More updates...

It's 1:36am. The last couple of mornings, I did try this whole 'getting up earlier' thing. It's just not for me. If I don't have to, I won't. I really prefer to do everything - relax, read, watch TV, go online, look over stuff for work, study Japanese - after work, not before work.

It's a bit hard to dress for the weather. It's very cold outside, but very warm inside. You will be standing on the train platform freezing, and then get on the train and you'll have to take off your jacket just for the five minute journey. I want to wear a warm top for the walk too and from work, but it gets pretty warm in the office.

The other foreign teacher (I'll call him Jim just so I can give him a name) says this continual hot-cold-hot-cold thing wreaks havoc on your immune system. I'll bet it does. Fortunately I haven't gotten sick but I am consciously drinking lots of jasmine tea and juice, eating mikan (mandarines) and enough vegetables.

I prefer teaching classes to preparing for classes. Sometimes I still feel slightly apprehensive before teaching a class. But then when I'm in the class it's usually fine. On the whole, I do like teaching. But what I said the other day is the main thing - it's the students that make it a good class or not. When the students are open and warm and ready to participate, I come out feeling good and I love teaching. When the students are very quiet and don't seem interested, I come out groaning inwardly.

But one thing I do like is when students have lots of questions for me, and most of all, when I can go home and prepare info for them. They don't expect it and aren't entitled to it so it makes me feel like a better teacher to take some effort for my students. For some reason I am some sort of grammar nerd who enjoys writing up examples of grammar rules. Today I just spent two hours at home writing all about 'neither' and 'either'. (I bought a printer.) I don't have to do it, but it's fun.

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Yesterday morning I had my first Japanese lesson. I found it online; there were a few volunteer Japanese classes listed, and this was the only one that I could conveniently attend.

I went to this kind of community centre. There were no signs in English anywhere and I couldn't find the classroom. As it turned out, I was the only white student. The others there learning were Chinese, Korean, etc, so from a distance I didn't realise it was a Japanese class; I thought everyone in the room was Japanese.

Basically, all the students work from these books which are written entirely in Japanese. Volunteer teachers work with different students - either one-on-one or in groups of 2 or 3 - and go through the textbook. So it's not a classroom setting exactly, more like a collection of people working with personal tutors.

It was an hour and a half lesson. My head hurt afterwards. The lesson was almost entirely in Japanese - with the very occasional word in English if the teacher knew the English word - so I was struggling to follow her explanations which were all in Japanese. Now I know how my students must feel (they are all Japanese students taking classes which are solely taught in English)...

Also, I was reading the textbook in hiragana and katakana (the simpler two of the three writing scripts that make up Japanese). I have learned hiragana and katakana, but not very well. I'm very slow and there are a few characters I always confuse (eg 'wa, 'ne' and 're'). So even though I was reading very simple sentences, the grammar of which I knew very well, it was hard mental work.

Still, this is perfect for me and I want something challenging.

Next week there are no classes - there is some sort of party which I won't be attending. So my goal is that by my next class, I want to be able to read at least twice as fast as now. That shouldn't be hard - I've set a pretty low standard to begin with!

I am also thinking of taking private lessons from someone who speaks English as well. I think the two types of lesson will complement each other. For about three weeks I never opened my Japanese textbook, but suddenly in the last few days I've become very motivated and have been revising stuff I studied before I left Australia. I suppose I should be motivated, considering all the failed transactions I've had... times I haven't understood a clerk's question or have received something I didn't intend to order...

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I found a church I might visit this Sunday. I would have gone last Sunday but last Sunday I went to a former teacher's house with a few staff members from my school. It was my first time at a Japanese person's house. It was really nice; a lot more spacious than my apartment... we had nabe, which is a kind of hotpot. They cook it in a pot on the middle of the table and everyone helps themselves.

Right now I have a policy of accepting all invitations. Because I don't know that many people (apart from the huge number of students I am meeting), I am up for anything that anyone suggests. So far I've mostly just been out with people from work, like we had a few farewell dinners for the outgoing teacher. In general I don't mind being on my own at home though, because I have so much contact with people at work. It's such a good part of the job. I am gradually beginning to recognise students and starting to remember more names.