Dates with S-sensei

So, over the past two days, I ended up having two dates with S-sensei. This will be an account of both of them. Also, from here on out I'm going to start referring to him by his actual name, which is Tatsuya. It just feels strange to keep referring to someone as "teacher" when you're going on dates with them.

Yesterday I wasn't too sure ahead of time what the plan was, but we ended up having lunch at a nice cafe/restaurant in Haruno and driving to the sea. Lunch was very good, and we got to talk about lots of things. The conversation flowed fairly smoothly, which was a relief. On the way to the beach, he also showed me the Haruno Sports Park, which is where his softball team plays from time to time. At the beach we mostly sat and talked some more, although we walked enough for me to get plenty of sand in my shoes. Wearing high heels to the beach was maybe not such a good idea, but I managed not to fall on my face, so I guess it wasn't too much of a problem. We also went to the Katsurahama beach and saw Ryoma's statue, plus some very nice view points. It was funny; despite having lived relatively nearby for most of his life, Tatsuya had never gone to Katsurahama before. I knew the area better than he did.

Anyhow, on the way back from Katsurahama we swung by YJHS; it's where Tatsuya went to junior high, and he wanted to see it again. The funny part was when some of my students, who happened to be on the sidewalk near the school, spotted me in the car. I wish I'd still be around to hear their theories on what Andrea-sensei was doing in a car with a young Japanese man. But I won't be going back to that school, so I guess it doesn't matter much.

While we'd been at lunch, Tatsuya had invited me to go with him to the mall the next day to shop for some goodbye gifts for people at TJHS. Since I had nothing that needed to be done at the office, I was more than happy to take the day off and join him. Today we met up just before lunch time and drove out to the mall. We had lunch at the Italian restaurant, which was very tasty. Tatsuya just about won my heart by offering to eat the rest of my pasta when I couldn't finish it. It's kind of a bad thing to leave food on your plate here, even at restaurants, so I was a little embarrassed that I couldn't eat all of mine. Whether he had noticed my distress and was trying to help me out, or was just kind of hungry, I appreciated the offer.

At the mall, I helped Tatsuya pick out some gifts for the softball team and for T-sensei's daughters. He wanted to get a thank you gift for T-sensei since he had been kind of like an advisor to Tatsuya, but T-sensei had requested something for his kids rather than for himself. I thought I did a very good job by convincing him to get colored pencils in pretty tin cases for the girls rather than pocket towels. I'm sure elementary students have plenty of need for small towels, but it's not a very exciting gift. For the junior high students he got pocket towels and cups that they can use when they brush their teeth after lunch. I hope the students will use them, because it seemed like Tatsuya put a lot of thought into what to get. Then, for the teachers at TJHS, he got a gift set of little cakes. The whole operation sounds pretty simple, but we walked the length of the mall a few times before he could decide exactly which things to get.

While we were walking around, we ran into two of the girls from TJHS, who were shopping with one of their mothers. The surprise on their faces when they saw the two of us walking around together was priceless. Tatsuya's reaction was even more dramatic; he didn't seem to know whether to laugh or to hide. Perhaps it's not such a good thing to have been spotted, but it was also kind of hilarious. One of the girls just graduated this year, but the other one will be in the 3rd grade class next year. I don't think it should be any cause for trouble since Tatsuya doesn't teach at that school anymore, but I'm not sure what the aftereffects will be. So that was the excitement for the day. I had thought I might run into some students at the mall, but I never imagined I'd see TJHS students there.

After all the shopping was done, we went to a cafe to relax and chat for a while. I was kind of tired at this point and was maybe a little quiet, but Tatsuya did a good job of keeping the conversation going. I'm really glad he doesn't seem to mind doing that. Answering questions in Japanese is challenging enough, but trying to introduce new topics is even harder. Of course, with Tatsuya I can use a fairly good amount of English when I need to. He really does understand quite a lot. So long as I keep my sentences relatively simple, he usually gets the point.

Around 4:30 we left the cafe and Tatsuya gave me a ride home. We decided that next time we meet up, we'll get okonomiyaki from a shop near where I live. I also said I'd show him the little photo album I brought with me from America. I've gotten to hear about his family and school life, but it's hard for me to explain my own, so I thought maybe the pictures will help. I don't know when we'll meet up, though, because I'm not free on the weekends and work is going to be very busy for him starting soon. From Monday he's at his new junior high, and he'll have to work pretty hard to get up to speed. In any case, I know he plans to come see the Genki musical, so I should see him again then. But it would be great if we could hang out before then, as well.

So, that's what I've been up to for the past two days. Since I'm not going anywhere, I'm sure it'll be the highlight of my spring break. I quite like spending time with Tatsuya; he's very cheerful and positive, and I feel comfortable talking with him. Today at lunch it felt almost like a dream because I used to imagine doing things like eating at a restaurant together, but I always assumed it was impossible. It has been very surprising how quickly and smoothly everything fell into place.