And So It Ends: KCJS, Fall Semester

At long last, the day of our final exams arrived. Not that I was particularly looking forward to it, but I suppose it was better to get it over with. The weather was looking clear when I got on the train, completely entranced in my studies. Imagine my shock when I got off at Doshisha to find snow fluttering down from the sky. It was the first snow of the year!

The exam was rough, mostly because of the kanji section - we were expected to know a selection from the several hundred kanji we learned over the semester. As I'm sure you're aware, kanji is my weak point, and boy did the test hit hard. While struggling with the exam, I was surprised to see the world outside engulfed by the snow. It was practically a blizzard!

Of course, snow doesn't stick in Kyoto, and by the time I handed in my exam, it had reverted back into a light flurry. It would have been lovely if I had stayed inside and watched it, but I had no such luck. Instead, I walked all the way down to my bakery to pick up goodies for the party we were having in Yotsukura's class.

Stepping into the bakery, the smell of fresh bread filled the air. Above all, however, there was the scent of maple. I looked around for the source, until I located the fresh, steaming plate of maple bread. In addition to the walnut-French bread I had planned on buying, I decided to get some maple too.

On the way back, I ran into Julie, who had also run down to pick up some goodies. We found our way to the Amherst house, where the sushi-making party was to be held. The KCJS students and staff gathered together to learn the art of crafting nigiri sushi from some local Kyoto chefs. Our program is well connected!

But before that, they gave out some awards. Not just commendations, but monetary prizes as well. The first of these was to be given to the person chosen by their peers who had worked the hardest to get involved in Japanese society. To my surprise, the person chosen was me! I'm really honored that everyone had considered me as trying the hardest - I certainly did my best, but it was touching to have my efforts acknowledged by my classmates and friends. I'll work hard next semester too!

The other awards went to Brendan, for his hard work in his CIP activity, and Calum, as the student who had improved the most over the course of the semester. Congratulations, guys! Now Calum won't feel so bad about feeding his gaming urges, 笑.

Immediately after this, we picked up packages of sushi-cut fish, and a tub of rice, and squeezed some sushi! It was harder than I thought - you have to estimate the perfect amount of rice to mould the fish around. And I couldn't seem to be able to pick up the wasabi the way they showed us. It was a great experience though, and we all got to make a massive amount of sushi. When we had finished, the professionals judged our work. I was picked as one of the four runners-up: I had tried to artistically arrange my sushi, which I guess caught the chef’s eye. Yay, double prizes! Of course, the overall winner of the contest was Yeuyi, as expected. If they ever need a part time worker, they should look her up!

Having finished the sushi party, the members of Yotsukura-sensei’s class gathered the goodies we had purchased and held a potluck lunch. We were all pretty full from the sushi, but there was delicious bread from Joe’s bakery, strawberries from Julie’s fruit shop, and a bunch of other yummy snacks. We ate and chatted, with a surprise musical performance by Sarah and Joe. I played too, but…I need practice. But with me being so close to break, I believed I would have time to do so. Little did I know just how busy I would be!

The next morning, I woke up early to meet up with Roslyn to go shopping for a DS Lite. I had promised to get her one for her birthday, and so we headed over to Book Off to look at their stock. To my surprise, they were closed until later in the day and neither of us had that sort of time to kill. But I’m not the sort of guy who goes back on his word, and so I handed over my own (pastel pink) DS Lite. I was planning on getting a 3DS soon anyway, so I wouldn’t actually need a DS Lite. Take good care of it, Roslyn! Have fun!

After killing a little time, I headed over to the Bon Bon Café, where KCJS was holding its end of the semester party. It was a nice party overall – there was lots of food (sort of Italian-Japanese fusion, maybe?), and I talked with all of my KCJS friends. We took class pictures, and I said my goodbyes to those who were returning home. We had some slideshows from our CIP activities – me and Leila presented on our Kyudo classes, accompanied by some (very unflattering) photos of us (me) doing Kyudo. Also, got to see Angela’s kindergarten class, which was super adorable!

Skip to the following day. I had already said my goodbyes, and was damn well ready to be on break. The only thing stopping me was one final essay, and so I headed to Doshisha thinking I would get it done there. I set up in the café and started working, only for Tala to show up and start chatting with me. He wanted to say goodbye to our AKP friends, and so I kept him company for more than two hours. My poor paper…Tala, such a jama! On the upside, we had some hilarious discussions, including me convincing Tala that in Boston, the sun rises in the south, which is why we have such bad weather. He totally bought it, haha.

That evening, I met my host family at Yodobashi Camera, where we ate delicious tempura. It was actually my first time going to a tempura specialty restaurant, and it was fantastic! The set I got came with a bunch of stuff, including mushrooms, anago (conger eel), sweet potato, and eggplant. And then I ordered more that I wanted, until I was stuffed. Real tempura is so good – because of the oil used and the temperature at which it is cooked, it’s not really that greasy in comparison with “fried food”. New restaurant, get!

Upon returning home, I got serious with my paper, and finished it within a matter of hours. Then I packed my bags, and went to bed ready for my glorious vacation.