Mission accomplished!

We`ll after a second day of interviewing I was offered a job. Looks like I will be moving to Tokushima, Shikoku Japan by the end of the year. I gotta get some visa things worked out so I may head back to states while that is all being worked out which would be nice to try good Mexican food one last time and see my friends again before a year or more away. It is a pretty good job with a lot of good benefits. Shikoku is a bit rural in some ways but it is beautiful and I have heard so many good things from other teachers who have or are living there currently. It will definitely be a an adventure.

So after 26 days I accomplished the goal and landed a job. Now I can just relax in Tokyo for awhile till my return flight Oct 5th, then I prepare for coming back and starting life in my new home. This blog should start to get a lot more interesting, haha.

Thanks Jesus!

GEOS interview day 1

So today was the first day of my two day interview process with GEOS a large well established language company. I spent 5 hours for today's interview process.

Let me start by saying not everyone would make it to the second day. If after the first few hours of the first day they wanted you to come back they would ask you, and yes they asked me. =)
The very first thing we had to do was a quiz on some English as well as general knowledge. We had 10 minutes to complete it. Most of us did fairly poor from what I gathered. The quiz got really randomed as it went from English to asking questions like who were the three people involved in the "Warsaw Pact". I think we all failed it, but luckily those who come back the second day get a chance to retake it and it will be the exact same quiz. (Which means time for me to do some googling)


The two biggest parts of the first day that was a deciding factor in being asked to come back was the 3 minute model lesson and the one on one consultation.
The first was the 3 minute model. We were giving a few topics and given around 15 minutes to prepare a 3 minute lesson for the employer. I felt pretty comfortable with my lesson and I pretty much knew what I needed to improve. What he told me mostly is that I need to let the student talk more, because GEOS has a huge focus on conversation which is fine with me because its where a lot of my experience includes.

After that I went through a consultation process which was like a mini interview of him asking me various questions such as "why do you want to work in Japan?" and "what experience do you have?" I was then told that they wanted me to continue the day and to return for the second part as well. There were 7 of us in the beginning waiting to be called from the class room we sat in. If you were not asked to return, you were never seen again by the others in the class. From the 7 that began, 4 of us were asked to return. We then learned more about GEOS and their teaching method as well as information on salary and vacation and things like that which are all pretty good. At the end we were given another topic and we are suppose to make a 20 minute model lesson for the second day. One of the other candidates also decided she didn`t want to try for the job anymore and she dropped out. There are now three of us remaining, and I found it a little funny that all 3 of us are black. 2 Americans, and 1 African. I just didn`t imagine that is something you see too often in a interview in Japan.

So tomorrow is 20 minute lesson model and some more consultation and it is possible that they could be making job offers before we go home. God willing, lets see what happens. Now I gotta go prepare that model lesson.

Happy Birthday to ME!

"Sigh" 29 yrs already? Where has the time gone. Oh yea I remember into a lot of various years.

So what does one do in Japan on his 29th birthday after arriving no more than 3 weeks prior and knowing a handful of people? Why, whatever is presented to him that's what.

Most of the day was comprised of me not doing much of anything but play a video game though I did get to eat a traditional birthday meal from Korea that was sent to me as part of a huge and fantastic birthday gift. Thanks Kangmul *Hug*
In the evening I met my friend Waifoong from Malaysia. She took me to dinner where we ate more Korean food and then we walked around the area and I saw some pretty cool things including a clock designed by Miyazaki the famous animator of many of Japan`s classics.
Waifoong got me a little cake which was really nice. It is always nice to have a cake on your birthday no matter where in the world you are. Luckily thanks to her I wasn`t as lonely as I was expecting to be on this day and I guess I should thank the Lord that I could even live to see 29 years.

Snack Attack! (prt 1)

Its time for a brand new addition to the blog called "Snack Attack" Basically I try new snacks and post my impressions of them here. There are a lot of treats here in Japan that you wont find in the states and perhaps anywhere else. So lets indulge shall we?

Each item is rated with "*"
Five of them is the highest.

(Mentos: with cream) ***/*****

Mentos in themselves are nothing new for those living in the states. We have flavors like grape, original, mint, and assorted flavor, but I don`t recall ever saying w/cream. So it taste kinda like an original mento but as the package implies there is a cream taste to it. I can`t quite place my finger on the type of cream and that makes for an initially bit odd taste but its not bad and you can get 2 for 100yen (93cents).


