I'm planning on going swing dancing in Osaka tonight! It's been over a month since I last went dancing (in Tokyo) and I'm missing it, even though for some weird reason I didn't dance that much in the last year in Melbourne. And being Melbourne, I could have gone dancing every night if I'd wanted to!
Here's a few great dancing clips friends have shared recently that I love:
100 YEARS / STYLE / EAST LONDON. Not strictly swing, but how amazing is this clip? It reminds me of the 1960 film of The Time Machine where he goes forward in the future and you see the shop changing fashions.
ILHC 2011 - Team - Swinging Air Force. I like this one because it uses the group dynamic so well.
I Charleston Berlin. I love the way Berlin is captured in this clip. I want to go there!!
Life in Melbourne at 30
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Japan weekend #6 - City/country weekend - Sushi and Wine Masterclass in Osaka and a Beach Party in Shirahama
I feel so fortunate to be living in Japan. To be experiencing different things, having adventures, making new friends.
This weekend was a pretty perfect contrast of Japanese city life and country life.
I am very much still adjusting to living in the country coming from the wonderful city that is Melbourne, Australia. But I know it's just an adjustment period, and that when I lived in Samoa I found island life quite difficult at first, then grew to really love it.
Luckily, I live within reasonable distance of three great cities - Osaka, Kyoto and Kobe, so it's not too hard to spend the night in the city and stay at a hostel for the evening. Osaka is about one and a half to two hours away by train, and it's a comfortable journey.
So on Friday after heading to the airport to pick up the latest foreigner to join our little community in the 'city' of Kinokawa (currently foreign population = three), I headed to Osaka, dropped my bag at the hostel and walked through Osaka to find a group of women I'd never met before for an introducing wine and sushi masterclass.
The masterclass was in held an area of Osaka called Honmachi, which seemed like a great little area of boutique shops, cafes and a park where women would bring their tiny, kawaii dogs for a catch up and gossip. I'd love to explore Honmachi more and Osaka generally. Oh, city life!
'Masterclass' was a bit of an overstatement for what was a really fun evening of drinking lots of wine and eating lots of sushi. I can't say I learnt much about matching sushi and wine though, beyond that most sushi goes well with white!
The sushi was beautifully fresh and tasty. The sushi was made with wine vinegar and olive oil rather than rice vinegar to better complement the wines, and after dinner our sensei serenaded the group with 'O Sole Mio'.
Mr Takaya Fukuda of A&W Art and Wine in Honmachi, Osaka sings 'O Sole Mio' from Susanne Newton on Vimeo.
I'm really glad I found the FEW Kansai group so early on in the piece. I'm hardly a 'Foreign Executive Woman' but luckily it's quite an open group and I felt really welcomed and loved getting to meet women from a range of countries and backgrounds who've found their way to Japan.
Quite a few of the women had Japanese husbands, which seems to be the exception rather than the rule here. Japanese women with foreign husbands seems way more common. I'm quite fascinated by this and with the role of Japanese women generally and I hope to learn a lot more about women in Japan in my time here.
On Saturday I made another long train trip down to Shirahama beach to meet the Wakayamaa JET community. Shirahama is one of the busiest beaches I've ever been to, with white sand imported all the way from Australia!
Photo by Danny Porter
There are almost fifty JETs spread out across Wakayama prefecture and they're a good group of people. Many have lived overseas before in places like Egypt and Brazil. Most are American, but there's also one other Aussie, three Kiwis, a Scot, and a guy from Trinidad. I'm looking forward to getting to know all these different people over the next year or two.
After the day at the beach we went to an onsen, an outdoor hot bath segregated by sex. I quite like onsen, and I'm sure I'll like them even more when it gets colder. The way it works is that the guys and girls go into different areas of the onsen, and then you take off all your clothes, have quite a long shower and get clean, and then soak in the shared hot bath until you get too hot. I'm not very used to being naked with a group of other women, but I guess an easy way of getting to know people quickly is to get naked with them!!
Dinner was yummy ramen, followed by a great party back at one of the JET's houses. There was a local festival in his town with fireworks and food.
A late breakfast the next morning at a great all you can eat place in Tanabe with healthy, diverse food topped off one of my best weekends in Japan so far.
