◊♦◊ 2005.11.6 ◊♦◊
Adventures in Japan - 10/21/05 to 11/6/05
Firstly, I have finally joined a club at school (they're also called circles here). I was pretty much forced to join one since my Japanese professor would not let me leave after class that day until I promised her I would join a circle...^^; So, I joined the Shodo circle with a few of my friends. Shodo is Japanese calligraphy and I have always wanted to learn it. Our first meeting was...interesting, to say the least...When the three of us walked into the clubroom for our first meeting, every Japanese student who was in the room immediately turned to stare at us and an awkward silence filled the room...A few seconds later, half the students were talking to us in rapid Japanese excitedly, while the other half continued to stare at us. Oy... After a round of introductions we were led to the art room where the calligraphy was actually done. For at least the first 40 minutes, everyone stood in a circle around our table watching us. Everytime we drew any kanji (Japanese characters) everybody in the room "ooohhed" and "aaaahhed" and began talking excitedly amongst themselves. Needless to say, we didn't accomplish much in terms of proper techniques of Japanese calligraphy... we were just handed a brush, ink, and some paper, and told to start drawing kanji...
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This calligraphy I am standing by I did not do, I just held the brush while one of the guys guided my hand. Yet, they gave me all the credit for it with my insisting that I didn't do anything at all...ah well. And my main purpose for joining a circle was to practice my very poor listening and speaking skills, but there was a student there who spoke fairly decent English and insisted on explaining everything in English. Even when I asked questions in Japanese, she still responded in English...Ah, I do not blame her for wanting to improve her English, but I reeeeaaaally need to improve my Japanese speaking and listening skills...
On October 28, me Cathryn, and Nanami (my new speaking partner) went to Tokyo Tower (which is pretty much a bright red copy of the Eiffel Tower, but it was still cool). As we were walking to Tokyo Tower, we came across an unexpected surprise, however. In order to get to the tower from the station, we had to go through the grounds of a nearby temple. It was absolutely beautiful. ^_^ So, photos!
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I had really wanted to take pictures of the inside of the temple as well since it was positively awesome, but taking pictures of the interior was not allowed...
So after this unplanned (but fun) delay at the temple, we continued on to Tokyo Tower.
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There's all kinds of things to do at Tokyo Tower. There's two observation decks (one halfway up the tower and one at the top) restaurants, stores, a wax museum, a trick art gallery, and other things as well. We went to the trick art gallery first and here are some amusing photos:
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Next was the wax museum. I have never been to a wax museum before, and this was fairly amusing. ^_^ You'll see who they are if you hover over the photo with the cursor:
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After the wax museum, we headed to the regular observatory which is halfway up the tower (going to the top costs even more money). It was after 6 p.m. when we headed up. Here are some cool pictures of the Tokyo skyline at night:
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10/31 and 11/1 we had no classes and a trip was planned for international students and Japanese students for these two days. The trip was to Hakone (a scenic area at the base of Mt. Fuji). Our first stop on was at the fifth station of Mt Fuji (about a fourth of the way up the mountain). It was absolutely gorgeous. All of the trees were changing colors, and it was very lightly snowing. (People are only allowed to climb Mt. Fuji a few months out of the year, because the weather in the colder months can get dangerous). )
Before sightseeing, we had lunch. We had nabe (pronounced nah-bey) which is basically a pot filled with just about anything one wants to put in it. Including this crab that was at the bottom...Overall, I thought it was quite delicious. After lunch, we had about and hour and a half to explore. Cathryn and I walked the trails for a bit before exploring the gift shops.
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Our next stop was the hotel we were staying at in Hakone, near Mt. Fuji.
The entire second floor of the hotel was reserved for the Aoyama students, and there were five students per room.
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At this hotel, there were hot springs (called onsen) which I didn't go to because in the onsen, you walk around naked in front of everyone there. The hot springs are separated by gender, but I don't think I could ever bring myself to walk around naked in front of a bunch of strange women. ^^; So needless to say, the few who remained behind (everyone too modest to go to the onsen) had little else to do except check out the shop downstairs or watch TV. Me, Cathyrn, Heather and Miki spent about three hours in my room talking and eating munchies we had bought from the shop. Then afterwards most of the students gathered together for a nomikai (drinking party). *sighs* I was thankful that my room was at the far end of the hallway, because I could barely hear the noise they were making.
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And since most of the students were somewhat hungover and sleep-deprived the next morning, it made for a wonderfully quiet bus ride.
