America the Beautiful

After two weeks of recovery from my trip to Japan, I hopped in the car and drove 2,440 miles across the U.S. My husband and I (along with my nephews, Britton and Jordan and a friend) drove from Memphis, Tennessee to Sacramento, California last week. Having seen the landscapes of America and Japan recently I can fairly say the two cannot be compared. Both countries are beautiful in their own way. I watched the sun set over the city of Tokyo and was amazed by the beauty of the reflecting light off the skyscrapers as they lit up for the night. The scenery is equally as gorgeous in the deserts of New Mexico and Arizona where the sunset lasted for four hours and brought tears to my eyes. The site of the Grand Canyon took my breath away in the same way as many of the sites I saw in Japan. I have had the great fortune to see these two unique and amazing places on Earth. There are not enough words to describe my gratitude for the opportunities that I have been blessed with this summer. I have truly been inspired by the beauty I have seen.

The Earth can be described as both large and vast, as well small and vulnerable. I experienced the large, vast lands of the globe in my hours and hours and hours of traveling from country to country and state to state. In New Mexico, we saw 360 degree views of open landscape without a building or tree obscuring the horizon. Then, just when I thought "Man, Earth is huge!" we stopped to see a meteor crater in Arizona. This crater was created by an 80 foot meteor. The crater is 1.2 km in diameter and is estimated to have been created around 20,000 years ago. Seeing the meteor crater certainly reminded me of how small and vulnerable our world is. And, I have never felt so small as when I stood on the south rim of the Grand Canyon. It is interesting to me that these two places (Japan and the U.S.) so far apart can be infinitely different yet equally fascinating in culture, scenery, and beauty.

I am more convinced than ever that we must do what we can to preserve its beauty by conserving natural resources, producing less trash, and reducing pollution. The Earth is precious and worth the effort.

My nephews, Britton and Jordan at the Grand Canyon in Arizona.

Me, on the rim of the meteor crater in Arizona. This huge hole was created by a meteor that fell from outer space over 20,000 years ago.

Home, Sweet Home

I am back in Memphis and trying to recover from my trip. The flight home was loooooooooooooooooong! It took about ten and a half hours to get from Tokyo to Chicago. Then, after a four hour lay over my 70 minute flight to Memphis began with two hours of waiting on the runway before finally taking off. I left Tokyo around 2:30 P.M. Thursday afternoon (that would be 12:30 in the morning on Thursday in Memphis) and I arrived at my house in Memphis at 1:00 A.M. Friday (3:00 P.M. Saturday in Tokyo). Total travel time... 24 hours and 30 minutes! The only bad thing about my entire trip was the trip home.

I loved Japan and Tokyo especially! It is the most incredible city I have ever been to. The Japanese people are lovely. There are so many wonderful things to do and see and each experience had something special and memorable. I miss it already. I have promised my husband that I will take him back with me one day. I'm going to start a return to Tokyo fund tomorrow! It might take a while to afford a trip like that on my own.

I am so grateful to the JFMF organization and the Japanese Government for providing me with this incredible experience! I have forever been changed by what I saw and learned. I know that I will be a better teacher after this experience, and I know that I will be a better person having touched, tasted, and witnessed the beautiful country of Japan. I will continue to write about the things I saw and did while I was in Japan. This blog is an ongoing journal and does not stop simply because I am back in the U.S.

I am busy now, getting ready to move to California. My husband and I have decided to relocate to the Golden State! We are taking a leap of faith. We are not sure what life has in store for us, but we know we are being pulled to the west coast. I am so excited about what is to come and I cannot wait to use my newly acquired knowledge to teach American students about the beautiful culture and people of Japan. I made some great friends while I was there too! We will be forever bonded by this experience. I am inspired to know that there are so many highly motivated teachers that truly want to make a difference in our world with education. I'll tell you more about them and what I learned from them later. I have to go pack more boxes now!