A funny thing happened on the train on the way back home. I sat next to a rather drunk Japanese lady who was about thirty years old. She offered me a beer, which I politely declined (this was about 2pm in the afternoon). She then offered to give me a One Piece toy from her mobile phone, and talked to me in Japanese for quite a lot of the trip. I don't speak Japanese. I was reading the International Herald Tribune. She took this out of my hands, got me and the friend I was travelling with to sign the newspaper, and put it away in her suitcase. I hadn't even finished reading it!
This weekend was a pretty perfect contrast of Japanese city life and country life.
I am very much still adjusting to living in the country coming from the wonderful city that is Melbourne, Australia. But I know it's just an adjustment period, and that when I lived in Samoa I found island life quite difficult at first, then grew to really love it.
Luckily, I live within reasonable distance of three great cities - Osaka, Kyoto and Kobe, so it's not too hard to spend the night in the city and stay at a hostel for the evening. Osaka is about one and a half to two hours away by train, and it's a comfortable journey.
So on Friday after heading to the airport to pick up the latest foreigner to join our little community in the 'city' of Kinokawa (currently foreign population = three), I headed to Osaka, dropped my bag at the hostel and walked through Osaka to find a group of women I'd never met before for an introducing wine and sushi masterclass.
The masterclass was in held an area of Osaka called Honmachi, which seemed like a great little area of boutique shops, cafes and a park where women would bring their tiny, kawaii dogs for a catch up and gossip. I'd love to explore Honmachi more and Osaka generally. Oh, city life!
'Masterclass' was a bit of an overstatement for what was a really fun evening of drinking lots of wine and eating lots of sushi. I can't say I learnt much about matching sushi and wine though, beyond that most sushi goes well with white!
The sushi was beautifully fresh and tasty. The sushi was made with wine vinegar and olive oil rather than rice vinegar to better complement the wines, and after dinner our sensei serenaded the group with 'O Sole Mio'.
Mr Takaya Fukuda of A&W Art and Wine in Honmachi, Osaka sings 'O Sole Mio' from Susanne Newton on Vimeo.
I'm really glad I found the FEW Kansai group so early on in the piece. I'm hardly a 'Foreign Executive Woman' but luckily it's quite an open group and I felt really welcomed and loved getting to meet women from a range of countries and backgrounds who've found their way to Japan.
Quite a few of the women had Japanese husbands, which seems to be the exception rather than the rule here. Japanese women with foreign husbands seems way more common. I'm quite fascinated by this and with the role of Japanese women generally and I hope to learn a lot more about women in Japan in my time here.
On Saturday I made another long train trip down to Shirahama beach to meet the Wakayamaa JET community. Shirahama is one of the busiest beaches I've ever been to, with white sand imported all the way from Australia!
Photo by Danny Porter
There are almost fifty JETs spread out across Wakayama prefecture and they're a good group of people. Many have lived overseas before in places like Egypt and Brazil. Most are American, but there's also one other Aussie, three Kiwis, a Scot, and a guy from Trinidad. I'm looking forward to getting to know all these different people over the next year or two.
After the day at the beach we went to an onsen, an outdoor hot bath segregated by sex. I quite like onsen, and I'm sure I'll like them even more when it gets colder. The way it works is that the guys and girls go into different areas of the onsen, and then you take off all your clothes, have quite a long shower and get clean, and then soak in the shared hot bath until you get too hot. I'm not very used to being naked with a group of other women, but I guess an easy way of getting to know people quickly is to get naked with them!!
Dinner was yummy ramen, followed by a great party back at one of the JET's houses. There was a local festival in his town with fireworks and food.
A late breakfast the next morning at a great all you can eat place in Tanabe with healthy, diverse food topped off one of my best weekends in Japan so far.
A funny thing happened on the train on the way back home. I sat next to a rather drunk Japanese lady who was about thirty years old. She offered me a beer, which I politely declined (this was about 2pm in the afternoon). She then offered to give me a One Piece toy from her mobile phone, and talked to me in Japanese for quite a lot of the trip. I don't speak Japanese. I was reading the International Herald Tribune. She took this out of my hands, got me and the friend I was travelling with to sign the newspaper, and put it away in her suitcase. I hadn't even finished reading it!
