Fall 2011 - Changes

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2 / Ryukyu Star / Changes 2011

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8 SeasonsChangeAutumn inOkinawa

10 Changes: ArrivalLearning to Swim

12 Changes: ReturnJust Turn theKey

15 TheSecretAdventuresTheTale of the Lost Tail

5

Ryukyu Star / Changes 2011 / 3

EEddiittoorrss'' NNootteess

EEverwondered howmany times a daywe change shoes?…Yeah, Iwouldn’tbother counting either. But all the same,mymind oftenwanders to new culturaland environmental differences I’veadapted to sincemoving away frommylife inAustralia, tomy current home,Miyako.

One of themost obvious changes thisyear has been towhat has for somanyyears been fondly named theYAK. Itwasalways interesting to read the latest YAK.Myparticular interestwas inwhat peoplegot up to in their very differentcircumstances on different islands.WhenIwas appointed as the new editor, it was alittle overwhelming to knowwhere tostart, but Iwas thankful thatAutumnwas

appointed as the visual editor. I can onlyapplaud andwonder atwhatKateViernesandEmily Bucheratimanaged to pull offlast year. I also greatly appreciate the verymanywilling peoplewho took part in thesurvey, the re-naming competition, andthosewho’ve contributed to the very firstissue for the 2011/2012 year. I lookforward to facilitating theRyukyu Star’sprogress this yearwithAutumn andofcourse, with the PAs, Ryan andElizabeth,who are always at the ready to help.

TheOkinawan sky often graces uswithgorgeous sunsets. Some sunsets arebreathtaking, while others are lessdazzling; but one thing’s for sure, they'realways different. Even though they’renever the same, they’re essentially thesame sunmaking it’s way to the other side

of theworld. Likewise, themagazine’sundergone (andwill continue to undergo)a lot of superficial changes, butwhatwon’t change, andwhat I hopewill neverchange, is the essence of this publication– that it’s produced by and is the voice oftheOkiJET community.

Ayli Chong

WWhenAyli and I took the reigns fromKate andEmily, we decided that it wastime for a change. Both she and I spenthours researching other prefectural JETmagazines and noticed that a largepercentagewere online, in a digital formatandwere easily available to anyone bothwithin those prefectures and outside ofthem.Thosemagazines becamenot onlywindows into small communities, butones inwhich those communities couldconnect various experiences in Japan to

the rest of theworld.WithAJETConnect joining in this year, we decided itwas time tomove theYAK into newterritory.Our focus thoughwas notspecifically on audiences beyondourcommunity.Weboth believed that havinga solely digital publicationwould relieveour PAs from the grueling print shopprocess, save the resolution and color thatwas lost in the print version, and also savenatural resources. In thinking of howwecould representOkinawa proudly toourselves and to our friends, family andother JETswithin Japan, a name changeseemed like the first step in our process ofrebuilding themagazine. The nameYAK,while having its own JET related history,seemed unconnected toOkinawa itselfand from the commentsmade onoursurvey, theOkiJET community largelyagreed. Ryukyu Starwas chosen from thelist of choices not because the Star is a

tabloid publication thatwe plan toemulate but becauseOkinawa prefectureis famous for both its star sand and itsbeautiful night skies, with amyriad ofstars thatmost of us have never had thechance to see beforemoving here.Ryukyuwas chosen because it reachesback into the prefecture’s history, whenOkinawawas theRyukyuKingdom.Wehope you enjoyChanges, the latestpublication fromourOkiJETs. Thanks toall whohave contributed to this issue. Theprofessionalism and talent in the articles,photography and artwork helpedmakethis amagazine I amproudof. I hope allof you are too.

AutumnWiddoes


NNootteess ffrroomm tthheeKKeenncchhooSo,Elizabethwas consideringwriting anintroduction to, uh, herself (come for theinformation, stay for the enthralling PAbio!) butwhenwe spoke,we decidedtherewas toomuch importantinformation to put here to fit that in.We’re right into parties, the holidays, coldseason, and just past the first fewmonthsof a newbatch of arrivals (includingElizabeth), for Pete’s sake. Read on, and ifyou have any questions, ask yourcoordinator orwrite in to your adoringPAs.

