Well, I end my lovely trip to Japan on post twenty.
The Sunday after my last post, we went to the Ageo festival, where I got to wear a yukata, and pretend I was Japanese. It was so much fun! And there were sooooooooooo many people! I was thrilled to go!
The day after that Ayu, otoosan and I went to Yokohama! we took a boat tour around the bay, and ate in Japanese China Town. Which is the exact opposite of the San Francisco China Town: expensive. So we ate and left.
Ater that exausting trip, Ayu, okaasan and I went to Karaoke with some friends of okaasan and their daughters.
It was a blast!! I did my best, but I had a lot of trouble keeping up with the songs.... we also played dress up!! ^^
Tuesday, Ayumi and I went to the GHIBLI MUSEUM!!!!!!!!! Yeah, I know you're all jealous!! XD
It was sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo cool!! i have a few pictures.....
After that, everything was mostly winding down to leaving.
my trip home was loooooooooooooooooong..... thats all I wanna say...
and now I'm in South Dakota looking at buffalo and stuff. It's beautiful, but I can't wait to be home!!
But those of you who are scared this is the end of the Mina Diaries, fear not! I go to Europe next summer!!!
Laterz!!
Amelia
Monday, July 27, 2009
Friday, July 17, 2009
SORRY!
Okay, so its been a week... whoops! promise I`m not dead, just slammed!!
So! Catch-up!
土曜日(Saturday):
HARAJUKU!!!! OMG Harajuku purikura is amazing. just wanna start with that! lol
so i met my friend Rikako at Ageo station early in the morning (9) and we took the train (meeting Kanako on the way) to Harajuku. First thing we did was buy these really cool bracelets that someone constom writes your name or w/e on them! so cool! mine says アメリア on it! so cute!! then Purikura!!!!!! LOVE! and somehow, by the time that was all done, it was lunch time.... oddly enough! so we went to a スイパ ! or something like that.... english: sweets palace. its pretty much a sweets buffet! AMAZING. I kept thinking the whole time, `Mom would kill me....` i have pictures of our plates are being uploaded. Don`t worry, before we ate the sweets, we did have an actual lunch. Pics are up. The shop was adorable, but no pics.... T.T
then we went shopping!!! lol i actually only bought a dress and some things at Claires.... Japan has a better Claires than we do! Not fair!
日曜日(Sunday):
MRS.EMILY AND MOLLY! THIS IS FOR YOU! XD
Let me tell a story. One time when Mrs. Emily went to Japan, she had to do a team building excercise that involved cutting down trees with machetes.
Sunday, I had to get up early and go to a lot close to the church were the members were cutting grass... with those tiny little sythe things you see in museums. I`m not kidding... afterwards we were rewarded with canned tea.... not water... oh well, it was good XD
After church, (which wasnt so bad, I found a book in english about philosophy) my ojiisan took okaasan, otoosan, and me to a really nice chinese resturant. Otoosan and i rode there and met okaasan and ojiisan. On the way I saw a zepplin. It was sooooooooooo freaking cool! It was just like in Kiki`s Delivery Service (and yes that was the first thing that popped into my head!)!!!!
The food was great!
ANd later okaasan, Ayu, and I went to Papa`s, the local shopping center, to get Ayumi some new shoes. Her other pair broke awhile ago. That was my first taste of the stationary stores Mrs. Emliy is always talking about.... Japan has the greatest accesories!!!
月曜日(Monday):
more testing at Ina, so I got to stay home. Ayumi is on summer break.
So first, Ayumi and i slept in. HEAVEN! And then we went to Maruhiro, the shopping center by the train station, and I went on a mini shopping spree. I bought a lot of cute little things at the stationary shope!!! looooooooooove those.!!!
Then we went to Kawagoe..... I can`t express in words how amazing Kawagoe is. honestly.
Its a very historic town, and it`s sooooooooo cute! I think the only thing it was missing was a sea port. It really looked like a sea side town.... but it was so much fun! The shop owners would put everything outside, and you just picked stuff up, as you walked by, and paid for it at the end!
We also went to a famous temple there, which was so cool! Pictures are being uploaded!
火曜日(Tuesday):
School.
Karate.... practice with the Judo club... oww.... very oww.... I still have rugburns on my elbows. It was probably the most intense workout I have had in a long time! After warm ups, I was so exhausted, I was shaking and my heart was all weak and stuff. Luckily I got a little rest time while the judo club taught up some throws. I watched mostly. Then we played a game (okay it wasn`t really a game, but it was to me!!). It was a basic fighting game. The goal was to land a touch, not punch or kick, on the other person as many times as possible within a time frame. It was soooooo much fun! lol
水曜日(Wednesday):
School.
Karate.
I can`t really remember this day.... sorry.... oh! wait! this was the day Ayu and I were messing around on the computer, listening to different songs. I showed her Carameldansen and she was like `Oh! Uma uma!!` it`s well known here, and we went and watch videos... lots. and of course sung it for the rest of the night!!
木曜日(Thursday):
We had double music period today. At the beginning, our teacher handed out a song randomly. Then sent altos and sopranos to different rooms (teacher worked with the boys) and we learned the whole thing in that time. Towards the middle of the second period, we all came back to the class room and sang. It was almost perfect! AMAZING! I still have the sheet music!! YAY! I couldn`t help but think how in choir it would take us weeks to get through a song all the way, and here these kids did it in under an hour and 30 min. And this isn`t even a choir. Its a class that meets once a week. How cool is that? I really wish I could have recorded what we sounded like. It was beautiful!!
Karate, which I was late for because I had to finish a project with my friend Ami. It turned out great, and Karate was a blast, as always! lol at the end we took pictures, which was soooooooooooo much fun!
I was freaking out because I had to give a speech the next day.......... I was writing a little more to it, and Ayumi helped me get it all translated into Japanese. I also had to make a bracelet for Rikako. She wanted one, cause I had made one for Kanako the day before (she saw mine when we went to Harajuku and thought they were cute). At 9 okaasan says we are going to visit a friend. I was a little freaked out cause I was tired, and still had to finish the bracelet and the speech. Okaasan said only for 30 min, so I said okay and we went to the 5th floor of out appartment building to her friends. She has two dogs, one of which hates me.
We ended up staying there for about an hour, so when we got home I had to rush to finish everything, and then take a shower.... i didn`t get to bed until almost midnight.
金曜日、今日(Friday, today):
I thought I was going to die when I got up this morning. I felt like a zombie..... I had only a slice of peanut butter toast for breakfast cause I felt like I would throw anything else up. The peanut butter was great.
So I got to school and was freaking out about my speech. Oh! Sorry, today was my last day as a student at Inagakuen. So I had to give a speech at the closing ceremony (they were getting ready for summer vacation). So I gave my sad little speech, and the Maxie, the German exchange student, gave an amazing one. Shes beet here for a year though.....
So after the closing ceremonies, was probably the saddist part of my time here. I had to say goodbye to everyone.... i got a lot of gifts, and took a lot of pictures, and refused to say `sayonara` on `ja ne!` or `mata ne!` which means `see you later`
I got a certificate from the principle on which my birthday is wrong....
