New ALT Observation Lesson

I'm not sure if this is the norm for other prefectures - although I tend to think it isn't, as I hadn't heard about it before - but in Tottori the new ALTs have an observation lesson a few months after arrival. Its a chance for the prefectural advisors, their BOE, and their main school to connect and see how the ALT is adjusting and performing.

Of course the idea of all these people coming to watch me teach made my stomach churn and I worried about the impending day of Wednesday, November 19th. What made it worse was that the Monday before, my JTE was away, so we literally had no chance to talk about the lesson. I wasn't sure what to expect at all.

I arrived at Chizu JHS on Wednesday, and the day began like any other. In the first period I taught the 3-2 class. Next was second period with the 2-2 class...and my observation lesson. I went back to the teacher's room and gathered my things. I exchanged my fleece sweater for my suit jacket and tucked in my shirt. My JTE and I went up to class.

I was expecting my observers to be there already, but I found the class to contain only my students. A few minutes after we started, they filed in. I tried my best to ignore them, but I think there were maybe five or more people watching me - my principal and vice principal, my supervisor from the BOE, and at least two people from the prefecture. I felt my cheeks heating up and the lesson really swung into gear, and the intense burning of my face wasn't helped by the fact that the students had turned on the heaters for the first time and had decided on a hellfire-like temperature. 

Overall I felt like my performance was pretty good. I walked around the class. I spoke loudly and clearly. The students were well-behaved and asked me lots of questions, since they knew they were being watched.

After the class, I met up with M, the prefectural ALT advisor, and we had a private meeting together. Meanwhile, the rest of the observers had a meeting with my JTE. I found this meeting really beneficial. Since M is American, she is a great person to talk to and I always find her helpful and understanding. We were able to talk a lot about how the schools are using me and what she thought of the lesson. I was so thrilled to hear from her that they like me and want me to stay for the whole three years! It really made me feel great to know that I have been doing a good job. I was also able to discuss the preschool situation with M, and thankfully they also seemed to have realized it would be best for Yana to join. M told me about the BOE and school's concerns about me, which were 1) that we didn't own a car, and 2) that because we didn't own a car we would have difficulties doing things with other ALTs. I thought it was hilarious that these were their two major concerns...I mean, I was expecting it would be something way worse! It was thoughtful though, that they worry about me like that. 

After about an hour, M went to talk with the BOE and my principal and vice principal without my JTE. I sat semi-awkwardly at my desk, chatting with my JTE. Once M and co. were done, we went to see them off at the entrance and bowed a million times. My supervisor told me he would push to have Yana enter the preschool, which I am so greatful for. Even though I was really nervous about the day, I felt like it was a really good opportunity to have everyone communicate and I'm so glad it happened.


Note: Since then, Yana has been approved for a trial at the preschool, with the hopes of starting for real in December! My supervisor went to talk to the head of the school about it. Additionally, one of our local acquaintances - on his own initiative after hearing about it from us - went to speak to the school about why Yana wasn't being allowed to enter. I was stunned by his kindness, especially since he runs his own separate school (another kind of forest school). So, Justin will attend with Yana for three days next week. Hopefully she does alright and can join! I will try to write a more detailed update afterwards.

Chizu ハイカラ市 2014

Today my little town had a big event on called ハイカラ市. I'm not sure what it translates to exactly - I get plush city or high collar city from the translator. Anyway, the whole thing kicked off with a retro car parade at 9:30am (why must they do things so early here...). I wasn't entirely sure what to do or where to go after that, but luckily there were enough people that we could just follow the crowd.

We walked down what is basically the main shopping street of Chizu, where they had lots of different food stalls set up. One of the first ones was a stall selling blueberry products. The old man there gave us samples (dried blueberries and blueberry jam with yogurt) and started chatting with us. I guess his child lives in Vietnam and his grandchild lives in Vancouver. People always have such neat stories to tell foreigners! Anyway, he was really kind and invited us to come to visit the blueberry farm in the summer.

