KONNICHIWHAT!?: Lonely Planet...Lonely Me

For those not in the know, Lonely Planet is a company specializing in travel resources for those on the go. The second part of the post title refers to me...being lonely. It's been a few weeks since my last post and there's a few reasons for that. For one, I've been busy with work...covering at different schools, going all over Kyushu to make sure classes are covered. Secondly, my great friend Erin came from Los Angeles to visit me! Yay! She brought her Lonely Planet travel guide with her but as of today, she is on her way back to LA. Now you understand everything.

So last week I had to cover in Yukuhashi, because they don't have an NT up there. I wasn't looking forward to it because, well...I never look forward to covering classes at other schools. However, I was, more so than usual, not looking forward to covering at Yukuhashi because it has a reputation for having "difficult" classes. I translate that as unruly, monster children are running amok. For the most part, the classes were okay...just okay, but there certainly were some classes that made me think about how blessed I am to be teaching at the schools that I do have. I pretty much feel that way every time I go to cover at a different school. My students, for the most part, just seem to have it together. I'd put them up against the other schools any day, in terms of overall behavior. The worst of the week were kids who pretty much just ignore everything you're saying and only talk to each other. Most of what you say is futile and it's incredibly stressful. That school will soon have a new NT and I only hope he goes in there with the right attitude, otherwise it will eat him alive. It was a long week (Monday-Saturday) and I was truly glad it came to an end, mostly because my friend Erin arrived here in Oita the same day as my last class at Yukuhashi!

Erin's bus arrived pretty late Saturday night, around 10:30 or so, but I was there to greet her as it dropped the passengers off and it was great to see her. We didn't do much that night because we were both tired, but she certainly had a full agenda of things she wanted to do and accomplish before going home and we made it happen. I was able to hear about her fun travels in Tokyo though and I was quite envious! Sunday was spent relaxing in the morning and attending a farewell party for one of the school's NT's, Ruki. Ruki lived in the same building as me and was so friendly and welcoming to me when I arrived in Japan. We had a great time at her party, hanging out, eating and talking...I'm really going to miss her. Erin had a great time at the party as well and I'm pretty sure she enjoyed meeting all the new people in my life here in Japan. Monday, we weren't able to do much because I had to work, covering at one of Ruki's schools. Luckily it was just for the one day, leaving me the rest of the week off. Tuesday, we decided to take the train up north to the big city of Fukuoka. Marty, a former NT, met up with us along the way. We had a plan to shoot some stuff for the 4th episode of ChaChaCha and Marty volunteered to be cameraman while Erin and I did some acting. All in all, I think the footage turned out great and should be really amusing. Again, a testament to Erin's work ethic and making the show a priority even when she's on vacation. Scenes shot on location in Japan...how awesome is that? After that we relaxed by having some fun at Round 1, which is an all encompassing indoor amusement center. They have games, basketball, batting cages, etc. We also made it a point to have some Fukuoka ramen, which was pretty amazing. It was a great day and I need to make it a point to go there more often. Yesterday was spent at a big shopping mall here in Oita, called Park Place. Erin wanted to buy some stuff for people back home and I think she was happy with what she came up with. We also had sushi, which was on Erin's list of things to do while in Japan. It turned out amazing and delicious. We were both wowed by the seared eel. As Erin puts it, the sushi was, "bonafide".

I took her to the airport bus this afternoon and we said our quick goodbyes. Those are the best kind when you're an ultra-sensitive guy like me. I miss her already and I'm stricken with a strong sense of loneliness, but I know it's not forever and I know this feeling will pass. I'm appreciative of her visit and hope that she had a great time. I know I did.