Day 240 - 27th of April

10:46pm　セミナーハウス

天気：雨天、風が吹いて

I’ll be back in Australia a month from today!!! My feelings are still very mixed; just like the weather apparently. It was an awfully windy, rainy day today; not much fun at all. Thankfully though, it wasn’t raining on my way to, or from uni; very lucky… In Speaking today, we reviewed for the lesson test, before having to fill out a course evaluation sheet; I was designated to collect, and hand them to the office. Saigo sensei was such a fun teacher, and I think everyone in the class appreciated him as much as I did; we joked that we should all write in the comments to give him a raise. In the hour break, I sat with Julie and studied. Then we went onto Religion class, and today we talked about Pure Land Buddhism, which is one of the less appealing forms of Buddhism; as far as researchers are concerned. It has many similarities to Christianity, but many differences also. Probably one of the most controversial, and the reason why it’s unpopular, is the notion that anyone can go to Pure Land, and eventually reach Nirvana, just by saying the 念仏 (Nebutsu), or prayer that invokes the spirit of 阿弥陀 (Amida); the central Buddha of this form of Buddhism. And the evil man is more likely to make it because he will not rely on self-power, he will not have the ego or pride of a good man, so he’ll really mean it when the time comes. Also, when you get to the Pure Land, you’re a man; there are no women. And further, you must say the nenbutsu to reach the Pure Land. This means that if a baby dies, it can’t go there, since it can’t speak; kinda sad. Anyway, I won’t go on any more about that.

After religion, I spent the next few hours studying, and talking with Chelsea and Julie. Finally, it was time for koto, and after picking up the key, I made my way over. It was basically a repeat of yesterday, with Mori and Midori Sempai coming later; no one else showed up. Maarika and I have vastly improved at Miyabi, and I feel pretty confident about performing, with Mori Sempai on second koto, on Friday; it’s going to be fun. Getting home, I didn’t know what I wanted to cook, since it was already late, and I want to get a bit more study in. So I ended up just heating up some stew. I stayed in the kitchen till a bit after 9, and then came back down here, intent on study; I got a little distracted. Rachael contacted me, saying she’d bought a PS3, and not just any PS3, but a Cloud black PS3; she beckoned me to come and see it. I obliged, since I did really want to see it and I wasn’t disappointed; it was so cool. It came with a trail version of FFXIII and the Blu-ray version of FF:AC Complete. So, seeing as she now had two copies of FF:AC Complete on Blu-ray, she decided to give me her other one; this made me very happy!!! I’m going to have to get her something now to pay her back; that was really nice of her. Then, she showed me something else that made me even happier. She had bought Cloud’s outfit!!! So, of course I had to try it on. Soon, I had her and Katie (she came in with Sarah to practice their skit), getting me dressed in it; so my straps, and belts, and buttons. It didn’t come with the sweater, which was a bit of a shame, but it still looked epic. I had to run downstairs and show it off to everyone in the lounge; they were watching Beauty and the Beast. Reluctantly, I eventually parted with it; now I’m on a quest to find one for myself. After all the excitement, I basically just spent the rest of the evening going over vocab and grammar; I’m feeling good about the test…

Day 238 - 25th of April

10:55am　特急
天気：晴れ

I’m on a limited express train, sitting down in the lower compartment, heading towards 出町柳 (Demachiyanagi), final destination 比叡山 (Mount Hiei); how did I get here? Well, I woke up at 9:30, and went up to have breakfast. Coming back downstairs, I was just about to return to my room, when I bumped into Sarah. She told me she would be going to Mount Hiei today, and after I showed my interest, she asked if I wanted to come with. As I’ve found before, spur of the moment decisions usually turn out really well, so I accepted her invitation, and then got ready as fast as possible… Thinking back on it now, I could have easily spent today basically repeating what I did yesterday (which I had intended), but somehow our meeting was timed just right; what luck, I say. It’s a beautiful, sunny day today, perfect for climbing a mountain. There was no way I could pass up the opportunity and besides, I deserve it…

4:49pm　特急

We’re on the limited express back to Kuzuha (to switch over for Makino). We’re actually sitting down, which is amazingly wonderful; that’s the beauty of getting on the start of the line, or should I say the end? Well, I’m going to rest a bit now, it’s been a big day…

10:43pm

Just showered and got comfy. I guess it’s time to describe my wonderful day… Well, after getting to Demachiyanagi, we transferred to the 叡山電鉄本 (eizandentetsuhon line), which took us to 八瀬比叡山口 (Yasehieizanguchi). It was a single carriage, more like a tram than a train, and there was even a ticket vendor on board. As we made our way further out, the mountains looming ever closer, I couldn’t help but feel excited. Once we got off the train, we headed straight for ケーブル八瀬 (Cable Yase), the cable car that would take us closer to the top of the mountain. We opted for the roundtrip fare, which included entry to the garden museum. I was reminded of the trip to Rokko Mountain as we rode upwards, although the incline seemed a lot steeper this time around. I used my regular camera to record the ride; while wishing I could have used my video camera. The mountains were a million shades of green, with the odd smudge of reddish pink denoting the sakura trees in the twilight of their blooming; it was truly beautiful. Kyoto also came into view as we got higher, just as my ears decided to pop. After about 10 minutes, we reached the end of the cable car line, now considerably higher. But we hadn’t reached the top yet.