We continued walking along and made a quick stop at the deer burger stand, where Justin got his beloved meal. They also gave us free samples of deer croquettes, which were tasty! Across from that stand was Chinorin Shop, which is a new shop being opened by the agricultural high school students. They sell the produce they make for pretty cheap. We took a look around - I have never seen vegetables so big! The napa cabbage was as big as Yana and the carrots were as thick as my arm!

Along the way we also met a few of the elementary school students, who called out my name. We met a group of three girls, who were very excited to meet Yana. They love touching her "golden" hair.

We crossed over the river and continued exploring. I'd never actually been to this part of town, so it was a great way to explore. We checked out a traditional garden at the back of a restaurant, which was open to the public. After that we came to a crossroads. A guy tried to explain to use what was in each direction, but I didn't understand much of what he said. We turned right. There were lots more food stalls - selling everything from rice dumplings to grilled meat sticks to pizza to french toast. There were also some stalls selling small trinkets and things like second hand clothing. We stopped for a bit so Yana could watch a story being told for the kids.

The gorgeous garden.

We came across a lady who actually lives in our building and works at the town office for the newsletter. She told us we could dress in kimono and so we followed her to the place where that was. It was 2,500Y for the three of us, which is actually pretty cheap, I think.

We went upstairs and they had ladies help us get dressed. I have worn a yukata before - a summer kimono - but never a real kimono. I was strapped in there pretty tight! It wasn't an entirely authentic experience, though. I was wearing my jeans and t-shirt underneath, so I wasn't wearing any traditional underclothes or anything.

All dressed up!

After we were dressed we wandered around the street some more. I met one of the staff from the elementary school, who wanted to take pictures of me and then pictures of her with me. If we stood out before, we definitely stood out now! People were shrieking about the cuteness of Yana as we walked by. Some girl even snapped a photo as she ran by. I don't particularly mind, but its weird to think of how many people must have photos of Yana by now. 

The old cars were on display along the streets.

Unfortunately Yana was jumping around too much, so her obi came off. We went back to the house where we got dressed, but Yana just wanted out of it by then, so we all changed back. After that she was a bit grouchy, so we ended up going home. It was a great event, though! Tons of stuff to do! If we're here another year, I'll definitely look forward to it. 

Chizu JHS Bunkasai 2014

Minus the students missing to the right, this is the entire student body.

On Monday my JHS hosted its bunkasai, or culture festival. I see it as a kind of partner to the sports festival. So its a day dedicated to celebrating artsy and cultural things, like tea ceremony, singing, art, calligraphy, flower arranging, and even English.

I brought Justin and Yana along for the day, and we arrived at work at 8am. We had to wait around for a bit until the opening ceremony began at 8:45am. It was held across from the school in the public gym, since ours is still under construction. 

Like any Japanese event, the day began with speeches. There were so many speeches, I kind of lost track. But it included my two speech contest students giving their speeches. The audience was much larger than at the contest, and the poor girls were noticeably nervous, but they did great! 

There was also a very long and detailed presentation about the life cycle of wasps, including photos taken every day over the course of several months while a wasp built a nest. I'm assuming the student must have won some sort of prize for his research/presentation and thats why he was giving it again, because it was kind of a random addition otherwise. 

Each grade also gave their own presentations. I can't remember what the 1st graders did, but the 2nd graders talked about some kind of social project and the 3rd graders talked about their trip to Okinawa, which also included a very strange and confusing comedic short film they made.

Lastly there was a performance by the brass band. They played 3 songs, including the theme from Lupin III and Sing, Sing, Sing. It was great!

Finally we had a lunch break around 11:45, thank goodness, because it was freezing cold in the gym and Yana was going bonkers from sitting for so long. I had packed a lunch for us (the other teachers bought a lunch box, but it was around $60!!! No, thanks.) so we ate in the staff kitchen.

After lunch we wandered around the school and looked at all the things on display. Yana got a lot of attention during this time; lots of my students came up to squeeze her cheeks or touch her hair. I felt like a security detail for a celebrity or something.

