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.