Archive for category The Penpal
January 1, 2006 – Part of the family
Posted by Barniferous in Life in Japan, The Penpal on January 1, 2016
Happy New Year!
Today I went to Mishima Taisha with The Penpal and her parents. The weather was beautiful; sunny and 10 degrees ABOVE zero. Usually in Winnipeg it would be sunny and somewhere around minus 20.
As usual, the shrine was completely packed with people going to pray for good luck in the upcoming year. As a rule, Japanese people are not religious, but they do regularly visit Shinto shrines for big events, likely more out of tradition than religious obligation. We worked our way through the crowd up to the front of the shrine, dodging flying coins from people who didn’t have the patience to get all the way to the front. As I clapped to get the attention of the gods of the shrine, I decided that 2006 was going to be MY year.
After surviving the crowds, we returned to The Penpal’s house. The Penpal and her mother went into the kitchen to prepare dinner, while The Penpal’s father and I watched TV and talked. I got some good Japanese practice, and felt like I was part of the family, which was pretty great.
December 29, 2005 – View-O
Posted by Barniferous in The Penpal on December 28, 2015
New Year is the most important family holiday in Japan; it’s similar to a Christmas in Canada or Thanksgiving in the US. Many businesses shut down for the last few days of the year to give their employees time to spend with family. Conversational English schools like NOVA are usually open for every other holiday (because students are available for lessons), but thankfully they give teachers and staff a break and shut down for about a week at the end of the year.
The Penpal had to work today, but her father had the day off and wanted a chance to spend some time with me. The only other time we have spent time together alone was in a very awkward car ride from Numazu station to The Penpal’s piano recital. The Penpal’s father’s English is limited to the basics; yes, no, hello, goodbye. The thought of spending an entire day with him was pretty terrifying. Fortunately my Japanese has improved a lot in the past year or so, but even with that I spent the evening last night studying new words and preparing some emergency conversation topics. This only seems neurotic if you have never faced the thought of spending a day with your girlfriend’s father who can’t speak your language.
The Penpal’s father arranged our day through the Penpal. He was going to pick me up at my apartment and take me to Numazu Port to see a structure called View-O. Like most port areas in Japan, Numazu is susceptible to serious damage in the event of a tsunami. View-O is a man made gate over the entrance to the Numazu port area that automatically closes in the event of an earthquake of a certain strength. The idea is that it will block some or all of a tsunami wave to reduce damage to the port and the boats.
The gate looks like an arch over the port entrance that has a viewing area open to the public. From the top you can get a great view of Senbonhama beach, the Numazu port, Numazu city, and the green mountains of Izu peninsula.
I tried my best not to think about how nervous I was spending time with The Penpal’s father, and to just do my best to be relaxed and enjoy spending some time with him. Fortunately the combination of my improved Japanese abilities, last minute study, and his patience made the time move fairly smoothly. I only had to look in my dictionary twice!
After seeing View-O and taking a lot of pictures, The Penpal’s father told me we were going to pick up his wife from her mother’s house, and then meet The Penpal for dinner. I had successfully made it through the afternoon and I was now in the home stretch and close to having my translator back!
We drove to a part of town I had never been to before and parked in front of a small, older looking house. After a few minutes, a tiny older woman came out of the house and walked up to the car. She looked at me through the window and smiled. I thought this was just another case of an older person seeing their first foreigner, until The Penpal’s father told me I was looking at The Penpal’s 91 year old grandmother. I jumped out of the car, greeted her in Japanese, and gave my best attempt at a polite bow. I really want The Penpal’s family to like me, so I did my best to make a good impression. She kept smiling, which I took as a good sign.
The Penpal’s mother got in the car, and we returned to their house where The Penpal was waiting for me. Even though the day went well, I was very VERY relieved to have my translator available. We went out for dinner and talked about our adventures during the day. I am thankful that her father took the time to get to know me better, and very thankful that things seemed to go well.
(2015 Update) It turns out that I did make a good impression on Grandma, and it ended up helping me out A LOT, which I would find out in a few months.
December 25, 2005 part 1 – Apartment Christmas Party
Posted by Barniferous in Friends and coworkers, Life in Japan, The Penpal on December 25, 2015
MERRY CHRISTMAS! In the evening The Penpal and I went to a Christmas party hosted in one of the NOVA apartments.
