Winter in Tokyo is very dry, and it gets around three to four days of snow a year, usually in late January and February, so here it is!
I took some photos from my balcony.
I don't think the snow will last long, because it's meant to turn to sleet, and then rain overnight, so it might all melt by the time I get up. That will make the bike ride into Uni much easier, but not nearly as pretty!
13 comments:
Hey, I'm a student starting the Leeds university course in Japanese this coming September. Just read your whole blog, it's just what I needed, I'm really excited for the course! Have you heard much about Kansai Gaidai, and if you have is it good news? I think that is where I'd like to go during the year abroad as it's so close to Kyoto.
Hey Daniel!
Thank you for your comment! I'm really glad my blog has been of some use to you!
The only thing I've heard about Kansai Gaidai is that there are a lot of foreigners there, being an International University, but ICU is as well, and it's nice to be in such an international atmosphere.
It definitely would be lovely to be so close to Kyoto, and Osaka and Kobe are both nice cities too.
There's no 100% chance that you will get Kansai Gaidai unfortunately, but you can answer the questionnaire Leeds will give you and tailor it to make it more likely that they'll put you in Kansai Gaidai. For example, wanting to live in a 'medium-size city' and whether you want to do homestay etc.
Glad you're excited about the course. It is amazing!
Good luck!
Miles
Hey,
I just wanna say that I really like your blog and everything. I'm planning on applying to ICU next fall (my senior year of high school [isn't it secondary school in Britain? ahaha idk] ) and hope to study Japanese further like you.
ahhhh 僕の夢だ〜〜w。Who knows, maybe I'll see you there in a couple of years. Keep writing! Your blog's great.
誠一
Oh wow, would you be studying your degree there for four years? That would be such an incredible experience!
Thank you, I will keep writing! Glad you enjoyed the blog : )
And yes, hehe, we call it secondary school in Britain :D
Good luck with everything!!
Miles
Brilliant! We've just had a day of snow in the UK, although we've had far more than our fair share already this year... I still love it though. I've just about forgiven it for making me six hours late getting home last month!
Great blog by the way.
Hi Gaijin:)
I was googling and fournd your blog. Your blog is very interesting and very informative.
I am curious about your job in 2008(GABA). Were all your colleagues are fluent in English or were some of them with an accent such as indian, french, chinese?
Thank u for ur time.
Thank you very much Rob! Hopefully the snow in the UK won't make another appearance until the end of the year! Although, you never know, there could be snow in April yet!
Miles
Hi Julie!
Thank you for your question. Everyone who works at Gaba is fluent in English, but most of the non-native speakers of English had an accent from their own language, for example French, Chinese, Japanese etc. You just need an English exam qualification to prove that your level of English is a good enough standard to teach it.
Thank you for reading!
Miles
Hey Miles,
love your blog man, keep it up. Im a 25 yo male from Australia... ive just arrived in Japan and have my first interview info session thing at Gaba tomorrow - am pumped for it and now that I know more about what to expect from your blog, I'm a bit more at ease about the whole process. It sounds pretty much as I expected... so happy its not tooooo intensive :) Training sounds like a bit of a drag, similar to training ive done before ... can be repetitive and common sense based etc but necessary all the same.
I'm living in the Chiba area near Ichikawa and will probably go for the Chiba GABA office - do you know much about it?
Was so happy to see that you decided to come back to Japan, congrats for being so brave and following what you want in your life - its hard to do for so many people and especially someone so young as you.
Keep it up, peace to you.
Jesse
Hey Miles,
love your blog man, keep it up. Im a 25 yo male from Australia... ive just arrived in Japan and have my first interview info session thing at Gaba tomorrow - am pumped for it and now that I know more about what to expect from your blog, I'm a bit more at ease about the whole process. It sounds pretty much as I expected... so happy its not tooooo intensive :) Training sounds like a bit of a drag, similar to training ive done before ... can be repetitive and common sense based etc but necessary all the same.
I'm living in the Chiba area near Ichikawa and will probably go for the Chiba GABA office - do you know much about it?
Was so happy to see that you decided to come back to Japan, congrats for being so brave and following what you want in your life - its hard to do for so many people and especially someone so young as you.
Keep it up, peace to you.
Jesse
Hey Jesse!
Thank you so much for your comment! :)
I hope the information seminar goes well for you!
I'm afraid I don't know much about the Chiba branch of Gaba, but I think it's quite a big one, so they're probably more likely to be looking for instructors to teach there. If that's the case, it will probably work in your favour!
Thank you very much, I'll do my best to keep writing the blog! :)
Best of luck!!
Miles
Thanks Miles, info session went great, was asked back for a 2nd interview and it went pretty well too. The 5 minute lesson I had to give was a bit different to yours, seems they have developed a little handbook that they give out now and you choose your own - I think I chose poorly and therefore found it quite difficult.
Anyway.
I have a question for you and any other english tutor out there in Japan. So far, I have had 2 trial lessons both with 20-30 year old women. Both times I have taken them to a coffee shop and we have each ordered a coffee. My problem is, where I come from it is customary for the man to pay for the woman (ok I know that this isn't really a personal relationship but rather business but still...) and when it comes to paying the cheque, both girls haven't exactly been rushing up to the counter with their wallets out! In fact, the 2nd trial lesson I had was with a 22 year old beginner and despite me saying I didn't want one of their 690 yen coffees (yes that's right... criminal...) she 'accidentally' ordered one for me anyway.
I didnt pay for her coffee in the 2nd trial but did for the 1st... and from now on I think i'll keep it 'me pay for me you pay for you' - but my main question here is do you think that maybe there are students out there taking advantage of us white boys and this whole 'first lesson is free' thing and simply taking all the free trials they can (and possibly free coffee!) instead of actually paying a dime for a lesson...?? I actually think if I was in their shoes I might just do that. Well, i wouldn't but it's a pretty fkn smart thing to do if you're a sneaky tokyo girl with no pocket money coming in.
Ok enough rambling - what do you think?? :)
Jesse
Hey Jesse!
I'm so sorry I've taken so long to reply. I just got back from China and have been very busy.
I haven't thought about this kind of problem before, but it would be a very smart way of getting free English practice! I suppose it would be quite easy to do, although a bit of a bother to go through all of that for English lessons...
I think sticking to a 'you pay for you and I'll pay for me' policy is probably best from the start when it comes to coffee, because otherwise they might expect that every time, which would take a considerable amount out of your pay!
Hope you get better luck with students in the future!!
Miles
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