tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-78234667459677874762011-06-08T15:37:22.778+09:00welcome to my japan worldAtarashii Gaijinnoreply@blogger.comBlogger221100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7823466745967787476.post-41735789817967204262009-03-09T15:26:00.003+09:002009-03-09T15:41:01.559+09:00

Haha, not really! But I guess this is my fifteen minutes of fame story.As I mentioned before, my homestay father is actually a celebrity in the Kansai region. Well today I filmed for six hours with him and his crew for a ten minute segment on his television show, which is quite well known in the area and probably more people watch than are in Minnesota.Needless to say, I am pretty tired. I never

Atarashii Gaijinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7823466745967787476.post-17837378464746798382009-02-25T23:34:00.002+09:002009-02-26T00:07:59.226+09:00

Since I last wrote I have exchanged homestay families. It was hard to say goodbye to my first family; they have treated me very well and I have learned a lot from that experience.After a week of slowly packing my things back into my luggage (which was impossible and I have no idea how I'm going to bring it all home) and mentally saying my goodbyes I was ready for the change in pace though. My

Atarashii Gaijinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7823466745967787476.post-19170152947040055902009-02-18T11:23:00.002+09:002009-02-18T11:36:27.173+09:00

I have finally felt the trembling of the earth! This morning at around 6:40 am I woke up suddenly and felt strong shaking. I am not quite sure how long it lasted for but it felt like 30 seconds, maybe longer. It was a really strange feeling, but since I was lying down I don`t think I got the full affect.Earlier this week a stronger earthquake hit Tokyo, if you`re interested here is the article:

Atarashii Gaijinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7823466745967787476.post-9205207771866308532009-02-11T16:15:00.002+09:002009-02-11T17:00:10.401+09:00

Turning 21 in Japan! Woohoo! Who cares that the legal drinking age here is 20 and it means absolutely nothing that I can drink legally in the states now!Haha, as far as birthdays go this one takes the cake ^_^ there's a knee slapper for you, lolTruly it was a fun day, thanks to all of my friends here in Japan. Fortunately for me, but unfortunately for my teacher, class was cancelled because

Atarashii Gaijinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7823466745967787476.post-84228448015750861422009-02-09T21:37:00.002+09:002009-02-09T21:49:24.298+09:00

We are half way through our Winter Session here at Osaka Gakuin and everyone is having a case of the winter blues. Lately many of us have been feeling tired of Japan. As with anything, people adapt to an area and it becomes ordinary. That is Japan for me right now. Whereas first semester was a blur of parties, trips, karaoke, restaurants, and fun this semester is a slow pace of tighter budgets,

Atarashii Gaijinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7823466745967787476.post-57863918460508397222009-02-04T22:10:00.002+09:002009-02-04T22:26:22.108+09:00

The other day my host mom took me out for an icecream parfait. Delicious. As with all parfaits in Japan there is too little icecream and too much corn flakes. The Japanese for some reason see ice cream and corn flakes going hand in hand.Breakfast cereal aside, it was delicious. Fruit, cookies, icecream, cornflakes, and jello in layers. But little did I know the parfait was just the bait to get me

Atarashii Gaijinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7823466745967787476.post-53372645394644582422009-01-22T17:51:00.001+09:002009-01-22T19:31:50.848+09:00

Ugh, so right now I am trying to mentally recover from starting classes again. Let me tell you, that is no easy task. And neither is updating this blog, because my "e" key sticks really badly and is giving my middle finger quite a workout. You all know how important that muscle is to me...Kanji test on monday (20+ kanji), learned about/started Newspaper project on Tuesday, Kanji Final Retake on

Atarashii Gaijinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7823466745967787476.post-64288402128839022132009-01-17T19:22:00.003+09:002009-01-26T21:52:32.464+09:00

Haha, as you can guess from the title of this entry I have endured times of sickness. My New Years was spent with the flu, and a fever of 102 degrees. I got better just in time for classes to start again! Lucky me!Well, I got food poisoning at the least convenient time and had to miss not only one of my finals but also my friend's certificate ceremony. The Finnish guys and Sjoerd (the Holland guy

Atarashii Gaijinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7823466745967787476.post-91136713670493866822008-12-28T00:20:00.003+09:002008-12-28T01:01:02.472+09:00

So here is a list of places I have been to in chronological order!Takatsuki-shi: My First weekend in Japan I spent with Andrea, Rodrigo, Jukka. We went to Takatsuki, the city of my homes jurisdiction, and did random shopping and sight seeing. This brings back so many memories! I was so nervous but excited to go out and make my way around Japan on my own. I really wanted to start my time here on a

Atarashii Gaijinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7823466745967787476.post-90166477087491617672008-12-27T23:56:00.004+09:002008-12-28T00:18:27.155+09:00

Haha so I am up late and realize that despite my repeatedly promising more posts, I have failed in doing so!But I am bored and will write more right now. Your welcome!So... where to begin? Aha! I have it, the train system!I LOVE how easy it is to travel around Japan. The main railway is called Japan Railway, usually referred to as JR. But there are privately owned companies too skattered here and

Atarashii Gaijinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7823466745967787476.post-59828983382078519092008-12-27T23:37:00.002+09:002008-12-27T23:51:07.729+09:00

Christmas in Japan is an experience. The holiday here only barely resembles the celebration back home. From cheesy Japanese Santas to Engrish Holiday greetings (ex: Merry X-mos) to Christmas Cakes. Because in Japan, the popular thing to do on Christmas is to have a date with your significant other at KFC (yes, kentucky fried chicken this is no joke) and then eat a Christmas cake together

