tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24526071876593828642024-02-07T21:41:21.078-08:00Kansai Gaijin 関西外人Adventures of a Foreigner in Japan! Follow me in Osaka and its Surrounding Areas ^^Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.comBlogger29125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2452607187659382864.post-13369514182376732422012-07-07T22:08:00.000-07:002012-10-27T17:24:38.153-07:00Return<div style="color: #cc0000; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: large;">It's been a little over a month since I've returned to the states. I guess I've been delaying this post, perhaps because I'm still in denial that I've actually left Japan. It's an odd feeling, being back in the states. It's not reverse culture shock so much as the end of an incredibly important chapter of my life. However, I'd like to think this isn't the end of my adventures in Japan. I *know* I'll return eventually, hopefully within the next 2 years. But somehow, it will never be the same as living in Japan as a KGU student. <br /> Looking back, I realize that through all of my struggles with living in Japan, I cherish even the mundane day-to-day moments, like cramming kanji in a house full of friends now scattered across the globe, or biking to the weekly vegetable sale at fresco supermarket. Getting lost in Makino and being pointed at by children saying 'she's cute for a gaijin'. Quiet bike rides, taking an new route in a mountain and winding up in a random area of an unfamiliar part of town. Babbling in Japanese to yanki, schoolchildren, people I hardly knew, always with that same bemused expression on their faces. Maybe i can't articulate how much I have grown to love Japan, but I can at least say I had grown accustomed to the odd life of a foreigner finding new things, exploring new places everyday. Because even though I've mainly written about sightseeing in major locations, national holidays and the like, there are so many little things that I remember from Japan, things which for the most part didn't even make it to this blog, yet which warm my heart much like hazy childhood memories. And to the people who I shared these memories with- we may have parted with teary eyes, but our memories fill me with happiness. </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I graduated KGU! And also taiko drums... </td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">So there you have it, the truth: leaving Japan is a return to reality. Kansai Gaidai was a dream-world full of adventures with amazing people and lacking real responsibilities. Returning to America, my feelings can be summarized by two words-'now what?'. And even though I miss Japan, I'm glad to return to my family, boyfriend, and real vegetarian food. I'm ready to start my new chapter, no matter how blank the pages seem now. 何とかなるさ!</span></div>
Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2452607187659382864.post-48264566334829405522012-04-30T05:36:00.001-07:002012-10-27T17:25:01.475-07:00Hanami<div style="color: #4c1130; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Yes, things have happened since Tokyo! And no, I do not have to look through my camera to remind myself what... The truth is I've been sooooo busy between then and now, and now that it's Golden Week, I finally have a break! If you're not sure what Golden Week is, you're not alone. I've been told countless times, but I still don't remember very well. All I know is there are a lot of national holidays this week, one of them is called midori no hi(green day), and the exchange students only have class on Tuesday and Wednesday. So naturally, everyone's skipping those pesky 2 days and traveling to Okinawa, Tokyo, Korea and the likes. Everyone but me. Oh yeah, I'm just that majime. Or I don't have the money to blow on a plane/shinkansen ticket... </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">So back to those things that have been happening. Let me run and get my camera. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Flower viewing is a really big deal here in Japan. Remember my posts on Kouyou in the fall? The red and orange trees in the mountains? This is basically the spring equivalent. In Japan, there are clearly defined seasons with distinct events and festivals, and in the springtime, everyone goes to Hanami. It involves sitting under a cherry blossom tree(sakura) with friends and enjoying the view, usually with booze and snacks. It's been said that, while drinking in public isn't illegal here, its only really socially acceptable during Hanami and festivals. That was said by a fellow gaijin, but I think it still applies... </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Anyway, first, I went to Osakajo(Osaka castle) for a friend's birthday. For some strange reason, they had decided to sit under the dead plum trees instead of one of the many sakura, but it was fun nonetheless. We had about 3 cakes, lots of junk food, and a HUGE bottle of umeshu(plum wine) which was basically downed by one of my friends. Who I helped home later that day.... But there were a lot of us, and I learned a very important lesson that day which is: Japan is a relatively safe place. That being said, I wouldn't recommend traveling alone as a foreign young girl. Almost every time I have done this, I have been harassed by an old man, this time one who wanted to show me all of the best places to take pictures and got mad when I told him I had to meet a friend. Which was harmless, but it becomes tiresome when these things happen all the time. </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thanks, random Ojisan!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Osakajo</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">A few weeks later, I went to Nara, famous for its deer park and giant Buddha statue, in search of an art piece for a report. Nara is one of the oldest cities in Japan, and I think it has a nice atmosphere, especially with all the cute little deers roaming around. I actually had no plans for Hanami, and I was traveling alone, but I got really hungry and tired on the way back from the museum, so I decided to stop at what has to be the prettiest place in Nara, Ukimido. I'm still not sure what purpose it serves, but it's a pretty pavillion surrounded by water with gondola-like boats and grassy hills full of sakura. I ate a nice quiet lunch(peanut butter jelly sandwich and pretzels shipped from the states) before continuing my journey around Todaiji, the home of the big Buddha. However, I did not actually see the Buddha, as that would have cost 800 yen. Instead, I walked around the premises and found the cutest handmade accessory shop on a side road near Shosoin. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Overall, it was a successful day of soul-searching and *not* getting lost! I felt proud. And to top it all off, I was not bothered by any creepy old men!</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6Pkv8gETyUtyGsMRzYqvzLNDrWSa6k1bZZwqDzSp2kcasfvcidJjeVPOMV1AzhQ5aT5Fbf06tfaLyyWGcp3JplGnrP8Qbw1-Bub5n1-KQ-s98nhQ9IifkBzWoVlCMZcFpsGTq-gyJmjMU/s1600/DSCN1430%5B1%5D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6Pkv8gETyUtyGsMRzYqvzLNDrWSa6k1bZZwqDzSp2kcasfvcidJjeVPOMV1AzhQ5aT5Fbf06tfaLyyWGcp3JplGnrP8Qbw1-Bub5n1-KQ-s98nhQ9IifkBzWoVlCMZcFpsGTq-gyJmjMU/s320/DSCN1430%5B1%5D.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Nara</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi80tqtEdtsYDSJS2v29_RcKl0kTS03sOE9KGMAS8WyGl_gYZMvah0MiB5eQlUmVgWTOS2F9SqTzjhodGu_IN8GqIqvbIKEeUToBc40GYvCMby9xkwDWVhOudEE60HXkWFGLbi68x87RUTs/s1600/DSCN1460%5B1%5D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi80tqtEdtsYDSJS2v29_RcKl0kTS03sOE9KGMAS8WyGl_gYZMvah0MiB5eQlUmVgWTOS2F9SqTzjhodGu_IN8GqIqvbIKEeUToBc40GYvCMby9xkwDWVhOudEE60HXkWFGLbi68x87RUTs/s320/DSCN1460%5B1%5D.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Ukimido, Nara</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHvhFpqWVkP5c43zlvX5xZ6DT8jVSBDY6SD6gKPPQsQtCm26uXci3srtBs49nhN9i7gvCVdwU1de2DHPSTFwc4V_miso71mpHbaZ7pHwoJFHQ9QdZEEAXYmm-oOncJ1UVHsIVi0x93ZDO4/s1600/DSCN1466%5B1%5D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHvhFpqWVkP5c43zlvX5xZ6DT8jVSBDY6SD6gKPPQsQtCm26uXci3srtBs49nhN9i7gvCVdwU1de2DHPSTFwc4V_miso71mpHbaZ7pHwoJFHQ9QdZEEAXYmm-oOncJ1UVHsIVi0x93ZDO4/s320/DSCN1466%5B1%5D.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Sakura 'Carpet'</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The sad thing about Hanami is that it is very short-lived. Sakura come and go in a matter of weeks, and before I knew it those pretty pink petals which lined the sidewalks fell to the ground, flooded the roads, and were eventually replaced by... whatever sakura turn into. Buds? Something dull and green I think.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The moral of the story is: life is fleeting, like those delicate pink blossoms that bloom and wither in the blink of an eye, leaving us with only their memory until the coming year. That and I have really bad allergies. Seriously. Hanami is pretty and all, but I was kinda dying. </span></div>
Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2452607187659382864.post-26089974383244378992012-04-06T20:48:00.001-07:002012-05-04T20:49:20.277-07:00Tokyo Part 5: Ghibli Museum(and final day!)<div style="background-color: white; color: #274e13; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Everyone has a favorite Ghibli movie. Not ringing a bell? How about Miyazaki Hayao? My Neighbor Totoro? Seriously, if you haven't seen a Ghibli movie I *highly* encourage you to watch one. And since the only people who read this are my family and boyfriend, I'm talking to you, Andrew! <br />
I think everyone on the trip was waiting for this day especially. The day when all of our childhood memories would come to life...in the form of over-priced gift-store purchases. But no, really, the Ghibli museum was a great time! We were told you have to buy tickets way in advance(like 2 months!), but we bought them from the 7/11 2 weeks before and were fine. </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Outside of Museum</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Robot on the roof</td></tr>
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First of all, the building itself is a whimsical structure in the middle of a small town(Mitaka) situated right next to a park and a tennis court. The interior is like a maze with winding stairs and rooms housing different wonders,and a big plushy cat bus for kids to play on! We even got to see an exclusive short video about a lost dog on an adventure back home. Ok to be honest it was kinda boring, but extremely cute! My favorite sections were the room housing original sketches and inspiration, the animation room(seriously amazing! I can't even describe it!), and the roof which leads to a garden with a really cool robot-statue thing. And I spent way too long in the gift store, but that's to be expected. P.S. my favorite is a toss up between Kiki's Delivery Service and Spirited Away. <br />
The next day was our last and craziest day in Tokyo by far. We all had a list of places we hadn't seen, and we scrambled around trying to visit all of them. On my list were the Pokemon center, Ikebukuro, and Shibuya. The Pokemon center in Tokyo is sooooo much better than the one in Umeda(Osaka)!! I'm not even the biggest Pokemon fan, but they have a lot of merchandise for the original and new Pokemon, and I have to admit I bought a Jigglypuff (called purin/pudding here) phone charm. Hehe, I'm so lame...<br />
Ikebukuro is a trip. Like, it's trippy. At least the place we went to. It's called Namja-town, and it's basically a big amusement center in the middle of a mall with a gyoza-street, ice cream town, and some weird ninja-survival-game-thing. We mainly went for the ice cream, but the creepy cat and naked mermaid statues were an added bonus(seriously, this place gave us the creeps!). They had a bunch of different ice cream flavors, and a Turkish ice cream stand, and crepes, and everything else in your wildest dreams(about ice cream). We all ate soft-serve, and chose from a host of odd flavors, including sea-salt vanilla(which I heard was delicious), wasabi(!), and kinako(soy-bean flour). I chose the kinako. It was rich and creamy, and tasted a lot like kinako. <br />
After Ikebukuro, I rushed to meet up with Tif at Shibuya. We met at the statue of Hachiko, a dog who supposedly met his owner at a station everyday, and continued to do so even after the owner's death. It's a pretty popular meeting spot. We spent our time at Shibuya walking around and window-shopping, especially at the huge multi-storied Forever21 and H&M. Shibuya is HUGE and very similar to Harajuku, but it felt more crowded and expensive.We shopped until we were extremely tired from our busy mornings, and then headed back to get our stuff from our hostel.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shibuya cross-section</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;"> After picking up a shirt from the Hard Rock Cafe, going to dinner, and getting a bit lost, we left to catch our 11:45 bus at around 10:30. The train ride was about a half an hour, and we had no idea where our bus location was. We rushed around asking every bus driver, but each one gave us a different response. We were short on time and running around frantically with big suitcases, crying out to random people in desperation. Yes, it was pathetic. Finally, our bus driver called Tif, and gave us a few clues as to where it was located. We were about 10 minutes late when we boarded the bus and incredibly thankful they hadn't left us. We spent a long time sleeping until we arrived and Kyoto, where we took another train and were finally greeted with heavy rain and ice-cold temperatures back to Hirakata. </span></div>Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2452607187659382864.post-59030550664189517602012-04-06T19:53:00.000-07:002012-04-07T06:42:38.442-07:00Tokyo Tower!<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="background-color: white; color: red; float: left; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNNGPNuS4rM6MWdIlQ6TNZhO2mnZp1xN5s1-ZcC6NqSnJvPquXSNlCkfqY4FXHXmtvijPotFefFmTjcHudjk0O1Fe6COOrzwpZftVXERDqtxBNbyekHISSNLrBoV8MBECxEHO-0XM57WjA/s1600/DSCN1294.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNNGPNuS4rM6MWdIlQ6TNZhO2mnZp1xN5s1-ZcC6NqSnJvPquXSNlCkfqY4FXHXmtvijPotFefFmTjcHudjk0O1Fe6COOrzwpZftVXERDqtxBNbyekHISSNLrBoV8MBECxEHO-0XM57WjA/s200/DSCN1294.JPG" width="200" /></a></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Ok, so this technically happened on day 3, but I completely forgot to mention it. We went to Tokyo Tower and saw a wonderful view of Tokyo! We went around midday and stayed until night, so we could see the view gradually get darker with shiny lights. Tokyo Tower is definitely a must-see for every Tokyo traveler, and I actually saw a lot of people from my school there. Hehe, Japan is a small country. Really. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin_ZdxY6JkAq3TpgOciABHs5-4uYylH_GPUwE-fVoPx3EsT2h_DPZNiJrQ0I2L-jpDYwBx-NMvubRTcPbVaacDXTsB-EcT4MZLshyphenhyphenVdK9XmE3Ot3aFChyphenhyphenk94vDj1wO19Syv5WGIm68Pi1s/s1600/DSCN1291.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin_ZdxY6JkAq3TpgOciABHs5-4uYylH_GPUwE-fVoPx3EsT2h_DPZNiJrQ0I2L-jpDYwBx-NMvubRTcPbVaacDXTsB-EcT4MZLshyphenhyphenVdK9XmE3Ot3aFChyphenhyphenk94vDj1wO19Syv5WGIm68Pi1s/s200/DSCN1291.JPG" width="150" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Tower, Midday</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBZsZwWwEQnol1bRL4m_dlLXdnLjJ3rvymHXdiK5qX75FIHPf7XH_giIugqi7cQMxIAgjhhpfEF37bt97gSF38P1nmjL4nek2kJsBAc4P1WyHzZfn98PbnSOPhzxdtyu_9TJkj1TN6eACG/s1600/Photo-0046.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBZsZwWwEQnol1bRL4m_dlLXdnLjJ3rvymHXdiK5qX75FIHPf7XH_giIugqi7cQMxIAgjhhpfEF37bt97gSF38P1nmjL4nek2kJsBAc4P1WyHzZfn98PbnSOPhzxdtyu_9TJkj1TN6eACG/s200/Photo-0046.jpg" width="150" /></a></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">It's embarrassing to say, but I first learned of Tokyo Tower from watching Sailor Moon. <br />
From the elevator that flashes neon colors, to the snazzy jazz cafe, it was a fun time. I only wish I had been there with my bf, since it's such a great date place! Up next: Studio Ghibli Museum. </span></div>
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</span></div>Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2452607187659382864.post-13351703529255601532012-03-31T08:26:00.000-07:002012-04-07T06:42:58.395-07:00Tokyo Part 4: Imperial Palace and Odaiba<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="background-color: white; color: #0c343d; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-7BxF6dEdB6KjojmE2Bz65p5UYqLdgeCLkHcSkGN5w8Cu45bT2I2wxIvMwIjwOaJo9kTAe_OSlLCcbsQAtVwfLiaw9LX_ZoeQiMdpkCQA1DhmBlKuCmKe5Bf99H7j8I_7e09u8CX5wxGI/s1600/DSCN1315.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-7BxF6dEdB6KjojmE2Bz65p5UYqLdgeCLkHcSkGN5w8Cu45bT2I2wxIvMwIjwOaJo9kTAe_OSlLCcbsQAtVwfLiaw9LX_ZoeQiMdpkCQA1DhmBlKuCmKe5Bf99H7j8I_7e09u8CX5wxGI/s320/DSCN1315.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Imperial Palace</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Since Tuesday was our 'free day' we didn't have anything planned, so some of us decided to go to the Imperial Palace. It's right outside Tokyo station(which has bagels! and paninis! and awesome-ness...) and the walk to the palace is gorgeous! It was a sunny day, and we really ought to have brought some bento's to eat in the park. <br />
The funny thing about the imperial palace is that you can't actually go in. It looks really pretty on the outside, and you can see this from the entrance. But once you enter you're basically just walking around the palace. But there's a kofun, and a garden(which would have been nice if anything were alive), and a nice big open (dead)grassy area. We even saw sakura! On one tree. But still, it was free and pretty and a nice relaxing time. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidR0xfVNusxZ-qT6FYV55E0QBmpr8RETdfYCPqxjGxiVCzcvVI0MjPskt1tLpMcPdmtPk7UqMDPefelL9Szq14sQlUpJFnFuCDO8DUbpYSWYqymifaHcxzA6SIkgkuKgCoNavX8OdXPnSP/s1600/DSCN1334.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidR0xfVNusxZ-qT6FYV55E0QBmpr8RETdfYCPqxjGxiVCzcvVI0MjPskt1tLpMcPdmtPk7UqMDPefelL9Szq14sQlUpJFnFuCDO8DUbpYSWYqymifaHcxzA6SIkgkuKgCoNavX8OdXPnSP/s200/DSCN1334.JPG" width="200" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Odaiba Shopping Center</span></td></tr>
