Field day?

So, once September 1st rolled around, I started my actual job of enlightening middle school children about the wonders of the English language. Only not really. I moved from going to the board of education (right next to my apartment) to one of various middle schools around my area. So now I actually have a bit of a commute where I have to take a bus or bike. But not a big problem.

I haven't actually taught more than a handfull of classes though, because the kids and the teachers and everyone were getting ready for their undoukai (sports festival). It's kind of like when we used to have field day back in the states, only to the extreme. Big surprise there! Don't think I've ever used that language to describe things in Japan before... anyway. The sports festival was just held yesterday (Saturday) and it lasted all day. All the parents and families in the area attend, it's a huge affair. The kids spent more than a week practicing all the events that they had to do. Some were really strange but looked fun. There was one where a 1st year guy rides piggyback on a 3rd year guy, and they race across the field while the younger guy is swinging around a soccer ball on a string. When they get to the end of the field they have to knock over a 2L bottle off a desk, and then run back for the next pair on their team to go.

Pretty much every event was a relay or group performance of some kind. At one of the schools i went to they did this traditional kind of dance called the souran, which apparently is a dance they used to do in Hokkaido to give thanks for a good haul of fish. It was pretty cool to watch, a lot of the kids were getting really into it, yelling and shouting and whatnot. I actually got to compete in a couple events too, like pushing a basketball with a broom relay, and then just a straight up relay as part of the PTA competition. I raced against one of the badass teachers and it was a tie in the end. To try and add some meaning to this, and not just be a collection of random shit, one thing I noticed was how much each event was about teamwork. The school was divided up by years and classes, and each team got their own color headband. Then everyone was competing to win a trophy for their class. I don't remember American field day that well, but I seem to remember it being more individual. I dunno. My next post is going to be about how Japan is basically a video game.