Patrick Dunne - An English Teacher in Japan.

A drive down memory lane

2009-10-26T17:18:00.000-07:00

Last week, I went to my friend's restaurant to eat a Greek souvlaki. Souvlaki is one of my favourite foods. Souvlaki is a pita bread wrap with lamb, lettuce, tomato and tzaziki(garlic sauce). However, I could not find anywhere in Fukuoka that sold them.
So finally, I got the chance to have one. It was very delicious. Melbourne truly has some great restaurant.

Also last week, I received my learner’s driving licence. This means I can drive anywhere, but I must have a friend in the car with me. I cannot drive alone.
I have been driving everywhere with my brother, but this weekend, my challenge is to drive down the Great ocean road.

The Great ocean road is a famous road about 2 hours outside of Melbourne. It is a long windy road that follows the coast line (similar to karatsu coast road). At the end of the road, you can see the 12 apostles. These are 12 famous rocks that stand next to each other in the middle of the sea. It is very beautiful. However, recently, some of the rocks collapsed and only a few remain standing.

It is still cold in Melbourne but it is starting to heat up. Come on summer!!!!!

Back in Australia

2009-10-14T18:50:00.000-07:00

I have arrived safe and well in Australia. I was very excited when I exited the airport but it was very cold. It is spring here but it is colder than Fukuoka. I felt like I was still in Japan. It was great to see my parents and friends. It is always wonderful to spend quality time with your parents. We should contact our parents every now and then just to let them know we love them.

I still cannot believe I am back home. I think it will take a few weeks to sink in.

I miss you all!

It will become summer from December. Hurry up summer !!

1 Triathlon, 2 parties, 1 day

2009-10-06T06:54:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday I took part in the Fukuoka triathlon festa. It was a huge event and my first triathlon. The distance was half an Olympic distance. 750m swim, 23 km Bike and 5 km run. I finished around 1 hour and 30 minutes. It was a relay race, with 3 members in each team. My team ' Team Sekitoba' did really well and we all finished our legs successfully in around 4 and a half hours.

A huge Thank you to Ravi and Makiko for training me for the triathlon and coming out to support me.

After an amazing race, We went to Paddy's farewell party.

Continued in part 2

A lovely lunch with some lovely friends

2009-09-19T00:10:00.001-07:00

Today, Miho san took Me, Chris and Misako to a Spanish restaurant. It was inside a persons house by the lake, but it looked like a restaurant inside. Although I am not big on seafood, the food was fantastic. It was my first experience of Spanish food and I really enjoyed the different flavors. It was good to spend time with some great people and have a good chat whilst enjoying the view of the lake. Thank you very much to the beautiful Miho san for a wonderful lunch.

A lovely trip to Kumamoto

2009-09-09T19:28:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday, Mana and her family took me to Kumamoto for a day trip.
We first went to Mt. Aso, which is one of the biggest volcanoes in the world. It was very beautiful and the weather was perfect. We then ate lunch at Aso. Chris made our lunch for the day which was Jamaican chicken and Pakistani rice. It was very delicious.
Next, we went to Kumamoto castle. The castle was built in the 1600s and is one of the top 3 castles in Japan. There were lots of old objects in the castle such as guns from the world war and samurai armor from　1700s. It was amazing.
on the way home, Mana and I talked
about Kumamoto
and how much fun we had.
Thank you very much to Yoshiyuki, Mitsuko and Mana for taking me on such a wonderful trip and Chris for the wonderful lunch!

Bicycle training- week 2

2009-09-02T21:42:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday, I did a 46km bike ride from keya.

Chris and Andy went on their motorbikes and I went on my bicycle.
We started from Keya and rode towards Karatsu. We stopped half way for a break and a drink. Andy took these pictures of me and chris posing by the bicycle. Chris and Andy continued to Karatsu and I rode back to Kafuri. The weather was very nice and the traffic wasn't too bad. It was a great day for riding and spending time with some friends. I will be entering a half triathlon in October. I hope I am ready!!

