One of Andrew’s favorite Smith’s English lessons is one called ‘My Hometown’ in the ‘Let’s Talk’ section of the curriculum. Every time we teach it I reminisce about my hometown and miss it even more. Recently the tourism department in my hometown, Nanaimo BC, released a new video to promote the city. Nanaimo is located [...]
Last year we discovered a CD in the world music section of Tower Records in Zeze by a French artist named Zaz. We didn’t know anything about her but we could listen to the CD in the shop and we instantly fell in love with her smoky voice and bohemian style. We bought the CD [...]
Not many artists in any music genre are great enough or lucky enough to be known around the world, but jazz artists tend to be well received. If an artist is willing to work hard, tour hard, and be creative, they can achieve world renown in the jazz field. Kei Kobayashi is one such artist, [...]
No- not the British Broadcast Corporation. I am being featured on a profile piece on Biwako Broadcasting, the local cable network in Shiga prefecture. I thought some of my students and friends might like to catch it live. I don’t know if the channel is available everywhere in Japan or only in Shiga, but don’t [...]
Hello All, Once again this year, the Smith’s School of English Otsu Christmas Party was a smashing success. In fact, all the teachers in Otsu felt it was the best Christmas party we’ve hosted yet. This was our 5th Christmas party and after 4 year’s we’ve finally got the perfect formula for fun fun fun. [...]
HAPPY HALLOWEEN EVERYONE! Another fantastic Halloween at Smith’s school of English in Otsu, Shiga Prefecture. Our 4th annual Halloween party was held this Saturday, with pizza, snacks, pumpkins, jack-o-lantern carving, games, Halloween videos and more. Check out a few of the jack-o-lanterns that our students carved below. Students came in a variety of creative costumes- [...]
As with so many things, dessert is something that is done well in Japan, with thought and consideration. Not to mention the absolute beauty and deliciousness of Japanese sweets! Recently we visited Chocola, a small cafe and cake shop on Lake Biwa in Otsu, Shiga. Chocola offers a 1000 yen all-u-can-drink plus 1 dessert deal [...]
One of our favourite places in Vancouver is Granville Island, a small but popular shopping and arts district just south of downtown Vancouver. Granville Island is full of quaint shops, artisan galleries, parks and open space, and a public market. The public market is the heart of the area, full of fresh foods, produce, fish [...]
The super summer heat this year really makes me feel like I’m melting. It saps my strength and drains my energy, leaving me feeling drowsy and lazy and useless. So last week I decided to sets some goals to help me beat the heat. I started by asking myself what my symptoms were and then [...]
This weekend is SSE Otsu’s first bowling event. We have 3 annual events- Halloween Party at the school in October, Christmas party in Al Plaza in December, and the Hanami Party in Osaka Castle Park in April. We also do numerous other smaller events- movie nights, English cafes, theme parties, special guest events, karaoke, and [...]
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