In the end...

My time spent in Japan so far has been a wonderful experience.  I have been through plenty of bad and good times in Japan. Before I came here I thought I was going to have an amazing time, drama free. Being here I did have a good time, but I had the drama I wasn’t expecting. It made me think that the Japanese were two faced. Just like the reading we had in Visual Anthropology when a Japanese person asks you if you want to come over, they actually don’t expect you or want you to. They portray themselves as nice but aren’t completely who they seem like. Don’t get me wrong, not all Japanese people are like this, it’s just an experience I had with a few people.

A thing I didn’t like was that I knew I was going to dislike the food.  I thought that the Japanese would have a bigger variety of foods, but it’s all the same to me. When I got here I tried many types of Japanese dishes but they all had that same flavor; soy sauce. I did grow fond of yakisoba, tonkatsu, nabe and tempura. Those dishes are delicious!

 Another thing that I wasn’t expecting was the thousands of advertisements everywhere. I went blind walking into electronic stores. But what I did expect was the beautiful scenery. My perspective on Japan’s society changed because I was expecting a lot of the beautiful landscapes to be covered in buildings, but a lot actually weren’t. An example of this would be Arashiyama and Fushimi Inari. The Japanese really keep their sacred grounds alive. I really appreciated the amount of temples they try to conserve. I know back home in America they wouldn’t think too much about tearing down some type of shrine.

Overall I believe that I had an amazing time at Kansai Gaidai and in Japan. There were crazy things I know I wouldn't see anywhere else in the world, but that's why I consider Japan to be unique. I met people around the world and grew long lasting relationships with them. I’m staying for another semester so I hope that I can meet more new people and get to know their growing thoughts on Japanese life styles.

Arashiyama

People around the world tend to travel to see monuments and famous areas. In Japan it is especially often to travel within the country to go sight-seeing. I traveled to one of the many visited places in Japan, Arashiyama. It’s amazingly beautiful! I couldn’t believe the amount of people that were around the area. It was extremely crowded on the big streets.

There were many stores along the streets that sold things such as bamboo souvenirs. There are so many things to do! There was a music box museum, a place to rent boats, men pulling people in rickshaws, a monkey park, etc. My roommate and I climbed a mountain to get to the monkey park, and it was actually quite amazing (and tiring). One of the main attractions in Arashiyama is the changing of the colors of the leaves in the autumn. There is thousands of tress that go from a green hue to a red. It’s very beautiful. I felt like renting a bike because there is so much walking that one must do. I didn’t though because my Japanese professor had said that he had rented a bike there, but he didn’t recommend it because of the amount of people there are.

On the top of the mountain where the monkeys are, they have a feeding area. You go inside a building where it is wired all around and pay 100 yen for a bag of apples or peanuts. It’s actually kind of scary to feed them because they’re somewhat violent.  Some monkeys will snatch the food out your hand and others will take it carefully.

Another attraction is the bamboo forest. It’s one of the many attractions that are lit up for the winter. There are also gardens that you pay to get in. I didn’t get to see the illumination in the bamboo forest so I’m hoping I can go back before the event ends. It was an wonderful experience.

For more information: http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3912.html

what the cafe?

There’s a lot of bizarre cafés in Japan. You would never see or even hear of a Ninja café or Maid cafe a Sweets café, or a Cat café in America, yet alone anywhere else in the world except Japan.  I can say that I’ve had the chance to experience a ninja café.  I and two of my roommates went to a ninja café in Kyoto. There is a ninja restaurant and a ninja café, the café is called “Sweets of Ninja”. The restaurant was a bit too pricy, but you could tell that it was way more fun from the sounds of playful screams coming from it. From what I’ve heard, the ninjas come out from shadows and scare you or do ninja like things. The “Sweets of Ninja” is a like “Sweets Paradise”( http://www.sweets-paradise.jp/). It’s a buffet of mostly sweets and a bit of food options.  When you first sit down, they explain that you have to eat as much as you can and designated areas to throw away your trash. They basically explain the rules of the establishment. The rules were written on a scroll, which were laid out on the table in front of us. It’s a really interesting experience. 

