Just a quick little update between classes here. Today we had a different kind of exam: a two-minute long memorized introductory speech using very set language as well as descriptions of our hobbies, hometowns, and the things we want to do in Japan. I had the honor of timing everyone with a stopwatch to make sure they made the +/- 20 second cutoff and also knew when they had 30 seconds left, etc. I did EXTREMELY well with mine (I feel) considering that I didn’t take my sheet up because I didn’t want to read from it (that would be dame), and I finished between the two and two-and-a-half minute mark. All in all, I feel it went pretty well, and everyone else seemed to agree (though there were smoother, more grammatically complex speeches than mine). At lunch, however, Schmidt-san from Stuttgart, Germany informed me that I had forgotten Kore kara jikoushoukai wo shitai to omoimasu (I now want to introduce myself) at the beginning. D’oh! Ah well, the rest of it went well, and I’m still pleased with how smoothly it all seemed to flow from my head out into the room. I was sure to make plenty of eye contact, and got a good laugh when I told everyone that I wanted to ride the Shinkansen Bullet Train while I’m here (What? There aren’t any trains that travel that fast in America! Besides, I said I wanted to go to Kyoto; can you think of a better way to travel?).
I’ve decided that this weekend’s trip is definitely going to be to Higashiyama Kouen’s Monkey Park. From what I understand, Little World is also close by, which is another park that appears to be something like Epcot’s countries of the world section if it were expanded to fill Epcot. (more…)
