Hello family and friends!
Merry Christmas! I had a very busy week :)
On the 22nd I went to Eigo Rakugo with my host parents. Rakugo is a Japanese style comedy where one person acts out and does the voice of many characters in a story or a joke. They kneel on a pillow and are allowed only two props: a fan and a small towel. The Rakugo we went to, as I said, was Eigo Rakugo which means English Rakugo. So it was very funny and enjoyable. The theater was quite small but beautiful. I laughed so hard. Ooki chan and Oniisan both liked it as well, especially Ooki chan. She and I laughed and laughed about it, even after. I would like to see it again some day if I can.
On the 23rd I went to ShinsaiBashi, a famous street in Osaka, with Norihiro, Hiroki, and Akane. Since it was the current Emperors birthday the roads were packed! It took forever to reach Osaka. Akane's English is very good so she translated for me the whole night, which made hanging out with Hiroki even more fun. But since she was there to translate Norihiro didn't hardly speak any English the whole night. Either way it was a lot of fun and I didn't get home until 4 AM so the next day I was exhausted.
On the 24th I was invited to go see a Japanese Traditional play known as Noh. Noh is about 600 years old and, since it's traditional, it hasn't changed in all those years. The actors sing and it's almost like Japanese Opera, instead of speaking. The music is REALLY cool! They use only 4 instruments: 3 different types of drums and a wooden flute. They also sing and the back up singers seem to do almost a chant while others make the strangest noises like whoops and calls. It was really interesting to watch.
On the 25th I did as all other Japanese people do on Christmas: at cake and went on a date :) Oh yeah, that's right! Ooki chan bought Christmas cake so before my date the three of us ate together. The cake in Japan is seriously so pretty, you feast with your eyes before your mouth. For my date I went to Fushimi Inari shrine, or in English, the 1,000 Tori Gate Shrine. It was so beautiful! It was one of the places I've always wanted to see in Japan so I was really happy that my date agreed to take me, despite it being VERY cold! Since it was Christmas and cold the shrine was not very busy so it ended up being a really romantic date. We walked around almost the whole shrine though, which took over 3 hours so we were exhausted by the time we finished. It was a lot of fun. We ended the night by watching a scary movie in my room.
On the 26th, today, I woke up and Skyped with the family at Mom and Dad's house. I was able to talk to Mom, Dad, the little kids, Tanith and her boys, Tamirrah and Kendall, Trent, and KC and uncle Tom, and Grandma and Grandpa Williams. It was really nice to talk to everyone. I also received the package Mom and Dad sent me for Christmas, thank you so much! Yuka sent me a Christmas card as well which was a WONDERFUL surprise. Thank you so much Yuka! After I Skyped with everyone I went to lunch with Ooki chan and 4 of her students and friends. They bought us lunch which was so nice. I ate a ton and we laughed and talked a lot. They are always so happy to practice English with me so they are so kind to me and get very excited to see me. I feel very special around them :)
After lunch, right now in fact, I had to pay my phone bill so as I was walking it started snowing! Aww! The day AFTER Christmas, really Japan?! But it's ok :) So I got to see a little snow in Japan. And now, I'm just relaxing as it's Fuyuyasumi (winter break). Ahhh :)
Not sure what my plans are during winter break, other then studying a lot, but it will be very nice I'm sure. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas. I miss you all very much and love you. Talk to you again soon!
Sunday, December 25, 2011
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Nagashima Spaland
Hey everyone!
What a week! I've seriously played hard! Here's what happened: Norihiro was scheduled to get out of the hospital Tuesday. He insisted that he wanted to go play as soon as he was free. The thing he wanted to do was see the colored leafs before they fall. So we planed to meet up and choose where to go on our way to the station. We ended up going to Kobe to see their big Illumination show they do every year. They have set this huge light show up every year since the big earthquake in 1995. It was really fun! The lights came on at 6 PM, all at the same time, with a big burst of music. It was really cool and made me finally feel like Christmas is here (There's no snow in Japan so it doesn't feel like December to me). We walked around and ate SO much food from all the stalls they had set up in the park. I'm used to getting looked at but poor Norihiro might get stared at even more then me when we're together. We speak English to each other, (his English is much better then my Japanese. But he teaches me and we use both.) so he REALLY stands out! It was a cold night but a lot of fun. It was so packed though that almost the whole night we were heel to toe in crowds. It's part of Japan, be warned for anyone who wants to come visit. If you like your space and feel uncomfortable in crowds, you won't like sight seeing in Japan.
