Monday was the first time I sat at my desk. I was there for about 10 minutes before heading off to new JET training. Before leaving, though, I was given a letter to translate due first thing the next morning. More on that later. Once at the training, rather than being in the audience, as might be expected, I was placed with the organizers at the front. I delivered a short talk on my duties as a Prefectural Advisor, and what they could expect from me. Thankfully, due to the constant guidance from the senior CIR, and the senior PA, I was prepared to give such a talk. After hearing from everyone, and after having a Q&A session, we all left to go on a walking tour of Kyoto. (Everybody was advised to bring casual clothing because of the three hour walk and the blistering heat. I, however, because I had to go to the office that morning, was wearing slacks, belt, undershirt, dress shirt, and tie. An hour into the walk my sleeves were rolled up, my shirts untucked, and my tie nowhere to be seen. (My supervisor made a joke about me being very ku-ru bizu, or "cool biz," which was the former Prime Minister Koizumi's attempt to save electricity by dressing down business attire to lessen air conditioning. She told me it was fine because there were no bosses around. I didn't remind her that she was my boss.)
By design, the tour ended at 5 in front of a building which had a beer garden on its roof. So, it being after hours and all, we went from work-work to work-play. 3500 yen bought us all you can eat food and all you can drink beer until nine. I rationalize that I needed to stay in order to meet all the JETs that I advise. Lot's of work in Japan gets done after work is over. Also, I had to get my money's worth. Luckily, at the end of the night I had stayed sober enough to make my way home on the subway. Many of the others went on to karaoke, but since I had that translation to do, I thought it would be better to get to work early.
I got to work about 45 minutes early, but my translation was no longer on my desk. As I searched for it, one of my coworkers mentioned that they had already done it for me. So now I was there 45 minutes early with nothing to do. Thanks... I guess?
Luckily, I wasn't there long before I was off to another training session, this one for new JET AETs (Assistant English Teachers). Once again, the opening ceremonies had me sitting in the front with the representatives from the various Japanese ministries who have a hand in the JET program. Names were announced in order of importance. I was second to last. I wasn't last only because I was the only one from the International Division of the Prefectural Office present, and that made my position (not my personage) worthy of mention. After observing the training until four, I made my back to the office and tried to acquaint myself with the job until 530.
Wednesday was my only full day at the office. In the morning I met my predecessor, a very capable and personable guy from England. He showed me which way was up at the office and how to access my computer. After he left, I furiously tried to write the report I was expected to turn in that day regarding Monday's orientation. I used Tom's old ones as templates (read: wholesale plagiarism), and got it done in a few hours. I also had to translate into English a Japanese synopsis of an English radio transcript. (It was posted to the internet later that day, check it out here http://www.kpic.or.jp/english/fmcocolo/070822.htm).
The prefecture is also organizing an event to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the sister-city relationship between Kyoto and Edinburgh. Because Edinburgh is famous for J.K. Rowling and Harry Potter, the prefecture wants there to be a Harry Potter connection to the event. Accordingly, my first translation started along the lines of, "I am writing this letter in regards to Harry Potter." Hope they like it.
Thursday and Friday saw me in Tokyo for a PA conference. We did some basic counseling training and a lot of role-playing. It was worthwhile, but very tiring. After training it was dinner (and drinking) with the other Kyoto PA's. After that came some more drinking as I met my friends from Tokyo in Shibuya. Then sleep, and more training in the morning. The next day we took the bullet-train back to Kyoto where I met my predecessor again, this time for some drinks, and some talk about how the office REALLY runs. Or at least that's what I think we talked about because my memory gets a little hazy after the third or fourth pint.
This has already turned into a long post, but I have a story to tell unrelated to everything else. Bear with me.
When entering an office for the first time from another country, it is customary to bring gifts. I brought along a pound of Cutter's Point coffee because 1) it's pretty delicious 2) it's from Seattle and 3) it's not available in Japan (unlike Starbucks coffee). In order to save its flavor, I brought it in bean form with the plan to grind it when I got here. Tomorrow is the first chance I have to really give it to the office, so I went out today to get it ground somewhere. First, I couldn't find a place that actually grinds their coffee. Most coffee shops don't use fresh beans, I guess. I finally found a Starbucks, which for sure grinds their coffee, and would probably grind mine. It was so crowded I had to wait outside for 5-10 minutes for a seat to open. I ordered my coffee and pastry, and then tried to make it known to the barista that I wanted some coffee ground. I was told it was fine until I brought up the bag, and it was found out that it was not, in fact, official Starbucks coffee. They couldn't do it, they told me, because it would end up mixing with Starbucks coffee; presumably this is bad. I drank my coffee and tried to problem solve. I came up with what I thought was a brilliant idea. I would buy Starbucks beans, get them to grind it, throw out the Cutter's Point beans, and replace them with the ground Starbucks coffee. Seriously, who is gonna know the difference. It was the package that was the most important part of this gift, and this way the office gets good coffee, and I get to give them something from my hometown. Win-win. I was trying to find my way out of the problem that my bag was one-pound, but the Starbucks bags were only 8.8 ounces, forcing me to buy two if I wanted to carry out my plan, when Starbucks Service came to the rescue.
First, a barista came to ask if I needed help choosing coffee. I somehow explained my situation to her, and she went off to find her manager (or shift supervisor for all I know). They both came out, and the barista explained the situation to her boss. In classic Japanese fashion, everyone put on their best thinking faces and waited for the situation to resolve itself. It finally did when the boss suggested that there was another coffee place that sold beans in the same area. This was a win-win-win plan. (For "The Office" fans: http://youtube.com/watch?v=wMWuMIbL2FM). I went to the new place, which was called "Jupiter," and took the plan to them. The clerk wouldn't do it because they couldn't just grind coffee beans unless it was coffee beans that I bought from them. So I offered to buy two bags of coffee beans if she would grind my Cutter's Point coffee. After consulting with her superior, it was agreed (Although she ground the other two bags as well, so I don't really know what the problem was in the first place). Two points for Japanese customer service which holds onto its rank as best in the world, two points for me for being able to manage the whole process in Japanese, and two points for Starbucks customer service for pulling through in the clutch.
And now for unrelated pictures having to do with food. First, a before picture of one of the last meals I ate in America at the King County Fair: notice the whole turkey legs and fourteen-inch hot dogs.
Now, a picture of my dinner last night. It cost me 500yen (about $4.50).
What happens when you mix the two together? Chaos. In this case, Chaos has a name: McDonald's.
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