Sumi masen (Sorry)

I cannot believe my trip is almost over and I have only posted a couple of times. I have to apologize for not keeping up with my blogging however, our schedule has been much tighter than I had anticipated and sleeping is important to getting the most out of each experience. I will be writing about each experience in great detail and posting it at a later date. I am sorry that I could not give better play by play descriptions of my trip. I leave tomorrow night at 6:00PM and arrive in Chicago at 8:30PM. No, it is not a two hour fight. I wish! The time change will make it seem as if only two hours have gone by on the clock, but I assure you that the hours spent in the air (12.5 to be exact) will be grueling. I will get a lot of blogging done on the plane. Feel free to check out my slide shows to the left for visuals of my trip. If you want to look at all my photos at once just click on any of the slide shows and it will take you to my album page. See you all soon!

Chiba University

I just returned from a visit to Chiba University. We were taken into a meeting room beautifully arranged for our discussion with the faculty of the university. There were name plates with each of our names displayed, a collection of literature about the university, a souvenir bag, and a beautiful origami bird made of gold and red paper. Our host greeted us and told us the bird was representative of long life.

We listened to the president of the university speak as well as the dean of the education department. After a question and answer session, we had the opportunity to meet with several students of the university and share questions and comments with them. Most of them spoke some English and a few spoke very good English. I was surprised to hear that they are only required to student teach for four weeks. I asked one student if she felt this was enough she said yes. I wonder if she was being politically correct or truly felt four weeks was solid preparation prior to taking over a class on her own. I have always felt that the twelve weeks of student teaching I had was hardly enough.
Next on the agenda is the sake brewery! Kampi (cheers)!

Earthquakes, Car accidents, and Customer service

Yesterday an Earthquake occurred in Japan. It happened in an area about 200 miles north of Tokyo. Many people said they felt it, although I did not. I was on the subway on my way to Kamakura when it happened. One person I spoke to said that he was in the hotel when it happened and he felt the building sway and shake, as well as heard the walls creaking. I am glad I was out of the building at the time! The newspaper said that so far they have found nine people dead and 200 injured.

On a lighter note, I had a great day in Kamakura. I spent the day alone walking around and exploring this beautiful area. I went alone for a couple of reasons. Partly because I just needed a break from the schedule and large group activities, and partly because I just wanted to see if I could navigate my way around Japan by myself. I had virtually no problems. It took me about an hour on the train to get to Kamakura. I got a little turned around in one of the stations where I had to change from the subway line to the train line. The most wonderful thing about Japanese people that I have found, is that they are more than willing to help you if you get lost. I asked a girl to show me which station I was supposed to change to by pointing to it on the map. She walked me all the way to the train. The day before I went out looking for the 100yen store (like our $1.00 store) and I walked into a store and asked an employee where the 100 yen store was. He had no idea what I was asking. So, I pulled out my trusty little Japanese-English dictionary and attempted to explain to him what I was saying. He very politely gestured for me to follow him out of the store, around the corner, and down the street. He took me all the way to the 100yen store! Now that's what I call customer service. Anyway, back to Kamakura.

I saw three temples, and two shrines. I wanted to see more but the temples were so far apart I was exhausted after seeing the third temple I decided to go to the nearby beach and put my feet in the ocean. I sat on the beach for about an hour taking pictures of the people and scenery, then I headed back to Tokyo. I met up with two women from the JFMF group and we went to dinner. I spent 780 yen (about $8.00) and had a huge bowl of noodles and a plate of tempura. The food is surprisingly cheap here. The restaurants are very reasonable and tipping is not allowed. The most expensive meal I ate was $1800 yen ($20.00) It was a great day!

Today we left Tokyo for the Chiba prefecture. We are now in Chiba City which usually takes about an hour from Tokyo by bus if you don't smash into another car on the way. Our tour bus driver apparently ran a red light smashing into a small car. Luckily we were all wearing our seat belts, except for our guide Sawamoto-san. She went flying forward into the entry way of the bus. She seemed to be uninjured although shaken up. A couple of my group members complained of whiplash. One of them went to the hospital to be checked out. I'm fine and was hardly shaken at all. The accident caused quite a traffic jam and a lot of excitement for our group. We were all snapping pictures and watching the collection of emergency vehicles arrive on the scene. Three ambulances, a fire truck, two police vehicles all ascended on the scene in a matter of five minutes. A monk appeared out of nowhere and began sweeping the street before the emergency vehicles even arrived, then he disappeared. That was weird! After about 45 minutes of waiting, several taxis arrived to take us to our hotel.

