Preparations Galore

I really only took one picture today, and that of dinner. It was drizzling all day, so photography was a bit difficult. I also did not really do anything picture-worthy. We tried going to the KGU museum today but it doesn't even open until tomorrow! We hope to go next week. So this morning, I walked to school. Then after all our orientation stuff, we walked almost to the station to go to the museum, but immediately walked back to school. I then walked home. That's when I learned that something we plan to do tomorrow requires a PRINTED voucher - and no, just showing what's on the phone is not acceptable. So I had to walk back to school to use the library (at which we have 500 sheets of free prints in our student account) HOWEVER I forgot to bring my library user name and since I just got it this week, I have not memorized it yet. So I talked to the assistants in awkward Japanese and went to the opposite side of campus to talk to a kind of tech-support group. They were very nice, but it was also a little awkward. Then, I had about 15 minutes before the library closed and ran back to the library. I returned to the library out of breath, my spectacles speckled with raindrops, nodding to the helpful assistants, and sat down just as the "we're closing soon" music and announcement was played in the library. Thankfully, I was able to print out said voucher and will most likely not forget my user name again. (Then I walked back home).

So I ended up doing a lot of walking today without doing much, hence no pictures. I did see more birds than I thought I would in the rain, but the following formula will do my explaining:

camera + water + walking alone with no one to hold my umbrella = bad

Today's orientation was very exciting though. There were a lot of announcements and procedural steps and dividing into groups. They kept saying "We'll announce your placement levels soon." I mean, they most likely said it 7 or 8 times and each time I got more anxious. For those not in the know, since I took JPN 301 last semester, I was anticipating and hoping for being placed into level 3 of 6. However, I actually got into...level four!!!!! I was so happy! I think five or fewer people got into level four, including a friend of mine, while two or three were put into level 5 and only one person achieved level 6. There were also about 6 people who took a separate test because their Japanese level is so high that they can take regular university courses and not just the English ones provided through the international program.

The way the program works is that, for those in the language track, students are automatically put into the mandatory classes of whatever level into which they were placed. These count for about 6 credits. Non-language courses count 2 credits each and meet only once a week. I have hopefully enrolled in the following additional classes:

• Geography of Japan
• Environmental Issues of Modern Japan
• Japanese Art
• Japanese Religion
• Japanese Dialects
• Writing

However, I am uncertain of the last two and will either drop one or both. Here, the program encourages you to sign up for whatever you want and however many classes you want and then to determine after the first week which courses you will be keeping and which you will be dropping. So no matter what I choose, it will be okay.

Well I think that's it for today. Dinner was fried chicken, some vegetables, a mix of Japanese root vegetables called chizenni, miso soup with chunks of wheat gluten, rice, and two types of dengaku - one was tofu with a miso-sauce (basically barbecue sauce) on it and one was konnyaku with the same sauce on it. I believe I mentioned konnyaku before - it is made from the root vegetable called satoimo. It was pretty delicious - a mix of Western and Eastern flavors. I liked the "barbecue" sauce...obviously.

"And I will say that we should take a moment and hold it and keep it frozen and know that life has a hopeful undertone"

The title is catchy, no? It is a quote from a Twenty One Pilot's song titled "Migraine." I chose this to be today's title because I started the day off with a migraine yet wanted to remain hopeful throughout the day. Thankfully, we did not have orientation until 9:20 in the morning so I had time to take my medicine and rest. I told my host family about it and, after explaining that I am not sick and that it's a genetic, chronic thing, they gave me this ice-pack, gel-thing. You remove a plastic rectangle to reveal a blue, gel rectangle that you stick on your forehead. It reacts with the air chemically (I'm guessing) and keeps cool for quite some time. It was super useful and, though it felt weird at first, I wish we had them in the US.

On my way to school today I had another great photo opportunity before the bird took flight. Next time! At the library today, I checked out a field guide to Japanese birds, but haven't found this one yet. I am passing 10 pm now so will try looking again tomorrow. I see a lot of these though as well as have spotted a waxwing or two. Also, it seems that the pigeon of Nishinomiya is the crow.


Today we filled out paperwork for opening a bank account in Japan via KGU. I really wish I had known about this before arriving in Japan, so I wouldn't have had to do certain things before. However, it won't be useful until near the end of April, so I guess it's okay. After the exciting fun of filling out four forms as a group we had an orientation concerning course registration, which is tomorrow. I'm so nervous to find out what level I placed in and to apply for classes!

Then, what I've been waiting for, I got to meet my Nihongo Partners!!! KGU has a program available to study abroad students in the Japanese Language Track called "Nihongo Partner" where one or two Japanese students help you throughout the semester. My partners are both so nice! One is Mari and the other Nanako: 22 Business major and 19 International Affairs major. We ended up laughing a lot during lunch, introducing each other, and talking about the Kansai dialect.

I had plans to go to the library and the KGU art gallery/museum after orientation with some friends
today, but we got separated due to the change in the Nihongo Partner plans. Furthermore, my phone had been having severe programs concerning Wi-fi, data, and calls through my new SIM card and app, so I couldn't contact anyone to try to meet up. I checked out a bird guide and a book on Japanese sea creatures and then chatted with some fellow study abroad students that I ran into before going back home. There, my host dad called the number I was provided (because KGU could not help at all) and spoke to the assistant. I listened to their conversation and am not sure if I would have been able to do it on my own with my own Japanese. After a lot of confusion and two long calls, everything was fixed. I kept thanking him but he said "It's no problem. It's my duty." So sweet! I mentioned that this wasn't abnormal and that a lot of people were having problems and he said if I couldn't help them, then I should bring them over so he can call the number for them! He is so nice!!! My host mother was there for moral support (English and technology are not her strong points, according to her).