And karate, made me so sad. After practice (which got I thought ended early, even though we still got our three hours in....) I was given a small square poster board with a message from everyone on it. Most of it is in Japanese, so when I`m done, I`m going to ask Ayumi to help me translate. Then I got one of the pictures we took the day before in a cute frame. I was ready to cry. Aina also gave me a really cute hair clip from Claires. It is a Yukata accsory, and I know them to be very expensive... but its beautiful! I wish I had had better gifts to give everyone.
After Karate, Aina and I went to the shopping center close to Inagaku for... you guessed it! PURIKURA!!!!! YAYAAYAYAYA!!! and crepes! which are so good!
The bus home was sad. I am really going to miss Aina...
Comments
Nancy: Thank you for clarifying that for me! I had always been a little curious! lol
JT: You crack me up! As for homework, kids in Japan don`t have a lot. They are to busy studying to bother with things like homework. Instead teachers give them all the answers then they study it for HOURS until they memorize it all for the tests. At least, that`s how I understand it to be. We hardly turned anything in. Some classes they needed to write speeches in English for, but since I already know English, I didn`t have to lol Yes I chose karate, and it was soooooooo much fun! My foot is mostly okay. sometimes a little sore, but okay. And trust me I`m going to see that movie. Also, one of the ALT`s (who is now my penpal and moving to Sweden) name is Jillian. Thought you should no. I forgot the Jost thing.... which makes me very sad. We have to many inside jokes....
Kayla: Believe it or not Kayla, I do want to see you again lol I am going up to Legends to see HP on the 24. dont know what time yet... JT WILL be there to!
Molly: Dude, I found it! And Everyone here knows it! lol I told Ayumi about it and she`s like `Oh yeah! that song!` the tittle is Fish Heaven in english, and I found it online, just not a single... still looking. Karate is amazing, and I`m going to keep it up in the US, so it better be just as cool or I`M gonna be mad... And I still have your address! don`t Worry!!
Mom: you and JT.... LOL
Heather: good to hear! Can you email me more info?
Anonymous: I think mom said this was Sally... Karate is a blast! And you should talk to the ALT Jill who is moving to Sweden with her husband in August! lol
Zach: because I have forgotten this in every post until now... what does ` Griffonner sur une faience` mean? there are two dots above the `i` in faience. It is on the cup I use. I did manage to get a pen pal in Suisse though. She speaks French! Since you are so lonely, you should come see HP on the 24 with us. Also, I need you address, so plz email it to me!!
Nancy: Oh god, the heat these last few days has been aweful! It hasn`t rained, so it was just hot. Not quite hot enough where you are sweating a enough for the wind to cool you off. Ugh! It was miserable.... T.T it rained last night though, so the tempurature went down. Does Lena need any particular thing that maybe I could get for her here?
And I`m done for now! i have other things to do!!!!!!!!! BYE!! じゃ また！！！
So! Catch-up!
土曜日(Saturday):
HARAJUKU!!!! OMG Harajuku purikura is amazing. just wanna start with that! lol
so i met my friend Rikako at Ageo station early in the morning (9) and we took the train (meeting Kanako on the way) to Harajuku. First thing we did was buy these really cool bracelets that someone constom writes your name or w/e on them! so cool! mine says アメリア on it! so cute!! then Purikura!!!!!! LOVE! and somehow, by the time that was all done, it was lunch time.... oddly enough! so we went to a スイパ ! or something like that.... english: sweets palace. its pretty much a sweets buffet! AMAZING. I kept thinking the whole time, `Mom would kill me....` i have pictures of our plates are being uploaded. Don`t worry, before we ate the sweets, we did have an actual lunch. Pics are up. The shop was adorable, but no pics.... T.T
then we went shopping!!! lol i actually only bought a dress and some things at Claires.... Japan has a better Claires than we do! Not fair!
日曜日(Sunday):
MRS.EMILY AND MOLLY! THIS IS FOR YOU! XD
Let me tell a story. One time when Mrs. Emily went to Japan, she had to do a team building excercise that involved cutting down trees with machetes.
Sunday, I had to get up early and go to a lot close to the church were the members were cutting grass... with those tiny little sythe things you see in museums. I`m not kidding... afterwards we were rewarded with canned tea.... not water... oh well, it was good XD
After church, (which wasnt so bad, I found a book in english about philosophy) my ojiisan took okaasan, otoosan, and me to a really nice chinese resturant. Otoosan and i rode there and met okaasan and ojiisan. On the way I saw a zepplin. It was sooooooooooo freaking cool! It was just like in Kiki`s Delivery Service (and yes that was the first thing that popped into my head!)!!!!
The food was great!
ANd later okaasan, Ayu, and I went to Papa`s, the local shopping center, to get Ayumi some new shoes. Her other pair broke awhile ago. That was my first taste of the stationary stores Mrs. Emliy is always talking about.... Japan has the greatest accesories!!!
月曜日(Monday):
more testing at Ina, so I got to stay home. Ayumi is on summer break.
So first, Ayumi and i slept in. HEAVEN! And then we went to Maruhiro, the shopping center by the train station, and I went on a mini shopping spree. I bought a lot of cute little things at the stationary shope!!! looooooooooove those.!!!
Then we went to Kawagoe..... I can`t express in words how amazing Kawagoe is. honestly.
Its a very historic town, and it`s sooooooooo cute! I think the only thing it was missing was a sea port. It really looked like a sea side town.... but it was so much fun! The shop owners would put everything outside, and you just picked stuff up, as you walked by, and paid for it at the end!
We also went to a famous temple there, which was so cool! Pictures are being uploaded!
火曜日(Tuesday):
School.
Karate.... practice with the Judo club... oww.... very oww.... I still have rugburns on my elbows. It was probably the most intense workout I have had in a long time! After warm ups, I was so exhausted, I was shaking and my heart was all weak and stuff. Luckily I got a little rest time while the judo club taught up some throws. I watched mostly. Then we played a game (okay it wasn`t really a game, but it was to me!!). It was a basic fighting game. The goal was to land a touch, not punch or kick, on the other person as many times as possible within a time frame. It was soooooo much fun! lol
水曜日(Wednesday):
School.
Karate.
I can`t really remember this day.... sorry.... oh! wait! this was the day Ayu and I were messing around on the computer, listening to different songs. I showed her Carameldansen and she was like `Oh! Uma uma!!` it`s well known here, and we went and watch videos... lots. and of course sung it for the rest of the night!!
木曜日(Thursday):
We had double music period today. At the beginning, our teacher handed out a song randomly. Then sent altos and sopranos to different rooms (teacher worked with the boys) and we learned the whole thing in that time. Towards the middle of the second period, we all came back to the class room and sang. It was almost perfect! AMAZING! I still have the sheet music!! YAY! I couldn`t help but think how in choir it would take us weeks to get through a song all the way, and here these kids did it in under an hour and 30 min. And this isn`t even a choir. Its a class that meets once a week. How cool is that? I really wish I could have recorded what we sounded like. It was beautiful!!
Karate, which I was late for because I had to finish a project with my friend Ami. It turned out great, and Karate was a blast, as always! lol at the end we took pictures, which was soooooooooooo much fun!