Still, the view from where we were was stunning, and there were still a few sakura trees in flower. We noticed a metal ring, rigged up by two ropes over the precipice. I remembered seeing this ring in Carly’s photos. She had explained that you had to try to toss coins (which you could buy for 100円) through the ring, supposedly to bring good luck. We didn’t have time to indulge in such trivialities though, as the ropeway was beckoning. Yes, now we had to take the 叡山ロープウェイ (Eizan Ropeway) to reach 比叡山頂 (Hieisancho), where the Garden Museum is located. So, we crammed into the small cabin and off we went, Sarah never failing to remind me of her fear of heights; this was especially significant since we were hanging in mid-air. If I am not mistaken, this was my first time on a ropeway, which is quite cool actually; again I took video. After a short ride (in comparison to the cable car), we had reached the top. Eagerly, we made our way out, and over to the Garden Museum, receiving a ticket, pamphlet and information in English at the front desk before entering. Almost immediately, we were taken aback by the view. Far below us, the city of 大津 (Otsu) hugged the shore of Lake Biwa, which stretched out to the left until it was obscured by the mountain peak.

The view did not divert our attention too much though, as we found ourselves surrounded by gardens and paintings. The Garden Museum was designed my French garden designers, in an attempt to capture the essence of the world of Impressionism. Impressionist paintings have been reproduced, and are all around the open air museum, some set up on easels among the flowers. We slowly made our way around, marvelling at the multitude of flowers bursting with colour; we had come at a good time. Getting to the other entrance of the museum, we considered our next move. We knew we wanted to go and check out 延暦寺 (Enryakuji), the huge, central temple complex on the mountain, but weren’t entirely sure how to get there. We also knew we were getting hungry. So, I went up one of the ladies at the ticket counter, and enquired as to the whereabouts of Enryakuji, and the lady kindly recommended that we take the bus, as it is the most direct route there; otherwise it would be a 40 minute walk. Conveniently, the bus terminal was located right outside the exit, along with a great ugly car park; I guess it can’t be helped. So, we decided we would exit now, and come back through later; now all we needed was something to eat. As luck would have it, just by the bus terminal was a restaurant that served udon and soba; didn’t need a second thought.

We were soon seated, and both ordered the kitsune udon, which is basically a warm broth filled with udon noodles and diced vegetables, and topped with fried tofu. It was absolutely delicious, and so filling too; both of us were feeling very satisfied afterwards, and Sarah kept on praising the meal. Hearing the bus pull in, we quickly payed, and exited the restaurant, and ended up just missing it. Oh well, I gave us some more time to appreciate the view. Just offshore of the city, I noticed that there was a huge fountain in the water; I thought it must look spectacular from the waterfront. There were also heaps of yachts and speedboats out on the water, brought out no doubt by the beautiful weather. The next bus soon arrived and we hoped on that one, soon off down a windy road that hugged the cliffs, the view of the lake to our right. Enryakuji turned out to be just two stops away, but walking there would have definitely been heavy going. After paying to enter (which was discounted since we had the tickets from the garden museum), we made our way around the complex; it was really incredible.

We visited a number of buildings, including the 大講堂 (Dai koudou – Great Lecture Hall), the 根本中堂 (Konponchudou – Foundation Halll), and the 阿弥陀堂 (Amidadou – Amida Hall). One particularly memorable building was the文殊楼 (Monjuro – Manjusri Watchtower), where you have to climb stairs, which mightas well have been ladders, to get up to the altar on the second floor; that was quite intense. In fact, there was lots of stair climbing throughout the time we were there; great workout for the legs. Near the lecture hall, I had a go at ringing one of the huge bells, which was so cool; the sound really resonated inside me. There was even an Inari shrine, which I guess is a given; they’re everywhere. I guess I should include a bit of history. Basically, the monastery (that’s a better word than complex), was founded in the early Heian period (8^th century) by Saicho (Dengyo Daishi), who introduced the Tendai sect of Mahayana Buddhism to Japan from China. Today we visited the complex clustered around the 東塔 (Toudou – East Pagoda), which is where the most important buildings of the monastery are concentrated. Further along the mountain are the 西塔 (Saitou – West Pagoda), and the 横川 (Yokawa) complexes; perhaps I will visit them someday.

