Teacher`s trip!!!

I`m back! and, as promised, a blog entry about the teacher`s trip.

On March 21-22, I went with the 3nen teachers to Ishikawa prefecture for a night. It was about a 4 hour drive north and west and though it was far, it was well worth it. I got to see the OCEAN! Or, I guess it`s the Sea of Japan, technically, but either way, it was water and it was amazing. We stayed in an excellent little ryokan right on the sea. Benefits of the location: ocean sounds, seagulls for entertainment, you can see the ocean from the onsen, and, best of all, delicious, VERY fresh seafood!

This is a picture of dinner but I should mention that there were a ton of other things that were brought in and traded as we finished with certain plates on our little tables. Wow, that sentence did not make sense. Anyway, I think that was some of the best sashimi I have ever had. There was also a lot of squid, which I do not like, and it has now become another of the running jokes about Elissa (others include the fact that the teachers at school are going to set me up to marry one of the other young japanese teacher, and my deep enjoyment of sake is something of great interest and provides entartainment at all the parties for some reason). Anyway, the food was amazing, is the moral of the story here.

Before dinner, though, I had my onsen debut, as the teachers kept calling it. Let me remind you that onsen are the public baths and you go in naked. You are given a small towel about the size of the handtowels most of use have in our bathrooms, and you can use it to cover yourself how you will, but good luck. So, here`s how it goes, you go into the changing room (PS onsen are usually separated by sex...) and you get a basket and you strip. I think this was the most awkward part for me, just like taking all my clothes off in front of a bunch of strangers. After that you take your little (and worthless) towel into the actual onsen room. Before you go in, you sort of sit and bathe. This is also awkward because you sit on a little stool in front of a BIG mirror and essentailly take a shower sitting down. After that, you get in the hot hot hot onsen (though apparently this one was not as hot as others, but I could not move really once I was in the water) and you relax. Very bizarre, but it was nice. I am actually really glad I went it. I was very close to chickening out, but somehow, (maybe due to the little bit of alcohol I had had... just a little, because a lot is dangerous, I am aware of that) I ended up going in. I did not really get that many stares, and the ones I did get were from the children in there with their parents. I also think my belly button ring (which I forgot to take out) might have had something to do with it. The good news is that no one said anything to me. Apparenlty it is common for foreigners to be told things like "wow, your skin is so white and beautiful!" and I am glad no one said that to me because that is a straight up admission of "I have been staring at you and you`re naked." Special thing about this onsen, it was salt water, which is apparently good for the skin? Dunno... definitely made my hair sticky though.

After dinner, I had a rewind back to college, except with a bunch of Japanese people who are older than me. It was still the funniest thing. I should mention that before we checked into the hotel, we stopped at a grocery store and bought a TON of alcohol. I was also told at that point, to not tell the hotel we were bringing it in (because obviously if I wanted the tell the hotel, I could have... NOT) but anway, it was like being in college and sneaking booze into the dorms (er... not that I ever did that or anything...) but I was just enjoying seeing these married grown-ups acting like that. And then, they really do enjoy their drinking, but they are such light weights! Either way, it was very enjoyable. I definitely got my Japanese practice for the year in, too, especially considering that the drunker people get, the faster they tend to talk.

This is the picture of breakfast. It was also delicious, but I do not generally eat breakfast, so I am sorry to report much if it was left uneaten. Note the egg... it is an onsen egg, which means boiled in the onsen! Or soft-boiled rather, to perfect deliciousness. I love onsen eggs.

And here are pictures of the OCEAN! (Sea of japan...whatever)

OK, next will be moving when you can see the building you`re moving to from the building you`re moving from

And after that, a report on the new english teachers (including the one who is waaaaaay cute!)