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Afterwards, we decided to hit up Odaiba, which is a man-made island with a futuristic amusement center. Everything was soooo American! It was like a mixture between California and New York. There was even a Statue of Liberty. There was a really cool view of the rainbow bridge over the beach and a teleportation center! Which turned out to be a regular old station. Hehe gotta love waseigo >_></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnwaRFyalln5iHiu4O4HN5gE0Rtlsk9qUFcs8G6Ngj_s0y3TSI48XVeGS44QeuGAVKtlrLuC3jC7SQafw70UYIALvPXy5mdL_cV-RMTFRXFVm3LxnkT4VElWh3VsLqxs4X_fLoynhTSKqQ/s1600/DSCN1336.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnwaRFyalln5iHiu4O4HN5gE0Rtlsk9qUFcs8G6Ngj_s0y3TSI48XVeGS44QeuGAVKtlrLuC3jC7SQafw70UYIALvPXy5mdL_cV-RMTFRXFVm3LxnkT4VElWh3VsLqxs4X_fLoynhTSKqQ/s320/DSCN1336.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">View from Odaiba</span></td></tr>
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</span></div>Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2452607187659382864.post-30083350688028822752012-03-30T06:47:00.002-07:002012-04-07T06:43:31.336-07:00Tokyo Part 3: Akiba!<div style="background-color: white; color: blue; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Soooo the day after Harajuku we went to Akihabara! We decided to progress from crazy fashion to crazy otaku. Akihabara, or Akiba for short since the name's so freakin long, is like the den-den town of Tokyo. Or, to be more accurate it's actually the other way around since Akiba is *much* larger. It was definitely one of the most crowded places we visited, probably second to Shibuya. So many electronics, a 4-story adult-entertainment store, arcades and of course--maid cafes! We were determined to find a nice maid cafe, especially since most of the people in the group had never been to one. Here I shall tell of one of the most awkward experiences I have had in Japan. We had found a small cafe tucked away down some random road, and were greeted by some of the maids who escorted us. It was small, but we figured we would try it out. Bad decision! We should have known by their lack of uniform dress, and the sketch location, but it had just opened or something because it was a total disaster. When we arrived, some lady working there yelled 'English?' and we told her Japanese was fine. The maid who waited us reading off a script and stumbling over her words, and to top it all off the food was expensive! I know this sounds harsh, but you really go to these types of cafes for the experience, and it's just not worth it if it's not perfect. But that's the hard part, see, is actually *leaving* a maid cafe. It's like they have you cornered. Maids are just standing around looking at you, and they even hang around the elevator and the entrance. So we sucked it up and Gaijin Smashed the place; just fled out avoiding any eye-contact. Pretty embarrassing, but how are we to know? We're foreigners...<br />
So anyway, we ended up finding one of the most famous cafes in AKB, where the maids all wore cute outfits and had shriekingly high-pitched voices and even said little 'spells' before giving us our food. The catch is that you have to pay like 1000 yen just to sit there for up to 2 hours, and they make you order food or drinks twice. Since everything on the menu is about 500-1000 yen, it was pretty pricey. But I'd say it was worth it. It was crowded and smokey and I felt a bit rushed by the maids, but overall it was too cute of an experience to have passed up on! Depending on the food, the chants change, but one that stuck with me was 'oishiku nare moe moe kyu~!' which basically makes the food more delicious by making cute sounds. Yeah, everything was moe-moe rabu-rabu nyan-nyan kyuu~to! But it was... another maid cafe experience. Must say the one in Osaka was more personable and way cheaper, but Akiba was fun nonetheless. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Also, sorry for the lack of pics! We couldn't take any with the maids(standard policy), and nothing else really caught my eye. So here's a pic of me standing next to the Bandai center, which was actually in Asakusa, but it seems to fit with the otaku vibe...</span></div>Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2452607187659382864.post-64828268768002973402012-03-30T06:06:00.002-07:002012-04-07T06:44:00.823-07:00Tokyo Part 2: Harajuku!<div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: magenta; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqhcuSdpZge4z-W9x8lu8rH04tKCxDnMOmx9Mjt0P6nDHRHL41P5H7ITcBnXF5y8Ui4IUfH-CzO2D46SwNz3kknYbz1bSevapW_FOZGX7nrXC8VER4-5zWucIRbIi5fYJXGEwhubN6RQEh/s1600/DSCN1220.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqhcuSdpZge4z-W9x8lu8rH04tKCxDnMOmx9Mjt0P6nDHRHL41P5H7ITcBnXF5y8Ui4IUfH-CzO2D46SwNz3kknYbz1bSevapW_FOZGX7nrXC8VER4-5zWucIRbIi5fYJXGEwhubN6RQEh/s320/DSCN1220.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Ok, so this was the one place in all of Tokyo I was most excited to see. Why? Because of the crazy street fashion! I've read books on Tokyo fashion and the crazy colorful, vibrant, youthful spirits that flock the streets of Harajuku decked out in the coolest outfits. Thanks to Belle and Sebastian (the song 'I'm a Cuckoo' in particular) I knew the gang gathers on Sundays, and so we planned to go on the second day of our trip. But it was a total letdown! It was cold and rainy, and I think because of this I didn't even notice any crazy fashion, besides Lolita(which is not that rare in Japan, anyway). I was bummed, but I ended up walking around the city and shopping all day with my bestie Tif. It's a pretty great place to shop, and especially cheap for Tokyo, but it was a bit reminiscent of Shinsaibashi in Osaka. That's the thing about Tokyo--besides the lack of Kansai-ben(Kansai dialect), it seems like a combination of Osaka and Kyoto. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">We went on the 18th, and for some odd reason there was a St. Patrick's day parade(a day late?) with a bunch of foreigners and green! It added a nice care-free vibe to the mix, but the loud drunk guys walking around with cups of beer in their hands were a bit trashy...<br />
Also, before we went shopping we went to the Meiji Jingu shrine dedicated to Emperor Meiji.. which is apparently the most famous shrine in Japan? I didn't think it was too special, having seen a million shrines and temples in Kyoto, but the cool thing about it is it hosts a lot of weddings! I saw 2, which I actually thought was one really long wedding. Notice the mix of traditional wear and western-style suits in the picture? I felt bad for them because it was raining on their wedding day. But it was a really unique sight, and definitely the first wedding I've seen in Japan. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNCG62-A6Aq-73EGIGZT9kIMzXnh8UYJm5xL0PsZ2da3kzlpQGBkkihw3ksiSssMzYTBFU2VpFr2GldNy0SFzIwq_SCqCAzmjwCjnw4yxYDGv9T1eRnrOFKJmQqsrPhR-D_RiISNMCfrXF/s1600/DSCN1212.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNCG62-A6Aq-73EGIGZT9kIMzXnh8UYJm5xL0PsZ2da3kzlpQGBkkihw3ksiSssMzYTBFU2VpFr2GldNy0SFzIwq_SCqCAzmjwCjnw4yxYDGv9T1eRnrOFKJmQqsrPhR-D_RiISNMCfrXF/s200/DSCN1212.JPG" width="200" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Wedding</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1uAZ9SPabildyAeBEuuLQUaFZwFgFkClus5ybxBxDMAQ9fRSolw0_mzQLA35UgoHRYttePM8lZ3A1E3UWCyhu0Ekb8GSG338CpEgXbopV5jacEN0H9pxdnrTJJHy9rKFWtZSRtXYEh1ZK/s1600/DSCN1247.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1uAZ9SPabildyAeBEuuLQUaFZwFgFkClus5ybxBxDMAQ9fRSolw0_mzQLA35UgoHRYttePM8lZ3A1E3UWCyhu0Ekb8GSG338CpEgXbopV5jacEN0H9pxdnrTJJHy9rKFWtZSRtXYEh1ZK/s200/DSCN1247.JPG" width="200" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Best place to shop</span></td></tr>
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</span></div>Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2452607187659382864.post-82571151080985730312012-03-30T05:01:00.000-07:002012-07-09T19:40:02.717-07:00Tokyo! Part 1: Asakusa and the hostel<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="background-color: #f3f3f3; color: #20124d; float: left; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQmMhy9cM0q04994Y8lQZIc3t2zNVstV41dGisAzDKeifDZwjBVxF9rVDs1CugIiqoqwP7YsyGRvfRYSzBDfMUZBTUFxY87HRFa2a6F5cjdoahxDgQvVSwCFQ6PbFNHAK_U1Hw5kBdHJM6/s1600/DSCN1193.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQmMhy9cM0q04994Y8lQZIc3t2zNVstV41dGisAzDKeifDZwjBVxF9rVDs1CugIiqoqwP7YsyGRvfRYSzBDfMUZBTUFxY87HRFa2a6F5cjdoahxDgQvVSwCFQ6PbFNHAK_U1Hw5kBdHJM6/s320/DSCN1193.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Asakusa(yellow horn from Asahi biru)</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Sooooo I've finally done it! I've made countless plans that didn't fall through, but this spring break I finally managed to visit Tokyo. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I took a night bus both ways... I know I didn't get to experience the shinkansen(bullet train), but it was so cheap! Like, less than 4000yen each way cheap. I thought I could be productive and study or read on the way, but I soon realized that night buses are for SLEEPING. Seriously, don't plan on doing much else on one. But anyway, after about 10 hours of being on a bus, we finally arrived at Tokyo Disney. Random. It was not particularly close to our hostel and we did not actually go to the park. But we took full advantage of arriving there and bought a lot of Disney stuff from the gift store! We are such tourists >_> <br />
