Day 230 - 18th of April

10:08pm　セミナーハウス

天気：晴れ

Although I’m feeling dead tired now, today was so much fun! I won’t keep you in suspense; we came 2^nd!!! I’m so proud of everyone for putting in so much effort, and there was such a strong sense of team spirit…I woke up at about 9 and after showering, I went up to the kitchen and ate breakfast, chatting with people as they came and went, most getting ready for today’s event. I ended up staying there till about 11, when I realised I’d have to get a wriggle on if I was going to make it there for 11:30. I bid Hugo farewell (he was going to a cultural exchange event), brushed my teeth, and then got going. Meeting Rachel outside, we were about to head off when Julie came out, saying that Rebecca and Julianne needed a lift, since they would also be competing, and they wouldn’t make in time if they walked. So, I took Julianne, and Rachel took Rebecca; that was pretty scary. It was really hard to get started, but after building up a bit of momentum it got gradually easier; it was still very wobbly going though. We only got as far as the east gates before Julianne was asked to dismount. I rode ahead to catch up with Rachel and soon we were at the courts, waiting for everything to get started. People continued to pour in, and Julie, Rachael, Katie, and Ash came as support; our unofficial cheerleaders. We eventually got going at 12, as per the timetable, and started off with the “Opening Ceremony”, before doing a few stretches; very briefly.

After that, the events stated, and we kicked off with tug-of-war. Well… we didn’t end up doing too well at all at it; we lost every game. Indeed, we are the smallest house, and we had the smallest number of competitors; all the other houses had to reduce their numbers for the event. Even when Peter came, we were no match for the other houses; there were some big guys on the other teams. Then came jump-rope, and wow did we suck at that; okay so that’s a little harsh. But still, all the teams got two tries each, to get us many people through the rope in 3 minutes as possible, and the best we did was 25; the other teams got into the 30’s. I was a little disappointed, because I was feeling pretty competitive at the time, but it really didn’t matter; we were there to have fun. After out two turns, I went with Katie and Ash to the convenience store and bought some water for me and a coke for Rachael. Getting back, it was “rest time” so many went off to get a quick bite to eat; I was feeling fine. About half an hour later (a bit after 2), the final event got underway; Super Dodge-ball!!! After the rules were explained (which actually took quite a while), we split up into two groups of 5 girls and 5 guys; since there weren’t enough of us, most of us had to double up.

The rules were basically – one Seminar House vs. another, each with a team of 10. Two people from the team are stationed on the outside of the of the opposing teams court, while the other 8 are within. There are 3 dodge-balls and a game of jankenpon (scissors-paper-rock) determines which team starts with two balls. Basically, you get sent the outside if you get hit by a ball, but you’re safe if you catch it, or you get hit above the shoulders. The person who hits you gets to go back inside their court. The people on the inside can also try to hit members of the other team; but they remain inside. The matches are 5 minutes, and the winning team is the one that either has the most people left in the middle by the end of the 5 minutes, or has sent every member of the opposing team to the outside. It was a very intense game. But guess what… we won every match! It was tournament style, so there ended up being 6 matches (7 if you include the tie-breaker we had with Seminar House 1). I ended up being in 6 out of the 7 matches, and I had such a great time. A memorable moment was when I was the last person on the inside and I managed to dodge all three balls that were coming at me in quick succession; this gave my team a chance to get other members back in. At the time, I hadn’t even realised the significance of it, but afterwards everyone congratulated me, which made me swell with pride; we had great team spirit.

Throughout the day, Rebecca (our leader), rallied us together, screamed at us, and got us to do the Seminar House pose in a big circle. I really felt a strong connection with everyone, and I think that’s what got us through; the team work and communication. There were also a few kids playing (the children of the professors’), and they were also putting a great effort in; it was especially funny seeing them in tug-of-war. Unfortunately, I can’t say that the day ran completely smooth. Our second match, against Seminar House 1, became very heated as both sides accused the other of cheating; this was the one that ended in a tie-breaker. This one guy came up to Angela (Rachel’s roommate), and threw one of the balls at her as hard as he could; so I heard. She went off crying, and oh boy did Rachel chew that guys face off; she told me she had wanted to punch him. He really did display terrible sportsmanship though. When the places were being announced, and we received trophies (they were beautiful), he went up to receive his houses place and trophy (3^rd), and showed very little enthusiasm; what a sore loser. I was actually really surprised when it was announced that we were 2^nd; I guess dodge-ball had counted for more than we’d expected. Apart from trophies, we also received gifts, which meant candy in other words. After the closing ceremony, congratulations, eating and photo-taking, we slowly made our way back to the dorm, elated.

