Yufuin Summer English Seminar!

This week I went to an English immersion 3 day summer camp in Yufuin, where students would ideally be in an immersion environment and speak only English for 3 days. There were about 30 ALTs -- Assistant Language Teachers -- and about 190 Japanese students. We stayed in a sort of community center in beautiful Yufuin, Japan. Yufuin is about 1 hour from Oita-shi, surrounded by steep, green mountains on nearly all sides. It has a few famous onsen (hot springs) that attract tourists from Japan and Korea.

I was in charge of a group of 10 girls and 2 boys. At first, they were painfully shy with me and each other. However, by the end of the stay, they were speaking a lot of English among each other and with me. I could tell that the camp meant a lot to them - it was definitely a very special time for all parties involved. I felt very touched to be able to inspire and have a bond with the students like that. Several of them have emailed me about how much fun they had. The last night we had an amazing dance party. We all really incorporated the kids into the dancing, and they had a lot of fun. When the sound system cut out, we kept clapping and stomping, and the dancing never stopped. Amazing energy! I also got the chance to bond with several of the other JETs who live in Oita prefecture, all of whom are within an hour from me. These friendships are important to me and I look forward to being a part of them over the next year. However, after two days of working from 7 am to 10 pm, and then staying up until 2 am with other ALTs, I am completely exhausted! I made it back to Usuki and am still in the process of unwinding. It felt wonderful to be back in my apartment, in the familiar streets of Usuki. I went out for a bike ride and took some pictures of the city (Usuki, not Yufuin):





The castle is about a 5 minute walk from my house, and the skyline picture is taken from on top of that hill. I do not live in that part of the city (ie that skyline area), but I wanted to show the mountains and the sunset. Really, it is a beautiful place.

This weekend is Obon, which is a Buddhist holiday in which spirits of ancestors come back to visit their families, but not in a typical Ghost story sort of way. Last night as I was walking home I saw a few people setting up offerings in graveyards. Tomorrow I am going to a festival in Mie (Bungo no ono), which is a small village about 30 minutes away from Usuki. I will be staying with a few friends there. As for tonight, I am still beat from Yufuin. I will be sweeping and vacuuming my apartment with Skeletal Lamping on full blast, painting some watercolors and drinking ice water in my booty shorts. Living the dream!

On a last note, I recently bought an iPhone, which is SO not me! However, I bought it because it has unlimited data plan, so I am always logged into Skype. So you can call me at any time from Skype and it will be a free unlimited phone call to me. Email me for my Skype username. Bear in mind that from Ohio land there is a 13 hour difference. Subtract 1 from your current time and flip it from AM to PM. Please, no 4 am phone calls! Anyhow, please get in touch, I would absolutely love to talk with you.