* I'm not gonna lie to you and say that life in Japan - much less inaka Toyooka - is a constant shower of roses. I think that most of us here have had times where life's been a bit tough. For me, homesickness and/or "sick-of-Japan sickness" would come & go in cycles. Luckily, the down-cycles were never that bad, and I (think I) managed to keep things in perspective and maintain my (already tenuous) sanity.
* Of course, everyone has his or her own way of dealing with stress, frustration, boredom, or homesickness. Obviously, hobbies and physical exercise are probably the best ways to maintain your cool in Toyooka. Roscoe, the ALT at Minami JHS, rides his bike all over the beautiful mountainous countryside surrounding Toyooka, and he also runs in local marathons. Cathy, Roscoe's predecessor, used to swim regularly at the pool in Toyooka, and she also practiced karate at a Toyooka dojo. Steve, the current ALT at Kita JHS, plays tennis regularly with his friends here, and also enjoys playing go (a.k.a. "igo"), which is kind of like a challenging, Japanese version of the board game Othello. Minami High School's ALT, Richard, taught aikido at the city's gymnasium; and he and his girlfriend Jane organized a monthly book club for local JETs to meet and discuss books over tea. The current ALT in Takeno (the next town northwest of Toyooka), Stephanie, took guitar lessons for a while; and Toyooka's newcomer Claire teaches aerobics at the city gymnasium. Meanwhile, Toyooka Jitsugyou High School's Dave devoted much of his time to becoming a rock star on the internet.
* For me, I think there were two main ways I coped with emotionally trying times: (1) Watching a lot of videos (I spent waaaay too much money renting EVERY episode of the "X-Files" from Video Plaza, and my sister sent me tapes of shows she recorded from TV back home - Yes, I'm pathetic); and (2) Learning a martial art. The style of martial art that I've been practicing is called Shorinji Kempo, and it's great fun. The dojo is actually located in Hidaka, the next town south of Toyooka and a quick 20 minute drive from the apartment. There's actually a dojo in Toyooka, but I personally think that the Hidaka one is better. Miyamoto-sensei has been a great teacher, and he's pretty "extreme" for a middle-aged guy. |