At the house, I did two things I have never done before. 1: Laundry in Japan. This is only exciting because there aren't really any dryers - I had to hang up my clothes on my balcony. I was kind of self-conscious about my undergarments, so made a mini curtain of socks around them. Everything dried fine. 2: I handled fish ovaries. I came home a bit earlier than the last two days, so I was able to help a lot more in the kitchen (though a lot of the prep-work had been finished already). We had mentai-spaghetti. Spaghetti with seaweed, butter, and mentai - fish ovaries. Technically, we separated the skin out, so it was just fish eggs but it was different from caviar. These eggs had never technically left the fish and they are very small and have a unique, salty, slightly spicy taste. It was very interesting. However, the carrot soup we had was amazing. I remember the carrot soup at my home university's cafeteria was basically hot carrot juice so this was even more amazing.  I asked them about the Kabuto Forest Park and they said they walk to the entrance to it every morning! That's really close! Entry is free as well so I will definitely be checking it out.

Library Orientation, Disaster Preparedness, and Nyan-nyan-chan

I was able to sleep in until 7 today! So exciting! (Of course, our orientation started later so I was able to sleep in, however, last night I stayed up a little late due to picture-sorting and blog-writing).

Anyway, the day started off quite nicely (other than breakfast, of course) when, walking to school, I came across a really pretty sight. A cherry tree up on the hill starting to blossom, with a bird in its branches, pecking at the petals. It was so beautiful! Thankfully, I'm trying to make it a habit to have my camera on me always. Unfortunately, I didn't get any stunning pictures. However, I wish to share the view, so I will post a picture below.

Anyway, today's part of orientation week focused on the library, disaster preparedness, and, for designated students, more testing. Pictures were not allowed in the library, but it was quite nice. It has three levels as well as a basement level and half a level in-between the basement level and first level. So, technically, five floors in all. It is very bright, clean, and well organized and has a variety of subjects. Of course, pretty much everything is in Japanese, but they had some variety of languages, especially in their newspaper archive. They also have movies that students can rent - ones that I actually would like to watch! Apparently, one of the most popular movies at the university to be rented is "Devil Wears Prada" - this shocked me a bit. During the tour, a study abroad student from somewhere else in the US commented "This is so much easier than the Dewey Decimal System, huh?" and I kind of just made a croaking sound and slowly shrugged - this library does use the Dewey Decimal System.......

Next, we had a long but informative lecture concerning disaster preparedness. They kept saying "We know this is long, but it's important so don't sleep!" and "Please don't be scared of Japan." Most of the information concerning the disasters themselves was not new to me, but now I know the procedures. For earthquakes, just like we learn in America, go under a desk. But, they can be so powerful in Japan that there are some different precautions and after-the-fact actions to take.

• Don't set up your house and furniture in certain ways. For instance: no furniture that could block an escape route in case it falls; no furniture by a bed; no TV set by a bed; and try to keep things stabilized and avoid easily toppled, heavy pieces of furniture.
• Open a door before going under a desk. In some cases, the earthquake may damage the door frame, leaving you trapped within the room.
• Fires often occur after an earthquake, so turn off gas and electric. If you see a fire and can't put it out yell "Fire" and call the hotline, answering the questions they are supposed to ask you. This was very important because the yelled "Fire" and all the questions were in Japanese. No one on emergency lines will be able to speak English.
• There are Emergency Evacuation Centers everywhere. In Nishinomiya alone, there are 139 designated areas, most of which are schools and public buildings. We learned how to find these centers and the etiquette of such centers.
• It's human nature to panic, but the Japanese learn how to prepare for and deal with disasters since a young age, so also learn to keep as calm as possible. We must also do this.
• In the case of a tsunami, run or bike inland. Do not use cars because that will create a traffic jam and increase hazards. The most important things to do though are have an emergency supply kit and to find high ground, going at least 3 floors up. 
• The Japanese government has alert systems in place that will alert everyone of an earthquake within 7 seconds of it happening. 
• Typhoon season is August through October and as long as people stay inside and away from windows (in the case of someone going outside with their umbrella and their umbrella becoming a cannon due to high wind speeds), people should be fine.

After the informative presentation, by a Japanese firefighter, we went to lunch, where I tried the Japanese dish curry rice. Apparently, it is much spicier than I anticipated. Next, a group of about nine of us went exploring! We tried speaking primarily in Japanese, but 7 people in the group spoke Chinese, so often chatted in that language. The other Chinese-deficient student and I talked a lot, while still having small conversations with the rest.

We got to see more of Nishinomiya, see a lot of various flowers, and experience walking in the city. It was nice how comfortable and fun it was walking around, just seeing the city-scape. We went to two malls: ACTA and Nishinomiya Gardens. The latter was much bigger and nicer in my opinion. Once I told my host family about it they said it was new and hence bigger and 'nicer.' I was so happy that the Gardens mall has a LUSH! If I had know, I would've waited to buy soap! We were examining this small bottles of tablets that were apparently mouthwash when the saleswoman/employee came over and started explaining the product in Japanese. We were able to follow along pretty well and I truly appreciated how she treated us as customers in her native tongue. We also perused a diverse store called "Loft" that had Nyan-nyan-chan (and now the entirety of the title has been explained). Nyan-nyan-chan is what the three of us named the most adorable pillow/stuffed-animal I have ever seen. Now only was it adorable but it was soft and extremely comfortable. It's hard to describe, but the texture, feel, and give were so unique! I had never felt any pillow like it before. If, by the end of the trip, I still want to buy it and believe I can fit it in my carry on, I will have to go back. 