Friday, August 26, 2011
Friday Video Clip of the Week #3 - Vivian Girls in Take It As It Comes
Great, catchy song. Ironic eighties style. All-girl band from Brooklyn. What more do you want?
Katy Goodman is so pretty!
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Bob Katter's brother talks about homophobia
I thought Bob Katter was just ignorant when he said he would ''walk to Bourke backwards if the poof population of North Queensland is any more than 0.001 per cent''. Turns out he's just bigoted.
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Twelve days...
...until my boyfriend arrives in Japan! He will single-handedly double the population of foreigners living in this little town of Kishigawa from one, to two!
Monday, August 22, 2011
No Australian Literature subject available at Melbourne Uni
Uni brought to book for snub to local literature
This saddens me greatly. How on earth can one of Australia's best universities not offer students an Australian Literature subject?
I studied English Literature at Melbourne Uni, graduating in 2006, and while it took me a while to get going, I grew to love studying English Lit (and politics) and earned my first first high distinction ever in my Australian Literature class.
I absolutely loved studying the poetry of Judith Wright. I loved her female voice, her connection to the landscape, her sensuality and love for her partner. Despite being an English major, I'd always avoided poetry, putting it in the too hard basket. But the effort was worth it for me to write about Judith Wright.
Image: Neil Duncan
I also fell in love with Helen Garner's fiction in that class and I'm still a fan. I studied Monkey Grip and loved hearing the raw, autobiographical voice of a young Melburnian woman. The film is great too, seeing urban Melbourne from an early-eighties perspective. For some reason the fact that Noni Hazelhurst had hair on her underarms stood out to me - you so rarely see underarm hair on women in films these days!
Image: Rennie Ellis
There is something so valuable about reading stories and seeing films set in your city. Learning that your stories are valuable, that literature doesn't have to come from a male voice or from somewhere far away. That the urban, female experience can represent Australia as much as the Henry Lawsons.
I also find the fact that no English department in Australia has asked Eliot Perlman to speak quite shocking. Students should be learning from writers like Perlman, Christos Tsiolkas and Richard Flanagan. When will Australia start valuing its writers?
Woman to Man by Judith Wright
The eyeless labourer in the night,
the selfless, shapeless seed I hold,
builds for its resurrection day---
silent and swift and deep from sight
foresees the unimagined light.
This is no child with a child's face;
this has no name to name it by;
yet you and I have known it well.
This is our hunter and our chase,
the third who lay in our embrace.
This is the strength that your arm knows,
the arc of flesh that is my breast,
the precise crystals of our eyes.
This is the blood's wild tree that grows
the intricate and folded rose.
This is the maker and the made;
this is the question and reply;
the blind head butting at the dark,
the blaze of light along the blade.
Oh hold me, for I am afraid.
This saddens me greatly. How on earth can one of Australia's best universities not offer students an Australian Literature subject?
I studied English Literature at Melbourne Uni, graduating in 2006, and while it took me a while to get going, I grew to love studying English Lit (and politics) and earned my first first high distinction ever in my Australian Literature class.
I absolutely loved studying the poetry of Judith Wright. I loved her female voice, her connection to the landscape, her sensuality and love for her partner. Despite being an English major, I'd always avoided poetry, putting it in the too hard basket. But the effort was worth it for me to write about Judith Wright.
Image: Neil Duncan
I also fell in love with Helen Garner's fiction in that class and I'm still a fan. I studied Monkey Grip and loved hearing the raw, autobiographical voice of a young Melburnian woman. The film is great too, seeing urban Melbourne from an early-eighties perspective. For some reason the fact that Noni Hazelhurst had hair on her underarms stood out to me - you so rarely see underarm hair on women in films these days!
Image: Rennie Ellis
There is something so valuable about reading stories and seeing films set in your city. Learning that your stories are valuable, that literature doesn't have to come from a male voice or from somewhere far away. That the urban, female experience can represent Australia as much as the Henry Lawsons.
