10:36pm セミナーハウス
天気：暴風
A 暴風警報 (boufu keihou - storm warning) has been officially issued for the Osaka area, with typhoon #18 at our door-step. If the warning continues, we may not have to go to university at all tomorrow, depending on how long it lasts. It's raging out there at the moment, but I feel completely safe and unaffected in my room.;it's still really nice a warm in here too. We've been told to stay inside, so I've been basically studying, and doing homework that might not even have to be handed in, but anyway...
Today was damp and cold outside, yet warm a cosy inside; jumper on, jumper off, jumper on... I only have two classes on Wednesdays though so I got to come home at 1, eat lunch, and then have a nap. At six, we had our monthly seminar house 2 meeting. Overall we've been doing well. We've just been told to put a bit more time and effort into keeping things clean. Otousan and Okaasan are happy with us though, xD. As soon as the meeting was over everyone rushed to the kitchen to make dinner. I heated up my left over rice, and ate that, before cooking scrambled eggs. I don't want to miss classes tomorrow, it just means a lot of catching up, or missing out on something completely. If the warning is withdrawn by 7am tomorrow, it should be fine. But it doesn't look like that's going to happen. The full force of it is supposed to by over us at 6am tomorrow. Well, we'll just wait and see what happens.
Wednesday, 7 October 2009
Tuesday, 6 October 2009
Day 38 - 6th of October
10:40 セミナーハウス
天気：雨天
I've been checking my pocket all day just to make sure that my phone's is still there, reassuring myself that I actually have it back. I think I'm going to be paranoid about it for a while now; I guess it's a good thing. Getting it back went off without a hitch... After a bit of searching, Jo(anna) and I finally found the police station in Hirakata. We waked there after getting our alien registration cards, which also went very smoothly; got in there and they gave it straight to us. The police station was actually quite large; a few stories tall. All I had to do though was tell the lady at the information desk that I'd lost my phone, and she past me onto another guy. I waited a little while then... I saw my phone in his hand!!! It was a miracle I just had to sign a form and then it was returned to me. Sooo happy; I'm charging it now.
So yeah, after that we went to a stationary store, then walked back to uni, but not before stopping at "Floresta", a nearby donut shop. We studied a bit, then got to class. We've had a student-teacher come into our class for the past couple of weeks. She's been mainly observing, and marking our quizzes. She got to take the class for a little while last week; I think she did really well considering. She was being filmed too! After class we went to get lunch in the cafeteria. The food is so good and so cheap. I ended up getting an ice cream too. I was amazing; tasted like tiramisu. They have so many flavours of soft serve ice cream here in Japan and you find it everywhere, it's crazy.
Jo and I had history, and then we parted ways. I went to get out the money I needed to pay for my koto picks, on my new bank card. Yay, I have lots of money now!!! Of course, I'm going to be very responsible with it, xD. So I went to koto, and again we cleaned the floors before sensei arrived. Today, we got to be instructed by the sensei in groups. I was in the first group, and a little nervous admittedly. She is really awesome though; so patient and really good at explaining. She speaks entirely in Japanese, but even though I may not understand everything she says, she is very good at conveying information through her actions. I did understand some of what she said though, which definitely helped.
She began by explaining the correct posture while playing the koto, and the correct techniques for strumming with the middle finger, and the thumb. We then went through Sakura sakura, very slowly, pausing periodically so she could point out how to play certain parts, and correcting mistakes. There was a lot to think about. She wrapped up the session with a recap on the major points. As I attempted to get up, I realised I couldn't feel my legs; at all!!! We must have been sitting in seiza for almost 20 minutes, without moving at all. I was the most amazing feeling to be honest. It was as if my legs were no longer connected to my body. I managed to stand, and it was like walking in huge, thick plaster casts. Every one else in the group was affected too. Sensei realised this, and the preceding sessions were noticeably shorter.
My feet are still aching a bit now. It's good for me though, and I know my body will get used to it; it's all part of the discipline found in all aspects of Japanese life. After the Japanese girls practiced, we got our picks fitted for our fingers, and payed for. I'm so happy to have them now; I'm going to find a cool little case to keep them in. We got some chocolate, and then were sent on our way; it was already 8. Got back and made dinner. Well... I had cup noodles. This one was udon with fried tofu. Then I got a massage from Margo; it was excellent. Too bad she didn't do my feet too, lolz. Today was a very good day I think. I'm on a high at the moment and I intend to stay there as long as possible. As I don't have any cereal I'm hopefully going to have pancakes tomorrow for breakfast. That's if Deigo will make them. We shared a packet he bought, so I've bought this one to return the favour. He's really good at making them though, so I want him to do it again :D...
