| Home | 8/03 | Aug. cont. | 9/03 | 10/03 | 11/03 | 11/03 cont. | Goodbye, Hamako | 12/03 | 2004 | My Running Route | Visit my Apartment | Contact Me
9/03
Mary in Japan

Oh, my gosh. How can I even begin to describe this month?
I guess the best way to describe it is to just show you some photos.
My problems have followed me.
I am still too busy and want to see and do everything!
Some things never change.

This is Sports Day.  It is a national holiday in Japan just so the parents can get a day off to watch their kids show off their skills in sports.

Ready, set.....
2threehighrdy.jpg

Up, up, up!
2threehigh.jpg

Again. Ready, set....
1fivehighrdy.jpg

Up, up, up, up, up!
1fivehigh.jpg

Hamakoushien Junior High School
ohmyback.jpg
SPORTS DAY!

These kids are so athletic.
girlshandstand.jpg
ALL KIDS PARTICIPATED!

Three legged race
threelegrace.jpg
I even got to participate. (We came in last!)

It's hard to believe that these kids in ELEMENTARY SCHOOL have to learn katakana (40+ symbols and sounds), hiragana (another 44+ symbols and the same sounds)  these two systems are similar but some symbols look very different so the same sound like short "a" can have two entirely different symbols.  These two syllabaries are only for foreign words and prepostitions and articles.  Nouns and ideas are written in Kanji (an ancient Chinese syllabary).  The kids learn a part of the over 40,000 symbols in this syllabary.  So no wonder that they don't get around to learning Romanji which is our alphabet until later in elementary school.  I am constantly amazed that a lot of the kids do know our alphabet at an early age.