I was freaking out because I had to give a speech the next day.......... I was writing a little more to it, and Ayumi helped me get it all translated into Japanese. I also had to make a bracelet for Rikako. She wanted one, cause I had made one for Kanako the day before (she saw mine when we went to Harajuku and thought they were cute). At 9 okaasan says we are going to visit a friend. I was a little freaked out cause I was tired, and still had to finish the bracelet and the speech. Okaasan said only for 30 min, so I said okay and we went to the 5th floor of out appartment building to her friends. She has two dogs, one of which hates me.
We ended up staying there for about an hour, so when we got home I had to rush to finish everything, and then take a shower.... i didn`t get to bed until almost midnight.
金曜日、今日(Friday, today):
I thought I was going to die when I got up this morning. I felt like a zombie..... I had only a slice of peanut butter toast for breakfast cause I felt like I would throw anything else up. The peanut butter was great.
So I got to school and was freaking out about my speech. Oh! Sorry, today was my last day as a student at Inagakuen. So I had to give a speech at the closing ceremony (they were getting ready for summer vacation). So I gave my sad little speech, and the Maxie, the German exchange student, gave an amazing one. Shes beet here for a year though.....
So after the closing ceremonies, was probably the saddist part of my time here. I had to say goodbye to everyone.... i got a lot of gifts, and took a lot of pictures, and refused to say `sayonara` on `ja ne!` or `mata ne!` which means `see you later`
I got a certificate from the principle on which my birthday is wrong....
And karate, made me so sad. After practice (which got I thought ended early, even though we still got our three hours in....) I was given a small square poster board with a message from everyone on it. Most of it is in Japanese, so when I`m done, I`m going to ask Ayumi to help me translate. Then I got one of the pictures we took the day before in a cute frame. I was ready to cry. Aina also gave me a really cute hair clip from Claires. It is a Yukata accsory, and I know them to be very expensive... but its beautiful! I wish I had had better gifts to give everyone.
After Karate, Aina and I went to the shopping center close to Inagaku for... you guessed it! PURIKURA!!!!! YAYAAYAYAYA!!! and crepes! which are so good!
The bus home was sad. I am really going to miss Aina...
Comments
Nancy: Thank you for clarifying that for me! I had always been a little curious! lol
JT: You crack me up! As for homework, kids in Japan don`t have a lot. They are to busy studying to bother with things like homework. Instead teachers give them all the answers then they study it for HOURS until they memorize it all for the tests. At least, that`s how I understand it to be. We hardly turned anything in. Some classes they needed to write speeches in English for, but since I already know English, I didn`t have to lol Yes I chose karate, and it was soooooooo much fun! My foot is mostly okay. sometimes a little sore, but okay. And trust me I`m going to see that movie. Also, one of the ALT`s (who is now my penpal and moving to Sweden) name is Jillian. Thought you should no. I forgot the Jost thing.... which makes me very sad. We have to many inside jokes....
Kayla: Believe it or not Kayla, I do want to see you again lol I am going up to Legends to see HP on the 24. dont know what time yet... JT WILL be there to!
Molly: Dude, I found it! And Everyone here knows it! lol I told Ayumi about it and she`s like `Oh yeah! that song!` the tittle is Fish Heaven in english, and I found it online, just not a single... still looking. Karate is amazing, and I`m going to keep it up in the US, so it better be just as cool or I`M gonna be mad... And I still have your address! don`t Worry!!
Mom: you and JT.... LOL
Heather: good to hear! Can you email me more info?
Anonymous: I think mom said this was Sally... Karate is a blast! And you should talk to the ALT Jill who is moving to Sweden with her husband in August! lol
Zach: because I have forgotten this in every post until now... what does ` Griffonner sur une faience` mean? there are two dots above the `i` in faience. It is on the cup I use. I did manage to get a pen pal in Suisse though. She speaks French! Since you are so lonely, you should come see HP on the 24 with us. Also, I need you address, so plz email it to me!!
Nancy: Oh god, the heat these last few days has been aweful! It hasn`t rained, so it was just hot. Not quite hot enough where you are sweating a enough for the wind to cool you off. Ugh! It was miserable.... T.T it rained last night though, so the tempurature went down. Does Lena need any particular thing that maybe I could get for her here?
And I`m done for now! i have other things to do!!!!!!!!! BYE!! じゃ また！！！
Friday, July 10, 2009
Past Three Days!
Okay, so the other day when I wrote about sweating? Yeah, I didn`t know the meaning of the word sweat. On top that I suppose you`re all wondering what club I joined, seeing as how I`ve been back at school for three days. I joined Karate club. After warm up stretches, everone is literally dripping sweat. Like, you can see it fall off our faces and hit the floor. Next to some of the guys are nice little puddles. I`m not kidding, not one bit. But oddly enough, it`s not that hot. . . .
So! Quick three day recap! GO!
Wednesday (水曜日):
Back to school! To tell you the truth I was scared all day about joining a club. How dumb was that? We only had half days at school this week, so when homeroom ended at 12:30ish I went with Riko, who is kind enough to show me around (again!) to the gym where Karate club meets. Well, then we realized club activities didn`t start until 1:30, so we went to the convienient store across the street and bought lunch. I had a bento, so I just bought a drink and some snacks to share. The convientient store is called Lawson, which I thought was really weird... Miles, isn`t that one of you friends last names. . .?
So then I ate with her and her friends, and headed back to the gym. By that time the only girl in the club was there. It didn`t take long for her to realize I didn`t speak much Japanese, as it didn`t take me long to realize she didn`t speak much English. Oh boy! Well luckily Ayumi lent me her electronic dictionary! So I managed to convey that I wanted to join the Karate club. She was thrilled cause that meant another girl on the team.
So then the boys started to show up. Guess what? None of them spoke English either!! The dictionary was very useful! Everyone in the club is really nice! Sensei wasn`t there that day.
After that, the girl, Aina, and I figured out that we both rode the same bus home. We also figured out we are the same age, and that we were both really hot and wanted icecream...back to Lawsons!! We ate those lemon ice things you can find everywhere it seems, but in Japan, they have a real lemon slice in them!
When I got home I had to take a shower, I was so gross and sweaty!! Afterwards Ayu and I went to obaachan`s house and ate dinner because okaasan was at a camp with the kindergarten. After dinner Ayumi and I triend on yukata for the summer festival. It was a blast!!
Then we went home and I can`t remember much of what happened.
Thursday (木曜日):
Let`s skip over how long it took me to spell Thursday right, and talk about my day! XD
... Rikako and some other friends invited me to go to Harajuku on Saterday! I asked okaasan that night and she said it was okay!!! YAY!! I also ordered a class teeshirt! They wont be in until after I leave, but Rikako said she would mail it to me.
To Karate club! My friend Eri came with me because her club didn`t start until 8:00pm, and took pictures. I feel so sorry for her, you could tell she was bored. Sometimes she would be sleeping, other times looking at the sports fields (the gym in on the second floor, and has a great view!!). Pictures of Karate, soccer, and rugby were taken by her!