For more information on it go to: http://www.ninja-kyoto.com/

Picture from Japaneselifestyle.com

As for the Maid café, I haven’t been to one but I heard it’s really something. My roommate went to one and she said that you have to do a magic spell on the sweets that you order to make it tastier.  They treat you as their “master”, a little creepy right? It seems like a curious place to go to because I wouldn't see people dressed up as maids in any of the areas near where I live in America. Information on Maid Cafes: http://www.japaneselifestyle.com.au/tokyo/maid_cafe.htm

Where I really want to go is a Neko (cat) café. It sounds really fun though I might find a hairball in my drink. At the café, you basically pet cats for a fee. It’s worth it! (as you can tell from the pictures, irresistible face!) 

Picture from: http://www.tokyotimes.co.jp/post/en/282/Neko+Cafe+in+Ikebukuro.html#image-2544

Japanica

I've been to Universal Studios Japan two times now and it is much Americanized. I’ve never been to the Universal studios in Florida, United States, but I know that the people there aren’t as “enthusiastic” about their job as the Japanese. At least that’s what I got from going to Disney Land; the workers were very bad with people.  I asked my roommate what she thought about Universal Studios Japan and she said it was fun, but boring compared to Tokyo Disney Land. I also asked her if she thought it was Americanized and the answer of course was yes. She said that it Universal Studios Japan has lot of American style architecture, the characters (such as Snoopy, Spider Man, Sesame Street, Pink Panther, etc.) are based from America and they play mostly American music throughout the park. I also found this to be true when I went, including their not so grabbing English musicals with foreigners as the cast.

Universal Studios Japan may be very America but it’s still Japanese because of their bizarre and unique food menus. I thought it was weird to see a lot of American restaurants. The restaurants have the American names, but sell food that is completely Japanese, such as mayonnaise pizza with squid ink. You would never see that in America. There are turkey legs being sold at food stands along with Hello Kitty and Snoopy “nikuman”, which are meat-rolls.

Another difference I saw between the Universal Studios in Japan and the one in the States is that they have different choice in main characters for their audience. Japan stands out with its Hello Kitty, Snoopy, Pink Panther and Sesame Street toys and clothing in every corner of the amusement park.

Japan may have similar attractions as America, but it still manages to show the Japanese culture, with its distinctive way of representing it.

I recommend Hollywood Dream: The Ride for anyone who goes. It’s AMAZINGGGG.

Fushimi Inari

My stop was the Fushimi Inari station down in southern Kyoto. The first impression of this train stop was awe. I thought that I would be stuck with a boring stop since I randomly picked my train stop but I found it to be very amazing. The first thing I noticed that stood out was the numerous amounts of orange poles in the station. This really made the station stand out because I’d never seen any other station with special additions like that.  My friends and I followed the crowd and close by we came to the entrance of some type of shrine which is called Fushimi Inari Taisha. Lucky for us we came on a day that a matsuri was taking place. The name of the matsuri was called the Ko-In matsuri. 

In the city, there are a number of variety shops and also many interesting sights. The main attraction at my stop is the many torii gates everywhere. There are torii and shrines that lead up the side of the mountain up to the top. That hike is exhausting! But very much worth it. The shrines are dedicated to the Shinto God of rice, Inari. There are many fox statues at the shrines, meant to be the messengers of Inari. 

It took us about 35 minutes from Hirakata to Fushimi Inari. The way I got to Fushimi Inari was by taking the Keihan-Main line, limited express then transferring in Tamababashi onto the Keihan-Main/ Nakanoshima local line. You could also take the Nara JR line.