It was 5 by the time we got back. I went to my room for a little while, and then went up to the kitchen; we were going to have a party at 6! Rebecca had asked Liz if she could bake a cake for it, and with little time to prepare, she was in a bit of a fix. Chelsea, Julie, and I helped her out though, contributing hands and ingredients, and just in time, we had a cake in the oven. There were heaps of drinks and snacks, that people had kindly contributed, and at around 6:30, the pizza came that Yuji had ordered. Since Rachael and I had made plans to go to New Delhi for dinner, we didn’t have any, but that didn’t stop us from getting stuck into the sweets. We all got a bit of cake too, and it turned out amazing; such a simple recipe too. Finally, Rachael and I said our farewells, and made our way over to New Delhi. The curry was amazing, and as usual they brought us heaps of extra food; I was absolutely stuffed. We sat and talked for a while, and then eventually left for home; it was a cold walk back... I’m absolutely exhausted now, and although there was an open invitation to go to Karaoke with Rachel, Katie and Ash, I’m certainly not up for it. Hugo’s gone out to celebrate with Tristan since it’s his birthday. All I’m going to do now though is sleep…

Day 221 - 8th of April

11:28pm　セミナーハウス
天気：晴れ
Well the weather turned again, and while it wasn’t as warm as Tuesday, at least it was nice and sunny… I woke up a bit after 9, and took a while to get ready; I wanted to look good for the koto performance. I ended up wearing my new shirt, with a vest over the top; I was really happy with the look. It also kept m warm enough that I didn’t have to bother with a jumper. I got to uni at about 10:30, and after dropping my bag off in the performance room (Midori and Mori Sempai were already playing), I had a bit of a walk, and took photos of the events going on, including the cheerleading, and rock band performance. I got back to the room for 11, and soon enough, it was our turn to perform in front of a small group of freshman; potential entrants to our club. Our first time through Sandan went okay, but Kyoningyo no yume was actually pretty terrible to be completely honest; my pages were out of order so I completely lost it at one point. After Maarika and I had played, Midori and Mori Sempai again took up playing, Mori offering my some glue to stick the Kyoningyo no yume sheet music together; good plan.

During this time, Rose and another guy (I’ve regrettably forgotten his name) came in, and were promptly served tea by the tea ceremony club, all garbed in kimono; and very beautiful kimono at that. Just as Midori and Mori Sempai had finished playing, a girl in the audience dropped her tea bowl; since it was ceramic it smashed. In a way, it was a fitting end to an intense piece like Kagaribi. Then we were up again, and this time we did a lot better at both pieces although, Kyoningyo no yume still wasn’t as good as Sandan; and it’s supposed to be the easier piece! Oh well, we have practiced sandan longer after all. Natalie had arrived by this time, so she played hanagoromo, and Maarika and I helped her; it turned out… okay. As soon as we finished, I had to rush off to class; it was a bit of a shame I couldn’t stay and support everyone. I ended up being a little late, but Saigo Sensei understood; he always does. The class was in the middle of watching a video about origami, but I caught the majority of it; it was quite funny actually. After that, we got into the serious stuff; as serious as Saigo Sensei’s classes can be that is.

In the break between classes, I got my homework done, and read a little more of the interview write-ups. In religion, we went on to discuss them all; some in more detail than others. Mine, which showed a pretty “typical” (the professor liked to put that word in quotation marks) representation of a Japanese person’s religious beliefs, was only glossed over, which was understandable; I didn’t have anything to add. Overall, it was really interesting listening to every ones ideas and input on other’s write-ups, and this is further helping to shape my perceptions of Japanese society. After class, I went down to check my mail, and there was another letter from Nanny and Poppy. Then I made my way back home, as I was extremely hungry. However many distractions lay in my path and it was a battle to get through them. First of all, the marching band and colour guard were performing out on the basket ball courts, so I had to watch that; it was so good. Actually, the band performed the theme from Mario Bros, which was so cool; I got it on video! After that, I saw Rebecca in the crowd and went over to talk to her; she was helping to recruit new members to her circle. I talked with her and a few Japanese people for a little while, and then finally had to excuse myself; I escaped.