Tomorrow our week of school visits begins! This is the part of the trip I have most been looking forward to. We will tour the local University, Chiba University, all morning tomorrow. After lunch we will be visiting a local Sake Brewery! The whole group is really excited about this. I hope to take home some samples. Later we will visit a "Handicraft"shop. We will be in our host city, Katori, tomorrow night and for the next eight days.

This is the car our bus hit! A passenger was mildly injured.

Greetings from Tokyo

I am here in Tokyo and I am in awe of the incredible city. I took these photos from my hotel room.

I arrived after a long flight from San Francisco, California. Ten hours in the air and about 12 hours on the plane after it was all said and done. My legs were numb, my head was pounding, and my ears were ringing, but that did not stop me from soaking up every moment from the moment I stepped off the plane. We have been going not stop since we arrived and I have not had any time until now to blog. It is currently 9:00P.M. Wednesday 11 June in Tokyo and 7:00AM in Memphis. Wednesday is virtually over here and just getting started on the other side of the earth.

The Bus Ride from Narita Airport to Hotel

I have attended several meetings, visited a few tourist attractions the coolest so far being the government building called the Diet Building. No, that is not where Jenny Craig's headquarters are located. The Diet building is where the Parliament, the Japanese government, meets to make laws and other important government decisions. It was very simple and smelled a little moldy. We were standing outside taking pictures when a man who said he was a member of Parliament asked me how the elections are going in America. I told him "So far, so good. The country is very excited for the outcome and looking for a positive change."
He replied, "Yes! We are also excited for a change!" I guess he is not a fan of President Bush either. He shook my hand and we took this picture. Behind us is the Diet Building.

Me with Kousuke Ito (member of Japan's House of Representatives)

We also went to an outdoor market where I bought a few gifts for family members and took some cool pictures of the Buddhist temples located in the area.

If you want to see more picture of my trip so far click on the slide show on the right. Tomorrow we have a lot on the agenda. It starts with an amazing breakfast buffet on the top floor of the hotel, overlooking the entire city of Tokyo. Then, we will listen to a man named Manabu Fukuda discuss Japan's economy. Later will will hear from a couple of Diet members, one from the House of Representatives and one from the House of Councillors. I wish I had more time to write. I have so much I want to say, but I am so tired I can barely see the computer screen. I will write more tomorrow! Sayonara!

Pack Rat

Packing for 3 weeks is difficult when you are only allotted 50lbs. I am having difficulty deciding on what to bring and what not to bring. I can only bring one suit case weighing less than 50 lbs and one carry on bag. Only a few hours to go and I am still not packed!
I can't believe it is finally here! Time has flown by. Tomorrow is going to be a long day! I'll leave my house tomorrow morning at 4:00a.m. to catch a flight to Chicago at 6:00a.m. I'll change planes in Chicago, meet up with several other teachers traveling to Japan, and head to San Francisco. We arrive in San Francisco around 11:30a.m. and join the other participants for a luncheon at the Sheraton Gateway Hotel. After lunch, we will attend orientation from 2:00 to 5:30. At 5:30 we will take a bus to Consul General Yasumasa Nagamine's home for dinner and a reception. I suppose we will not make it back to the hotel to sleep until around 9:00 p.m. I guess I need to stop typing and get finished packing. I need to rest up for a 19 hour day of traveling and activities. My next post will most likely be from Tokyo! Sayonara America!

3, 2, 1 Blast Off!

The count down has begun. Seven days to go and so much still to accomplish. I thought I would have more time to prepare and to rest once school was out, but time is flying by and I seem to be busier than ever! I had a yard sale today and made a little cash and cleared out a lot of clutter. I still need to go shopping for a few necessities, get traveler's checks, purchase Yen, finalize my follow on plan, pack, and Oh, by the way.... fly to California for an interview on Tuesday, fly back to Memphis on Thursday, and repack. Whew!