1)Winter can be a lot of fun, but it canalso suckwith its short days and, inOkinawa, coldwinds.Don’tunderestimate how cool it can get here; bepreparedwith a thick sweatshirt or jacketin your closet.Wash your hands often to

avoid getting sick.Flu season is also on itsway, so if you areinterested in getting a flu shot, please beaware that it is not covered by your healthinsurance!

2)Don’t underestimate how crappy youmight feel either, especially you new JETswhomight not have settled in yet. If youfeel like you need help, please neverhesitate to call us, or call:

AJETPeer SupportGroup (8pmto 7am): 0120-437-725

The JETLine (Monday to Friday,9am to 6 pm) 03-5213-1729

3) Parties! Lots of fun.Winding up in jailfor drunk driving, not somuch.Drinkresponsibly and have the number of a taxi

service or a reliable friend ready shouldyou get drunk.Never forget how stiff thepenalties are!

4) Christmas andNewYear are a time formany of us to go home and visit lovedones. Checkwith your coordinator,bosses, etc about holiday timeBEFOREbuying your ticket, though.Yourcoordinatorwill probablywant youritinerary, too.

Those are the basics. Everyone planwelland stay safe.We’ll see you around!

Elizabeth and Ryan

FFrroomm AAJJEETT WWiitthh LLoovveeHello all!

As someof youmay know,myname isAdam, and I am the currentNationalAJETBlock 11Representative. First, aformal, introductory bit aboutmewrittenin the third person:

Adamwas born inKumamoto, Japan, butgrewup inLosAngeles, California.Hegraduated about a year and a half agofrom theUniversity of California,Daviswith aBS in International Relations, and aminor in Japanese. Currently on hissecond year of JET, in the prefecture ofhis birth, Adamcontinues to enjoy his

hobbies of playing sports, and spendingquality timewith his friends and girlfriend.

Now, five informal facts aboutmewrittenin the first person:

I am aHappa. (Half JapaneseHalfAmerican)I am anonly child.I passed the JLPT level 2 in high school,butmyKanji is atrocious.My favorite color is blue.I extremely dislike bugs, especially thoseof gargantuan proportions present in thecountryside.

Finally, back to professional prose.

It wasmy sincere pleasuremeeting someof you duringTokyoOrientation. Sincerunning forBlock 11Representativeseveralmonths ago, it has beenmy goal tobring together the prefectures ofSouthernKyushu andOkinawa, andinstill a better sense of communitybetween JETs inKagoshima,Okinawa,Miyazaki, andKumamoto. TheBlockevent IchiKyuBee held on theweekendof October 1st and 2ndwas a chance forJETs tomeet andmake friendswith JETsand Japanese people fromdifferentprefectures.


Watching the sunset becamekindof a ritual forme that startedwithchildhood family vacations and continuedon intomyyears living insouthernCalifornia. I amsoglad I get to enjoy themhere in Japantoo.Okinawa's sunsets are sobeautiful and continually changing...

AngiBrzycki


(Continued from page 4)I understand that it is both expensive and difficult forOkiJETs totravel toKyushu, and vice versa. Despite this fact, I would like toorganize an eventwhich encourages interaction between thedifferent prefectures.We are currently considering an inter-prefectural soccer tournament for sometime in January, and itwould be awesome if someOkinawans cameout! Personally, Iwould love to visit within the next year, and if I am able to, wanttomeet asmany of you as possible.

YoroshikuOnegaishimasu!

AdamChludzinskiP.S. I'm themime.

byR.