I noticed Katie as I was heading towards the bike parking, but thankfully our interchange was relatively short; she had to go to Fresco for groceries. Riding home, I took a few photos of the Sakura across from Komatsu. Of course when I got back, I practically raced to my room to dump my stuff, and then went up to the kitchen to eat; so satisfying. After lunch, I spent the rest of the afternoon chatting with Alex. She wants to go on one last holiday together over Golden Week, so we were looking for a good place and accommodation; we’re thinking 彦根 (Hikone) at the moment. I also talked with Dad for a while, which was really nice; we don’t often get to talk for very long. 6:30 rolled around, and after getting in my laundry, I went upstairs for dinner; yay for leftover yakisoba. I stayed up there and chatted, and watched TV (lucky TV personalities going around Disneyland and eating all the food), until just after 8:30. Then I came back down here, and got my Reading and Writing homework done; that was a bit of a mission. The rest of the night was pretty chill though…

Day 185 - 3rd of March

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11:20pm　セミナーハウス

天気：晴れ

Today was 雛祭り (Hina Matsuri – Girl’s Day), not that I could do much, since I was stuck at uni, but professor Hester did give out some sweets that, when wrapped, resembled dolls in all different dresses of the world; so that was something. It was also a nice sunny day today, albeit cold… Again, I forgot to turn the volume on my iPod up for my alarm, but luckily Hugo’s woke me up. I got to class in good time, and we went over transitive and intransitive verbs; always fun. In my break, I did the reading for Gender and Sexuality, and continued reading the interview write ups half the class have done for Religion; we’re going to talk about them tomorrow. I still don’t know who I should interview; maybe I’ll just talk to Yuji. Anyway, I went to my Reading and Writing class, and we started chapter 3, which meant a whole lot of new kanji; fun, fun, fun. After that, I went straight on to Gender and Sexuality, and Hester gave us the information for the Takarazuka trip this Sunday; I can’t believe how fast it’s come up. The tickets didn’t arrive during class, as Hester had anticipated, so we should be receiving them on Friday now.

I returned home, soon after class, had lunch, and then napped for a while. At around 5:30, I talked with family, and helped Ben with his story; that was fun. Soon enough, it was coming up to 7, and the Seminar House meeting. Yuji are only RA now since Asami has resigned for personal reasons (this was a shock to all of us), has started planning our next party; a Music Party. A few of us will be performing, including me on koto. I have no idea what I should do for it, but I have a few weeks to work something out; maybe I’ll just improvise. So that’s something to look forward to. Then we got into the serious stuff i.e. the state of the kitchen. Hopefully now, after a few of us spoke up about it, people will try a bit harder to keep it clean. It was almost 8 by the time the meeting finished, and after helping put the chairs back into the computer room, I went upstairs to put on some rice for dinner. Half an hour later, I was making 卵丼 (Tamagodon – Egg on rice). It’s very simple, and very tasty. I didn’t spend too long in the kitchen tonight, but had fun chatting, while Rachel put my hair up into a knot, and later French braided it; it was quite a sight.

Getting back down here, I’ve spent the rest of the night, uploading photos on facebook, and starting to learn the new kanji and vocabulary. I also read the story in this chapter. It’s actually quite good. Basically it’s about an old woodcutter with a lump on his cheek. One day, while he up in the mountains cutting wood, he gets caught in a storm, and has to take shelter in a cabin. He’s exhausted, and falls to sleep as the storm continues to rage. That night, he is awoken by many voices coming from outside the cabin. To his surprise, when he peers through the crack in the door, he sees a group of red and blue goblins, drinking, dancing, and singing around. He is scared at first, but seeing that they are having such a good time, he runs out into the middle of the circle, and starts dancing. The goblins are of course very surprised, but when they see that the old man is such a good dancer, they cheer him on. The leader praises him, and beckons him to come back again, rewarding him by taking the lump of his cheek; it doesn’t hurt at all. The old man returns home feeling much lighter, and overjoyed.

The neighbour of the woodcutter, is also an old man, and has a lump on his opposite cheek. Unlike the woodcutter though, he is a mean-spirited person, and when he hears of the old woodcutter’s tale, he is immediately jealous. So that night, the wicked neighbour, goes to the top of the mountain, and sits in the hut to wait for the goblins to arrive. When they show up, he immediately jumps out of the hut and starts dancing. Unfortunately for him, he is a terrible dancer, and the goblins are not at all impressed. The leader is so put off, he screams at him, and throws the old woodcutters lump at him. The neighbour returns home with a lump on both cheeks, and tears streaming down his face. I don’t really know what the moral of the story is, but maybe it’s something like - don’t be jealous and be happy for others’ good fortunes. Or maybe it’s more like – beware of goblins if you’re a crappy dancer! Anyway, that was really interesting, and enjoyable to read; I got a good laugh out of it. Well, I should get some sleep now; maybe do some laundry in the morning.

