Ferry Tale

As advertised, the overnight ferry I rode to get to my island did have a karaoke room, but by the time I got on board, I was so tired that I just went straight to my room. I suppose I'll have to try out the more exciting amenities the next time I take a trip. Each of the cheap-ticket rooms on the ferry had just enough room for 26 people to spread 26 very skinny futons on the floor. (And by just enough room, I mean just enough room...if you're terribly particular about your personal space, sleeping in one of the cheap ferry rooms is definitely not for you. Also, it is a good idea to make any bathroom trips before you lay down for the night, because especially if your futon happens to be in the far corner of the room, you'll have to navigate a minefield of sleeping people in semi-darkness in order to get to the door. ) At any rate, as far as I know, I made it through the night without rolling over on top of the nice ladies on either side of me, so I think the ferry ride was a success.

I made it to my apartment by 8 o'clock this morning. The apartment is pretty roomy compared to the one I had in Kyoto, but it has a couple features that are slightly disconcerting. First, the toilet paper in the bathroom here is pink. I find this quite disgusting, but since it would be a waste to throw it out, I guess I'll live with it until the end of the roll. Second, the water in the toilet is black. I find this even more disgusting than the pink toilet paper, and tomorrow morning when I can see better, it looks like I'll have to go at the toilet bowl with some heavy duty cleaner.

My first lesson was today at 4:30 PM in the hospital which is about five minutes away from my apartment by bike. My student was an obstetrics doctor who had lived in Wisconsin for a year a while ago. He speaks English quite well already (although sometimes he has a few problems with plurals, a, the etc.) but all in all, he is quite good and I'm not sure why he would want to pay $40 an hour for private lessons. Oh yes, he says that he would most like to practice listening to men with deep voices and southern accents... I guess that's two strikes against me right there, but I'll try my best to oblige.