Saying Goodbye

“Why can't we get all the people together in the world that we really like and then just stay together? I guess that wouldn't work. Someone would leave. Someone always leaves. Then we would have to say good-bye. I hate good-byes. I know what I need. I need more hellos.” - Charles M. Schulz

I was uncomfortable informing the Kinderbabies at my Monday school that I would not return after summer vacation. They were confused because they cannot yet comprehend time or space. They believed I returned home to the U.S. every night and then flew back to Japan every morning. It took them a few minutes, but they eventually understood - Gabi-sensei would not return to play with them anymore. Some cried while others hugged me and said,「また遊びに来て下さい」or "Please come back to play [with us] again [sometime]."

My three schools and board of education put in the effort to say a proper goodbye with assemblies for the students and farewell parties for the staff. I was presented with cards and expensive gifts but more importantly, I listened to touching speeches from those who thanked me for my two years of service in Ginoza. I was moved and ultimately heartbroken to say goodbye to my students and the people who were my second family. 

Speaking of second family, I didn't realize how difficult it would be saying goodbye to the OkiJETs until I was ugly crying in the club with my besties. Okinawa hosted a diverse group of JETs who came together during my final year to form a great community and support system. Luckily, I now have new places to visit on my travel bucket list!

I will return to Okinawa someday as a tourist but for now, I bid my OkiJET experience adieu. I'll miss the mad dash out of my apartment to make it to work on time; the rolling hills with the most beautiful sunsets; my kei car and its missing door handle; Hey boy heeeyyyyy; gossiping with my coworkers; all of my past and present kinderbabies; the incredible view from Matsuda Elementary; traveling to nearby countries; "Chill" nights; Thursdays a.k.a. beach days; Joshikai in the bathroom; pushing my students to do their best; Shommi, "I see you;" Spa nights with Yaya (surely); giving everyone the side-eye; Kanna Beach, my thinking spot; the talkative principal who held the longest staff meetings; Snapchatting during those meetings; walking down the hall and hearing "Gabi-sensei;" delicious onigiri, the love of my life; my sweetheart student neighbor; weird Japanese holidays; school lunches; arguing with Ian; scaring students by yelling "No Japanese!" during an interview exercise; eating three bowls of tofu cereal and immediately regretting it; doing eyebrows; obsessing over Nutella; 何人, 美人; having Genki Time with Hayley; my students singing the alphabet backwards; secret changing; Indian food; serious discussion with Nic and Matt; Aly's Line messages of truth; that student who told me my makeup was too dark; Tka's Line calls, discussing fecal matter with everyone; telling Mark he can't get to second base; my sassy dance teacher and the dancing grandmas; the way my students would say "What" or "oh my God;" kissing that cute Hawaiian JET (figure it out haha); popcorn; Bad Bitch nights; talking to my Japanese-American students; the call to assemble the ladies; Tka's dancing during a dancehall song; Japanese chocolate; Ashley's dancing and insight; the male teacher who told me to focus on myself; the teachers who cried with me when it all went down; my frenemy who was actually a friend; the person I thought was a friend, but turned out to be a frenemy; Eisa; not functioning the next morning; and salsa dancing with my instructor.

I'll miss it all! 

As for this blog, I'll add my experience with reverse culture shock and include a few retroactive posts.  But to my readers: whether you stubbled upon my blog, kept up with me for years, or creeped, thank you.  Seriously, thank you and good luck with your adventures.

P.S. can I now say the word "bully?" ;)

School Food Porn 2.0

Lunch time in Japan is still my absolute favorite part of the day! Before coming to Japan, I was pretty hesitant about the food but now, I'm all for it. I'm a pesky pescatarian so if it has meat, aside from fish, I pick it out. Check out some my school lunches below! 

Love that salad! So yummy!

I'm not a big fan of white rice ;(

I asked them to serve me less rice. That day was sakura rice! Yep, sakura flowers in the rice!

The Luna case hold medicine. Today was muchi day. I ate it begrudgingly. 

I forgot my luna case so you can see my medicine in the glass cup. Today was natto day <3

Bread days are my favorite. These strawberries are from Ginoza!

Okinawan taco rice without the taco meat. I loved the mozuku soup and the pumpkin croquette!

Benimo or Okinawan sweet potato (purple) was so good! 

The final school lunch: Nan and Curry. 

I wondered about Nan Day earlier that morning so when I opened the bread container and found nan, I freaked! I absolutely love Indian food and Nan is my guilty pleasure, so this was a great way to end my final Kyuushoku.