天気：雨天
I've been checking my pocket all day just to make sure that my phone's is still there, reassuring myself that I actually have it back. I think I'm going to be paranoid about it for a while now; I guess it's a good thing. Getting it back went off without a hitch... After a bit of searching, Jo(anna) and I finally found the police station in Hirakata. We waked there after getting our alien registration cards, which also went very smoothly; got in there and they gave it straight to us. The police station was actually quite large; a few stories tall. All I had to do though was tell the lady at the information desk that I'd lost my phone, and she past me onto another guy. I waited a little while then... I saw my phone in his hand!!! It was a miracle I just had to sign a form and then it was returned to me. Sooo happy; I'm charging it now.
So yeah, after that we went to a stationary store, then walked back to uni, but not before stopping at "Floresta", a nearby donut shop. We studied a bit, then got to class. We've had a student-teacher come into our class for the past couple of weeks. She's been mainly observing, and marking our quizzes. She got to take the class for a little while last week; I think she did really well considering. She was being filmed too! After class we went to get lunch in the cafeteria. The food is so good and so cheap. I ended up getting an ice cream too. I was amazing; tasted like tiramisu. They have so many flavours of soft serve ice cream here in Japan and you find it everywhere, it's crazy.
Jo and I had history, and then we parted ways. I went to get out the money I needed to pay for my koto picks, on my new bank card. Yay, I have lots of money now!!! Of course, I'm going to be very responsible with it, xD. So I went to koto, and again we cleaned the floors before sensei arrived. Today, we got to be instructed by the sensei in groups. I was in the first group, and a little nervous admittedly. She is really awesome though; so patient and really good at explaining. She speaks entirely in Japanese, but even though I may not understand everything she says, she is very good at conveying information through her actions. I did understand some of what she said though, which definitely helped.
She began by explaining the correct posture while playing the koto, and the correct techniques for strumming with the middle finger, and the thumb. We then went through Sakura sakura, very slowly, pausing periodically so she could point out how to play certain parts, and correcting mistakes. There was a lot to think about. She wrapped up the session with a recap on the major points. As I attempted to get up, I realised I couldn't feel my legs; at all!!! We must have been sitting in seiza for almost 20 minutes, without moving at all. I was the most amazing feeling to be honest. It was as if my legs were no longer connected to my body. I managed to stand, and it was like walking in huge, thick plaster casts. Every one else in the group was affected too. Sensei realised this, and the preceding sessions were noticeably shorter.
My feet are still aching a bit now. It's good for me though, and I know my body will get used to it; it's all part of the discipline found in all aspects of Japanese life. After the Japanese girls practiced, we got our picks fitted for our fingers, and payed for. I'm so happy to have them now; I'm going to find a cool little case to keep them in. We got some chocolate, and then were sent on our way; it was already 8. Got back and made dinner. Well... I had cup noodles. This one was udon with fried tofu. Then I got a massage from Margo; it was excellent. Too bad she didn't do my feet too, lolz. Today was a very good day I think. I'm on a high at the moment and I intend to stay there as long as possible. As I don't have any cereal I'm hopefully going to have pancakes tomorrow for breakfast. That's if Deigo will make them. We shared a packet he bought, so I've bought this one to return the favour. He's really good at making them though, so I want him to do it again :D...
Monday, 5 October 2009
Day 37 - 5th of October
Yay, I know where my phone is!!! This morning after Japanese speaking, I checked in my uni mail box and I got a notice saying that my phone is at the Hirakata police station! Apparently it was sent to the seminar house, but was returned as unknown address. I love Japanese people so much. Some one must have picked it up off the bus, and tried to sent it here. Even when it didn't work, they were kind enough to hand it into the police station; It's so amazing! I was over the moon. After my Japanese reading and writing test, I wanted to go straight down there to get it, before realising that I had another class, lolz. So... I'm going to go down tomorrow morning with Joanna, and we're going to get our alien registration cards on the way. I'm so thrilled!!!
