KONNICHIWHAT!?: Training and more training

I finally have some time to make a post with a little length to it, so consider that your fair warning. As I may or may not have mentioned, my schedule is quite hectic at the moment. The days are long, the information being dished out is overwhelming and the hours of sleep are far too few. So let me start at the first day of training, which took place on Monday, the 12th, after our fun day out in Nagoya.

I recall having to get up around 7:30 that Monday morning at the KTC because training started in the downstairs main room at 8:30. Everyone was required to wear, "business attire", and I decided not to wear my blazer because something told me that it would just be too much. When I went to the area where the other trainees were waiting, my suspicions were correct because out of the 27 people there, only 4 or 5 people actually wore a jacket. The scene was a bit like a cocktail party or any other event where a bunch of people that don't know each other wander around aimlessly trying to decide who to spark small-talk with and what exactly should they said. I started talking to a few guys and the next thing I knew we were being asked to step into the main room to have a seat. Now I won't bore you with too many specifics, but from there it was basically an onslaught of information about the company; administration policies, expectations, things of this nature. Our trainer, Shane, was a cool guy that didn't pull any punches and laid out everything that was expected of us and what we'd all be in for in the next two weeks. (If you really want to know specifics, just shoot me a message!) We also met Yuki, the head of company administration and Jeff (the guy who picked me up at the airport), who works out of the main office and assists new teachers in their lives outside of work as well as with first aid training of all things. After the two days of training in Nagoya, we were told that our large group would be split into three, with one group staying in Nagoya, one heading a bit North to Saitama (closer to Tokyo), and Osaka, the group I was placed in. Everything happened pretty fast, to the point where we were being sent to the train station to make our way to Osaka only thirty minutes or so after Tuesday's training session.

After our group made it to Osaka, we checked into our hotel, the Takatsuki Sun Hotel, located in...well, Takatsuki. The next day, Wednesday, we'd be heading out to our first classroom environment to meet our group trainer, Konrad. We wouldn't be dealing with any students just yet, simply meeting with our trainer to get more detailed, in-classroom training. I suppose the speed in which everything happened, and continues to happen, made it all a bit stressful because we had to navigate the train systems and make sure we got to our classrooms on time. For those unfamiliar with the train system in Japan, it's certainly efficient, but like anything else, it takes some time to get used to. My group, comprised of Peter, Thomas, Logan, Erica, Jo, Matt, and myself decided it was best to stick together and learn the ropes together. (These guys are all really awesome people and I've grown to like them all quite a bit but more on that later). We met our trainer, Konrad from Wales, and felt lucky right off the bat because he's a really awesome guy. He's pretty much our mother hen for these two weeks. We spent the day with him in training as well as Thursday but Friday was different because it was our first day venturing out on our own to observe real classrooms in operation, observing a class. I should say that even though we've been receiving a ton of information within the past week, being able to see how the classroom operates with real students is an experience nearly impossible to replicate. To trump that though, on Saturday the 17th we were scheduled to teach our first class. Everyone was a bit taken aback at how sudden it was, but if you want to swim you eventually have to put your feet in the water right? My first class was a group of about six kids that were around nine years old. For my first class, I think I did alright. It certainly wasn't perfect, and I, nor my trainer expected it to be. It was more of a way to see where I needed to improve and what my strengths are. To those that know me, the acting classes really are beneficial to me in this line of work because it's really like a one hour performance that you're putting on.

After the Saturday of teaching, we had our first day-off on Sunday, thank the heavens! I spent most of the day with my fellow trainee Logan. He's a really cool kid from Florida and we probably have the most in common out of anyone in the group. He's a gamer and skateboarder and my God, the boy can play fighting games like a champ. We're talking near-EVO good. Anyway, we went to Yodobashi Camera which is a 8-story electronics store in Umeda, Osaka that has just about anything you can think of. The 8th floor is actually all restaurants and the 5th floor rules because it's where the video games are. Logan and I ate at this place that had a menu item called, "The Mega Burger", which of course we both ordered. It's not the burger you're probably thinking but it was a meat patty (similar in consistency to meatloaf. they call it Hamburg here), cheese, pork strip, meat patty, cheese, and a sunny side egg on top. I know, awesome right? After pigging out we were on the hunt for game centers (which is what they call arcades here in Japan). First we went to Joypolis Sega which was just alright. Then it was off to Namco Land, which was better. There was a woman there playing Super SF4 arcade edition just owning everyone including Logan. When she saw she just whipped an American kid's ass, she started smiling and bowing awkwardly to us. Good times. Then we went to Taito Game Station which was really small and didn't have much for me. Basically, a day spent gaming and that's a good day indeed.

I'll post again when I have the time, but for now I'm shuttin' it down because I need some sleep. I have two classes tomorrow with ages ranging from nine to twelve. Wish me luck.