Sensei was there that day and he revieled that two of the boys actually could speak English, they just didn`t want to. One was, in fact, in my English grammer class, and happened to sit next to me... I just didn`t notice! oops! Every day we do these little sparring matches. on Wednesday I did`t because no one really knew what to do with me and didn`t want me getting hurt. That was smart, but boring! On Thursday I did get to spar, and guess what? I got hurt! Haha!! I got elbowed in the foot, as odd as that sounds. . . it`s really hard to explain.... Anyways, at first I thought three of my toes where broken, but I could still move them so I figured even if they were, it didn`t matter. I finished out the practice (which was great!) and went home. Took a shower, and Ayu and I went to obaachan`s again! This time we got to play the shamisen (pics and videos up!). By this time my actual foot was starting to hurt, and by the time we left I could hardly walk. So! I spent all night hobbling around, which was hilarious! I managed to wrap it so Ayumi and I could go to the 7eleven and use the ATM for when I go to Harajuku.
Friday (金曜日):
Today! Okay, so today was pretty normal, until Health&Care. It`s just like our health class at school, but in Japanese and co-ed.... today we watch a video about some weird Japanese pregnancy thing. It`s like some sorta of therapy/baby bonding/delivery method. It was akward.... for me at least. There isn`t a lot of censorship in Japan, and lets leave it at that.
After that... boring. I`m rereading Pretty Birds since I finished Mila18 ages ago.
At Karate I met the two graduating seniors, one girl one boy. Today we had an actual match... that scared the absolute crap outta me. The day before was sparring, today was fight to win. I only had to fight one, against Aina, luckily. I probably have bruises from where she kicked me! But it was fun! The boys` fights were scary. I was so glad I didn`t have to fight them . . . so glad...
Anyways, then I went home and no one was here. I took a shower, I`m doing some laundry, and just now Nao came home. I`ve been here alone for about 2 1/2 hours now. It`s kinda creepy being alone here.
So! Comments! Thank you so much to everyone who commented! However, I know there are still more people, Mom tells me about you! XD
Mom: Haha I knew you said that! I was doing research and on Wikipedia that was one of the things listed in pop-culture.
Nancy, Lena, and Grammy: Tsugoi! Tell Lena I will be happy to teach her any time!! As for the peace signs, I honestly haven`t a clue, everyone just uses them!
Zach: It`s cool, how was the video stuff? and I haven`t gotten to study French really. . .
Molly: Yeah but the video is to big to upload. . . >< I`ll look for the sakana song. . . wish me luck with that XD
Janice: Darnit! I was gonna ask about the blueberries to!! I really want some right now! There`s watermelon in Japan, but it`s not as big as in America and it`s a sphere. And yes, I have probably had enough fish to last me three life times!! XD
Kayla: i get home on the 23, but I`m going to be so tired then. I`m going to try to see HP on the 24 at Legends though. I wanna see it before we leave for South Dakota the next day.
Diane: I would die if I hadn`t figured it out! My favourite band is German so if I wanna play there DVDs I have to use the computer. It`s not to bad if theres a breeze!
JT: LOSER! You`re almost last! But I`m glad you liked the cookie. I`m going to do my best to get the shirts tomorrow! That`s my mission!!!
Heather: XD smooth
Nancy... again!: I don`t think we have had a day about 90, honestly. But humidity is about 100%... or more! So it`s mostly humidity.... Tell Lena to have fun! And that horses are way cool! So are cats and dogs!!
Okay! So two last notes! I wanna tell about the other night.
I woke up around .... umm. .. probably 3 in the morning because of the wind. I always sleep with the window open incase theres a breeze. That night, holy cow! it was like a tornado... well, as much of a tornado as you can get in Japan. The wind here is really soft, if that makes any sense. But it was REALLY windy and felt soooooooooooo good! On top of that, the sky was cloudless and the moon was out. This was the first time I had seen the moon in Japan... it was beautiful, but really small....
and the other! I want a Congo African Gray! It started when I first read Pretty Birds, and then we read something about talking birds in English class. The birds grow to develop the human speech capability of a 6 year old! How cool is that!?But I don`t want it to talk as much as I want it to make cool noises like Pretty Bird.
And also! I need address! I have post cards, and a bunch of you I forgot to collect from! So please EMAIL them to me!!
okay! Laterz!
So! Quick three day recap! GO!
Wednesday (水曜日):
Back to school! To tell you the truth I was scared all day about joining a club. How dumb was that? We only had half days at school this week, so when homeroom ended at 12:30ish I went with Riko, who is kind enough to show me around (again!) to the gym where Karate club meets. Well, then we realized club activities didn`t start until 1:30, so we went to the convienient store across the street and bought lunch. I had a bento, so I just bought a drink and some snacks to share. The convientient store is called Lawson, which I thought was really weird... Miles, isn`t that one of you friends last names. . .?
So then I ate with her and her friends, and headed back to the gym. By that time the only girl in the club was there. It didn`t take long for her to realize I didn`t speak much Japanese, as it didn`t take me long to realize she didn`t speak much English. Oh boy! Well luckily Ayumi lent me her electronic dictionary! So I managed to convey that I wanted to join the Karate club. She was thrilled cause that meant another girl on the team.
So then the boys started to show up. Guess what? None of them spoke English either!! The dictionary was very useful! Everyone in the club is really nice! Sensei wasn`t there that day.
After that, the girl, Aina, and I figured out that we both rode the same bus home. We also figured out we are the same age, and that we were both really hot and wanted icecream...back to Lawsons!! We ate those lemon ice things you can find everywhere it seems, but in Japan, they have a real lemon slice in them!
When I got home I had to take a shower, I was so gross and sweaty!! Afterwards Ayu and I went to obaachan`s house and ate dinner because okaasan was at a camp with the kindergarten. After dinner Ayumi and I triend on yukata for the summer festival. It was a blast!!
Then we went home and I can`t remember much of what happened.
Thursday (木曜日):
Let`s skip over how long it took me to spell Thursday right, and talk about my day! XD
... Rikako and some other friends invited me to go to Harajuku on Saterday! I asked okaasan that night and she said it was okay!!! YAY!! I also ordered a class teeshirt! They wont be in until after I leave, but Rikako said she would mail it to me.
To Karate club! My friend Eri came with me because her club didn`t start until 8:00pm, and took pictures. I feel so sorry for her, you could tell she was bored. Sometimes she would be sleeping, other times looking at the sports fields (the gym in on the second floor, and has a great view!!). Pictures of Karate, soccer, and rugby were taken by her!
Sensei was there that day and he revieled that two of the boys actually could speak English, they just didn`t want to. One was, in fact, in my English grammer class, and happened to sit next to me... I just didn`t notice! oops! Every day we do these little sparring matches. on Wednesday I did`t because no one really knew what to do with me and didn`t want me getting hurt. That was smart, but boring! On Thursday I did get to spar, and guess what? I got hurt! Haha!! I got elbowed in the foot, as odd as that sounds. . . it`s really hard to explain.... Anyways, at first I thought three of my toes where broken, but I could still move them so I figured even if they were, it didn`t matter. I finished out the practice (which was great!) and went home. Took a shower, and Ayu and I went to obaachan`s again! This time we got to play the shamisen (pics and videos up!). By this time my actual foot was starting to hurt, and by the time we left I could hardly walk. So! I spent all night hobbling around, which was hilarious! I managed to wrap it so Ayumi and I could go to the 7eleven and use the ATM for when I go to Harajuku.
Friday (金曜日):
Today! Okay, so today was pretty normal, until Health&Care. It`s just like our health class at school, but in Japanese and co-ed.... today we watch a video about some weird Japanese pregnancy thing. It`s like some sorta of therapy/baby bonding/delivery method. It was akward.... for me at least. There isn`t a lot of censorship in Japan, and lets leave it at that.