Day 161 - 7th of February

12:41pm　急行
天気：晴れ
I’m on the express to 橿原神宮前 (Kashihara Jingu-mae). We’re going to see a fertility festival in Asuka; that’s Sam, Jeremy, Victor, Naoya, Jacinthe, Hugo, Rachael, and I. When we went on the field trip to Asuka last semester in History, I recall transferring trains at Kashihara Jingu-mae. It’s a nice, relatively warm day, and there’s no sign of snow, which is a shame. Still, on the way to Makino this morning, there was a bit of snow on the ground, hiding in the shadows. I don’t know what exactly to expect from this festival, but I think it will be fun…

5:30pm　急行
We’re on the train back to Tambabashi. The festival was so fascinating… When we got to Kashihara, we hastily made our way to the bus stop, and found the bus that would take us out front of Asuka Daibutsu. We met up with another large group of Gaidai students, and ended up all crammed on the same bus together. I was worried we weren’t going to make it in time, while realising I’d been to this area before on the field trip. We went past the museum, and up the same street we had came riding down so many months ago. We got off in front of Asuka-dera (which I’d also been to before), after driving past the shrine, and the chaos, we would soon be a part of. The shrine is called 飛鳥坐神社 (Asuka Niimasu Jinga – Asuka “sitting” shrine) and while we never went to it during the field trip, I remember Jo pointing it out, curious to see it. We made our way through the torii, past the stalls, and up the steep steps, to a crowded opening in front of a stage; we had arrived just in time. I decided to film it, and again was thankful for my height; we were quite far back, and not everyone was so lucky. The festival started slow, with representatives from other shrines in the area making offerings and praying. We noticed three figures in the back in costume and wearing masks; an ox, a 天狗 (Tengu – lit. “Heavenly dog” – dangerous, but protective spirits, characterised by their unusually long noses), and an old man.

After all the representatives had finished, the “play” started. First, the cycle of rice planting and harvesting was depicted, with the ox ploughing the field, and then a priest sowing the seeds, and panting the crops; agricultural fertility. The story was narrated, and the three characters were all very playful and ludicrous at times. They came out into the crowd, hitting people on the legs and bottoms with bamboo rakes, before going down the hill. Returning, they brought with them an “old women” masked figure in kimono. Then the old man and woman depicted the act of human procreation. Bits of tissue were thrown out into the crowd. Called fuku no kami, which is a pun ~ fuku no kami can be written in kanji to mean “lucky gods”, or “wiping paper” ~ they were blessed, and also significant in their use after intercourse; hence the term wiping paper. Also depicted, was the spilling of seed, by the Tengu figure, holding a bamboo rod as a phalluc symbol; he aimed this toward both the crowd, and the represtentatives.

Offerings of rice were made, and then a priestess performed a dance to pre-recorded music; still very beautiful and haunting though. More offerings were made, and then everyone up on the stage (including some children) started throwing mochi into the crowd. Although the ritual was over, the Tengu, Ox, and old man and women figures, continued to prowl around the crowd, whacking young and old alike. Being whacked like this is supposed to wake up the spirit from its winter hibernation, to get ready for spring; I got whacked a couple of times on the legs. Some older people readily bent over to get hit, but the kids generally ran away, screaming in fear or delight as they were chased after. As the crowd made their way back down the hill, I met with Jacinthe and Rachael and we explored the shrine some. Rachael and Jacinthe had both caught some mochi, and when we went up the stage, a man gave us more, and also gave Jacinthe a piece of tissue paper. We then made our way back down the hill, and met up with the rest of the group, and also Jo and a few others, who had only seen the last few minutes of the play. This didn’t mean there were exempt from the whacking.

One girl in particular (Liz), got hit so hard she was crying. We joked that she would be expecting a lot of babies; linking the whacking with fertility too. We decided to check out Asuka-dera, and Jo and I explained to the others the practice involving the pouring of the water on the three Buddha’s heads. The scenery was just so beautiful, painted orange by the setting sun; I’m glad I got to see Asuka again. Content with our lot, we waited for the bus out front, which finally came at 5:02; at least we got to sit down this time. We got back to the station, and got straight on the train, and here I am still; it’s a long ride back. Today was really amazing. It was just such a different sort of thing to see, and says a lot about the mindset, and attitudes of the Japanese; it was a real eye-opener. In a way, it kinda makes me feel like I’m missing out on something in my own background, so I was truly grateful to have seen it. I know there is another really famous fertility festival in March near Nagoya, and while I doubt I’ll be able to see it, I’ll have to let Alex know. Jacinthe is studying, a few people are reading or listening to music, and the rest have their eyes closed; I think I shall join them…

