Just a Little ちょっと (Chotto) Welcome Post

Welcome!

If you'd like to skip to the short run-down of this intro post, just scroll on down to where it says "in summary" .. haha, hope that saves you some time!

Although past posts have been made to this blog that are dated prior to this post - this blog actually was a project that I've neglected to do.. sadly, since I arrived in Japan. So, many of the posts on this blog will be from its predecessors.

This blog is in its fourth reincarnation (the third still exists, but instead of a regular blog, has become more of a photoblog only), and this time I'm going to try and force myself to make updates, mainly to help friends and family see what I've been up to without me having to e-mail them countless times with updates, a record for myself, and to serve as a perhaps possible reference to future applicants of the JET Programme or those wanting to teach in Japan in general, and of course any audience who's willing to read and listen! Seriously, welcome.

Updates will not come daily, and will be rather sporadic, as there is much to catch up on and that I'd like to write about. The topics will be varied, but I will more than likely hone in on things that catch my interest and try to stick to something as to keep consistency with posts. ^_^

In summary, as of this post, I'm a second-year ALT working for Osaka City teaching English here through the JET Programme. I applied through the Consulate-General of Japan in Chicago, Illinois, USA and was accepted in April 2007. This blog will hope to cover the following:

- life as a city JET
- the Japanese school year in overview, and what happens in each month
- recommended sights in Osaka, that aren't super touristy but are worth a visit
- special needs education at JHS and SHS level in Osaka
- teaching English to hospitalized students
- typical day at an English-intensive senior high school
- typical day at a commercial senior high school
- typical day at a special needs school
- typical day at a junior high school
- typical day at an elementary school
- typical day teaching at a hospital
- transportation culture shock on subways, trains, ropeways, monorails, and trams (there will probably be a culture shock series of some sort)
- Osaka's role as Japan's kitchen
- interesting desserts in Osaka
- tourism in Kyoto
- crowded-ness and dense population
- "shortened Japanese" and the usage of Osaka-ben (Osaka dialect)
- being a Filipino-American JET
- being a Midwestern JET
- using games and role play for teaching English
- going to your workplace on your first day
- Japanese school ceremonies: Sports Day, bunkasai, opening and closing ceremonies, graduation, etc.
- school speech contests
- English Speaking Society (ESS) and other English clubs
- geeky cultural stuff I like, such as: shodo (Japanese calligraphy), the koto, and kyudo (Japanese archery)

You can also expect random, quirky, odds and ends posts such as on:

- UFO catcher machines
- drinks (as in, weird drinks.. .. example: Purin (Custard Pudding) Soda)
- cell phone picture post parades of random photos
- occasional YouTube video in Kansai
- ... any interesting Japan stuff!

Well, these are a few topics I'd like to cover that I can remember so far.. but I hope to complete a bunch of entries, maybe essays even, on these. I look forward to your readership, and to getting into the kick of writing about adventures and learning experiences again.

Thanks for reading!

P.S. I'd like to note, that some posts may be past-marked.. mainly because I like to have things in order as they happened. I'm not quite sure if blog posts are posted in chronological order or as they're written.. so if you see even more posts prior to this one, don't be afraid to have a read or feel that it's outdated: it was probably written a lot more recently than you think. Thanks a bunch!