Kenpo team fight in Osaka

Teams from all over Japan gathered
(Waseda team in the ninth row from the right)

The males' team fight about to begin

Male Waseda fighter, to the left, having control over the situation

You can get in awkward positions during a fight
(Waseda fighter to the left)

Me, to the left, in my first tournament ever!

061125-061126, Saturday-Sunday

Saturday
My kenpo friends and I left Tokyo early in the morning on Saturday to catch the Shinkansen to Osaka. The reason for doing this was the male and women team fight. The Waseda male fighters often enter team fights but since there are not too many women fighters at Waseda this was the first time for the Waseda women to enter a team fight. As soon as we arrived we had a light work out. After that we checked in at our hotel. In the evening we all met up to enjoy delicious yakiniku. Feeling content after the food we went back to the hotel late in the evening to rest.

Sunday
Waking up early today we went to the opening ceremony. After this the males' team fight began. The Waseda team, with seven fighters, did well. They won over three teams but unfortunately lost the fourth fight. Then it was time for the women's fight. We were four women and only three could enter. Since I have only been doing kenpo for about 2 months and do not even have a grade yet, (I am mukyuu), I was not sure if I would compete at all. The grades in kenpo are; you start with mukyuu, 3kyuu, 2kyuu, 1kyuu, then it is shodan, 2dan and the best grade you can get while being in the university is 3dan. After this you might be able to proceed to 10dan if you have the talent and the will power. Well, luckily I got to enter and my first fight was against a woman with 1kyuu from Osaka University. I won. The other Waseda woman unfortunately lost so now the score was 1-1. The third Waseda woman got a tie so one more fight had to be done to get a winner. The boss for the Waseda team picked me for this final battle against a woman with 3dan. I won, so the Waseda team proceeded :) In the next fight the two Waseda women and I all had to fight against women with 3dan from Nagoya University. Unfortunately we all lost :( After the tournament we went to a Korean restaurant in the evening and then took the Shinkansen back to Tokyo where we arrived at midnight. This was a long weekend with a lot of impressions. It was a great weekend but I was really disappointed at myself right after losing my fight, but afterwards I felt pretty content. These two days in Osaka I will most certainly always remember.

Taiko etc

Dancing

Taiko

Sandra (Switzerland)

The performers were really good

A lot of people on the stage

The dancer is wearing a mask to keep the evil spirits away

Dancing

061119, Sunday

My friends and I went to Mizonokuchi to see our friend in a taiko performance. It was fun to see the talented performers whose age was in the range from about 7 years to 60. We enjoyed watching our friend play. She did a good job! To our surprise the show was not all about taiko. They even performed different kinds of dances which were really nice to see.

Enoshima

A threatening big cloud over Enoshima

The cloud was huge!

Torii and in the background a shrine

The view from Enoshima Tower (about 50 meters high)

Here lives the dragon

A lot of shops selling food and souvenirs

People fishing while enjoying the view of Mount Fuji in the background

The beautiful Fujisan

061107, Sunday

I went to an island called Enoshima with my friends. It is about an hour train ride from Tokyo. The island itself isn't too big but there are many things to see. For instance there are three shrines, Enoshima Tower and a dark cave where you were given a candle before entering to make it easier to see :) Even though there was a huge cloud over the island we were really fortunate with the weather because it didn't rain. Enoshima is a nice place to visit. When you are standing at the top of the Tower you have a great view of the ocean, Fujisan etc and you can't help but feel at peace. Actually you are not able to see Fujisan that often because it is usually hidden by clouds. It always makes me happy to see Fujisan so I am glad we had luck on our side today :)

Kenpo: Waseda vs Keio

The Waseda team, before the game, getting into the fighting spirit

The Waseda fighter to the left

Who will get a point?

A Keio fighter receiving the award

The Keio fighters standing in line while the Keio school song is sang by the supporter choir

061106, Saturday

Today there was a male team fight between the rivalry universities Waseda and Keio. Both schools had two teams each, consisting of seven fighters in each team. The first fight ended in a tie. The second fight Waseda unfortunately lost with 4-2, and one tie. It was really a shame that they lost because they fought very well! Ah well, we will take them next time :)

Seeing relatives

Excellent Japanese food

061105、Sunday

I went to Yokohama to see my relatives today. I met my uncle, his wife and two cousins and their familys over excellent Japanese food. It was three years ago I met one of the cousins so it was nice seeing him again. I had a good time meeting them all and playing with the cousins’ children.

Waseda Sai

The Waseda Sai is a popular event

Claudia, Julia & I

Hawaiian dance

Tap-dancing

The MALE Waseda cheerleaders, aka "Shockers"

Dance

Breakdance

061104, Saturday

The school festival "Waseda Sai" is held today and tomorrow to celebrate the different circles that you can enter at the university. Like every other matsuri you could enjoy great food. We had fried ice(!), something that resembles a fried pancake with honey and "for dessert" ice cream in the shape of tiny, tiny balls. Everything was delicious. While enjoying our food we watched different performances. For instance the "Shockers". I was a bit skeptic in the beginning I must say but I had to admit that they were really good! I was really impressed :)

Nikko

On the way to Nikko

The leaves were starting to change colours

Beautiful nature

Nikko is a popular place to visit and today was no exception

This shrine has impressive five stories

Torii

Shrines, people, shrines, people...

Julia (USA), Claudia (Switzerland), me & Ilona (Lithuania)

Statue

In the background the famous three monkeys (doesn't hear, doesn't speak and doesn't see) and up front Lin (Taiwan), me & Claudia doing our best to mimic them

After a long day it was nice to finish with tasty sushi

061102, Thursday

Since we had no school today my friends and I decided to visit Nikko (north of Tokyo). We departed at seven o'clock and spent about two hours on the train until we arrived. Nikko is really a beautiful place with several Buddhist temples and shrines to see and enter. Unfortunately, it was rather chilly today but you almost did not notice it due to all the beautiful things to see. At about six o'clock it was time to catch the train again. When arriving in Asakusa we decided to go to a kaitenzushi place. A perfect ending to this day :)