Tonight, I was able to help make pot stickers with my host mom! We made 50 small pot stickers in total. She had done pretty much all the prep work and I helped make half of the pot stickers. We scooped some of the filling into a spoon, then placed it onto the small circle sheets of dough, and then it got tricky. We had to wet a finger, brush the finer on one half of the circle's rim, and then fold one half onto the other, creating folds as we did so. She was done so quickly! But it was a lot of fun. The theme of tonight's dinner was Chinese food. We had two types of potstickers: yakigyouza (grilled in a pan) and suigyouza or mizugyouza (boiled in water). We also had: a salad with cucumbers, various sauces, chicken, and jellyfish: the best fried rice - the best; a soup with tofu and bok choi: and traditional Japanese rice sweets and tea for dessert. What was nice is that, with dessert, they asked me to show them my light saber videos and photos! It was so much fun! They also listened to me chat probably a bit more than I should have about the different sabers available, various websites, and rules of the club. Each day becomes a little more comfortable (even the daily showers - though I may soon get tired of those).

Tomorrow I should be meeting my Nihongo Partner (part of a program I signed up for within the study abroad program in which I will be paired up with a Japanese student to help me with the language outside of the classroom). Also, on the way back to campus today, we saw that KGU has its own museum (which is apparently new as well). Hopefully, we can check it out tomorrow.

Does anyone remember when I mentioned the name of the mountain behind my school being Kobuta and possibly meaning baby pig? Well I was wrong: the mountain is Mt. Kabuto. I read up on it with the following brief wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Kabuto . Apparently Kabuto means "helmet" in Japanese and this remnant of an extinct volcano is kind of shaped like a helmet. It is also part of a Forest Park. I thought that any trips to nature would be much later on and weekend affairs, but this is quite close and might make a nice day trip one day soon. (P.S. Thanks dad for helping me with this).

I will end today with a picture of a bird I have been seeing everywhere in the city, but I want to make it a little fun. Pop quiz! Crow or Raven?

Nakayamadera

I finally took pictures of my breakfast this morning! See how cute this breakfast set is? I'm finding that every meal uses a lot of dishes, but has such nice presentation.

Today was the speaking portion of our placement exam. I was very nervous since speaking is pretty much my weakest point; however, it went very smoothly. My tester was super nice and smiled a lot and all we really did was talk about Las Vegas. 

Most of that time-block of test-taking was free-time since each person's interview took only about five minutes or so. I was able to chat with some new people, including a student who really likes a lot of books and anime that I like, another student from Germany, and an International Communications Management major from Nederlands. There was a lot of fascinating conversation. Today was also the Orientation/Welcome lunch during which many staff of the program were introduced to us and the dean of the college made a lovely speech. There were some parts that were very meaningful. For one, he talked of how this is a spring semester and so many beautiful things are happening, trees are blooming, and things are changing - just like us (concerning this spring beauty, he then recited a poetic quote in German and I was so excited). He also talked about how we should have fun, but remember to shoulder the responsibilities of our countries and new cultures and to make the world "better," "safer," and "more conducive to the human spirit." I found those last words very powerful.

Next, we had a computer orientation that was over fairly quickly and we were free to go. Some members of Osaka Squad as well as a new friend (the ICM major from Nederlands) decided to go to a temple nearby one of the Osaka Squad members' house. He has already been to the temple a couple of times and wanted to show it to us. I thought "Oh this will be so cool!" and pictured a singular, small shrine. I was blown away once we actually got there.

It was much bigger than I thought and had more elements to it than I imagined! It wasn't just "a temple." It was a whole bunch of temples and shrines and trees and statues and cherry blossom trees that was just so gorgeous! And speaking of the cherry blossoms: they are starting to bloom, but aren't quite there yet. However...

1. On the way to the temple we saw a tree in bloom. It was like a big pink cloud hanging out of someone's backyard, brightening the gray, cement-themed street.
2. The cherry trees themselves are quite stunning. They are very gnarly and have their own individual image, curving and twisting and bending for reasons only they know. Most are also covered with patches of moss or lichen, making them very colorful.

Anyway, we walked up steep streets and went across a red bridge to get to the area shown in the picture above. Before we actually started walking around, we washed our hands and faces a fountain with bamboo scoops and a large, lotus-shaped spout. Another station later on looked like a dragon, but still had bamboo scoops. This place was gorgeous and so colorful! One temple building was white with orange trimmings, rainbow flags hanging from the eaves, and a white dome shaped middle section.

Another was tall, blue and gold pagoda (pictured right) while another large one was extremely elaborate with paintings of peacocks, phoenixes and dragons.
There were also many small shrines. One was orange with fox statues while another was brown with beautiful lanterns. We all learned how to pray at this traditional Japanese shrine.

• First, pay by throwing in some coins (we all used 1 en coins which are the lowest and lightest).
• Next ring the gong (this one had long ribbons of the colors of the rainbow)
• Clap your hands (apparently, some people clap twice and others thrice).
• Pray.
• When you are done, clap and/or ring the gong again.

This temple we went to, Nakayamadera, is apparently a very famous fertility shrine, so I prayed for an abundance of good photographs, especially while here in Japan (since I don't actually want to have a baby anytime soon, I figured symbolic fertility was acceptable).

Another exciting aspect of this shrine was a section of Jizo Butsu - Jizo Buddhas. These buddhas are meant for children and women who are currently or are planning to become pregnant (I know that sentence sounded like a medical commercial, but it was the most appropriate phrasing). They are also often used to help guide the spirits of dead children to a safer place. Some lore says that they are good for travelers as well, hence my own small jizo butsu which my parents so generously gave me.  

It was so cool seeing so many shrines and temples all gathered together. It has a totally different feel, artistically and spiritually, than the Gothic cathedrals of France, the medieval churches of England, and the common churches of America. I have not been to a wide variety of spiritual places (outside of nature that is), but it was really neat to go straight from the city to the mix of nature and culture. There was actually a great view of the city and the skyline of Osaka. There were not many people there either. Thankfully, another person had a big camera so I didn't feel too much like a sore thumb, and he was a local! In fact, I'm pretty sure he, a woman he came with, an older man, and a kid were all one family. It was adorable because the kid was playing with bubbles and he was taking pictures of her and then the older man would hold her and so on. At one point, the little girl blew a bubble in my direction and one of my friends whispered "blow it back!" so I did. The parents did that smiley "yay" and soft clap that they do with young kids and she looked kind of confused that I actually blew it back. It was all very cute. It was also neat because, even though I love languages, sometimes, language doesn't matter.