Some of the student artwork decorating the hallways.

After lunch was the second part of the festival, and the main event - the singing. Each class performed two songs, one the same and one different. There was also an accompanying piano player and conductor from each performing class.

Lastly, the entire student body performed the school song and another song all together. Then they announced the winning class - 3-2 - and they gave an encore performance while bawling uncontrollably.

There were a few more speeches to close up the day. During the second half, Yana had made some friends with some girls sitting nearby. At one point they decided to go out into the front hall to play tag and hide-and-seek together. So they were playing out there. During one speech, all of a sudden the spotlights began to move. They swept over the crowd and focused on the back door, which led to the front hall. In the single most mortifying moment of my life, Yana chose that EXACT MOMENT to open the doors and peer through - while the spotlight was directly on her and everyone had turned to look. Then she closed the doors. And opened them and stuck out her head again. And closed them again. And finally the student who was supposed to emerge from the doors came out (he was dressed in the track and field uniform and ran up onto the stage) and I was put out of my embarrassment. Everyone was laughing and of course because she's blonde and foreign everyone knows its my kid. It was pretty hilarious, really, but I still can't believe she chose that exact moment to peek through the doors!

So the whole event ended around 3pm. In all, to be honest, it was kind of boring. Having to sit there through all those speeches that I didn't understand and it being really cold was not fun. I was expecting something more exciting and interactive. However, I was actually being paid to attend, so I was happy to support my students and I did enjoy seeing the art and the flower arrangements! I'm thinking if I'm here next year maybe I can do a little English booth to be more involved! We'll see :)

Some of the flower arrangements.

Elementary School Ensoku and Marathon

I taught no classes at ES this week. It was weird!

On Tuesday I was walking to school when the principal stopped me. He kept asking if I was at ES today and then told me that today was ensoku, or field trip/picnic day!

So I went into the teacher's room and we tried to figure out what to do with me. It was decided that I would join the 4th graders on their trip to Forest Therapy in Ashizu. However, I was completely unprepared and didn't have the right clothes or shoes, let alone a lunch! The vice principal - who is amazing - actually GAVE ME HIS LUNCH. I assume his wife made it. I felt so awkward. And also terrified about what might be inside.

Around 9am we left the school and took about a 1/2 hour bus ride through the valleys and then up the mountains to the Forest Therapy. It isn't much - just a gravel parking lot with a bathroom. We got off the bus and divided into six groups, each headed by a guide. Before we left we did group stretching. Also, it was freaking cold!

We walked up a little ways, following the road. But when the road curved we turned off onto a dirt trail, which ran along the edge of the mountain. Now, the trail was pretty narrow most of the way and I have a nearly disabling fear of heights, so I spent most of the day staring at my feet. To top it off, there wasn't always a fence and the students enjoyed kicking rocks and leaves over the edge, which nearly gave me heart palpitations. We went pretty slowly, with the guide pointing out some random things, like a rock which was cracked by dynamite and a "power spot" waterfall. We crossed over some bridges and a really high dam as well.

We went back onto the road for a bit and followed it to where we would eat lunch. It was a grassy area beside a river. I played tag with the kids for a little while before I ate lunch with some of the ES workers (I think they're classroom helpers). I also got a mandarin orange and a bunch of candies from the students! Oh, and the lunch from the vice principal wasn't bad!

We rested for a while, and then looped back around. We crossed over the river, went up and over the dam, and then were back on the same trail as before.

I had wanted to visit Forest Therapy, but I didn't know it involved being on the edge of a mountain! I also am STILL suffering from sore ankles after walking in entirely inappropriate shoes. To be honest, I enjoy looking at the mountains from afar more than being in them. But anyway, it was a good experience.




On Thursday the entire school had a marathon, which so happened to be during my two class periods of the day (convenient). Every grade ran the marathon, although the younger grades had slightly shorter distances. The marathon started with the 6th and 5th graders, then 1st and 2nd graders, and lastly 4th and 3rd graders. They ran 1 or 2 laps around the school yard and then went down the road. I thought it was interesting that they ran on the road. At one point some cars were coming along, so they had to run single file. Each student was also divided into a colored team - there was red, blue, yellow, and green. So students across every grade made up each team. Blue team won!

