A the end of May, I was invited by my Koya school co-workers to what they called "girls night" on June 20th. Since I had such a good time at the Koya enkai, I was happy to attend. I didn't know what it would entail, though, since "girls night" can mean "crazy party" in English.
Turns out it was just like the Koya enkai, but with just the ladies. Koya knows how to party: fancily.
The party was at a restaurant called Carrot's, which had a picture of a charging bull beneath the name. Our group was given a special back room set apart from the rest of the restaurant, which featured long, short tables, tatami mat, lots of wood paneling, and flat cushions to sit on. (This morning, my knees are protesting a little the amount of time I spent sitting Japanese-style with my legs folded under me.) When I entered the room, I was asked to select a ticket from a bag. The ticket had a picture of a flower on it, and whichever spot had that flower, that was where I sat. I ended up with two teachers I didn't know, as well as an office woman I did know, and one of the sixth-grade teachers whom I definitely knew well.
The thing about nice Japanese dinners is that they specialize in beautiful food that is not necessarily plentiful. However, the surprising thing about nice Japanese dinners is that they are actually quite filling.
Our appetizer was "vegetable jelly." Imagine if someone cooked vegetables into a mini jelly-loaf, and then sliced it like bread. Some salad dressing was drizzled on top. It was quite delicious. Next came the main course, which was awesome: steak, vegetables, and a fist-sized ball of meatloaf, all of which was excellent. There was even steak sauce on the steak, and I made sure I got every bit that I could. Finally, we had dessert, a tiny scoop of peach ice cream with a small bowl of yellow custard that had a layer of hard sugar on top. There were also some small slices of kiwi and one lone grape. After that we were served tea or coffee, depending on what we'd expressed a preference for, and my tea (a red, I believe) was delicious without me needing to add sugar or cream.
Through the dinner, the teachers got up one by one to make little speeches--I think they were the new teachers, although "new" is an experience that teachers in Japan deal with often. Most Japanese teachers are rotated among local schools every three or so years. Depending on their specialty, they might stay only in JHS or ES schools, but they could end up bounced back and forth between. I was also told by a JTE (a junior high school Japanese Teacher of English) that if a teacher's assignment includes a subject they're not strong on, like music or sports, other teachers can help them, or the school can bring in a part-time teacher to fill in the gap. So even if some teachers are "new" one year, they probably won't be new for long, and it's likely that within a few years they'll be "new" again.
I was asked to make a speech, also, and since I didn't know what anyone else had said, I just told them that moving to Japan could have been scary but all the teachers at Koya have made it a warm, positive experience. Which is completely true. The principal and vice-principal at Koya are both wonderfully down-to-earth people, and the atmosphere flows downward. The general atmosphere at Koya is professional but relaxed, and I think the reason the Koya teachers don't feel a need to go crazy at an enkai is because they're very good at keeping it real while at work.
It's still a bit difficult to hold a conversation when you can only interject occasional Japanese words and have to watch your speaking so everyone can understand it, but I enjoy talking with my co-workers. I've also learned that if you eat really slowly, you can always have something to do when the conversation turns all-Japanese and you're only catching on through the occasional word and everyone's gesturing. It's a good listening exercise, though, so I really don't mind.
One distressing thing I found out is that my co-workers only have five days off in August. I've got nearly the whole month, plus some "workdays" in July that are practically PTO unless I'm called in to do something. It makes me feel really bad--these wonderful people work incredibly hard and stay jovial through it, and I think they deserve a long vacation to recover from educating the nation's youth.
All in all, though, it was a really nice night, and it made my Friday night feel like I'd gotten a head start on the weekend. It was also a nice distraction from the fact that I slammed the corner of my car into a tree that morning, putting a nice little dent into it... something I will document and deal with at a later time that is not this moment right now.
On a final note, I've also promised to make American chili for my co-workers at Koya, and I am so excited about it. They probably won't eat as much as American co-workers would, so I should only need to double my original recipe, and this time I'm gonna add a bit of spice or else it won't be real chili. I love cooking, and feeding people is how I demonstrate affection (my family doesn't ask "Are you hungry?" we ask "What do you want to eat?") so I'm stoked to be able to bring something in for Koya.
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