Fireworks, Festivals, and Tropical Beaches

Hello everyone! I have been very busy the last few weeks, but I finally got a chance to sit down and update.

Things are going very very well. I have been seeing a lot of amazing sights and hanging out with some amazing people. About two weeks ago, we had the Miyazaki Orientation. This involved a lot of workshops and meetings, but it was fun seeing everybody. There was a formal ceremony in which the High School ALTs received formal notices of employment from the superintendent of Miyazaki schools. It was kind of intimidating at first, as I had to go up FIRST and bow correctly and say the right words, but I did ok. The superintendent seemed like a really nice, relaxed guy, so that helped. The night of the second orientation, we had a huge welcome party for all the JETs, with all you can eat/drink and then karaoke. The food was delicious and I tried some Japanese plum wine..yummy! I got pretty drunk and ending up singing "Don't Stop Believin," "Jessie's Girl" and "Bohemian Rhapsody" at the top of my lungs. Ahhhh karaoke......
During orientation, I also went out with some JETs to the Mexican restaurant in town, and got to see Japanese people doing some salsa dancing. Afterwards we went to a bar, called "The Bar," which is owned by a dude from New Zealand. American music was playing there. That night I definitely did not feel like I was in Japan!

Last weekend, I went to Saito, which is a small town about 2 hours west of the city, for a festival and some karaoke and drinking. On the way there, my friend Nicole and I chatted with some junior high girls on the bus. They seemed very impressed that we were from America (we got some "ooohhhs!") and we also talked about how cute Johnny Depp is. Win! Also on the way to Saito, I went into the music shop and bought a book of clarinet songs! yay!!!
Of course, the party in Saito was awesome, and I got to sing "Africa" by Toto, "Are You Gonna Be My Girl" by Jet and "Help!" by The Beatles. I didn't drink too much, but some people got pretty trashed and ended up falling down in the middle of a song. The Japanese bartender just stared at them with her mouth hanging open in shock. I'm sure it was enough of a shock having about 25 foreigners in one small bar at one time. Also, there were some "yakuza" or Japanese gangsters there, and they kept trying to hit on the girls. Apparently one girl Jordie told one of the dudes that I was the gang leader of the female foreigners. She didn't mean to tell him exactly that, but it got lost in translation. LOL! I guess I have a new profession now.....
After the karaoke we crashed at Matt and Tristan's place. There were about nine people sleeping on Tristan's floor including myself. It was pretty crazy.
Delicious Pancakes at the festival in Saito

The day after Saito, there was a fireworks festival in Miyazaki, complete with Taiko drumming and dancing, girls and women in beautiful kimonos, food stands with delicious smells wafting from them, and epic fireworks. Seriously, these put fourth of July fireworks to shame. I actually got chills watching them! On the way back home, Nikki started talking with a Japanese mother and daughter, who were apparently so impressed by us that they eventually made us pinky swear to have dinner with them sometime.

Recently I visited Aoshima, which is a small island off the coast. I took the train by myself and somehow managed to find my way. The beach was sooo gorgeous. I kind of waded in the water, which was like warm bath water, and then made my way to the island. To access the island, you cross a bridge. There was a really pretty shrine on the island, as well as a walking path around the island. The day was super hot, so afterwards I bought some shaved ice from two really sweet Japanese ladies, who fawned over me. They sat me in the seat closest to the fan and gave me a plate to put my melting ice on. I watched some Japanese baseball while I cooled off, and while walking back to the station, I bought some pineapple on a stick from a street vendor. Good day!
Aoshima Shrine

On Tuesday, I had an awesome day at school. It was the first official day of the second term, so I had to make a speech in Japanese in front of all of the teachers. This was quite nervewracking, but I managed and even had some teachers come up afterwards and compliment me. Whew! Then there was a huge opening ceremony in the gym for the students. What a difference between assemblies in the states and in Japan. The kids sat in neat rows and you could hear a pin drop when the principal began talking. I mean, A PIN DROP. No coughing, no fidgeting, nothing. Then I had to go up and make my speech to the students, which was still nervewracking but not quite as intense as the one to the teachers...because it was in English. I told them where I was from, a little about myself, and said I was looking forward to working at Omiya High School. After the new teachers finished, the students sang the school song. They were AMAZING. I was so impressed how every single student was singing (and taking it seriously, I might add...this wouldn't happen in the states either), a capella, and they sounded like a professional choir. They sang a song for an upcoming school festival as well...I was just blown away by how good they were. I love the atmosphere and sense of community in my school. :) The rest of that day continued being great. During school cleaning time, we were treated to a John Williams medley and cleaned to "Indiana Jones" and "Star Wars." After lunch with Carmen (the Omiya ALT on Tuesdays) at a wonderful Mom and Pop Udon (Japanese noodle) shop across the street, I took Carmen on a tour of the school. We saw a group of girls in choir perform "I Will Follow Him" and a lone boy rock it out on the piano. Afterwards, we asked them if they saw "Sister Act" (this is for you, Erica) and they said they loved it! And, at the end of the day, I got to play my clarinet with the clarinets in brass band. They are very shy, but I think they are warming up to me. :)