It really was a beautiful place though. The trees were massive, and the atmosphere was sublime, and drenched in history; wandering around, it felt like we had taken a step back in time. The only thing that was a little bothersome for me was the fact that we had take off our shoes each time we entered a building, so my converse we not the best option for that. It was a bit after 3, when we decided it was time to get going. We had a quick look at the gift shop, not buying anything, and then got on the bus that took us back up to the garden museum. There, we wandered through an area we had missed the first time through, and also spotted an eagle, which flew very close by. Craving something sweet, we each bought an ice cream; Sarah got vanilla, and I got rose. They were the only two flavours and seeing バラ written, I was intrigued to find out what I actually was. When the lady said rose I was like, “gosh I should have known that”; it always puts me off when they write Japanese words in katakana. Well I suppose it is a lot easier than writing the kanji for rose: 薔薇. Anyway, it definitely smelt like rose and the taste, well it was very obscure; like the sakura flavour, I just can’t place it. I did very much enjoy it though. After that, we looked around the art gallery, before making our way up the observatory, which offered a wonderful 360 degrees view of the surrounds. After that, I was finally time for us to make our way back home, which was the exact reverse of how we got here; save one thing.

We decided we’d walk home from Makino rather than take the bus; trying to save some money. When we got to Makino, Sarah wanted to by a donut from Mister Donut since she had never tried them before, so of course I bought one too; failing at saving money. Oh my gosh they asked so many questions – “Are you taking out, or eating in?”, “Do you have a membership card?”, “Would you like a coffee with your order?”, “Would you like us heat it up for you?” – it was quite overwhelming; all I wanted was my donut. Anyway, we eventually got out of there and made our way to Sanko; the day wasn’t quite over. I had to buy some eggs for my okonomiyaki tonight, and luckily they were on sale; Sarah had to pick some stuff up too. While there, I also bumped into Mori Sempai, who was buying snacks for a scary movie night with Maarika. Finally we got back home, and after putting the groceries away, I got my washing in. While putting that away, I had another crack at transferring the video to the computer and this time it worked; I was so happy. Hugo and his two partners were in here as well, working on their presentation for psychology; they all had their laptops in front of them. Soon enough, it was time for dinner, and I managed to make one, wonderful okonomiyaki; well, technically it was modern-yaki, since I put yakisoba noodles on top. I stayed in the kitchen until about 9, and then went downstairs to find Katie, Ash, and Rachel watching a movie; Paprika. They were already an hour into it, but I decided to stay and watch it anyway. It was really far out, and I wish I’d seen the whole thing; maybe I’ll borrow it from Ash sometime. And that was basically the end of my day; back to uni tomorrow…

Day 235 - 22nd of April

10:48pm　セミナーハウス

天気：雨天

Well, of course the nice weather wasn’t going to last; not even for another day. All the waterways are practically overflowing, and I got soaked during my commute to and from uni; not that I minded. I had a pretty lazy morning, doing a little bit of study for my test tomorrow, and then rode to uni. In Speaking, we quickly went over the grammar patterns (which we had already studied in level 3), and then spent the rest of the lesson coming up with pick-up lines; no joke. I talked to Rachael before class, and she told me she’d come up with 13. Sadly, or not so sadly, I only came up with two; this is partly because I was so distracted by what everyone else was coming up with. We had to write them down, and then submit them to Sensei; no other homework! After that came Religion, and today we talked about 観音 (Kannon) and 地蔵 (Jizou), the two prominent Bodhisattvas of Japan. And remember Bodhisattvas gave up nirvana, to stick around and help us; how nice of them. In Japan, Kannon typically manifests as a woman, although really Bodhisattvas transcend gender; in Tibet Kannon is very much a male. “She” is distinguished by an elaborate headpiece, sometimes with the image of Amida (a Buddha) in the centre, and lots and lots of arms; there’s supposed to be 1000s although it can be as little as six. In the representations with many arms, she holds a tool of salvation in each. Kannon is also associated with granting safe childbirth.

Jizou on the other hand, arguably the most easy to identify with “divine being” in Japan, takes on the guise of an old monk-like man, or sometimes a child; he may also hold a staff in one hand, and a jewel in the other. Thus, he is most typically associated with children, and old people’s health. Also, the stones with red bibs around them are likely to be Jizou, and you can see them in practically everywhere; on the side of the road, in temples and shrines. He is very much a being of the earth, and very close to the Japanese psyche. In really enjoyed that class, and as usual, it enhanced my understanding of Japan, which makes everyday encounters more meaningful. Done for the day, I made my way home and had some lunch. Feeling dead, and not able to get into study, I decided to go to the gym, and that did just the trick; I felt invigorated. Getting back, I was soon going out once more to Sanko; the need to buy groceries never dies. After that though, I was out of the rain for the rest of the day. I went up to the kitchen at about 6:30, and got my stew on, and then sat watching TV, going to check it periodically; the flame kept on giving out, which was really quite annoying. 7 came round, and the kitchen got packed with people. I enjoyed watching Julie cook her dinner, which looked really good. Since I took so much interest in it, she said we could do a trade off, some of her meal for some of mine; I was totally up for that.