I also find the fact that no English department in Australia has asked Eliot Perlman to speak quite shocking. Students should be learning from writers like Perlman, Christos Tsiolkas and Richard Flanagan. When will Australia start valuing its writers?
Woman to Man by Judith Wright
The eyeless labourer in the night,
the selfless, shapeless seed I hold,
builds for its resurrection day---
silent and swift and deep from sight
foresees the unimagined light.
This is no child with a child's face;
this has no name to name it by;
yet you and I have known it well.
This is our hunter and our chase,
the third who lay in our embrace.
This is the strength that your arm knows,
the arc of flesh that is my breast,
the precise crystals of our eyes.
This is the blood's wild tree that grows
the intricate and folded rose.
This is the maker and the made;
this is the question and reply;
the blind head butting at the dark,
the blaze of light along the blade.
Oh hold me, for I am afraid.
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Japan weekend #5 - Learning to cook, Japanese style
Things are good in Japan now. I'm feeling a lot more settled and adjusted, making new friends and exploring the place.
A goal of mine while I'm here is to get good at cooking, so when the offer of a Japanese cooking class with Todd and Hiro came up, I jumped at the chance.
I love Japanese food* and especially here in Wakayama there's great fresh fruit and vegies to discover and enjoy.
My friend Joseph and I drove from Kinokawa down to Tanabe and joined the others for a supermarket tour where we were introduced to new foods and ingredients. When you don't speak Japanese, even going to the supermarket can be a daunting experience, so it was really helpful to have someone show us around.
We then headed to a lovely cooking school for the cooking (and eating!) part.
We learnt to make:
Cold tofu salad
Miso soup from scratch
Vegetables with homemade teriyaki sauce
Oyakadon: chicken, egg and vegetable donburi (Oyakadon means 'parent and child' bowl as both the egg and chicken is used)
As a new gaijin in Japan, learning to cook some basic Japanese dishes was so incredibly useful. I felt a bit uncoordinated at times, especially as one of the other learners was a chef, but it was fine. My next challenge will be re-creating the dishes!
Let's eat!
The food was great - fresh, healthy, with some ingredients and flavours that were new to me - and it was rewarding to eat because we made it!
After the cooking class we went to see some dolphins. For $A5 or so you could see two dolphins in a sort of fenced off part of the ocean quite close to the shore (and for $A10 or so you could touch a dolphin). I went along with the group but I'm feeling really uncomfortable about having dolphins in captivity generally after watching The Cove just before I came to Japan. There just such amazing, smart creatures.
Next was a long buffet dinner in Tanabe with new gaijin friends. Something that's so valuable about living overseas is meeting people from different countries and backgrounds and getting to know them, and I've really enjoyed that in the last week particularly as I've met lots of great people.
Today, Sunday, was beautifully lazy, reading The Help, going for a walk around my town and going to my first Japanese barbecue! I ate tongue; I think for the first time. Like yesterday's cooking class, there was a big focus on vegies and fruit at the barbecue as well as meat. More so than I usually see in Australia. I'm so grateful to my new friend Kazumi who's been showing me around and introducing me to life here.
*Although I'm still getting used to the Japanese versions of Western food - very hit or miss!
A goal of mine while I'm here is to get good at cooking, so when the offer of a Japanese cooking class with Todd and Hiro came up, I jumped at the chance.
I love Japanese food* and especially here in Wakayama there's great fresh fruit and vegies to discover and enjoy.
My friend Joseph and I drove from Kinokawa down to Tanabe and joined the others for a supermarket tour where we were introduced to new foods and ingredients. When you don't speak Japanese, even going to the supermarket can be a daunting experience, so it was really helpful to have someone show us around.
We then headed to a lovely cooking school for the cooking (and eating!) part.
We learnt to make:
Cold tofu salad
Miso soup from scratch
Vegetables with homemade teriyaki sauce
Oyakadon: chicken, egg and vegetable donburi (Oyakadon means 'parent and child' bowl as both the egg and chicken is used)
As a new gaijin in Japan, learning to cook some basic Japanese dishes was so incredibly useful. I felt a bit uncoordinated at times, especially as one of the other learners was a chef, but it was fine. My next challenge will be re-creating the dishes!
Let's eat!