I received a package from the JFMF people this week. Included were my itinerary, my host family information, some instructions for arrival in San Francisco, tags for my luggage, and an I.D. badge. I have been selected to be the communications coordinator for my city group (Katori, Chiba) while in Japan, and there was some instructions for that as well. If I weren't so busy I'd have time to get excited.

After doing some research and much consideration I have decided to spend my free day in Kamakura. I wanted to use this ONE free day to see as much as I could without spending too much time traveling or too much money. I found out that Mt. Fuji is too dangerous to explore in June (peek climbing time is late July and August), so that is out. Hiroshima would be amazing, however a long day of travel and around $600 US dollars for the day trip, ouch! Kyoto, also a long trip (3 hours each way).

Kamakura seems like an incredible place that will provide a lot of inspiration and plenty of cultural education. It is only about an hour from Tokyo, and I just love the idea of spending a day in the many religious temples the area has to offer. Enlightenment among the hustle and bustle of this incredible guerdon will surely revive my spirit for the remainder of my visit and for the upcoming school year. I might even have time to hit the outdoor markets in the morning and do a bit of shopping in Tokyo.

"What really flatters a man is that you think him worth flattering." George Bernard Shaw

The end of the school year is always bitter sweet. Saying goodbye to the children that I have developed close relationships with over the past ten months is both satisfying and sad. Satisfying, because I have done my job in moving them on to the next stage of their lives, yet saddening because, well, I am saying good-bye.

The last day of school was a whirlwind! Between trying to complete report cards, packing my classroom up for the summer, and entertaining my students without books, paper, or supplies, I managed to complete a file full of paper work, meet with my principal for a one-on-one meeting, and attend the end of the year honors program at which I was awarded Teacher of the Year by my colleagues. I was so tired by the time this honor was bestowed on me that all I could say was "Thank you."

I am sincerely flattered, but I honestly think that any one of my colleagues deserves the title just the same. At times teaching can feel like a thankless job and all our efforts are done in vain. My colleagues (a talented group of characters) are not only my friends, they have become my teachers. They share their expertise, ideas, and resources with me and each other daily for the sole purpose of improving our school for our children. I am amazed by them all! I am grateful to have a job that I love, coworkers who support each other, and time off to reflect, relax, and learn. I know this summer will bring all three.

Uncle Phil has Connections in Japan

My wonderful uncle, Phillip Certain (former Dean of Letters and Science at U of W, pictured in the center above), who is one of the most brilliant educators I know, connected me with one of his brilliant friends, who just happens to be the Asia Coordinator for the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her name is Kim Santiago and she is currently representing the Office of International Studies and Programs for the University in Japan. He emailed her on my behalf to solicit any advice she could offer me about staying in communication with my family while I am off on my adventure. She emailed me back with some terrific advice. I thought it would be best served if I shared it here, so that my cyber buddies can benefit from it too! Below is and edited version of her email:


Dear Christina,


As Phil may have mentioned, I am in Japan and my husband Jose is in Wisconsin, so we deal daily with the challenge of staying in touch.
Jose wrote that we use Skype, which is great as long as you have a reliable Internet connection. Christina, unless you know where you're staying,and whether the place has a dedicated Internet system, you'll be surprised to find how difficult it is to find Internet cafes/connections. In that case, you may want to look into other options, including cell phones.


I have a pre-paid US calling card, IDT, which allows me to use a public phone, and call a local access number. Once connected, I can make an international call. The cost of the call is debited from my account. I am not sure whether IDT's rates are the most competitive any longer, but with a little Internet sleuthing, you should be able to find out, or find something comparable.


