-i have once again forgotten the crazy little things that happened to me during the week.
have a good week.
scotto san
p.s. yes, students do call me scotto san, turns out that japanese words never end in a letter other than 'n' or a vowel. so, they cant understand how to say it without adding the o. I have actually seen a student add the 'o' to my WRITTEN name because they thought I had written it wrong! also, san means Mr.
I responded to you brett on the comment thread.
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