Saturday I went to Arashiyama again, (the place with all the bamboo), because they are doing a light show there as well. They had the mountain lite up as well as lanterns on the streets. The bamboo forest had lights in it too and it was so beautiful. But freezing! It was a very cold night. Kyoto is colder then Ibaraki. On the train ride home I ended up so packed in I was pressed on everyone around me. it was really funny.
Sunday, yesterday, I went to Nagashima Spaland with Hiroki, Shyuu, and Norihiro. Norihiro and I are both punctual people and don't like to make others wait so we were on time. . . Hiroki and Shyuu were over half an hour late . . . but we can't complain since Hiroki drove. (Random fact: Norihiro is very traditional when it comes to respecting his elders. Hiroki and Shyuu are both his Senpai (upper classmen) so Norihiro makes it a point to never complain to them about their behavior and to always be patient and show gratitude. Poor guy takes a lot of beating from these two lol. Hiroki and Shyuu are so crazy sometimes.) Nagashima Spaland is a theme park with an Onsen/hotspring as well. In the day we went to the theme park. They have a rollercoster there called Steel Dragon 2000 that, when it was built, was the tallest and longest running rollercoster in the world. It's no longer the tallest but it's still the longest. It was intense! It's 318 feet with the first drop being 306 feet. It's 8,133 feet long and lasts 3 minuets and goes 95 MPH. It was VERY scary and seriously cold all the way up there. Shyuu doesn't really like rollercosters so afterwards he was so angry at us he yelled at us. I couldn't understand him, mostly, but when I asked him if it was fun he insisted it was scary and continued to chew me out, even though he knows I can't understand lol. Norihiro and I laughed because he was so mad.
Once the rides closed we went to the Spa. I ended up alone, of course, being the only girl. Hiroki and Shyuu both offered to be "lady boys" for me and join me on the girls side. I told them I would rather go alone lol. The previous onsen I went to was in Fukui, at the hotel, and it was really small. This one was HUGE! And, of course, I was the only foreigner in there. So, there I am, walking into the locker room and there are hundreds of naked Japanese women who all seem to turn a look at me with surprised eyes. But I didn't care. Once I was naked I was comfortable and took my shower, soaked in the hotspring, and got dressed. No worries :) We were supposed to meet at 8 o'clock on the main level to go home so I hurried because I figured I would be slower then the boys. I got out to the main floor 15 minutes before meeting time so I walked around a little. After a while I sat down, I was really tired and very warm, and waited. . . and waited. . . a n d w a i t e d . . . . . Finally, around 8:30, I text Norihiro. They were just getting out of the onsen! They finally came out at around 9. Hiroki and Shyuu both started apologizing right away (in over the top ways) and, in front of tons of people, dropped on their knees and touched their foreheads to the ground. Tons of people were looking at these two Japanese boys bowing to a white girl. I was so embarrassed! Shyuu even jokingly offered to commit seppuku (ritual suicide) for making me wait. Stupid jerks lol. By the time they got out, since I had waited for so long, I was cold, tired, hungry, and, obviously, annoyed from waiting. I think since I wasn't smiling a lot they were very scared of me. They kept apologizing and even bought me tea and soda as a present to apologize. Norihiro seemed very concerned and kept asking me if I was cold, if I was alright, etc. I wasn't smiling so he kept asking. When I would tell him "Daijoubu" (I'm fine) he would ask "Honto?" (Really) and wouldn't believe my answer. Poor guy. Caught between two Senpai and an annoyed American girl. I cooled down and once I had some food I was back to my normal self lol.
All that fun came with a price. You can't expect to be outside for three days in one week, at night, in December, and not have consequences. I woke up with a head cold! My right side has so much pressure I can't even blow my nose! So I'm officially missing my first day of school this semester to stay in bed and rest. My ears hurt a little but other then that I'm ok. I'm sure by Tomorrow I'll be perfect :)
Not much else to report. Hope things are well at home. Miss and love you guys!
