Goodbye Japan.... Hello world

Here comes Britt! My friend Amy and I are off on the trans mongolian railroad. So I left on a boat from Osaka to go to Shanghai and walked for an hour and 45 minutes to the train station. We found it but didn't have our tickets. Another adventure. Got on the train and are now in the internet cafe of the hostel in Beijing. Tomorrow early morning we are off to Mongolia. We will try to stay there as long as possible. So that is about it right now. The humidity is still the same and i can't escape it!

Hot and moldy

Just to let you know that the humidity is awful and so is the mold in my tatami mats. I tried everything to curtail it, but it is sure a sneaky thing.

Kyoto in a whirlwind

Kyoto for the last time! Trying to fit everything in before I get back home! Ginkakuji, Kinkakuji, Arashiyama, Sagano bamboo forest, torii gates, and Kodai-ji. whoa

Ginkakuji the silver temple. Even though it is not silver. They had hopes for putting some silver on it.

Don't wear white pants on a rainy day. Idiot Britt!

Packed train to Kyoto. We secretly got there on 540 yen and got back on 120 yen. Score for us!

Rainy rainy day!

At Kodai-ji

Train station with the ladies!

Drinking some beers!

My artistic photo of the bamboo forest!

More bamboo

taking a break

Torii gates 4km of them I think.

a farewell

At my main school, they had a ceremony for me with lots of flowers and gifts which surprised the hell outta me. I really didn't do much there except type away on the internet. The Kocho sensei even spoke in English for me. I was floored. The students gave a speech about how tall I was and how cool I was. I don't think there will ever be a girl as tall as me in this school. I secretly hope all of my students will compare the next teachers with me and say I was way cooler.

Last night at my final adult English class, we had sushi and drinks and talked about what we wanted to do in the next 6 to 12 months. A guy that looks like a Japanese Yoda hoped that he would not die. I secretly let out a chuckle. Many talked about speaking English more. They were curious what Rachel and I would be doing when we got back. They still can't believe how much we travel. I guess that is what you get if you don't take your holiday. (I took more than I was given but someone can't add.)

The typhoon is around the Japan area and is pouring on me. My clothes will never get dry and mold is setting in everywhere. AHHHHHH good thing I am not allergic to it.

steamy hot

That is the definition of humid in Japan: steamy hot. Well now that is so humid in my house and everywhere I go, I have developed a case of mold on my tatami mats. I would just like to clarify that it was under my bed that doesn't touch the floor. So tonight, I am going to have to move everything around and clean the green stuff up.

I went to a beach party in Tottori (north of Okayama on the ocean). I managed to stay up later than 10PM. I got some sun and swam in the water. It was a lovely time, but I really didn't pay attention to the music. I lit ONE firework (singular) for the pyro side of me. It was small but was pretty in the sky. It was definately hard to keep the sand from somehow becoming your new make-up.

I have said some of my goodbyes to my schools and each grade has made me a book or something so I can remember them by. I got totally decked out in paper jewellry by my 2nd graders. I had 15 bracelets, a crown, belt, and necklace. (they told me that they knew I liked jewellry) The belt even had rubberbands on it to make it different sizes, but what they didn:t know what my bum is quite larger than normal Japanese bums. I broke the belt but nothing that tape can't fix. Now I am just figuring out if I can skip my other days when I am not teaching.

avoiding confrontations

I think my one school avoids all confrontations with me at all cost. I will walk from the bus stop and they will cross the street so they don't have to say "HI" to me and risk having a conversation with me. They sit in their car longer so they don't have to run into me while we change our shoes. Today I witnessed another. No one even comes into the "kitchen area" while I am in there. They should know now that I am not going to talk to them and make them look like a fool. I don't know their names because they avoid me like the plague. So I am just going to try to sneak out and see if they notice me. I think they will because they will have free range of the teachers room, the parking lot, the shoe lockers, and their town.

I think they forget that I am not a vampire and I don't bite. The kids at this school still jump when they see me. Yes, I HAVE been here all school year and no my height hasn't changed.

Kobe on 500 round trip!

I folded myself inside this dinosaur thingy.

Some of the random things I saw in the mall. I was quite intrigued by this and so will you, Mom. It is made of buttons and mirrors. Inspiration- I think so.

Sarah and I riding a camel. It went negative 2 on the scale of fastness.

Yabadabado

So a little catch up..... I met up with some teachers for some happy hour drinks that turned into a full meal that turned into getting home around 11PM. I loved it. I was only planning for a few beers, but got some great conversation with some of my neighbor teachers. Well the conversation was very broken English and a toddlers level of Japanese. I then cruised to Bernie's Bday bash and had great tasting steaks. I could have eaten all of them. We all hung out in the sun having a few beers and chatting with friends. Very good weekend if we remember to pack a futon to sleep on (rocks aren't that comfortable) and beer stealers aren't cool.

As for the next weekend, I made it over to Ana and Rene's for some deliciousness. Rene cooked us up some great thai food. I was so stuffed, then we went for a little bowl. Who came in 2nd? Yeah that was me, and almost beat the semi-pro bowler Lash. It's okay that the Japanese bowl-o-rama is a little different than England. Then Rene cooked us up some more Thai food after we finished and then played some cards until I was sooo sleepy that I aparently was talking to myself. And for breakfast...... more Thai. What a great night. Then on Saturday night we all headed over to Vasco's for a little okonomiyaki (pancake veggie delight) and then a little singing until 3 PM. We got to stay at Kevin's and he made us breakfast too. Later that Sunday afternoon Pirates of the Carribean 3. Another great weekend!!!

I have been a busy bee with some of my teachers. I went to a friend's house (student from my adult English class) and had a lovely dinner with pizza, spicey weiners, chicken wings, and lots of good fruit. We managed to chat and eat until around 10PM.

This weekend I had an enkai with one of my schools. This was the best because most of the teachers talked to me and I had soo much yakiniku I was stuffed. I sat with the art teacher, science teacher, Japanese teacher and home ec teacher. The science teacher told me he had a crush on me. My English teacher came over to me and said she was proud of me talking with the other teachers. Later that night we went for a little karaoke and it was there that the science teacher told me he had a crush on me. I will watch out next time when I am at his school.
And on Saturday we went to our Sayonara Party in Kumenan. It was a huge, I mean HUGE, samarai house full of tatami rooms and places to sleep and all night drinks.

Oh in the meantime I have been an all-star baseball player with my elementary schools and persuaded my lunch table to eat the kiwi whole with the peel and all. They did and then everyone followed suit. Haha look at what I am doing to the small town. No I don't wear panty hose or ever will.

Maybe I will get some pictures put up if I have enough time on the internet.