Letters from Otaru!

As you know from earlier posts, I had a part-time job teaching English while studying in Japan. I tutored at a private, after school English club called Excel English Club. I became quite close with the students and the owner/director, Ryoko. Ryoko began her career as an high school English teacher in Japan but now runs Excel English Club from her home. She has students ranging in age from 3 to adult. I was very fortunate to become a tutor at her club and made a lot of great memories with the students. On my return visit to Japan in June 2011, I was able to visit all of the students and even went out to eat with their families one evening. Ryoko's school has a great website http://www.excel-english.net/. You can find a few pictures of the students and me!




As part of the elementary student's English lessons, each lesson we started with a diary writing assignment. The students would draw a picture at home, and then when they came to the class we would think of 3 sentences to describe each student's drawing. Today I had 3 individually addressed envelopes from Otaru, Japan! Yuna, Teruki, and Kyeong each sent me a letter containing a special drawings and sentences just for me. Teruki is a 6 year old boy and Teruki and Kyeong are both 7 year old girls. Ryoko emailed me to give me a heads up that I should have some special mail from Japan but I couldn't have been more happy to open each of their letters.

The Japanese school system introduces English around age 10 to all of its students in public schools. Because many parents -and most Japanese- realize the importance of English, it's becoming more popular for parents to expose their children to some English before the school. Many people have asked me if Japanese struggle with or don't really speak English at all. From my personal experience, I would say it was rare to find someone who could communicate fluently in English. After studying Japanese, I understand how extremely challenging the sounds, accents, and characters are. News flash for native English speakers: English as a second language isn't all that easy. If you think about it, we have so many special spellings and suffix changes for specific words that don't follow a rule. Example: _________ can't think of one now but there are many! In conclusion, Americans should learn a second language.

Return Visit to Japan

I've bought a round-trip ticket to Japan! This time I'll only visit for 2 weeks but it will be amazing nonetheless. I will arrive June 7th and return to the USA on June 17th, 2011. Because I left so abruptly in March in light of the nuclear disaster, I felt the need to visit again.. maybe for some sort of closure to what was a great experience that ended too soon. Most of my fellow exchange students returned to complete the year so I will be visiting them as well as my English students and other Japanese friends. There is a 16 hour time difference, so I am preparing to drink lots of coffee and run on little sleep during my short stay. Details and photographs to come, y'all!

Certificate of Completion

I received this awesome certificate from Otaru University of Commerce to commemorate my semester of studies.  A big thank you to the international office at OUC for making this certificate and mailing it to me. It is truly a lifetime keepsake.

An Early End

It's only March 20th, but I write from South Dakota. If you have the internet or a television with basic, cable, or satellite service, then you know of the heartache that the people of Japan are experiencing. An 8.9 magnitude earthquake struck of the northeast coast of Japan on March 11, 2011. This triggered a massive tsunami which hit a part of the northeast coast and devastated the city of Sendai and surrounding areas. Aftershocks continue to shake Tokyo, some 200 miles south of the epicenter of the original quake. Experts are saying it's the 5th strongest quake in recorded history.

Otaru, my home in Japan, felt only a few small tremors from the 8.9 quake. I was in Taiwan at the time, from March 8th through the 15th, so I quickly made contact with my friends in Otaru to make sure they were okay. It was quite stressful to be in Taiwan and not know the exact status of Otaru, whether or not it was affected by the quake or subsequent tsunami. We had a break between semesters so many of the exchange students were out exploring Japan and other countries at the time the quake struck. Thankfully everyone was accounted for but understandable shaken from the unpredictable events.

The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant has complicated things more. At this point, the news media is saying that potentially three of the nuclear reactors are in meltdown. Because of this, my home university is requested that I return home. It is a sad way to end what was supposed to be a year in Japan but I am thankfully for the amazing, unforgettable experience I had for seven months. The people of Japan have been amazing hosts and I will return again one day.

Seven Days in Taiwan

"Great Uncle" and "Auntie," my hosts in Taichung City, Taiwan

I was fortunate enough to spend a week in Taiwan from March 8th through the 15th, sightseeing in both Taipei and Taichung City while staying with relatives of my Aunt Lisa. A little background on how I am connected with Great Uncle and Auntie in Taiwan... my Aunt Lisa, whose mother is Taiwanese, married my uncle and her mother's side of the family still reside in Taiwan. While in Japan, I mentioned my interest in visiting Taiwan to Aunt Lisa and she connected me to Great Uncle and Auntie (her Aunt and Uncle) and the rest is history. Needless to say, this connection lent itself to a very unique experience. For the first half of my stay, Great Uncle and Auntie (pictured above) hosted me at their home in Taichung City. As a side note, they visited South Dakota at the time my aunt Lisa married my uncle. I was 10 years old then but remember them vividly as we took a road trip to Mount Rushmore and Crazy Horse in the Black Hills of South Dakota. Being from a town of 500 people, it was pretty cool to meet and spend time with foreigners. Great Uncle picked me up from the airport on March 8th and said he recognized me from his visit to South Dakota. Something tells me being the only Caucasian in the airport gave it away!