What a week! I've seriously played hard! Here's what happened: Norihiro was scheduled to get out of the hospital Tuesday. He insisted that he wanted to go play as soon as he was free. The thing he wanted to do was see the colored leafs before they fall. So we planed to meet up and choose where to go on our way to the station. We ended up going to Kobe to see their big Illumination show they do every year. They have set this huge light show up every year since the big earthquake in 1995. It was really fun! The lights came on at 6 PM, all at the same time, with a big burst of music. It was really cool and made me finally feel like Christmas is here (There's no snow in Japan so it doesn't feel like December to me). We walked around and ate SO much food from all the stalls they had set up in the park. I'm used to getting looked at but poor Norihiro might get stared at even more then me when we're together. We speak English to each other, (his English is much better then my Japanese. But he teaches me and we use both.) so he REALLY stands out! It was a cold night but a lot of fun. It was so packed though that almost the whole night we were heel to toe in crowds. It's part of Japan, be warned for anyone who wants to come visit. If you like your space and feel uncomfortable in crowds, you won't like sight seeing in Japan.
Saturday I went to Arashiyama again, (the place with all the bamboo), because they are doing a light show there as well. They had the mountain lite up as well as lanterns on the streets. The bamboo forest had lights in it too and it was so beautiful. But freezing! It was a very cold night. Kyoto is colder then Ibaraki. On the train ride home I ended up so packed in I was pressed on everyone around me. it was really funny.
Sunday, yesterday, I went to Nagashima Spaland with Hiroki, Shyuu, and Norihiro. Norihiro and I are both punctual people and don't like to make others wait so we were on time. . . Hiroki and Shyuu were over half an hour late . . . but we can't complain since Hiroki drove. (Random fact: Norihiro is very traditional when it comes to respecting his elders. Hiroki and Shyuu are both his Senpai (upper classmen) so Norihiro makes it a point to never complain to them about their behavior and to always be patient and show gratitude. Poor guy takes a lot of beating from these two lol. Hiroki and Shyuu are so crazy sometimes.) Nagashima Spaland is a theme park with an Onsen/hotspring as well. In the day we went to the theme park. They have a rollercoster there called Steel Dragon 2000 that, when it was built, was the tallest and longest running rollercoster in the world. It's no longer the tallest but it's still the longest. It was intense! It's 318 feet with the first drop being 306 feet. It's 8,133 feet long and lasts 3 minuets and goes 95 MPH. It was VERY scary and seriously cold all the way up there. Shyuu doesn't really like rollercosters so afterwards he was so angry at us he yelled at us. I couldn't understand him, mostly, but when I asked him if it was fun he insisted it was scary and continued to chew me out, even though he knows I can't understand lol. Norihiro and I laughed because he was so mad.
Once the rides closed we went to the Spa. I ended up alone, of course, being the only girl. Hiroki and Shyuu both offered to be "lady boys" for me and join me on the girls side. I told them I would rather go alone lol. The previous onsen I went to was in Fukui, at the hotel, and it was really small. This one was HUGE! And, of course, I was the only foreigner in there. So, there I am, walking into the locker room and there are hundreds of naked Japanese women who all seem to turn a look at me with surprised eyes. But I didn't care. Once I was naked I was comfortable and took my shower, soaked in the hotspring, and got dressed. No worries :) We were supposed to meet at 8 o'clock on the main level to go home so I hurried because I figured I would be slower then the boys. I got out to the main floor 15 minutes before meeting time so I walked around a little. After a while I sat down, I was really tired and very warm, and waited. . . and waited. . . a n d w a i t e d . . . . . Finally, around 8:30, I text Norihiro. They were just getting out of the onsen! They finally came out at around 9. Hiroki and Shyuu both started apologizing right away (in over the top ways) and, in front of tons of people, dropped on their knees and touched their foreheads to the ground. Tons of people were looking at these two Japanese boys bowing to a white girl. I was so embarrassed! Shyuu even jokingly offered to commit seppuku (ritual suicide) for making me wait. Stupid jerks lol. By the time they got out, since I had waited for so long, I was cold, tired, hungry, and, obviously, annoyed from waiting. I think since I wasn't smiling a lot they were very scared of me. They kept apologizing and even bought me tea and soda as a present to apologize. Norihiro seemed very concerned and kept asking me if I was cold, if I was alright, etc. I wasn't smiling so he kept asking. When I would tell him "Daijoubu" (I'm fine) he would ask "Honto?" (Really) and wouldn't believe my answer. Poor guy. Caught between two Senpai and an annoyed American girl. I cooled down and once I had some food I was back to my normal self lol.
All that fun came with a price. You can't expect to be outside for three days in one week, at night, in December, and not have consequences. I woke up with a head cold! My right side has so much pressure I can't even blow my nose! So I'm officially missing my first day of school this semester to stay in bed and rest. My ears hurt a little but other then that I'm ok. I'm sure by Tomorrow I'll be perfect :)
Not much else to report. Hope things are well at home. Miss and love you guys!