After that... boring. I`m rereading Pretty Birds since I finished Mila18 ages ago.
At Karate I met the two graduating seniors, one girl one boy. Today we had an actual match... that scared the absolute crap outta me. The day before was sparring, today was fight to win. I only had to fight one, against Aina, luckily. I probably have bruises from where she kicked me! But it was fun! The boys` fights were scary. I was so glad I didn`t have to fight them . . . so glad...
Anyways, then I went home and no one was here. I took a shower, I`m doing some laundry, and just now Nao came home. I`ve been here alone for about 2 1/2 hours now. It`s kinda creepy being alone here.
So! Comments! Thank you so much to everyone who commented! However, I know there are still more people, Mom tells me about you! XD
Mom: Haha I knew you said that! I was doing research and on Wikipedia that was one of the things listed in pop-culture.
Nancy, Lena, and Grammy: Tsugoi! Tell Lena I will be happy to teach her any time!! As for the peace signs, I honestly haven`t a clue, everyone just uses them!
Zach: It`s cool, how was the video stuff? and I haven`t gotten to study French really. . .
Molly: Yeah but the video is to big to upload. . . >< I`ll look for the sakana song. . . wish me luck with that XD
Janice: Darnit! I was gonna ask about the blueberries to!! I really want some right now! There`s watermelon in Japan, but it`s not as big as in America and it`s a sphere. And yes, I have probably had enough fish to last me three life times!! XD
Kayla: i get home on the 23, but I`m going to be so tired then. I`m going to try to see HP on the 24 at Legends though. I wanna see it before we leave for South Dakota the next day.
Diane: I would die if I hadn`t figured it out! My favourite band is German so if I wanna play there DVDs I have to use the computer. It`s not to bad if theres a breeze!
JT: LOSER! You`re almost last! But I`m glad you liked the cookie. I`m going to do my best to get the shirts tomorrow! That`s my mission!!!
Heather: XD smooth
Nancy... again!: I don`t think we have had a day about 90, honestly. But humidity is about 100%... or more! So it`s mostly humidity.... Tell Lena to have fun! And that horses are way cool! So are cats and dogs!!
Okay! So two last notes! I wanna tell about the other night.
I woke up around .... umm. .. probably 3 in the morning because of the wind. I always sleep with the window open incase theres a breeze. That night, holy cow! it was like a tornado... well, as much of a tornado as you can get in Japan. The wind here is really soft, if that makes any sense. But it was REALLY windy and felt soooooooooooo good! On top of that, the sky was cloudless and the moon was out. This was the first time I had seen the moon in Japan... it was beautiful, but really small....
and the other! I want a Congo African Gray! It started when I first read Pretty Birds, and then we read something about talking birds in English class. The birds grow to develop the human speech capability of a 6 year old! How cool is that!?But I don`t want it to talk as much as I want it to make cool noises like Pretty Bird.
And also! I need address! I have post cards, and a bunch of you I forgot to collect from! So please EMAIL them to me!!
okay! Laterz!
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
HOT!
It`s hot. Like so hot. You have no idea. Japan isn`t hot like America. It`s hot, and HUMID. If you have fluids in your body, you are sweating. If you`re a gaijin who drinks as much water as I do, you`re drenched. If you are a gaijin who drinks to much water and you ride your bike.... Let`s just leave it at that. When I ride my bike with my glasses on, evertime I stop, they fog up. Am I making an impression?
Now, I know it`s been hot in Kansas, but in Kansas the humidity is not like this, and people use air conditioning and fans. In Japan, we open windows and use senshu, paper fans. At night, there is a fan I can turn on in my room, but when Ayumi comes in she sets the timer for about 2 hours and its off until the next night. I also don`t sleep with a sheet, I sleep with a blanket, which makes it worse T.T
Okay, so now that I have my complaining out, lets reply to comments*
JT: That totally made my day. When mom called last night, she said it made her laugh too.
Mom: You play tennis to much! XD
Molly: Yen, actually, came pretty easy. For the most part, I don`t actually use it, but when I do, it`s not to bad. Time. . . it takes me a second, but I`m getting it down!!
JT, Mom, and Molly: You three get a cookie since you always comment!!
Kayla: Don`t loose your hearing, please. It would make listening to the new TH and CB albums very hard!
Heather: Remind me to tell you about the spider incident while Ayumi and I were watching Fruits Basket. . .
Diane: I`m going to have to look into one of those DVDs.... As for the forgein DVDs, they play on computers, that`s where I watch my German imports.
And to those of you who don`t comment, please do! It really makes my day, and I do read every single one multiple times!!
Okay! So my life!
Sunday: Church..... ugh. After the sermon and sunday school, there was a really long prayer service. And of course it was in Japanese!! So to pass the time, I sat and read the Bible. Yeah. Really. I will tell you though, I now understand why the Vampires in Trinity Blood were called Methuesala. Methuesala was the longest living person in the Bible, he was 969 when he died. . .
So! After over an hour in there, we left EARLY to go to Shinjuku for a Tea Ceremony and Ikebana (Japanese flower arrangement). I got to wear a yukata, which was fun, but it didn`t fit right. The tea was great, but Ikebana was confusing. I talked with a friend of mine (this was another YFU gathering) and she told how she ahd been spending way to much money. I think I might have spent over 100$... maybe. She said she had spend over 300$.... oops....
Monday, Kindergarten. 5 Junior HS girls came to work at Fujimi and so did two boys who had gone to Fujimi and then moved to Cali. They spoke English but wouldn`t really talk to me.
I talked with one of the teachers about soccer, which was great!! And the Yumiko sensei started to teach me the old names of the Japanese months. The girls in Totoro, Satsuki and Mae are named after months. Mae is obviosly May (they are said the same) cause she was named after the English month, and I think Satsuki was the oly name for May in Japanese... I don`t have the notes with me, sorry.
And today, Kindergarten again. It was the girls last day, so they gave a concert. Two clarinets, two on piano, and one on bells. Gues what they played. . . The Totoro song of course!!! あるこ あるこ! わたしわ げんき! あるこ の だいすき! どんそんいこう！
Yeah. Also, yesterday at snack time, we had these icepops, and one flavor was grape. The lady who was helping out, was cutting one open and the juice splashed on my white shirt. She felt so bad about it, but being American, I was just like `no no its fine, forget it`. And so today when she came in with a gift bowing like crazy and saying I`m so sorry I was like `what?`
But she got me a really cute hankerchief and some little origami things. So now I have two hankerchiefs, one was a gift from otoosan (he got Ayu and I a pair) and then from her. See why I don`t spend any money?
Kindergarten was also only a half day today. So at 12, Ayumi and I went to a Ramen shop for lunch. It`s finals week at her school, so she only had three hours of tests today. Which reminds me of lastnight. . .oh god! So she had a geography test coming up and they were studying climate. She had all this stuff to memorize. She would walk around spouting out the most random things as she tried to memorize the material! It was so funny!!
I have some pictures. But theres a lot and I dont want to upload them right now.
Also, I wasnt a Congo African Grey Parrot.
