Schools: Cleaning

In Japanese schools they don’t have a janitor or any staff members who clean. Some schools have maintenance workers who are responsible for keeping up the school grounds, fixing broken items, and other tasks.  Cleaning, however, is left to the students (and teachers).

Cleaning lasts for about 15 minutes, except when there is a “big cleaning” called oosouji which lasts for about 30 minutes.  Schools generally have big cleaning at the end of every term.  Regular cleaning can be held anywhere from once a week to every day.  If they don’t have cleaning, for whatever reason, often the class leaders are required to stay after and clean the classroom.  Cleaning is usually done either after lunch or after classes before afternoon homeroom.

In each class, the students are divided into small groups, often translated as lunch groups.  The number of groups depends on the number of students in the class.  At junior high they generally have between 5-6 groups, with between 4-6 members per group (again, this depends on the size of the school).  Each class, and then group, is responsible for a certain area.  They usually have a chart, and the groups rotate through the areas every week.  One location is always their classroom, and then the others vary from hallways, to toilets, to the library, to the stairs, to other extra classrooms.

Each teacher is assigned a few areas to look over and make sure that the students are doing their job.  Depending on the area, the students will have different jobs.  Most areas will have some students sweeping while others clean the floor with wet rags.  In classrooms someone will be in charge of the trash, cleaning the chalkboard, and other such duties.  The desks get pushed to the back, and then the front of the classrooms during cleaning.  During big cleaning, the students also clean the windows, their desks, on top of the cabinets, and other such areas.

Some students do not like cleaning, obviously, and some skip cleaning time.  Also because cleaning is not done everyday, or because things just get dirty, some teachers will do small cleaning in the hallways or classrooms during their free time.  The floors are often not waxed, at some schools they wax once a year, at others once every few years.

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Museum: Fukui Prefecture Dinosaur Museum

Fukui Prefecture Dinosaur Museum

The Fukui Prefecture Dinosaur Museum is one of the "World's Three Great Dinosaur Museums.” It holds remains of over 40 species (not just dinosaurs). Getting to the museum can be an adventure, but it is well worth the visit. The museum is inside a large park. Just outside of the entrance to the museum is a small playground filled with dinosaur statues. The slide even ends with you stopping just short of a T-Rex, waiting with an open mouth.

The inside of the museum is just as impressive. You first take a long escalator down to the bottom floor. It ends with a hallway filled with fossils on the walls. As you walk down the hallway you eventually come to a representation of a fossil bed from Wyoming, USA. Then you enter the main hall, filled with dinosaurs. Some are actual fossils, and some are replicas. There are also some automated dinosaurs in the back part of the room.

In addition to the dinosaurs, there is also an exhibit on various rocks and minerals. The second floor has a timeline of the history of life, including early organisms, leading up to modern animals. You can see how animals have changed over time, and the link between dinosaurs and birds.

The second floor has a fossil lab, where you can watch people cleaning fossils. There is also a room, called the Dino Lab, with fossils you can hold and touch, as well as some quizzes (Japanese only). You can see how your weight compares to dinosaurs. In the middle of the room is a replica of a T-Rex.

How to get there:

By car- Parking is free at the park.

http://www.dinosaur.pref.fukui.jp/guide/vehicle.html

On the Hokuriku Expressway, get off at either the Fukui Interchange, or the Maruoka IC.

From the Fukui IC it takes about an hour. Take route 158 to route 157.

From the Maruoka IC it takes about 30 minutes. Take route 416.

There are maps and more detailed information (in Japanese) at the link above.

By train/Bus- http://www.dinosaur.pref.fukui.jp/guide/access.html

From Fukui station, take the Echizen Tetsudo for Katsuyama station. It will take about an hour. From there, take the community bus to the museum (about 15 minutes).

Or, you can take the JR Etsumi-Hoken line from Fukui station to Echizen Ono, and take a taxi from there (about a 20 minute taxi ride).

The link above has the bus times (Japanese only).

Restaurant: Osaka : Mexican

If you've lived in the Kansai area for a while chances are you have heard of El Pancho in Osaka. It is a popular Mexican restaurant among foreigners and Japanese alike.

The restaurant opened in 1979. The inside is dark and the walls are covered with messages and signatures of former patrons. This isn't a high class dining experience, but certainly worth the price.

The menu has all of the dishes that most people expect - tacos, quesadillas, fahittas, nachos, etc., There are also some that I have never seen in restaurants back home - pork sandwiches for example. The prices are decent and the sizes are rather large (especially for Japan). Lunch is usually 1500 yen per person, although you can get things cheaper (I usually spend about 1000 for lunch, and that includes my drink). At dinner time you will get free chips and salsa, but not at lunch. Another great thing - the cups they use are huge, even the ones for water!