Anyway, when we arrived at the station, we were confused and exhausted. We ended up riding the loop line from the wrong direction until it looped around to our destination... which took longer than an hour, but none of us had enough energy to transfer trains, which would have saved a lot of time. </span></div>
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A note about the weather in Tokyo: when we arrived in mid March it was cold and rainy. It rained for about 2 days and never got much warmer than 50 degrees. We didn't pick the best time to travel, but oh well.しょうがない... </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Sensouji at night</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">We stayed in a hostel in Asakusa, which seems to be a popular place for travelers. Its near the Yamanote line, which means it's pretty close to all of the major places like Akihabara, Shibuya, Harajuku, Shinjuku and Tokyo station. Our hostel was conveniently located next to a 100 yen Lawson's, which meant I ate cheap bread products for most of my meals. Needless to say, it wasn't the healthiest of trips...<br />
About Asakusa: It is pretty boring. No offense. I mean, it's pretty enough. It's got the Asahi Beer headquarters, a shopping district, and a really pretty temple(Sensouji) which lights up at night. But, like a lot of Japan, everything closes really early and it was pretty uneventful. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">And about hostels... Yeah. Um, we didn't have the greatest of experiences. I went with a group of 2 other girls and 3 guys. The three of us girls got a 4 person room, so they threw someone random in with us each night. And just our luck, we kept getting sketch old guys. One of them, who stayed for a couple of nights, walked in and stripped to his boxers right in front of us. Weird! But all things considered, there was internet(for the most part), a lounge, and some cool people. We were thankful to get back to our warm beds in Sem house, but it wasn't torture in the hostel. Especially not after we found a nearby bath house... </span></div>Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2452607187659382864.post-13568236662334591982012-03-23T06:51:00.003-07:002012-04-07T06:44:42.084-07:00Horyuji in Nara<div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipHsnTrz7lVRj5e9LZTnzqXLoECbuzrdoqW2hHFVi1RQ-miwoILCtmizjIQNgkvHd67nACnwVfwEVc-FWKFnTulBheWSFTPXxhk2xahMBZj_RLrCIGvyqs8ZOx0UTs6hFLOssgTU55LVup/s1600/DSCN1169.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #0c343d; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipHsnTrz7lVRj5e9LZTnzqXLoECbuzrdoqW2hHFVi1RQ-miwoILCtmizjIQNgkvHd67nACnwVfwEVc-FWKFnTulBheWSFTPXxhk2xahMBZj_RLrCIGvyqs8ZOx0UTs6hFLOssgTU55LVup/s320/DSCN1169.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #0c343d; font-size: large;">Recently I took a field trip with my art class to Horyuji in Nara. It's basically a very old temple with a lot of Buddhist art and interesting architectural structures. There's a pagoda, a worship hall, and a lot of other complexes. It was a really pretty place, but the weather was terrible! That being said, I don't have a whole lot to say besides boring historical facts. Also, we were unable to take pictures within any of the structures(pretty standard in Japan), so I can't show you any the great sculptures.Sorry! </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #0c343d; font-size: large;">I had previously only been to the Daibutsuden( Great Buddha Hall) in Todaiji in Nara, and I must say I prefer it to Horyuji. Mainly because of the deer. But I plan on returning to Todaiji in April or May for Golden Week, so I'll have more on that later! </span></div>Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2452607187659382864.post-73720094439357639352012-03-23T06:41:00.002-07:002012-04-07T06:45:37.293-07:00Kurama!<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #783f04; font-size: large;">So... Japan is like 70% mountainous and this combined with their belief in the sacred nature of mountains(kami living in them, shugendo, etc) leads to an abundance of shrines and temples almost everywhere you look. I'm not that big on the outdoors, but I've been hiking up a lot of mountains recently! In late February I took a trip with my friend Coco to Kurama-yama, which is a bit out of the way near Kyoto. It was snowing quite a lot! I was excited to discover that the mountain is famous for its tengu shrine. Tengu are creatures with either crow beaks or long noses which are believed to live in the mountains and transform into priests, tricking those passing by in search of directions. </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tengu statue</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #783f04; font-size: large;">The hike was fairly long, and at the end we were exhausted. Luckily the entire area is located on one street, and at the end of it was an onsen. This was my first experience at an onsen(a public bath/hot spring) and I was a bit confused at first. I was on my own since Coco went to the men's section, and I had literally no idea what to do. I ended up asking a random woman where to undress. If you're not comfortably being naked around people, or being surrounded by naked people, I would suggest not visiting one. However, I had a great time! It was cold and snowing, but somehow the outside bath was still piping hot. It was so nice to sit back and relax in the hot water in the middle of the mountain whilst watching the snow fall. I hope to visit a few more onsen during my stay!</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisxNSG5KD8ghesfT2eX6Sch75J16KituAaZOsak_Afr3X46svPV6OvVHnHB0Hq9VAd7ZePz7ENHIK2TZsPKkeRUAqULugwd7xjRE3aWsc4ty7yaPS6Slf0ZgPTIew7Jpzr6xp-baWFzSwk/s1600/DSCN1094.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #783f04; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisxNSG5KD8ghesfT2eX6Sch75J16KituAaZOsak_Afr3X46svPV6OvVHnHB0Hq9VAd7ZePz7ENHIK2TZsPKkeRUAqULugwd7xjRE3aWsc4ty7yaPS6Slf0ZgPTIew7Jpzr6xp-baWFzSwk/s320/DSCN1094.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></div>Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2452607187659382864.post-39740359813288427092012-03-23T06:21:00.000-07:002012-04-07T06:46:00.381-07:00Fushimi Inari in the snow!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qwekl2I0vmQ/T2x39XaL-JI/AAAAAAAAAKw/wgsRbfffhyM/s1600/DSCN1078.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qwekl2I0vmQ/T2x39XaL-JI/AAAAAAAAAKw/wgsRbfffhyM/s320/DSCN1078.JPG" width="320" /></span></span></a></div>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Since my photostream no longer works, I thought it'd be cool to post about kinda old events so I can share pictures! Also, my computer was previously broken and I prefer not to blog from slow computer labs....<br />
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Anyway, shortly after I came back from Winter break(February 18th to be specific), I took a trip to Fushimi Inari. I was told it would snow, but when I arrived most of it was melting. It was a bit of a let-down at first, but then we found a secret path sloping down the mountain which led us to... </span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #4c1130; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">a winter wonderland! It was so pretty! </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Since then snow would fall from time to time, but I have a feeling spring is finally on its way. I can't wait for warmer weather! </span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTLqSiXSHkEx5RWrWolT0Xtx7TpJUoi2eASlK2yI7yktKBPn_Yhyphenhyphenz34UnP9sfWCy5JiD2rjWsh78iMaR9gro3VjROYxy9J5c9ksxl8-ARWT9JKQApdg2n4CUds3sg6sxYG6KxhcQu_DhgA/s1600/DSCN1079.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTLqSiXSHkEx5RWrWolT0Xtx7TpJUoi2eASlK2yI7yktKBPn_Yhyphenhyphenz34UnP9sfWCy5JiD2rjWsh78iMaR9gro3VjROYxy9J5c9ksxl8-ARWT9JKQApdg2n4CUds3sg6sxYG6KxhcQu_DhgA/s400/DSCN1079.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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</span></span>Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2452607187659382864.post-52603795560401043262012-02-03T21:49:00.000-08:002012-02-03T21:50:20.727-08:00Back in Japan!