What I Actually Do As an ALT

Obviously I knew before I applied for JET that the job entailed teaching English to students. But before arriving and in the first month I felt really nervous and uncertain about what exactly my job would be. Its hard for new JETs to know, since ESID (every situation is different) is the unofficial JET motto.

Here's what I do:

I teach at 2 schools, a junior high school and an elementary school. The only other school in town is an agricultural high school and I am the only ALT (aside from one who apparently visits the high school every now and then, but no one seems to know who he is).

I work at the JHS on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. So Tuesdays and Thursdays are ES days.

My contract hours are something like 8am to 4pm, but I arrive early and leave late every day.

I have anywhere from 2 to 5 classes a day. There are a total of 6 class periods, but I've never had 6 classes in a day - thank goodness! I only ever have 2 classes at ES. So my average is probably around 14 classes a week, give or take. Could be upwards around 18, though. Maximum ever would be 22, but that's likely never going to happen (and would be insane!). The class periods are 50 minutes in JHS and 45 minutes in ES. But often there are special schedules, so classes are shortened.

At school I spend a lot of time "desk warming." I am sometimes busy with classes, yes, but often I have at least a few free periods and there are always special things going on which I am excluded from, either because I have no idea whats happening or because I have been told I don't need to participate/ignored. At my desk I work on lesson ideas, study Japanese, browse the internet, or stare out the window. Sometimes I chat with my coworkers, but often I'm alone or with few others in the teacher's room.

At ES I have a few extra responsibilities outside of class. Every morning (except for two days a month) I read an English book to the 4th-1st graders. I go to a different class each time. I am also expected to play with the kids during recess. Sometimes I play the Japanese version of tag or go see what the pet rabbit will eat. Usually I play with the younger kids, since they're not too cool for me. Plus I don't teach them, so I'm more interesting to them. Once a month there are clubs, so I attend those as well. I went to cooking club most recently, but I want to attend the walking places club (I have no idea what to call it), because it seems like a great way to visit local spots. I also help dish out the teacher's lunches. I admit to an ulterior motive - its the perfect way to control my portions! But I do like to help out.

Sometimes we do random activities at ES, like digging up sweet potatoes that the students planted. Unfortunately I feel like I miss out on a lot, since I'm only there twice a week (or less if theres a holiday).

As far as ES lesson planning goes, I don't have to do much. The lessons are all pre-made. Sometimes the HRT (homeroom teacher) wants to rearrange things, but usually we follow the lessons. I have been trying out some different activities, because I feel like the pre-made lessons are a bit redundant and boring.

I only have 2 co-teachers at Es and I play a larger role in class than at JHS. Every class starts with a greeting (hello, how are you). Then we usually do some awful chant from the interactive textbook (we use these smart computer screen things). Next we review or learn the target vocabulary. We tend to do 2 activities using the target vocabulary and grammar. The teacher usually explains the game, and I join in or walk around and see how they're doing. The activities are things like keyword game (students make pairs and put an eraser between them. When I say the key word, they try to grab the eraser first), pointing game (like hand twister, using the images in their textbook), simon says, bingo, making pairs, etc. At the end of class, students have to write a reflection.

At JHS I have more to do and more classes to attend, but I also have less importance in the classroom. I sometimes help make activities for the students, but since I'm still learning I usually follow the JTE's lead. Its also difficult because I can't attend every class, so I'm never sure of where they are in the textbook when I'm teaching. At ES they only ever have English once a week, so I know exactly where I left off.

I teach with 5 JTEs at the JHS. Two are in charge of a special needs class, which only has 2 students (a 1st grader and a 2nd grader). Because of that we spend a lot of time just drilling the vocabulary and sample dialogue. Its a bit boring, to be honest. I don't have that class often (maybe once a week), but I'm hoping to propose some activities to make things a bit more lively.

