after a 4 hour train ride and a 1 hour car ride, i arrived in my new town, kihoku-cho (紀北町). i met my supervisor, kawaguchi-san (川口さん), who is so freaking nice. over the last few days, he has gone waaaaay out of his way to help me get situated. basic things like getting gas and internet hooked up or opening a bank account are overwhelmingly difficult for me. though the language barrier is the main culprit, it also has a lot to do with the fact that the bureaucratic red tape is intense and the procedures here are quite complicated.
since 99.9% of the people in my town dont speak english, the board of education actually brought in a JET from the next town over (30 minutes away by train) everyday for the last 3 days. his name is rob (ロバと) and he has been a tremendous help to both me and all of the people and companies i've had to interact with so far. i would not have gotten anywhere without rob's help. thanks dude.
when i arrived i was told that the mayor wanted to meet me the next day. the freaking mayor. so the next day, i put back on the same suit i have worn since i arrived in japan and went to the town hall. meeting the mayor was really awkward for both of us. after we did our introductions (in japanese, of course), we tried to talk about our hobbies and our past. he seemed pretty stoked to hear about my love for guitar and how i used to be in punk rock bands. all of the towns journalists (all 3 of them) kept taking pictures of the two of us, and later asked me a lot of questions about my education.
i got to see a proof for the article about me in the town paper that should be coming out next week. i can only assume the journalist choose this particular picture either out of humor or callousness.
even though the article makes me look like the most awkward person on the planet, i must say that i have been treated with an astonishingly amount of respect, patience, and kindness from every single person and kid that i have been fortunate enough to meet so far.
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| one side of kihoku-cho (紀北町) |
since 99.9% of the people in my town dont speak english, the board of education actually brought in a JET from the next town over (30 minutes away by train) everyday for the last 3 days. his name is rob (ロバと) and he has been a tremendous help to both me and all of the people and companies i've had to interact with so far. i would not have gotten anywhere without rob's help. thanks dude.
when i arrived i was told that the mayor wanted to meet me the next day. the freaking mayor. so the next day, i put back on the same suit i have worn since i arrived in japan and went to the town hall. meeting the mayor was really awkward for both of us. after we did our introductions (in japanese, of course), we tried to talk about our hobbies and our past. he seemed pretty stoked to hear about my love for guitar and how i used to be in punk rock bands. all of the towns journalists (all 3 of them) kept taking pictures of the two of us, and later asked me a lot of questions about my education.
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| an article about me meeting the mayor in the town paper |
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| could i look any more awkward?! |
i got to see a proof for the article about me in the town paper that should be coming out next week. i can only assume the journalist choose this particular picture either out of humor or callousness.
even though the article makes me look like the most awkward person on the planet, i must say that i have been treated with an astonishingly amount of respect, patience, and kindness from every single person and kid that i have been fortunate enough to meet so far.
Saturday, August 07, 2010 |
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Comments (4)
I laughed for about a minute straight with that awkward photo. It looks like you're about to go to prom with Mr. T's daughter.
freaking awesome. I want a shirt with that picture on it.
Shoulda gave 'em the OneLook™!
hahaha! but seriously, whats up with only getting the back of the mayor's head in the shot?! hes the f'ing mayor. hes the big kahuna here. i seriously think the photographers either hate their jobs, dont know how to do their jobs, or have personal vendettas against both of us..