Most of the teachers who taught in Numazu, Mishima, and Fuji all lived in one apartment building just north of Numazu station. My apartment was the only company apartment in a different location – it is about a 15 minute walk away from the rest of the teachers.
The Penpal and I had been together for over a year and a half now, but it wasn’t very often that she got to spend time with my coworkers. The party was a great chance for her to meet everyone, and for my coworkers to realize that I hadn’t simply invented the girlfriend I keep talking about.
The Penpal picked me up in her car and we drove together and parked near the apartment building where my coworkers lived. When we got to the apartment, the first thing we noticed was a narrow entrance way completely full of shoes. Japanese people don’t often entertain at home, and its really uncommon to have 20 people in a small 3 bedroom apartment. I introduced The Penpal to my coworkers and the Japanese branch staff. She wasn’t able to stay long, but it was a fun visit for both of us.
When The Penpal had to leave, I walked her to the car, and then returned to enjoy some Christmas cheer with everyone else. Christmas at home with family is great, however, an international pot luck Christmas dinner with way too many people jammed into a small apartment is not a bad substitute.
December 19, 2005 – Hooray for warranty
Posted by Barniferous in Life in Japan, The Penpal on December 19, 2015
My newly purchased used computer monitor from Hard Off (giggle) died today after a week. The picture was really dark from the moment I bought it, even with brightness all the way up. Instead of trying to carry the heavy, bulky monitor back to the store, I asked The Penpal very nicely if she could drive me after she was done work. The 20 inch monitor looked huge in the back of her tiny car!
At the store she explained politely in Japanese that the monitor had stopped working. Fortunately there was an identical model in stock (not always common for used electronics stores), and I was able to make a hassle free exchange. My new monitor has a great picture!
Hooray for Hard Off customer service and their warranty on used electronics!
November 25, 2005 – Expert bicycle repair
Posted by Barniferous in Life in Japan, The Penpal on November 25, 2015
Since I have been living in Numazu, the bicycle that I have been borrowing from The Penpal has become an important way for me to get around town. As with any form of transportation, bicycles need occasional maintenance. In the past week I have been battling with one leaky tire, and in the past few days my other tire went flat. It was time to get some help.
I didn’t know where to begin, so I called The Penpal. She did some research for me, and found a small bike repair shop within about a 15 minute walk from my apartment. She also helped me practice the Japanese I would need to ask for bicycle repair.
I carefully walked my bike with its two flat tires to a small store named Adachi. If I didn’t know what I was looking for, I could have easily passed right by. Adachi is run by a very friendly looking older man. I greeted him in Japanese and told him that both of my tires were flat, and asked if he could please fix them. He brought over a small wooden stool so I could sit, and then he went to work on my bicycle.
Watching him work was a treat. This was someone who had obviously spent many years working on bicycles and motorcycles. Every movement was careful and deliberate, with the expertise that only years of experience can bring. I was reminded of the scene in Toy Story 2 where the expert is called in to fix Woody.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GB9h6rqeU4
It turns out that there was a problem with a seal and / or the valve core (my language ability didn’t allow me to fully understand). After carefully replacing a few parts and inflating my tires everything looked as good as new. Not knowing what to expect for the repairs I had taken out quite a bit of cash, just to be safe. I was very pleasantly surprised to find that the repair cost was only 500 yen (about $5). I thanked the man as politely as I could, and rode away smiling. It’s great to be back on my wheels again!
November 2, 2005 – Santa in training
Posted by Barniferous in Life in Japan, The Penpal on November 2, 2015
Today The Penpal asked me if I would like to be Santa Claus at an upcoming Yamaha English School Christmas party. How can I say no to that?
The Penpal used to work for Yamaha English School, which uses mostly Japanese teachers to teach English to children. She is still friends with a lot of her old coworkers, so they asked her if I could help. It should be a lot of fun!
Now I just need to gain about 100 pounds in a month and grow a beard…
October 25, 2005 – Yes, we understand the word gaijin
Posted by Barniferous in Life in Japan, The Penpal on October 25, 2015
Today was one of those days filled with minor annoyances that all added up to make me grumpy.