The drink menu is also extensive. I recommend the Mexican Honey (vodka, honey and your choice of fruit flavor). There are plenty of flavors to chose from for your margarita or daiquiri (some better than others), which are often on the strong side.

Happy Hour is from 11-5 everyday. Margaritas and Coronas are half price during this time.

Dinner on the weekends is often very crowded, especially if they are holding a concert. Lunchtime (and Happy Hour) is usually not too busy and you should be able to get a seat easily.


Directions: The easiest way is to take exit 2 from Shinsaibashi Station. You will take the escalator up and out of the Crysta underground area. The restaurant is in the roundish building (Shinsaibashi Tower Building) on your right, just across from the Loft. El Pancho is on the 8th floor.
Hours: 11:30-11:20, everyday

Restaurant: Osaka : Italian

When you think of Osaka, you don't always think of fancy restaurants and fine dining. But there are plenty of amazing restaurants, upscale and cheap, all over the city.

One of my favorites is called OLI. While there are hundreds of Italian places in Osaka, this one is special.



OLI is situated on the 8th floor of the Tenmabashi Keihan Mall, giving it a view that overlooks the river and part of the city. Many of the tables are situated against the windows, while most others are in direct view.

There are a variety of dishes - from pasta to pizza, as well as desserts. The menu separates the pasta and pizzas out based on the base (tomato or cheese). There are also meat dishes (fish of the day or steak for example), and appetizers (such as salads). The drink menu is extensive as well, with a fine selection of wines and cocktails.

Unfortunately the menu is in Japanese only. If you go with a date (recommended) they will often separate the portions into 2 so that you can easily share.



Directions: Take the Tanimachi Subway Line for Tenmabashi Station. The underground exit connects to the mall.
You can also take the Keihan line.
Hours: 11AM-11PM

There is also a branch in Shibuya, about a four minute walk from the station.

Garbage Day

Apparently, Diane Sawyer came to Japan and visited some of the refugee centers. I haven’t seen the clip, but she is amazed when she sees that the refugees are “recycling.”


What people seem to be mistaken about is that, yes it is recycling, but it is a required practice here. Japan does not have enough landfill space.


Therefore, anyone living in Japan is forced to separate their garbage into a dizzying number of categories (plastics, burnables, plastic bottles, clear glass, dark glass, batteries, cans, old newspapers, cardboard, cooking oil, etc.,). If you don't separate your garbage properly, it won't be collected. Many places require you to write your name on your garbage bag. There are central collection places - each apartment complex has one, and otherwise there are centers in each town (always within walking distance). Each city is different - some have enclosed areas, some have the garbage areas out in the open.


Below is a sample calendar for my city.

As you can see, the garbage collection days are spread out over the month, and that we must sort our garbage correctly.

• Burnable garbage is collected every Tuesday and Friday.
• Plastic garbage (food wrappers and containers, some plastic bottles, others marked with the “Pura” symbol) is collected every Monday.
• Waste paper (old newspapers, magazines, cardboard) and cooking oil: 4^th Wednesday of the month.
• Non-burnables (small but un burnable items), spray cans: 3^rd Wednesday of the month
• Cans, plastic bottles, glass, etc.,: put into separate bins, collected on the 1^st Wednesday of the month

Bigger items you can either take to the landfill yourself, or call and have a service collect them.


When you put out your plastic bottles, they ask that you rinse them out, remove the labels and the caps (those go in plastic garbage) and then put them where they go. Some places take the bottles in plastic bags, others have a separate bin for them.

Below are two of the places to put out garbage in my town.



Hime city in Toyama has an excellent site that breaks down what fits into each catagory.


This video should help explain some of it as well.

Engrish in Okinawa

ATTENTION
There are snakes living here.
Please don't Throw stones or trash at this snakes.


In Okinawa World.

Be careful in the sky!
Carefully!! Dropping fall!


From Neo Park Okinawa.

Black lemur which is in this area are breeding seasons and become nervous now.
Please do not touch it with a Black lemur.
Please do not give feed.


From Neo Park Okinawa.

Afurican savanna


From Neo Park Okinawa.

There is a doggy.


From Neo Park Okinawa.
Talking about the kids/petting zoo area. They had other signs along the same line (There is a sheep!), but this was the funniest.

CAUTION
Railroad crossing is dangerous.
It slips.



From Neo Park Okinawa.

Gas Sucks
Ride a bike.


T-shirt in Okinawa.