Well the first day is over and I’m glad that it is Friday as classes stop at noon. The day went by in a bit of a blur as there was a lot of new stuff coming at me. I seem to be well positioned as far as my abilities go but jumping into the middle of a new text with a different way of doing things and a somewhat different vocabulary will take a bit of time. The biggest difference is that as the class is multilingual everything is done in Japanese so there are a lot of vocabulary related to grammar and language which I do not know and must learn very quickly. We covered potential verbs which I have already seen but in a different way that left me a bit puzzled. I will sort it out on the weekend.
There are 11 students in the class which is more than I had expected but I think that it will make it more fun. About half of the class is Taiwanese, 1 Russian, 1 Portuguese, 3 Americans and me. The SILAC program that I am in can have an influx of students every week so it is likely to change next week. There were 6 of us that started this week. Apparently there was a large graduation last week so the student village is a little empty right now.
After class several students got together for lunch at the local restaurant. The mix was Portuguese, Taiwanese, American and Canadian. We all ordered the special and received a tray with rice, miso soup, salad, pickles, a hard to describe side dish and a hamburger steak, all for ¥550 or about $7.00. Coffee was ¥350 so not everything on the menu was as reasonable.
We talked for a while after lunch (mostly) in Japanese and my Portuguese classmate was going to cycle to Nagoya later in the afternoon on a rental bike. It’s on about 40 km but with the bike fit that I have it would likely kill my knees so I passed on the offer to go along. It’s also 30C and humid so I am a little lacking in motivation for vigorous physical exercise.
At 3 PM the director of international studies led an expedition to the large consumer goods/electronics/food mall using the company van. The idea was that students could purchase big stuff like futons and he would drop them off afterwards. Some students are here for a year so they really need to set up house. I went along for fun and had a look at stuff and prices. The only thing that I really wanted was some sort of binder for notes and handouts of which it would seem there are going to be many. I saw lots of neat stuff but restrained myself (mostly) and only bought a few small things.
Afterwards I cycled home and studied some before dinner which was Ma-Bo tofu, egg drop soup, rice, pickles and iced tea all of which were very good. Conversation is coming along a bit but I realized how much I was being pampered when I heard my homestay mother negotiating on the phone with (I think) a gardener. Fast does not begin to describe it. Oh well, back to the books for a bit and then bed.
Click here to Reply or Forward
Looks like bed and school are taking your time. Love the description of the meals and look for to taking you out for Okonomiyaki on your return
Bummer about the beer museum. Got to wonder how often they get tidal wave warnings. I’d like to see a picture of your bike. Must be similar to a beach cruiser. Sounds like quite a whirl wind start to a class. I figured you had a better handle on the language than you gave yourself credit for. You must be swamped though as you haven’t wrote for a couple of days now. Can’t wait to hear more!
E
Your blog reminds me my days about 30 years ago. I had studied English at CESL, Center for English as Second Language at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale for two months and stayed at dormitory. My roommate was the American and we enjoyed a lot on Saturdays and Sundays. However I studied on weekdays, Only swimming at pool was only my refleshment. I am very glad to have a great experiences.