You'll be missed!

Bangkok without a Wolfpack

How did I get to Bangkok? I think it was a rental car, or was it a bus? Wait, that's right! It was an 8-hour train ride!

I arrived at the train station, located the border to Cambodia and Thailand, way earlier than expected. The ticket booths were closed until an hour before the train's departure, so I found a seat on the platform and and took in my surroundings. At first glance, the gaudy portrait of Thailand's king reminded me of  the Avatar: Legend of Korra. Geekdom aside, it seemed a lot different than Vietnam and more modern than Cambodia. When the train arrived, a long line formed at the ticket booth, but I made eye contact with another foreigner - an Austrian, maybe - who asked me from afar, how many tickets I needed. What a sweetheart! He bought my ticket and I reimbursed him the money afterwards.

I boarded the train, along with another foreigner from the states, and endured the slow, hot train ride into Bangkok. My glamorous hotel was located in the Chinatown, an upscale district of Bangkok. I couldn't enjoy the hotel for long because I suffered an emotion breakdown over my lost prescription glasses. It sounds silly, but I was mentally and emotionally exhausted and losing my glasses was just another expense/worry that I could not afford at the moment. What's worse is that I felt horrible for stressing over a pair of glasses when I just witness immense poverty in Cambodia! My phone would not connect to the WiFi and had no way to reach my mom or best friends for comfort, so I threw my cellphone across the room, which thankfully didn't break, and escaped to the shower to calm down.

 

The next day, I did some retail therapy at Chatucak Market to buy souvenirs and clothes. The market was large and hectic but the small stores were beautifully operated. I had a really nice time checking out all the trinkets and buying meaningful items for my friends and family. There were also small booth for massages where I received the best foot massage of my life. Thank  you Thailand for perfecting retail therapy! Seriously, thanks!

The next few days I explored every major temple in Bangkok. I also scheduled a tour that included a visit to the Bridge of the River Kwai and the famed Tiger Temple. The tour also included a visit to a nearby waterfall, a short raft cruise, and elephant riding! The tour was amazing but stressful. Everyone was given stickers that indicated their tour and we would switch vans constantly and end up with different people, but I guess that method worked for them.

The one thing that drove me insane were the shady tuk tuk drivers. Bless them, but you would ask them to take to you one place, but they would try to reroute to you visit another place that was "on the way" so that they can receive gas vouchers. You didn't have to buy anything, but you were pressured since you walked into a store with everyone staring at you. The only time it worked out is when I was taken to a jewelry store. Know your customer. There, I bought a tiny elephant necklace. My advice: unless that place is beneficial to you, like you actually want a tailored suit or outfit, get out and find another tuk tuk.

 The last night of the trip, I had a soup that caused a terrible bout of food sickness. It took all my strength to make it to the airport the following morning. I sat in the terminal texting my mom about everything that occurred on the trip. I couldn't tell her beforehand because I knew she would die. I put on a brave face until I reached Naha Airport (Okinawa). There, the customs security opened all of my bags while ask rude and personal questions. I guess a girl can't travel alone? I got extremely miffed when they began searching every pocket of my folded pants for drugs. My underwear was also out in the open for everyone to see, but I was paralyzed with the sensation to vomit. They went so far as to open all of my over-the-counter medicines and finger through the pills. Luckily, they didn't get too far with the ibuprofen because I had prescription Xanax pills hidden in the bottom.

Once I was cleared, I met with my friend who drove me back to Ginoza. Once home, I walked straight to the bathroom and vomited. めんそーれ！

 ***

This trip's blog post has taken me too long to write for obvious reasons. Who wants to remember a trip that was overshadowed with heartbreak? I did my best to make the most of the three counties but let's get real, I could not enjoy this trip. I traveled with my ex-boyfriend for the remainder of this trip because I didn't want to miss out on the opportunity to visit these beautiful countries. My only other option was to return to Okinawa and that was not going to fly with the future me. There were too many moments that I thought "wow, (insert place/temple) is beautiful" only to have that thought ruined by his presence. I destroyed my self worth by relying on his pity direction, which is why I had later prove that I was a boss-ass bitch by planning a trip to Hong Kong and (bungee) jumping off of Macau Tower.

On the flip side, so much good came out of this: I realized that I am strong person; I received so many praises on how well I handled the situation; and, this is a loaded statement, but I am no longer held back.