With the help of everyone I hung out with today, I was able to return home safely via the train and

then (by myself!) I walked from the station to my house. I took the same route I did yesterday with the two GS network partners; however, this time, I did not use Google Maps! I just went the exact way and it was fine. I was able to help make dinner today (not much though; my host mom did a like of prep work after lunch so there was not much to do before dinner). It was more Western style: an Irish type soup with potatoes and cabbage; a gratin dish with oysters, spinach, and cheese; a hearty salad; toast; and some olives. They let me try non-alcoholic beer (don't worry, I checked the can before drinking (you know who I'm talking to)). When I took the first sip, I tried so hard not to make a face, but I think it didn't work because my host parents laughed. It was so bitter! They said it pretty much tasted the same as real beer (so now I know I probably don't like real beer).

The rest of my free time today was spent working on pictures and this blog (as well as some academic e-mails, but that's kind of boring). I do have a few more things I want to share, but they don't warrant their own paragraph per thought, so I'll create another conclusion bullet list. Good night and good day!

• The trains are so clean! When I compare this to Las Vegas public transportation and the subway system in London I'm a bit embarrassed. The trains are clean inside and out, have clear announcements (of course in Japanese, but you can actually understand the syllables being broadcasted), and the station plays classical music when not making announcements!
• When the student who was returning via the same train as I asked me if we were on the right train, I started second guessing. We saw a bunch of elementary or middle school, soccer-ball wielding students come in and sit down so I thought "why not ask them?" I walked over and (in Japanese!) asked "Excuse me, but is this train going to Nishinomiyakitaguchi?" AND they understood me AND they answered AND it was so nice! As soon as I stepped back over to my friend, each of our parties kind of giggled. New interaction for everyone. 
• Nakayamadera is the 24th of 33 temples in West Japan that are very popular and even part of a route taken by people who, either for religious reasons or other, are visiting a string of temples.
• Apparently, in Europe, it is more common to follow a specific degree "packet" rather than take a bunch of classes in which a variety go into other fields (like American studies). 
• I have still not found any evidence of a taiko club. However, I saw an archery club poster on the first day so I will probably try that...maybe...a bit nervous. 

First Day on Campus

The picture above is my version of one of many iconic shots of Kwansei Gakuin University. I forgot the name of the lawn (it has "chuu" in it) but the mountain behind the clock tower is "Kobutayama" or "Kobuta Mountain." I asked my kind guide what "Kobuta" meant and she wasn't able to describe it to me in English. Though I understand the linguistic repercussions, I just tried Google Translate and I received the results "piglet" and "Mt. Children's Mountain." Maybe another student will know.

This morning, my host family walked me to campus, showing me a nice route with few turns but steep slopes (though definitely not like San Francisco). I saw two new types of bird today but did not have time to take a picture! Little sis, I'm sorry! I'll keep trying!

Then came the test. It was not what I was expecting, but I feel pretty confident about it. There were 100 questions in total and the test got progressively harder with each page. There was also a sheet full of blank squares in which you were supposed to write all the letters in both Japanese alphabets. Luckily, I spent time studying those when I first started the language, so that page was easy. The rest of the test focused on reading comprehension, grammar, and particles. I left about 6 or 7 blank while kind of guessed on 8 or 10. I surprised myself at how far I could go though. The first question I skipped with in the late 30s or early 40s but I figured just because I don't know this one, doesn't mean that I won't know others - and I was right. I think the Japanese announcer was also a confidence-booster because I understood everything she said about the test and the requirements of the two academic tracks. I was also surprised that there was no actual kanji section! I believe kanji is a weak point for most Japanese-learners who have never learned an Asian language before so I myself have been focusing on kanji for the past few months. I was slightly pleased and slightly disappointed.

After using every minute of the allotted two hours (I was one of three of the 79 students to do so), we went to an important orientation regarding Address Registration, Insurance Registration, and Japan's National Pension. These are all required and have many rules that I will not bore you with, but I thought the National Pension was very interesting. Everyone in Japan between the ages of 20 and 59 must pay an expensive pension. This keeps taxes and other prices low. However, students and people who are not living in Japan for a very long time can be exempted from this pension. For each of these things, we need our Residence Card (received when we entered the country), our Student ID (received today), and our Passport (which I left at my host family's house). I was so embarrassed. Out of the people I talked to, I am one of the only one's who read our entire welcome packet and handbook yet I looked at my passport this morning and thought "It's dangerous to always have it on me, so I'll leave it here." Thankfully, we live so close to the college and I had memorized the route, so I did not miss much. However, one of my new GS (Global Student) Network partners, a volunteer KGU Japanese student, generously walked with me so she could make sure I could keep up with the tour and lunch. People here are so nice it's shocking. On the plus side, I was able to make sure I knew the route and we ran into two of her professors, one of which from Arizona!

Once we returned, we ate at one of the university's three cafeterias: Big Papa. Yes. That is the cafeteria name. Another one is called Big Mama. She did not understand why I was laughing.

For lunch, I tried Kitsune Soba (for the first time). No one was able to answer a question I had at the time, so I brought my question to my host father later on: If Kitsune means fox...what is this? In this case, he actually had an answer. This is a dish made of a type of tofu product, thinly sliced and fried. People used to like to feed it to foxes because they seemed to really enjoy it. So now, people call this dish "Kitsune Soba" (there is also "Kitsune Udon" which simply uses different noodles). Either way, it was delicious.

