Tsubame-Sanjo

Wow! Training is done! We cramed classes till Thursday and where given our teaching assignments. We where partnered up to teach a 50 minute lesson. We got our topics Thusrday night and I worked with my partner/co-teacher Dave (from North London)for several hours. We had great ideas. It really helps to be able to bounce around ideas. It seems some of the best come from the passing around of ideas and makeing small tweaks to them. Anyhoo, we crammed and colored, made charades and worksheets. Phew! Then Friday we were split up in groups and gave our lessons. I got some really good, actually alot of really good ideas from everyone and even though I was totaly nervous, I suppose it all played out really well. We did our lesson, got a pretty good critique, and I left near immediatley for the mall to brows 'Book Off' and get a Strawberry Crepe. ^____^ But first I had to have a check in with my trainer Jodi. I love Jodi. Now initially I thought that my weeks training score would not be high and just moderate or average. I thought this mainly because when we got our assessment score back mine wasn't so good. So I was nervous and a little reluctant to go right in and talk to Jodi but I did. I was a little surprised to hear that I had gotten a 'Superior' rating and was only 2 participation points away from making it a 'Master', only 5-6 'Master' ratings where given out to the 250-300 of us. Also on my skills assessment test I got a 100%, a grade that only 4 other people got. I was impressed. Then he told me that I was a good listener. (A compliment I don't hear often...usually I'm not really high in my listening skill). Needless to say I was quite pleased with the out come. ^_____^

My Group: This is about half of us.




After the big lesson I returned to pack and do laundry and get ready for the big day the next day. We where to meet in the lobby at 7:50. I finished packing and brought it down to the front desk where the 'Post' service is. The POST service is fabulous, it's like mail for luggage and other big things you can't easily tote around, you can send it anywhere in Japan uber cheap. (For those of you who have seen Aimee Majors book "Japan Ai" this is the service with the logo of a mother cat carrying her kitten). So wheather you don't want to carry your golf clubs on the bus because it's a nausance, post it. Luggage, post it. It gets there in a day or two. I sent mine off Friday night at about 10 at night. We left for Tokyo at 8 Sat. morning.
At my stop off the bullet train, Ms Komazawa my IC picked me up and took me to my apartment, got gas turned on, and internet set up to work in 24 hours. She also took me around to pick up a few things: Futon, dishes, laundry stuff and a few other odds and ends.

100 yen store is my best friend. (the dollar store)

This morning I got quite a bit of reading done while airing out my apartment. Japanese seem to smoke alot and I kinda knew my apt. would be a smokey one, my hotel room was too. It'w been very nice. It was really nice to sleep in too.

I meandered around for while to check out the area. I didn't want to go too far because I was expecting my luggage from POST to come. So I just went on a little walk, came home, did a little more reading and airing out the place. I decided I would take a little nap for an hour and heard a knock at the door, YES!!!!! My luggage, whooot woot! So, now I'm unpacked and ready to go.

Tomorrow Ms. Komazawa comes to get me to run more errands: immigration cards/bank/and to get a phone so that I can be in contact with interac.

A side note about Interac. At first I have to admit that in my mind it would be some old random guy to come and get me and that this would be kind of an out of the back of a truck buisness, maybe sketchy...I had my nervous thoughts especially because of what happened with the NOVA program here in Japan. But INTERAC is great! Training has been amazing! We've meet a ton of people in the company and they are all super awesome and GENKI like you've never seen a person their age. I am pleased to say that I am really excited about not only being in Japan but working under INTERAC. They have been very thurough in training and proceedure and preparing us for such a different culture. Giving us oppurtunities to teach and learn so much. The leadership in the company is strong and open. I feel comfortable talking to my MC or any of my area schedulers if I need anything and feel confident that they are there for me in quick reaction. This seems like a great company and I'm really excited to be teaching. I still have alot of my nerves about teaching especially High school but I'm sure they will smooth out in time.

Training has also been really neet in the sense of getting to know people from all over I love having classes with the mixed humor from around the world, and faces and accents. I've already made friends from all over. It's really fun.

Well here's a little apartment tour:








It's cute, I sleep in a little loft. ^_____^ I really like it.

I took some pictures of the pretty and festive Japanese food so you all can see what it looks like. Such presentation!