My third JTE only teaches 1st graders. She is super nice and is the same age as me! She lets me do the most in class. I do things like greetings, handing out papers, modelling pronunciation, checking written work, and writing answers on the board (quizzes and homework). Sometimes I do things on my own, like explain an activity I made or give a short presentation (I just did one introducing my grandmother and had them take a quiz about it). Usually the classes start with a review quiz of the last section, then they take notes or review grammar, and lastly some kind of worksheets or activities.

The fourth JTE teaches 2nd and 3rd graders. I teach with her most often. I don't do much in her class, but the students write the most English, so I mostly spend time checking their work as I wander around. I don't even get to help write on the board or even hand out papers, but I do model dialogue and vocabulary (of course). Recently I have been making more activities for this grade, though, which is great. I always get to introduce my activities. Usually they just take notes and do 1 or 2 activities - often writing or speaking.

The last JTE is actually the vice principal, and she teaches the 3rd graders. She is the main teacher, and the other JTE mainly walks around and helps the students or models dialogue with me. I don't do much in the 3rd grade classes because they do a lot of listening to grammar lectures and translating into Japanese, which I can't help with too much. I mostly just hand out papers and model vocabulary and dialogue. We don't really do any games or activities aside from pairs saying the dialogue to each other. Sometimes this JTE engages me in conversation (what did you think about the sports festival?), which I guess is good for the students to hear, but its random.

At JHS there are some clubs, and some ALTs join them, but I haven't. No one approached me about it and it seems like its mostly sports and band, so I'm not super interested. There are events like the sports festival and the culture festival which I participate in or attend. I also do things like listen to the students practicing their singing and attend pep rallies. Then there was the demonstration lesson and professional development which I had to take part in. In general, I'm not as involved outside of class. I'm hoping to eventually change that a bit. My first goal is to set up and English board, where students can interact with English informally. Starting small.

Anyway, that's a general overview of what I do at work!

Recent Events

I want to write about some things that have happened recently, but they don't really deserve their own post, so here's a collection of short stories:

Picture Day
Last week I received a phone call literally as I was stepping out the front door. It was the JHS vice principal calling to let me know that it was staff picture day and I needed to wear a suit! It was lucky timing, because normally I would have left home already, but I happened to be running late that day.
The picture was taken after school (of course, so I had all day for my hair to go crazy and frizzy). We all lined up outside in front of the school. The photographers were super meticulous...they were having people stand up so they could smooth out their pants and were rearranging ties, shirt collars, and suit jackets. Even the principal was reprimanded twice for not sitting up straight! Anyway, it was an experience that really solidified my new reality...like, now I am officially a part of Chizu JHS history!

"Pep Rally"
There is a big marathon for students in Yonago, so the day before we had a a cheering ceremony. It was nothing like a North American pep rally, but I guess its the closest translation. The students all stood lined up in the hall (not hallway, but the performance hall). The team members walked into the hall and all the students clapped. Then they sang the school song. After that several team members each gave a short speech. Then there was more singing, more speeches, and a coordinated drumming/clapping which all the teachers and students participated in (I just stood there awkwardly, yay).

Demonstration Lesson
On October 24th I had a demonstration lesson in a 2nd grade JHS class. I didn't quite understand what all it entailed until it happened. My JTE and I had spent some time preparing - she made this survey for the students about smartphones. I helped her make a powerpoint presentation about the results. Then we shared the results with the students and had them write opinion compositions about the topic of smartphones using the target grammar point (I think ~. Because ~.) There were like 20 people standing in the classroom and in the hallway watching, which was really nerve-wracking. Most of them were teachers from the ES, so it wasn't so bad, but I did recognize the head of the entire board of education. Anyway, it seemed to go over well! Directly after the lesson we had several hours of professional development - some guy came in and did a presentation on action research, then my JTE and I talked about how the class went, and finally we got into groups and discussed the lesson. It was really exhausting! I'm so glad its over, but now I have an observation lesson on November 19th, where I am observed by the head of Tottori JETs and English education!