I was able to get this shot of Mt. Fuji the next morning as well. ^_^
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The next morning we headed off to the Hakone Open Air Museum. It is mainly an outdoor sculpture museum, but me, not being big on art museums, walked through it fairly quickly. Halfway through, we saw a large structure of plastic that you can climb through, and climb through it we did (it reminded me of the tunnels at the play areas at McDonalds). After that, there was a tower that had walls made mostly of stained glass that we climbed (at the top we had a great view), and then we just had to try the foot hot springs.
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After the museum, we headed to a mikan orchard to do some mikan picking (a mikan is a fruit similar to an orange, but smaller, and a bit flatter). To me, this seemed like a very random thing to do...I didn't know what to expect when we were told our next stop was to do some mikan picking, but I certainly didn't expect the orchards to be on a super steep slope, risking life and limb to pick a few mikans, and trying with every once of strength I had not to go rolling back down to the bottom.
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Sadly, this part of the trip I did not get many good pictures of because all of my attention was focused on staying alive...^^; But on the way home, I did get a few good pictures of the ocean and the people surfing. Overall, it was a nice long weekend. ^_^
But this coming Friday I have to give a speech in my Japanese class... Waaaahhhh... T_T Great, there goes my happy mood... *pouts*
The Siren lost her way
at 7:02 p.m. //
◊♦◊ 2005.10.16 ◊♦◊
A little late, but here is the next entry.
Part 3 of Adventures in Japan - 9/17/05 to 9/31/05
On September 17, we went to Akihabara, otherwise known as "Electric Town". There are many many electronic stores in Akihabara, and often they just line the street, one right after another, and they are huge (usually more than five stories). Of course this is a good thing, because this means there is lots of competition, and the further into Akihabara you go, the cheaper prices become. We had set out to Akihabara with the intent to purchase electronic dictionaries (I wanted one very much after using the ones my suitemates and tutor have). We spent two solid hours walking from store to store (we probably visited over eight electronic stores) and every store we went to was cheaper than the previous one. After choosing the dictionaries we wanted to buy, then we just had to find the store that was the cheapest. After buying our electronic dictionaries, we spent some time shopping in some anime stores looking for manga (Japanese comic books) to read (at least to try to read...mostly I bought a few to practice reading Japanese). Akihabara is also very noisy because in front of every single store (and I mean every store), there are poeple with megaphones shouting about specials and sales, and heaven knows what else, because when you get six of these people on the same street, you often can't tell what one is saying apart from the others. Here are some photos of Akihabara (it truly is a flashy district, but lots of fun to walk around):
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And this guy we saw walking back to the station after we finished shopping:
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We all scrambled get pictures of the dude in the tiger suit as we were highly amused by this. ^_^ There was also a 6-foot pink bunny rabbit wandering around the entrance to the station, but he vanished before we would get our cameras out (who knows how the bunny vanished...I mean, where do you hide a pink 6-foot bunny rabbit?)
After Akihabara, we stopped in Ikebukuro on the way back to Shinjuku station at an HMV (which are huge music and movie stores). Cathryn needed her Da Pump fix (Da Pump is a very good Jpop group that has been around for years, and actually Da Pump is the group that w-inds looks up to). Cathryn was shocked that I had never seen Da Pump perform before, and insisted on buying some of their DVDs for me to watch. ^^
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And walking back to the train (we actually never left the station since we went straight to the HMV by an underground walkway and then back, so I haven't actually seen Ikebukuro yet) we saw this guy in a snowman outfit, slowly spinning in place. Somehow, I completely missed seeing him until I saw Cathryn whip out her camera and bust out laughing. I probably took about twenty pictures of the snowman, but only one came out because it was hard to get a good shot with all the people walking around. I wonder how much they pay these people to dress up and walk around in crowded areas promoting whatever store they work for...
The next week or so was spent just exploring areas we had visited before, getting ready for school, and lots of veging-out. Our first day of classes was Sept. 26, and we (Cathryn, Nicole, and I) had decided to attempt to take a class on religion that is taught in Japanese. Within two minutes after class started, we knew we had no hope at all of succeeding in the class, so we sat in clueless silence during the entire 90 minutes, having no idea as to what the professor was going on about. At least we had not actually registered for the class, so it was not a problem to decide not to take it. Our next class was International Institutions, and the only reason we decided to take this class was because it is taught in English. About half the class is exchange students, all taking it for probably the same reason. Cathryn, Nicole, and I are the only Americans among the exchange students, and since many of the discussions we have on international institutions, many of which the U.S. plays a large role in, we are often the first students asked to answer questions. The professor approaches us saying something like,
"You're Americans, what does your country want? What are the goals of the U.S.?"