Sofbank Hawks Vs Nipponham Fighters

2009-08-24T01:35:00.002-07:00

On Saturday, I went to Fukuoka Dome to watch Hawks Vs Fighters.
It was the second game I had ever been to. It was fantastic.
I had super gate tickets which is where only members can sit.
The seats were leather, with a table and a small computer screen to watch replays or to view player profiles. There was also a free buffet of yummy foods which included dessert. Most of all, Hawks won!!!
I had a great weekend! I can't wait to watch the Hawks play next time

Sofbank Hawks vs

2009-08-24T01:35:00.001-07:00

Bicycle training- Week 1

2009-08-18T18:48:00.002-07:00

I started my bicycle training from this week. I want to enter into a triathlon before I leave.
I have started to train everyday. Since Monday, I have been riding my bicycle from Kafuri to Nogita and Nogita to keya. It is a 30km ride but it is very enjoyable. The weather is perfect in the morning to go riding and its very relaxing to ride along sunset road with no cars!. Today I stopped at keya beach to take some photos. Kyushu has many beautiful mountains and I am very lucky to be living in this beautiful area of kyushu, where there are many mountains and beautiful beaches. On my way back I found this very big temple statue standing in front of kaya mountain.
I had a very nice ride today!

Bicycle training

2009-08-18T18:48:00.001-07:00

Busan (부산) , Korea

2009-08-11T19:29:00.000-07:00

Next month, Chris and I are going to Busan, Korea. Busan is the largest port city in South Korea. Busan has a population of 3.65 million and is South Korea's second largest city, after Seoul. Busan is a popular destination for Japanese tourists because of the variety of cheap markets. Anything from food to electronics can be found at very low prices. I cannot wait to go shopping. But most of all, as Chris and I love spicy food, We both cannot wait to sample some of korea's finest hot dishes in Busan!

Japanese Baseball

2009-07-27T17:36:00.001-07:00

Tomorrow night I will be going to watch Sofbank Hawks Versus Orix. It will be my first time to watch a live baseball game. I am so excited and I really hope Sofbank Hawks wins!!
Baseball is not so popular in Australia.
Cricket, a sport which originates from England, is a popular sport in Australia.
Cricket is similar to baseball because both sports use a ball and a bat. However the rules are very different. I think both sports are very interesting and fun to watch

Engrish (English) in Japan

2009-07-12T18:31:00.000-07:00

Definition: Engrish refers to non-standard variations of English often found in East Asian countries. Spelling may also be non-standard.

The other day we went to a DVD rental store to have a look around.
Outside, we found this `No smoking` sign at the front of the store.
However, if you look closely, you can see the sign is `No Somking`
Signs that are misspelled like this one are known as Engrish. Although Engrish refers to words that are spelled incorrectly or used in the wrong context, Native speakers can still understand its meaning. I thought this sign was very funny.

Here are some other engrish signs in Japan. See if you can work out its true meaning!

Remi's English school- A trip to Yamaguchi

2009-06-28T18:57:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, Chris Misako and I went to shimonoseki in Yamaguchi to visit Remi's English school. It was great to meet teachers and students from a different school and to see a different style of teaching. After we watched two classes, Yoshi, the Manager at Remi's school, took us to Tsunoshima island where the movie `Hero` starring Kimura Takuya was filmed. It was such a beautiful island and the weather was perfect. For dinner, We had Yamaguchi's famous soba served on a roof tile. It was delicious. A big thanks to Yoshi and Remi for showing us around their school and Shimonoseki

Kabuki - The art of singing and dancing

2009-06-22T21:53:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I watched three Kabuki plays at Hakata-za.
It was fantastic.
Although I could not understand any of the Japanese, I was amazed by the singing, dancing and costumes.

The three kanji that make up the word `Kabuki` are; sing (歌), dance (舞), and skill (伎).

Kabuki has been apart of Japanese culture for along time. Most Kabuki actors are from the Nakamura family.
The Nakamura family are well known in the kabuki world. A famous Kabuki actor named
Nakamura Shichinosuke stared as a princess in yesterday's play. He also played the Meiji Emperor in the movie The last Samurai. Shichinosuke's father, Grand father, Great grand father, and his forefathers were all Kabuki actors who descend from the
Nakamura family.

Pictured on the right is Shichinoske Nakamura.