The food was great - fresh, healthy, with some ingredients and flavours that were new to me - and it was rewarding to eat because we made it!
After the cooking class we went to see some dolphins. For $A5 or so you could see two dolphins in a sort of fenced off part of the ocean quite close to the shore (and for $A10 or so you could touch a dolphin). I went along with the group but I'm feeling really uncomfortable about having dolphins in captivity generally after watching The Cove just before I came to Japan. There just such amazing, smart creatures.
Next was a long buffet dinner in Tanabe with new gaijin friends. Something that's so valuable about living overseas is meeting people from different countries and backgrounds and getting to know them, and I've really enjoyed that in the last week particularly as I've met lots of great people.
Today, Sunday, was beautifully lazy, reading The Help, going for a walk around my town and going to my first Japanese barbecue! I ate tongue; I think for the first time. Like yesterday's cooking class, there was a big focus on vegies and fruit at the barbecue as well as meat. More so than I usually see in Australia. I'm so grateful to my new friend Kazumi who's been showing me around and introducing me to life here.
*Although I'm still getting used to the Japanese versions of Western food - very hit or miss!
Friday, August 19, 2011
Friday Video Clip of the Week #2 - Nikki Lane in Gone, Gone, Gone
I discovered this Nikki Lane clip through my Bust magazine newsletter and I like it!
So American! So retro! Check it out!
So American! So retro! Check it out!
Monday, August 15, 2011
My Japanese vocabulary
I am so very daunted by the Japanese language. I am also living in Japan. In the countryside.
Right now I can't imagine being able to hold a conversation in Japanese. Or even being able to read signs.
It is a strange and limiting feeling not to be able to identify what sort of shop or food something is, and to suddenly be so dependent on others to help me through my daily life. The simplest tasks are beyond me such as reading my mail or being able to answer simple questions (e.g. 'Do you want chopsticks with that?' I don't know the word for chopsticks!). Yet somehow I am muddling through and managing to figure things out.
I wonder how much I will know in a year? Realistically, I'd like to be able to carry on simple conversations and read hiragana and katakana scripts. Muzukashii!!
This is my current Japanese vocabulary - barely 60 words! I've even included Japanese words used in English.
1. Hai - yes
2. Iie - no
3. Konichiwa - good afternoon
4. Konbanwa - good evening
5. Ohayo gozaimasu - good morning
6. Atsui! - hot
7. Watashi wa Susanne-desu - my name is Susanne
8. Ketai - mobile phone
9. Shaken - expensive car check that occurs every two years
10. Tempura - seafood or vegies fried in batter
11. Sashimi - raw fish sliced thinly
12. Sushi - you know what sushi is!
13. Densha - train
14. Shinkansen - bullet train
15. Karaoke - literally "empty orchestra"
16. Yoroshiku onegaishimasu - no direct English translation, 'please be good to me', 'nice to meet you', etc.
17. ... wa doko deska? - where is...? E.g. toiru wa doko deska? Where is the toilet?
18. So desu ka - is that so?
19. So des ne - it is, isn't it? (agreeing)
20. Sensei - teacher, master
21. Nippon - Japan
22. Onsen - hot springs / bath
23. Ryokan - traditional Japanese hotel
24. Tatami mat - traditional Japanese flooring material
25. Futon - Japanese bed
26. Ramen - Japanese noodles in broth
27. Arigato gozaimasu - thank you
28. Kendo - Japanese martial art of sword-fighting
29. Matsuri - festival
30. Obon - event honouring one's ancestors
31. Muzukashii! - difficult!
32. Geisha - traditional female Japanese entertainers
33. Yukata - summer kimono
34. Kimono - traditional Japanese garment
35. Momo - peach
36. Danjiri - large wooden carts
37. Okonomiyaki - Japanese 'pancake'
38. Matcha - green tea
39. Maiko - apprentice geisha
40. Enkai - drunken work party
41. Shisho - librarian
42. Daimonji - giant bonfire celebrating Obon
43. -san - said after someone's name, e.g. 'Kamoto-san'
