New place means new things to learn. New people means more friends to make. I guess this is the right thing to say about this man who travels the world. His name means “to be honest”. Maybe that’s why sometimes he can be so blunt about many things. And to be honest, it’s just similar with me. From the meaning of our name to our bluntness. Born in Tokyo, October 16th, 1989, people will think him as someone uptight and discipline. But it’s not really the case this time it seems.

I remember the first thought crossing my mind when I heard a new teacher from Japan will come and teach us is that this person gonna be old and boring. But then my Japanese language teacher said that this new teacher is a young handsome male. That’s where I got excited.

To be honest, the first few weeks since his arrival many of us got so hyped up and wanted to know more about him. Maybe that’s because he didn’t show his real self in the class.

But all those image shattered when I started joining his extra class after school. That’s where his devil self-showed up. I can say he is a very mean teacher who like to pick up on me a lot. I don’t know why, maybe it’s because I was too loud for his liking, or maybe because I won’t back down whatever he said. But nevertheless, there were lot of new things I learned from him. And even more after I have an interview with him.

This guy, who I knew like money almost more than anything else and is very picky about food that he is willing to eat, actually is someone with more things than what it seems outside. And from this short questions and answers session I have with him in an empty new class upstairs, I managed to know him better.

The thing he said at the beginning of the conversation was how this thing we did feels like a job interview and I have to agree with him about it. Honestly, even though he kept telling me to do this quickly so he could go home faster, I enjoyed the interview a lot. I don’t know if this is because of him or it’s simply because I like to do these kind of things and didn’t get many chance to do it yet.

This guy who learn Bahasa Indonesia in a good pace said that Bahasa Indonesia is an easy language to learn, yet the lack of vocabulary in our language just gave him trouble here and there. His favorite Indonesian saying is “Tidak Apa-Apa” because that’s the first one he remembered. While his favorite english saying is “Never Too Late”. His favorite Japanese saying is 一期一会 (ichigo ichie). The term is often translated as "for this time only," "never again," or "one chance in a lifetime." The term reminds people to cherish any gathering that they may take part in, citing the fact that many meetings in life are not repeated. Even when the same group of people can get together again, a particular gathering will never be replicated and thus, each moment is always once-in-a-lifetime (Wikipedia). But when I asked whether he had any other special skill other than talking in foreign language (and maybe picking other person in my case), he said he have none. He just like to communicate with people, a lot of people, not just with me. Again, he tried to get under my skin, even though he already agreed to do the interview with me. Oh well, but at least he likes and can do some basketball. So I guess that’s another plus thing about him.

While I think some of his personality is annoying, he personally think the opposite. He likes that he don’t care about many things and live care freely He think people in general just think too much and wasting their time by thinking something that has no answer or even think too much about things that already has an answer. He likes to keep his life simple. Too simple sometimes it will tick me off.

Now things about what he like and dislike. This picky eater didn’t really like sweet food. He even preferred bitter things like beer rather than sweet stuffs. Even his favorite Indonesia food is Mie Ayam Jamur because he thought it’s not too sweet. Now, isn’t it not really an Indonesian food? Oh well, I think he need to eat more not-sweet-but-delicious-Indonesian food. But maybe it’s still gonna be a problem since he doesn’t like spicy food while many of Indonesian food are spicy. Yet he like pork and meat. He also able to cook, nothing too complicated though. Just simple ones.

Talking about places seems like the best subject if we want to talk with him. So far, his favorite place is Tokyo since he lived there. But other than that, he liked USA because he lived there for a year or so. But hey, this guy here already travels from one place to another since a very young age. Started from England (5 y.o), Singapore (8 y.o), Australia (9 y.o), Italy (12 y.o), USA (15 y.o and again at 18 y.o for a year), Korean and Taiwan (20 y.o) and Switzerland, Norway and Denmark last year. Not to mention of course Indonesia now. And to know that he worked for Travel Company back in Japan, isn’t it very suitable for him?

But surprisingly, it’s not because this job of him he got to travel around. It was all thanks to his dearest mom. His mom is someone who has great influence on him and he respects her a lot because of it. He told me with adoration, how his mom used to save money since her childhood. They aren’t wealthy people, but his mom use her saving to take him and his siblings to many country. His mother teach him a lot of things, especially about the importance of money. There was one time when he and his mother went to shopping and his mother told him rather than buying discount stuff to save money, not buying them means save more money. Her smart mother is where he get his passion to collect money and save it. Not only for him, but also for his future kids. Because he don’t want his future kid asks why don’t you do this or buy that, only for to answer because he didn’t have enough money to afford it. Nice thinking I might say. This is where I understand the motive behind his ridiculous doing sometimes to collect money. Mostly by telling us to click the ads on his blog.

