My Tokyo life has been getting busier; classes have started and I've been teaching, and I go out with friends a lot. The commute to school and Tokyo proper can be 40 minutes or more, so I'm often tired when I come home and don't want to do anything responsible. So I don't. This hasn't had many unfortunate consequences so far, so the probability I stick with it is dangerously high.
Classes aren't particularly stunning. I'm in the non-Japanese language program, so most of my classes are in English. I take four Japanese classes (the most I'm allowed to take); one integrated Japanese class that counts as two and is mostly review, one Kanji (Chinese charterers) class (also mostly review, but Kanji are so hard they need constant review) and one more specific grammar class. These classes all unfortunately tend to directly follow the textbook for the lesson, and so can be boring. But I have good friends in all of them so they aren't as dreary as they might otherwise be.
My other classes are all in English. They are offered through the International Center, and also open to Japanese students. Some of these classes have quite a few Japanese students in them, which is really fun for all of us. I've met several interesting people in these classes, and the interactions and language practice are really much more interesting and useful than the actual classes. These classes range from pretty good to pretty terrible, but again I have good friends in each of them, so they're fun anyway.
The worst part of school is actually getting to class. The train station is about 15 minutes by foot from my dorm, and I'm (almost) always running late. It doesn't matter than none of my classes in Tokyo start before 1.00, and that I only have to be there before 2.45 once a week. I'm always late. I have to leave for the train about an hour before class starts; the train only runs every fifteen minutes, so if I miss it I have to run at the other end. The walk from the station to class is about 10 or 12 minutes, and always really crowded, so it can be hard to run properly. Plus it's getting hot, so running is increasingly unappealing.
Once a week I have class at nine AM at another campus, only about 17 minutes on foot from my dorm. Nine AM is dreadfully early, especially when I have to actually leave by 8.30. It's been years since I've had classes before 10 AM (and even ten is really uncalled for...). This campus might seem dreadfully convenient compared to the other one, and it really is, but there's one huge drawback: the giant stairs one must climb to reach the buildings. There are four Keio campuses around Tokyo, and I've been to three; so far they all have large flights of stairs leading up to the campus proper, but this one is the worst. I tried to take some pictures to illustrate how deadly it is, but it's not possible to capture all the stairs in one photo.
The first is a view from (almost) the top. There are actually two more flights of stairs above it that turn to the left. The second picture is taken from where the first ends, where the path goes behind the trees. It's a long way down (and, more frustratingly, a long way up).
I've also been teaching English to try to make some extra money for all the going out I do and to buy food. I have three regular students; a salary man who works for a pharmaceutical company, the owner of a really excellent small bar we like, and a four year old girl. They're all fun and it's nice to make some extra money. Explaining nuances in English or the multitude of uses for the word 'like' makes me realize how absurd the language can be.
No comments:
Post a Comment