<div style="background-color: white;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #990000; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">For those of you who didn't know, I'm back in Japan! It was great being back in the states and seeing my friends, family, and true love bear. And eating veggie-friendly food. Yum. It felt so weird the night before I left, and I was soooo worried about arriving late and not being able to pay fees and complete forms on time. Needless to say, I had a very stressful and uncomfortable day-long travel experience, but I arrived safe and sound =)</span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Everything's basically the same, and I haven't done much yet besides grocery shopping and a few hours of karaoke. There are a lot of new students! Apparently last semester people were still afraid to travel here because of the earthquake and tsunami, but now there are about twice as many new students. I still haven't met many of them yet, but the dorms are pretty packed. I start classes again on Monday, which is freaking me out for some reason. I've heard the teacher for my speaking class is pure evil, so I'm definitely not looking forward to that...but I'm excited to get back into the swing of things. The first few weeks are always pretty stressful and full of review exams and whatnot, but it should get better soon. I'm looking forward to all of the breaks we have during spring semester and the warmer weather which should kick in a month or so. It's so cold here now! It's around 30 degrees everyday and it even snows! I haven't seen any yet, but I've seen ice and flurries. </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Sorry for the lack of pictures, but I've had a pretty jetlagged and uneventful past few days. I'm going to meet my new speaking partner at karaoke tomorrow, so hopefully I'll have something to write about then. I promise my next posts won't be as boring!</span></span></div>Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2452607187659382864.post-83879756231420414952011-12-14T08:06:00.000-08:002012-07-11T10:34:20.471-07:00Uji!<div style="background-color: white; color: #274e13; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Woooooooooot, finals are OVER! To celebrate, I went to Uji with a few friends! Uji is a city in the outskirts of Kyoto which is famous for tea! It's also the setting for much of The Tale of Genji and it houses the Byodoin Buddhist temple from the Heian period. It's so pretty! There are a host of nice tea shops leading to the temple which offer free samples of tea and tea-related products. It really is a great place for omiyage shopping ^^ Before we went to Byodoin, I had the most delicious green tea soft-serve with match powder topping for only 250 yen! </span></div>
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Byodoin is..... very pretty....on the outside at least. I love temples, but this one had too much of a museum feel, and all the statues were in glass, and I frankly don't think it was worth the 600 yen it cost to enter. But they sold cheap o-mamori(good luck charms), so it wasn't a waste of a trip. And a few of the people who had taken art history found it to be really amusing, so maybe I'm just weird. But it didn't feel as spiritual as the other temples and shrines I've visited so far. Oh well. <br />
I'm so excited classes are over! I'll be back in the states in less than a week... so weird! I just hope next semester goes as well as this one did. =)</span></div>Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2452607187659382864.post-23268987982856715072011-12-08T04:35:00.000-08:002012-07-11T10:35:07.302-07:00Arashiyama and Kiyomizudera!<div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #660000; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: large;">This past weekend I went to some of the most beautiful places in Kyoto for kouyou, or the changing leaves =) This is a pretty important time in Japan, and it was delayed this year due to global warming and whatnot, so I was actually able to go during a time when the leaves really should have all been gone. It was so beautiful! Arashiyama is a really pretty mountain with a monkey park and a bamboo path and a lot of omiyage(souvenir) shops! I ate a lot of yatsu-hashi here, a Kyoto delicacy of triangular cinnamon-mochi like thing filled with red-bean paste or a variety of different flavors. I really wanted to bring them back as omiyage, but unfortunately they expire within a week =( </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Afterwards, we all went to Kiyomizudera, which is a very popular temple with a lot of great little shops leading up to it where you can sample sweets and drink tea for free! We went at night, so there were lights everywhere and my camera took a bunch of crazy pictures. And I finally got to try taiyaki! It's a grilled pancake-like thing shaped like a fish and filled with red-bean paste. I ate it at a vendor exiting Kiyomizudera, and it was delicious! </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Next week is finals, so I doubt I'll be updating much =( But I hope to go to Uji(the tea district in Kyoto) really soon! I loooove Kyoto!!! </span></div>
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</span></div>Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2452607187659382864.post-31026724139934563392011-11-22T05:18:00.000-08:002012-07-11T10:36:00.002-07:00Mino Yama with Home-visit Family!!<div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #783f04; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX6s0VLa_FD3lzpNDgOrqPUYWgjGxz66NMYpnPaNhC4CyjI1SJtrv_adsM0IOTFWyLkmMzwiB4HBIsFV7ajGAmovCt2r1Ywtvq_fdIY7U1KTFQ6heRdnjL7gYalp_Frl2uA6bZeBKOvZor/s1600/DSCN0809.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX6s0VLa_FD3lzpNDgOrqPUYWgjGxz66NMYpnPaNhC4CyjI1SJtrv_adsM0IOTFWyLkmMzwiB4HBIsFV7ajGAmovCt2r1Ywtvq_fdIY7U1KTFQ6heRdnjL7gYalp_Frl2uA6bZeBKOvZor/s200/DSCN0809.JPG" width="150" /></a></span></div>
<span style="background-color: white; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">This Sunday was definitely one of the best days I've spent in Japan so far!!! But then again, days spent with Sena always are =) </span><br style="color: #783f04; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">I was invited to visit a beautiful mountain called Mino about an hour away from my home-visit family's house in Awaji. Although it was fairly cold, it was so nice seeing all the pretty scenery. Seriously, you should check out the pics on my photo-stream. I went with Sena, her dad, and our Lithuanian friend Julius(the guy in the middle of the picture). We ate momiji tempura, or deep fried maple leaves, which is very rare cookie-like treat apparently only made at this one site!! We were told to beware of monkeys because they steal things from your purse and eat your food, but unfortunately(or maybe for the best hehe) they had all retreated back to the depths of the mountain or something because there was not a single monkey in sight. </span><br style="color: #783f04; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Afterwards, Sena's mother made mochi(in case you're not aware, its a glutinous rice-based ball of squishy deliciousness) in a special machine and we added a variety of toppings. There was SO MUCH! I was not aware of all the variations of mochi that existed. The less obscure ones included anko(red bean paste) and kinako(some delicious soybean-flour-thingy). The surprising ones were savory, including yuzu(a popular citrus here) and daikon radish puree, and nori(seaweed)-wrapped mochi dipped in soy sauce. But all of it was delicious!! At the end, Sena's mother let me and Julius prepare yakisoba(a very popular fried-noodle dish with carrots, cabbage, and a special sauce). It was so yummy!! I am so lucky to have a family here in Japan that I can visit sometimes!!! And what makes it even more amazing is that they're very understanding of my diet! Her mother gave me packets of vegetarian soup base, rice toppings, and extra mochi to take home with me. I am truly thankful of the Uemura family!!! =D</span><br style="color: #783f04; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><br style="color: #783f04; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Tomorrow is labor appreciation day here in Japan, which is a national holiday. This means NO SCHOOL!!! Because it's just a day away from American Thanksgiving, a group of us are getting together to make a variety of tasty dishes at the seminar house. I'm on team falafel with my friend Varun. It should be pretty fun. Hope to blog about it later! ^^</span></span><br />
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</span></div>Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2452607187659382864.post-508574608031786582011-11-11T01:59:00.000-08:002011-11-11T17:20:36.306-08:0011 11 11<div style="background-color: white; color: #783f04; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Today is Pocky Day! In case you don't know, Pocky is a really popular snack made by Glico. It's basically just a bunch of chocolate dipped biscuit sticks that come in a lot of different flavors like milk choco, strawberry, men's(?) almond, etc.</span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #783f04; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">In Japan, a lot of people eat Pocky on November 11 because its 11 11 and all the 1's look like Pocky sticks, I guess. This year is especially interesting because it's 2011! Whether or not pocky day is just a ploy by Glico to get people to buy more Pocky, I think it's fun! I bought salty milk chocolate Pocky, which was delicious. I wanted to get almond crush because it's freakin amazing, but my slight allergy to almonds prevented me from doing so.</span></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #783f04; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6MQqHJ9jxO4rQydRFRUGSrs5v4TuyzteuKBXgwycoX_6-TLTZaLjFg-91wxWDjsHCCwmDBaiZq9dRIQhPz2WRvW_IMFzCIyLs7UEYR9-CpapKYCv2zX3es6S77CieN8lfAyLrJlJwHHv5/s1600/DSCN0784.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6MQqHJ9jxO4rQydRFRUGSrs5v4TuyzteuKBXgwycoX_6-TLTZaLjFg-91wxWDjsHCCwmDBaiZq9dRIQhPz2WRvW_IMFzCIyLs7UEYR9-CpapKYCv2zX3es6S77CieN8lfAyLrJlJwHHv5/s320/DSCN0784.