The photos I took are self-explanatory of how to best describe the city and station. The stop is the city that has thousands of torii leading up to the top of the mountain. It’s an amazing sight and I would recommend anyone who is willing to hike for about 3 hours to go. I learned that I should explore more. I saw a beautiful place on sheer luck and I want to see more of what’s out there. 










http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3915.html

Miyu

This is my friend and roommate Miyu Muto. I didn't choose her just because she's my roommate but because she and I really bond. We spend most nights staying up talking to each other about the most random things and tell one another stories. She’s such a fan girl (as you can tell from the picture). She asks questions about America and how to say certain words in English and I do the same, asking her about Japan. We help each other. We just click.

The reason I chose to write about her is because she and I share many things in common. Her goals are set high and I love that about her. When I met her I asked her what her major was and she said it was English. I then asked her what she wanted to do as a career and she said flight attendant, but that she is too short to be one. We’ve gotten to know each other pretty well. I feel that she is a very brave person. She signed up to live with a complete stranger that’s from a different country that shows their emotions in a very different way than the Japanese do for the sake of learning English. She shows a lot of dedication towards her studies.

We once had a serious conversation about how American’s and Japanese express themselves differently. Americans show a lot of sarcasm in their everyday life, while the Japanese don’t really have any and are very reserved. I think she understands and she’s ready to face the challenges that are to come and I know she will overcome them.

She represents Japan in various ways. She’s shy, reserved, but most of all she is kind and humble. I have found most of these traits in most of the Japanese I have met. Even though she has these traits she is willing to be open to change in order to be able to study abroad and travel around the world.

sidewalks please!

Living in Hirakata has really surprised me on many levels. I don't come from a city where; everyone rides bikes everywhere, the streets are narrow, vending machines are around every corner, rice fields are in random spots of the city and multiple shopping centers. Thus my hometown is boring compared to Hirakata.

Hirakata has so many fun things to do, whether it's going to karaoke, or hanging out at the abundant shopping centers that are located everywhere. Everything such as, mini restaurants, grocery stores, shops, and 100 yen stores are nearby so it’s no problem to walk (and/or bike) to places. Oh how I wish there were the type of 100 yen stores in America. The 100 yen stores have ridiculously good quality products compared to the dollar stores in America.

I really find it quite random that there is a shrine in the middle of my neighborhood. Nobody seems to go to it so I wonder when if it’s open to the public. Nonetheless it is very interesting and beautiful. There also seems to be a lot of trees everywhere! I even saw bamboo growing in someone’s backyard.

There is a rule we have to abide to though, and that is to be quiet after a certain hour. I don’t understand why it is necessary though because there are constant motorcycles passing the street around 2 a.m. outside my window every night that should wake up the neighborhood.

The main thing that bothers me about Hirakata is that there are limited sidewalks in busy areas. The lack of sidewalks are very hazardous and scare me because the bus drivers drive very closely to people walking and/or biking on the street.

Over time I will see more and have an even better understanding of this Hirakata city, but for now, I can’t believe how many people fit into a bus!   

talk about culture shock

Namba, Osaka, Japan

When I first arrived in Japan I was stumped. I arrived wearing a sweater expecting it to be slightly breezy, but instead walked into an oven. The temperature was too humid. I come from a city where it’s either freezing cold or just the right temperature so the humidity wasn’t the best of my liking.

Hirakata-shi, Osaka, Japan

JR train at Osaka Station

 I expected to see tall buildings and many lights in the major cities such as Osaka and Tokyo. Then I went to Namba and wow. There are sooo many lights, billboards, people, etc. It is a very beautiful sight that I had never experienced before. 


Considering how big the Japan cities are, my home city looked very dull and small. It was a big culture shock for me because I’m not used to seeing so many people in one location.

Park in Hirakata, Osaka, Japan

I did see something I was imagining to see. A lot of green. I went to a park, apparently the parks here are huge, and so it had a lot to see. It was something that I knew I would fall in love with. The scenery was beautiful and the atmosphere felt nice. But I know these odd and fun experiences are just the start of my many adventures here in Japan.