Recently some of the teachers learned that the City of Mishima was offering free Japanese lessons to foreign residents, with signup at city hall. I got up in the morning to meet a group of teachers so we could all go sign up together. It took me about 15 minutes to find my belt, and then when I got outside, I found that my bike tire was flat again. I ended up being late to meet the other teachers at Numazu station.
Finding Mishima City Hall was a bit challenging. There were no English signs (not entirely surprising considering we were in Japan), but we had no idea where to go once we got into the building. Since I was voted to have the best Japanese skills, I went to ask the man at the information desk. He didn’t really understand what I was asking about, so he decided to call the one person who speaks English on staff. He told the person on the other end of the line that there was a group of gaijins asking about Japanese lessons. Upon hearing the word “gaijin” we all laughed, while he seemed legitimately surprised that we were familiar with the word.
The word gaijin literally means “outside person”, and is used when referring to foreigners. The word itself is not inherently offensive, depending on how it is used.
Realizing we could understand a bit more Japanese that he expected, the information desk man referred to our group as “gaikoku no kata” the next time. This literally translates to “foreign country person”, and is a much more polite / politically correct way to refer to a foreigner. The suddenly much more polite man directed us to another building across the street, where an English speaking city worker helped us sign up for Japanese lessons.
After the adventure in signing up for lessons, I rushed home, got changed, and hurried to work. I was not supposed to have any group kids classes on my schedule, but things changed and I had to teach 2.
In the evening I talked to The Penpal. We had been planning to go to Canada for Christmas together, but it sounds like she will not be able to get the time off anymore. Our trip is not looking very likely at this point.
October 24, 2005 – Productive day off!
Posted by Barniferous in Life in Japan, The Penpal on October 24, 2015
Today was a very productive day off. I fixed my flat bike tire, paid my property taxes (yes, you have to pay property taxes if you live in an apartment), and checked plane ticket prices for a trip home around Christmas.
After the penpal finished work we went to a big electronics store called Kojima where I used only Japanese to request repairs to my digital camera, which had been missing it’s button since I dropped it at Numazu summer festival. The penpal expertly coached me on how to say “I dropped my camera and lost the button, can you please repair it?”. The clerk at Kojima seemed impressed. It feels great to get something done in my second language!
Afterwards the Penpal and I ate sushi, hung out, and played Super Mario Brothers. Yes, I have the coolest girlfriend. It was a good day!
October 20, 2005 – First Canadian Christmas?
Posted by Barniferous in The Penpal on October 20, 2015
This year I was planning on taking one trip back to Canada to be home for Christmas. However, my sister ended up getting sick, so I made a sudden trip back. Even though I just traveled recently, I would still like to get home for Christmas, depending on the price of plane tickets.
In addition, I have invited The Penpal (my girlfriend for those not following along) to come to Canada with me for Christmas. She has never been to Canada before, never seen giant piles of snow, and has never eaten turkey. She even seems a bit excited about seeing how cold Winnipeg can be in December.
Hopefully the plane tickets and work schedules will cooperate!
October 16, 2005 – Speech contest
Posted by Barniferous in Life in Japan, The Penpal on October 17, 2015
Today I went to the English / Japanese speech contest at Numazu library. The event was hosted by NICE – Numazu association for International Communications and Exchanges (shouldn’t that be NAICE?)
There were two hosts to the event – one speaking English and one speaking Japanese. The Penpal was the English speaking host for the day. To add a bit of class to the event, the hosts were dressed nicely, with The Penpal wearing a kimono.
A common mistake that non-Japanese people make is to confuse a kimono with a yukata. A kimono refers to a formal and elaborate garment that can cost thousands of dollars, where a yukata is a lighter, less formal robe. In order to get properly dressed in her kimono, she went to a special shop before the event where trained staff spent almost 90 minutes getting her dressed.
This was my first time to see The Penpal in her kimono, and she looked fantastic!
The speeches were interesting, covering a wide range of topics. My favourite speech of the day was in English, given by a retired older woman who studies English as a hobby. When she started her speech she was so nervous that she was visibly shaking. As she got into her speech and got more comfortable, her confidence grew, and by the end she finished strong and looked very happy.
I truly admire the courage of anyone who gets up in front of a crowd to speak, especially in a foreign language. If I am still in Japan at the same time next year, I would like to test my Japanese skills and enter the contest myself.
Drinking in Japan 
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