Some of the Japanese phone companies are also offering calling cards. One of the best-known is KDDI (http://www.001.kddi.com/en/)
It looks like the average charge per minute is 60 yen (60 cents). Another popular option is Brastel (http://www.brastel.com/Pages/eng/spc/)
Both of these companies offer services from pay phones or from cell phones.
If you decide to use a calling card option, you'll either need to be sure to have a supply of 10 yen coins or a domestic calling card-which can easily be purchased at the airport or at any convenience store. (Once you've dialed the local access number the money is returned)


Sorry that I can't provide more thorough information on cell phones, but I actually have never had one, so I am a bit at a loss.
You can rent cell phones at the airport when you arrive. The lowest priced service is with G-Call (http://www.g-call.com/e/index.php)
They charge 262.5yen/day for rental/70 yen/minute to call the US. I am not sure whether there is a charge for incoming calls, but be sure to check.
Another option is Telecom Square (http://c155etz8.securesites.net/en/)
Of the three other companies I could find, none has a web site. One is SK CyberPass. They charge 500 yen/day rental, plus 180 yen for international calls. No charge to receive calls. The other is ABC Rental, a division of JAL (Japan Airlines). They are charging 250/day for rental, but I am not sure of the calling charges. The third option is Global Rent a Phone. They charge 600/day, 200 per minute/no charge for incoming.


I believe you can also obtain a Sim card that allows you to use your phone in Japan through NTT/DoCoMo ( a branch of what was once the national phone carrier). Information can be found on this web site (http://roaming.nttdocomo.co.jp/en/index.html)


I noticed that you are here in June, which is our rainy season. Be sure to bring a good umbrella and shoes that can stand up to rain, slip ons preferred, as the tradition is still to remove your shoes when entering public schools, some offices, restaurants, and homes. You'll also want to bring a small travel bottle of hand sanitizer and a handkerchief/washcloth to keep in your bag, as public bathrooms may not have soap or towels.

People calling you from the U.S. will need to drop the first '0' from the city code.


Hope this is helpful. If you have any other questions about traveling in Japan, don't hesitate to email me.


Regards,


Kim S de M
--
Kim Santiago de Madera
Asia Coordinator
University of Wisconsin-Madison

Representing the Office of International Studies and Programs,
the University of Wisconsin Foundation,
the Wisconsin Alumni Association
and the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation

Dilemma

I am having a bit of a dilemma. I have been informed that I will only be allotted ONE free day while I am in Japan. ONE day to explore the vast and historical land of the rising sun. HMMMM...what should I do? There are so many wonderful places to see. What will I do on my ONE, free, ONCE in a lifetime day?!? Many of my new cyber buddies have already decided what they are going to do on their ONE day off in Japan. The interests range from climbing Mt. Fuji to exploring the castles and temples of Japan's former capital city Kyoto. They both sound amazing! OR I could go with a group of teachers who are renting bicycles and touring the temples, shrines, and monuments in Kamakura ,OR I could take a long train ride to see the moving and inspiring Hiroshima Peace Memorial. I am going to have to think this over. A dilemma I am happy to ponder over!

Cyber Buddies

I opened my email this morning to discover 62 of my new best friends! All of the participants received access to each other's emails and it is as if the flood gates have burst open! Everyone is just as excited as I am. Just as I was trying to reply to one person, I got four more emails.



The other teachers going to Japan are from every corner of the country. It is quite fascinating to see this diverse group of Americans converging for a life changing experience. I am sure we will get to know each other via email and blogs like this one over the next three weeks leading up to our departure. I have never experienced getting to know someone over the Internet before meeting them in person. I now know what it is like to have cyber buddies!

Information Update

I received a package in the mail from the Consular Office of Japan. In the package was a book titled "The Japan Book," and two letters. One letter was from someone called Koichi Funayama. The letter says that he is the Chief of Mission and Consul in Nashville, Tennessee. That letter included some informative websites: Web Japan, Japan National Tourist Organization, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Consular Office of Japan in Nashville.
The other letter was from the Ambassador of Japan, Ryozo Kato, from the Embassy of Japan in Washington, D.C. What an honor! Here is the letter.