Day 157 - 3rd of February

3:12pm　快速特急
天気：曇り
I’m on the rapid limited express to 香里園 (Korien), in the hopes of witnessing the 節分 (setsubun) festival at 成田山不動尊 (Naritasan fudoson). I just got out of my Onna to Otoka class, which I am now successfully enrolled in since people dropped out of it; so happy. Then I rushed over to Hirakatashi. It’s a cloudy day today and it even snowed for a while when Jo and I were having lunch in Makkas after our Reading class; so cool. I woke up with an hour to get ready this morning, and again made it just in time for class; another fast-paced revision session. After that, Jo and I sat with a few others in the lounge, and Jo finally gave me the souvenir she got for me in Thailand. Reading class was pretty intense; lots of new kanji I didn’t know. And we’re expected to do a lot of self study; up to us to get the grades. Onna to Otoko looks like it’s going to be a great class. Heaps of people in it (for now), and we’re covering a lot of interesting and controversial topics. There will be a lot of in-class films, and maybe even a field trip. Anyway, I’m almost there now…

4:46pm　準急
I’m on the sub-express back to Makino. Sadly, I missed the festival at Naritasan… After getting off the train, I found my way to Naritasan with relative ease; out of the station, past ザ香里園タワー (za korien tawaa - the Korien tower) ~ it’s an immense skyscraper under construction ~, and through a hilly residential area. On the way, I came across 友呂岐神社 (tomorogi jinja – Tomorogi shrine), and there was quite a hubbub. A large group crowed around the shrine, arms raised or bags open, in an attempt to catch the bags of what I thought were the 福豆 (fukumame – lit. “lucky soybeans”), eagerly thrown by the priests. In fact, they turned out to be bags of peanuts; I caught one. I’m not sure why they are peanuts; I’ll have to ask Professor Hester to see if he knows. They’re just not what I typically associate with the festival that’s all. I was glad that at least see some sort of excitement.

I continued making my way toward Naritasan, which I’m pretty sure is a temple. I could be wrong though; there’s nothing in the name to give it away. The procession of people obviously backing their way back from the temple clearly marked my route. So when I did get there, I wasn’t too surprised that it was all over. There were still stalls set up outside, and one guy persuaded me to by a bag of dried fruit, after letting me try some. He did give me an extra handful of dried strawberries though (my favourite), which was really cool; they are so sweet. Well, I’m in Makino now, so have to continue later…

5:59pm　食堂
I’m now in the dining room; never written in my journal in here before. For some reason, I feel too lazy to go downstairs; or maybe I just feel the need to be in the company of others? Anyway, after getting to Naritasan and buying the dried fruit, I went into the main complex to find the aftermath of the festivities. There were peanut husks strewn across the ground, the wind occasionally picking them up playfully. A few people (mostly kids) were reaping the last of the peanuts from the workers who were, already, cleaning and packing up the event. The smell of peanuts turned to incense, as I watched a trickle of people making their rounds, praying, lighting candles, and giving offerings. The main hall was being vacuumed, and the omamori, and fukumame stalls were still open. I was just satisfied taking photos; it was a very beautiful place. There was an Inari shrine on the grounds, and further down a “waterfall” (it wasn’t running).

Eventually, I left the grounds, and made my way back to the station, zigzagging through the streets, past a few more temples and tomorogi shrine. I also took some photos of the art by school kids, that is covering much of the wall that's surounding The Korien Tower; certainly brightens up the view. At the station, I bought my 太巻寿司 (futomakizushi – lit. “thick rolled sushi”). In the Kansai region (that’s me) they are called 恵方巻 (ehoumaki – lit. “Happy direction rolls”). This is because when you eat it, you’re supposed to be facing the lucky direction for that year, which corresponds to the zodiac sign; as today is the traditional New Years of Japan 立春 (risshun – the first day of “spring”). And that’s exactly what I did. After getting back from Makino, and a side-trip to Sanko, I was feeling very hungry, so I orientated myself 西南西 (seinansei – west-southwest), and happily munched away. It was so yummy; my stomach is very content now. So, all in all, today was a good day. I thinking I’ll just do a bit of study and reading tonight. I don’t have class till 12 tomorrow, so I’ll have time to do some more revision then too.