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #783f04; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #783f04; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Happy Veteran's Day to everyone in the states! =)</span></div>Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2452607187659382864.post-44305800674860177652011-11-05T09:16:00.000-07:002011-11-06T03:15:43.137-08:00Den-den Town/Maid Cafe!<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="background-color: white; color: #cc0000; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-JezDfD_n3xzxt_mjcgq_pJemj0k93yNfBSzFykEL9E57BRzMIVceW2RPs0uUc4gF6Cc5kXpag17Emr2JiWMOvtqhH1cuIqVAvDWGgeAo9HUNQExB-Hilxwvzr09pyza3I3uBDsE0LLpP/s1600/DSCN0777.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-JezDfD_n3xzxt_mjcgq_pJemj0k93yNfBSzFykEL9E57BRzMIVceW2RPs0uUc4gF6Cc5kXpag17Emr2JiWMOvtqhH1cuIqVAvDWGgeAo9HUNQExB-Hilxwvzr09pyza3I3uBDsE0LLpP/s320/DSCN0777.JPG" width="320" /> </a></span></td><td style="text-align: center;"></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Our group at the maid cafe 'ai-ai'</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="background-color: white; color: #cc0000; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">My friend Lia(the middle maid in the picture) and I are doing a project on the culture of Akihabara and Den-Den town. Sooooo we decided the best way to research would be to actually experience it. FIELD TRIP ADVENTURE TIME!!! Akihabara is in Tokyo, which is pretty flippin far away and expensive, so we opted for Den-den town, or Nipponbashi, in Osaka.<br />
Ok so here's a briefing on the subject: Akihabara is the birthplace of otaku culture. In other words, crazed fans of anime and idols flock here, as well as technologically-obsessed people in search of electronic parts. Maid cafes are also popular; usually frequented by older men, here you pay for a meal or a drink and are served and entertained by cutesy young girls dressed up in maid costumes. Nipponbashi, colloquially known as Den-Den town(or electronic town) is basically the Akihabara of Osaka. Here you will find cheap electronics, retro video-games, anime, manga, porn, idol memorabilia, and (of course!) maid cafes. <br />
Today we explored Den-Den town and came to the conclusion that: 1. maid cafes are pretty awesome, 2. it's a cool district, but after a while you end up looking at the same stuff for hours and hours, and 3. you can find USB flash-drive phone-charms which can store 2GB for 100 yen each(roughly $1.30). <br />
I think we all agreed that the maid cafe was by far the best experience of the whole trip. At the place we picked, 'ai-ai', the staff consisted of several young girls and 1 male all dressed as maids. The walls are plastered with 'moe' anime posters which they encourage you to look at. While you wait for your food(which is pretty delicious--fried rice, spaghetti, ice cream sundaes, heart-shaped waffles, and tapioca milk tea all grace the menu), the maids engage you in conversation, teach you how to make balloon animals, and even let you choose which anime to play. And once your food finally arrives, they ask you what you would like them to draw on it(in ketchup for savory dishes or chocolate for sweets). I asked for '愛', or 'love'. After we ate, they asked if we would like to dress up as a maid for 500 yen, which I felt was too expensive, although my friend Lia really wanted to do it. We then took a picture with a few of the maids with Lia dressed as one. Then they brought out a 'balance-testing' skateboard with a ball underneath. The idea is to center the ball from one side to the middle whilst standing on the skateboard. Everyone tried and did pretty well. And then my turn came. This is when things got pretty funny. I stepped on the skateboard, and literally 2 seconds later I fell on the floor. The male maid who was standing behind me attempted to catch me, but ended up falling on top of me instead. It was pretty epic. And pretty fail. But we laughed it off, and now everyone knows exactly how clumsy I am >__> My friend video-taped the disaster, so there's probably some embarrassing video floating around facebook or youtube by now...<br />
Unfortunately, we weren't allowed to take pictures of the maids(aside from our group picture, which doesn't make much sense at all), so I have no photographic evidence of this amazing cross-dresser.<br />
</span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #cc0000; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">My initial impression was that maid cafes are basically a place for old perverted men to fawn over girls who are way to young for them. Perhaps this is mostly true. Indeed, even the bathroom(there was only one) had several 'moe' posters, some of them borderline hentai(perverted). Besides us, most of the clients were men, but the ages ranged from college-aged to middle-aged. This surprised me, but it was refreshing to see younger people going there to hang out in a group. </span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #cc0000; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"> In short, I now feel that as long as you're not a lonely old man looking to fantasize over barely legal(if even) girls, the maid cafe culture is not a bad thing. The environment is fun and relaxed! I would highly recommend visiting one, especially if you're here in Japan =). </span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #cc0000; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">Side note*** Sorry if I throw in random Japanese words often without translating them properly. Some things are used so commonly here that I can't really think of how to define them exactly in English. Such is true for 'moe'. Honestly, it's hard to explain, so if you're interested, I'd suggest wikipedia-ing it, as I'm not sure if I'm allowed to post links like that here. ^^</span></span></div>Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2452607187659382864.post-45068241073064234692011-11-03T05:47:00.000-07:002011-11-06T01:48:20.901-07:00INFES/Fashion Show<div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #351c75; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_54423060" style="background-color: white;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJOLWA2GD-P1y__f9VSO_bOst7vmrEaK6g5F2oHd-GaS3M7yOBsoI2Pt6wOXGPGtQuH1Md70-PnCO_v-TsV_2bopaA_fJsXzcKCY6lCTWtp4sEJXW04OcfPObRFI3QXIq0ikn4DtOh0UU8/s320/DSCN0743.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></span></div><div style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #351c75;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_54423060" style="background-color: white;"><br />
</a></span></div><div style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #351c75; font-size: large;">Oh my god, do the Japanese know how to put on a show! Today and tomorrow Kansai Gaidai is holding a bunkasai, or cultural festival, called INFES. The Japanese students have Wednesday through Friday off school for preparation, although international students only got today(Thursday) off as 'culture day'. But man, did the preparation pay off!!! There are huge posters everywhere around Gaidai with pretty pictures advertising things, and booths selling all types of yummy food. I bought and ate wayyyy too much! But really, how can you resist parfait bowls, tempura ice cream, or this weird savory dish filled with konnyaku(or potato/cheese/tomato)??! Oh, and there was the blueberry and cream cheese bagel at the jazz show... let's hope tomorrow has the same food! </span></div><div style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #351c75; font-size: large;">It seriously is like having a mini carnival on campus, though. Minus the rides. But who cares about rides when you can watch(or participate in!) a fashion show, Kpop dancers, karaoke, cover bands, and visit cultural booths? Which brings me to my next point.....</span></div><div style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #351c75; font-size: large;">THE FASHION SHOW WAS AWESOME!!! I got to model for the international fashion show! My friend Heather who made the costumes(with the exception of a last-minute skirt she asked me to make and a kimono-cover up she bought) was unable to model her outfit because she arranged to meet a friend in Osaka. Soooooo, I had my first ever modeling gig! It was soooo much fun! We had two shows, but the latter was by far the most successful. I made so many friends and bonded with the ones I already had! </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #351c75; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_54423060" style="background-color: white;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcLAbo0LhEnXyurxN0dBOkEViRcl8UK7RtNSaZxKb1F4XJftjIgPL9412-f9wufw86rRwQBQtiVw8FQiuu7kd1hiNWlfkm_5wIbCUp1MGM4UcBJCK0xBXyB8yHmii74SJHAkKyrZ4MMSfS/s320/298614_213867545352546_100001879057140_552213_1027739925_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></span></div><div style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #351c75; font-size: large;"><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span"> Also, the Kpop dance show was AMAZING! I am in awe of the talent that three of my fellow UF classmates and some other Kansai students have when it comes to dancing! They put on a great performance, and put so much effort into practicing!!! =D Seriously, I wish I could dance that well! And now I've grown to like Kpop again... hehe<br />
