Notes from Japan

This page chronicles a few of my experiences in Japan.

Farewell Speech

On August 9th, 2012, a reception was held to mark the changing of the town ALT. This is a translation of the final speech I gave bidding farewell to my wonderful community.

The translation has a few stylistic adaptations to account for the idiomatic differences between English and Japanese. A PDF of my original Japanese text is here. (Native Japanese readers should note that my Japanese is probably a bit odd.)

Waku-Waku Diary Selections

One of my duties as the ALT in my town has been to write a regular article called "Waku-Waku Diary" for the monthly community newsletter. I basically write about anything that I feel like, as long as it isn't controversial or inappropriate for public consumption. Over the years, I've rambled on about a wide range of topics, many of which are too specialized, dated, or banal to reproduce here. However, I've posted a small selection of some of my better articles.

Keep in mind that these were written specifically to be translated into Japanese for Japanese readers. I have made a few minor edits for style and flow, but even so the language may seem a bit stilted or simplistic at times — a consequence of trying to keep things as straightforward as possible for my translators.

These articles are pretty wide-ranging in their subject matter and tone. The effect may be a little jarring if you read them all in close succession...

Japanese readers can find the published articles through this site.

Tohoku Earthquake: A View From the Ground

On Friday, March 11th, 2011, a massive earthquake and tsunami struck the Tohoku region of Japan, where I live and work. In the days following the disaster, I wrote a quick three-part journal describing the events from my own point of view. Originally written for my friends and family, it was also published in the local newspaper of my home town in Canada, the Kingston Whig-Standard.

I have now made all three original parts available here.

Related images:

 

Addendum

This is a follow-up piece describing some of the developments over the next two months.

Related images:

Go to my home page.