Taiwan is quite a busy place. Only 3 weeks before visiting Taiwan, I spent 4 days touring Tokyo. The best way I can describe Taipei and Taichung City is Tokyo on steroids. Before visiting these places, it seems Tokyo gets stereotyped as a crazy busy city but really, Tokyo seemed quite tame in comparison to the two major metropolitan cities of Taiwan. I reason that a potential explanation is that the streets of Taichung City and Taipei were jam packed with cars, buses, taxis, and motor scooters. It's no secret that Tokyo has a very well developed subway system while all the transportation in Taiwan seems to take place on the ground level. So I'm going to hypothesize that good deal of the action and commotion in Tokyo takes place in the subway and underground shopping malls that accompany it. Taipei and Taichung city, on the other hand, rely more on above ground transportation. BOOM. How's that for a Tokyo-Taiwan comparison?

Milk Tea with Tapioca Balls

I don't talk a whole lot about food and beverage but I did in fact find a new favorite non-alcoholic beverage in Taiwan. The ingredients are milk tea with tapioca balls at the bottom. The straw is especially designed to suck up the tapioca balls as you slurp on the milk tea. After returning to Japan from Taiwan, I did notice a few shops in Japan selling something similar to the Taiwanese treat, but my friends in Taiwan assured me that this drink is a Taiwan exclusive! I may have to introduce this to Denver...

Hawaii 5-0

Luau with my Bro Jordan and sis Tiff 

This is supposed to be Jake in Japan, right? Well I flew the coop for a while to meet my family in Hawaii! With my first semester at Otaru University of Commerce wrapping up February 11^th, I was able to convince my mother and sister that it would be a good idea for us to meet in Hawaii sometime before my second semester began in March. With a little planning, the three of us as well as my younger brother Jordan and both my sister and mom’s boyfriends were able to meet in Hawaii from February 23^rd through March 3^rd. I set out on February 23^rd flying from the Sapporo Airport connecting in Tokyo, followed by an 8 hour flight to Honolulu.

Preparing to jump out of plane

We stayed on the North Shore at Turtle Bay Resort, the filming location for Saving Sarah Marshall. While beautiful and quiet, the North Shore is a bit removed from the nightlife and shopping of downtown Honolulu. We opted to stay along the Waikiki beach for one night of the trip to soak up the city sounds. Rolling out of plane at 10,000 feet was by far the highlight of the trip. Again, I convinced my mom and sister that skydiving would be an unforgettable experience. It's amazing the leverage you can get by living overseas for a year! I think I probably would have chickened out if it wasn't my own idea. Tiff and I agreed that our mom kept her composure the best of all of us before and during the descent. I'll return to Otaru on March 4th, have a few days to unpack and repack for a week in Taiwan! This is by far the best Spring break to date!  

About Me

Because I know you are interested to know more about me, I've added an about me page which you can access by clicking here. Yes, I'm airing out all of my dirty laundry!

Halfway Point

Japanese squat toilet 

As I tore January off my calender, February told me that I am entering my 6th month as a student immigrant in Japan. Recently, I pondered "What am I missing from The US of A?" Short of family and friends, the honest answer is not a whole lot. Okay, so shopping at the supermarket is a bit like a rummage sale -- you never know what you'll bring home. As I am advancing in the study of Elementary Japanese, I have become a slightly more informed shopper but still add to the "mystery" section of my food cupboard time and again. Pizza isn't quite the same, either. I'm doing my best to pretend the store-bought pizza here is as good as Domino's with its crisp, flaky, buttery crust and more than enough marinara to keep even the greediest sauce fiend happy. <mouth watering>  All in all, the food here is really delicious. While Japanese food tastes different from American cuisine, it's not hard to find western-style food if you have a hankering.

I am happy to report that the people are still friendly and polite as I stated in an earlier post. It wasn't just the "new car scent" effect talking. I feel very fortunate to have met some very nice Japanese people who have made me feel at home in Otaru. Living in dormitory style housing has its benefits, too. Many of us international students living here have become good friends and share a lot of time together outside of class. A few of us are traveling to Tokyo and other cities in Southern Japan during our upcoming six-week vacation.

