Day 166 - 12th of February

天気：曇り
I’ve just finished watching Withnail and I, an 80’s British comedy set in the 60’s, courtesy of Ash. It was quite funny, though some of the references were lost on me. Anyway, about today… Definitely didn’t get enough sleep last night. I got up after 7:30, but got ready in no time, and made it to uni in time for my 9 o’clock Reading and Writing class. I wasn’t very receptive for either of my Japanese classes, but got through them, and then went down to the lounge and sat with Jacinthe. I enjoyed my reading for Onna to Otoko. It was about 宝塚歌劇団 (Takarazuka kagekidan – Takarazuka Revue), a form of musical theatre in which all roles are played by females; it’s kind of like the modern opposite of Kabuki. After lunch (親子丼 – oyakodon – chicken on rice), I went to the computer lab, and wrote down the ANZAC biscuit recipe, still determined to find rolled oats. I considered other recipes, like lamingtons, or pavlova, but they were more complicated; biscuits are really easy. Then I went to my Onna to Otoko class, where we watched a documentary on the Takarazuka Revue, highlighting both on stage, and behind the stage life for the women who are able to enter; very interesting. It only went for 50 minutes, so we spent the rest of the time just discussing it; the class went fast. Since Takarazuka is actually the city that this originated in (which is just outside Kobe), we might be going to see one of the shows next month as a field trip; I really hope we do.

And with that, uni was over. I went down to the lounge, hoping I’d find Simon. I agreed to help him get to the city office today, to get his alien registration card sorted, but we hadn’t really decided on a meeting place. I didn’t have to worry though, because he was right there. We set off straight away, walking into Hirakata, and to the city office (which I just realised is located on Sunshine Street). The processing was completed painlessly, and now he just has to go back next month to pick up his new card. That done, we were on a new mission; to find rolled oats!!! We visited all three shopping centres in the station and around the station (that’s a lot isn’t it), and I even had a talk with Simon’s friend Tomo over the phone (who didn’t even know what they were). We found oatmeal and muesli, but sadly we could not find rolled oats anywhere; I was quite frustrated. Seeking relief (and since we were in Saty), I took Simon up to the men’s clothing section, and Animate; that took my mind off things, if only briefly. Not wanting to do anything else, we made our way back to uni on foot, enjoying a red bean gozasoro on the way.

Getting back to uni, we met up with Tomo, and soon after walked back home; Simon insisted that even though he had a bike he would walk with me. We talked a lot along the way, teaching Tomo English swear words; very irresponsible of us. When I got back, I didn’t do much, until I went up to make dinner at about 7:15. Since I didn’t have all the ingredients I needed to make either shepherd’s pie or spaghetti bolognese, I decided to experiment. I mixed the mince and frozen vegetables on a fry pan, in pizza, and yakitori sauce, and added macaroni, and cheese. It was a beautifully moist dish, the cheese bound it together well, and it tasted great; a smashing success. Yuji and Asami were already preparing for the food party, making mini okonomiyaki; clever idea. After dinner, Rachael, Rachel, Ash, Katie and I (the regulars), went down to start our Friday night movie viewing. We started off with Sweeny Todd, which Rachael and Katie had never seen before; they really enjoyed it. Then it was onto Withnail and I; which none of us but Ash had seen. And then it was time for bed. I was going to go to the ice festival in Kobe this weekend, but now I’m not so sure. I’ve got the food party to worry about and a speech for Japanese to write; see how I go…

Day 163 - 9th of February

11:40pm　セミナーハウス
天気：曇り
I’ve just been talking with Simon in the computer room. Gosh today was such a nice, mild day; the warmest I’ve felt in a long time… I got up at 9:30, and had toast for breakfast, since I don’t have any cereal; have to do that tomorrow too. First up was Reading, and we had a quiz, and then went through two new grammar points. We receive homework every day, but it’s a really small amount; just two sentences using the new grammar. After class, I went for lunch with Jo, Kim, Nathan, and his speaking partner (Yuki) and her friend. I had a little bit of a conversation with the Japanese girls, which was great. We were there until almost 1, when we had to get to class. On the way to the CIE building, I bumped into Mori sempai (Ryoko) from koto club. Since she will be studying abroad, she has to come to the afternoon classes (to get used to learning in English), so doesn’t really get a spring break; that’s tough. She let me know there was practice tomorrow from 11 till 3; really stupid time if you ask me. Well, I guess it is fine for everyone but Maarika and I. I’m going to go in my break from 11 to 12, so atleast I’ll get some practice.

So yeah, in Religion we started to cover Shinto, learning about the 神棚 (kamidana – household Shinto shrine), torii, and purity and fertility as “themes” within Shinto. It’s a weird religion in that it has no doctrines; it just is. Someone brought up the fertility festival on Sunday, and I was able to add to that. And that was me done for the day. I went and bought the texts for Onna to Otoko, and then went home, stopping by Avail on the way. I noticed that the boots I’d liked were gone; I wasn’t that disappointed. I didn’t like anything I saw, so I went home empty handed; probably a good thing. Getting back to my room, I got my laundry put away, and then had a nap; and it was longer than 30 minutes. I felt good afterwards though, and got stuck into my homework. Around 7 I went up and had dinner (the leftover chicken on rice). Soon after coming back down, I was visited by Yuji, who asked me if I’d be willing to cook for Sunday’s food party; I accepted the call.

We had a meeting in the lounge (Biancha, Victor, Barbara, Yuji, and I), and each decided what we would make. I had already been thinking about it and, since the theme is food from your own country, I though ANZAC biscuits would be a great idea; they’re yummy and easy to make. The biggest problem is finding the ingredients but Biancha’s helping me with that. She’s going to the American military base near Wakayama on Thursday to pick me up what I need. We each got 2000円 for supplies (which I think is very generous), and then went on our way. I went up to the kitchen to show Biancha what I needed, and then got stuck chatting with Katie, Ash, and Rachel; not that that’s a bad thing. I figured I might as well stay up there anyway since I had cleaning at 9. That went very well. Everyone showed up except Hugo, who was out, and we got everything done relatively fast. I got back down at about 9:30, and got my reading done for Onna to Otoko tomorrow; Hugo arrived back in that time. Then I went out and talked with Simon, who was on Facebook chatting with a very opinionated Japanese student. Well, class at 10 tomorrow; hopefully feeling better too…