TThhee RRyyuukkyyuu SSttaarrIssue 1/Fall 2011

AnOkinawa JETPrefectural Publication

GeneralEditorAyli Chong

Design/LayoutAutumnWiddoes

ContributorsGrantMinagawaHilsonReidpathElizabethReuterKathryn StrongJacqui Toulson

Shisa SunLogoJeridel JdBanks

Sunset/CoverPhotosAngi Brzycki



First thewind starts to get stronger, thick and heavy;rolling through the kibi fields like a brush in tangledhair. Then you begin to notice that night time iscreeping in earlier and earlierwith each day. By thetime dinner has beenmade the last crests of pink andred are falling down the horizon. Youbecomehesitant to enter the ocean, your nipples tighten andgoosebumps round up your arms as you stare at thewater before a Saturdaymorning swim, but you dive inanyways, and once fully submerged,with the bloodcirculating through your core, youwonderwhy youwere hesitant in the first place.

Children begin coming to schoolwith jackets tiedaround their waists and the amount of kyu-shoku leftover increases - indication of the number of studentsat home resting a cold away. The large tents andcolorful strings of multi-national flags are packed safelyaway. With the distractions of sports festivals andtrackmeets out of theway, five-dayweeks once againbegin tomake regular appearances on the schedule.

Supermarkets flood their aisles and displayswithoutlandish amounts of nabe souppackages - asthough to imply it would be an insult to one's family toserve anything else. Mikans are piled high in the fruitsection, amolten blend of bright green and orange,their skins unnassumingly hide a sweet flesh that

makes you pucker less and less as the daysmove on.Togan drops down to incredibly discounted price of 9yen per 100 gram (or at least you think that is cheap,you don't often pay attention to the price of togan, notknowingwhat to dowith onewere you buy it, even atthese incredible rates).

The number of mosquitoes thin out andwithoutrealizing it the 6 inch, yellow-bellied spiders have driedup, left forwherever they go during the chilliermonths, certain to return in the spring to spinmoreman-sizedwebs betwixt trees and light-poles. So toogone are themigratory birds fromHokkaido andRussia, stopping briefly to rest as they head farthersouth for thewinter.

Though in all honesty, they, like autumn inOkinawa,were never really here to beginwith.

HilsonReidpath is a 3rd yearALT livingonMiyakojima,Okinawa.

Autumn inOkinawa



It’s still raining. I’d been told that summer is therainy season, that fromhere on, theweatherwillbe getting cooler, and the typhoonswill cease.Thatwas in late September, and it appears thatOctober is feeling vengeful. So far, everyday isthe same: dreary, drippy. Although Iwas almostused to havingmy clothes stick tomybody,mybangs plastered tomy eyelids, suctioned there bysweat, I was excited by the promised change.Now: differentweather, same result. I still feellike I shouldwringmyself out by the end of theday. When I check the forecast everymorning,hoping for an overnightmiracle of blue skies andsunshine, I can’t help but glancewistfully at thejuxtaposed SouthernCalifornia chart. Warmweather and clear skies. And yet, I can’t bringmyself to envymy friends in the InlandEmpire,because it’s been almost threemonths, and I stillthink, “God, I live in paradise,” everydaywhen Idrive towork. Even the dayswhen I arrive atschool half drowned, and sea sick fromaturbulent ferry ride, and I can’t see the sky, and thebottom two inches of the hemof mypants arecaked inmud.

Itmight be that I’m still in the first phase ofculture shock, that I’m flying through life elatedwith the newness of everything aroundme. But,I don’t think so.An afternoon spent crying forwant of a grilled cheese sandwich seems tosuggest that I’vemoved beyond that. Andwhilecertainly the until recent sunnyweather hashelped to ease the transition, I can’t help butconsider how entirelymy life has beentransformed in the last fewmonths.

I’mnot going to say now that I’ve been alteredinto a new and improved version of myself in thespace of a fewmonths.No, I’m certainly thesamepersonwho I’ve always been. I’m stillimpulsive, accident prone, and an awful cook, but

LLeeaarrnniinngg ttoo SSwwiimm


I have becomemore self-sufficient. In the past, I’veeither livedwithmyparents, or in a dorm; I’d neverlived alone beforemoving here. Andbecause therewere always other peoplewhose job it was to take careof me, I’d never learned how to take care of myself.Then Imoved here, and I had no choice. As I toldmyJTE, “Moving is always difficult.Moving to a foreigncountry…somedays it feels impossible.” Things that Ithink should take a fewminutes, takes hours, andsometimes something as small as trying to read theingredients at the grocery store can cause a completemeltdown. Is theremeat in this sauce or is there not?

