Hopefully this site will get updated a bit more often from now on, as James and I have just treated ourselves to a laptop so that we can use the net at home! As broadband is really common in Japan, we will be online pretty much all the time we are at home, so I will be able to respond to emails a bit more quickly too!
Yesterday i had a great time playing with kids and teaching them English. James and i have signed up with ECC Junior to do one-off kids events, eg parties, competitions etc. The kids we teach are usually taught by Japanese teachers, and they often live a slightly out-of-the-way places (or as out-of-the-way as you can get in Japan, anyway!) Therefore it is something quite special for them if an event with a native speaker is organised. I went to Haibra near Nara last week to play games with a group of 4-12 year olds, and we took them trick or treating around the neighbourhood. Then yesterday there were four classes in Harimacho near Himeji, ranging in age from 7 - 18. It was fun and the teacher was lovely. She gave me a cake as a present and one of the mothers gave me some chopsticks in beautifully decorated holders made by her mother. And it pays very well! James' first assignment will be a Christamas party in December.
We really want to go and see some pretty red maple leaves sometimes, as they are said to be really beautiful, and they are another traditionally Japanese event like cherry blossom viewing. However we keep getting told that we are still too early, so maybe next week. Last weekend we went to Kobe with Simon and Emma and had a wander round the shops. There are some lovely places, and we also found a lot of t-shirts with strange English on them which we had a good giggle about!
Meanwhile my Japanese exam is looming ever closer and getting more and more scary! My Japanese is probably the best its ever been but I still don't feel like I will be ready!
You may notice that the weatherpictures are a bit mixed up at the top of the page! The weather in the last week or so has got realy icily cold, and we have had to start wearing winter coats and jumpers. We haven't seen snow, although apparently some fell in the mountains near Nara last week. It has still been really sunny and bright most of the time, and today is actually a bit warmer, but for the most part we seem to have hit winter. The flat is freezing - we are using the heater a lot - and I am so grateful to Japanese duvets which really catch the heat and inslate you!
Still waiting to receive our new contracts to sign and to hear about our salary increments! It is now less than 2 weeks until our contracts (and visas) expire, so we are getting a little worried, but Nova are typically slow with things like this. One of our friends forgot to resign his contract and renew his visa, and almost got deported! He was also unable to work for two weeks while his case was processed, which is quite a lot of money to lose really!
Looking forward to coming home at Christmas and have been doing quite a bit of Christmas shopping! Any requests, let me know!
Nicola.