A New Home

Today I finally met my host family! I'm in my new room now, writing this post. I'll get back to this in a bit.

First of all, we KCJS students took our placement test today. It was way harder than I expected! I only knew half the kanji, and I didn't have enough time to finish the grammar. But the speaking part went well, so hopefully I'll be okay. We went to dinner in Kyoto at a buffet called Sara. Interesting fact - the word for buffet in Japanese is ヴァイキング, or viking. Hell if I know why, that's just how it is. Anyway, it was a lot of fun: I got to talk with a bunch of Japanese students, and I made a few new friends. I'm sure I'll get to know them better in coming days.

Anyway, the news we've all been waiting for! Well, at least I'VE been waiting for: my host family! As mentioned earlier, they're on the older side: 80 and 70. But they're really young at heart. Of course, I hardly know them, but they seem like wonderful people. I'm sure I'll enjoy living with them. The house is bigger than expected, but I also have more responsibility than I thought. They pretty much want me to do whatever I want, but I need to pretty much take care of my own stuff - laundry and whatnot. That's fine by me, I guess - maybe a little separated, but that's to be expected at first. I have my own key too!

My room is Japanese style - tatami mats and futon for sleeping. The rest of the house is pretty western though. They even have a piano! I'm going to get a keyboard anyway, since I can't practice during the night otherwise. I'll try to post my pictures this weekend, but no promises.

The plan for the weekend is pretty relaxed. Tomorrow, I get to chill in this area, taking it easy. Then on Sunday, I'll explore Kyoto a bit, then come back and have dinner with my host parents. Overall, things are pretty good. I'm a bit wiped though, so I'll stop here for now. More on the family life soon.

Orientation

The end of summer vacation has come! It was a short one for me. It seems that I've been in Japan for a week now - I've gotten used to it rather quickly, I guess. Japanese comes fairly easily to me now. This morning I met some of the other KCJS students - they seem like a good bunch, although fairly jetlagged. I hope they want to speak Japanese as badly as I do! We had an information session this morning, followed by a tour of the university. It's pretty big, plus they have 3 campuses! This place is huge! Oh, and the piano club said I'm welcome to join! Looking forward to playing again.

Anywho, the tour was conducted by three Doshisha students. They were pretty cool guys - I hope we become friends. I pretty much used exclusively Japanese today, so I'm on my way to doing well. We'll see how things proceed.

For dinner, I went with a few people and a Japanese student to a ramen restaurant - pretty tasty. Then we checked out the underground shopping mall "Zest". Pretty boring, unfortunately. Well, more fun another day, I guess. Speaking of which,  tomorrow I meet my homestay family. Stay tuned.

Freedom's End (?)

Yesterday was my last day with the Fujiwaras. Actually, Hidehiro had already gone to Tokyo, so I went shopping in Nishinomiya with Haruhi's mother. It was a lot of fun - I didn't actually get anything, but I spoke a TON of Japanese. Apparently, I have an awesome sense of Japanese gaijin humor. Oh, and I finally got to sit down in front of a piano and practice for a bit - looks like I can still play. I really want to practice more. Soon, my Yamaha, you will be MINE!

Actually, we found a fantastic full size Casio, for the UNBELIEVABLY LOW price of 10,000 yen. That's $100. I should have gotten it, but if I had a probably would be dead now. After shopping, I packed my two suitcases and three bags, and got on the train for Kyoto. Unable to sit for 90% of the trip, I then had to trek up 7 blocks. No problem, but with the bags, I was sweating like never before. I arrived at the hotel slick as oil, checked in, and took a nice, long shower. Having done that, I got myself acquainted with the shopping district, headed home, and went to bed.

Well, actually, there was one other thing. I found out that the tickets I got for Choucho's concert on 10/7 aren't going to be of use - I have to be somewhere else that day. So I'm going to try to get tickets for the Osaka show and sell this one. My bad for not checking ahead of time.

