I have been studying my butt off all week for this Japanese re-placement exam. Basically, after you have been placed in your level, you take a placement test a week after classes start to determine if you should be moved down or not. It made me nervous because I did not want to drop down a level, obviously. However, all the studying paid off, and I think I did pretty well on the test.
I have fallen into a nice groove as far as my daily schedules go. Wake-up, have a lovely breakfast of home-baked pastries and fruit, walk to the train station, take the train to the central train station and then walk to school. Classes, and then either hanging out and chatting with friends for a while or just heading straight back home. There I get to have been doing homework until my Otosan gets home and then it is dinner. After that it has been more studying and chatting and then the Ofuro and then bed. This weekend I am meeting my 3 host nephews and teaching my okasan how to cook pizza. I am stoked!
Some random things:
1) They still play Columbo, an old TV show with Peter Falk in it here. Apparently the Japanese love Columbo.
2) The Beatles are my Otosan's favorite band (just like my real Otosan), and he hates Yoko Ono (Just like my real Otosan). I guess hatred of Yoko is universal, even by her own people.
3) I can now watch 24, now that I have internet at my house which is an incredibly exciting and momentous occasion.
4) My Okasan made カーレライス、(curry rice) and it was amazing.
5) I love tea and crumpets and apple slices with my Oto/Okasan just before taking my ofuro.
6) I found a really great running path along the river near my house. It goes as far as the river goes in either direction, which is much further than I can run, so that is a very exciting thing.
Here are some more pictures. I'll label and explain them as I put them up.
This is me celebrating the Japanese Shinto holiday, Setsubun. It is celebrated nationwide with huge roaring fire festivals, but is also practiced within homes. Generally, parents with small children will purchase a demon mask, and then the children will thrown beans at the demon repeating the phrase "Oni wa soto, fuku ha uchi!", literally translated "the demon is outside, the luck is in the house," meaning 'out with the bad, in with the good'. Since I am a cultural child, my parents bought the demon mask and the beans so I could celebrate properly.
Kansai Gaidai University is a sleepy place when you have 9AM class.
Post boxes in Japan are red with big T's on them. There is no 't' anywhere in the words for post office or mail. Don't ask.
A good way to advertise hair dye is to draw the colors on anime characters in Japan...
The indoor pictures of me in my host family's house. You see the narrow hallway leading to the toilet, the ofuro or bathing room, the staircase, front door, and on the other side, the family/living room/kitchen. Also, the room with the green floor is the ofuro. You take 'camp showers' and then uncover the tub to your right and soak in it after you have been thoroughly cleaned. With no central heating in Japan, you will stay warm for hours after you take your Ofuro. Japanese houses utilize every space and are efficient in nearly every way.
Chiro is the family dog, a ten-year-old, apple-loving Chihuahua who was fabled to be nasty, according to my parents. I wasn't to touch him or look at him for the first few days. Of course, by the end of the first night, he was curled up on my lap.
The electronic looking stall doors with the arrow on it is the ticketing system in Japan. It is an honor code. There are no bars, and one can simply walk through the gates without purchasing a ticket. The only people who take advantage of the system are foreigners, not including myself. The system is efficient. You can literally run through the stall, insert your pass and it will be waiting for you on the other side, all while maintaining a running pace. Trust me, I've seen it done.
Japan has the most creative pastry chefs. They put things that should never be in a cupcake in a cupcake. However, they make it look delicious, which is really all that matters.
The pictures of my trip to Mos Burger are also in here. At Mos Burger, I got the signature Mos Burger (which was better than any American burger I've had, and yes, that's a challenge to all who will take it) with a mix of french fries and onion rings. I also ordered Melon soda which turned out to be Green Drink. However, there are also Red, Blue, Purple, Lighter Green, Yellow, Orange and even Purple Drink at Mos Burger. The miraculous thing is that they all taste exactly like what they are labeled to be flavored as. That is something Japan excels at: food flavoring.
I am not sure where that picture of the Watering KissMint gum is, but it's pretty good gum. The name gives it a little something 'extra'.
Well, this is all I have for now!
Glad to have you, whoever is reading.
~Sarah
Pastries, cheese burgers, I knew you were a foodie.
ReplyDelete