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Kinkakuji and Ginkakuji
Hey everyone,
Things here are great, as usual. Lots of things have happened this week.
First things: When Sarah and I hung out with Norihiro and his family he told us that his lung was hurting a little (Norihiro has lung disease called Pneumothorax, which causes him to have a collapsed lung sometimes. It's something that was discovered a few years ago and bothers him sometimes. On day to day bases he's ok but he can't run or do sports because of it). So the next day he went to the doctors to get it checked, better safe then sorry kind of thing. Come to find out it was pretty serious this time so Norihiro got himself planted in the hospital for a week. He went in on Tuesday and had an operation scheduled for Thursday.
I visited him three times in the hospital. The first time was before his operation, on Wednesday. I managed (somehow) to find my way from Ibaraki Shi to Itami Shimin Byouin all by myself. It is about a one and a half hour trip if that puts it into perspective for anyone. I had to take 3 trains and a bus . . . I'm glad Japanese people are so helpful with stupid gaijin (foreigners) like me lol. When I got to the hospital Norihiro wasn't in his room. When he finally showed up he had been walking around out of pure boredom. He looked SO pale! I quickly got him back to his bed and made him sit down. By the time I left he had a lot more color in his face and seemed happier. The next time I visited I went with our friend Hiroki in his car (no more crazy train adventures). We went on Thursday, the day Norihiro had his operation. I text him and asked if he wanted visitors or if he was too tired and he insisted he wanted visitors because he was bored. When we showed up he was fast asleep. The doctors had but three holes in his side so air could get to his lung and had put a camera in one of them during the operation to check out how he's doing. He had a lot of tubes running through him, one at his side to measure how much blood he lost, one in his arm pumping him full of meds, and one going to his . . . ahem. . . bladder so he wouldn't move for about 24 hours. I woke him up, as I knew he would want, and he talked to Hiroki and I. He insisted that he was fine and that the only thing that hurt was the catheter lol. Poor guy :( The next day I went to visit was on Saturday, yesterday, and he was up and about and very happy. Any time he laughed too hard or coughed, though, he'd touch his side but assure everyone that he was fine. He told me today that they should let him out of the hospital Tomorrow and that he'll be back to school on Tuesday.
Saturday the International Center threw a big party for the Exchange Students. They hired a band and had a bunch of food. Host families and other students were invited. It was a lot of fun. I got to hang out with many of the language tutors, mine and other peoples, that I don't get to hang out with all at once. At one point in the party everyone who attended was bunched together for a big group picture (There was easily 50+ people there). Daiki, one of Dan's language partners, is SUPER genki (energetic). He's hilarious and without a doubt one of the loudest Japanese people I've ever met. He only knows a little English. During the big group picture, he was standing behind me, he jokingly pushed me as if he was going to knock me over for the picture. After the pictures were taken I turned around and smacked his arm, insisting "Nandeanen?!" (What the heck?) He laughed and said "Sorry! Taleah, you're so sexy!" Which made a lot of people around us laugh. This only encouraged Daiki who then insisting again that I was sexy and then proclaimed that he loved me and gave me a huge hug in front of tons of people. I was so embarrassed I turned bright red! He's called me sexy before but never quiet so boldly lol. The party was a lot of fun though and I walked away with aching cheeks from smiling and laughing so much.
Sunday, today, I took a trip to Kyoto with some Elementary School Teachers. Momo Sensei, the school principal, has some kind of connection with Otemon Gakuin and so he takes some of the exchange students out every year. We ended up being a group of 10, 6 students and 4 teachers. Momo Sensei paid for everything (train tickets, taxis, entrance fees, lunch, and a treat) for 10 people! It was incredible! We went to Kinkakuji (the Golden Pavilion), Ginkakuji (The Silver Pavilion), as well as Kiyomizu Temple. I felt so spoiled and very happy to be able to go and meet them. It was a lot of fun. Ginkakuji is something in Japan I've always wanted to see. So when I first laid eyes on that stunning gold structure I teared up a little lol. I was so happy! It was incredibly beautiful! Of course, among all the Temples and Shrines are the wonderful Autumn leafs. I'll never get sick of looking at Momiji (Maple leafs). They are the best! :)
So, another week gone and I'm starting to realize time is almost up. I tell myself not to think about it but it's kind of like an awful gloom looming in the background of a peaceful day. So I hold firm to my dreams of living here someday and being an English teacher. I can't give up! Love and miss you guys. Talk to you again soon!
