Shiso – the biggest little city in Harima region Literally, that is. On a map, Shiso looks like a massive entity, and on the ground, like the west end of nowhere. Famous for its lack of trains and its zealous JETs (right? RIGHT?), this sprawling countryside retreat actually means you are just a bus ride…
So you’re going to take the driving test…
Depending on how many people you’ve talked to or how much of the internet you’ve read, you now fall somewhere between totally sanguine and scared shitless on the Akashi anxiety scale. We can help.
A car isn’t just an engine, some doors, and a windshield; that’s what a car needs. Not what a car is. What a car really is, is freedom, as a wise pirate once pointed out. In our lives and time, it’s the freedom to calculate the cost of gas and tolls against the fares levied by public transportation, the freedom to get lost in the winding nonsensical backroads; it’s the freedom to go where and when we choose, not bound by the bus route or train schedule. Such freedom is important to many a member of the JET community.
On Saturday, November 26th, ten Americans and one Australian gathered at ten am to begin what has become a Shiso tradition. These self-proclaimed middle-of-nowhere JETs (and friends) have imported a piece of culture in a truly tangible, and dare I brag it, delicious way. Shiso, while relatively spread out and small, boasts a JET population…
PEPY (formerly “Protect the Earth, Protect Yourselfâ€) has a new acronym to reflect their changing focus as an organization. Though they still care about the earth and sustainability, PEPY’s true focus is on education in Cambodia, and the hope that an investment in today’s youth of that country will lead to a better future for…
No, seriously, we do spelling activities, and the kids get way more into it than I ever would have predicted. Here is how it happened. I’ll warn you now that this isn’t a tips-and-tricks kind of ESS for this month; this is a whole system that will take several weeks to get implemented, but will…
You’ve most likely been to this site, but the building shown here is only sometimes open! Where in Hyogo can you find this painted ceiling?
Well, alright, I won’t tell you how you should study Japanese; I don’t think anyone should study the way that I study, with my own personal cycle of eXtreme diligence + deathlike burnout. I like to make use of a variety of different types of learning, and even with the pain it causes, I do…
You might recall the smash hit evening that was Himeji Prom-stravaganza 2011. My point of pride for the night was that my entire outfit cost me about 1200 yen. Thrifting was an essential part of my young unprofessional life. Being broke as hell does not cultivate in a person a taste for expensive fineries, but…