The struggle, though, of getting by everyday,makesevery day that I get through seem someaningful.When I arrange for a package to be delivered tomyapartment, when I paymybills, when I say goodafternoon tomyneighbors, each small success ismagnified. I feel a swell of accomplishment at eventhese simple tasks. Crossing things off lists has neverbeen so fulfilling. After all, in the past “buy shampoo”meantwalk to the store across the street, and buy thebrand I always buy, becausemymomalways bought it,because it’s what I’ve been usingmywhole life andmyhair has never fallen out, so itmust be okay. Now itinvolves amulti-lingual adventure andmaking choicesonmyown.

Launching into adulthood isn’t an easy process. Isn’tthere a sub-par Sarah Jessica Parker/MatthewMcConaugheymovie depicting this? (Yes, there is; yes,

I’ve seen it; yes, I enjoyed it…Ihave no shamewhen itcomes to romantic comedies.) The point is that it’sdaunting to leave the placewhere you’ve always lived,leave the people you’ve always livedwith, and start lifeon your own. Add to that a change of country andlanguage and,well, it’s a sink or swim sort of situation.So far, it feels like I’m treadingwater. I’m still in theadjustment process, and that’s okay.

What’s important is that it’s a process, and I’mmovingforward. Whilemymove to Japanmay have happenedovernight,my settling into adult life, andmoreparticularly adult life abroad, is going to take a bitmoretime. After all, if it tookmeuntil last week to realizethatmyoven is inCelsius, not Fahrenheit, imagine howlong it will takeme to really figure things out.

KathrynStrong is a 1st yearALT living inMotobu,Okinawa.

Dusk at Miyagi Island, Okinawa

photo by Angi Bryzki

Motobu from the ferry toMinna

photobyKathrynStrong


My trip back to SouthAfrica (it still feels strangeto call it “home”)was long,messy and tear-filled.Twenty hours of flight time, seventeen hourswaiting in airports, 50,000 yen and 120USdollarsspent on overweight baggage and overpricedairport lounges finally resulted in delivering anexhausted, fed-up, broken-downme intomywonderful family’s waiting arms.

Since that day inAugust, which feels both likeyesterday andmany lifetimes ago,my life hastakenmany similarly crazy turns, both for thebetter and for theworse.

I had heard all the horror stories frompreviousALTswhohad been inOkinawa perhaps a littletoo long. Stories of friendlessness, joblessness,reverse culture-shock and lack of understandingfromanyone around them. I felt like thispreparedme forwhatwas ahead, but it was stillhard to adjust to having to report back tomymother every time Iwent out, not having a cell-phone nor any idea of where I should go orwhat to do anymore. The first twoweekswererough as I struggledwith jetlag and cabin fever,as I had noway of leaving the house.

I amhappy to report, though, that things arestarting to look up.My lovely stepfather had theforesight to know that Iwould need somethingto look forward to, and had booked us a two-week trip through the SouthernKalahari. Forjust over aweekwewent fromcamp to campand enjoyed staying in cabins overlooking someof themost beautiful scenery I have ever seenwhile listening to black-backed jackals howlingoutside. For the last four dayswe joined theNossob 4x4Eco-Trail, which had us and four

JJuusstt TTuurrnn tthhee KKeeyy

JacquiToulson, anALT fromSouthAfrica, lived inOkinawafrom2006-2011.

Evenbehind the relative safety of aLandRover door, the

golden stare of a lioness is bone-chilling!


other cars driving through the desert and over toweringsand dunes, ending our days at open campsites.

Our craziest evening involved pitching our tentswhilea famousKalahari storm rolled in over the dunes. Bearinmind that it’s currently the dry season,whichmeansthat both stormswewent through had been importedespecially for us.During the strongest point itmeantthat every one of uswaswrapping our bodies aroundat least one tent pole hoping desperatelywewouldn’tbe blown away.After thewind finally subsided thelions decided to comeout to play. Theymade theirpresence very knownby growling loudlywhilewewereattempting to cook dinners over a fire.Weopened ourbonnets and attached spotlights to the car batteries tokeep a lookout, which attracted... yes, dearALTswithyour flushing toilets and your canned bug-spray... theyattracted scorpions. Lots of scorpions. It hardly needsto be said but that night I slept in the car.