The campus tour was a little rushed because my guide and I finished eating after the rest and wanted to catch up with them. However, I took some lawn pictures, saw the library, and took the picture on the right. This is a significant photo because all those trees are cherry trees and I am so excited to see and take pictures of this street once they bloom!

From then on, we walked as a group to a City Hall branch by the Koutouen Train Station, chatting of weather and comparing what we've experienced so far from home countries be it Romania, Holland, Australia, Singapore, Sweden, and more. I did take a few pictures along the way but my favorite will be posted here. As one of my favorite vloggers (Mimei) likes to say "Japanese street of the day~!"

As for dinner, another delicious meal but the overall meal did not really have a name. There was salmon with green peppers, miso soup, satoimo (potato/yam-like food), a rice dish called takikomigohan, and mini salad with sesame dressing. The most interesting part of this meal was the conversation. Apparently my host father studied Foreign Languages as well as economics and a few other subjects in college, leading him to travel all over the world. He learns (and can still write and read) Arabic and out of all his time spent in America, northern countries of Africa, and various countries in the Middle East, he spent most of his time in Arabia. I asked him why Arabian and he explained how half a century ago that's what he wanted to do and how it blossomed because he liked the book "1000 Arabian Nights." I thought this was really cool because one piece of entertainment media got me interested in Japan, even though it wasn't a book. His travels is also how he met my host mother. He was in America and knew her sister and she went to either study or travel (I cannot recall) and they met. She thought his global stories and Arabian linguistic skills were cool.

A few various notes before I end today's entry. Good night and good morning!

• I finally allowed location on my phone on Google Maps today to help with navigating here in Japan. I know the way between the house and school, but walking back to the house from the station was a bit more confusing. Two students from the GS Network walked with me. (Once again, so nice! (I know that they are volunteering, but still)).
• Speaking of nice, the employees at the City Hall branch were so nice! This really surprised me since I am used to stony-faced governmental employees who do not really care about your problems, needs, or questions. 
• I'm still getting used to the back and forth. For example "How can I help?" "Oh, it's fine, you don't  need to help." "But I should help. I really am not tired." "You can help next time." "*In head, you said that last time* Please let me help." "Okay, but only...." I can't tell if I'm pushing too much or not enough. All in time, right?
• A GS Network guide showed me that the "idol" of the school is a weird, cartoon, yellow creature that looks a lot like a camel. 
• It seems cars are scarier than trains. I was telling the two GS network partners who walked home with me while crossing at a crosswalk "that car is slowing down, see?" yet they were worried. However, when the railroad posts started clanging and I stopped, they were like "We can still go." I didn't go obviously, but I thought it was interesting how we considered the different vehicles differently. 
• In Japan, in order to receive a driver's license, you must be 18 years of age, pass a driving test, pass a written test, and attend driving school.

Tempura~

Once again, this post will not have as many pictures. However, I worked up the courage to ask my host family if I could take pictures of our meals and they said it was fine. So now I can add pictures of fun Japanese cuisine and, to the left, is a picture of my lovely chopsticks!

I was able to sleep until 6 am today and have noticed a decrease in jet-lag symptoms throughout the day (yay!). Breakfast will be the same everyday, if I translated correctly: homemade bread, a boiled egg, tea, and basically a mini parfait - and "everybody love parfait." I have my own dish set to use in the mornings and it is adorable! It has a little pattern of tea cups, tea pots, coffee pots, and so on in red and blue on a white background with their English words below each.


After breakfast, I pretty much studied until lunch. I was able to eat udon today! I also got to try kamaboko, a pinkish white processed fish product, and some form of algae-like seaweed that was surprisingly delicious despite its outward appearance. Of course, I like almost anything I eat.

Next, my host family and I went to the dollar store and a pharmacy so I could get notebooks and body wash. This dollar store was much higher-class than the one my friends and I went to the other day, but everything in it was still a dollar. On the way, we unexpectedly stopped at a cake shop and though I protested, they bought us all slices of desert for later. The shop was small and extremely fancy looking, but the prices were actually pretty fair. A little over $4 for one of the best slices of chocolate cake I have ever had, layered with chocolate and topped with a macaroon. The entire shop smelled divine. I wish I could capture smells and flavors like we can capture images with cameras. Another one of the senses that was messed with today was hearing: on the car ride, we stopped before a train rail due to a passing trail. The tall, yellow posts had red flashing lights, and the bar that came down was covered in yellow, red, and black stripes as well as hanging red straps. Most interesting was the noise emanating from the posts. It's not something we hear in the US and since I have only ever heard it in anime until now, I was having anime flashbacks.

We interrupt this regular blog program to bring to you cultural notes!

• Coins are essential in Japan. Cash, yes; but coins specifically. Most of the time, change is given in coins only and many small vending-style machines take only coins. Not only are coins so important, but cards are often not taken. Some stores in larger cities will take debit and maybe credit cards, but a majority of Japan apparently does not use or accept credit cards.
• This city is definitely people-centric, not car-centric. Although there are more cars in Japan than I expected, the city is made for organized public transportation and easy access via walking and biking. Small shops of any design and clinics of various fields can be seen everywhere. I also saw small playgrounds everywhere, including one built in the space under a raising train rail! 
• The rumors that Japanese people do not care about their teeth and that there are few dentists are wrong. Today alone I saw four dental clinics and I asked my host family about it and they pointed something out. There are definitely dentists in Japan, however, people do not get braces or surgery just to straighten their teeth or make them look "nicer." It's more necessity than a specific beauty norm.