In other news from school, I am now starting to coach two girls for speech contest. They are both very smart and very sweet. I hope they can do well! I have also been having lunch with the secretaries in the office, and I try to learn Japanese from them and they try to learn English from me. It's a pretty sweet deal, especially since I get delicious bentos (lunch boxes) out of it.

I've also been chatting with the vice principal. I got to have dinner with him and his wife at his house, which was very beautiful and traditional. The food was deeelicious...we had fresh sashimi, chicken namban, and soba noodles. I even got a bit tipsy, as he kept pouring beer for me, and Japanese beer is delightful.

Also, I have been talking with a second year teacher, who asked me to help her teach a couple of her classes. After I taught with her, she said that I had a great teaching presence and did a good job! It felt reaaally good to hear that. :) I also went volunteering with her one day, and we went to a center for people with disabilites and made crafts with them and the students. I got to make my own paper; that was a first!

This past week, I went for conveyor belt sushi with my apartment mates, and afterwards we went to the 7-11 for ice cream and booze and went to Hewadai memorial park, which is a really beautiful monument in a park that overlooks the city. It was a really nice evening and I felt like I got to know everyone better. The night after that, we had a riverside picnic and shot off our own fireworks, which weren't quite as fantastic as the ones at the festival, but still fun. :)

And, yesterday, I had the best day in Miyazaki so far. I went on a road trip with a few fellow Miyazaki-ans to Cape Toi, which is the southernmost point of Miyazaki prefecture. On the way, we stopped a couple of times for sightseeing. There were a few photo op spots where we got out of the car and "oohed" and "aahed." The scenery was breathtaking....I feel my words alone cannot describe what we saw. Since we were driving along the coast, we saw tropical beaches and mountains.


We also stopped at the Udo Shrine, which is a shrine in a cliff side. This was absolutely incredible. To get there we had to climb several flights of stairs in the scorching heat, but it was so worth it. Everything about the shrine was so intricate and impressive. The waves were crashing against the rocks on one side and the shrine stood in all its glory on the other. The water was so blue and the trees so green. The shrine itself was in a cave. I felt like Indiana Jones going in there! When we went, there was some sort of ceremony going on, so we were able to hear some traditional drumming and flute playing as well as watch a priest and a couple inside the shrine.
After the shrine and sightseeing (and some slightly scary driving on narrow, windy roads through the mountains), we made it to Cape Toi. The cape has a very high elevation, so we could see the ocean from a pretty good height in the mountains. There were also wild horses roaming around! Before the fire festival, we walked around the cape and saw the lighthouse and shrine. Just beyond the shrine were some rocks and cliffs. The waves were crashing and the wind was blowing. I really wanted to climb on those rocks to the edge...there was a cool rock jutting out with a really good view. However, I was wearing flip flops so I was somewhat hesitant. But, I decided to be adventurous and do it anyway, and I made it! It was awesome standing on that rock and seeing the waves roaring so many feet below. Definitely one of the best parts of the day.
So, we finally settled down for the festival. At the festival, there was a group of children who danced to some drums and chimes. They were awesome! Then a bunch of guys came out with torches and swung them in the air to try and ignite the top of a large pole. Once someone did, fireworks shot out the top...then people pulled the pole down and even MORE fireworks lit up. They were so close to us they filled up the sky! They were probably the best fireworks I have ever seen.

Finally, we went to a nearby beach to camp out. The ride there was crazy becuase there were so many hairpin turns and it was so dark. And the bugs were SO LOUD! We felt like we were in Jurassic Park. By that point I had heat exhaustion and kind of lay in the car in a comatose state for a bit, then made my way to the beach. I dipped my feet in the moonlit ocean and then crashed in a tent. The glorious sunrise on the beach capped off a most excellent road trip.

Well, I think I have exhausted my stories.....love and miss everyone!