(Ichigo Caramels) ****/*****

The ichigo means "strawberry". These are strawberry flavored caramels and if you like caramels as my mom does you will probably enjoy these unless you hate all things artificially strawberry. Its got the consistency of caramel and flavor of strawberry, and I say its quite delicious.

(Coconut Sable Cookies) *****/*****

I`ve already been through about 4 packs of these. They are priced at 100yen at your local 100yen shop and they are quite tasty. Its a cookie with a light coconut frosting on the outside. It is sweet but its Japanese sweet which means its constrained just enough so that you enjoy it and you wont get diabetes eating 4 packs in 2 weeks.

(Grape jelly drink) **/*****

This is probably the strangest of the lot. It`s a drink kinda, but its mostly grape jello. I thought I was gonna be splashed with liquidity grape goodness and I found myself squeezing the can trying to get jello out of its small opening. Its tasty enough but not something I have to have again.

SoftBank

SoftBank, its not only a great combination of English vocab its a phone company!

So I was talking to some guys at the English Cafe Friday night (which by the way is packed on Fridays) and guy from London was looking to get a phone. Another guy from Japan agreed to take him because the process of getting a cell phone seems daunting in Japan and this guy from Japan worked before at a cell phone shop. So anyway, I didn`t agree to come but I figured if I decided late at night the night before that I wanted to go (because I did want a phone) then I would just show up at the time and place I had heard them discuss. Well.....after waking up earlier than I would have wanted to I arrived at the meeting spot precisely 3 minutes late and apparently they were already on their way to the shop.

I thought about catching them at the shop but besides the fact I couldn't`t remember if they were going to Shibuya or Shinjuku there are also a ton of cell phone shops in Tokyo. Figuring I already woke up early and spent some money on the train why not attempt to purchase a prepaid phone all by my lonesome. Let me just say......it wasn`t that bad. Between my bad Japanese and the store clerks bad English we manage to pretty easily get me a prepaid phone. It wasn`t horribly expensive either, about $45 for the actual phone and $28 for some minutes. The minutes are about 84cents/minute which is kinda ridiculous but its free incoming so I pretty much just wait for others to call me and since the majority of my friends are Japanese locals or other long time residents with monthly plans and contracts they can afford to use their minutes. Also for about $2.80/month I get unlimited text messages and email which we all know is what really counts. Out of 5 Japanese people you see, 4 will be texting the 1 calling. The items needed for obtaining prepaid phone are passport, home country address, Japan address, and Japan home phone number.

Cell phones are pretty important in Tokyo both for personal contact and jobs and it was a bit of a pain not having one. Problem solved!

Besides SMAP endorses SoftBank!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SMAP

One looong day

I finally got to see a familiar face. My friend Aco who I first met at school in San Francisco. She later visited me about a year ago in St.Louis and now we are hanging out in her town of Tokyo. We went to Odaiba which is a small island connected to Tokyo by monorail and is basically a place for entertainment. They got game centers, rides, movie theatre, famous Fuji TV television station and more.
They also have this awesome life size Gundam robot based from a popular Japanese

cartoon. It even lights up, moves its head and blows smoke. Awesome. I found G.I Joe in the theatre finally. It was pretty much what I expected, tons of action and little everything else, but it was at least better than Transformers 2. It was good hanging out with Aco again. She speaks English but doesn`t seem to want to use it much so literally about 85% of our conversations are in Japanese which is hard for me at times to know what she is talking about but its great practice for me especially in a place where many others are really wanting to practice their English and thus never speak Japanese to me.

After our adventures in Odaiba we went to Roppongi which is famous for its night scene. We decided we were gonna miss the last train at 1230am which means you have to hang out until the trains start back up at 5am so we went to some club/bar place. Anyone who knows me knows I`m not really a clubber.They had much better club places but I wasn`t prepared to spend the money not knowing beforehand we were gonna end up here. We ended up going to a few places looking for free entry spots. We found a few but they want you to buy drinks. I don`t drink and I found it hard to bring myself to spending 800yen on a coke. It was also Tuesday which probably isn`t the number one day for people to go out dancing so in the end we didn`t really do all that much. What I did do was stay up until about 630am when I was able to get home and sleep and so I woke at 3pm same day later and did absolutely nothing for west of the day. I also spent more money than usual so I will hibernate for the next 2 or 3 days.