I can't wait to see what's going on tomorrow! This week has been such a blast!</span></span></div><div style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div>Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2452607187659382864.post-32186897777899109462011-10-31T09:03:00.000-07:002011-10-31T09:03:27.634-07:00Halloween!<div class="separator" style="background-color: black; clear: both; color: #783f04; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0esbfjtLhO5-aUrQa-C-BbEzikbid1PkmF1x6rTvaX4rMPsPMEO3EYSvpKIxsOV8cpLivVRLj0mwRuChBDbzeNPrdB9SOP2CaWJhQoQtU0tNH3BHiyR6VjoMAvOSUHl1qc5CRXWO0fbwb/s1600/DSCN0718.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0esbfjtLhO5-aUrQa-C-BbEzikbid1PkmF1x6rTvaX4rMPsPMEO3EYSvpKIxsOV8cpLivVRLj0mwRuChBDbzeNPrdB9SOP2CaWJhQoQtU0tNH3BHiyR6VjoMAvOSUHl1qc5CRXWO0fbwb/s320/DSCN0718.JPG" width="240" /></a></span></div><div style="background-color: black; color: #783f04; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="background-color: black; color: #783f04; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Ok, so maybe you've heard that Halloween isn't celebrated much in Japan..... which may be true <i>outside of Kansai Gaidai</i>. But man, do we know how to party! We had a costume party which was a huge success, but unfortunately I was unable to attend due to the fact that I was EATING BASKIN ROBBINS! Or, as they call it here, 31. It was 31% off today because it's Halloween or because it's the 31st day or for some other reason that I'm not aware of. Anyway, it was delicious! Magical mint night and pumpkin pudding all the way.... <br />
So anyway, I spent the whole day in costume(as Nicki Minaj in case you couldn't tell), and at school I got a lot of compliments! Although schoolgirls at the mall snickered at me(they're just jealous!), but I don't really care because I had FUN and it was all in the spirit of one of my favorite holidays =) </span></div><div style="background-color: black; color: #783f04; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">After ice cream, I went to the party at Seminar House 4.There was free food and drinks! Ohhhh yeah! We played BINGO(I lost all rounds) and took pictures in costume. I love Halloween! And even if most Japanese people don't dress up, there's a lot of Halloween merchandise sold here in Hirakata-shi and many of the Japanese students at Gaidai wore costumes. Oh well. Maybe it's a growing trend? <br />
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I hope to keep updating more often like I've been doing over the past few days! Also, please look at my photo-stream if you want to keep up with the pictures I'm taking, as it will only display the 200 most recent images. Man, my English is getting terrible here! Let's just hope my Japanese is improving >__></span></div>Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2452607187659382864.post-37262393450161882842011-10-30T04:14:00.000-07:002011-10-30T04:14:50.847-07:00First Kyoto Trip in a Looooong Time!!!<div style="background-color: white; color: #990000; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Hey, sorry for the delay in updating! Not much has been going on here, mostly staying around Hirakata which is usually a pretty uneventful area. We decided not to rush our Tokyo trip, so I might be going in Spring instead when I might have a longer break. But today I had a blast in Kyoto! I've been wanting to go to Kyoto for sooo long since I haven't been there in 4 years =( Well, there was that one time I went clubbing, but that's different...</span></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #990000; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbHCCrU7E5Ls9v78LTWq8XsuFj5F5rm_FmyfW7XbmidaVlWZbzylC1wmCjIY0tLXPt5MJwPVs6DT6uchUQnsqZbi8ALZmbc5ZQu5w3fCO0ye03RumGMJSZpbb4d8Uunlt8gtHGoJC8Jcut/s1600/DSCN0644.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbHCCrU7E5Ls9v78LTWq8XsuFj5F5rm_FmyfW7XbmidaVlWZbzylC1wmCjIY0tLXPt5MJwPVs6DT6uchUQnsqZbi8ALZmbc5ZQu5w3fCO0ye03RumGMJSZpbb4d8Uunlt8gtHGoJC8Jcut/s320/DSCN0644.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #990000; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br />
So anyway, some SH4 peeps and I went to Fushimi Inari, which is a shrine dedicated to the deity Inari. It has fox statues everywhere(because Inari is related to foxes, but according to my Shinto class he's actually an old man and not a fox), and lots of stairs and bright orange torii gates. It was raining the whole time, and we got tired pretty quickly, but we managed to make it out and ended up right in front of another shrine, Tofukuji. It's pretty on the outside, and I took some pictures of it, but we decided we didn't want to spend the 400 yen it cost to get in. <br />
So, after lunch somewhere in a random part of Kyoto, we decided to go to a pretty cool Buddhist temple, Sanjuusangendo. It's indoors and houses a lot of really awesome statues which are so sacred that cameras aren't allowed, so (sadly) I was unable to take pictures =( It smelled great though, because they burnt this powerful incense which I almost bought except that it cost like 800 yen and I'm cheap. <br />
Anyway, that's my first Kyoto exploration story as of yet! Be sure to check out the sweet photos in my flickr stream. Next time, I think I'll be going to denden town (the Akihabara of Osaka), or maybe Nara or Arashiyama. Who knows! Hopefully I'll update about Halloween fun times tomorrow XD </span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><br />
</div>Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2452607187659382864.post-71896223078395461562011-10-10T07:12:00.000-07:002012-05-23T19:37:00.571-07:00Home Visit and Shinsaibashi<div style="background-color: white; color: #134f5c; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Sorry for the long delay! Here, I'm almost always busy studying, sewing, or doing the stuff I'm blogging about. That or I'm being lazy. Yeah, usually the latter. Anyway, About a week ago, I went to my Home-visit Program partner's house! Her name's Sena(the same girl I went to the Mexican festival with), and she is awesome! We made takoyaki, but since I don't eat tako(octopus), her family had prepared konnyaku for me to put in the mix! Takoyaki is an Osaka delicacy which uses a special frier with little hollowed out sections which you put batter and octopus in to make perfectly rounded tako-balls! The stuff I substituted the tako for is a gelatinous substance which is totally vegetarian and also very healthy! It was delicious and (maybe?) tasted like the real thing(but how am I to know??), and her mother kept insisting that I should open up a konnyaku-yaki shop ^^ We ate on her balcony in the open-air of a small Japanese city. The air was chilly, so we went inside after eating and drank tea with sweets. It was so much fun! I hope we can visit each other often!</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Making Tako/konnyaku-yaki!</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Today, I went to Shinsaibashi, which is a major shopping district in Osaka. Well, to clarify, I went to Namba station, wandered around for a while with some of my friends, then eventually found Shinsaibashi. We spent most of out time in Ame-mura, which(did you guess??) is the "American-village" part of Shinsaibashi. They blast r&b in all the shops and sell urban clothes. And there are crepes everywhere!! Afterwards, me, Adam, and Aya went to Sweets Paradise, which is all-you-can-eat specializing in desserts. I AM SO FULL NOW!!! I enjoyed it, although I think the best part was the tea section =) </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Now I'm off to study. Midterms are next week, so I doubt I'll have much to blog about for a while. Sooooo much studying this week!!! But I'm going to Tokyo after midterms, so I think it's worth it. Still wanna go to Kyoto..............>_> But I still have time! </span></div>Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2452607187659382864.post-86864829611560933542011-09-30T06:26:00.000-07:002011-10-30T04:17:06.406-07:00Kappa Zushi/etc<div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_GKMFdwS2cq1fTo3_3qKtAKipegQl5XzwtyKSaclzHC5jSjAWfzl0ZhHqfNOnitRJafNrsjaGZj1fHf6DKehDQznuD4k84bvFGUHcn4piipOcbIPIbphHiZoPteE2dLxZdI1Qz_pGxbh9/s1600/DSCN0577.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_GKMFdwS2cq1fTo3_3qKtAKipegQl5XzwtyKSaclzHC5jSjAWfzl0ZhHqfNOnitRJafNrsjaGZj1fHf6DKehDQznuD4k84bvFGUHcn4piipOcbIPIbphHiZoPteE2dLxZdI1Qz_pGxbh9/s200/DSCN0577.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><div style="background-color: white;"><br />