Now, I know it`s been hot in Kansas, but in Kansas the humidity is not like this, and people use air conditioning and fans. In Japan, we open windows and use senshu, paper fans. At night, there is a fan I can turn on in my room, but when Ayumi comes in she sets the timer for about 2 hours and its off until the next night. I also don`t sleep with a sheet, I sleep with a blanket, which makes it worse T.T
Okay, so now that I have my complaining out, lets reply to comments*
JT: That totally made my day. When mom called last night, she said it made her laugh too.
Mom: You play tennis to much! XD
Molly: Yen, actually, came pretty easy. For the most part, I don`t actually use it, but when I do, it`s not to bad. Time. . . it takes me a second, but I`m getting it down!!
JT, Mom, and Molly: You three get a cookie since you always comment!!
Kayla: Don`t loose your hearing, please. It would make listening to the new TH and CB albums very hard!
Heather: Remind me to tell you about the spider incident while Ayumi and I were watching Fruits Basket. . .
Diane: I`m going to have to look into one of those DVDs.... As for the forgein DVDs, they play on computers, that`s where I watch my German imports.
And to those of you who don`t comment, please do! It really makes my day, and I do read every single one multiple times!!
Okay! So my life!
Sunday: Church..... ugh. After the sermon and sunday school, there was a really long prayer service. And of course it was in Japanese!! So to pass the time, I sat and read the Bible. Yeah. Really. I will tell you though, I now understand why the Vampires in Trinity Blood were called Methuesala. Methuesala was the longest living person in the Bible, he was 969 when he died. . .
So! After over an hour in there, we left EARLY to go to Shinjuku for a Tea Ceremony and Ikebana (Japanese flower arrangement). I got to wear a yukata, which was fun, but it didn`t fit right. The tea was great, but Ikebana was confusing. I talked with a friend of mine (this was another YFU gathering) and she told how she ahd been spending way to much money. I think I might have spent over 100$... maybe. She said she had spend over 300$.... oops....
Monday, Kindergarten. 5 Junior HS girls came to work at Fujimi and so did two boys who had gone to Fujimi and then moved to Cali. They spoke English but wouldn`t really talk to me.
I talked with one of the teachers about soccer, which was great!! And the Yumiko sensei started to teach me the old names of the Japanese months. The girls in Totoro, Satsuki and Mae are named after months. Mae is obviosly May (they are said the same) cause she was named after the English month, and I think Satsuki was the oly name for May in Japanese... I don`t have the notes with me, sorry.
And today, Kindergarten again. It was the girls last day, so they gave a concert. Two clarinets, two on piano, and one on bells. Gues what they played. . . The Totoro song of course!!! あるこ あるこ! わたしわ げんき! あるこ の だいすき! どんそんいこう！
Yeah. Also, yesterday at snack time, we had these icepops, and one flavor was grape. The lady who was helping out, was cutting one open and the juice splashed on my white shirt. She felt so bad about it, but being American, I was just like `no no its fine, forget it`. And so today when she came in with a gift bowing like crazy and saying I`m so sorry I was like `what?`
But she got me a really cute hankerchief and some little origami things. So now I have two hankerchiefs, one was a gift from otoosan (he got Ayu and I a pair) and then from her. See why I don`t spend any money?
Kindergarten was also only a half day today. So at 12, Ayumi and I went to a Ramen shop for lunch. It`s finals week at her school, so she only had three hours of tests today. Which reminds me of lastnight. . .oh god! So she had a geography test coming up and they were studying climate. She had all this stuff to memorize. She would walk around spouting out the most random things as she tried to memorize the material! It was so funny!!
I have some pictures. But theres a lot and I dont want to upload them right now.
Also, I wasnt a Congo African Grey Parrot.
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Independence Day
Today I have a lot to talk about!!! First to answer the questions of the lovely people who commented on the last post:
Mom: the salmon here is salt water salmon and for three nights in a row, it was so salty we couldnt eat it. I also have it every day with my rice. I think there was a pic of the fish in the Kamakura upload (wich is up). And tell Micheal of course I took those pictures for him!!! ^^ And also, do you know what Miles wants for a gift??
JT: My family! Okay I`ll start with Ayumi! She`s a year older then me, and a second year in highschool(junior). She goes to Aoyamagakuen in Aoyama, Tokyo. In August she goes to Switzerland for half a year. We get along great! I am thrilled to have a big sister! Last night we spent over an hour watching Nomo Neko (the cat on my wallet) dance to Numa Numa, and then watching the Hare Hare Yukai! And other things! XD We also sometimes study together, and she helps me with translating my manga. She likes manga and we both love Utada Hikaru! For the past few days we have been singing Beautiful World, which has been on the radio many times!!
Okaasan, my mother, is a kindergarten teacher at Fujimi Kindergarten. She is studying so she can move up and teach Elementry school, and so on. Shes really nice, and makes me a bento every morning! Sometimes she can be a little scary, but most of the time shes totally cool!!
Otoosan, my dad, is a company employee. I don`t really know where he works, but he leaves home first and is one of the last people home at night. He gets up really early, and when the US played Brazil in South Africa, he woke me up at 5am so we could watch the end together. He is really nice, and he, Ayumi, and I sometimes have long conversations about the most random things!
Nao is a university student, but he likes to play video games. He doesn`t really speak English, so he and I don`t talk much. Thus, I know pretty much nothing about him.
Molly: hmmmm I cant really thing of much else... verb forms? oh! and that stuff about working!!
And to bothe JT and Molly: JT, today while I was in Akihabara, I was getting ready to buy your DVD when I saw the price. It was more then 40$. Sorry, but thats a little to much! And Molly, I was going to surprise you and get you Ponyo, but it was the same. Just to much! Sorry!!
The floor is still open for questions.
And for the news!!
Yesterday the church we go to had an International Foods Banquet! There were two girls from Nevada there for a bit. They were from People to People, and only in Japan for two weeks, for which they traveled through the islands. They thought it was way cool that I was staying for two months. When we were being introduced, I was asked where I came from and when I replied Kansas they both gasped in shock and went `oh! you speak English!!` That was probably the funniest thing I`ve heard in ages! When I told my family about it at dinner, we all laughed! Other then that, I sat with a VERY nice woman who speaks English and helped my translate things. The foods where from Brazil, Peru, and Korea. And I love Avacodo juice!!
Today Ayumi and I went to Akihabara, Otaku capital of the world!!! XD It was. . . interesting. There were a couple girls in Loli, and when one walked past, I told Ayumi ``Kawaii!!!`` and the girl turned and smiled at me! So much better then telling me to go away like the girls in Harajuku. I`m still mad about that.....
So we were in Akihabara to buy Ayumi a converter for Suisse(Switzerland), but she ended up not getting one. Then for lunch. . . oh god ... I let Ayu talk me into going to a Maid Cafe. It was one of those once in a life time, live the second, type moments. So. . . There were all these girls dressed in maid outfits from various cafes on the street, and when you wanted to go to one, you just ask the maid, and she takes you to her cafe! Where you are then greeted by all the ladies who work there, and everything is extremely cute! I was laughing most of the time at how weird/cool this was. There is a pic we got on my photobucket! Pictures werent allowed accept for ones that they took, and pics of the food. Ayumi`s dish is the one in the pic. I just got spagehtti.