Our response: ".....um..."
When I really want to say, "To rule the world!" and then laugh maniacally...But that just wouldn't be proper.
On Tuesdays, we have a communications class (again, the only reason I took this class was because it is taught in English). It is not the most exciting class ever, but it has its interesting moments. After this class, I have Japanese III. It is in my Japanese language classes that I realize how little I know, and usually end up leaving after class feeling like the stupidest person in the world. The teacher speaks too fast (although she approached me after each class during the week, I told her she was speaking way too fast, and she has been speaking a bit slower since then). And it is made worse because everyone else in the class seems to understand her just fine, can answer questions she asks just fine, and can converse with her in Japanese. Whereas I just sit there feeling like there is no possible way I can do this. I am good at reading and writing Japanese, but my speaking and listening abilities are atrocious, if I have any listening and speaking abilities at all...T_T But I refuse to give up and I keep telling myself that I have only been here for a month, that it will take some time...waaahhh...but it's so hard...
My only class on Wednesdays is an English Studies class, and it is about the Lord of the Rings novels, with this class focusing on the Fellowship of the Ring. It is a super easy and really fun class. This class is geared towards non-native English speakers, and having discussions with the Japanese students about the Fellowship of the Ring is quite interesting.
Thursdays I have Japanese III and Japanology. In all previous semesters, they taught Japanology in English, so of course the semester I have to take it they decide to teach it in Japanese. (I wonder whose brilliant idea that was...) At least the handouts and books are in English, so I can read those while the professor is up front speaking about who knows what. And I don't mean to make it sound like I make no effort in class to understand what is being said. I do try, but after a little while, I stop hearing Japanese and it becomes just incoherent sounds. And since this class follows Japanese III, my brain is already overloaded from having to listen intently to Japanese for 90 minutes to understand even a small part of what is being said in that class. But in Japanology, about a third of the class does not speak Japanese at that level, so at least a good part of the class has no clue what is being said. I guess I take little comfort from that at least...
Fridays are the worst, though. I have three solid hours of Japanese III, two Japanese classes back to back. By the end of this three hour torture session, I am way past feeling utterly stupid and I just feel like laughing out loud at the apparent hopelessness of my ever being able to communicate effectively in Japanese, as well as being quite mentally exhausted when class ends.
And yes, sadly, I have a class on Saturdays. Because of the religion class taught in Japanese that I can't take, I had to find another class that is taught in English to replace it (since I have to be registered for at least 14 credits worth of classes). The class is an American Law class, and it is about tort law. It is actually a very interesting class since we discuss court cases involving tort law and their outcomes, and hearing the Japanese students perspective on American law is interesting. I am the only exchange student in that class, so I am usually called on to answer a question if the Japanese students cannot. (Unlike my International Institutions class where the professor will, if the topic has anything to do with the United States, ask the American students first, thinking because we are American, we automatically know the answer).
And I am happy to say that I was successful in my quest to find a pillow. ^^ I found two decent ones at the 100 yen shop (they had never sold pillows until now).
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Ok...well, that was unexpected... Just as I was about to finish up this entry the building started to shake...it was hardly noticeable at first, and I didn't quite realize what it was until the whole building began shaking harder for about half a minute. Well, now I can say I have experienced my first earthquake, albeit a small one. It makes the end of this entry a bit more interesting. ^_^
The Siren lost her way
at 4:47 p.m. //
◊♦◊ 2005.10.4 ◊♦◊
Next entry! Woot!
Part 2 of Adventures in Japan - 9/14/05 to 9/16/05
Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday of this week we had orientation, and we learned about rules, procedures, how to register for classes, touring campus, and so on and so forth. I worked with Miki (my tutor) to help me choose classes. ...Miki is really nice and really sweet, but she can be so...well, frustrating at times. For example, I will point to a sentence describing a class I am interested in and ask her to translate, and she will nod her head and say, "Hmm, good, good." So I will try again and point to a sentence and say "Please translate this for me." Miki will then scan down the page and translate some random sentence three paragraphs down. *sighs* Needless to say, we did not get anywhere with choosing classes, so I ended up going to Hiromi (at the exchange center) and asked her to help me and I was able to get all of my classes ready to be registered next week.
