Just in from Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, Jun Ito committed himself to a huge leap in coming to Quesnel.
Having never learned English before, except one week spent studying in Vancouver, Ito has come to be the next volunteer at Shiraoi House.
Communication, he says, is a bit of a problem.
“I studied one week in Vancouver, so I can’t speak English very well. I study English every night.”
This is Jun’s first time out of his country, so everything is new to him. Though many of those new experiences are difficult, like learning English from scratch, some are more enjoyable.
“Quesnel people move slowly, but Japanese people are so busy. I like it.”
Before coming to Quesnel, Jun spent his days picking tea in Shizuoka, a prefecture famous for its tea in Japan. He spent his winters, though, snowboarding. And while he has big plans for the winter, right now he is content to pursue another past time.
“I like skateboarding and snowboarding, so I go to the skatepark.”
Between skateboarding, his volunteer duties and his language study, Ito has his days stuffed full.
And though he hasn’t been in Canada long, he is missing his home a little, or at least the food, which he proclaims is the best.
He is, however, looking forward to the winter, by which time he is planning on having a good enough grasp on English to head down to Whistler to work and snowboard. But until then, you’ll see him skating at the park or at Shiraoi House furiously studying English.
Jonas Gagnon, Observer Reporter