Rachel departs, 1st quarter down, Peace Park Visit

After a thrilling 6 weeks, Rachel headed back to the U.S. on Monday =( She rode to school with me in the morning, then at 9:30 Mr. Elofson and his wife took her to the airport. She was definitely excited about going home, Okinawa is good in small intervals for visitors. My students had just got back from music class when Rachel announced that Mr. Elofson was ready and she was leaving. When I told my students Rachel was going back to the U.S., they all let out a big "awwwwww." My American student got up and hugged Rachel. I told them that her suitcase was big enough to fit at least two kids and asked if any of them would like to go to the U.S. Almost all of their hands went up frantically. When I let them know that they wouldn't see their moms and dads for a really long time, a few hands went down. A few students actually stood up and walked towards her when I said they could go with her. haha. I got a little teary as I hugged her goodbye, it will definitely not be the same without her around. 

It was weird to get home from work and not have Rachel sitting on our couch, then going to my room and seeing half of my desk, closet and floor empty. This morning she emailed me to let me know she made it home safely. Apparently, they gave her a hard time getting on the plane in Okinawa because her ticket said "Miss Rachel" on it, and they told her that "Miss" meant she was a child, she almost missed her flight! 

I was blessed to have her visit for so long and to have created so many great memories together =)

I had 1st quarter parent/teacher conferences last week and they went very well. I had a translator for all my parents which I'm kinda getting used to now. All my parents were very supportive. I was surprised at how well the parents knew exactly what their kids were learning in school, they actually go through their folders and look at their papers! One common theme that most parents were concerned about was their child's printing. They felt that their kids were writing too sloppy. I told them that most of their printing is fine, I'm always able to read it without a problem. I didn't tell them, but compared to kids in the U.S., they have great printing! Parents were also concerned about the vocabulary in our reading books. Most of the language in our books is way over my students heads. I am going to start making vocabulary lists and reviewing them daily to help with comprehension, which is what all my students need to work on. Most parents asked me if their child was speaking English all day at school. They were surprised when I told them yes, the whole day, every day. They said they don't speak English at home, at all! I must have some talented students to be able to speak English half of the day and Japanese the other half! 

The lowest grades I gave were in bible and science. The test questions in both bible and science are worded in a way that English learners can not grasp. I'm changing the test format and I'm sure that will help the grades go up. Overall, everything went well and I was able to get all my planning done through the end of December! 1st quarter down, 3 to go!

Rocky took us out to eat Okinawan soba. Okinawan soba uses regular noodles while Japanese soba uses buckwheat noodles. There were huge pieces of pork rib in the noodles, Rachel and I gave our meat to Rocky. The noodles were good. We asked about the sign that said "Snow Corn" and Rocky said it's like a "Snow Cone." haha. We ordered them for dessert and they were delicious (better than the soba)!

 After dinner Rocky took us to the movies (my first movie theater experience in Okinawa) to watch Michael Jackson's "This is it." After the movie was over, everyone stayed in their seats to watch the credits until all the lights come on and the credits ended! Nobody got up to exit like we do at home. I couldn't figure out if they do this for all movies or they just really liked this movie. I found out the theater we went to, is one of the few theaters off base that shows English movies. I have a feeling I'll be visiting there quite frequently. 

I don't have all the pictures from our adventure last Saturday yet, so I'll do another post with that info.

On Sunday, Rachel's last full day here, we went to the WWII Peace Prayer Park in southern Okinawa. My friend from high school, Albert, was stationed in Okinawa last year. He got me in contact with some of his friends that are still stationed here. I invited his friend Omar, who is a navy coreman, to the Peace Park with us and we all had a great time. Omar has a very nice camera so we got some good pictures! Rachel and I enjoyed asking Omar a zillion questions about military life.

This park is located in Mabuni Hill, where the battle of Okinawa ended. The park is dedicated to the lives lost during the battle, in 1945. Over 200,000 people (including Okinawans, Americans, Koreans, Taiwanese and Britons) died during this battle. The name of each person that died is inscribed in stone blocks, which are displayed in a courtyard area. The concept of the park is to pray for those that died during this battle and to share the story of the battle. The park is very scenic and beautiful but carries a somber, heavy intonation.  

This is the "Cornerstone of Peace" area with the names of all fallen soldiers and civilians inscribed in stone blocks.

Omar bought flowers for us to lay throughout the park. 

 Saying a prayer as we set down our flowers.

There was also a butterfly garden at the Peace Park, that's twice at a butterfly garden in one week! I wasn't as antsy with the butterflies this time =)

The world's largest lacquer Budda, Okinawa prayer for peace statue.

This "Young Boy Statue" symbolizes the loss of numerous children who perished during the war.

We walked up to the observation tower but it was closed. We still got a view from inside the museum. These are the "suicide" cliffs that people threw themselves off of in 1945, very sad.

There was am ample amount of Japanese students visiting the Peace Park with their classes. It was on Sunday but they were still in uniform! We asked a few of the students if we could take pictures of them, they all gladly accepted.

These girls got a little excited! They did this pose automatically when we asked to take their picture!

Omar got creative with his nice camera.

I told these boys I loved their hair and wanted a picture. They didn't speak much English but their teacher told us that they are "cocky" with their hair cut this way! haha.

The rest of the class got a little jealous and wanted their picture taken too.

This little girl was so cute riding around on her bike.

After the peace park we ate at an Italian pizza house by Camp Kinser (where Omar lives). As we were eating, we saw these characters waddling along in the parking lot. We couldn't stop laughing, we left our food on the table and ran outside to get a picture. AU is the name of a cell phone company in Okinawa. 

We ate dessert at Blue Seal ice cream parlor. It's a 60's style diner with food and ice cream that plays American rock music. I'm told there are Blue Seal/Big Dip ice cream parlor's in the U.S. I've had ice cream at Blue Seal at least twice a month, every month since being here =)

A sundae for each of us, mmmmmm!

Getting festive with the American solider.

It was a nice ending to a memorable visit with Rachel. 

I leave at 8:15 am on Thanksgiving morning for Tokyo. Our hotel is a 30 minute train ride from the airport. Thursday,  I hope to see Tokyo Tower. Friday, (your Thanksgiving day) I will take the train for 1 1/2 hours to Tokyo Disney to spend the day. Saturday, I will meet my tour group in my hotel lobby for my Mt. Fuji tour. Sunday I will squeeze in whatever else I missed =) My flight leaves Tokyo Sunday evening at 7:45 pm. I checked the weather and it will be in the 40's and 50's in Tokyo...I brought a thin coat with me but I think I'll be buying some hats and scarfs this weekend! I'm counting down the days =)

I think I covered everything. I hope your all still enjoying my updates. Let me know if you'd like more details about anything, I have the time and I love sharing with you. 

XOXO 

Kristen