This past weekend was all about “mono no aware.” This idea is a very important part of Japanese culture, and the aspect that I respect the most. It literally translates to “a pathos of things.” Basically, appreciate the things in life that are fleeting or impermanent. The best example I can give is cherry blossoms. They bloom once a year and only last about a week. That is why hanami (cherry blossom viewing) is so popular here. The Japanese have a festival for nearly everything that is notoriously short-lived.They have plum festivals, peach festival, cherry blossom festivals, and even snow festivals. It’s always about taking the time to enjoy life, because it is truly, very brief. So, I invite you to try “mono no aware.” This weekend, gather a group of friends an family, take out a picnic blanket, and go celebrate the most beautiful, yet brief, part of spring in your town. This idea stretches beyond physical things, but you get the jest of it. Continue reading
Tag Archives: the girl in translation
The Calm Before the Storm
School officially started yesterday. It was mostly opening ceremonies, so lots of bowing and congratulating. Very different from how we handle the first day of school in the states. Here, I would probably feel a greater sense of pride for my school. But, before I talk about today, I should talk about what I have been up to! Earlier in the week was mostly shopping for stuff, getting sick, and playing lots of video games. I was relaxing and recovering to say the least. Tuesday, I banded together a group of local ALTs to go to Nikko (日光), a city famous for it’s rich religious history. It’s basically mountains covered in shrines. Breathtaking.
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Koga’s Famous Peach Festival (桃まつり）
My first weekend was quite a success. On Friday I hopped on an evening train into Yokohama. It takes about 1 hour, 45 minutes straight from here. It’s pretty epic that there is a line that goes directly there from Koga. Once in Yokohama, I spent the night with my long lost, good friend, Mari Kishi. We only get the opportunity to see each other once a year (if that) but it’s always the same. She is very strange, and so am I. It’s perfect.
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Final Destination: Koga, Japan (古河）
Finally! I’m home~!
What a journey it’s been. Between 1 bus, 2 trains, 4 cities, 4 planes, and 5 homes, it’s good to be settled in. What feels really nice is unpacking my suitcase. I can’t stress how great the last one feels. Most of the last three days have been spent in limbo between boredom and excitement. Sunday was the official moving day, yesterday I was trapped, and today I’ve been out and about.
Sunday was an odd day. Between splitting up with all the ALTs (assistant language teachers) and getting into Koga and finally being left alone to my own devices, it was quite the emotional roller coaster. If there is one thing I’ve yet to learn in life, it’s how to enjoy being on my own. You see, I’m really a social butterfly who can’t sit still and thinks too much. Being on my own with no one to talk to for 3 days has taught me so much already. I’ve learned that I am far too restless. I’ve also learned that I sleep to pass time. Continue reading
Training, Yatta!
Becky the banana.
Training is DONE! I repeat, DONE! I can’t say much about what I learned since that is all super secret stuff, but I can say that it was very challenging and motivated me to re-evaluate myself as a teacher. I want to do well, and this week has helped me to feel like I might be able to do it. Of course, that was after a lot of blood, sweat and tears. Or something similar. Continue reading
The Girl In Translation 