Back in the city, where I had the best and longest bath Ihave ever had inmy life, I realised I had rekindledmypassion forwildlife photography. I amnowworkingon a children’s book of wildlife pictures.

Uponour return, aswell, I had received an email fromthe Japanese embassy, offeringme a job.Applicationsand interviews over, I nowhave a temporaryadministration job at the embassy starting inDecember. The job itself isn’t ideal, but I amhappythat I get towork at a placewhere I can practisemyJapanese (all day it turns out - even the interviewwasentirely in Japanese)whileworkingwith fantasticpeople. Another ex-ALT,MelodyNgobese, and Iwereinvited to a lunch at the ambassador’s housewherewemet embassyworkers, the principal of the Japaneseschool in Johannesburg and heads of Japanesecompanies.We’ll also be attending an embassy-sponsored Japanese film festival nextweekend.

As if thatweren’t enough,while attending a series and

photographic seminars, I was fortunate enough tomeet twoof my idols - Jodi Bieber (no relation toJustin), a TimeMagazine photographer, andKingsleyHolgate, amodern-dayDavidLivingstonewho travelsaroundAfrica in his LandRovermakingdocumentaries and providingmosquito nets and eye-glasses to thosewhoneed them.

All of these events together havemademe verypositive about the next fewmonths. Untilmy job atthe embassy starts I plan to takeHolgate’s advice ofstarting an adventure - “Just turn the key.”Tomorrow Iwill get into theLandRover, drive toWhereTheWildThingsAre, take photos, turn around andhopefully behome in time for dinner. Rinse and repeat for the nexttwomonths, submit bookmock-ups to publishers andpotential sponsors, start job, finish job and continue.

To those of youwho areworried about your eventualreturn home,my advice is to be sad. For awhile. Thenstop.Explore your home, find things you used to love.Find new things to love. Take risks.Keep your tieswithJapan - it’s a place that has changed you inexplicablyand permanently, even if you don’t realise it yet. Bepositive. Be excited. Be newly enchantedwith theworld around you.Nomatterwhere you are, it’s apretty enchanting place.

For up-to-date photos of my adventures, checkhttp://jaxpix.tumblr.com

JJaaccqquuii wwiitthh KKiinnggsslleeyy HHoollggaattee



The tale of Rekio theLion is as old as time…or at least as oldas thiswatch,whichwas purchased for the sake of keeping trackof said time. Rekio has travelled far andwide, across entireoceans and to the very peaks of bookshelves and toy chests, tofind a treasure beyond treasures. His adventures continue, evento this day, despitemany challenges and close calls.

Our hero comes fromvery humble roots. Hewas born to anItalianmother and anOkinawan father inHongKong in 2007.One day, his parentsmysteriously disappeared, and hewas putup for adoption in a local souvenir store. Hewas adopted andraised in a strange, far-away land knownonly asHawaii. Helearned how to be a ninja, andwas happy playingwith hismaster’s otherminions, known asToys.

But the little lion longed to return toAsia and find hismissingparents. Whenhismasterwas posted on the tropical island ofOkinawa, Rekio jumped at the chance…and into hismaster’sluggage. Hismasterwas not pleasedwhenhe found the littlelion. Rekiowas allowed to search for his family on the conditionthat no one sawhim…ever.

TThhee SSeeccrreett AAddvveennttuurreess ooff RReekkiiooby Grant Minagawa

Thus, theSecretAdventureswereborn.

Occasionally,Rekiomisses his islandhome…well, his other

islandhome. TheTikis-By-The-Seahelphim feel at homeand

gives himoversizedumbrellas. They’re all great guys, but a little

salty.