Things here are great, as usual. Lots of things have happened this week.
First things: When Sarah and I hung out with Norihiro and his family he told us that his lung was hurting a little (Norihiro has lung disease called Pneumothorax, which causes him to have a collapsed lung sometimes. It's something that was discovered a few years ago and bothers him sometimes. On day to day bases he's ok but he can't run or do sports because of it). So the next day he went to the doctors to get it checked, better safe then sorry kind of thing. Come to find out it was pretty serious this time so Norihiro got himself planted in the hospital for a week. He went in on Tuesday and had an operation scheduled for Thursday.
I visited him three times in the hospital. The first time was before his operation, on Wednesday. I managed (somehow) to find my way from Ibaraki Shi to Itami Shimin Byouin all by myself. It is about a one and a half hour trip if that puts it into perspective for anyone. I had to take 3 trains and a bus . . . I'm glad Japanese people are so helpful with stupid gaijin (foreigners) like me lol. When I got to the hospital Norihiro wasn't in his room. When he finally showed up he had been walking around out of pure boredom. He looked SO pale! I quickly got him back to his bed and made him sit down. By the time I left he had a lot more color in his face and seemed happier. The next time I visited I went with our friend Hiroki in his car (no more crazy train adventures). We went on Thursday, the day Norihiro had his operation. I text him and asked if he wanted visitors or if he was too tired and he insisted he wanted visitors because he was bored. When we showed up he was fast asleep. The doctors had but three holes in his side so air could get to his lung and had put a camera in one of them during the operation to check out how he's doing. He had a lot of tubes running through him, one at his side to measure how much blood he lost, one in his arm pumping him full of meds, and one going to his . . . ahem. . . bladder so he wouldn't move for about 24 hours. I woke him up, as I knew he would want, and he talked to Hiroki and I. He insisted that he was fine and that the only thing that hurt was the catheter lol. Poor guy :( The next day I went to visit was on Saturday, yesterday, and he was up and about and very happy. Any time he laughed too hard or coughed, though, he'd touch his side but assure everyone that he was fine. He told me today that they should let him out of the hospital Tomorrow and that he'll be back to school on Tuesday.
Saturday the International Center threw a big party for the Exchange Students. They hired a band and had a bunch of food. Host families and other students were invited. It was a lot of fun. I got to hang out with many of the language tutors, mine and other peoples, that I don't get to hang out with all at once. At one point in the party everyone who attended was bunched together for a big group picture (There was easily 50+ people there). Daiki, one of Dan's language partners, is SUPER genki (energetic). He's hilarious and without a doubt one of the loudest Japanese people I've ever met. He only knows a little English. During the big group picture, he was standing behind me, he jokingly pushed me as if he was going to knock me over for the picture. After the pictures were taken I turned around and smacked his arm, insisting "Nandeanen?!" (What the heck?) He laughed and said "Sorry! Taleah, you're so sexy!" Which made a lot of people around us laugh. This only encouraged Daiki who then insisting again that I was sexy and then proclaimed that he loved me and gave me a huge hug in front of tons of people. I was so embarrassed I turned bright red! He's called me sexy before but never quiet so boldly lol. The party was a lot of fun though and I walked away with aching cheeks from smiling and laughing so much.
Sunday, today, I took a trip to Kyoto with some Elementary School Teachers. Momo Sensei, the school principal, has some kind of connection with Otemon Gakuin and so he takes some of the exchange students out every year. We ended up being a group of 10, 6 students and 4 teachers. Momo Sensei paid for everything (train tickets, taxis, entrance fees, lunch, and a treat) for 10 people! It was incredible! We went to Kinkakuji (the Golden Pavilion), Ginkakuji (The Silver Pavilion), as well as Kiyomizu Temple. I felt so spoiled and very happy to be able to go and meet them. It was a lot of fun. Ginkakuji is something in Japan I've always wanted to see. So when I first laid eyes on that stunning gold structure I teared up a little lol. I was so happy! It was incredibly beautiful! Of course, among all the Temples and Shrines are the wonderful Autumn leafs. I'll never get sick of looking at Momiji (Maple leafs). They are the best! :)
So, another week gone and I'm starting to realize time is almost up. I tell myself not to think about it but it's kind of like an awful gloom looming in the background of a peaceful day. So I hold firm to my dreams of living here someday and being an English teacher. I can't give up! Love and miss you guys. Talk to you again soon!
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