While we were there, the Hare Hare Yukai started to play... Ayu and I started laughing. Then (what I find amazing is that I was really wanting to listen to this song the night before) Carameldansen!!! I thought of you and Haley, JT. So of course I had to sing along!!
So! Then we rushed to another part of Tokyo (I can`t remember the name, but its where the Supreme Court for Japan is) and met Okaasan for Kabuki!!!!!!!!! There were other YFU people there, but I didn`t get a chance to talk to them.
Kabuki is AMAZING! If you every get a chance, watch it. There were little tapes you could listen to that explained it for forgeiners (and some from Japanese people too!!)! In the beginning they had a little demo and we were allowed to take pictures! Otherwise no pictures.
The play portion was about Goro, and man sworn to avenge the death of his father, and is part of a series of plays about Goro and his older broth Juro and their vendetta! In this play, he in wishing for luck in the new year, and has a dream about Juro being kidnapped by the Shogun who killed their father. It ends with him running off to save Juro.
After that was the Whisteria Maiden`s Dance. In Kabuki, all actors are male. But you could hardly tell. The dance was beautiful and so were the contumes! I loved the shamisen music, and Okaasan said that when we go to Obaasan`s house next week, she will play the shamisen for me!!!
Then we stared heading back home. On the train, Ayumi and I talked about things that are popular in the US and in Japan. There was a poster for a new drama coming out about vampires, and for awhile I thought it was Twilight, but she said no. Also, Twilight it NOT big in Japan. She said some of her friends went to see the movie (which just came to theatres) and liked it, but that she hadn`t.
At the trainstation in... somewehre... we ate at a cute little shop. I had a green tea icecream, with anko, mandarin oranges, and some other stuff. OMG I haven`t talked about Anko yet!!! Holy crap! Anko is my favourite sweet right now!!! It sooooooooooo yummy, I`m going to die without it when I get back home!! Anko is red bean paste. JT If you remember back to AFW when we ate at the Chinese restuarant, the little peach buns that no one liked? Yeah, they were filled with anko. I am in love with Dorayaki, which is like two pancakes with anko between! so yummmy!!
So, when we finally got back to Ageo, it was dark, and we had to ride our bikes home. I kept thinking, man, Dad would kill me! I found out that my bike actually does have a light, but its pretty crapy if you ask me! But it was fun trying weave around traffic in the dark!! XD
And as a little side note, I`ll admit that since the second day in Japan, I have been feeling terribly homesick. I`d been edgy, and counting down the days til I could come home and talk with people and be in a place I was used to. Slowly things started to get better, but I think today it finally wore off. On the train ride home I was thinking to myself, I`m in Japan. And I guess that`s when it really hit me. RIding my bike home, I couldn`t help but feel relaxed, knowing that I was totally comfortable with my new life.
In the short few weeks I have been here, I have come to realize a lot. Japan is alot like America, and, I`m sure, most other countries in the world. The people here are people, just like you would find in the US. They have normal lives, where they work, go to school, and study. They have daily schedules, just like we do in the US. And I think for awhile that bothered me. But today I came to realize that that`s life. That no matter where you are, things will be the same. There are, of course, differences, and that`s what makes it all the better.
While I have been here, I have come to have a better respect for America as well. I no longer feel that I have to get out of there as soon as I can, I know that no matter where I go, as long as I have friends, and a rutine, I can enjoy myself and live my life.
Truth is I really miss you guys, but life here is so great! I don`t want to leave in however many weeks I have left!!
By the way, Happy Independence Day!!
Mom: the salmon here is salt water salmon and for three nights in a row, it was so salty we couldnt eat it. I also have it every day with my rice. I think there was a pic of the fish in the Kamakura upload (wich is up). And tell Micheal of course I took those pictures for him!!! ^^ And also, do you know what Miles wants for a gift??
JT: My family! Okay I`ll start with Ayumi! She`s a year older then me, and a second year in highschool(junior). She goes to Aoyamagakuen in Aoyama, Tokyo. In August she goes to Switzerland for half a year. We get along great! I am thrilled to have a big sister! Last night we spent over an hour watching Nomo Neko (the cat on my wallet) dance to Numa Numa, and then watching the Hare Hare Yukai! And other things! XD We also sometimes study together, and she helps me with translating my manga. She likes manga and we both love Utada Hikaru! For the past few days we have been singing Beautiful World, which has been on the radio many times!!
Okaasan, my mother, is a kindergarten teacher at Fujimi Kindergarten. She is studying so she can move up and teach Elementry school, and so on. Shes really nice, and makes me a bento every morning! Sometimes she can be a little scary, but most of the time shes totally cool!!
Otoosan, my dad, is a company employee. I don`t really know where he works, but he leaves home first and is one of the last people home at night. He gets up really early, and when the US played Brazil in South Africa, he woke me up at 5am so we could watch the end together. He is really nice, and he, Ayumi, and I sometimes have long conversations about the most random things!
Nao is a university student, but he likes to play video games. He doesn`t really speak English, so he and I don`t talk much. Thus, I know pretty much nothing about him.
Molly: hmmmm I cant really thing of much else... verb forms? oh! and that stuff about working!!
And to bothe JT and Molly: JT, today while I was in Akihabara, I was getting ready to buy your DVD when I saw the price. It was more then 40$. Sorry, but thats a little to much! And Molly, I was going to surprise you and get you Ponyo, but it was the same. Just to much! Sorry!!
The floor is still open for questions.
And for the news!!
Yesterday the church we go to had an International Foods Banquet! There were two girls from Nevada there for a bit. They were from People to People, and only in Japan for two weeks, for which they traveled through the islands. They thought it was way cool that I was staying for two months. When we were being introduced, I was asked where I came from and when I replied Kansas they both gasped in shock and went `oh! you speak English!!` That was probably the funniest thing I`ve heard in ages! When I told my family about it at dinner, we all laughed! Other then that, I sat with a VERY nice woman who speaks English and helped my translate things. The foods where from Brazil, Peru, and Korea. And I love Avacodo juice!!
Today Ayumi and I went to Akihabara, Otaku capital of the world!!! XD It was. . . interesting. There were a couple girls in Loli, and when one walked past, I told Ayumi ``Kawaii!!!`` and the girl turned and smiled at me! So much better then telling me to go away like the girls in Harajuku. I`m still mad about that.....
So we were in Akihabara to buy Ayumi a converter for Suisse(Switzerland), but she ended up not getting one. Then for lunch. . . oh god ... I let Ayu talk me into going to a Maid Cafe. It was one of those once in a life time, live the second, type moments. So. . . There were all these girls dressed in maid outfits from various cafes on the street, and when you wanted to go to one, you just ask the maid, and she takes you to her cafe! Where you are then greeted by all the ladies who work there, and everything is extremely cute! I was laughing most of the time at how weird/cool this was. There is a pic we got on my photobucket! Pictures werent allowed accept for ones that they took, and pics of the food. Ayumi`s dish is the one in the pic. I just got spagehtti.
While we were there, the Hare Hare Yukai started to play... Ayu and I started laughing. Then (what I find amazing is that I was really wanting to listen to this song the night before) Carameldansen!!! I thought of you and Haley, JT. So of course I had to sing along!!
So! Then we rushed to another part of Tokyo (I can`t remember the name, but its where the Supreme Court for Japan is) and met Okaasan for Kabuki!!!!!!!!! There were other YFU people there, but I didn`t get a chance to talk to them.