Therewas once aweek thatwasmade entirely out of gold!Rekio’s

mastermust haveused thegold tobuyplane tickets becausehegot to go

toTaiwan! TheGuandu-Temple-Shisawasnice enough to chat, but the

little lion couldn’t find any relatives there.

Water is badnews for a littlewooden lion likeRekio.

Ourhero once foundhimself in a center full of

flowers, Shisa, andTropicalDreams. Luckily,

Gross-Spitting-Water-Shisa didn’t throwhim into

thedarkpools. TheseTropicalDreamsmust be

badones!

GrantMinagawa is a 2nd yearALTbased in Ishikawa,Okinawa.


Rekio began his search onMiyako Island. He thought it’d be easy tofind Shisa on such a flat island, but he was having a hard time. Afteran entire day of searching, he decided to take a rest on a nearbywall. It wasn’t a wall! The evilWall Fish grabbed the little lion andtook a bite out of his tail! The little lion squealed in little lion agonyand ran away.

PPaarrtt VV:: TThhee TTaallee ooff tthhee LLoosstt TTaaiill

Rekio decided to ask some Elder Shisafor help in his quest. He found some at aVery High School in Naha. They lived inplain sight, so the little lion had to beextra careful. He nearly got spotted byhis natural predator, the school girl.

The Elder Shisa told him that he could find theanswers he sought within himself. Go figure.

The little lion tried to take the advice of the Elder Shisa andlook within himself. He found Bizarro-Mirror-World-Shisa.Mirror Shisa was very annoying, and copied everything Rekiodid. He saw amap in the mirror world and tricked theMirrorShisa to move out of the way. Our hero headed to his nextdestination: MMiiyyaakkoo IIssllaanndd !! !! !!

The little lion was so scared and embarrassed!He found a police officer namedMamoru-Kun andtried to explain the situation. Mamoru-Kun wastoo busy dealing with traffic safety to help thelittle lion. He was even losing paint… or was thatdrool? This was going nowhere, so the little lionleft.


At the end of his fruitless, humiliating journey, Rekio met theMiyako-Airport-Recycled-Shisa. The Airport Shisa was huge. He stood in plain sight,despite his strange, slightly frightening appearance. He told the little lionthat looks didn’t matter. Shisa must be brave and not embarrassed all thetime; their job is to protect! The little lion learned a valuable lesson!

EEppiilloogguuee::The little lion decided to tell hismaster about his missing tail. He expected hismaster to be very angry at him. The little lionwas shocked to see the missing piece of his tailin his master’s bag! Rekio’s master explainedhow he found the missing piece after the littlelion ran from the evilWall Fish. Rekio was sohappy! Now to find some glue!!

The little lion wanderedMiyako, unsure of whatto do next. There were evilWall Fish andother monsters here, not to mention beachesfull of water at every turn. It was a dangerousplace. Rekio must have been delirious, becausehe even thought he was in Germany at onepoint! He decided to hide in shame for the restof the trip.



Jeridel "Jd"Banks is a 2nd yearALT fromCalifornia,USA.Before entering the JETProgramme, Jdwas a student at SanDiegoStateUniversity studying Pre-Physical Therapy andFineArts.Her love for anime,manga, and Japanese culture influenced her decision tonot just become anALT, but to also learn how to draw in the first place. In spite of having dreams of drawing and designing, Jd enjoysteaching her high school students now.

AngiBrzycki has a slight obsessive compulsive disorderwhen it comes to taking photographs. People (friends) oftenmade fun ofherwhen shewould showup at partieswith 3 or 4 cameras and nobooze. Theywere rather impressedwhen she'dwalk around 2 fisted(a camera in each hand). Angi has been takingmuch less party pictures sincemoving toOkinawa, instead she snaps photos of sunsets(nightly), food (sushi), stray cats (grey), and randomgraffiti (seawall). Someone recently asked her if she takes pictures to rememberwhatshemight forget. She reflected and realized, she couldn't rememberwhat shewore or ate for lunch the day before. Currently, Angi is anALTof twohigh schools (one commercial/one technical).

