Note to Self: Learn to Slurp

Yesterday we took a trip into Kyoto with help from some university students. I was in a group with four guys and a girl as our guides (Gaidai students). It was a day of thick humidity and hours of walking, but it turned out to be really fun. We took the train in and went to the east side of the city. There are lots of small stores, as well as big department stores along the main streets. Kyoto is so different from the area around here---I love it! There is so much more green, and just about everything is aesthetically pleasing. We went to Kiyomizu Temple, which is HUGE, and walked up its many steps to the top. You can see most of the city from the top!

For dinner our new Japanese friends took us to a nice restaurant where we had soba noodles. For those of you not familiar with Japanese food etiquette, slurping is something one should indeed do, to show that you like the meal. It is definately hard to slurp when you've been told countless times that doing so is rude! Plus, for me, being out of practice didn't help. We ended up having a slurping contest, which was quite amusing. Obviously, all the gaijin (foreigners) lost.

I will meet my host family in the afternoon tomorrow and move in with them. They live in a city about an hour away from here, in Kadoma. I'll have about an hour commute by train to get to school each day. I am really excited to meet them. I'll have two younger brothers, ages 5 and 2. The parents are in their 30s and they both list tennis as their hobby. I think it's a good match for me. Woohoo!

If you'd like to send me mail, my address will be:

18-18 Asahi-chou
Kodama-shi
Osaka, 571-0061
JAPAN

I wish I could post pictures, but, unfortunately, my camera batteries died before the trip. But I'll post some from others who were on the trip---almost everyone had a camera. As for my camera, the batteries are currently charging, and I plan to take many photos on our trip to Osaka today!

Happy Saturday,
Monica

Don't ask me for directions!

I have my Japanese placement exam at 10am. I am up early, but I slept for a good chunk of the night. I am so proud of myself! Part of this was the result of walking for about 2-3 hours yesterday in the hot sun. I made two new friends, Adrea and Gabriel, both from Italy, and we decided to explore a bit. Well, the three of us got VERY lost after deciding to take a shortcut...Long story short, we got back in time for dinner, exhausted, determined never to take another "shortcut" around here! Here are more pictures for your viewing pleasure:

Rice field (found when we were lost).

Yum?

Alicia-remember these?

For Elisa: lemons!

Funny store sign.

Preschool children who said hi to us. So cute!

Yes, there is a McDonald's on campus.... :-/

Student Lounge.

Student fashion show outside---they made all the costumes themselves!

Students break dancing, central campus.

Tall clock.

Fountain.

The library.

On our way to campus for a tour.

Handmade coin purse I received as a gift from my Thai roommate :-)

Garden

With two of my roommates, Nan and Abby.

The narrow winding roads we walked around in circles in.

Gabriel and Andrea...before we got lost.

Sleepless nights...I mean, mornings!

It is 5:01am and I have been up for 3 hours. After trying to sleep with no results, I just gave up. My brain is very awake, even though my body is exhausted...that's jet lag for ya!

I've met quite a few students from outside the US: Taiwan, Sweden, France and other islands of Japan, too. Should be an interesting semester :-)

One thing I forgot to mention before is how hot it is here. IT IS SO HOT! It's been hovering around 90F, which isn't so bad, but the humidity is the not-so-fun part. I can't wait until I am comfortable wearing a sweater!

-Monica

Adventure #1

This morning I woke up at 5:45am after having gone to bed at almost 1am. I couldn't go back to sleep, so I took a shower and read some of the orientation stuff they gave us. I was able to fall back asleep for an hour or so. I think it'll take a while for my body to adjust...My futon is SO COMFY, and it felt so good to lie down after sitting for 18 hours!

Around 8am, I ventured out into the area with Emily, a girl who is staying in the same group of rooms where we share a lounge. We walked to a combini (convenient store) and bought food---this week we are on our own for meals. I felt like a little kid in the store, wanting to buy everything that reminded me of my childhood. I restrained myself from buying out the whole store, however, and just got some onigiri (rice balls) and yogurt, plus some Pocky (chocolate covered bread sticks). It was great to get out and walk, even though the heat got to us on the way back. I took a ton of pictures like a true tourist! Here are some:


I bought Men's Pocky just because. The cashier didn't say anything...

Onigiri

The store we went to.

STOP!

Weird salon name

Fruity Orange :-)

Animal hospital

Clothes out to dry

Pink motorcycle--we saw a lot of female bikers!

I think you can read this one.

You can buy cigaretts from a vending machine.

...and beer, too!

Pictures on the microwave buttons.

"Dangerous! Please do not go into this area."

The pretty house directly across from the Seminar House.

Funny flag.


OK, that's it for now. We have a campus tour in an hour.

-Monica

PICTURES!

Here are pictuers from the past 24 hours or something. In no particular order:


So I can call home :-)

Vending machine

Origami cranes on top of the calling card machine

This was in the bathroom. I don't know what it is (yet).

Fancy shower!

Cute little flash light in our room.

YAY FOR RECYCLING!

Yes, the room is very small---we put the table up for more room.

Three futons on the floor. The room I share for the next week.

View of Hirakata City from inside the bus

The time I arrived on Sunday night. SO VERY LATE!

....and speaking of late, it's bedtime for me! Good night!

Monica

Arrival

I made it to Osaka! I'm EXHAUSTED! I need to go to sleep soon, but of course I need to write something so you all know where I am. The flight was SO LONG. I do not remember the trip there or back when I was younger being that long. I found my travel buddy and we found another guy going to the university. The three of us took an hour and a half bus from the airport (after picking up our checked bags, plus going through Customs) to Hirakata City (where the university is), and we then split a cab for the remaining 20 min. drive. So, total travel time was probably 18 hours. Yikes!

I am at the place I'll stay at for the week. I'm staying at Seminar House 3, which is pretty awesome. Right now I'm typing from the computer lab. I'm sharing a room with 2 other girls (a very small room, that is!) for the week. We take our shoes off at the main entrance of the House, and there are little cubbies to put your shoes in for each room.

Pictures are coming soon!

Gimme Your Address!

Alright People, listen up!

If you would like to receive some form of snail mail from me while I am away, email me your address at greenemon@gmail.com. Even if you think I already have it, please just give it to me again---- you know how it is with packing stuff up and relocating. Things get lost and stuffed it strange places, only to be found weeks later! This way, as long as I have internet access, I will always have access your address electronically.

So, with that said, think of this: in 2 weeks (14 days!) from tomorrow, I will be flying over the Pacific Ocean on my 13 hour flight! I still can't believe I'm actually going...

That's all for now. Have a good weekend!

Monica