This morning, I got up, found out that my computer can't Skype (what the hell?), and headed to do some shopping. And the stores were closed. Turns out they don't open till around 11/12. So I wandered around, found myself in a game center, and tried out Hatsune Miku's Project Diva (Vocaloid rhythm game). It was pretty fun, although I sucked at it, and it killed enough time that I could start shopping. I bought my first sheet music: Joe Hisaishi's "Summer". Can't wait to learn it. I went to a few clothing stores, but all I got was a pendant - I guess I shop better with others. Actually, as a rule of thumb, Japan is better with friends. Being alone in Japan isn't all that great, to be honest. I went to karaoke for an hour, and it only ran me $2! Can you believe that?!

Anyway, that's as far as I've gotten today. KCJS orientation starts tomorrow, might meet some people tonight. Is it bad that I don't want to hang out with them because I only speak Japanese now?

Today I Ate Some Cows

Well, it IS true. Today's adventures brought me to the fantastic city of Kobe. Each city I've been to has its own flavor. Kobe is very serene, has a somewhat more romantic feel to it, and it's very well known for its jazz culture. All in all, a nice place to be. After a little window shopping, we took a break in the China Town section of Kobe, and had some reimen (れいめん）。Just think cold ramen - it's super refreshing in the summertime! Today's main objective was to find me a bag, and find me a bag we did. It's not really the style in America, but I've got myself a Japanese tote now.

Following this purchase, Hidehiro and I sang karaoke for 2 hours. Sounds like a long time, right? Actually, 2 hours is perfect: it's enough so that you can sing all you want, but not so much that you lose your voice. I totally nailed some of my favorite songs, and then messed up a bunch more. I even got to bust out Professor Leupp's favorite Kawashima Eigo（渋い）。

Unfortunately, Hide had to go to Tokyo for an internship - I'm looking forward to meeting him again. He's been a great role model and friend. I spent the rest of the day at the Fujiwara household, pretty much chatting. So I guess my Japanese is getting to the point where I can converse for hours now. Things are coming along well. Anyway, for dinner, Haruhi's dad brought home bento from his business meeting, containing the world renowned  Kobe beef. Let me tell you, it was good. I mean, REALLY good. Even though it was a little fatty, the meat was very tender, super flavorful, and very filling.

Tomorrow, I have to leave here to go to Kyoto. I'm kind of sad about it - I feel really at home here. I'm sure if the Fujiwara's were my host family, things would go super well. But it's not like I'm going to miss out on that much - after all, I'll definitely come back to visit. I owe a lot of my new confidence to this family. I hope that they had as much fun as I did staying here.

Today, Amagasaki, tomorrow, the World!

That's funny, because World is a club in Kyoto.

Ah, and that reminded me of one last thing. I accidentally made a really funny Japanese joke today. When asking Haruhi's mother about something, I tilted my head slightly, and then realized that that's considered feminine in Japan. When I pointed this out, hysteria ensued. I'll be just fine here, just you wait and see.

Spa World and the Most Dangerous Place in Osaka

Another day living the life. Today Hide and I went to Spa World, a kind of mega pool-water park-spa-resort thing. After a 30 minute wait, we got in, got changed, and floated around in a sort of lazy river. It was super crowded; if we were in America, people would have been hurt. Next was a Japanese style bath. Rule #1, folks: eyes to yourself. I don't care if people stare at you, just stay at eye level. There were many types of baths, sort of an around-the-world feeling. Plus two saunas: hot and HOLY SHIT MY NOSE BURNS WHEN I BREATHE hot. Guess which one I tried...

Afterwards, we went to Shin Osaka, allegedly a "dangerous" area. Really now, it was totally fine. Just have the common sense not to leave your stuff behind and all is well. From there, we walked to America Town. Well, I would have named it Rapper Town: all the stores featured rap music and the fashion to go along with it. Kind of interesting to see what the Japanese image of America is.

We did monjayaki for dinner (if you don't know what that is, GGRKS), and then a quick karaoke trip. By quick, I mean an hour. But it flew by so swiftly I was shocked when we got the 10 minute warning. Walking back to the station, Hide and I were talking about singers we like, when I experienced my first unpleasant situation. The trains were delayed due to a suicide. Now, last time I was in Japan, a similar thing happened, but I wasn't sure and didn't really understand. This time I did. What a buzz kill, I tell you. The atmosphere for me was as heavy as a sack of bricks.