Now we shall return to your regular blog program. Thank you.  (I apologize; I wanted some humor)

 The aforementioned cake slices were eaten with a loose-leaf tea and jokes of tea-leaf fortune telling. Before studying until dinner, I stood outside and roughly sketched the view from my humble balcony. So many places have made me itch to draw or photograph and I gave in to this one. It was drizzling a bit, but though it was not very hard rain, it made this cold weather even colder. I am honestly shocked at how cold it still is. My host family is very understanding of how I am obviously not accustomed to this weather and have provided me with yet another thick blanket (:-)). Since I have more and more resources, I also planned my courses a bit for both this semester here and next semester back home - ugh so much drama but so many cool classes!

 Now the title of today's post becomes relevant: for dinner we had...tempura!
When I came down, I was looking at the table, trying to figure out the layout and my host family were making jokes, imitating me: "What could it be?" The main parts were a dish full of sliced vegetables and some huge shrimp on sticks and a hot plate in the center of the table which a pot of oil was placed upon later. The items were dipped in a bowl of batter then fried right there on the table and quickly eaten! I was not sure how it would turn out, but it helped warm me up so I was extremely happy. I tried two new vegetables as well: gobon, a long starchy food, and renkon, a root with natural holes in it. (When I asked my host father why there are holes in it, he didn't know so he said there were there to see long distances). It was a fun and delicious dinner.


After dinner I studied until now (give me a break! I have the first of my two placement exams tomorrow!). So I have stayed awake until 10:30 tonight - I think that I can go to bed without feeling like a wimp. Good night!

Second Day; Host Family!

Warning: this post will not have many pictures. Unfortunately, I showed up at a friend's hotel room too late to catch the actual sunrise (though the pink over the water was nice) and I have been so busy that I was not able to take many photographs today.

After waking up to the buzz of my phone at 5:50 a.m., I made my way to breakfast with members of Osaka Squad as well as some friends of my old friend. Most of them did not really speak English, but rather Mandarin, so we communicated mainly in Japanese, though sparingly. Today's breakfast was buffet-style yet high quality. The bread was especially satisfying, with one of the flakiest croissants I have ever had that was not a mess of crumbs. I decided to start the day off adventurous and tried their "Mango-Apple" juice (which was delicious) and my friend will tell you how excited I was at the deep orange hue of the fried egg.
I also want to note, without too much hubris, that I left a note for our third roommate in German and when she joined the breakfast room later on she said it was good! >.<

Anyways, after our slightly confusing checkout, we all went to orientation. Thankfully, I had paper to take notes with and practically all of the information covered is provided in a handbook that was in our welcome packet. Also in the welcome packet was a campus map, a college brochure, a course classes list, a Lagare train card with some starter money on it, orientation schedule, insurance paper, and a few other papers. We covered a wide range of topics, including host family etiquette and expectations. For those interested, students who were not living with host families actually made up a large majority of our 79-large group and were able to leave for their residence halls before the host-family informational. Some interesting cultural notes we learned will be listed below.

• All bicycles are registered in Japan (partly explaining why so many people just leave their bikes unattended when they go into buildings).
• Bicycles are treated like vehicles so have many strict rules (some of which I have already seen broken) such as: DUI, riding while holding an umbrella, riding parallel to someone, and riding on sidewalks.
• According to our handbook, Japanese people wash their clothes very frequently - as in more than once a week. Seeing the size of the laundry machine and basket, this makes sense. However, what doesn't make sense, is that our guides encouraged us to bring 2 weeks worth of clothing. 
• There is so much more to the shoe culture than I first thought. Of course, we take off our shoes when entering someone's house and leave them in an indented area. However, we are then supposed to wear a pair of slippers around the house - but not on carpeted areas. There are also designated slippers outside of doors that lead to the outside other than the front door as well as special slippers for the shower area.
• The shower area! The floor is a drain so you do not shower in the bathtub or in a small enclosed shower - the small room is the shower. The nozzle is handheld. 
• Showers are expected to be brief while baths can take longer.
• Tap water is drinkable. Everywhere. Awesome!

There is probably more, but I cannot recall at this moment.

Back to the sequential story-telling; once orientation was finished, we were moved into a separate room to await our host-families. Thankfully, no one had to wait long. Some people with host-siblings got to see them today and one later told me that she spent a lot of time playing Legos with them. Soon enough mine came and they were so nice! My host mother is a bit taller than me while my host father is definitely shorter than me (and I love it). So far, I found out he likes pottery and bread-making while she likes cooking, piano/guitar, watercolor, and more. Apparently, I am their third host student but their first student from America. After we greeted each other, I followed them to their car and began the process of balancing confidence with nervousness. At first, the car ride was pretty quiet and a bit awkward, but soon we began asking each other questions. After the first one, I began to relax - even more so when I found out that they have done this before. On the way to the house, we drove by and through my new university, which is very pretty and European-styled, and they showed me that a street leading directly to the university is lined with cherry trees. They have not blossomed yet, but once they do, I bet the view (and ensuing photographs) will be gorgeous.

One of the best parts about this house is its proximity to the university. I will only have to walk between 10 and 15 minutes to commute (meaning I can use the aforementioned Lagare card for other travel). Though I was looking forward to living in a room with tatami mats and a futon, I love my new room. It's small and has a nice desk for me to study at as well as a balcony that will also serve as a laundry-drying area. Since it is still pretty cold in Japan, my wooden floor is equipped with a large rug that has an under-rug, for lack of a better word, that is heated! It is soooooo comfortable.

The tour of the house was very interesting, not only because everything is so different from what I am used to, but also because I did not completely understand what my host parents were saying. Of course, we ended up understanding each other, but not every word or sentence got through. In the middle of the tour and instructions, we had lunch. I was able to eat soba for the first time, with sides of tamagoyaki (Japanese rolled omelette) and spinach. Soba is entirely different from udon. Soba is wheat noodles that are thin and a bit longer than udon. Of course, it was also delicious. I am trying to acclimate to slurping the noodles, but my untrained muscles and dental situation are both cumbersome. Before we ate, my host family presented me with my own chopsticks! They are so beautiful; smooth crimson with golden cherry blossoms near the top and (my favorite part that almost made me cry) my name in katakana in gold engraved on them! Hopefully I will be able to take a picture of them and post it soon.