In other news Japan had a big earthquake lately. It woke me up at about 2am. It was the second this week and the biggest of the two.It was actually a little scary. I`ve lived in San Francisco but I have never felt one that big. As small as my room is I kinda felt like it might be my coffin, haha. Apparently the huge one is over due and I am looking for a job here.....figures.

G.I Joe where are you!!

I don't know if this movie is playing in Tokyo or not. I desperately need to sit in an air conditioned building and let my brain relax for 2 hours.

Just got email from GEOS about another interview in late August. Its a 2 day process that includes a teaching presentation that I must create. Sounds pretty intensive but I gotta go for any shot I got. At least I have a few weeks to prepare. They are also based all around Japan so there is a chance I could end up somewhere far from Tokyo.

I really wanna see some fireworks. This is like the season for fireworks here in Japan. Hopefully I can find someone to go with me. Sitting by myself in the park looks lonely enough I don`t wanna watch fireworks the same way. My whole life I`ve always wanted to gain more weight. By coming to Japan I have practically forsaken that idea. Between all the walking, water, and rice I`ll be lucky if I am still recognizable when I visit home.

Wait...I`m here!!

Okay first I apologize for it has been about a week since I have landed in Japan and I have not updated this blog. Is it because I have been busy roaming these foreign lands and finding myself in hair raising adventures?? Slightly.

So the plane ride was as I expected WAY TOO LONG. The first day was mostly spent in the airport as I was able to meet Kangmul before you went to Korea. It was sad to say goodbye. Miss her. Afterwards I spent about 2 hours looking for a guest house that was only about 2 minutes away from the station that I got off at. A well hidden 2 minutes mind you. No one seemed to know where it was at and I was being sent back and forth but finally a non busy call to the guest house got me a guide. So lets start with the guest house. As I am trying to find a job here and I am not rich I am careful with the money I do have. Finding a cheap place to sleep was a requirement and I accomplished this feat in Mikado House located near Nishi Nippori station for 28000 yen, which is about $290 or so state dollars. This is an incredible price for Tokyo but let it be known, you always get what you pay for.

For starters and most importantly, my room is quite small. It contains a loft bed and underneath the bed is practically all the living space there is which includes a desk. I can only stand when my back is completely against the wall and I have about 3 to 4 feet of moving space in which I take full advantage of in my roller chair. The room isn`t for those looking for some kind of comfort. Its small, the bed is hard, and I have no air vent. What it does provide is a place for me to sleep and it is private. Given that I have slept in a bathroom before, I learn to make due. It is actually becoming a bit homely as I have set up my little pics and knick knacks. (I`ll try and get some pics up soon.)

As far as the rest of the house goes, its a mix bag. Nice size kitchen, but you have to go through it to get to shower. There is a public computer but it can be soooo friggin slow. Theres a tv but the image is kinda blurry. It`s kinda like the house poverty built after he got a little money. Unfortunately for me while I am here the other guests don`t seem to like to come out of their rooms and socialize and so I don`t have anyone to talk to when I am at home. I bide most of my time on the computer, studying, and my faithful DS.

The first day was pretty hard on me, I felt really lonely and actually a bit annoyed that I was here but it has worn off since. I went to the old church that I used to visit before in Shibuya and met some of my old acquaintances as well got a good worship session in. Last Monday I went to an English Cafe. Basically people who want to speak to native English speakers gather and they all talk. It was nice and I met some new people. Me and a few of those people went to Karaoke later that night which was my first time, and it was really fun. Japan really takes their Karaoke seriously and everything is really high tech. It was a really good time, made even better with some good people.

I had my first interview today actually. It is with a school called WinBe. I felt the interview was decent, nothing terrible and nothing to write home about, though I guess I am in a way writing home about it now. =) So far its my only interview but I have only been here a week so I am praying something else will show itself. I should hear back from WinBe in about a week.

All in all Tokyo is how I remembered it. Humid, crowded, exciting, strange, and on the other side of the planet.