Life on the N7

Life on the N7, has simply been heaven (rhyme not intended, I swear). In all seriousness, there are way too many wonderful things to share here, but I'll throw some of the highlights of my week at you for good measure. :)

For the past week, I've been working with the nurse aids Nakano san and Nishimura san on the North 7th floor. They're both great and usually laugh as they say "wakaranai!" ("you don't understand") when I look blank faced. Today, Nishimura san spent 40 minutes trying to explain to me that the vegetable that's used to make wasabi grows near clean water. I had to get her to write it down so I could look it up at home after.

I am becoming more comfortable speaking with patients and I'm very happy that I am; they're all so wonderful! They really appreciate my efforts speaking Japanese and always say "sugoi!" "amazing!" when I can understand and answer. They also understand when I say "I don't understand" and nod and say "Nihongo wa muzikashii desu." "Japanese is difficult". I also hear all of the "ganbatte kudasai" "please keep working hard".

ALSO, I experienced THE strangest of things today. There is a Russian patient at the hospital who speaks absolutely astounding Japanese, Russian of course and yet hardly any English. She's lived here for 10 years now and it is so strange seeing a blonde haired Western looking woman but having to speak in Japanese for us to communicate. The weirder thing is that she has a 7 year old daughter who speaks Russian, Japanese and is learning English. Watching this little munchkin run around speaking Japanese to staff (with much less difficulty than me) was the oddest thing! I spoke with her what I could manage in Japanese and gave her a Canadian pin to keep. She gave me a pencil. I'd say it was a fair trade. Her mom says we'll go for sushi when she leaves the hospital!

Over the last few days I've also become more comfortable with the nursing staff. They practice speaking English with me (I've inspired one of the nurses to practice more because I study Japanese "very eagerly" she says). One of the nurses today said I was "omoshiroii desu" which means "interesting". I later figured out she actually meant "unique" but I think it was her nice way of saying "this Canadian chick is weird".

The "Lattitude lunches" that run every Tuesday and Thursday at 12:30 with the Fureai Center staff are the BEST. They practice speaking English and can't get enough of the variety of pictures I've brought with me to Japan. One of the women really likes to ask "What do you like in a man?!" to everyone. We then discovered the English word "bald", which quickly followed "YOU IS BALD!". We've made plans to see a Fukuoka Hawks baseball game (I'm missing my Jays!) soon. I'm the most excited! Worth noting: the current short stop for the Blue Jays, Munenori Kawasaki, used to play for the Fukuoka Hawks What's up?!

This evening I helped at another TOEFL English study class at 7pm at the Hospital. I got a free sandwich and drink too which was excellent timing considering I didn't have dinner. Amazing! Today we practiced pronouncing the 'L', 'R' and 'V' sounds that aren't in the Japanese language and difficult for Japanese speakers to say. Keiko san, the leader of the class drew some fantastic photos to help. :)


A final wonderful thing to mention, I've shown my interest in observing surgeries to Ogata san, the head nurse of the OR, and now she's given me permission to stop by every Wednesday and Friday afternoon to observe! What an amazing opportunity! So tomorrow I'll be in the OR again watching and learning, weee!

Finally (if you've made it this far), golden week starts tomorrow in Japan! I've used 3 of my 10 vacation days to secure 10 days in a row off from work (April 29th, May 3rd and 6th are national holidays). Myself and two other volunteers that I met at the Tokyo Orientation, Michelle and Heather, are going to visit Osaka, Kyoto and Tokyo! I'm really excited. Iizuka...I love ya, but you're a calm and collected laid back city and I'm ready for the hustle and bustle of the craziness that is Japan. Here we GO!

