Day 260 - 17th of May

11:12pm　セミナーハウス

天気：晴れ

Two courses down, two to go; so happy!!! Well, I’ll be even happier come Wednesday evening, after I’ve handed in my Gender and Sexuality essay. After that, all I’ll have to worry about is getting home in one piece; so much less stressful. Anyway, today was another beautiful warm day, but we’re expecting rain soon…I woke up at 8, and after a quick breakfast and shower, I did a bit more study for Reading and Writing, before going to face the inevitable. It actually turned out to be not that bad at all. I read a letter from Nanny just before starting, and that gave me the extra bit of encouragement I needed. I got out of their feeling good, and shortly made my way back home. After lunch, I took a nap. I had intended to only stay in bed for half an hour, but ended up hitting the snooze button about three times, and didn’t get up until about 1:30. After that though I felt better, and got stuck into researching for my Gender and Sexuality; this consisted of me scouring my reading package for anything that related to my topic. I’m talking about marriage in Japan, and how it has changed, and continues to change; should be good.

Carly came round a bit after 2:30 and I continued my research until almost 6; she brought chocolate, chips and cookies to keep me motivated. At the request of Mori Sempai, I went into uni to play Miyabi with her and Maarika one last time; we played in front of some of the students from other clubs. We ended on a high, but it’s still sad to think that’s the last time; I’ll definitely have to pick it up again one day. Hopefully Mori, and Midori can come to our graduation on Saturday; I’d really like to see them one last time. After that, we made our way back home, and I made cup noodles for Carly, and pizza for myself; I love easy meals. After eating in the lounge, I sat with everyone in the kitchen for about half an hour, talking about anything; I don’t have many more opportunities to have these kinds of interactions so I’m making the most of what’s left. After getting back downstairs at about 8:45, I spent the next hour and a half revising for tomorrow’s Reading exam; I’m not looking forward to it at all. Unlike the exam today, which focused on 3 chapters, the exam tomorrow will be on the entire textbook; 10 chapters!!! I think I’ll be okay; I know most of the grammar and vocab. It’s just a matter of being able to get everything done in an hour and 20 minutes. Well, I’d better get some sleep now; get one more course out of the way tomorrow…

Day 248 - 5th of May

9:12pm　セミナーハウス

天気：晴れ

Finally got my presentation finished!!! It feels like the last three days have all merged together, and I’ve been working on my presentation continuously. Tomorrow, classes resume and the final, nauseating drop on the rollercoaster ride that has been my time in Japan is upon me; I don’t know if I’m ready to take the plunge. I have just over 20 days left here, and it feels like nothing; all of a sudden, I’ve got too much to do. I’ve written everything I have to do down (as far as assignments and exams are concerned), and I think I can get it all done satisfactorily. As for all the other stuff well, I’ll just have to squeeze it in where ever I can. Tomorrow, I am definitely going to get my two packed boxes sent off, and get one more, larger box to stuff things in. Anyway, that’s tomorrow. Today it was kid’s day, not that I got to enjoy it since I was inside all day… I got up at 9, and after breakfast and shower, I worked on my presentation for two hours, then played KH, then worked on it some more. I had lunch a bit after 2, and then worked on my presentation until 6:30, finally getting the script finished; great day right.

I printed it off, and found Yuji in the kitchen, and he was generous enough to check it over for me; that was such a big help. He told me my way of writing was very easy to follow, and he only fixed or changed a few things; I was very happy with myself. I then had dinner, and after dishing out the pasta bake from last night, I put the rest in the freezer; hopefully it’ll be okay. I sat and talked with Katie and Sarah for a little while (the end was on all of our minds), and then came back down here to fix up the script and power point presentation. Happy with all that, I read it over a few times, and timed it. Well, it turns out that it’s about 9 minutes long, and it’s only supposed to be 5; whoops. In a way it gives me a lot of stake just in case I forget some sentences, which I’m sure I will. The only memo we’re allowed to have has to be written on the designated piece of yellow paper that has 10 lines; one sentence per line. The problem is, ever though I’ve written really small, most of my sentences don’t fit on line. But, it is a memo after all, so I guess that’s good enough. I’ll have a few hours in the morning to memorise it, and then I’ll be performing at 12. Even if it doesn’t go that well, I’ll be glad to get it out of the way tomorrow; means I can move onto the next task. Well, I’m going to have and early night tonight. Hugo’s returning in the morning…