I recommend Kabuki to anyone who wants to experience real Japanese culture

A talk at the Nagaito Public hall

2009-06-17T21:23:00.000-07:00

Today I spoke to 14 ladies about myself and Australian culture at the Nagaito Kominkan( Public hall). I spoke about Australian foods, tourist attractions and Australian people. The ladies were all very nice and I enjoyed speaking with them. The ladies also had a chance to try Tim Tams( Australian chocolate biscuits) which they enjoyed very much.
It was a fantastic day!

Teaching English as a Foreign Language certificate

2009-06-15T18:29:00.000-07:00

I finally received my certificate for my studies in TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) . Now I have started the next certificate which focuses on English grammar. The grammar course includes studies based on clauses, sentence structures, grammar functions and also the differences between British and Americana English. English grammar can be very difficult. Even native speakers sometimes struggle with grammar.

My goal is to get over 90% on the grammar test.
Good luck to anyone who will take the EIKEN or TOEC test.
Don't give up on study as Sometimes it can be your best friend!!

English Event Company Party

2009-05-28T02:27:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday, Students, Friends and Teachers all enjoyed an exciting party at Beard, An Izakaya in Maebaru city. Everyone ate lots of delicious food and drank lots of delicious beer. I also performed a magic show which was fantastic, and everyone played bingo at the end. The winners of bingo received many great prizes. After we ate dinner, Some of us went to karaoke to sing our hearts out!. It was a fantastic night!

Study is my best friend

2009-05-19T19:24:00.000-07:00

I started a new TEFL course this month. It is a grammar course which focuses on different areas of the English language such as Tense systems, Clauses, Differences between American and British English and so on. The course is very beneficial as it helping to improve my understanding of the English language. Sometimes it is very difficult to sit down and study. However, if we can find a nice study pattern, studying will become our best friend!

Golden Week Camping!!

2009-05-11T03:58:00.000-07:00

Last week we all went camping on Fukushima island in Nagasaki prefecture. It was so much fun. And we were the only people on the camp site!.
Chris cooked up a lovely Barbecue of Jerk chicken which is a Jamaican dish and Yakiniku.
It was so delicious. The next day we took an onsen nearby the camp. It was very beautiful. My best golden week ever!

The Lion King

2009-04-30T03:44:00.000-07:00

Last night, Kent and I went to the Lion King Musical in Canal city. It was fantastic. The production was very good and the singing was outstanding. I recommend everyone to go and see Lion King this summer. It is a great musical for all ages! Since watching the show, I feel like going to karaoke!

TEFL - Teaching English as a Foreign Language

2009-04-21T04:35:00.000-07:00

Today I completed a TEFL certificate course which took me six months to complete.
The course was taken as a distance learning course with assignments and readings being sent via email with a school in England. The course covered many interesting areas such as lesson planning and preparation, teaching children, role playing, dealing with mixed ability groups and resource utilization.The study season has really started for me as I will now begin preparation for studying the TEFL diploma!!
I hope everyone enjoys their time studying English this year, and hope you wish me luck too.

The Yoshida Brothers

2009-04-17T21:36:00.000-07:00

We all had a wonderful time at the Yoshida Brothers . The boys were fantastic playing their shamisens. We all went backstage after the show to meet the boys and get some pictures. The brothers were very nice and could speak English very well . I am now thinking if i should buy a shamisen as it is a fantastic instrument, whether I can play it is another story!

2009-04-07T20:24:00.000-07:00

Its a beautiful Wednesday in Kafuri. The sun is shinning and the birds are singing!.
A perfect day for a walk in the lovely bamboo mountains of Maebaru.

Yufuin Trip

2009-04-05T20:10:00.000-07:00

Pictures of the hot spring in the Oita lodge My friends and I stayed in . I love hot springs and I would love to live in Oita someday. The food was great and the mountains were beautiful. The next trip is Karatsu! I cannot wait!!!

2009-04-03T19:38:00.000-07:00

Its spring time but the weather is a little cold and gray!
I will go to Yufuin in Oita-Ken today to soak in some lovely Japanese hot springs!
Then off to enjoy some nice Oita beef with some friends.
Hope everyone enjoys the Sakura This season!