But first, before I get to Shibuya and Shinjuku, I will describe the experience of taking a rush hour train...heh...Impossibly crowded doesn't even begin to describe it. The train was crowded when it pulled into the station, and we shoved our way on. Just when we thought we were the last ones on, and they couldn't possibly fit anymore people onboard, twelve more people pushed their way onto the train after us. o_o Whatever position you are in when you get on the train (like if you have your hands at your sides) you will remain in that position for the duration of the train ride (and heaven help you if your nose starts to itch...) And while boarding a crowded train, one must watch out for the scary, white-gloved men in uniforms. Their job (yes, this is a real job in Japan) is to shove people onto the train and then help the doors to close (usually by forcing them to close). I have seen these white-gloved men in action, and they really are quite good at their job. ^^; Any personal bubble one has dissolves instantly, and if you can't reach a handhold, you just lean on the person next to you. When the train jerks or sways, it is impossible to fall or stumble because the people are packed so tightly on the train. You just sway with the people. ^^ At least when school starts, most of the time I will not be traveling during the peak times, so I won't have to deal with this every day.
So, anyway, photos! Aoyama campus is certainly a little bubble of quiet and green in the middle of Shibuya (A huge shopping district in Tokyo).
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On Wednesday (after orientation) we headed towards Shibuya Station (outside the station are many many huge stores and a huge department store inside the station itself). We were just passing through Shibuya at this point on our way to Shinjuku to buy our cell phones. When the lights turn green for pedestrians to cross, the people just swarm into the street and you just have to hold onto the backpack of your friend in front and snake your way through the crowd. At this point, however, Shibuya was probably only about a third as crowded as it usually is (which made moving around much easier).
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There are two enormous TV screens on the sides of two buildings that are near the station, and each was showing the trailer for the new Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children movie (which looks like the sweetest movie ever and I want want want). Today was my first time to ride on the Yamanote line (this line connects all of the major districts in Tokyo and it is just one big loop, so if you miss getting off at your stop, you just go around again...^^)
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I'm getting to be a pro at buying train tickets at this point (put in money, press button for destination and it spits out a ticket, I'm good to go. Of course I still have no idea at this time how to actually read the train map and schedule...) One thing that is nice about the trains on the Yamanote line is that everything on the displays and maps above the doors are in Japanese and English. And a train stops at each station at least once every four minutes, too.
To buy our cell phones, there was a place we were going to, a store called Sakuraya in Shinjuku, that had great discounts for students. Sakuraya has many locations in Shinjuku (it seems there is one on every block) and they are enormous electronic stores. The particular one we were going to had an employee there who spoke good English who could help us pick out phones. Japanese cell phones are so awesome, and American phones really have a lot of catching up to do to even begin to compare. While our applications were being processed, and we were told it would take about 45 minutes, we wandered the store doing a little shopping (the store had 6 floors). I've also noticed that Japanese store clerks, in every store I have been in so far, are so polite (far more than most store clerks in America).
After getting our phones (and after playing with all the nifty features for about 20 minutes) we headed to a nearby noodle shop for dinner. These noodle shops are so cool. You can get a huge bowl of noodles for less than $3, and I had a serious craving for Tanuki Udon (which is one of the best things on the planet - udon noodles with tempura pieces sprinkled on top...mmm...). You get to sit at a bar and try not to make a mess of yourself while eating with chopsticks in front of other Japanese customers. Slurping noodles is considered polite in Japan, but I have realized that I cannot do it, nor do I wish to try anymore. Or rather, I can slurp the noodles, I just make an unsightly mess in the process...^^; Anywho, here are some photos of Shinjuku:
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On a whim (and also because we all seemed to have a sudden odd craving for sugar) we stopped in Harajuku on our way back to Shibuya (Harajuku is between Shinjuku and Shibuya). Near the station were several stands that serve crepes. These have got to be the spiffiest and yummiest crepes I have ever had (I never would have thought to find delicious crepe stands in Japan). Harajuku is a popular fashion district, and is described as wacky-outfit central, so I would definitely have come back later to explore, seeing as how it was already dark at this point. (It gets dark really early here, usually around 6:00 p.m.)
And after getting back to my room, before falling asleep, I decided to begin a quest to find a proper pillow, since the rice filled bag covered in a pillowcase that was provided to me is just not working...
To be continued...
The Siren lost her way
at 11:47 p.m. //