44. Osotoraria jin des - I am Australian
45. Yakuza - Japanese mafia!
63. Taiko - drum
47. Bachan - granny
48. Udon - Japanese noodles
49. Soba - thinner Japanese noodles
50. Shinto - traditional Japanese religion
51. Natto - a food only Japanese people like
52. Shamisen - three-stringed instrument
53. Samurai - military nobility of pre-industrial Japan
54. Ganbatte! - good luck! do your best!
55. Kawaii! - cute!
56. Sumimasen - excuse me
57. Sumo - Japanese wrestling
58. O genki deska? - how are you?
59. Wasabi - Japanese horseradish
60. Sake - rice-based alcohol
61. Biiru - beer
62. Oishii! - delicious! (pop-culture usage: Oishii cola in Angry Boys)
63. Ikebana - Japanese flower arranging
64. Gaijin - foreigner
65. Pachinko - Japanese form of gambling
Right now I can't imagine being able to hold a conversation in Japanese. Or even being able to read signs.
It is a strange and limiting feeling not to be able to identify what sort of shop or food something is, and to suddenly be so dependent on others to help me through my daily life. The simplest tasks are beyond me such as reading my mail or being able to answer simple questions (e.g. 'Do you want chopsticks with that?' I don't know the word for chopsticks!). Yet somehow I am muddling through and managing to figure things out.
I wonder how much I will know in a year? Realistically, I'd like to be able to carry on simple conversations and read hiragana and katakana scripts. Muzukashii!!
This is my current Japanese vocabulary - barely 60 words! I've even included Japanese words used in English.
1. Hai - yes
2. Iie - no
3. Konichiwa - good afternoon
4. Konbanwa - good evening
5. Ohayo gozaimasu - good morning
6. Atsui! - hot
7. Watashi wa Susanne-desu - my name is Susanne
8. Ketai - mobile phone
9. Shaken - expensive car check that occurs every two years
10. Tempura - seafood or vegies fried in batter
11. Sashimi - raw fish sliced thinly
12. Sushi - you know what sushi is!
13. Densha - train
14. Shinkansen - bullet train
15. Karaoke - literally "empty orchestra"
16. Yoroshiku onegaishimasu - no direct English translation, 'please be good to me', 'nice to meet you', etc.
17. ... wa doko deska? - where is...? E.g. toiru wa doko deska? Where is the toilet?
18. So desu ka - is that so?
19. So des ne - it is, isn't it? (agreeing)
20. Sensei - teacher, master
21. Nippon - Japan
22. Onsen - hot springs / bath
23. Ryokan - traditional Japanese hotel
24. Tatami mat - traditional Japanese flooring material
25. Futon - Japanese bed
26. Ramen - Japanese noodles in broth
27. Arigato gozaimasu - thank you
28. Kendo - Japanese martial art of sword-fighting
29. Matsuri - festival
30. Obon - event honouring one's ancestors
31. Muzukashii! - difficult!
32. Geisha - traditional female Japanese entertainers
33. Yukata - summer kimono
34. Kimono - traditional Japanese garment
35. Momo - peach
36. Danjiri - large wooden carts
37. Okonomiyaki - Japanese 'pancake'
38. Matcha - green tea
39. Maiko - apprentice geisha
40. Enkai - drunken work party
41. Shisho - librarian
42. Daimonji - giant bonfire celebrating Obon
43. -san - said after someone's name, e.g. 'Kamoto-san'
44. Osotoraria jin des - I am Australian
45. Yakuza - Japanese mafia!
63. Taiko - drum
47. Bachan - granny
48. Udon - Japanese noodles
49. Soba - thinner Japanese noodles
50. Shinto - traditional Japanese religion
51. Natto - a food only Japanese people like
52. Shamisen - three-stringed instrument
53. Samurai - military nobility of pre-industrial Japan
54. Ganbatte! - good luck! do your best!
55. Kawaii! - cute!
56. Sumimasen - excuse me
57. Sumo - Japanese wrestling
58. O genki deska? - how are you?
59. Wasabi - Japanese horseradish
60. Sake - rice-based alcohol
61. Biiru - beer
62. Oishii! - delicious! (pop-culture usage: Oishii cola in Angry Boys)
63. Ikebana - Japanese flower arranging
64. Gaijin - foreigner
65. Pachinko - Japanese form of gambling
Friday, August 12, 2011
Friday Video Clip of the Week #1 - Jaleel White in Cee Lo Green's Cry Baby
I've got a feeling this may become the new "it's not you, it's me":
"We're two trains passing, baby, that's what we are. I'm going left and you're going right."