N7F - Gynecology aka "lady's ward"

Today was my first day volunteering in a new ward; gynecology. When I tell people that I'm working on the north 7th floor...they all say "ahhh....lady's ward". I should also mention that Samantha and I have split up and I'm really feeling the hurt of not having a Japanese-English translator. This is the point where my gesturing becomes a serious art.
Nagaoka san, the head nurse on the N7F, is an absolute delight! She's so gentle, soft spoken and kind. The cutest! She takes her time to explain things to me in Japanese and in as much English as she can to make sure I understand what's going on. Then we laugh together when I look totally confused while she searches through my mini dictionary.
Today I worked with Nakano san, a nurse aid. She is full of energy and is very happy to speak with me despite my permanent "...huh?" face. We worked similar jobs to the previous ward and spoke about lots of things including my age, my height, my weight, if I was married, my family and how I like to spend my time. She's very patient with me when she asks the Japanese name for something and I've completely forgotten. My excuse is always "Sorry! I'll keep working hard". She also now tells everyone that I go jogging every day and I have to tell them that all the delicious Japanese food is going to make me seriously obese if I don't. She's easy to joke with and we've already have a few good laughs. I'm excited to continue working with her.

Another thing I find totally necessary to mention: I saw my first Japanese yawn today. This event broke my theory that the Japanese plug themselves in at night. Seriously, these people are machines! Onto my next theory of how they can consistently work at 112%.

Muscle aches

All the things to tell you!
Thursday morning we had an exciting change to our daily schedule; we watched a lumbar puncture and saw right up close (I'm not shy, I get right in there) as the doctor collected a sample of cerebral spinal fluid! It was amazing, such an exciting experience!

Thursday afternoon we were allowed to observe in the operating room! We arrived around 1:45 and sat in on pancreatic surgery. The patient had advanced pancreatic cancer and the surgery was removing a tumor from the pancreas and reconnecting important duct work from the pancreas to the small intestine. It was unbelievable! I was also very fortunate to get the chance to speak with the surgeon during the procedure, we spoke about the organ locations and functions as well as the blood supply and the method of reconnecting the pancreatic duct to the duodenum, all while he was pointing it out to me. I also spoke with the anesthesiologist and he gave me a quick crash course on anesthesiology. They were both so nice :). I also have a new appreciation for surgeons and their ability to STAND. This surgery began at 9 o'clock in the morning and by the time we left at 5:15 pm it was still going. My feet were in so much pain after standing for only 3 hours. Muscle ache #1, so worth it.

Right after I left surgery, I met up with Yano san and other members of the Fureai Center at a nearby gym to play badminton! It was great, we rented half of a gym, set up three courts and played some informal games. Oh how I missed badminton, I had the best time! Some of the staff were really excellent players too! I pushed myself a little bit too hard and I'm really feeling the pain two days later. I can barely type this blog because all the muscles in my right hand, arm and shoulder are so sore! Muscle aches #2; self-inflicted caused by over-competitiveness. I wouldn't say no to an onsen right about now...

Friday morning marked the end of 3 weeks volunteering on the East 6 Floor. I can't believe the time has gone by so quickly! I really did have an amazing time working with so many wonderful people, I'm going to miss them. I left a handful of little Canadian pins that some of the nurses and care workers pinned to their name tags. Watanabe san, the head nurse, also bought us lunch (perfect timing too, neither Sam nor I brought any that day). She's so wonderful. I'll be sure to go back and visit while I'm here. Muscle ache #3: my sad heart.

East 6 Floor Nursing Staff :)

Myself, Watanabe san and Samantha

Monday, Samantha and I are splitting up. I'm moving to the North wing 7th floor and Samantha is going to the East wing 5th floor. I'm excited to meet some new faces and see new things and help wherever I can.

Also, more pictures from Iizuka! Samantha and I went for another exploring bike ride Friday afternoon. This place is so lovely, I'm really loving the mountains.

Lattitude Lunches, the Fureai Center Welcome Party and more to come

These past few days have been crazy! Better get yourself settled in for this post, it might end up a short story.

