Shinjuku

Shinjuku

Shinjuku

People in a hurry to catch the train

060929, Friday

I went to Shinjuku to run some errands. I like this place. I can't really explain what it is about this place that is so great but I just like it :)

In the evening there was a party for all the residents living at my dorm. A lot of people came so it was fun.

Party

Kaori (Japan), Aiko (Australia), Lindsay (USA) & Francesca (Italy)

Pia (Sweden) & I

Karaoke

060928, Thursday

About 150 Waseda students gathered to go to a nomihoudai (drink as much as you want) and tabehoudai (eat as much as you want) in Takadanobaba. After that we went to sing karaoke which was really fun.

Family

My cousin's daughter

My grandmother

060927, Wednesday

I went to visit my cousin and her daughter with my aunt. It was nice as always. After that my aunt and I paid my grandmother a visit. It was about 1,5 months ago I saw her the last time and it was really good seeing her again.

Later that night a friend and I met up at Shibuya. We went to a great kaitenzushi place. It was crowded and I understand why; the sushi is cheap, lots of different dishes to choose from and it tastes delicious :)

Calligraphy & Yukata

To master the art of calligraphy you need to concentrate

Me dressed in a yukata

060926, Tuesday

Today the ICC (International Community Center), close to Waseda University, arranged activites like "Write your name in calligraphy" and "Try on a yukata". It was really fun! Calligraphy is difficult if you have not been doing it for a long time but it was nice trying, especially since it was my first time. I also enjoyed dressing up in a yukata. It takes some time and you need someone else to help you put it on but when it is done you "feel Japanese" :)

After these activites I went to my aunt's place, where I spent the night. It is about two weeks ago I saw my aunt and her husband so it was nice seeing them again. Actually, it felt like we saw each other just the other day. Time goes fast indeed.

Martial Arts

Nihon kenpo

060924, Sunday

A friend took me to see Martial Arts in a place close to Shinjuku. It was not a "real" tournament but a test to see if the performers would make it to a higher level according to their obi ranking system. Everyone certainly did their best and it was great watching. It is a pretty tough sport but I suppose it is a great workout and it is rather cool. I think I might join them!! :)

"Tokyo Story" and b-day

Me, Francesca (Italy) & Aiko (Australia)

060922, Friday

Have you ever seen an old, famous Japanese movie? Well, I have not. Therefore my friends and I took the chance today. We saw a film called "Tokyo Story" which apparently is one of the most famous Japanese movies. It was nothing like the movies I am used to see but it was a nice experience.

Since it is one of my friend's birthday today we went out celebrating after the movie. We decided to have curry rice. The menu was pretty funny, you could choose your level of spiciness from 1-10. To every level there was some additional information. From level 1-4 it did not say anything funny but it all started from level 5;

Level 5: Not for the faint-hearted. Be aware of the consequenses!
Level 6-10: You may not choose this level if you have not tried level 1-5 first. One step at a time!!

We had a good laugh about this and decided to settle for level 3, it seemed pretty innocent. But soon enough I had tears in my eyes!! It was sooo spicy!! I wonder what kind of people orders level 10?? haha, well definitely not the faint-hearted I suppose :)

Shibuya

060921, Thursday

My friends and I went to Shibuya to get something to eat. As always the food was great. This time I had maguro sashimi. Nice :)

On our way to finding a famous building in Shibuya a nice thing happened which I would like to share with you. We went out from the station and asked a man for the direction since we did not know where this building is. He replied that we should go to the opposite gate exit and then the buildning will be to the right. After about 10 minutes of walking suddenly there was a tap on my shoulder. As I turned around I saw the man I had asked for directions a couple of minutes ago. He said that he was sorry that he had misinformed us, that the buildning is on our left and not our right like he had said before. We all thanked him very much. Clearly after having given us the wrong information by mistake he realized it and then came running after us to give us the right info. I have only experienced this kind of gentle and considerate behaviour in Japan. It really made our day!!

Getting the results from the placement test

060920, Wednesday

This morning everyone went to school with a bit anxiety. Why?, you might wonder. Well, the answer is as simple as today was the day we were going to find out how we did on the placement test we had a couple of days ago. I arrived at school and received a piece of paper to which I did not pay much attention. I found a seat, put the paper on the desk and waited anxiously for the teacher to tell us the results. My friend who was sitting next to me then looked at my sheet and said: "Congratulations to your result". I suddenly looked at the paper which apparently contained the precious information I wanted and there it was, my result. I cannot believe I had the information all along haha. I am happy to say that it went better than I ever could have imagined :)

Greeting new house residents

060919, Tuesday

There was a greeting party to welcome new residents to our dormitory. It was nice meeting new people who like me are going to stay for a year to study. I even meet several senpais (seniors) who are Japanese and go to the same university as us. After the party we all went out to a restaurant for delicious food and drinks. I really had a fun time this evening!

Matsuri

060918, Monday

My friends and I went to see a festival close by. It never ceases to amaze me how great Japan is at combining old preserved traditions with the latest modern technology. Once feeling the city pulse you only have to walk for a couple of minutes to find a shrine. We enjoyed matsuri food like yakisoba, takoyaki and okonomiyaki. In the beginning we stood in admiration as we watched the men and women performing bon odori (a dance). After a while though the temptation grew too big so we joined them in this dance. It is quite tricky if you have never tried it before, as it was in my case. However, once you get started and get some of the foot work right it is rather fun!

Seeing friends

Enjoying delicious food

060916, Saturday

I met a friend of my mother's and her daughter at a restaurant in Shinjuku. The food was great! Since I love Japanese food they had been considerate enough to choose a restaurant with delicious Japanese dishes. We had a great time and we were so content about the food :)

Placement test

060915, Friday

Considering the fact that there are probably more than 100 students attending this program we had to take a test to divide us into different groups after our japanese language ability. I have to admit that it was one of the most difficult tests I have ever taken in my life, actually it probably was THE most difficult test I have ever taken! The last task on the test was actually to write an essay in Japanese and we had less than half an hour to do it. That really came as a shock to me. I have only studied Japanese for a short period and it was quite some time ago so my Japanese knowledge was not really up to date for the time being. After the test I talked with my friends and we all agreed that the test had been far too difficult. We all felt a bit blue that afternoon. But anyway, I did my best and that is what counts.

Starting school

060914, Thursday

The reason for me being in Japan is that I am going to study Japanese during a year at one of the most popular and well-known universities in Tokyo. Today was my first day at school and it is always exciting to see what kind of people that are going to be there. Since it is an international program I am going to attend all different kind of countries were represented by my new student fellows. It is really interesting to meet so many different people and to hear their stories.

At school we had some general orientation; we got a tour in the buildning where our classes will be held and a tour around school campus. It looks nice.

Moving in

My room...

...is already messy haha

060913, Wednesday

After having stayed at my aunt's place for the last couple of days I moved in to my dormitory in Tokyo today. The room is rather small (12 square meters) but it pretty much has everything you need for your daily life. The room came with a bed, a desk, a chair, a closet, a shelf, a refrigerator and an air conditioner. I share toilet and showers with the other residents living on my floor. It is about a ten minutes' walk to school from my dorm so it is perfect! I would rather live in a small room that is not too far situated from school than to live in a huge apartment and have to commute 1-2 hours a day. It is an international dorm so the residents all come from different countries from around the world :)

Arriving

060910, Sunday

The tenth of September I arrived at Narita Airport in Tokyo. After an approximately 15 hour flight it was truly a great feeling to be on ground again.

At first I visited one of my cousins and towards evening I went to spend the night at my aunt's place. I really slept well that night :)