New Friends

I've only been in Japan for a few months, but have made so many new friends. These new friendships are so diverse and each person has such an interesting life story to share. The first Japanese people I met when I arrived in Takahagi besides my school supervisor were my two host families. Both families treated me like a daughter and did so much to help me adjust to my new life in Japan. I still keep in touch with them and look forward to seeing them later this month.
Left picture: The Shimoyamada's
Right picture: The Saeki's

All the English teachers and some other staff from my base school came out for my welcome party at the end of September. I've discovered that some of the Japanese teachers at my school can speak decent English and are willing to try to talk to me once in awhile!

Last week the students had three days of exams and the female teachers invited me to join them for a special lunch. They ordered ton katsu obento lunches and it was girls only!

















One of my closest friends is a Japanese Teacher of English at my base school, Kurosawa Sensei. I will never forget our first meeting- she came rushing over to greet me in the staff room my very first day at Takahagi High School. Out of all the people I have met, her and her husband (also an english teacher) have helped me the most. From helping me clean my apartment to driving me to the store to buy furniture, interpreting Japanese for numerous things like mail, maps and phone calls, I am truly indebted to them! This past Friday they invited my friend and I over for dinner.
















This picture is when I climbed Mt. Fuji at the end of August with some of the other ALTs in Ibaraki. Made it to the top after a grueling 11 hr. climb just in time to see the beautiful sunrise. You grow very close to people when experience something like this together!

These are some of the ladies in my Thursday night Adult English Class. We were planning on going to a festival this weekend, but it was canceled due to rain.. so instead we had dinner together! I may be their teacher, but they have taught me so much about Japanese culture.

















These are just some of the new friends, more pictures to come! I'm reminded of the song I use to sing in Girl Scouts.. "Make new friends, but keep the old. One is silver and the other gold." While it's nice to be meeting new friends, I still miss the ones back home.