It's my last week in the cerebral internal medicine ward on the 6th floor of the East wing of the Iizuka Hospital. And so far, it's been really great (well...not the same without Bell man). We've been keeping up with a variety of daily activities consisting of preparations, patient cleanings, sheet changing (I make hospital corners like a boss!), moving patients from the recovery rooms to other wards of the hospital, patient showers, delivering lunch trays (always smelling the most delicious - I'd jump down a flight of stairs for the free food!) and other small tasks.
We've also started to become more familiar with some staff members and speak more English with them. The other day, Taichi san (one of the nicest care workers who always gives us work to do) told us to take a break by saying "half time!". He also made me call out to another worker when he said "say Rio san...call him, call him!" so I did.."RIO SAN!" and ran away. Turns out it's not his name at all...and I'm still not exactly sure what I said. Apparently it was a joke though and we all ended up laughing anyways ("Rio san" went bright red!). Taichi san also likes to say ":O *gasp* Ohh my goodnesss!" It's too cute! Samantha and I also taught him that in English we say 2 or 3 or 4 people, but 1 person. He understood then continued to tell other members of the staff while laughing. He then looked at us and simply said "muzukashiiiiiiiii"..."difficult!" hehe. We also think it's great fun to wave at people walking around the lower floors...they love it because they smile huge and wave with both hands. :)

This week we also started our Lattitude Lunches! We spend our lunch time with staff members of the Fureai Center who wish to practice their English. So naturally we spoke about our food (they all had rice and egg with a variety of other things) and made other small talk. It was nice to get to know people a little better. We'll be doing this every Tuesday and Thursday. Tomorrow I'll be bringing in a Calendar full of Canadian/Ontario landscapes that my Uncle Mike sent me, they're going to lose it! :D

Also on Tuesday, the Fureai Center threw a party for Samantha and I! :D It was so beautiful! They used the cafeteria space downstairs and printed pictures of us and stuck them all over the walls (they couldn't stop looking at the picture of my family and saying how beautiful we all are and how alike we look). They had huge Canadian, United Kingdom and Japanese flags and lots of foooooood! Only when we began, Yano san said he'd like us to make a speech (agaiinnn??) and have time for question and answer, yikes! So I did the best I could (receiving lots of 'ouuu' and 'ahhhhh' - the Japanese are very excitable listeners) and Yano san translated bits I didn't know in Japanese. When it came to the questions...this is what two ladies asked:

"Do you have a boyfriend?! :O" ..... "errr?....no."

"So what do you like in a man?" ..... "uhhh.....Nihon-jin!" ;) ("Japanese" - they loved that.)

That was the extent of the questions asked in front of ~50 people.
After that we shared excellent food (sushi, sashimi, sandwiches, cheese cake, fruit, sushi and more sushi) and I had a chance to talk with a lot of people including Tanaka incho (the president of the hospital). He gave Samantha and I some Godiva chocolates from San Francisco, amazing!! I was also invited mountain hiking and offered a prescription for antibiotics by a dental surgeon...I think he misheard me when I said I had my wisdom teeth removed 5 years ago. The night was really great and ended even better when Samantha, Hanaoka san, Yano san and myself were last to leave because we refused to let them take away any trays with edible materials still present. So great.

As for what's coming up this week! Tomorrow I have another opportunity to observe in the surgery room! I'm so excited! I'm not sure what surgery we'll be observing yet but I've shown my excitement for either brain or heart surgery. I'm still not over what an amazing experience I'd had last week observing surgery and I'll be back at it again tomorrow afternoon. Sicking sick! Updates on that soon.
Tomorrow night I'm also going to be playing badminton with some members of the hospital staff. Let's hope I've still got it and can kick some surrious butt! :D

Here's a short clip from the welcome party where we got "Rick Rolled" and I was a little too intrusive with the camera.

Success will be mine.....at lahst.

