Indirect Compliments

Today, a veteran teacher was visiting my school. I was working with one of my JTE's (Japanese Teacher's of English). She was telling this other teacher that I was doing a good job. She said that I was smart and, most importantly, that I was very positive. She said when she first met me I looked like a princess and she wasn't sure that I could teach, but now she saw that I could. This particular teacher is outgoing, but she never mentioned this to me. It was not until another, veteran teacher, was present that she complimented me. In fact, the fact that she did it to my face seems a little odd to me, but I don't know the rules of complements in Japan. What I do know is that compliments tend to be indirect. You don't compliment someone, you compliment them to someone else, and, I've heard, if you hear a compliment about a coworker or friend from another coworker or friend, you should pass it along. It was very interesting to see Japanese culture at work.
Of course, this does not mean that the Japanese don't compliment each other directly.