Movies have evolved so much over the few decade. New spectrum and story line push the limits of what producers and directors can do to make a good show for its audience. Back in the day, when Titanic was filmed, it was label the most extraordinary and expensive movie of its time. It’s budget was 200 million US dollars. Well done, James Cameron. Next, we had Avatar which made designers create new technology to make the backdrop of the movie […]
Onsen Away
Around the end of April “slash” beginning of May, it was Golden Week in Japan. Golden Week is one of the best holidays in Japan because people get a consecutive three day holiday during the middle of the week. Now this doesn’t sound like much, but trust me when I say it sure does mean a lot to the Japanese working society. Fortunately for me I didn’t have any commitments at school during that week, so I was able to fully enjoy the time […]
Living Alone – The Truth
It has been nearly one year since I moved away from Australia and started my new life in Japan. The move was overwhelming, exciting, tiring, frustrating yet satisfying. This was my second time moving out but truthfully the first time to know what moving out really meant. My first time moving out was a bit of a failure. I rented out a flat (owned by a colleague) closer to work down the Gold Coast. But short after was told I […]
Black Friday
Friday is usually my favourite day of the week. I would dare to say it is the same for many people as well. What’s not to love about Friday? It is the last day of the long week. It is the day before the weekend. It is the day where anyone could go out drinking and past out for literally two days and feel ok when returning back into work for the following week. Ain’t Fridays great? In most cases, […]
All About Ceremonies
Japan is big with ceremonies. This is specially true when you work at a school. I understand opening and graduation ceremonies are important as a way of celebration for crucial moment for students who are coming and going. I personally do not like ceremonies. Ceremonies in Japan took especially a long time. Attending them, you witness, while a principal is giving everyone a speech after so many others have beforehand, other teachers who are simply there are dozing off. You […]
A break before the rush
Before work began getting hectic for the new school year, I headed off on a trip to Hong Kong and Korea. It was a 10-day trip with my friend, A. The purpose of the trip was to relax and get away from work. There was also another goal we had for the trip: and that was to eat! Hong Kong Our first stop was Hong Kong. Hong Kong is a place I had always considered as my second home. My […]
To home cook or not to home cook?
Food in Japan is typically only steps away from your door step. It is accessible, it is cheap, it is delicious. You may even come to realise that eating out is much cheaper than preparing yourself. However, you will hit a point where you miss home cooked meals and that is where I am at. After living in Japan for weeks, I finally decided to cook in the kitchen of my apartment. Although Japan has much great foods to offer, […]
Treasure Hunting in Nagano
I was lucky that Japan had a long weekend from January 8th to 10th, so I headed there for the getaway. Why did I choose Nagano? One of my reasons were I wanted to go somewhere that was within the 3 hour radius of where I lived via bullet train. Because it was snow season, heaps of people I knew where posting up photos on facebook of the snow monkeys they saw at the Monkey Park and I wanted to […]
Japanese Students and English Walls
For an English Assistant Language Teacher (ALT) who has been working with students for over 8 months with no prior teaching experience, keeping students motivated, stimulated and engaged is a continuous challenge. Preparation is important, however, what happens in the classroom not only depends on the teachers but also how the students react to your activities and respond in whether they want to participate or not. My experience has told me that preparation is necessary, but motivation from your students […]