Samantha and I made our way back to the hospital this afternoon to the spot where we thought Beru san told us to meet him for a flower viewing party.
Well...we didn't see him...and didn't even really know where to look.
So we sat down and soaked in the beautiful spring sun (sorry to all the [jealous] readers at home in Canada) waiting for a recently discharged patient who invited us in quick and mumbled Japanese to some location for flower viewing and other various activities. We hadn't expected to actually meet up with him.

But before we knew it, out walks Beru san (his real name is Mutsushita san by the way) looking quite alike to a Japanese Michael Jackson...and still wearing a towel.

Anyways, with more rough communication, we decided on having lunch at a restaurant on the first floor of the hospital. It was delicious! Even better was that Beru san brought along the Canadian pen I gave him as a gift and really really enjoyed the Toronto skyline postcard I gave to him. He also gave us his phone number and told us to call him when we got cell phones. Not only that, but he paid for our lunch and brought us snacks. He's so funny! What an interesting day! He continued on to the next town for flower viewing and we said our sad goodbyes.

After lunch, I felt like taking a walk around Iizuka city enjoying a Saturday sans rain. On my way, I received a few too many double takes considering I'm probably the only natural blonde in a 24 mile radius. I also got a few greetings from children sticking their heads out the car windows and waving "hallo!".

On second thought...maybe a second undergraduate degree could be beneficial...

I-i-dsu-ka. Iizuka! :)

 

 And there's no way a weekend can go by without a trip to Trial. Check out this sushi meal for 230 Yen!
Seriously, nothing is better than Trial......

Nothing.

best nyght of mai lyfe.

This morning at the hospital, in the middle of doing the daily routine we've become accustomed to, I experienced something that put my whole time here in perspective and really touched my heart. In the cerebral internal medicine ward, there is a very organized schedule for patients and their bathing times. Every day I help to bathe a few patients by helping them into and out of a laying down shower and washing their hair, hands and feet. Today, I was told to be very gentle because our female patient was quite old and quite fragile. I was to wash her hands. I am still a little timid and nervous with patients, but when I began to wash her hands she looked at me and gripped my hand snugly in hers. We communicated despite our language difference. We held hands for some time as I washed them for her. The emotional connection I felt with her was amazing and in that moment I realized how fortunate I am to be here and that regardless of how I feel sometimes, I'm doing what I am meant to do. I won't forget that feeling for the rest of my life.

In other hospital news, Beru san is gone! He left the hospital yesterday after I'd gone home. But, we've still been invited to a flower viewing party with him tomorrow and we totally plan on going! So, at 2 pm tomorrow we'll see if we deciphered his invitation correctly. I think I'm in for an interesting afternoon.

Finally, the most wonderful of things happened tonight! We were invited to the Iizuka Hospital 25th year annual New Staff members party! In Japan, the new work year starts in April when most of the hiring happens. This year, the hospital has hired 168 new members including nurses, medical engineers, doctors and administrative staff.....and us (sorta). They had a buffet style meal including sushi (HEAVEN), chicken, spring rolls, salads, noodles, fruit, french fries and more. Samantha and I quickly stuck out as foreigners when we filled our plates and brought them back to our table to eat. In Japan, each member of the table fills a small plate with a single item and brings it back to the table for everyone to share. Oops, our bad. There are also no chairs around the table; they eat standing. They also take the time to go around the entire room to meet everyone. I was introduced to so many people today from multiple different wards, some of who I will be working with! I'm really looking forward to it, they were so lovely and I'll never get tired of their answer to "nice to meet you"..."naice tchu meetchu...toooo!!" Adorable.