After class, I caught up with Diego and Jessica, and we chatted for about an hour in the cafeteria. I ordered a plate of curry and rice, and at the time it was really nice, but by the time I was in koto club, my stomach wasn't feeling so great. I feel fine now though; I had stir fry for dinner, xD. Koto's really good; we get our picks tomorrow, which I'm really excited about. All the foreign students (the 9 of us) are diligently practicing "Sakura sakura". I think we're moving along quite nicely. Today was probably the first real, cold day we've had here, and on top of that it was raining. A typhoon's heading toward Tokyo, but I'm sure we'll feel a bit of it. Walking home in the rain isn't so much fun; having a nice, hot meal made up for it though. I've started putting onions in my meals, which I really need; good for the immune system. Lol, my hands smelled of garlic today; I've been eating it a lot. Anyway, I'm really, really happy now. Going to do some homework, then have an early one, ready to get up bright and early tomorrow!
After class, I caught up with Diego and Jessica, and we chatted for about an hour in the cafeteria. I ordered a plate of curry and rice, and at the time it was really nice, but by the time I was in koto club, my stomach wasn't feeling so great. I feel fine now though; I had stir fry for dinner, xD. Koto's really good; we get our picks tomorrow, which I'm really excited about. All the foreign students (the 9 of us) are diligently practicing "Sakura sakura". I think we're moving along quite nicely. Today was probably the first real, cold day we've had here, and on top of that it was raining. A typhoon's heading toward Tokyo, but I'm sure we'll feel a bit of it. Walking home in the rain isn't so much fun; having a nice, hot meal made up for it though. I've started putting onions in my meals, which I really need; good for the immune system. Lol, my hands smelled of garlic today; I've been eating it a lot. Anyway, I'm really, really happy now. Going to do some homework, then have an early one, ready to get up bright and early tomorrow!
Sunday, 4 October 2009
Day 36 - 4th of October
10:10pm セミナーハウス
天気：暑い
Lazy day today. Woke up at about 9:30, had breakfast, went grocery shopping (again), and then talked with family for about 3 hours!!! It was really great to be able to catch up after a long week. Then I had a nap, did some reading, and did some work on the computer. I had dinner at about 7:30 (spaghetti bolognese). I actually forgot to defrost the meat, so I made a little mess when cooking it on the stove. Well actually, I made a lot of mess, but it was fun, and I cleaned it all up afterwards. After washing and drying the mountain of dishes, I went down to the lounge.
Bianca was watching The Rocky Horror Picture Show (again)! She was watching it yesterday as we were leaving for Kyoto. I watched it for a while, and then I went up to clean the kitchen. I thought I'd lost my plastic lunch box, which I was really bummed out about. But luckily, I found it in one of the storage boxes on the ledge above the sinks; I must have left it in the kitchen, and someone put it away. This made me really happy, so I made my lunch for tomorrow; avocado on toast, carrot sticks, and a pear. I've got a test tomorrow, and then koto club in the afternoon. It's going to be a long day...
天気：暑い
Lazy day today. Woke up at about 9:30, had breakfast, went grocery shopping (again), and then talked with family for about 3 hours!!! It was really great to be able to catch up after a long week. Then I had a nap, did some reading, and did some work on the computer. I had dinner at about 7:30 (spaghetti bolognese). I actually forgot to defrost the meat, so I made a little mess when cooking it on the stove. Well actually, I made a lot of mess, but it was fun, and I cleaned it all up afterwards. After washing and drying the mountain of dishes, I went down to the lounge.
Bianca was watching The Rocky Horror Picture Show (again)! She was watching it yesterday as we were leaving for Kyoto. I watched it for a while, and then I went up to clean the kitchen. I thought I'd lost my plastic lunch box, which I was really bummed out about. But luckily, I found it in one of the storage boxes on the ledge above the sinks; I must have left it in the kitchen, and someone put it away. This made me really happy, so I made my lunch for tomorrow; avocado on toast, carrot sticks, and a pear. I've got a test tomorrow, and then koto club in the afternoon. It's going to be a long day...
Saturday, 3 October 2009
Day 35 - 3rd of October
11:45pm セミナーハウス
We walked to Makino station, to save the 220円 bus fare to Hirakata station. I took about 20 mins. Ash was having a little bit of trouble in her 下駄 (geta - traditional Japanese scandals), which was fair enough; they look pretty awkward. We switched to the limited-express at Tambabashi and then got off at Gion-shijo. At this point I realised which shrine we were going to, as I'd been there before on my previous trip, and indeed, gone past it several times since being here. It was dark by this time, about 6:30. We walked the block, and got there. It was quieter than we had expected but soon after arriving, the ceremony began. I got pretty much all of it on video. It involved a lot of bowing, and chanting, in celebration of the harvest moon. That lasted for about an hour, and then came the music.