Luckily, on the way to another train station (the Hankyu was cancelled for obvious reasons), I heard a beautiful voice singing, and discovered that there was a random live performance. I believe her name was Juri Kado- I'll get back to you on that. Suffice to say, she was good. Put me back in a cheery mood.

We stopped at a 7-11 and picked up my Choucho concert ticket (again, GGRKS), which I am looking forward to like you wouldn't believe.

Wonderland

I've only been here for two days, but I'm adjusting to Japan rather quickly. I wasn't able to sleep much last night-jet lag kept me from sleeping more that six hours. I got up around 7 AM, and ate breakfast while chatting with Haruhi's mother. It was really interesting - we talked about similarities in the economic states of Japan and America, and about Japan's impression of gay people, compared to what I'm used to in Boston. Somehow, I was able to manage using Japanese even though the subject was kind of complex.

I spent the majority of the day with Hidehiro, Haruhi's brother. I was pretty nervous at the start, as the first part of the agenda was to meet up with his friends in Kyoto for lunch. After introductions, we headed to the restaurant, which turned out to be a Wagyu restaurant. I got to try all sorts of things, from raw beef to konyaku to Wagyu. I have no more worries about missing steak for a year - Japanese beef is awesome! For desert, I got a Mizu Yokan that I would swear was topped with gold (dead serious). I was pleasantly surprised that one of Hide's friends was practically fluent in English. Unfortunately, I was very bimyou (awkward) during the meal. I hope I'll be able to meet these friends again once I'm a little bit better at Japanese.

Afterwards, Hide and I did some window shopping in Kyoto, very close to where I stayed last time. He explained the fashion trends in Japan. It seems that fashion in Japan is the polar opposite of what it is in America: things like check shirts and skinny jeans are considered nerdy and gay fashions, respectively, whereas floral patterns and polka dots are really fashionable. Guys carry tote bags that are exclusively for women in the US. I guess there are some common points, because things like polo shirts are stylish too.

We then took the train to Osaka, and looked checked out some more shops. Japan is huge: all the buildings had six to eight floors! We also went to an underground shopping center that went down for three or four levels. I may have confused one of the shopkeepers when I pointed out that one of his shirts had both Jewish and Christian imagery on it. When we got tired, we took a break at a cafe, had a coke, and I explained my Tabula Rosa theory: in Japan, I can become whoever I want, and forget all my worries back in America. Contrary to popular belief, Japan is not as strict as it appears to be: people in Japan actually have an incredible amount of freedom to do whatever they want to. I don't think I've felt that so strongly before.

We stopped by a game center for a bit, reminding me once again of how amazing arcades are in Japan. Entire buildings filled with games of all kinds. We played something like Time Crisis, which I was fairly awesome at. We also played Taiko no Tatsujin, one of the most entertaining rhythm games I know of. Some people there were shockingly amazing, playing on the highest level without missing a beat. I think I'll stick with the normal difficulty.

Next stop was Uniqlo: one of the cheaper places to get clothes in Japan. Hide helped me pick out some chinos, and we had to figure out what size I needed (curses, I never did learn metric conversions). I also tried on some shirts, but nothing really blew me away. Hide discovered my hidden talent for looking like Daniel Radcliffe, something I haven't heard since I was a kid. We decided we'd look elsewhere for shirts and bags.

Before dinner, we opted to sing some karaoke. I was a little worried, since my vocal talents are poor to none. Luckily, Hide didn't mind: we paid for half and hour and sang Beatles songs, Kiseki, and I even got to try out Eyes on Me, which went better than expected. We then had a quick change of plans, deciding to go for ramen instead of sushi. I didn't really understand the logistics, but I didn't really mind. The shop we ate at is fairly well known in Osaka, and I can certainly see why! It was so very rich and flavorful, putting Porter's Sapporo Ramen to shame. If I'm not careful, I'm going to get very, very fat.

The last stop on the agenda was bowling, not something I had imagined would be popular in Japan. I haven't gone bowling in years, but I wasn't that bad at it. Well, not until I got 8 gutter balls in a row, but that was the last game. I was shocked by how amazing some of the other players were, seeing them get strike after strike. I've come up with a new rule of thumb: if it exists, there is an otaku for it. On the way out, we checked out the other floors (bowling was on floor 13). Some guy won a Chopper plush, and walked around with it hanging from his crotch. Let me tell you, THAT was a sight to see.

