Jo & Ponyo

7.27.08

Today after waking up slightly early to accomplish some chores around the house, I headed into Tokyo to meet my friend Johanne. We were going to see Miyazaki's--think Japan's version of Walt Disney--new film Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea produced by Studio Gibli in Mitaka, Tokyo (I hope to visit the studio before I leave Japan!).

The main character, a little fish girl named Ponyo, discovers what it is like to live on the land. She meets a boy and they desperately want to be great friends despite their differences. There is more, but I don't want to give away anything to those of you that haven't seen it yet. According to a review I read, the target audience for this movie is children of age five. Fortunately for me, this meant that I would be able to understand the plot even though the movie was entirely in Japanese with no English subtitles yet available. The story reminded me of one of my favorite Disney movies, The Little Mermaid, but was quite different. I really enjoyed the movie and was able to understand bits of Japanese here and there. Ponyo was really adorable and her antics caused me to laugh out loud several times during the film. In some ways I understood and shared her amazement in certain aspects of Japanese culture.

Please watch the movie trailer below:


7.28.08

My good friend Alex sent me this picture of himself at the Obama Ralley in Berlin, Germany on July 24th of last week. I would like to give credit to a major news photographer but I'm not especially sure of this picture's origin. If you look closely at the picture below, you can see Alex's head in the middle of the green circle.

Videos from Kyoko

7.23.08

My friend Kyoko sent me a few youtube.com video links. I enjoyed them and I hope you will too!

1. This is the first of a really cute four part series.

2. This one reminds me of when Lauren was sick this past winter. (It's rather loud so please be sure to turn your volume down before you start watching.)

Take care!
Sheilabeila


P.S. There is also this NPR article/speech that I recommend you read/listen to.

Shirakansu

7.21.08

Today, Umi no Hi (Ocean Day), was a public holiday in Japan. It wasn't especially busy at school since many of my students must have been spending the day with their families. Of the 11 students I taught today, about 6 of them showed up for class. At times I enjoy the smaller classes like these because they allows me to spend a little more time with each student.

Anyway, I wanted to explain the title and purpose for writing this blog entry. A few entries ago, I mentioned that my name (shi-i-ra) is also the Japanese word for Mahi-Mahi--a Hawaiian fish. When I mentioned this realization to my two Japanese friends, Yuma and Kyoko, on Saturday night they were surprised to hear this fact. They had only heard of an ancient fish called Shi-i-ra-kan-su. I had a feeling I knew what they were talking about but I only just remembered to look it up.

So it turns out that I am also named after the Coelacanth fish. According to Wikipedia, they were thought to be extinct until one was found in South Africa in 1938. Wikipedia also says that the average length and width of a Coelacanth fish found in the West Indian Ocean is about 176 pounds and 6.5 ft respectively. The most recent siting was as recent as 2006 when this fish was mistakenly caught of the coast of Tanzania in a net intended to catch sharks.

Le Coquillage & The Marines

7.19.08

Today I woke up early to get to school on time. I was scheduled to teach six classes in a row so I had to make sure I arrived to school early enough to prepare. Today marked the last official day of parent open house. The whole past week mothers and fathers were allowed to visit our school during their child's class. Throughout the week, Lauren and I were a little nervous--we wanted to leave a good impression with the parents--but luckily, there were no complaints! Overall, I'm really quite proud of all my students. My six lessons when by quickly and I was off to Kagurazaka to meet my two friends, Kyoko and Yuma, for dinner. It was a great way to end to a busy day.

Our dinner reservation wasn't scheduled until 6:30pm so we decided to get something to drink at this tiny little cafe called "Muginaru". The inside was so small but as Yuma would say it had "such a good feeling". I ordered "Flower Banquet" iced tea, Yuma ordered iced "Feel Relax" and Kyoko ordered ice green tea. We let each other have a taste; they were all so refreshing and flavorful.

Kyoko and Yuma bought some of the cafe's homemade manju. Manju is a small bread cake filled with different types of things such as: anko (sweet red bean paste) and cheese. The cafe staff was so funny and kept joking around with us. I also noticed a cute little gray, striped cat that wandered in and out of the cafe. Many of the guest in the cafe stopped to give him a pat on the head; he must have been content with his residence.

In this picture, Kyoko and Yuma (from left to right) are getting ready to eat. After leaving Muginaru, we headed to a small French restaurant called Le Coquillage (shell in French) just in time to make our 6:30pm reservation. I would like to thank Kyoko for making the reservation! The atmosphere of the restaurant was calming and slow paced which gave the three of us lots of time in between courses to chat about life--hopes, ideas, worries, and close friends.

Yuma & I (Sorry, this picture is a tad blurry.)

My meal consisted of three courses and a drink (I ordered hot tea.). This is my first course: Salade de St. Jacque Nicoles. Field greens were served topped with shrimp, tuna, and smoked scallops.

My second course: egg and cheese complete with tomato.

For my third course: dessert crepe lightly drizzled with nutella, chocolate hazelnut spread.

Yuma eyes here nutella crepe. "I'm already so full!", she says.

Kyoko is about to dig into her apricot crepe.

Kagurazaka is a very old Japanese district in Tokyo. It has a large French corridor as well as many old Japanese shops. Kyoko explained that there is a summer long festival in this area. This could possibly be the reason for the lanterns lining the narrow street in this picture.

7.20.08

Lauren's father was visiting Japan on business and offered to take Lauren, Ryoji and I to a Chiba Lotte Marines game. The game started at 1pm but we decided to meet a little before then so we could walk around and find our seats before the stadium became too crowded. Thanks to Mr. Oneil, our seats top notch--just a little to the right of home plate.