First, a traditional orchestra played, accompanied two dancers. Then, a koto ensemble played two pieces. As my video camera's batteries died, I had to use my camera to record which was a bit of a pain, as I can only take 3 minute blocks. I'm really glad that I recorded it though, because I'll be able to use it in my research project. Finally the Taiko drummers came out; they looked like they were having so much fun. It was very energised, and the choreography was really cool. This wrapped up the festival, and then we all received a stalk of芒 (susuki - Japanese pampas grass) from the priests. It's resting at my desk in my room right now! Ash and I bought an omamori for victory, and then we headed back to the train station. On the way we bought 団子 (dango - Japanese dumpling). This particular type was held by a skewer. It's related to mochi, and soooo yummy. I'm going to miss mochi sooo much when I get back to Australia!
天気：晴れ
Today was really great! I got up at about 9:30, had breakfast, washed my clothes, and cleaned the room. I hand washed my yukata and overalls. The overalls were great; didn't run at all. The yukata on the other hand, bled like mad, so I think I'm going to have to continue to hand wash it separately for a little while. I found out that tonight was one of three nights of the 月見祭 (tsukimi matsuri - moon-viewing festival) and temples and shrines in Kyoto would be holding events. A group of people were also going to Mount Hiei. Diego decided to join, but I declined as I'll be going there on a field trip with the history class in November. Instead I went out with Amber and met up with her speaking partner at the uni.
We walked to Midori, and Amber got her electronic dictionary, while I played on the pianos there, xD. We then went into "Raifu" (Life), the grocery store, and I got some supplies. We then walked over to McDonalds for lunch. I know, I know, it's no good, but... it won't kill me every now and then. Then we walked all the way back to the dorms, and I took a nap. I talked to Ash about where she was going for tsukimi, and she suggested we go to the 八坂神社 (Yasaka shrine), as it was the cheapest and easiest to get to; can't argue with that. So we finally got going at 10 past five. It was Ash, and Jeremy (from America), and I. Ash had donned her yukata, as did a few other girls, who were going with separate groups to other temples.
We walked to Makino station, to save the 220円 bus fare to Hirakata station. I took about 20 mins. Ash was having a little bit of trouble in her 下駄 (geta - traditional Japanese scandals), which was fair enough; they look pretty awkward. We switched to the limited-express at Tambabashi and then got off at Gion-shijo. At this point I realised which shrine we were going to, as I'd been there before on my previous trip, and indeed, gone past it several times since being here. It was dark by this time, about 6:30. We walked the block, and got there. It was quieter than we had expected but soon after arriving, the ceremony began. I got pretty much all of it on video. It involved a lot of bowing, and chanting, in celebration of the harvest moon. That lasted for about an hour, and then came the music. 
First, a traditional orchestra played, accompanied two dancers. Then, a koto ensemble played two pieces. As my video camera's batteries died, I had to use my camera to record which was a bit of a pain, as I can only take 3 minute blocks. I'm really glad that I recorded it though, because I'll be able to use it in my research project. Finally the Taiko drummers came out; they looked like they were having so much fun. It was very energised, and the choreography was really cool. This wrapped up the festival, and then we all received a stalk of芒 (susuki - Japanese pampas grass) from the priests. It's resting at my desk in my room right now! Ash and I bought an omamori for victory, and then we headed back to the train station. On the way we bought 団子 (dango - Japanese dumpling). This particular type was held by a skewer. It's related to mochi, and soooo yummy. I'm going to miss mochi sooo much when I get back to Australia!Finally got back here at about 10:30. I had a bowl of rice with soy sauce. I was really hungry today for some reason; I still am, lolz. Diego got back soon after. He said he had a really good time going to Mount Hiei, and showed me some pics. After that, the group was supposed to go to Daikakuji temple to see the festival there. Unfortunately, due to indecisiveness, they wasted an hour figuring out where to go. Deigo, Jessica, and Carly decided to split from the main group and try for daikakuji anyway, but didn't make it in time. What a bummer. I'm really glad I went tonight, and with the right group of people! Tomorrow, is study...
Friday, 2 October 2009
Day 34 - 2nd of October
9:18pm セミナーハウス
天気：雨天
Gotta keep this brief; a bunch of as are going to be playing cards in Amber - and Ash's room shorty. I felt pretty good about my test today. I knew all but one word in Japanese. And I got 10/10 on my map quiz; I was happy about that. Came home at about 3. Stuffed around on the computer then went to make dinner. I had fun experimenting tonight. I basically just put carrots, spinach, and cucumber in the fry pan, and fried them with some rice, soy sauce, and an egg. It tasted really nice. I also had my first attempt at making mashed potatoes, and I did everything wrong. I put them in the water before it had boiled; I left them in too long I think and; I didn't add any milk when I mashed them. I did add butter though, and parsley. Still, they tasted really good.