Mount Mitoku Fire Festival
We hemmed and hawed a lot over whether we should go to this festival, since Mt. Mitoku is about 2.5 hours away, including 1 train change and a bus. In the end it looked too cool and I knew I would regret not going (it included walking over fire!). So we set off at 8:30am. We arrived at Mt. Mitoku around 11am. Upon disembarking the bus, Yana burst into tears because she didn't get to give the bus driver money (kids are free). She was inconsolable, but a sweet Japanese man came up to us and gave Yana a bag of candy and cookies. He took her by the hand and showed us the way up to where the festival was being held. The Japanese people here are so kind, especially to Yana.
We looked all around and examined the various buildings on the grounds. We drank some free sake, warmed over a fire and served in bamboo cups with a little salt. There was some kind of rice porridge soup as well, but I'm not super fond of porridge, so I decided not to try it. We met up with our old man friend again, and he gave us another box of chocolates, which he had won at the gambling thing they had going. He was super helpful, and told us where to buy the hachimaki headbands for walking over the fire.
Yana was extremely popular during this whole thing. We had our picture taken several times, like when we were washing our hands. At one point two ladies actually stole her away and were doing an impromptu photoshoot with her. Honestly, going out with her is like attending a celebrity. Sometimes she waves to people as she walks down the street. She'll tell them, "konnichiwa," and they go into fits. Its ridiculous!
The main event began at 1:30, so around 12:45 we took a seat on one of the giant blue tarps laid on the ground. We weren't sure if it was okay to sit there, but some kindly old ladies beckoned us closer and even shared their mat. A lady sitting behind us with her dog got a lot of attention from Yana, but she seemed pretty smitten too, so they played together through most of the ceremony.
The ceremony consisted of a procession, chanting, ritualistic axe moves, lighting the fires, archery, and throwing wooden wish tablets on the fire. Finally they lit the walking fire. When the greenery had mostly burned, they pushed it into a pit. Over the pit they laid a bunch of the logs, dousing them with a little water to cool them. The old ladies sitting beside us helped us tie our headbands and literally pushed us into the line (very forceful old ladies!). To cross the fire we had to first bow to the altar, then rub our feet in salt, cross the fire with our hands together (like prayer), and then bow again. We got a free mochi rice cake as well. It was all very fast, so unfortunately it was difficult to get pictures. The fire was very hot, and a bit painful, but it was like 3 seconds to cross, so not really long enough to hurt too much.
Afterwards we caught the bus back to Kurayoshi station, went and bought some delicious bread from a bakery, and rode the train back to Chizu! It was a long day!

Apartment Tour

Coming to Japan with a family, I was thrilled when my BOE sent me a list of three apartment options to choose from. My predecessor had a 1 bedroom apartment, and while it was new and very nice, 1 bedroom seemed a bit crazy for 3 people. The other 2 options were in a different apartment building and consisted of either 3 bedrooms or 5 bedrooms. 5 bedrooms was obviously way too crazy for only 3 of us (it had 2 floors!), so we went with the 3 bedroom apartment! My BOE sent us photos, which was awesome. Today I want to share some photos of the apartment now that we have been living here for a few months. In the first month we bought a lot of stuff to make the space work for us.

So, on to the tour!

This is the genkan, or entrance. On the left is a door to the sunroom. We have a tall coat closet on the right, as well as a shoe cupboard near the ground, a nice shelf, and another cupboard up top. We keep our shoes here to make sure they don't get the inside of the house dirty. By the way, this is traditionally considered public space. We keep our door locked, but if we didn't, it would be totally acceptable for someone to enter the house up to here. 

Here is a zoomed out view of the genkan, which leads to the living room. You can also see both the doors to the sunroom. No photos of inside the sunroom because it is an embarrassing mess of cardboard boxes and unwanted items right now. Its just a room with a window and some cupboards. My plan is to use it for drying laundry once I get it cleaned out. 

