Blog Archives

Winter parking

11/29/2015

Winter is here...

The Imagine free parking space in front of the classroom is disappearing under snow.

From now until spring:

* Students can park in front of the Imagine building in the space on the far left (next to the garbage box) - IF it is open. It isn't an official space, but visitors to the building use it.

* Students can also park in Tokou Store parking.

From April to November we usually have free parking - but in winter it becomes harder.

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A lesson in Sapporo Factory!

11/26/2015

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I strongly believe that sometimes learning should be OUT of the classroom and in the real world: it is active and fun.
Last night 5 pm student Michiyo got the chance to try English in Sapporo Factory at a Christmas music jazz concert by my friend Delaina.
I wanted to see Delaina perform, and Michiyo agreed to come and speak English in the taxi, in Factory and on the subway ride home. Almost 2 hours of English!
And taxi driver student Kwon-san ALSO practiced his English by taking us from Imagine to Factory.
Beautiful Christmas lights, snow...and of course my friend's singing.

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Away from Sapporo

11/22/2015

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I'm just back from my trip to Yokohama and Kawagoe - thankyou to the students who agreed to rearrange their classes and give me some holiday with my family.

It was a lot of work to help my mother in law get ready for the trip, but I think she enjoyed meeting her family and going back to her birth town.

I enjoyed the Elton John concert in Yokohama Arena - very good venue. He was so energetic - 68 years old and still in good voice. His piano technique is crazy good.

Next we went to Kawagoe for a family party and sightseeing - a lovely old city with many historic buildings and treasures.

In Yokohama it was warm enough for me to wear a T shirt - but lots of people looked at me and thought I was mad!

Here are some of the pictures of my trip.

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Imagine in Paris

11/15/2015

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After Halloween

11/6/2015

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Many students were surprised to hear that a Halloween pumpkin can be eaten.

This year I bought the Imagine pumpkin from a farm shop in Fujino for Y300.

I didn't cut the face features this year, so I could protect inside. Instead I stuck black paper to make the eyes, nose and mouth.

And then...Monday this week I took a big knife...and killed the Jack O Lantern!

I made pumpkin and potato stew, and tonight with the other half I will make pumpkin soup.

In fact the taste is not at all like Japanese pumpkin. It tastes more like zuchhini or marrow. But delicious!

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Esashi Oiiiiiiiiiiwaaaaaakeeeeeee!!!!!

11/4/2015

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This was MY lesson on Sunday!

Sugiyama-san of Esashi Oiwake Hall gave me and other visitors a one hour lesson in how to sing the famous Esashi Oiwake folk song.
Very difficult. But interesting and beautiful.

I went to Esashi for two days on a working trip, as an adviser to Esashi Town Council about making signs and other information in English for tourists. Next year the Shinkansen (Bullet Train) will reach Hakodate and Esashi is preparing for more foreign visitors.

We drove and walked around the town to decide where sightseeing course signs should go, the invited foreigners were me and a Taiwanese woman.
The old houses - Nakamura/Sekikawa/Yokoyama are beautiful and there are many old buildings, and of course the song and the Kaiyo-maru ship.
But there is not enough English/Chinese information yet in Esashi and before next year there needs to be more so that foreign visitors can enjoy it all.
The Hokkaido Newspaper came to interview us too.

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Winter parking

A lesson in Sapporo Factory!

Away from Sapporo

Imagine in Paris

After Halloween

Esashi Oiiiiiiiiiiwaaaaaakeeeeeee!!!!!

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