Day 247 - 4th of May

11:31pm　セミナーハウス

天気：晴れ

Never thought I’d be saying this but I’ve got the air con on in here because it’s too hot; winter has definitely left us. It’s been such a warm day today, and while storm clouds were threatening this evening, it hasn’t rained at all. I’ve been working on my Japanese presentation pretty solidly all afternoon, and I’m still not finished; I’ve only got one day left now. On the plus side, I got out for a bit today to enjoy the weather… After breakfast at 10, I played KH for a while, and then got on my bike and rode down to the station. On the way, I took some photos of the abundance of azalea bushes in full bloom in front of the Komatsu plant, and also stopped at a local shrine I had rode past a few times, but never been in. It’s called 甲鉾神社 (Kouhoko Shrine), and it was small but peaceful. Going down the big hill today was great because the lights were timed perfectly so that I didn’t have to slow down for the traffic in front. Getting to the station, I parked my bike, this time in a proper park. It’s actually an automated “bike rack” (that’s the best way I could think to describe it) that charges you depending on how long you leave it there. The first 90 minutes are free, and had I known this earlier I definitely would have used it; that’s what lack of investigation gets you.

In the 90 minutes I had, I got a lot done. I went to animate and found the Hetalia character song’s sheet music book (I was so happy about that), and also got some Hetalia pins from a gatchapon. It’s funny because they weren’t there on Saturday when I went, and the machine was almost empty already; goes to show how popular it is. I had a look at the clothes on the men’s floor, but didn’t find anything I liked, so I went over to Book Off; I didn’t find anything there either. I got back with time to spare, and soon figured out how to free my bike from the clutches of the evil bike rack; just had to type in the number rack it was in into the machine nearby. Then I made my way back home; that was hot work. I decided I would buy the tickets to the Ghibli Museum in Tokyo today, since I heard they sold out fast. In order to do that, I had to go to Lawsons to use a machine that would print out a receipt that I could give to the people at the counter in exchange for the tickets; sounds complicated right. And it was, especially because it took me a while to figure out how to get the machine to do what I wanted it to do; these girls came up to help me, which was really nice of them.

Carly and I had tentatively planned to go the museum on Sunday, pretty much as soon as we get to Tokyo, but that day was sold out, so I went for the Monday. Thinking about it now, I’m actually happier with that. It means we don’t have to rush at all on Sunday; I’m sure we’ll be tired after being on the night bus for 8 hours or so. Simon was telling me about his trip to Tokyo this afternoon (he just got back), and it sounds as though he had a really great time; I’m looking forward to it. I worked on my presentation until about 7:30, and then went up to make dinner; pasta bake. I ended up making enough to last three meals however it wasn’t quite saucy enough, so I think I’m going to have to buy some more to put in it. After dinner, I was bombarded by more food; Julie was giving out cake, and Sam mochi. I also had another orange, and it wasn’t as sour this time; still really messy though. I stayed up there until about 9, and then got a bit more done on my presentation. I’m learning words like symbiosis and photosynthesis in Japanese, which is kind of cool even though I’m probably never going to use them outside this presentation; oh well. I’m mostly worried about being able to remember it all, as some of the sentences are pretty full on; I think I might get Yuji to check it over for me when I’m done. Anyway, I’d better get some sleep now; last day of holiday tomorrow…

Day 241 - 28th of April

8:54pm　カラオケ　－　枚方市

天気：晴れ

I’m at Karaoke with Brett, Katie, Liz, Sam, Priscilla, Chelsea, Julie, Rebecca and Rachel; we’ve been here since about 7. Today was a warm, sunny day, and even walking to the bus stop this evening was pleasant…I woke up at about 7 this morning, and made scrambled eggs for breakfast; I didn’t want to buy anymore milk for cereal since I’ll be going away tomorrow. I got to uni a little early, and took a final look at my vocab list before going into the test. Well, I think I did really well on everything except for the listening; even Saigo Sensei said it was difficult. Oh well, hopefully the other sections will bring up my mark. After that, I went to Katie and Sarah’s class to watch their skit; I couldn’t miss it for the world. I hadn’t realised until now, but their Sensei is my Sensei from last semester; Miyauchi. He remembered me, and was happy for me to stay and watch; he even gave me the slips of paper to comment on. As for their skit, it was absolute chaos in the best way possible. They basically condensed all three LOTR’s movies into 10 minutes, switching between about 10 different characters between them in fast succession; it was well done. Then they had a plethora of stuffed animals portraying the orcs, the Balrog, and Shelob; it was hilarious. I stuck around and watched the other two skits, but Katie and Sarah’s was definitely the most entertaining.

