It absolutely baffles me about the amount of alcohol a Japanese person can consume...Last night I went out with the people from my office to celebrate the end of the term. My office members are the ones that are running the Education Dept. in my village. There were 13 of us, 4 ladies and the rest men. I would say the average age was 33. As you can see, I bring the average down.
We went to a BBQ place in the next town around 6pm, and that's when it all started!!! The first of the kampai saw many of them down their first beer. Then it was more beer, this was all before the food had arrived. We ate, we chatted, and had a really good time. Anyways, the first party ended at 9pm. They drank about 5 beers each, and then went onto shouchu (Japanese rice wine), they finished two huge bottles. We went our separate ways after that. The ladies all went home and the men partied on till the crack of dawn.
When I came to the office today my supervisor was telling me how shite he felt, surprise surprise :) And we have another drinking party tomorrow...oh their poor livers.

On another note, I'm going back to Sydney v(^_^)v I will be leaving Fukuoka on the 12th of August, arriving in Sydney early morning on the 13th. Then leaving Sydney on the 25th of August, back to Fukuoka on the 26th of August. It will be a great trip!!! Party, party, party...can't wait. only 16days...

It's amazing how many bloggers there are out there. Just checked out about 10 people who I know that started their own blog once in Japan.
Why do we start blogs? ... I don't know, maybe it's a way for us to detail our adventures in Japan, so that people back home can keep a track on us. Another romantic reason, is so that we won't forget them ourselves. Our memories will live with us forever, but if it's not in a physical form, it can be forgotten. Previous explorers put their epic adventures from pen to paper. With today's technology, we can just type to our hearts content.
I actually don't know who reads my blog anymore because I have taken the comments function out of it. My reason behind it is so that people can not judge me for any reason that might be. I always wonder whether people read my blog to see whether I have mentioned them in here. I have read other people's blog and hoping that I have had a feature in it. But, most often than not, I'm not :)
Today's the last day of school, yippe...It's now officially one year since I packed up my bags and left for Japan. I have been quite emotional lately, anything can trigger off the tears that I have been holding back. Last night Briony and I went to a friend's house for dinner. The couple we visited has two little girls and a new born son. We had such a great time. The parents (Japanese) spoke perfect English, and we spoke Japanese to the girls. We ate, we played, we sang and we took photos. When we were about to leave, the girls started crying their little hearts out. It broke my heart just watching them. They know Bri was leaving the country, and they will not be able to see her on the Wednesdays that she visits. It was seriously emotionally draining. We couldn't stop sobbing in the car and on the way home. I can't even begin to imagine what it will be like when I have to say goodbye to her.
And, what it will be when I have to say goodbye to the family and friends that have taken such good care of me...*sigh* not yet, not yet.

On a brighter note, I am going back to Sydney for two weeks in summer vacation!!! Yeah!! I will be leaving Japan on the 12th of August and arriving in Sydney on the 13th of August, at 7:15ish in the morning. I am so so excited. I will be leaving on the 25th of August. Doesn't give me alot of time, but am looking forward to seeing friends and being with family. It's time to PLAY people!!!

When it rains in Japan, it pours!!! I have never ever seen so much rain in my life, it was unbelievable. On Saturday, we went to a shopping centre an hour away from my house. Driving on the interchange was so dangerous. The rain was peltering down, and it wouldn't stop. Normally, I'd be going 120km on the freeway (80km/limit) but on Saturday I had to go 40km, I was getting stomach pains because it was that intense. Thank goodness the heavy down pour stopped to just rain.
It rained all day Friday, Saturday and Sunday. My driveway was flooded...*sigh*, the raining season will stop soon (apparently) but that means typhoon season will soon be here.

On Sunday night, I went bowling with some Japanese friends. I scored a Turkey, woohoo!! I scored three strikes in a row, I was very proud and very amazed with myself ;) Something I find fascinating about Japanese people is their ability to ignore their boyfriends/girlfriends in public OR the fact that they just act like they don't have one. When we went bowling, I knew there was a couple present. What I didn't know was that there was also another couple there. I found that out when I was riding in the car with Manami. It was just a normal chit-chat and I asked her whether she has a bf, and she said yes. Shigo, one of the guys that was there at bowling. I was shocked. Not that I liked Shingo or anything, but the mere fact that those two did not converse a single word to each other, or stood next to each other all night. Then I went on and asked her was it because they just started seeing each other, and she said no. They've been together for nearly 4 years. That just left me dumbfounded. Anyways, that was that. Then there's this other guy...who shall remain nameless. When I first meet him I've heard mixed comments about his love life. So when I asked him whether there was a significant other, he told me no. Now two months down the track he says he has a gf. What the .... Reason being, he is ALWAYS seen out with his friends, whether it'll be baseball, drinking, pachinko or something or other. This guy is the type where his friends means everything. Anyways, turns out he does have a gf. oh well...just wanted to get that off my chest.

Been feeling weird lately...Am I good enough to ever find someone who will sweep me off my feet, and make me really fall in love? To feel secure about myself and about my relationship? *sigh* I wanna be loved...wahey!!!

Dance Debut

I had my first dance debut in front of an audience on Sunday :) It was such an adrenaline rush, performing in front of people. As most of you may know, I have joined a dance team in my little village. These dancers are EXCELLENT! They have performed in Tokyo and many many events and festivals. So, they were asked to perform on Sunday and they asked me to join.
I was very nervous at first, thinking that I will stuff it all up and forget my steps. As it turns out, I did forget a step or two, hehee..only small ones, you wouldn't even be able to tell :) but I did quite a good job if I may say so myself. Being on stage, smiling and just enjoying the atomosphere, it was something truly amazing.
Some children's parents were there, and they video recorded it. When we watched it on TV that night, it was so exciting. Everyone looked really good, and we all looked like we were having so much fun.
The dance teacher is 39 turning 40 in a few days time. She does NOT look it, at all! All the other ladies there as well, they're well into their 30s but they don't look it one bit. Amazing how the Japanese women age gracefully.
So, as Summer is fast approaching, so are the summer festivals. I think I will be performing again in August. Can't wait...

Sorry guys, but I don't know if I'd be able to go home...Still waiting for my tix.