Kabuki is AMAZING! If you every get a chance, watch it. There were little tapes you could listen to that explained it for forgeiners (and some from Japanese people too!!)! In the beginning they had a little demo and we were allowed to take pictures! Otherwise no pictures.
The play portion was about Goro, and man sworn to avenge the death of his father, and is part of a series of plays about Goro and his older broth Juro and their vendetta! In this play, he in wishing for luck in the new year, and has a dream about Juro being kidnapped by the Shogun who killed their father. It ends with him running off to save Juro.
After that was the Whisteria Maiden`s Dance. In Kabuki, all actors are male. But you could hardly tell. The dance was beautiful and so were the contumes! I loved the shamisen music, and Okaasan said that when we go to Obaasan`s house next week, she will play the shamisen for me!!!
Then we stared heading back home. On the train, Ayumi and I talked about things that are popular in the US and in Japan. There was a poster for a new drama coming out about vampires, and for awhile I thought it was Twilight, but she said no. Also, Twilight it NOT big in Japan. She said some of her friends went to see the movie (which just came to theatres) and liked it, but that she hadn`t.
At the trainstation in... somewehre... we ate at a cute little shop. I had a green tea icecream, with anko, mandarin oranges, and some other stuff. OMG I haven`t talked about Anko yet!!! Holy crap! Anko is my favourite sweet right now!!! It sooooooooooo yummy, I`m going to die without it when I get back home!! Anko is red bean paste. JT If you remember back to AFW when we ate at the Chinese restuarant, the little peach buns that no one liked? Yeah, they were filled with anko. I am in love with Dorayaki, which is like two pancakes with anko between! so yummmy!!
So, when we finally got back to Ageo, it was dark, and we had to ride our bikes home. I kept thinking, man, Dad would kill me! I found out that my bike actually does have a light, but its pretty crapy if you ask me! But it was fun trying weave around traffic in the dark!! XD
And as a little side note, I`ll admit that since the second day in Japan, I have been feeling terribly homesick. I`d been edgy, and counting down the days til I could come home and talk with people and be in a place I was used to. Slowly things started to get better, but I think today it finally wore off. On the train ride home I was thinking to myself, I`m in Japan. And I guess that`s when it really hit me. RIding my bike home, I couldn`t help but feel relaxed, knowing that I was totally comfortable with my new life.
In the short few weeks I have been here, I have come to realize a lot. Japan is alot like America, and, I`m sure, most other countries in the world. The people here are people, just like you would find in the US. They have normal lives, where they work, go to school, and study. They have daily schedules, just like we do in the US. And I think for awhile that bothered me. But today I came to realize that that`s life. That no matter where you are, things will be the same. There are, of course, differences, and that`s what makes it all the better.
While I have been here, I have come to have a better respect for America as well. I no longer feel that I have to get out of there as soon as I can, I know that no matter where I go, as long as I have friends, and a rutine, I can enjoy myself and live my life.
Truth is I really miss you guys, but life here is so great! I don`t want to leave in however many weeks I have left!!
By the way, Happy Independence Day!!
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
15th Post!
Wow! 15 whole posts. A new record!! XD
Anyways! Sunday after church we went to a sushi resturant. . . I do NOT like fish bodies. The meat is cool, as long as its not bloody, but the bodies bother me. Especially when there is a nicely displayed one right in front of you, stuck in a permanate backbend because of the spike running through it. Makes it hard to eat. So, while everything was amazingly yummy, I was considering be vegetarian from then on. But things are okay now, and I`m happy to say I can still eat meat. I`m a little tired of fish (especially salmon) but we havent had much this week, so its all good.
Monday, school. Tuesday, school. Today, back to kindergarten! And again, nothing interesting. we played some Japanese games, and thats about it.
Yesterday after school, Ayumi and I went to the book store, and I bought a manga. My new task is to translate it. After about 3 hours lastnight, I`m to page 12. So I`m proud! For those curious I picked up D.Gray-Man. And for anyone who has time, can you PLEASE tell me what `Ekusoshisuto` is (first word of the first volume) and what is on the rest of that page, and the first page after the chapter opening page. Its talking about something that happened in the church, but it`s not very specific. The rest I got down. I also REALLY want an electronic dictionary. Ayumi lends me one when I`m working on this, and it is 100 times better then a normal dictionary!
I`m sorta bummed out that I`m missing the 4th. Mom and Dad have been emailing me about the preperations at the Lake. I couldn`t help but think, today the festivities start. Hope everyone has a blast!!!
And thats about it. I`m uploading the Kamakura pics as I type this, theres 119 of them, so I don`t know how many I can get uploaded. Working on it though!!
So now I say if anyone has any questions I`d be happy to answer them!!!
Much love!!
Edit:
And two things I wanted to talk about and forgot!!!
First, this morning as I was lying in bed, trying to sleep as much as I could, the sound of my favourite Hikaru Utada song drifted into my room. I was so excited, I got up right away and went and listened to it. Even though it`s an old song it was on the radio. . . huh....
and second is for you JT. Remember the ruler story? In French class? Well I was drawing the other day and I really need a ruler. . . so I was looking all around the house... I never did find one, but that came to mind! XD
Anyways! Sunday after church we went to a sushi resturant. . . I do NOT like fish bodies. The meat is cool, as long as its not bloody, but the bodies bother me. Especially when there is a nicely displayed one right in front of you, stuck in a permanate backbend because of the spike running through it. Makes it hard to eat. So, while everything was amazingly yummy, I was considering be vegetarian from then on. But things are okay now, and I`m happy to say I can still eat meat. I`m a little tired of fish (especially salmon) but we havent had much this week, so its all good.
Monday, school. Tuesday, school. Today, back to kindergarten! And again, nothing interesting. we played some Japanese games, and thats about it.
Yesterday after school, Ayumi and I went to the book store, and I bought a manga. My new task is to translate it. After about 3 hours lastnight, I`m to page 12. So I`m proud! For those curious I picked up D.Gray-Man. And for anyone who has time, can you PLEASE tell me what `Ekusoshisuto` is (first word of the first volume) and what is on the rest of that page, and the first page after the chapter opening page. Its talking about something that happened in the church, but it`s not very specific. The rest I got down. I also REALLY want an electronic dictionary. Ayumi lends me one when I`m working on this, and it is 100 times better then a normal dictionary!
I`m sorta bummed out that I`m missing the 4th. Mom and Dad have been emailing me about the preperations at the Lake. I couldn`t help but think, today the festivities start. Hope everyone has a blast!!!
And thats about it. I`m uploading the Kamakura pics as I type this, theres 119 of them, so I don`t know how many I can get uploaded. Working on it though!!
So now I say if anyone has any questions I`d be happy to answer them!!!
Much love!!
Edit:
And two things I wanted to talk about and forgot!!!
First, this morning as I was lying in bed, trying to sleep as much as I could, the sound of my favourite Hikaru Utada song drifted into my room. I was so excited, I got up right away and went and listened to it. Even though it`s an old song it was on the radio. . . huh....
and second is for you JT. Remember the ruler story? In French class? Well I was drawing the other day and I really need a ruler. . . so I was looking all around the house... I never did find one, but that came to mind! XD
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