Skyping with Joslyn, Josie, and Justice on their Snow Day

My friends and family back home never seem so far away. Skype is such a priceless technology for anyone who is living away from home. I first used it two years ago on my first study abroad experience in Holland. Even since that time, Skype has improved dramatically and it's possible to have live video chats with anyone who is also connected -for free. Over the weekend, I was able to chat with Joslyn, Josie Joyce, and Justice. I felt like I was back in South Dakota spending quality time with the fam.

National Healthcare

Today I had my first experience with the healthcare system in Japan. I've been having an earache for a couple of weeks now and finally made a visit to the doctor. (Don't panic, Grandma!). It turns out I've got an inner ear infection/ sinus infection and I'm now on the road to recovery.

My national health insurance card and clinic ID card, center, surrounded by my prescription drugs

My experience at the doctor's was quite different from that in the USA. First of all, no appointment was necessary. I showed up at 3 in the afternoon (with my Japanese friend Yuichi), replaced my shoes with slippers at the entrance, and immediately presented my national health insurance card. The atmosphere was similar to that of typical US clinics --waiting room, reception desk with nurses, patient files behind the counter, magazines on the end tables, and health-related posters adorning the pale-colored walls. The similarities stopped there.

For any reader not familiar with US-style clinics/hospitals/Doctor's offices, almost all of these facilities have a  waiting room, a reception desk staffed by a secretary, and walls and a door that separate the waiting/reception area from the exam rooms. An appointment is necessary. After sitting in the waiting room (usually at least 15 minutes) and being processed, the patient is called by a nurse and escorted to a private room for an interview. The nurse conducts the medical history interview, checks the patient's blood pressure and heart rate, and gathers all information about the reason for the visit. After this, the nurse asks you to wait in the room for the doctor. Again, the patient must wait for the doctor to come and ultimately provide a diagnosis after further consultation. The file containing all the information gathered from the nurse hangs outside the door until the doctor reviews the information, sometimes consulting with the nurse before meeting the patient. Alas, the doctor provides a diagnosis and the appropriate treatment is recommended. In my experience, I've never gone in and out of the door quicker than 1 hour for common illnesses like influenza or ear infections.

Here is my experience in Japan: After taking note of my insurance information, I answered (with the help of Yuichi) my medical history and explained my ailment to the nurse. This conversation happened in the open waiting room, which could be embarrassing if I had a more private health issue. From this area, I could also see the doctor examining patients as they sat on dentist-like chairs in the exam room. This clinic had two main rooms --the waiting room and the exam room, separated by a wall but still open to one another. The exam room had 3 or 4 chairs each surrounded by their own medical equipment and supplies. Once in the exam room, I shared the room with other patients, with each of us having our own chair. The doctor quickly began examining me and the two nurses in the room looked on while a second patient waited for his turn with the doctor. It didn't take but five minutes for the doctor to explain the cause of my ear pain and he also explained what he would prescribe to tackle the infection. I walked back to the waiting room where I was asked to pay my 30% share of the office visit, 1,800 Yen (about $20 US), and I took my prescription note to the pharmacy next door. At the pharmacy, I again presented my national healthcare insurance card and paid my share of the prescription costs (about $25 US).

You can quickly see the difference. The Japanese system uses a first-come, first served (FIFO) work pod setup which focuses on time, efficiency, and quality. The famously efficient manufacturing processes and techniques pioneered by Toyota automobile manufacturing have been successfully translated to service industries. Personally, I love this system for healthcare. Time is money but, national health insurance aside, I strongly suspicion that having this system in a health environment actually increases the quality of care because more of the physicians time is spent directly with the patient rather than communicating with nurses and reading files. If anyone wants to provide me with a sizable grant, I'll prove that this system will work for the US.

Many debate about the probability of national heath insurance plan would work in the US (as much as I would like it to), but national health insurance itself offers ENORMOUS efficiency here in Japan by completing eliminating the need to bill patients and their private insurance providers. How much in salaries would that save US healthcare providers? In turn, those savings could be passed on to the customers (patients) to further reduce the cost of providing them healthcare. America is a capitalistic society, but when are we going to stop letting for-profit health insurance companies and for-profit pharmaceutical companies strip our wallets when we get sick?