Having returned home, I was completely wiped out, so I took a shower before bed, at which point I made my first big Gaijin mistake. The water was cold, and I wasn't sure why. I thought that it might have something to do with saving power. I showered anyway, which actually wasn't so bad after the long day. But when I mentioned the incident to Haruhi's mother, she was shocked to hear that I hadn't used the Hot Water Switch (TM). I explained that we don't have them in America, which was why I'd never seen it before. And so went my first cultural fumble. Learn from my mistakes: in Japan, you have to turn on the hot water before you turn on the hot water.

I'm fully aware that everyday life is not nearly as exciting as today was. I'm sure that life in Japan is hard work. But still, for my second day in Japan, nothing could have made me feel more comfortable and at ease that today's adventure. Oh, and my jet lag is cured.

Arrival

Land ho! I wasn't planning on writing about the trip itself, mostly because I expected it to be 10 hours of leg aches and recycled air. Well, it was, for the first five hours. But something interesting happened. I was seated at the window, with a mother and daughter sitting next to me. I had actually sat with them in the San Francisco terminal too. I noticed that the girl was carrying a violin case, and was hoping to strike up a conversation, if only to warm up for Japan. Interestingly enough, just as I began practicing music theory on my iPad, the girl turned to her mother and said something, which I couldn't hear because of my awesome headphones. Soon, the three of us were conversing in a mixture of Japanese and English. And to my surprise, the girl was a huge Pokemon fan - we talked about that too, and we even battled a few times. She showed me her collection of Pokemon figures, and even gave me a couple she had doubles of (I plan on decorating my room with them). I was thrilled when they asked me if I would email with them, and invited me to visit them in Shikoku. But most surprisingly, they waited for me in getting off the plane, waited as I did immigration and customs, and helped me find my bus terminal and even spotted me part of the fare (I still don't have yen). The gratitude I feel for them is hard to express, but I want to repay their kindness when we next meet.

So after an uneventful bus ride, on which I drafted this post, I found a pay phone, and called up Haruhi's mom, who came right over to pick me up. Strangely enough, my Japanese got better as we talked more; I also got on well with her father and brother. It seems the whole Fujiwara family is welcoming and friendly. I felt right at home chatting with them, and I'm excited to spend tomorrow hanging out with Hidehiro. All in all, we're off to a good start.

Greetings from California

Knowing that I would need rest for my journey, I tried to get as much sleep as I could last night. I laid down, closed my eyes, and thought to myself that within a day, I would be in Japan. And then it hit me. My mind filled with possibilities: who I could meet, where I could go. Thousands of possible futures. I didn't get a wink of sleep.

Luckily, I got about 6 hours on the first plane, and I find myself here in California. Surprisingly, at the same gate I waited at when I first travelled to Japan. In little more then half a day, I'll arrive in Japan, the land from my dreams. The adventure begins.

6 Days and Counting: Pre-Immersion

Well, here we are, with only 6 days to go until I leave for Japan! Things have been relatively quiet, with the exception of me fighting my way though customer service hell to get my laptop fixed before my trip. I probably should start packing, too...

In anticipation of my trip, I've been spending a lot of time reviewing Japanese, and I've come across an interesting method I thought I'd share here. Most of you have probably heard of Skyrim. Perhaps some of you own it. For those of you who own it on Steam, you may know that, by changing the language settings on Steam, you can play some games in other languages. Skyrim is one of the few games that has a full Japanese translation - menus, dialogue, even the little books in-game that provide lore on the world - everything has been translated. All things considered, playing Skyrim is to me the equivalent of a pre-immersion orientation: the whole world is in Japanese, and I have to get used to picking up on things on the go.

Now, a word of warning: this will not help you if you don't know any Japanese. Skyrim uses some pretty crazy language, and the characters speak relatively quickly. But for those of us with a good base in Japanese grammar, this game provides a fantastic opportunity to study the language while enjoying the most recent Elder Scrolls game. I've taken to writing down new words/kanji as I go and looking them up, essentially adding a massive number of words to my vocabulary.

If you've got the game, the time, and the interest, I'd highly recommend giving Skyrim a shot in Japanese.