Different from his mother, he didn’t really keen on his father because he think that his father isn’t the best father in the world. But his sisters are another things. He said he has two older sister. His role model is the second eldest sister. She is a great sister that he respects a lot. She is the one who take care of him a lot. And... She is the one who worked for Japan Foundation and told him about teaching chance in Indonesia. Which of course bring him to be my Japanese teacher now. Thanks to sister number two, now I have an annoying but kind of nice Japanese teacher. Or just teaching assistant like what he said. The sister number one, he didn’t respect her like he respect the sister number two. But for him she is a nice woman. An artsy one. But lazy just like him. Yet, I believe he loved both of his sister dearly.

Despite his experience went to so many country, he said he didn’t really have any crazy experience. That or he is just too old to remember it. His words though, not mine. And after going to so many place, he didn’t really have anywhere else that he wanted to go. But he is willing to take any chance given to him. Whether to work again in Indonesia or anywhere. As long as he get good money from it. Like what he said, money is the most important things in the world. Not everything can be bought by money, but if you have lot of money, you can do many things.

After talk about places, of course we need about people too right? When I asked what he didn’t like from people in his country, at first he said he never really think about it. But then he said, he didn’t like the stereotypes that they have. Sure, there are stereotypes everywhere, but I guess Japanese’s is a bit too much for his liking.

While he didn’t like Indonesian people, he also didn’t like unfairness that he saw in Indonesian people. He said, Indonesian people always wanted to be treated special while actually they are just the same as other people. They always demand to be treated fairly while they treated other people unfairly. One of the example that he brought is how people in Indonesia didn’t like to wait in line and always seems trying to cut the line. Remembering that he came from one of the most discipline country, this is understandable. Other things he said that he didn’t like from Indonesia is how people who travels alone or single treated differently and that’s unfair. Because sometimes he just went alone not because he want it, but because there is no one to accompany him. But I see that didn’t really hold him from going to many places. I mean, he was here for just a few months but he already travels to more Indonesian place than me who lived here this whole 18 years. Oh, and he also didn’t like bemo driver who is just so annoying. Honestly, without saying too much, we all understand right? Didn’t we all just feel the same?

Despite all the things we lack, he still likes Indonesian. Especially the kids. He thought Indonesia kids didn’t actually lazy or indiscipline. It’s just the adult also lazy and indiscipline, naturally the younger will follow. While he thought that Indonesian adult’s didn’t work hard enough, he thought that the kids can be better. He believe that Indonesia is a growing country. And he hope that the kids could bring it to the better future.

In one side, I thought that maybe he only thought like that because he worked on our school that has high standard. He didn’t really see the other general kids. Yet, I want to believe what he said. I want to make it true. I want to be better and make this country better. Don’t you want it too?

So Sensei... please pay attention and look forward for us, young people, to bring this country to the fullest. And when we did it, you can proudly said you ever became our teacher.

That’s Masanari Nakamura-sensei, a Japanese who came and invaded our school to teach Japanese. You aren’t the best teacher, nor like any ikemen did I see in anime and manga. Yet I am glad you came to our school. Even though you always mess with me, I still can say that I learned a lot from you. Maybe you didn’t spend that much time here, just few months. And it’s not all good experience too. But I want you to know that I, and everybody too I guess, am really grateful about everything. Thank you for coming here and give us a lot of experience. As well with sharing a little bit of yourself to us. Although I am reluctant to say it, I think I will miss you a lot when you go back to Japan. I didn’t have any plan to forget you, so please don’t forget me and everybody here. Please be happy and have a great life in the future. Wish us luck! I don’t want to say good bye, so… See you!

After Interview... That he kept telling me to rush

Photobox session after watching Civil War. First and last hang out i guess. He even still bother the hell out of me till the very end.

Farewell party with my class INSANE. How was it Sensei, are you full? Is it delicious?

And some other craziness he did in Indonesia + his kindergarten photo 1. First banjir experience, right? 2. Stop sleeping while taking other's seat 3. You didn't change much, did you? 4. Monkey love

Labels: Experience, Interview, People, Story