Today was a very fun day! In school I learnt a bit of calculus from the math teacher (he had asked me kind of a challenge problem yesterday and I asked him about it today). We had multiple hours of Undoukai practice in the burning heat — luckily each kumi had gigantic jugs of water and ours even had plastic glasses for every person! The one thing I don’t at all understand is how serious they are about the matching at the Undokai — it has got to be completely perfect and synced. I don’t understand why so much weight is put on the march. BTW, I realized today that one of the hardest things to understand in other cultures is humor, for 2 reasons. 1) At my welcome party, I told them (brokenly) and American joke, n they did not get it…I also didn’t get their Japanese jokes, and 2) Today in a second, separate computer class (I still don’t know how many classes they have total — new ones appear everyday) we watched student skits, and the ones I thought were the most hilarious, about driving and flight attendants, did not get rated very well (peer-grading) while the ones I did not understand were loved…
BTW I successfully walked home today via the park/walking path n it was beautiful (not to mention a shortcut!)
There was so much more I had to write about it but I am forgetting… So, Goodnight! Btw I realized today that tea is probably a great way to give your body important nutrients, because it is loaded with healthy stuff but, most of the time, the taste is not too strong and it is almost like water!
BTW, Amma, everyday when I get home I have started having a toast with cheese sprinkled with Sambharia powder! 🙂
Hello O.Henry,
Saw your interesting weekend blogs.You went to Okinawa Aquarium/Ocean explore Park. Did you go to Cape Manzamo near by?This is all in the North side where there is another UN World heritage Site viz. Nakijin Castle. These are all in the ‘Sunshine tours ‘Okinawa Section’ of Sight Seeing Catalog. Do refer to this catalog before you go for sight seeing and discuss with your host.
Regarding Undokai practice,they put so much weight on the march because of importance they give to discipline in everything they do.
One more thing- have you discussed music with your host family members? Anyone interested in music?Even if not, you should mention about your interest in music.Show them your violin recitals video clips and mention you would like to perform for them if they can borrow a violin from someone!
Also, I don’t know what exactly is this Undokai Festival at the school that you are mentioning, but if you get an opportunity, you should perform your ‘Patdeep Raag’ there on violin as Indian classical music that you have learnt.
Remember one thing, Japanese are very shy people, so you may have to prompt them to start a conversation!!
Looks like you have not tried a Japanese omlette which is sometime stuffed with rice and served for lunch also.You can sprinkle sambharia powder on it and fried onions!!
Yes, about shopping- Japan is expensive but quality is good and so if you like something which is not available in USA, you should buy. Do visit a Stationary store there where you may find nice things.Also, look for the nail cutter with compartment to collect the nail clippings that I had mentioned. That is a very useful item.They also have many bamboo items as souvenirs. Ask your Host for specific items that you are looking for and want to buy rather than searching on your own.
Enough for now- Enjoy your stay…
Dada
Ahhhh…your post brought back memories of marching in school in India! I was considered an excellent marcher and for that reason was assigned the most prestigious position in the troop, the flag holder. The person is in the front row on the right. That way, when the troop marches by the stand (of dignitaries) and everyone has to salute and turn their heads, the only one who doesn’t is the flag-holder! It’s a tough job – not only carrying the flag (heavy), but also marching in sync w/out your arms to guide you is hard! (Try it – the right-arm-;eft-leg coordination, while a bit confusing at first, actually helps keep you in sync). Thanks for letting me go down memory lane. As for your thoughts about humor being culturally-specific, you’re spot on: I still don’t get a lot of jokes American people find funny! Some jokes might really be related to having a shared experience AS A YOUNG PERSON in a culture. And congrats Mr. No-Iron-in-his-Nose for making your way back through the park/shortcut. (Btw, ask Nani to tell you the little sentence I made up for her to remember how to get in and out of La Purissima). Anyway, lots of love, NM.
Hey Amal….finally catching up to your blogs. Looks like you are still enjoying your stay at and learning fun things at school. So what do your teachers think of your American education? Is the school curriculum similar?