The Chiba Lotte Marines Stadium Main Entrance

Ryochan says "Hello!". It was so hot in the direct sun shine but everyone kept cool with their Marines neck towels. Don't worry, we made sure to wear lots of sunscreen. :)

Mr. Oneil & Lauren

In Japan, draft beer comes to you (Yeibisu, Sapporo, Kirin, Asahi). I didn't order any but I could imagine these girls had a very difficult and hot job--walking up all those steps in the hot sun.

Warming Up

Lucky 7th Inning Fan-fair

Jose Ortiz (Number 4) of the Marines

The final score: Chiba Lotte Marines 16, Saitama Seibu Lions 0. Although they lost this game, the Lions had won the previous games in the weekend series.

Congratulations Chiba Lotte Marines!

おとうさん (Otosan) & Hiroko

7.12.08

Right after work, Hiroko, her husband and I all hopped into his speedy Megane, Renault convertible and headed towards Futomi, Chiba. Futomi is located on the Pacific Ocean side of the Chiba Prefecture. I live on the opposite side of the Chiba Prefecture--on the Tokyo Bay side. It took us about three hours by car to get to Futomi which is located somewhere between Kamogawa and Tateyama.

As we were driving to Futomi, we passed through a heavy hail storm.

We also passed through this small village that was holding it's summer festival. Here, the men of the village are carrying a solid gold statue to the shrine.

After relaxing in the outdoor onsen (it is fenced in), we enjoyed a rather large dinner in our hotel room. Hiroko later told me that she had ordered the smallest dinner package possible. I couldn't imagine the size of the largest one.

This boat filled with raw fish was only a portion of the meal. There were many new foods that I tried while staying at the hotel, and to be honest, I enjoyed a great majority of them. :)

Otosan & Hirokosan are almost ready for bed.

7.13.08

The next morning, we all woke up very early, went to the onsen again and enjoyed a nice Japanese style breakfast at the hotel as we looked out onto the ocean. After breakfast, we decided to go on several adventures which are described in the pictures below.

View From the Hotel

From our room window, we could enjoy a beautiful Pacific Ocean view.

This is the hotel's eating area.

Hiroko is standing just outside the entrance to our Japanese style hotel.

The fishing pond was located just beyond this cave.

Now that I have my pole and my bait, I'm ready to fish. :)

Hiroko caught a fish! We quickly discovered that these crafty little fish were trained professionals at stealing our bait. If my father would've been fishing with us, he would have called them "bait stealers". I just called them "dorobo!" (robbers in Japanese).

There were several birds of prey flying around the top of this cliff.

Pale Pink Hibiscus

The Nokogiriyama Rope Way

We took the rope way headed towards Nokogiriyama.

This is the view from the top of the rope way.

Climbing Up towards the Nihon-ji Shrine

View Over the Ledge

We passed by these Buddist statues while hiking.

After our long hike, Hiroko and her husband decide to sit in the shade by the Daibutsu (giant Budda statue). The Daibutsu behind them is the largest stone carved Budda in Japan.

Dragonfly

Tiny Budda's Near Their "House"

Hiroko and I placed two little Budda's near their "house"/shrine and made a wish.

From left to right: Azusa, Mai (Azusa's best friend) and me. After all I did this weekend, I still had time to meet up with my friend Azusa on Sunday night. I wanted to see her before she left on a trip to Switzerland. Azusa invited me to her home for dinner, which her father made. He prepared home-made pizza, noodle and cheese casserole, salad and some other dishes that had a very "American" taste. After eating, the three of us sat and talked with Azusa's mother who was very kind and caring.

Tokyo Disney Land Hotel Grand Opening

7.9.08

The official opening of the new Tokyo Disney Land Hotel was this past Tuesday, July 8th. Lauren and I wanted to visit on opening day but we were unable to fit it into our teaching schedules. However, we were able to find time the following day. We thought it would be a good idea to invite Hiroko with us for a "girls day out". We enjoyed giving ourselves a tour of the new hotel the surrounding area before getting lunch together at a Hawaiian style sandwich shop. After lunch we headed back to school for our afternoon lessons.

Because the hotel is located outside the park, we were able to freely walk around the entrance.

With my back facing the entrance to the hotel, I could see the Tokyo Disney Resport train line. Behind the train line is the entrance to Tokyo Disney Land.

Goofy and many other Disney characters welcome guest into the hotel.

Up the Stairs and Past Alice

The hotel lobby is quite large with a high cathedral ceiling. The the cast iron elevator cage was beautiful and all the lounge-wear had a classy "olden days" feel to it.

Lauren, Me and Hiroko in the Lobby

Guests arriving to the hotel by taxi or bus see this fountain inspired by Disney's Fantasia movie. Sorcerer Mickey is commanding his brooms to pour water into the fountain.

I took this picture especially for my dear friend Alison Kincaid.

All of the workers were dressed to the nines.

In the Bippity-Boppity Boutique, little girls transformed themselves into princesses with the help of hair and make-up artists. Princess dresses (Cinderella, Belle, Snow White and Sleeping Beauty) could be purchased in the shop next door. We saw several little "Disney princesses" walking around the hotel area; they were absolutely adorable.

At lunch, I ordered a shi-i-ra sandwich. Because my name in Japanese means Mahi Mahi--a popular Hawaiian fish--I couldn't pass up the chance to eat myself. :)