Atsui desu!

It's another hot one. At least this Friday was busy, so I wasn't stuck sweating at home. The day started with me biking to the next town for a Board of Education meeting. I finally got to meet the English teacher at the elementary school (who was home sick when I was there). She is nice with decent English. Best of all, she is organized. She gave me a schedule of when I should be at the school, what classes I'll be in, and most importantly, what topics I should teach each month. I wish the teachers at the Junior High School were so motivated.

After an hour long speech in Japanese, I was told to go downstairs for the measles check. I wanted to tell them that I was vaccinated against measles years ago, but considering this is Japan and saying no doesn't fly (and I didn't have any paperwork to back up my claim), I proceeded down the stairs to the make-shift medical room. There was no privacy. Just wait, sit in a line of four, get a needle jammed into your arm, and have them draw out an inordinate amount of blood, then get a small pad of gauze and told to hold it (with your thumb, no other finger will do) to the puncture place for exactly three minutes.

After the meeting concluded, Leslie, Arthur, and I ran to catch the train. We missed it by minutes and went to the local grocery store for lunch. We ate out of containers as we walked back, determined not to miss the next train. Eating in public (especially while walking) is considered very rude in Japan. We definitely got some glares and strange looks from people passing by.

Afternoon Japanese class passed normally. It was the last class though, so at the end we had to present a speech in Japanese introducing ourselves and our hometowns. I was told mine sounded very formal. Probably because I lifted whole portions from a textbook.
After class, Odelia, one of the teachers, and I drove to a bakery in Ota where Odelia and I will be taking cooking classes. We start the first Thursday of September. I think we learn to make cheesecake, soup, and some main dish.

I stupidly went home after the bakery, messing up my transit times so that I missed a group outing to all-you-can-drink-and-eat karaoke. Ah well. Tomorrow, Jihan is visiting me, and we are going to Tokyo!