3-Day Ski Course & Christmas Celebration

A group of us international students enrolled in a 1-credit ski course which took place on December 23, 24, and 25. I've been skiing since age 10, so I opted for the level 1 (advanced) course. I was feeling sore after all was said and done but I think I gained some skill. We rented a hut and stayed near the ski slope for 2 nights and celebrated Christmas together. Here are some pictures of the festivities! Included are some pictures from two other occasions in January where I went snowboarding with a few friends. I prefer snowboarding to skiing.

Ho Ho Ho

I did my best to fill a Santa suit for a Christmas party with the students at the English club where I tutor. Christmas is a holiday in Japan also, but since very few are Christian, the holiday is celebrated as a special day for couples, similar to America's Valentine's Day. The Emperor's Birthday, a national holiday, falls on December 23rd, so schools are closed from the 23rd through the New Year.

Top 10 of 2010

In chronological order...

1.       Spent 10 days in Belize for service-learning project with fellow AWOLers

2.       Took 2^nd place trophy with my cast, "The News," at USD Stroller’s Show

3.       Began stint at $Tree, Vermillion as full-time assistant manager

4.       Completed my 8th and final undergraduate semester at The University of South Dakota

5.       Welcomed Josie Joyce, my newest cousin and the 9^th Jessop grandchild

6.       Said goodbye to all 4 of my wisdom teeth 

7.       Tube’d down Wisconsin’s Apple River

8.       Jammed with Jack Johnson live in Somerset, Wisconsin

9.       Floated down the the Niobrara River, Nebraska with the Patrick crew

10.   Landed in JAPAN, beginning my year-long exchange at Otaru University of Commerce

Snow Boots (without fur)

Micro Oven

Micro for size, not functionality. This is my oven. So far, I've cooked pizza in it. By folding the pizza in half and cooking it calzone-style, I am able to prepare this truly exotic food. YUM!

Japanese Lesson

I've been studying Japanese for 3 months now. Finally, we've come to lesson 21 in class which offers a foreigner valuable advice should he or she have a few too many drinks.

Valuable Japanese dialogue for a foreigner

Thank you to the authors of "Japanese for Busy People" [rev. 3rd edition] for including this useful dialogue because, from time to time, we all get a little tipsy and spill red wine on our co-worker's white carpet.

Exposé of Social Issues

This brilliant, short documentary from CurrentTV gives a great insight to Japanese culture and takes a look at a few social problems affecting Japan. Please check it out! You may have to open it up in a separate window for it to play properly.

Snow is Falling

The second snowstorm of the season has hit Otaru! As promised, the Hokkaido snow is "dry." On Saturday evening, I witnessed a lightning storm whilst the snow was falling. I've seen plenty of snow and many a lightning bolt in my day, but never simultaneously!

In celebration of the snow, my neighbor Andi and I grabbed our winter gear and headed outside the dormitory for some sledding and to resurrect Frosty. It didn't take long before others find their way outside. Maybe it was the snowballs we threw at their windows?

Warming up the camera 

Happy Thanksgiving

As you baste your turkey and slide the cranberry sauce onto Grandma's china dish, I want to thank you. It has been my great fortune to have the support of dear friends and family as I continue this journey called life. According to The Beatles, "All you need is love." I couldn't agree more which is why I am blessed to have such a strong circle of family and friends. As I sit half a world away from home, I have not forgotten the sacrifices that the brave men and women of our military have made. Earlier today, I listened to a friend, fellow international student, and South Korean reflect on his mandatory years of military service. He was fortunate having not had to enter combat, but fears his younger brother might not be so lucky. As bargain hunters gear up for Black Friday, many young servicemen and women around the globe fear they will soon be standing in a different line. I will spend this Thanksgiving counting my lucky stars.

Construction Update

For months now, we international students have been living an arm's reach from a construction site. Workers have been building a second dormitory rumored to be available to Japanese students wishing to live on campus. Living on the first floor of the international dormitory, the only view from the balcony has been a tall, white wall functioning as a construction barricade. That is changing today! After class, I discovered workers removing the eyesore. Some students are comparing it to the fall of the Berlin Wall. I quickly grabbed my iPod Touch to film this monumental event.

日本 Halloween

What are the chances? 

Mario is captured by Otaru police women Dari and Hyunjin

Disgruntled member of Blue Man Group

What's more American than Kentucky Friend Chicken? Taken with
my Japanese Senseis Tomita-san, Abe-san, and Tokano-san

Mario and Luigi (Andi and Lukas) protect the toad (Qu Zhan)

Monika and Lee are the 80's work out divas

The Joker and a bank robber conspiring

Serving tray with chicken is part of Colonel's ensemble