One of the reasons why I do not have any pictures from my host family's house yet (or of they themselves) is that we were told in the orientation to make sure to get the host family's permission to take and post any pictures relating to them and their house. The opportunity did not show itself today, but I will try soon.

Around 6:30 we had another delicious meal of rice with vegetable and sashimi (raw fish), accompanied by miso-soup, asparagus, and strawberries. We all cleaned the dishes afterward and talked about various topics, most of which I have already shared throughout this post. Just before dinner, I was able to give them a souvenir from Nevada and they seemed to really like it. One part of the souvenir was an ironwood carving and, apparently, the Japanese equivalent is cherry wood carvings. This was the moment when I realized that my host father can speak, read, and understand English fairly well. It's nice to know that if I need help, we can aid me in translation.

I feel like this has been a great day and a good introduction. Hopefully, I can improve my communication and interaction along with maintain good relationships. However, I am still trying to get used to the time change and have been tired for quite some time. It even affects my appetite! After having one extremely long day of sunlight and air travel, I honestly hoped that jet-lag would not be a problem for me, but my body is obviously still adjusting. I will try my best to stay up a bit later and sleep in past six, but we shall see.

Osaka and Kobe; First Full Day in Japan

So my first full day in Japan actually started in Osaka with a gorgeous sunrise a little after 5:30 am. The sun was a bright, red circle rising above the misty mountains, looking like the Japanese flag rising to tell us good morning and welcome. The view of Osaka from our window was quite gorgeous as well. We drank complementary green tea as we gazed at the view and watched as a hawk flew by and small, toy-like vehicles went on their way. Later on, I saw a heron or crane briefly fly by and a multitude of adorable, plump finches.

It's still relatively cold in Japan right now, so I wore my jacket practically all day. Thankfully, the weather should be warming up soon and walking in the sun is actually very satisfying. Another fortunate note is that one of the first things we did today as a group was try out the コンビニ (Konbini/Convenience Store) and Vending Machine near the hotel. This may not sound exciting, but in Japan these very normal places are extremely different from their American counterparts. The two Konbini had delicious foods, such as onigiri (rice balls) and umeboshi (sour plum products) while the vending machine had both cold AND hot drinks! I accidentally got a coffee, but one of our fellow Osaka Squad members was kind enough to switch his tea with my coffee. I greatly appreciated that, because coffee makes me sluggish and sleepy. But the warm drink was very nice in the brisk weather.

Afterwards, we relaxed in the lobby and enjoyed the decorations left over from the wedding that had taken place in the hotel. Before I continue and forget, I would like to note that my hotel room number was very lucky: 1111. Also, the hotels here in Japan were fascinating in their differences from American hotels (at least the two I have been to so far). For one, each room has a doorbell. You have to insert your key card into a slot in order to activate the power. Everything is nice and compact, especially the bathroom. The tap water is safe to drink. There are pajamas provided as well as tea, toothbrushes, and hairbrushes, but not individual shampoo, body wash, or conditioner. Those last three hygienic products are provided in large, communal containers rather than the take-home mini versions to which I am accustomed.

Once we checked out, we headed back to the airport to meet with the university team for KGU (Kansai Gakuin University). Much to our delight, between last night and late this morning, a giant pikachu had been erected! Apparently there is a pokemon-themed event going on in the Kansai International Airport for the next two weeks.

We had been so enamored with the giant pikachu and pokemon posters, as well as trying to take a group selfie with my camera and canon app, that we walked right past the KGU team! Thankfully, they found us and turned out to be nice, fun, fellow KGU students. We boarded a bus and took an exciting bus ride in which we saw the diversity of buildings in Osaka, tiny trucks, a gorgeous glimpse of Osaka Castle, a peak at Hogwarts (in Universal Studios), and the Sea of Japan. It took a while to get set up at the second hotel in Kobe, receiving new SIM cards and arrival packets. Everyone is put into groups of three. My current roommates are a Linguistics major from Seattle and a funny woman who seems to love the colors orange and red (in actuality, her favorite color is blue) from Germany. Funnily enough, one of my hopes was to meet a study abroad student in the program from Germany. They both seem very nice and interesting.

Rather than just staying in the room, Osaka Squad decided to walk around and see what Kobe has to offer. Right next to our hotel is a German School, a Canadian School, a mall, a train station, a McDonalds, a dollar store, numerous other shops, and a wonderful pathway full of flowers, a river, and rock-based playgrounds. It was a nice experience and helped us find a place to eat dinner, which turned out to be a traditional Japanese style shop where I had actual udon for the first time. Thick, slightly gummy noodles in a tasty, light broth with, in this case, sliced green onion and fried squid (which was also very delicious). I was able to try pickled Japanese radish thanks to fellow table-mates and was surprised at how good it was. It was a bit bitter and a bit sweet, and tasted of sauerkraut. To top that all off, the meal was quite cheap: between $5-6 per person for perfect proportions and free water.

Everyone except for a fellow Osaka squad member and I returned to the hotel after the filling and exciting dinner. He and I were able to see the pathway at night, the lights shining off the water and a cool calm not present during the day, and we actually enjoyed some deep, philosophical conversation. It was amazing to be able to talk about such concepts as society, duality, energy, surrealism and perception in reality, and more. The sense of comfort and safety walking around at night was astonishing as well.

A dear, old friend of mine also participating in the program arrived around 7:30 pm and I was able to chat with her and mingle with some other students before coming up to work through today's pictures and write this blog post.