AyliChong is the editor of theRyukyu Star; one of only twoAustralian citizens residing inMiyako; and a keenmusic appreciationenthusiast who’s developed the fine art of pretending she’s Japanese behind herAsian façade and poor Japanese ability.Her twopreviousoccupationswere editing and proofreadingmaterials for twodifferentmajor educational institutions inAustralia. As such, her alreadypoor eyesight continues to decline as she obsessively reads, re-reads and corrects the very few errors in everyone’s submissions to theRyukyu Star. She’smoved fromworking at 5 elementary schools in her first year, to 7 junior high schools as a second yearALT.

GrantMinagawa is a 2nd yearALT fromHawaii (USA).He lives andworks inCentralOkinawa,where he has deluded himselfinto thinking that he holds some sway over the otherALTs in the area as their Blockhead.His chronic inability to say, ‘No,’ and frequentworkaholic indulgences are just a couple of reasonswhy he has no time formore productive pursuits.On the rare occasionswhen hedoes have free time, he is a TravelNinja; blending in acrossEastAsia and surprise-attacking localswith appalling language incompetence.Togetherwith a littlewooden sidekick, hewrites the “SecretAdventures” comic strip series for theRyukyu Star.

HilsonReidpath is a 3rd yearALTwho lives onMiyako Island.He is hoping that his articlewill help him rememberwhere he lefthis pen and journal.

ElizabethReuter,Muni PA andCIR, is a gleefully hopeless geek forwhom life is all about learning new things,meeting newpeople, andwriting about learning new things andmeeting newpeople. Thus, she's spent about four of the last ten years abroad in JapanandMexico, and is having her first novel published inNovember. She's held a lot of odd jobs over the past decade, including secretary,store clerk, book editor, telephone representative, articlewriter, and library page. She did not chooseOkinawawhen applying for JETbutnow loves a lot about it and is glad shewas placed here, though thatwon't stop her frompopping over tomainlandwhenever possible tosquee at newplaces.

KathrynStrong is a 1st yearALTwho lives inMotobu,Okinawa.

JacquiToulsonwas anALT inOkinawa from2006-2011. She currently resides in SouthAfrica.

AutumnWiddoes is the designer and visual editor of theRyukyu Star. She is a 2nd yearALT. Having spent last year on IshigakiIsland, she now lives inNaha and loves it. When she has free time, shewrites, reads, wanders the city (and the island) and dreams. Shesometimeswrites in her blog "Eigo noBento" about her experiences teachingESL and living inOkinawa.

CCoonnttrriibbuuttoorrss


Next theme:TickledPinkWhat delights you somuch that it tickles your checks to turn pink?Howabout theseOkinawanpink things: dragon fruit, hibiscus, pink shisa,…?The next issue is scheduledto coincidewith themonth of Valentine’sDay!

Call for submissionsThismagazine doesn’t just appear out of nowhere –weneed contributors. Acceptingsubmissions nowuntil Friday January 20, 2011 - articles, photos, illustrations, anything!Whether you’d like to share something as a guest (just as a one-off) or if you’d like tobecome a regular contributor, contact [email protected]

Here are (plenty) of areas in need of an adoptive contributor:

Hot forTeaching - school related activities, ideas, games, club adviceLove andRelationshipAdviceRecipes (with food photos)IllustratorOuter island correspondentsSports – karate, best gyms, other activitiesOkinawanculture - Festivals, favourite hougen phrases, etcArts/Culture - review art exhibitions,movies, books,music, live concerts, etcCommunity involvement - highlight volunteer activitiesTravel correspondents - within Japan and outside of itMini-Class: photography tips and tricksI <<33 Japan! What you specifically adore and love about Japan byR.

PPuurriikkuurraa ccoonntteesstt!!Bust out your best poses at your local purikura –we’re looking for themost creativeOkiJETpurikura. Submit your entries [email protected] now! Submissions due byFriday January 20, 2011.*Up to three submissionsper personpermitted.

NewNameWe’ve changed names, sowe have a new address! Please contact theediting teamof theRyukyu Star at [email protected] fromnowon.Your comments and suggestions are alwayswelcome.

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Fall 2011 - Changes