Interesting fact of the day: The name Wendy was made up by the guy who wrote Peter Pan!!! Ash told us that; that's pretty cool! Anyway, not entirely sure what I'm going to do tomorrow. Every one's got something different planned... I know I have to clean the room, wash my clothes, buy some more groceries, and get started on my assignments. So, maybe I'll just stick around here.
天気：雨天
Gotta keep this brief; a bunch of as are going to be playing cards in Amber - and Ash's room shorty. I felt pretty good about my test today. I knew all but one word in Japanese. And I got 10/10 on my map quiz; I was happy about that. Came home at about 3. Stuffed around on the computer then went to make dinner. I had fun experimenting tonight. I basically just put carrots, spinach, and cucumber in the fry pan, and fried them with some rice, soy sauce, and an egg. It tasted really nice. I also had my first attempt at making mashed potatoes, and I did everything wrong. I put them in the water before it had boiled; I left them in too long I think and; I didn't add any milk when I mashed them. I did add butter though, and parsley. Still, they tasted really good.
Interesting fact of the day: The name Wendy was made up by the guy who wrote Peter Pan!!! Ash told us that; that's pretty cool! Anyway, not entirely sure what I'm going to do tomorrow. Every one's got something different planned... I know I have to clean the room, wash my clothes, buy some more groceries, and get started on my assignments. So, maybe I'll just stick around here.
Thursday, 1 October 2009
Day 33 - 1st of October
9:28pm セミナーハウス
天気：曇り
Yay, first day of October. I can't I've already been here for a month; it's gone so fast. Apart from a few mishaps, I'm feeling really great, and I know now that it's definitely going to go too fast; I'll be back home before I know it. Today wasn't so bad considering. I made my lunch, and bought a couple of snacks at the convenience store, which was absolutely packed. It's amazing to see selves full of food in the morning almost empty by the end of the day! My classes are all going well, I'm doing well in tests, getting my homework done, and learning. History is such a great subject. Our professor is always telling us of places to go and see, and provides us with heaps of information. We're up to the Nara period now, and there's a lot of scandal in the court. It would make for a very interesting drama I think.
I got back home, did my PC@LL, then went grocery shopping. I bought some bananas for a change and they're really nice. And cheap I think; a bunch of 5 for 100円. I am finding that, for the most part, food here is pretty cheap. I cooked up the rest of my rice; this time I don't think I used enough water. But it still tastes great! My scrambled eggs have gone from eggs, parsley, and milk to eggs, parsley, oregano, pepper, cheese, ham, tomato, spinach, and garlic. It tastes sooooo good. I think it's about time for me to move on to some other dishes. I want to get some recipes of some kind off the Internet. See, how I go... It was really quiet in the kitchen tonight; presumably every one's studying for their test tomorrow. I'd better do a bit of study too. I'll do some more in the morning; class isn't till 12.
天気：曇り
Yay, first day of October. I can't I've already been here for a month; it's gone so fast. Apart from a few mishaps, I'm feeling really great, and I know now that it's definitely going to go too fast; I'll be back home before I know it. Today wasn't so bad considering. I made my lunch, and bought a couple of snacks at the convenience store, which was absolutely packed. It's amazing to see selves full of food in the morning almost empty by the end of the day! My classes are all going well, I'm doing well in tests, getting my homework done, and learning. History is such a great subject. Our professor is always telling us of places to go and see, and provides us with heaps of information. We're up to the Nara period now, and there's a lot of scandal in the court. It would make for a very interesting drama I think.
I got back home, did my PC@LL, then went grocery shopping. I bought some bananas for a change and they're really nice. And cheap I think; a bunch of 5 for 100円. I am finding that, for the most part, food here is pretty cheap. I cooked up the rest of my rice; this time I don't think I used enough water. But it still tastes great! My scrambled eggs have gone from eggs, parsley, and milk to eggs, parsley, oregano, pepper, cheese, ham, tomato, spinach, and garlic. It tastes sooooo good. I think it's about time for me to move on to some other dishes. I want to get some recipes of some kind off the Internet. See, how I go... It was really quiet in the kitchen tonight; presumably every one's studying for their test tomorrow. I'd better do a bit of study too. I'll do some more in the morning; class isn't till 12.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)