"I want to go left with you, I just feel like we could..."
"You can't, we're on separate journeys."
I love this video! I like the vintage Pleasantville style, the song itself, and that Jaleel White is in it, having clearly grown up more Stefan Urquelle than Steve Urquel. Check out the bemused girlfriend as the musical number begins.
And then of course there's Cee Lo's massive hit Fuck You. Absolutely one of the best singles of the last couple of years.
"We're two trains passing, baby, that's what we are. I'm going left and you're going right."
"I want to go left with you, I just feel like we could..."
"You can't, we're on separate journeys."
I love this video! I like the vintage Pleasantville style, the song itself, and that Jaleel White is in it, having clearly grown up more Stefan Urquelle than Steve Urquel. Check out the bemused girlfriend as the musical number begins.
And then of course there's Cee Lo's massive hit Fuck You. Absolutely one of the best singles of the last couple of years.
Japan - the first twenty days
I live in Japan now! Crazy.
I have a sweet apartment in a little town surrounded by rice paddies and a pretty lake two minutes away with birds, ducks and turtles. There are also quite a lot of spiders.
The heat and humidity is oppressive during the day, but perfect for a twilight walk or bicycle ride.
Osaka is two hours away by train, which is far, but not too far for weekend trips and the odd big night out.
I haven't really had to do any work yet, which is pretty great. It actually feels like the first time in ages I've had time to myself to think, read, find new music I like and relax.
I'll admit I've been hiding out in my apartment quite a bit because the world out there is a little scary. Things that would be easy to do at home in Australia are proving difficult here, such as unlocking a bike lock, putting out the rubbish, or ordering food at a restaurant.
The language barrier is immense. I feel more foreign than I ever have before. But I know it's just a period of adjustment, and that coming here was the right decision.
A year of adventures awaits!
I have a sweet apartment in a little town surrounded by rice paddies and a pretty lake two minutes away with birds, ducks and turtles. There are also quite a lot of spiders.
The heat and humidity is oppressive during the day, but perfect for a twilight walk or bicycle ride.
Osaka is two hours away by train, which is far, but not too far for weekend trips and the odd big night out.
I haven't really had to do any work yet, which is pretty great. It actually feels like the first time in ages I've had time to myself to think, read, find new music I like and relax.
I'll admit I've been hiding out in my apartment quite a bit because the world out there is a little scary. Things that would be easy to do at home in Australia are proving difficult here, such as unlocking a bike lock, putting out the rubbish, or ordering food at a restaurant.
The language barrier is immense. I feel more foreign than I ever have before. But I know it's just a period of adjustment, and that coming here was the right decision.
A year of adventures awaits!
Thursday, August 04, 2011
Marriage proposal hidden in a book at the State Library of Victoria
I love this story from Steph at Read in a single sitting of a marriage proposal hidden in a book at the State Library of Victoria.
Tuesday, August 02, 2011
JET Programme Farewell Reception, Melbourne, 2011
JET Programme Farewell Reception
A farewell reception was held in honour of the departure of the participants of the 2011 JET Programme at the Consul-General’s official residence on Thursday 21 July.
The reception was well attended by many supporters of the JET Programme including the Co-Chairs of the Victorian Parliamentary Friends of Japan, Mr Brad Battin MP and Mr Steve Herbet MP; Japanese business leaders and members of the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development. The reception was also attended by several participants of the Assistants to Teachers of Japanese (ATJ) Programme and many former JET Programme participants.
The Acting Consul-General of Japan, Mr Yasufumi Kotake, wished the participants well over the next twelve months and encouraged them to be actively involved in their local communities and assist in promoting the relationship between Japan and Australia.
Thirty-eight JET Programme participants departed from Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania on Saturday 23 July to commence their 12-month contracts in Japan as Assistant Language Teachers (ALTs) or Coordinators for International Relations (CIRs).
Article courtesy of Japan in Melbourne
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)