After that, I had a little bit of time to revise for the vocab quiz in Reading and Writing. Well, it wasn’t my best, but it wasn’t terrible either; last one too. We spent the rest of the lesson going over the grammar points. Then we had to complete the course evaluation for the class; I took this one to the office too. After that, it was time for Gender and Sexuality. Today we talked about the gay identity in Japan, before looking at a representation of lesbians in Japan with the animation, “Plicachan”. It was a clever, funny, and cute film, but also brought up serious issues about the way lesbians are viewed in Japan; it was really very interesting. And that was that, I was home-free; well, after picking up some bread for lunch. After lunch, I talked with my family for a good two hours, and then I got my blog up to date, before making dinner; it was about 6:30 by then. I had to hurry up, since we would be going to karaoke by bus at 7:50. I made, and then wolfed down a huge okonomiyaki, and then showered and dressed. Hugo is leaving for Tokyo tonight, so I wished him a good trip, and then went to meet the others… I don’t know how late I’m going to stay tonight, since I’ve got to get going for Hikone in the morning; I’ll see how I go…

Day 234 - 21st of April

10:16pm　セミナーハウス

天気：晴れ

This incessant switching between rainy and sunny days is getting rather tiresome, although I do very much enjoy the sunny, warm days, like today; just wish it would stay constant. Anyway, apart from the weather, today was wonderful… I woke up with my hair standing up tall; that’s what I get for sleeping on it wet. But actually, it looks really good, so I kept it that way. I got my blog done, and then got some study in for my last vocab quiz in Speaking; kinda sad in a strange way. I soon got to uni, and did the quiz, which went fine, before we went over some more grammar points. Saigo Sensei let us know that the final exam will include stuff from the entire semester, which means 10 chapters of grammar and vocab; I’m scared already. After class, I spent the next hour getting my homework for Reading and Writing; I was much more focused today. We did some revision in class, since we have an exam on Friday, and then I made my over to the ATM before my next class. In Gender and Sexuality today, we watched a documentary about host clubs called “The Great Happiness Space”, which was fascinating and terrible at the same time. Basically, a host club is where a woman can go to “get her dreams fulfilled”, by paying to spend time with a host of her choice. This documentary centred on a host club in Osaka, which is kind of awesome because I’ve been to the area where it’s located; between Shinsaibashi and Namba. The hosts are attractive, products that the women use to “heal” themselves emotionally.

The challenge for the host is to lead the women on as long as possible, in order to maximise profit. They rake the streets for women who look like they have the money to spend (they seek out girls with designer labels), and try their hardest to persuade them to come to the club. The average salary for one of the guys at this particular club was $10,000 a month, with the top ranking guy earning $50,000; how do they do it!!! Well unfortunately, host clubs have created a situation where women are forced into the sex industry in order to afford it. One of the women interviewed said that 70-80% of clients are in the industry! Women who are selling their bodies are of course feeling bad about themselves, so where do they turn; the host clubs. These men will listen to them, and give them advice, and make them feel loved; human nature is such that no one wants to be lonely. While you might think that these men of the host clubs are absolutely despicable (well I guess they are in a way, creating false relationships), it’s just as bad for them. Working in this trade has completely altered their perception of women; they’re playing off each other. The women go around to several clubs, saying “I love you”, “I want to marry you”, to several different guys; and some of them are even in multiple relationships. While some of guys want to have normal relationships, they no they can’t, and they have no trust in women anymore anyway; so they too, are lonely. So yeah, there’s another example of crazy Japan.

After that, I rode home and had lunch while watching a talk show that was discussing the volcanic eruption in Iceland, and how this has impeded many people returning to their home countries; all flights into many parts of Europe have been cancelled. In KIX, they’re letting passengers sleep in the lounge for free, and giving them water and food and use of amenities for free too; people have been waiting there since Saturday. Gosh I would hate to be in that situation; really glad I live in Australia right now. Ash, and a few other people are worried they won’t be able to get back, so I’m really hoping the air has cleared by then. After eating, I talked with my family for a bit, and then went out the lounge to wait for Ash and Rachel; we were going to see Alice in Wonderland. It was about 4:20 when we set off, and we got to the Hirakata Cineplex just on 5; we walked. Amazingly, when we arrived we were able to catch the 5 o’clock screening; it was a bit rushed! Unfortunately, we really didn’t have time to buy food or drink, so no caramel popcorn for me; oh well, saved some money. We made it in time to catch a few previews (including Toy Story 3), and then got comfy for the feature film. And oh wow, I absolutely loved it; everything about it was wonderful. It was definitely worth it in 3-D too; just as good as Avatar in that respect. After the movie, I had a quick look in the shoe shop, and then we made our way back home; it was already past 7. Getting back, I had dinner (pizza), and then sat around chatting until about 9:30. Since I don’t have any homework tomorrow, I’ve been a little lazy, and have been chatting with Alex for the past couple of hours; also downloaded the soundtrack from the movie. Well, better get some sleep now, hoping it’s a nice day tomorrow…