Let's zoom out a little more. This is taken from the hallway. That is my desk in the left corner. The door to the genkan is on the right. The phone there is our buzzer, so when someone rings the doorbell we can use it to shout "HAAAAIIIIII" at them. In the middle of the living room is our kotatsu, a table with a built in electric heater underneath. In the winter we can put a blanket on it to keep the heat in. Right now we just use it as our dining table.

This is the other side of the living room, where Justin's desk is. You can also see the kitchen and the hallway. The door on the left leads to the bathroom/washing area.

Here's a view of the hallway, approaching the kitchen and the bath/washing area. By the way, those garbages are for paper/cardboard, styrofoam trays, and plastic bottle caps.

This is the kitchen in its entirety. There are lots of cupboards, but they are either super high (I can't reach) or really low (killer on the back). So we just use them for storing stuff we don't really use. The sink is on the right and is really huge, which is great, but the whole counter is really low, so its a pain and I always get sprayed with water. Also, the tap pulls down to turn on the water, which I am still getting used to. In the far right corner is our stovetop, which uses induction heat. I actually don't really like it, as its difficult to cook with. The door leads to a very small balcony with our water heater. On the left is a large counter wagon, a small rolling pantry, garbages, and the fridge.

A better view of the sink and stove area. The blue lidded garbage is for plastic and aluminium foil and the brown lidded one is for burnables (food and paper towels mostly). In theory the garbage for cardboard and paper above could go in burnables, but I like to keep it separate to keep extra room in the burnables. And paper doesn't smell, so its kind of nice to separate smelly, decomposing stuff from not nasty stuff. Behind those garbages we also have 2 more for PET bottles (plastic bottles) and bin garbage (glass and tin cans).

This is taken over the half-wall in the living room (you can see the top of the tap). Fridge, counter wagon, rolling pantry. On top of the counter wagon is random stuff, our 10kg rice container, and our little convection/steam oven/microwave (yep, it is an oven and a microwave!). Inside the counter wagon we keep our dishes and cutlery. The rice cooker has a special slide-out space on the right (hidden behind the pantry). The counter wagon stays where is it, but the pantry we move around depending on where we need it, since the kitchen is pretty small.

So to the left of the kitchen is the bathroom/washing area. This is looking to the left of the room. The washing machine is on the far left, then the bathroom, then the toilet room.

And on the right is the sink. The door to the toilet is on the left. 

Here's the view looking out the door towards the kitchen.

Straight down the hallway is our closet room. Yeah...we use an entire room as a closet. Its partly because mold and mildew is a huge problem here, so having the clothes hanging up rather than folded in the closet helps reduce mold. Also its just convenient. There is also a sliding door which leads to the main balcony.

Another view inside the closet room. We use the closet to store blankets, suitcases, and futon.

A view from inside the closet room, looking down the hallway. Kitchen is on the left, past the garbage cans. Bathroom is on the right. Genkan is on the far right. There is also another hallway running perpendicular, which leads to the other 2 bedrooms.

This is a view of the balcony, taken from the closet room. 

You can see a bit of the view from our balcony here. 

 Back inside, this is the hallway leading to the left. 

At the end of the left hallway is the tatami room, a traditional Japanese room that even has rice paper sliding doors. Behind those are glass sliding doors which lead to the same balcony as the closet room. This is also the only room with A/C, but we've done fine without the A/C so far and we don't really use this room at all. It has a big closet which is currently housing our suitcases.

 And lastly, directly to the right of the closet room is the bedroom. We all sleep together because its more economical to share one room - in the summer we can use one fan and in the winter we can use one heater. Justin and I sleep on the mattress and Yana has a futon (which is folded up during the day).

A view of the doorway and the bedroom closet. So turning right out the door will be the closet room and then further straight is the tatami room. 

 And that's the end! Our apartment is cozy, but more than enough space for the three of us, since we don't even use one room. There are some things we dislike about it - there seems to be a lot of mold, the wallpaper is really grungy, the bath isn't too nice, etc. - but overall, its beginning to feel like home.