Resolutions for the New Year

明けましておめでとうございます。

Happy New Year! 

We made it to 2012!

It's crazy to think that this time last year I was living in Vermont and working at City Market Co-op. I didn't know whether or not I'd have a job come the end of February, and if I did I wasn't sure where it would be. I spent the holidays at home in front of the fire, away from the winter weather. 2011 was a good year. A lot has happened and many things have changed.

• I left an old job and started a new one. 
• I moved to a different country.
• I travelled to places I'd never been before. Spain, China, and Australia.
• I began to live alone for the first time.
• I made amazing friends.
• I had some fantastic adventures.
• I found a new home. 

There were definitely times when I wasn't sure I was making the right choices. Not everything turned out the way I expected it to. There were a few months that I knew virtually no one and drove myself a little nuts. But sitting here and writing this now, I wouldn't want it to have happened any other way.

Thank you, 2011!

I spent this holiday in the best way possible, with my family! I had a phenomenal time in Australia, and I was so sad to say goodbye... I know I will see you soon, guys, but I miss you! Until then, I am rejuvenated and re-inspired to work hard and try to be my best, both as a teacher and as a person. You guys keep me sane. Thank you! :) 

During our trip in Australia we explored all around the downtown Sydney area, as well as spending a few days in Cairns. We saw the Sydney Opera House (and "The Magic Flute"!!), the Aquarium, the Botanical Gardens, THE FIREWORKS, the Harbor Bridge, the Quay.... we saw kangaroos and koalas, we ate crocodile and kangaroo(!)... we swam in the Great Barrier Reef... we saw a movie in 4D!!!!!...

But really, we hung out and were awesome, 'cause that's the way we roll. 

If you don't believe me, check out these photos. Password is "happynewyear".

Cheers!

Weekend of Food

This weekend was filled with tons of delicious food and various "end of the year" parties. I had a great two days spending time with some people that I'd like to get to know a lot better. I have been taking aikido classes once a week for the past couple of months and I joined some of the other members to eat nabe for lunch on Saturday. Nabe is a hotpot dish that is commonly cooked in Japanese households in the winter. Each table had a separate broth and a pile of vegetables and meat. As space allowed, we put the uncooked food into the broth and let it stew. Once it was cooked, we used our own chopsticks to serve ourselves the food.

The nabe that we ate on Saturday is a special type that sumo wrestlers eat to gain weight. Although it's a healthy dish (or so I'm told), this specific type contains a lot of high protein ingredients such as meat and fish. These are also higher in calories than some other nabe dishes, which contain more vegetables and low calorie noodle substitutes. 

The awesome-est Nabe Table of them all

Later that night, I also attended my finally Japanese class party. Talk about a lot of food. I made a pie from persimmons that I wanted to use before Australia (!). I'm so glad I didn't go empty handed! 

It was a good time, and I got to talk more to the teachers and students in my class. Pretty much the reason why I am motivated to learn to speak Japanese better: to make friends like this! 

And today... I made Christmas cookies! I hope to give them to my co-workers tomorrow. Making this many cookies in my apartment was an adventure in itself. They turned out all right, and I decorated them with chocolate icing. They're nothing fancy, and my co-workers might think I'm a little bizarre for bringing them in, but I figure it can't hurt to try.

(Pictures will be added once my computer stops being dumb.) [...and it has!]

プリクラ Puri Kura

Japanese arcades are pretty addicting and fun. You can play video games, win toys, and spend tons and tons of money in the space of just a few minutes. But the best part (in my opinion) is puri kura! Puri kura are photobooths where you can pay a few hundred yen and in return get a sticker sheet of silly pictures. The name puri kura is short for プリントクラブ (purinto kurabu) or "Print Club". They are incredibly popular, especially with teenage girls (and apparently gaijin English teachers ^^) Within the puri kura booth you can pick different backgrounds and special effects. Once you exit you can decorate the sheets on a computerized screen before they print. 

This past weekend I finally got puri kura to get set to my phone. I've taken a few pictures since I've gotten here, but somehow I never quite got the digital copy. But now I have it!! Here is an example of what puri kura looks like : 

People have asked me if they have this in the states as well. While we have photo booths occasionally, they are really nothing like puri kura. 

Anyway, just thought I'd share it! 

Tokyo Travels

Today is an amazing day, my friends. And do you know why that is? Because at 1:54pm I will be getting on a Shinkansen and taking a ride to TOKYO! I'm super excited and I hope to come back with tons of pictures and stories and good times. JCMU has a five day weekend and most of the students at JCMU are taking this opportunity to travel around to various cities. Considering Tokyo is both the largest and furthest away, Joelle and I decided to take advantage of our time off to both visit Bryan and see the amazing city. Upon our return I will most definitely write a post of our adventures, but for now, HASTA LA VISTA!