We also had the chance, with the president of the hospital and on stage in front of everyone, to break open a barrel of o-sake with wooden hammers and share a drink with everyone: "kanpai!". This is a Japanese tradition called kagami-biraki that represents an opening of good fortune and harmony. I was happily surprised they chose Samantha and I to take part in this tradition. :)

It's when the speeches began that made my heart stop. "Are we going to have to say something...? No, they wouldn't make us do that......Right?" The answer to that was an absolute "oh yes they would". Samantha and I were pushed on stage with microphones in front of 170 new staff members, the president and vice president of the hospital. Panic stricken, I made a hasty decision that if looking like a semi-fool made people laugh, then that's what I'd go with. My speech turned out like this:

...Konbanwaaaaaaaa. (Laughter, clapping and "KONBANWA"!!!!)

Watashi no namae wa Olivia desu. Canada-jin desu. Ni ju san zai desu ("Ohhhhhh!!")

Eeh....Nihongo ga chotto wakarimasu (eeehhhh?!!)

DEMO.....GANBARIMASU! (EHH!!! clappping and laughter)

It went well. Hanaoka san said my speech was great! 

After that...was karaoke. Check out the short video I recorded! (I'm pretty sure you can hear me laughing at times).

Following this performance (from a first year resident doctor!) a whole bunch of us went on stage to sing with President Tanaka san. 

I had such an amazing night! :) :) Everyday I love the Japanese and appreciate their culture more and more. They truly are excellent and very admirable people. So friendly and they absolutely plain and simply love to just have fun! 

Samantha, Hanaoka san (director of the Fureai Centre), myself and the new Fureai Centre staff :)




Title of this blog inspired by a new favourite youtube video:

I chundered evrywhuuurrrrrrr

Niagara Falls

I got off to quite a rough start this morning scrambling out of bed at 8:01am, leaving me 24 minutes to get ready, eat, bike to the hospital, get changed and walk to the cerebral internal medicine ward.
I blame the Niagara.
To put it simply; the Niagara is a beer drinking style taught to me last night when we went out for dinner with a few members of the hospital staff, including the "freshmen", 2 girls who had just started. They took us to a nearby restaurant for sashimi, tempura, nato, pasta, ikura (salmon roe rice balls) and a beef/vegetable hot pot. The food was absolutely amazing and the night continued well when I chose to drink Japanese beer. "Friendship!" a woman says to me, quickly followed by "Kanpai!" "Cheers!" She also took this opportunity to play with my blonde hair and describe to me what she thought a "Canadian man" was to her. Just as I was saying "don't say lumberjack" she made the motion of swinging an ax and laughed. She quite liked the postcard of a Canadian mounted police officer that I brought with me as well. "Ohhhhhhh handsome!"
Then came the Niagara: 3 people pour beer together into your glass. When it reaches the top of the glass, you've got to drink it all without spilling any foam. I'm having first year university flashbacks.
I had a great night getting to know some of the staff members, eating sitting on my knees, laughing, learning Japanese and taking jokes about how I say "sumimasen" really well. Walking back to the hospital with Yano san also meant singing Bohemian Rhapsody...maybe (definitely) too loudly. The bike ride back was also a great experience.
New rule of thumb: don't underestimate the drinking ability of the Japanese and do not try to keep up with them....on a Wednesday night.

So this morning was rough. But, I managed to inhale a banana for breakfast and make it to the hospital on time (like a boss!). Also, a little hang over is quickly forgotten when you gets to observe surgeries! That's right, today marked my first ever time in an operating room only feet away from a surgical procedure! I observed two surgeries today; a brain surgery where a cerebral spinal fluid shunt was inserted into the brain to remove excess fluid and a varicose vein removal surgery. I was lost for words. It was absolutely amazing to be allowed to observe both of these surgeries! Plus, the head nurse Ogata san was an absolute delight. I plan on seeing her much more in the future (she noticed my excitement level of 117%). Also! One of the surgeons lives in the same building as me! Amazing.

Later tonight, Samantha, Ken and I helped Keiko san, a pediatrician at the hospital, during a weekly English language practice session. The sessions are aimed towards studying for the TOEFL (Test Of English as a Foreign Language), a test required to study/work in an English speaking country. So we helped three staff members to practice speaking English and got free cookies! :) These classes also run every week on Thursdays, so I'm sure to be seeing them often. :)

A gift can't just be a gift...

