Obata Fireworks Festival and more Karaoke

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Saturday I went to a fireworks festival in Obata, a nearby town. It's the biggest festival I've been to yet. There were lots of games for kids, a ton of food, and a stage where children and adults performed dances and taiko drum shows. I have become completely fascinated by the Taiko drum. The drummers keep stern faces and pound the drums with such force. Emily, the girl who had my job before me, took Taiko lessons. She said I would need to learn some Japanese before taking the classes, so I'm waiting a little before trying it out. I am definitely going to do it though. The end of the festival was marked by a great fireworks show. Fireworks are very popular in Japan and are used in many festivals. After the festival was over, we went out for a night of Karaoke. In Japan, it's one of the only things to do late at night. I've never been a huge fan of it in the states, but I'm starting to love it now!!

Last week I made some plans that I'm really excited about. First, I got tickets to a professional Japanese baseball game. I'm going with several other JETs to see the Nagoya Dragons play the Tokyo Giants,. It's the end of the season and the Dragons are playing great, so it should be a good game. The Tokyo Giants are kind of like the Yankees over here. I guess I'm going to pull for Nagoya though, since they are one of the closest teams to me and the team I'll have the chance to see the most.

I also found out this week that there is a JET soccer league. The teams travel around and play in different areas of Japan. Kristine and I both signed up. I'm so excited to play again. There aren't many practices because some people have to travel a good distance to get there and unfortunately, our first practice is the same day I am going to the baseball game, September 2nd. I'll be sure to let you all know how things go when I do get to play for the first time!

I'm also starting to plan a few trips I hope to take. Traveling around Asia can be really cheap and I'm going to take advantage of being here. We are planning to go to Okinawa in October and to Thailand in January. By we, I mean the group of JETs in my city (Kristine, John, and Taylor for Thailand, plus Pamela, Katie, and Chris for Okinawa.) Again I have to say that I got very lucky with the group of JETs in my area. I really like everyone so much.

I have so many exciting things going on right now, but I'm really anxious to start teaching. This week I'm meeting the Japanese teachers I'll be working with on Tuesday, meeting the mayor on Wednesday, and traveling to Nagoya to get my re-entry permit on Thursday (it's something you need on your visa to get back into Japan if you leave). Next week my supervisor at the board of education is going to take me to my schools and show me around. I don't know exactly when I'll start having to go to the school everyday, but the students start back Sept.1, so I know it will be before then. I can't wait to meet my students.