As I was talking about with someone, this experience is so real yet surreal that I am not sure what to think of it. I am not sure if I have to try hard to think about it. This has been a dream I have been working towards for years, but now that it is here I am simply living in the moment, enjoying it, savoring it. I haven't felt a huge rush of adrenaline or a sudden, shifting sense that something has changed. Of course, I feel occasional, momentary bursts of happiness and enthusiasm, but no surprise or fear. No trepidation. I'm happy and comfortable and exploratory. I apologize if the last few paragraphs sounded off in any way. I must get some rest now, as tomorrow is the first day of orientation and the day I meet my host family. To be continued...

Flight JL69 - The First Day

I clumsily awoke to my alarm at 3:30 am the morning of Wednesday March 22nd and was able to get ready, eat a blueberry muffin (provided by my father), and read a funny Steampunk Fairytale comic (provided by my mother) before going to the airport (with said amazing mother and father).

My first flight of the day was to LA from Las Vegas and only took an hour and had an extremely smooth landing. Once two of my friends and I arrived in LA, we found a fourth member of our study abroad group (which from hereon will be referred to as "Osaka Squad"). Apparently we had to get our luggage and then recheck it for our next flight and go through another security line. For some reason, I always have to be patted down either in my shoulder-blade-area or my ankle. Anyways, we waited at the gate (very exciting, I know) and exchange currency. The really only exciting things were A. seeing all the different airlines' stewardesses' outfits (super retro, colorful, and on point) and B. a fifth member of Osaka Squad almost missing the flight. She arrived a little before boarding time and we felt so bad for her. Thankfully it all worked out.

We took off around 2 pm on our approximately 12.5 hour plane ride. Yes, 12.5 hours. I can't sleep on airplanes. As I type this, I see the clock says 9:20 pm on Thursday March 23rd. I have had a long day with an abnormal amount of hours in it due to the peculiar amount of daylight hours. Japan Airlines had a very nice plane, with a diverse movie selection, the best airplane food I have ever had, and fascinating "Maps" tool which showed you the relative location of the airplane compared to two cities and the Day/Night areas. Basically the whole flight, our little airplane was flying from the inevitable darkness, trying to stay with the sun. I also really liked the insignia for the airlines: it's a red heron or crane silhouette within a circle

For those that care, I watched three movies I've never seen before, two of which had very similar stories and the third which was surprisingly satisfactory: 5 Centimeters per Second, La La Land, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. There were a bunch of other movies I wanted to watch, but I also read a book a friend gave me during the flight: The Alchemist. It was quite amazing and especially fitting for my flight to my long-desired study abroad. Any extra time not mentioned in books and movies was spent eating, failing to sleep, trying to sneak good pictures out the window (thank you friend!) and trying to quell the equal parts of rage and adoration a small child next to me incited.

I've always enjoyed the scenery from airplanes, even though it may not always be exciting. Our short flight was over the American southwest, so there was plenty of geological and topographical views to enjoy. However, the long flight over the Pacific was primarily composed of seeing half a blue sky and half a seemingly endless expanse of smooth, white cloud-field that went on for literally hundreds of miles. That, and interesting cloud formations, gets the mind working: stories of fantasy and sci-fi that inspire and entertain the bored traveler. Also, the ocean is pretty. (P.S. for those Inheritance Series fans I totally felt like Eragon and Sapphira in their adventurous chapter where they go over the ocean). Island-wise, there were some islands off the coast of California that were very pretty, small, and shocking. I also have a picture of a pretty mountain or volcano that I took about 10 hours into the flight. 

The whole experience felt surreal - as if nothing big was happening and I was still in the U.S. I still have that slight feeling, even after coming to our hotel and walking through a Japanese Supermarket. But, it started to hit me when we were getting ready to descend and we caught our first glimpses of Japan. It was (and is) very foggy and overcast so we didn't see anything until right before descent: but seeing the coastline and boats and city lights were so exciting! I realized "Hey. That's not America. That's Japan. Wow, that's Japan!" And then after going through customs and seeing everything in Japanese, the feeling strengthened. Thankfully the airport and these services close to the airport have a lot of English wording next to it or, if audio, after it; but that won't be the case in most places. Our hotel is also very compact and very small - it's nice just different.

 If you just want to look at pictures, type "pictures" in the search bar of the blog and it will bring up only posts with pictures in it - then ignore the text. I'm still trying to figure out if I can have a section just with all the pictures I have used.

Anyhow, I am very excited to start this adventure, though I do need sleep desperately. I have a feeling that my blog posts will continue to be longer, like this one was. Good night and good day!

The Night Before

This will be a short post; but I felt like I should write one.

It is the night before my departure. I will wake up in the wee hours of the morning (3:30 am) to catch my early flight to LA, from which I will leave for Japan in the early afternoon.

I have pre-packed, actually packed, double-checked the packing, cleaned, double-checked instructions and locations and completed a number of other preparations yet I do not feel quite prepared.

Of course I am nervous and excited and anxious, but those emotions seem just under the surface. Not deep but not obvious. My main feeling is that of surrealism. It doesn't feel like this is really going to happen. After years of planning and preparation, I still feel like I'm in limbo. However, I bet once I am on the plane, and if not then, then once I am in the new land itself, everything will start to feel quite real.

Hopefully I'll be able to get some sleep so that I can face my very long day properly.

Suitcases and Journals Oh My!

Today I am attaching my first pictures to the blog, which is turning out to be more difficult than I thought it would. My awesome mother made me a travel journal and my awesome friends gave me a travel journal as well. They are both very different, adorable, and multi-functional so I wanted to share them on this blog.

I am also officially packed. Thanks to my kind friend Erika, I was able to borrow a luggage scale rather than buy one and, apparently, both of my two small suitcases are about half the weight limit while my carry-on is six pounds under! This is quite exciting news seeing that I no longer have to worry about getting to Japan with my luggage nor do I have to worry about coming back to the States with the added weight of souvenirs. Anyhow, I continue to study for my upcoming placement tests and go over rules and tips. I am both ecstatic and nervous!