Tokyo Return, Day 3 - The final meeting

Breakfast with Ishii-san one more time - the Japanese teachers have a 9:00 AM meeting, and then they head back to their schools. American teachers have our meeting this afternoon, and we will fly out tomorrow.

I have that last box to mail, so I walk over to the Sanno Grand Building with Ishii. When we get to the JUSEC office, I tell him that I will be e-mailing him once school starts so that we can set up our first video conference, then wish him a safe flight home, and head back for the first floor. My box safely on its way, I go back to the hotel. Our meeting is this afternoon, and I have to get my web report onto a CD.

The housekeeping force is already started, but I need uninterrupted time, so out comes the "Do Not Disturb" sign. (Later, I found out that about a third of the teachers were doing the same - the poor ladies cleaning the rooms must have had a dreaful time keeping track of which rooms were done and which still needed work.)

Pictures uploaded, Week 5 Report created, and everything is burned on to a CD - okay that's finished. Now I dig through my receipts - I remembered last night that I had not put the camcorder spare battery or the extra CDs and tapes on the expense report, and I need the dates as well as the amounts (for Yen to Dollar conversion). Now I've got those things taken care of - is there anything else in the way of paperwork?

No - now it's just the last of the packing. All of the accumulated camera and computer stuff gets put in one bag, all of the paperwork in another, the last of the specialty things wherever they will fit...Okay, pull out the clothes for tomorrow, make a space for the last of the dirty things - this just might work. I test the bags, then take the heaviest of the two downstairs to check the weight. It says 28 kg - I am allowed not quite 32 kg, so even with some slop, I should be okay.

Wow, I may actually be ready for this last sesson.

Okay, I've got time for lunch before I go over there. I hang the "Make Up the Room" sign out, grab my folder and head for the street. And discover (happily) that a new lunch option is available - Subway! There was a Subway around the corner from the hotel, but when we came in June, we discovered that it had closed and some new construction was going on. Turns out they were turning the space into two shops - an updated Subway (yay!) and a Haagen-Das ice-cream shop (double yay!!!!!).

And they've got Diet Pepsi! (Be still, my beating heart.......)

Subway is very similar to the American version, but there are some sandwiches and wraps only available in Japan. I try one of those - a Taandori Chicken wrap that turns out to be wonderful - I think I'll have to see if they plan to introduce it in the U.S. Now it's meeting time.

Our last gathering is a discussion of our various experiences and short descriptions of what we have planned for our paired projects. I wasn't sure what to expect - my experience was great, and I knew that many others had enjoyed their community visits as well, but I had also heard discussions that indicated that a couple of people had some problems. But everyone did report their various good/unique/special experiences, and I think even those with some problems found that there were good things that happened as well.

Some of the problems I heard about were related to miscommunications between the Japanese hosts and MTP regarding housing and the payments of the costs associated with it. Because we do not (for the most part) stay in regular hotels during the 4-week community visit, there are a lot of things that are very different in the weekly rents - for example, utilities are charged based on actual use, and are paid at the end of the stay. The schools that have participated in MTP have a pretty good idea of what needs to be done; it's the new schools that are having issues, but things will get worked out, one way or another.

Our last bit of paperwork complete, the Americans head back to the hotel, some to go out for the evening, others to finish packing and head for bed.