</div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #073763; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Times have been very busy! I apologize for the lack of updates, I've just been bombarded with tests these last few weeks >_> Anyway, one thing I actually had time to go to was Kaiten zushi(conveyer-belt sushi) at a place called Kappa Zushi. This place is AWESOME! We had to wait like 30 minutes to be seated, but it was so worth it. This just shows how high-tech Japan is; they have a conveyer belt that delivers random sushi plates (tuna, salmon, egg, inari-zushi,etc), and people choose what they want and take the plate. And at around 105 yen a plate, it's not so expensive either. They even have a touch screen which enables you to specially order something(say you haven't seen it going around in a while), which is delivered on a little shinkansen(bullet train) dish! My favorite is definitely corn/mayo sushi, with inarizushi as a close second. And tamago... </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">I also had the chance to look around a Japanese fabric store called ABC Craft. If you know me at all, you probably won't be surprised to hear that I spent probably an hour touching fabrics and picking out ones to buy. Even without a machine, I've decided I'll at least hand-sew bows and tiny accessory things. You can see my findings and the first bow I've made in my photo-stream =)</span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Anyway, this Sunday I'm going to visit my weekend host-family's house, so hopefully I'll have more to talk about later! </span></span></div>Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2452607187659382864.post-54601990776801547852011-09-20T21:19:00.000-07:002011-09-21T08:26:45.339-07:00Mexico Festival!<div style="background-color: white; color: #274e13; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Since Monday was a holiday here in Japan(respect for the aged day, or 敬老の日), my weekend-family partner, Sena, invited me to a Mexican festival in Umeda! However, getting to the festival proved to be a difficult task... Lost in Japan Epic Adventure Time!!!</span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #274e13; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #274e13; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">OK , so the station is basically a straight line away from our school's main entrance. However, in an attempt to retrieve my bicycle from the lot on campus(stupid idea, the whole school was closed for the holiday), I went in a straight line from the east entrance, which brought me to the electronic store Midori. Reading the signs, I decided to turn right and head towards central Osaka. The path looked unfamiliar, but I decided to trek it anyway. I passed endless car dealerships, a Uniqlo(score!), a cheap dvd store, and somehow ended up winding through an elementary school and then finally arriving at a shrine.Thank goodness I had my minnie mouse water bottle! Anyway, when I finally thought I would give up and head back home, the gods sent me a sign. 'Nose Ride', the Hawaiian restaurant close to campus. I basically ended up walking in a circle >_> For an hour.... After that, just a 40 minute </span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #274e13; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">walk to Hirakata station. A train and subway ride later, I ended up in Umeda!(note to self, get off at Kyobashi instead of Yodoyabashi next time).</span></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rD4h939UL2M/TnloPJ0quvI/AAAAAAAAAI4/dZK8gHgfDh8/s1600/DSCN0547.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rD4h939UL2M/TnloPJ0quvI/AAAAAAAAAI4/dZK8gHgfDh8/s320/DSCN0547.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #274e13; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #274e13; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I met up with my weekend partner and her friends, and we went to the festival! I bought an onigiri beforehand because I knew the food would be expensive and not likely vegetarian-friendly. The festival was soooo much fun! We danced to Mexican music (why do I still remember the lyrics to 'el rey?) walked around little tents selling Mexican items and contemplated buying 300 yen shots of tequila(legal! but a little expensive). I even met Sena's mom! They want me to go to their house one day =)</span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #274e13; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Then it rained on our parade =( so we rushed back to the station, bought a warm milk tea from Excelsior and fled back home to study for my kanji quiz. Fun times! I'm meeting so many people here, I can't even keep track! But I'm excited to go on more and more adventures and loving Japan just a bit more with each day!</span></div>Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2452607187659382864.post-60961760358256594432011-09-17T09:49:00.000-07:002011-09-20T21:39:11.438-07:00Kaiyukan Aquarium<div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/AM38GAYK7-8?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #4c1130;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',sans-serif;">Ok, so this post is pretty belated, but the past few weeks have been rather stressful, and I haven;t quite adjusted to the Japanese lifestyle yet. Anyway , I went to the Kaiyukan aquarium in Osaka with my Japanese friends Kanae, Yoshimi, and Yui, as well as some of the international students ^^ Its website, as well as wikipedia, claim that it's one of the largest aquariums in the world, but I was told it was the largest. It has 8 floors with a wide range of sea creatures, including adorable otters, eels, manta rays, capybara(!!!) and WHALE SHARKS! It was quite an amazing experience, aside from the fact that I was wearing high heels.</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #4c1130; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/oUq25CFnvbE?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #4c1130;"><br />
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</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #4c1130; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">When we returned to the Hirakata station we took a ton of purikura! For those of you who don't know, this means we basically went into the most high-tech photo-booth in the world; one which enhances the size of your eyes and improves your complexion. You can add stamps, writing, and anything cute to the pictures which come out as stickers. </span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #4c1130; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">The rest of the week was full of studying(fun!) and stress, but I think I'm finally starting to adjust to the Japanese lifestyle. Everything is expensive here, and the exchange rate is terrible, but those are things that can't be changed. And receiving a ton of packages from home on a regular basis definitely helps. </span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #783f04; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',sans-serif;"><span style="color: #4c1130;">So far I've only been to Osaka, but I hope to go to Kyoto soon</span>! </span></span></div>Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2452607187659382864.post-70718778682959135452011-09-01T08:03:00.000-07:002011-09-01T08:03:11.148-07:00The Weather in Kansai 関西の天気<div style="background-color: white; color: #783f04; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Since I've arrived in Japan, I've noticed the weather is *very* hot and humid, much like back home in Florida. Seeing as how most of us walk 3-5 miles a day, this leads to dehydration and A LOT of sweat. When I get back from a day of walking to school, the Hirakata station, and back, I can't help but shower ASAP. And the mosquitoes here are unbearable! My legs and arms are covered with itchy bite marks. </span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #783f04; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Currently, a typhoon is coming, and is expected to arrive this weekend. Our Kyoto tour has been canceled, and our opening ceremony may be as well =(</span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #783f04; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Today we got a taste of the typhoon weather; a drizzle that lasted until the afternoon and picked up again in the evening. I've been told a typhoon is pretty similar to a hurricane, but it somehow feels different from Gainesville rain. Luckily, Typhoon no. 12 is not expected to affect us too terribly, but we're still advised to stay indoors if the weather gets too gross. Thus, I've stocked up on enough food to (hopefully) last me through the weekend. Some onigiri(riceballs), kimchi, udon, nori, microwaveable rice, and a lot of sweet bread. Japan has really yummy bread products, which are usually sweet and filled with yummy things such as melon cream and red bean paste. I like it all! But I'm concerned about my diet changes here. I only consume fruit in the form of juice, and I always have to ask people at shops and restaurants if certain foods are vegetarian. Like, today a group of us went to a donburi(rice ball) shop, and the chef made me a special bowl with extra tempura veggies that wasn't on the menu! >__> It made me feel sad about the no-tipping rule in Japan. </span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #783f04; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I hope the typhoon doesn't hit us too hard so we can go to karaoke tomorrow! All my home-stay friends are leaving soon, so it might be our last chance to hang out around the dorms for a while. I'll miss them! </span></div>Marissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08690063795977297244noreply@blogger.com5