The meal she was cooking was chicken, peas and potatoes in stock, and covered with a sauce made from flour, sour cream, and the drained off stock; really easy but incredibly tasty. I’m really going to have to try making it sometime; I find it so funny that so much of my life revolves around food. My stew turned out great too; I used big chunks of beef this time for a change. So I was soon sitting down, enjoying my two meals, and watching a program about crazy occurrences around the world; especially America. This included riots, explosions, collisions, robberies, and car skydiving?!! I was so full after eating, but of course there was more to come. Liz had cooked brownies yesterday for Jeremy’s birthday, and was kind enough to save some for us, and wow so yummy. After that, people kept on passing around food; I got to eat one of Biancha’s sweets, and the rest of Rachel’s mochi. Eventually, 10 o’clock came round, and I decided it was time to retire. I spent the rest of the night studying for my Reading and Writing test, which I feel quite confident about. The rain seems to have lessened, so hopefully by tomorrow it’ll be gone; just have to stay positive.

Day 233 - 20th of April

11:24pm　セミナーハウス

天気：雨天

Well, although the weather has been crappy, at least it’s warming up. The sakura are almost done, the blossoms are being exchanged for fresh, green foliage; it’s come to an end so fast. Now, a plethora of other flowers have started to make their appearance; the university especially is exploding with colour from a number of azalea varieties… In Speaking this morning, Saigo Sensei showed us a really funny website about the correct and incorrect ways of looking after babies; it was great. Then, we listened to a song by Hilcrhyme called 春夏秋冬 (Shunkashuutoo – lit. “Spring Summer Autumn Winter”). Soon after it started playing, I recognised it, having heard it many times in shops; it’s a nice song though very fast Japanese. After all the fun, we covered just one grammar point, now in the final chapter of doumo; last vocab quiz tomorrow. After that, I went to lunch with Kim, Nathan, Jo, and Sarah in the 3^rd cafeteria, and we sat upstairs; I’d never been up there before and it was actually quite nice. Eventually we all got back to the CIE for our next classes; it was still raining heavily. Getting to the lounge, I spotted Rachel and Katie; they were sitting with four Japanese girls. This was the perfect opportunity for me to ask my questions about the Great Barrier Reef; two of the girls had even been to Australia. We talked together until class, and many good ideas were generated.

In religion, we talked some more about karma, merit, the two main types of Buddhism (Mahayana, and Hinayana Buddhism), and a concept called Upaya; sounds like a tasty fruit to me. Upaya (or Hoben, in Japanese) is actually a method or means, which might not make sense at the time, but helps to “push” people closer to Nirvana. Bodhisattvas (which are all around us according to Mahayana Buddhism) are the usual performers of Upaya. Bodhisattvas are beings who have gotten to Nirvana, but have decided to stick around to help out others. They are of a lower rank of Buddha, but still possess special abilities, like changing their form, and are basically here to help humans; the most prominent bodhisattvas in Japan are Kannon and Jizo. It really is quite fascinating how religions justify how everything works. Anyway, after that, I went down to the lounge with Julie, and spent the next couple of hours trying to do my Reading and Writing homework; they were questions that I would have trouble answering in English, let alone Japanese. Eventually, it came time to get ready for koto club, so I went to the student affairs office to get the key, then had a quick snack, before waiting for the others to arrive in the club room.

And I had to wait about 15 minutes until someone showed up; Maarika. We took the cleaning stuff down to the room, and waited for the others. Unfortunately, the others never showed up, so I decided we should just do the vacuuming, and that would be good enough. Then we got three koto set up (two for us, and one for the sensei), and then practiced together for a while. Sensei soon arrived, and we had a half an hour session with her; I am so glad she gave us breaks otherwise my feet would have died. We got through the first couple of pages of Miyabi (her playing the second koto, and us the first), which was very fulfilling; we have one last performance in two weeks, so we’re well on our way. At about 6:30, Mori Sempai arrived, and she got a one on one lesson for the next 30 minutes. Then they had a very long and deep conversation together about the struggle of life. It was interesting to listen to though, and I could pick up a few things; sensei speaks very fast. After she left, Midori sensei arrived, and we spent the last of the time talking, the three helping me with ideas for my Great Barrier Reef speech; we ended up getting onto politics, which is always fun. After packing up, we made our way home, and I went straight up for some dinner; yay for leftovers. I stayed in the kitchen for a little while, and then finally wrenched myself away to spend the rest of the night writing up my findings from my interviews today; glad it’s done…