Making Friends Already

A few weeks ago I was contacted by another person going on the trip to Japan. His name is Scott Ralph from Florida. He is a 4th grade teacher too! We have been keeping in touch through email. It is great to have someone to communicate with about this exciting adventure. Check out his blog by clicking on the link below. He has some great stuff on his blog and a really cool class website with hysterical videos of his students. We will both be going to the same host city, Katori.

Mr. Ralph's Blog http://ralphsensei.blogspot.com/

Ralphedelphia Class Website http://www.ralphadelphia.com

I'm Learning Japanese....I really think so!

I am trying to learn at least one new phrase in Japanese each day. One thing that helps me commit them to memory is to make up a song or dance to go with the phrases.
This is something my students and I do all the time in the classroom to learn a new word. We have so much fun and share a lot of laughs when we act out words.

Here is today's Japanese lesson:(the u after an s is not pronounced in Japanese)

ohayou gozaimasu means Good morning.
genki desu ka? means How are you?
genki desu means I am fine.

Sing the following song to the tune of London Bridge is falling Down:

Ohayou gozaimasu
genki desu ka
genki desu ka
genki desu ka

Ohayou gozaimasu
genki desu ka

gen-ki de-su


More Phrases

Here are a couple of Japanese videos. Educational and humorous! Mostly humorous.

Katori, Chiba Here I Come!

I got an email yesterday from the IIE (Institute of International Education) about where I will be going while I am in Japan. Each teacher is assigned a host city. I will be spending a week in an area called Katori, Chiba.



Okay, let me get this straight...Japan is divided into 47 prefectures. The prefectures are areas somewhat like states in the U.S., and each one has a capital. So, the city I will be staying in is called Katori in the prefecture called Chiba. It is not far from Tokyo, Japan. From looking at it on a map, I think it is about 30 minutes by train from Tokyo. If I have misinterpreted this information, and there is anyone out there that can help me understand it correctly, please leave a comment.

I am glad that I will not have to spend much time traveling while in Japan. That will leave more time for exploring in and around the Tokyo area. I would have enjoyed a long train ride through the country too, but I am happy just the same.


Here is a short video I found on youtube of a street in Katori. It looks very interesting with old world Japanese style architecture and simple decor. From the video you can get a feel for what the look of the city is like.

One Step Closer

I received my passport in the mail this week. I was not expecting to get it so quickly. It only took two weeks. Here are some pictures of my passport. I showed some of my 4th graders my passport, and they were almost as excited as I am. We talked about why people use passports and how you apply for one. It turned into a great teachable moment. They ask me questions everyday about my trip and we are using some Japanese phrases in class.

My Kind of Teaching!

I am really into brain compatible activites, and this is one I wish I could do myself. This teacher raps about improper fractions and I had to share it with you. Enjoy!

The Anticipation Builds

I met with Jean Murchison, a local librarian, who went to Japan in October 2007 with the JFMF program. She gave me some great advice and shared with me tips for my preparation. Based on what she told me, I am definitely going to need to pack light and bring comfortable shoes. I will be required to carry all of my own luggage where ever I go. Packing light will be a challenge for me. Unfortunately, my wonderful husband will not be there to lug my suitcase around for me. Our meeting has already inspired me to get going on my projects.

Japanese 101

I went to the bookstore and found the perfect book, Japanese for Dummies. I've covered a few of the basics so far. Many of the sounds in Japanese are similar to Spanish. I am familiar with the Spanish language, so I hope that will help me learn quickly. Domo arigato means thank you. That one I already knew thanks to Mr. Roboto. Doi toshi mashte means you're welcome. I can easily remember that one because it sounds a bit like "don't touch my musthashe."
I have a lot to do to prepare for my departure from the states. I sent my passport off for renewal yesterday. I leave in nine weeks, so I hope everything goes smoothly. My students have their state assessment next week. I will be able to focus more on getting ready for my trip, and learning more Japanese once testing is over. Good luck on the TCAP Brewster 4th Graders!

Acceptance Letter

I was excited to learn about my acceptance into the program this week. I have been working on getting my paper work completed for the trip and updating my passport. So far it has been pretty easy. I am meeting with a former Fulbrighter next week to learn about her experience and get some advice for my trip.