In Japan, it's impossible to give a gift without getting something in return.

So, when I gave Beru san the origami dog and cat this morning, he disappeared into his room and returned with a two liter bottle of cold tea and gave it to me. He also invited Samantha and I to a picnic/flower watching party/onsen...thing on the 20th of April. The nursing staff thought it was really funny when I carried the bottle down the hall looking for somewhere to put it.

Also! This just in - I'm scheduled to scrub in to my first ever brain surgery Thursday at 1:30pm (thank you Watanabe san!) where I'll get to watch the real thing in action!! (And maybe I'll meet a Japanese McDreamy? ....I've been watching too much Grey's Anatomy.)

Another thing worthy of mention is that quite literally all of the stores in Japan want to carry all the things. It's a one stop shop here and I absolutely love it!...but it makes my wallet feel pretty light at times.
Stopbuyingallthedelicioustreats!

It's off to work we go!

After a wonderfully uneventful weekend of origami folding, grey's anatomy watching, sleeping, eating, rain hating and more eating...I am ready to get back to work. Let's do this week 2!

Annnnnd this is how it started: "Talk to the patients."
errmmmm.....I don't speak Japanese? It was pretty rough, but we managed to pull off a little conversation with a very patient (no pun intended) and very kind Japanese woman. So many people; patients, doctors nurses and care workers have been so welcoming and accepting of us being here as volunteers despite the very obvious language barrier.

Bell around the ankles towel around the head man who calls me "Miss Canada" is becoming much more of a friend to us. We now call him "beru san": Mr. Bells. We wave when we see him in the mornings and spend more time throughout the day sitting and talking with him. Today, we looked through a magazine while he spoke something about his cat and dog at home while making faces at a male model with long hair. He also referred to his wife as "mamma" because she was nagging him to get back to bed. Beru san never ceases to surprise me. Thinking of him, I decided to make him a few paper pets to keep him company when "mamma" isn't around.

Japanese words for today:
ii nioi - "smells good". Inspired by the unbelievable lunches we deliver at noon. I wish they'd feed me!
kusuri - "medicine". Despite medicine being in pill form, you're told to drink it. "Nomimasho!"
Daijoubu desu ka = "Is that alright?/Are you alright?" in which the answer is easy: daijobu "I'm fine."

Looking mint in mint

Wow, what a week! Today marks the completion of my first week volunteering at the Iizuka Hospital in the Brain surgery and Cerebral Internal Medicine ward. 

To begin, let me just comment on the staff in this ward. Watanabe san is the head nurse, she's the one that's really taken us in and provided us the opportunity to work in her ward. She is so wonderful! She's loud, outgoing, jokes all the time and smiles at us and laughs with us. She's also ALWAYS at the hospital. She's there before we arrive at 8:25am and is still there when we leave at 5pm. She is constantly working or in meetings. The few times we have seen her, she yells at me (in a fun and friendly way) to keep studying Japanese and then all the nurses laugh. She also laughs when we ask for more things to do "SHIGOTO, HAI!" I've recently let her know that I would be absolutely ecstatic if I could watch brain surgery. After some confusing talk with lots of dictionary use, she's told us to simply trust her and high-fived us on her way out the door. Looks like my next weeks might become more exciting.

I've also met Chie san, a careworker, Yu san, a resident doctor, Yano san, a caretaker trainee along with multiple others including a nurse who speaks excellent English who likes to practice with us and the "number 1 pretty nurse" as she says. There are also two nurse aids in training who are working the same duties that Samantha and I are. The entire staff are really great and deal with my limited Japanese really well. Lots of pointing and lots of "okay".