Atarashii Gaijinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7823466745967787476.post-42133034787375337942008-12-04T22:40:00.002+09:002008-12-04T23:15:31.667+09:00

Japan is the land of convenience, as far as the mundane everyday things go. For example, the enormous amount of vending machines. In other areas, Japan seems behind the times. The ATM's for instance are seldom open 24 hours; usually they are only open the same times the banks are open. This sort of defeats the purpose of an ATM... But in one area Japan has it right, and that is the Convenience

Atarashii Gaijinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7823466745967787476.post-36908127932588621882008-12-03T22:19:00.005+09:002008-12-03T22:48:09.556+09:00

To make up for my previous drought of blogging, I will now commence to overwhelm this blog with posts! Todays topic: in the classroom.To begin with, on the second day of school orientation (which was also only my third day in Japan) all the ryougakusei aka foreign exchange students had to take a Japanese placement test. This consisted of multiple choice, writing, and an oral test. Based on these

Atarashii Gaijinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7823466745967787476.post-36025924686757381792008-12-02T17:05:00.002+09:002008-12-02T17:49:02.047+09:00

Today was a beautiful sunny day, all I needed to wear was a light sweater. This wouldn't be so weird if it wasn't DECEMBER! It is so strange having this kind of weather when I have lived in Minnesota for ten years or so. I am sitting on the floor of my bedroom at my kotatsu (heated table), which is not turned on because it is nice today. On any given school day I wake up later than I mean too,

Atarashii Gaijinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7823466745967787476.post-23620544568476790342008-11-09T18:33:00.002+09:002008-11-09T18:50:29.833+09:00

Haha, so its been over a month since my last post. Sorry! Life in Japan was too busy and exciting to sit still long enough to reflect upon it!Where to begin...Well, I sang with the Jazz band I mentioned before, and I wasn't so good, but I pronounced good English and that was enough to get a round of applause : ) They were really nice, and it was a lot of fun. But I think I will pass on next

Atarashii Gaijinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7823466745967787476.post-56147348524341829572008-10-07T23:41:00.003+09:002008-10-08T00:02:20.642+09:00

Attempting to capture Japan with words or pictures is futile. You may come close, but the closer you get the more it slips through your fingers like sand. As with any experience, human means of explanation just cannot recreate the actual event for those who did not experience it first hand.I wish I could share the raw experiences and sights and sounds and tastes but it just cannot be done. For

Atarashii Gaijinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7823466745967787476.post-39808161043519474652008-09-30T11:22:00.002+09:002008-09-30T12:49:45.858+09:00

Some interesting things I've noticed about Japan:Sometimes 2 liter bottles of water completely surround wooden powerline poles. I learned from my host family this is to deter stray cats from using it as a scratching post.The Japanese really REALLY like mayonnaise. Umbrellas are everywhere; even at my house there are about 20 umbrellas in the closet. People seem to buy them every time it rains,

Atarashii Gaijinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7823466745967787476.post-58936550933198483782008-09-25T22:28:00.003+09:002008-09-25T23:25:38.748+09:00

So today I realized I have only offered you a small window into life in Japan. Therefore in this post I will draw you a picture of the more mundane aspects of what I do everyday.Everyday I wake up around 7 and get dressed. I get my school bag together, then go downstairs. I always say "ohayo gozaimasu" (good morning) to my family. Then I have breakfast. Every morning I have some juice (which is

Atarashii Gaijinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7823466745967787476.post-74579965815096011612008-09-23T22:20:00.004+09:002008-09-23T22:34:08.244+09:00

Today is a national holiday called the Autumnal Equinox and it is a celebration of the changing seasons. I didn't have class today because of it, and instead my family took me out sightseeing. I went to a museum, the top of a mountain from which the view was amazing, a traditional Japanese garden, and an old burial site. It was all very interesting and beautiful, but now I am sooo tired!On Sunday

Atarashii Gaijinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7823466745967787476.post-88129821192135945312008-09-21T21:35:00.003+09:002008-09-21T21:52:07.232+09:00

Saturday night I had the best experience so far in Japan. After I made my Homestay family dinner I was surprised to find out that my Host-Mother Hisako was going to take me out to a concert. However, it was much much more than just a simple concert. I did not really know any details, but I could not refuse such a generous offer.The concert was in the back room of a tiny traditional Japanese shop

Atarashii Gaijinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7823466745967787476.post-17583840195810994302008-09-18T22:03:00.000+09:002008-09-18T22:04:54.356+09:00

おひさしぶり です ね! It has been a long time hasn't it!I have only been in Japan two days but it feels like much longer!So much has happened I don't know where to start. The 14 hour plane ride was long and uncomfortable as expected. However, the views from the plane were breathtaking, especially when we finally arrived at Osaka. The moon was glowing pink in the sky and the bright lights of the city

Atarashii Gaijinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7823466745967787476.post-86388113446081839872008-09-08T11:42:00.002+09:002008-09-09T01:46:39.211+09:00

It is exactly one week before my departure to Japan! Everyone always asks me "are you excited?" or "are you nervous?" The answer is inevitably "both". But now that the departure date is so close, I feel not so much nervous or excited as incredibly impatient. Impatient to get to Japan and not have to answer those questions anymore! There are only so many times a person can explain and re-explain

Atarashii Gaijinnoreply@blogger.com