July?! ほんとう？

Time is moving very quickly! I will be leaving Japan on July 27 and returning to America. Most of June has been very busy! I have been packing, going to meetings, finishing classes, grading tests, and getting things ready for the new ALT. There is a lot to do!

Two weeks ago I went to Shizuoka City for a big farewell ceremony. It was very nice. We got to meet the Superintendent of Schools for Shizuoka.

Friday is my last day at Gonan, but tomorrow I will officially say goodbye. I need to make a speech! I am very nervous. This week in OC all the students had to make a small speech about Hawaii. I think I am like my students. This is my Japanese OC speaking test! I hope it is okay.

Hanami in America

Spring in Japan has been so beautiful! During cherry blossom season, I tried to go outside as much as I could to see the trees. The blossoms happen so quickly. You have to run out and see them fast, while you can!

Now it's June and the cherry blossoms are all finished. In America, however, some of our cherry trees just bloomed in late May. My mother just sent me some photos from her home. There is a place there with many cherry trees. It's not as beautiful as the trees in Japan, but it's still pretty. 

My Weekend

This weekend I went to Tokyo with my friends. It was a lot of fun. On Saturday, I got a haircut and did some shopping. On Sunday, we went to the 100% Chocolate Cafe. Everything there is chocolate! The mocha was delicious.

On the way home I got a bento at the train station. I love ekiben! It was a busy weekend. When I left Tokyo I was very tired! We had a lot of fun though.

it's hot!

It looks like summer has come to Gotemba. Well, at least it has today. It's hot outside!

Gotemba is so pretty right now. There are green trees and blooming flowers everywhere. I love riding my bike around town and seeing everything growing. This also means that Fuji is melting! Everyday it's a little harder to see the mountain and there's a little less snow. I'm going to miss seeing the snow on Fuji in the morning, it's such a nice view. 

With the spring, we also have lots of new students here at Gonan. It's been a lot of fun meeting all the new first-year students. Right now, everyone is very busy with tests and getting ready for the school festival.  Our school festival happens in two weeks. I'm very excited, I've never been to a school festival before!

Summer Vacation, but it's spring!

March is here! We don't have classes this month because the school year is over. In America we'd call this "school vacation" or sometimes a "break." In April the new first-year students will come and OCI will start over again. Because I'm American, this feels a little confusing. Our school year starts in September! High school students begin school in September and end in the middle of June. Then we have our "summer vacation" in July and August. College follows a similar autumn ~ spring schedule. 

When I came to Japan, I thought that Japanese students went to school all year with no breaks! Now that I've seen the calendar, I understand it a little better. I think Japanese and American students are in similar amount of classes. We have about two months of free time in the summer, but the rest of the year we're in school. Japan has an August and a March vacation, that's also two months! The big difference though? In America no one comes to school during vacations. Clubs and sports are usually all cancelled and most teachers take a break too. There is also very little school work. Most students don't study during summer vacation. 

Of course, there are always exceptions. Some students still go to school for extra help or go to a special "summer school." There are also teachers who keep teaching in the summer and some sports activities keep practicing. Finally, more and more schools are giving students work and reading for the summer.

In America, our summer vacation actually started because students needed to go home and help their family. The summer was when everyone needed to work on the farm. Is this the same in Japan? March seems to be when many rice fields are planted. August seems to be a time when rice is harvested. I'm just guessing though, I might be wrong. 

Most Americans don't work on farms anymore. Some people say that now we should go to school all year and take no vacation. I think the students would be really sad though. Summer vacation? No school? It's so much fun!

the graduation ceremony

On Monday the third-year students at Gonan had their graduation ceremony. Many parts of high school graduation are the same in America and Japan, but certain things were different. My high school graduation happened at night in the summer. Many of the students wore dresses and suits and then we all wore caps and gowns over our clothes. My high school's colors were white and red, so the male students wore red gowns and the female students wore white. 

At Gotemba Minami the whole school attended graduation, including the first and second year students. In America, some of the other students may come to graduation, but not all of them. Usually a graduating student is given some tickets to give to their friends and family. Those are the people who are allowed to come to graduation. This also happens because graduation isn't always held at school. Many schools will have their graduation somewhere outside or in a special location. My graduation was held outside in a park. It was really pretty!

At Gotemba Minami, I really liked that the whole school came to graduation. It felt like everyone at school was saying "Good luck!" to the graduating students. There were so many people there! I thought it was really nice. 

Happy Valentines Day!

All the stores are filled with chocolate right now. Chocolate and lots of products for baking. It seems like cooking or baking something is a big part of Valentine's Day in Japan. I love to bake, so I think this is a great idea! In America, I often bake cupcakes for Valentine's Day, but many people just give out cards or chocolate. 

I think in Japan Valentine's Day is a day where women usually give gifts to men and then on White Day the women get gifts. Did I get that correct?  In America, we don't have a White Day. Instead everyone gives gifts to each other on Valentine's Day. Usually you celebrate with a boyfriend, girlfriend, husband, wife, etc. but many people also give little presents or small cards to their friends and/or coworkers, just for fun. 

In school, many students give each other little cards. Small Valentine's Day cards are sold in all the stores this time of year.  The cards often have cartoon or movie characters on them. Students give cards to each other at school and sometimes chocolate. In the past, it was also popular to make your own cards and give them away. My mother still loves to make her own cards. She has a bag filled with little pieces of red and pink,  pictures of flowers, and small pieces of decorated paper. When I was little we'd take the bag out every year at Valentine's Day and make dozens of Valentines for all our friends. I don't live with my mother any more, but she still uses the bag to make valentines every year!