Back in the swing.

Time is flying! Ashley and I commented she had been here 2 months now!.. We then both agreed it seemed like only yesterday really, that we were commenting, how she had been here 1 month already!!.....? School goes so quick, really people, I'm trying to grasp the speed here.

Lately have had various adventures with ALT buddies. Few weeks ago went to Hiroshima overnight to celebrate Ashleys 24th. Lots of foreigners in Hiroshima. Heard a song in one bar done over with Australian lyrics including the words "VB" "tallie" "bogan" and "yobbo". I also have to mention I am fairly in love with Lenas little red mini Cooper S: with its two toned leather steering wheel.... Honestly though, speeding around the countrside of a foreign land in a turbo cooper S is something of a fantasy.. fantasy no more! Also enjoyed titias party. Great times Titia great times.
Everything is pretty peachy actually, the weather is cooling down, school is, the fun lighthearted play it has always been to me. My host family are still amazing. I never expected my parents here to become like real parents. In the fact that I feel I would jump infront of a bus to save them just as I would my real mum or dad. Is that example too extreme..? Anyway I never dreamed of a relationship this strong. Something wonderful and unexpected on this exchange.

I regret not yet having photos from interesting and colourful events of the past few weeks. I intend to steal party photos from Ashleys camera sometime in the near future. Here are some mobile picies from the last few weeks.

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Last Friday: My watch of six years breaks.. in two places.. random. upsetting. my wrist feels naked


Last friday: From a vending machine I order what I think is a KitKat chocolate milk drink.. However it ended up being a Jar with kitkats in it.






Blogger is not letting me load a photo but an observation I made yesterday: all the kids get out their mobiles to take a photo of the blackboard when it has important information, schedules, exam times written on it. The cameras are that good. Once taken they then have the information to view at home. Much faster than writing it all down. So so handy.

Sports Day!

On Saturday Gotsu High school had its Sports festival. This along with Thursday and Fridays Culture festival made last week a busy week. The weather was perfect, everyone was energetic. I did a race which involved three legged running, blowing up a balloon and and having my female partener popping it by sitting on it. Other games included relays and racing, giving little flags to kindergarden children, aim was to give the most out. Other games also like girls fighting over a giant bamboo stick trying to get it to their side of the field using any technique, three on three. This game can get a bit violent, dragging, hairpulling etc. One girl was taken off on a stretcher. Never in Australia, never. haha.

I was amazed at the way everyone was so involved. We built, the teachers and students, we built the stands that seated 400 of us. We made giant artworks for each team - the four seasons. We had in the afternoon each team perform a dance, they were amazing. The students also made the clothes worn in the dance. I couldnt be in it because I was in Osaka and the practice was everyday for the last two weeks after school until 7pm. Like I have said, they do things properly. We would be lucky back in my highschool in Brisbane if even half the school turned up to the Athletics day, letalone build the freakin venue.

Woo I have photos. Some of the festival. One with two friends Hideki and Ai! Also one of me with my host dad one of the greatest guys on this planet.

Osaka continued

Last week I ventured back to Osaka! The cities are great for visiting but I do prefer living in the country. Anyway It was six days of shopping and partying. I prefer Osaka to Tokyo, It has a different energy about it. According to my host mother Osaka people are supposably the fastest walking in the world. I think I believe her, I found Cenral "shin-osaka" station almost danderous. Multiple occasions where I nearly got whiped out. Osaka is the most complicated place to get around you wonder how anyone could adapt. Sorry but I didn't take enough photos while I was in Osaka and im so annoyed about that, so many interesting people and things. Im going back in December so I will remember for then. Here is a photo I took from inside a ferriswheel, shows some of the neverending city of Osaka.


A bit of a rant:
One night Noz and I were on our way to a friends place and we passed an area full of benches where people were lying. What you would think of as a city park. Lots of people one on each bench, and I thought wow whats this. They all looked decently dressed, but walking past them all they were really dirty. I asked Noz, and as I suspected they were homeless. People unable to keep up with the well oiled machine which is Japanese society. School, Uni, Company, family work consume.

Another thing I see alot is young families. Japanese get married reaally young, and I see families with two kids and the parents could have been no older than 25. I ask Japanese friends why, well they have nothing better to do, the male has graduated uni, is now in a respectable company, ok whats next, right family. Everything is prepared here, It would be so easy to float through life in Japan if you were prepared to just shutup and blend in. School primary schools junior high, traditions, uniforms, sports days, clubs its all the same. It reminds me of the book Brave New World. Things to be admired about the Japanese is their strive for perfection, they get things done and dont bullshit around with individual egos and opinions, they are team players. I suppose they need order like this though because there are so many people.

Those homeless people Noz and I saw might have been pushed out of the game, unable to re-enter the speeding society. I see the same thing in Gotsu, the young group of guys that don't go to school anymore. With their bleached hair and their big boots you see them zooming around Gotsu on their scooters. At the trainstation they sit there and go ok what should we do today. They came to our schools Culture festival, but were ignored. These are the guys that are being left behind.