This ward is truly a well oiled machine. They have a morning meeting at 8:30am and before I know it everyone is off working like busy bees. Things are very well organized and always on time. Which generally means that Samantha and I don't have much to do, we slow everything down. The first couple of days we watched as the daily routines were carried out. Because the ward is Brain Surgery and Cerebral medicine, the patients are elderly and have commonly suffered strokes. This leaves them weak and not unable to do a lot of things on their own. They are very well looked after though. They are cleaned, changed, washed, fed and seem very comfortable. We have been helping where we can even if it's just holding a patients hand.

Some highlights of my week:

- Taking patients for head/thorax CT scans - the doctors in the CT room now recognize me and indicate what the scans show. 

- A nurse tells me that I have a "hana takai".....a tall nose. 

- "A snake is...scary. It makes me scared." Teaching a nurse the difference between a patient with dementia being scary vs. being scared.

- Me directing us in Japanese when moving a patient to a different ward. Migi ni magemasu! Turn right!

- Japanese anatomy is the best. Hands are "te", feet are "ashi" and neck is "kubi". Wrist is literally "te kubi" (hand neck) and ankles are "ashi kubi" (foot neck). Also, fingers are yubi and toes are ashi no yubi, feet fingers.

- The day where Watanabe san wore Samantha's name tag

- I had a palm reading done by a patient. He said I was going to live a long life, whereas Samantha should look out when she's 45, she might have a bad fall.

- The time I had to sit with a 70 year old particularly rebellious patient and talk with him (aka keep him occupied for a little while). I'm sure he spoke about excellent things...the only thing I got was I'm 70, Japanese....and car. He also calls me Miss Canada and says I have a white face. He also thanked us for making his bed so well. We call him bell man because he has bells attached to his ankles so the staff can keep track of him. He also wears a pink towel around his head.

- A woman looks at us and says "I'm going home today!" as her family bows low and thanks us for our help.

And, to not have you feeling robbed or deprived of pictures of food or of the town of Iizuka, I have decided to include both.  This sky caught my attention on a bike ride home and had to catch a shot of the clouds and mountains.

I found a curry house on one of my runs (currently at 9, including one of 4.0km) that does UNREAL food on the CHEAP. This cost me ...580 yen (about $6.50) and it was WAY more than I could handle. They also serve with pickled ginger...oh...my...lord. I see myself spending all the money on their takeout (well, whatever money I haven't spent at TRIAL).

This week I've also become way over obsessed with Derren Brown. If you haven't heard of him check out some of his "experiments" videos on youtube. They're something else.

First day + fun surprises!

My first day in the Brain surgery and cerebral internal medicine ward was only semi-eventful.
We spent the morning shadowing care workers and nurses, watching while they cleaned, bathed and changed the sheets and clothes of patients. We spent a lot of the time waiting for instructions and trying to work out Japanese-English translation. But over all, it worked out okay.
We spent some time learning the layout of the ward and re-stocking cupboards. Later, Samantha and I were tasked to cutting and folding sheets of some material that we couldn't identify.
My highlight of the day came when a nurse asked "May you help me? I need to take this patient for a head CT scan." ummmm Yeah I'll help! She wanted to practice her English so we spoke with her about our ages, where we were from and our likes. She likes Queen (seems to be a trend with the Japanese) so it was inevitable that we sang "Bohemian Rhapsody" in the elevator on the way to the ER.
I was also allowed to watch and see the brain scan on monitors as it occurred in the CT machine. So cool! I was a little over excited and the doctors found it amusing.

ALSO! Within days of thinking I really wanted a "living room" table, Yano san offered one to me! He is currently in the middle of moving and he offered me a small table he wasn't planning on keeping after the move. He ever so kindly brought it over to my apartment and I love it! Starting to look a lot more homey :)

I thought it also extremely important to share a picture of my absolutely unreal dinner. Sesame/soy grilled broccoli, sesame/garlic/hot spices grilled beef over rice with sweet potatoes.

What a day to be alive!