The last few days in Japan went quickly. We got the apartment spic-and-span, or as near as we could make it, stuffed our suitcases to the brim, threw away a bunch of clothes, bought/received more omiyage/presents than we thought possible, and said goodbye to some good friends. Then a shink to Narita, a 9-hour flight to Salt Lake City, a 3-hour (plus 1-hour delay) flight to Houston, and - that’s all. Back in the States. Easy as that.

Still in various stages of culture shock, though last night’s dinner at Chili’s was a blissful affair. It’s weird to be back, but it isn’t. It’s like I have the memories of two different people, one who lives in Japan and one who lives in the States, and neither thinks it’s weird to be in their habitat. Sort of like my Mac, which I can start on the Mac partition or on the PC partition depending on my needs. It will be weird when I eventually realize that the PC side doesn’t start up anymore. Or would Japan be the Mac side in this analogy? Anyway.

I was very happy to see my bed. I am lying in it as I type this. I was also very happy to eat potato soup at La Madeleine today. I’m looking forward to seeing my crockpot and setting up a real home again in our new apartment.

I suppose I ought to take down this blog, or archive it, or something, as I am no longer “In Japan.” Maybe start a new one, maybe go back to the old one from before. I suppose I’ll figure that out later. But first, I’ve got a lot of unpacking to do - and a lot of people to see.

Last night was the Leavers’ Ceremony and Party in Shizuoka, so Kory and I stayed in a business hotel rather than try to crash at someone’s house or worry about catching the last train. This morning, I slept in and woke to the peaceful sensation of sunlight coming through the window. I was laying on a soft bed with white sheets, a white pillow, and a white comforter. No part of my body hurt (as it usually does when I wake up from my futon). I was in heaven.

Although leaving Japan is very sad, there are things I will be very happy to return to. My bed is one of them.

So here I am on the train. I’ve got my Totoro socks on my feet, an umbrella in my purse, and some breakfast in a plastic combini bag. The train is fairly empty at this time on a weekday, and I’m taking the local all the way. It’s oddly liberating to be alone all day on a train. I usually travel in groups–or at least with Kory, and I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve taken the slow train out of the prefecture. It’s relaxing.

I love museums anyway, and I love love love Ghibli. I can’t wait to get there!

Prior to this, on my way out the door from school, I crossed paths with one of my night school students. I recently taught my last night school class and wasn’t too sad about its end - the kids are sweethearts, but I do like to relax at night, not teach more after a full day. So when I saw this girl, shy and sort of plump, I smiled at her and returned her “Ohayo gozaimasu” as I normally do. I was halfway down the stairs when I heard her say my name in a tiny voice. I turned around, still unsure if she’d really said anything, and she said something else in very quiet and fast Japanese. I asked her to repeat herself, and she asked me if I had class tonight. I said no, I don’t. And she started to cry! Of course the night school students all know I’m leaving; everyone knows at this point. I’ve given goodbye speeches in most, if not all, of my night school classes. And keep in mind that this girl saw me once a month at the most. But here she was, blinking back tears and telling me to “Gambarimasu” in a tiny, fierce voice! She was adorable. I told her to “Gambarimasu” as well. We talked for a couple of minutes, and then we went our separate ways. It’s weird to think about how you can affect someone you see so rarely. I hope she has a good life.

Yesterday the young female teachers went out for my goodbye lunch. We went to an amazing crab restaurant. Most of the conversation, including an elementary goodbye speech from me, was in Japanese. I had matcha and a tea ceremony sweet for dessert. I got sad while I was sitting there after the meal, overwhelmed with fast Japanese, staring into the depths of my anko-flavored jelly, thinking that I might never have this experience again.

But then today we got an email from the apartment complex in Florida saying we should be good to go. And I started arranging furniture on a floor plan I made on my computer.

• purikura
• onsen
• friends
• co-workers
• students
• japanese sushi
• people helping me with the copy machine
• fans
• cute everywhere
• ramen
• pouring drinks for other people
• tilting my head to the side and it being enough
• vending machines
• the thrill of a successful conversation
• silence
• solitude
• trains
• train station shopping centers
• mascots
• plaid
• short shorts
• high heels
• hats
• keitai charms
• guys in pink
• false eyelashes
• japanese magazines
• kanji
• katakana
• engrish
• fujisan

Just got back from an amazing anniversary weekend to Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo Disney Sea! The whole trip was great, and I’m sure I or Kory will post more about it in the future. When I get the pictures posted, you may see a couple of unfamiliar faces: Duffy, the Disney Bear, and Chandu, the baby tiger. It’s funny that these are the two least Disneyish Disney characters we encountered, but they were the ones we ended up taking home with us. So quickly, I wanted to point you guys to a very informative blog that explains their popularity: http://land.allears.net/blogs/jackspence/2010/05/duffy_and_sinbad.html . Enjoy!

Overhead view of food stalls

This weekend is a very special weekend for many Japanese high school students (and teachers). It’s the school festival! School festival is like Homecoming in scope, but instead of a football game and dance they have food stands, performances, and activities. Each club is in charge of doing something for the festival: the culture clubs usually do performances or set up a display/activity in an empty classroom, while the sports clubs are generally in charge of food.

Kory and I were very unlucky this year and last, in that both of our school festivals were the same weekend! So while the school festival is open (on the second day) to the public, we can’t go see each others’ festivals. School festival days are considered workdays, so we have to be here for normal business hours, but we get substitute holidays scattered throughout the next few weeks.

Last year, my English Club’s ninensei did a dance from High School Musical. The sannensei did a hula they inherited from a previous ALT who was Hawaiian, and the ichinensei just helped out as needed (since they had no idea what was going on). This year, I have a big class of ninensei, and they are producing an original English one-act of Sleeping Beauty while the sannensei hula. I am playing a King (Phillip’s father), and I make my cameo in one short scene before falling asleep for the rest of the play. The girls worked really hard this year, and I was really impressed by the quality - and, at 25 minutes, the length - of their product. Of course the English Club JTE and I helped them, but the club president in particular really whipped them into shape when we weren’t present. I hope a lot of people come to see it - I anticipate most guests being scared away by the “in English” factor, but I tried to help them make it as visually understandable as possible.

So today all I have to do is wander around, support the students by buying things from all the booths, and enjoy my last school festival. It’s hard not to have fun when you’re watching the brass band perform an Aladdin medley between the yakisoba and yakitori stands, surrounded by a crowd of high school students who are having the time of their lives.

I’d also like to boast that I made it through the entire tea ceremony sitting seiza and was able to get my toes back into my shoes and walk away afterward!

Friday night, we went up to Numazu to see Luther, a friend who is visiting Japan for a few days after leaving last year. We had dinner and then went to karaoke, where I literally sung myself hoarse. I slept in on Saturday and then went straight back to school for a couple of hours to help with English Club’s rehearsal for school festival. After English Club, I took the long train down to Yaizu for a Super Classy party hosted by fellow NaNo-er Kristina and hung out with a bunch of people from the south end of the prefecture I never get to see. Made the last train home and slept in again on Sunday. After I woke up, I finished a book, made some soup, and played Civilization IV online with Dion (well, to be more accurate, he taught me how).

It’s been raining a lot recently, so we’ve been stymied in our ongoing efforts to run in the mornings; but we did make it out a few times since my last post. The season finale of LOST is tonight. It is an event comparable in scope only to the release of Harry Potter VII. No spoilers please!