Bike Riding, Getting Lost, and USJ

On Monday the missionaries brought Taku, an investigator, to observe my class. It was really fun and I even had Elder Drake participate in class. He spoke Japanese during class so he had to do the hokey pokey with everyone else that broke the rule too. It was a lot of fun. I feel bad because Taku wants to come more but since he's not registered for the class he can't. I just really hope he didn't get offended.



Tuesday Sister Suzuoki from the evening class took us to a kaitenzushi place called Sushiro. She was really nice and paid for all of us. Though, it wasn't expensive so I didn't feel bad about letting her pay. Kaitenzushi is a sushi restaurant where sushi on plates rotates around on a conveyor belt, and you can just pick whatever you want to eat from there. In addition to sushi they also have different juice and desserts rotating around on plates as well. It's probably one of my favorite type of restaurants. Too bad they don't have them in the United States.




After class on Thursday Megan and I ended up staying at the church after class to practice a song we are going to sing for the Sakai Stake Young Single Adult Sunday, where it will be all the YSA doing their own church service. Kind of like single wards at BYU. Anyway, after we practiced Meg went to the park with Hiroharu and his sister, both students from my class, and Megan, Hoku, and I ended up hanging out with Ken, Shiho, Ayaka, Tomoe, Naoko, Hiroto, and Sachi (I hope I didn't forget anyone!). Ken usually works, but he had Thursday off for some reason, so we wanted to go and do something. We decided to go and get crepes at a "nearby" mall. It took us about a half hour to get there, so it wasn't too far, but it definitely wasn't close. The shoes I chose to wear that day weren't getting along with my feet(wearing high heels all day is hard!). Shiho was nice and let me ride on the back of her bike. Though, she made Ken be a gentleman and ride the bike. It was a little scary at first because I have never ridden on the back of a bicycle before, but after I got used to it it was really fun!

When we got to the mall I decided not to get a crepe (I was still really full from the McDonalds I had for lunch and dinner was going to be soon) and instead shared shaved ice and ice cream. We were short on time so we couldn't stay long. Ken and Hiroto showed us the way to the JR station (we usually take the Nankai line) and then Ken went with us most of the way home. Hoku, Megan, and I ate a hurried, but delicious dinner of chirashizushi. Then Hoku left to teach the night class and Megan and I left for institute.

We usually meet with the girls from our class and walk to institute together, but this time Megan and I went by ourselves. We were able to get to the station okay, but for some reason we couldn't find our way to that familiar street that takes us to the church where institute is at. So Megan and I ended up walking around for an hour and a half before we figured out that we had to walk through this subway station and go out the other side. We got to institute with only a half hour left. It was a little embarrassing because everyone looked at us when we came in and Shiho, Sachi, Ayaka, and a few others asked us if we were alright. We explained to them that we got lost but were completely fine. Then we found out that the teacher arranged a translator for us. I felt really bad coming in late, even though there was nothing we could do about it. I'm just glad that we were to go for that last half hour. Megan and I weren't scared when we were lost because we knew where the station was, just not where the church was. It was fun.



I was sad when I got home because I wanted to watch Himitsu no Arashi chan, a weekly television program that has the band members of Arashi as hosts. I thought I had found it last week, but maybe they were just starring on another show. I hope I can find the right channel next week!

Saturday was really fun. We went to Universal Studios Japan with Sister Sugimoto and Sister Sato. I've never been to Universal Studios in the U.S. before, so I have nothing to compare it with, but it was still awesome! It was cool having all of these characters from American movies speaking Japanese. Everyone's favorite ride was the new attraction Space Fantasy. It's kind of like Space Mountain. We stayed from open till close and got to see the light parade. After we left we went and ate at an Italian restaurant. I got a bacon and cream pizza with a poached egg on top. It was so yummy! I forgot to take a picture though. I think I still need to try actual Japanese pizza, because I think the one I ate was Italian.


I really hope that I am doing a good job teaching and that my students are having fun learning. It's just that I am not as outgoing as Meg and I can't bring myself to do all the crazy stuff she does in her classes. It's just not my personality. I'm having fun teaching, I just hope I'm not a boring teacher, haha.

So I found out on Thursday that my friend Yuko from institute knows one of my friends from BYU. He's been in the army for the past two years, all men in Korea have to serve in the army for two years, and now he has a little break before he leaves on his mission. So he's coming to spend part of it in Japan. Talk about a small world! Yuko was just telling me if Megan and I could show her friend around since he doesn't speak Japanese and it turns out that it's someone I know. It's really late right now and I am going to hang out with him, Yuko, and Mari, and probably some other people, in Kobe tomorrow. I'll see if I have time to update my blog more than once a week so you guys don't have to read a novel!