Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Kiyomizudera

Sunday was my trip to Kiyomizudera Temple/Shrine with the INFES (International Festival) Dance Booth members. Awesome place. Been wanting to go since my roomie told me about it. Mostly because it has a love shrine LOL and I wanted to cast my love worries and get some charms <3 Anyways, it's a big place on top of a stupid big hill but has a pretty view at the top.

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Me and the guys that waited for me because either 1) I cannot tell time or 2) I did not understand the meeting time and they thought I was lost. There was a girl too, she's taking a pic.

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Ryo and I (and the other girl is with the guy coming down)... in front of the love shrine.

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Beautiful view from the top

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I found a Maiko!

Anyways, this week is classes... getting into my routine. Got most of my homework for this week done and I have a quiz tomorrow and a test on Friday. Currently...

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... I am drying my clothes inside because we just had a downpour.

I'm going to begin volunteering to teach English at an Elementary school. I'm very excited!
<3
Amber

Friday, September 25, 2009

GUESS WHO'S COMING TO GAIDAI!

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Kato Miliyah!

I was walking back to the dorm today after classes, and at the bike parking... I saw this sign. And stopped. This is so awesome. She's one of my favorites! So I get to see two my favorite singers while I'm here: Aoyama Thelma and Kato Miliyah!

Anyways, so it is the weekend! YAY! No school again. 2 days of classes, nothing much happened. Aced a Japanese quiz. Studying Keigo now. Learning new Kanji. My Psych and Communication class is still interesting. So all is good at school. I made a bento all this week (haha for the 2 days of classes we had). Thursday I had broiled chicken, steamed veggies, and fried rice. My fried rice wasn't too good. Edible... but not the best. I'm going to try to add cooking sake and some other things to try to make it better. Today I put in leftover mac&cheese and the last of my chicken nuggets and I thought I'd put some ketchup in there too. The moment I poured that ketchup out, I had a feeling something was wrong. And I was right... that ketchup... I don't think it even deserves to be called ketchup. I shoulda stuck with my collecting McDs ketchup plan HAHA. Oh well... lesson learned... Kagome ketchup is nasty... and ketchup and bento do not mix either.

Tomorrow is Saturday. No plans. I think I'm going to studying my Japanese and Kanji and go to Midori for my study break to get out of the dorm. Maybe pick up an ice cream. Sunday I'm going to Kyoto with the INFES dance group :)

Other Awesome Dates:

9/30: MiChi's CD comes out
1st week of Oct: I can pick up my Alien Registration Card
10/4: Cooking Class
10/6: Hiroki's Bday (but he already got his present... his new gf, Aki, AWWW)
10/7: YU-A's CD out
10/12: HOLIDAY NO SCHOOL
10/25: Aoyama Thelma's Concert
10/28: JAY'ED's CD out

Oh and Midterms are in there somewhere LOL. I believe I have one Monday morning, the day after my concert. Gotta study hard before the concert HAHA

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Osaka Castle

Well, tomorrow is the last day of Silver Week... wait??? REALLY!?! Yep... I thought today was Monday, too. Tomorrow is Wednesday and the last day of my 5 day vacation.

Saturday: I was suppose to go to the INFES party, but fell back asleep which is OK. I don't remember exactly what I did instead that day... oh well.

Sunday: I was suppose to go to Osaka with some friends but decided to go to Karaoke on my own and just stay in Hirakata. I bought 3 CDs, 2 which had bonus DVDs, for 750 yen at Book Off. It was a good day :)

Monday: I was lazy yet again. I was trying to find a place to get money when my guardian angel, Taka-san (yes, I shortened his name), took me to find an open ATM. Double riding his bicycle. I always wanted to do that :) And it went a lot of faster. So I got some grocery shopping done.

Today, I somehow fell back asleep and slept til 2 pm... waking and rushing out to meet Vanessa in Osaka. We were going to meet at Osaka Castle. The castle closed at 4:30 and because it takes me an hour at least to get there. Let me comment on the trains here in Osaka (yeah, you know this was coming).

This was the first time going on my own on the trains here. I've only ridden them once before too and that was with Kanako. All these Osaka people are always like "Amber, if you can navigate Tokyo, you can navigate Osaka, it's easier" !!!!! NO, IT'S NOT! There is like 5 different trains... the local, express, super express, limited express... and Osaka has thing not caring to have maps and English maps available for me to tote around! I navigate Tokyo good because I had a map for a long time... eventually it got embedded in my head. And the local train of course stops at all stops while the express trains... I don't even know the difference between them... if I had an English map, I probably could tell you. I guess some stop at some number of stops and the more faster the train the less stops it takes. So you have to make sure your train stops at your stop. Very complicated and confusing. Not easier than Tokyo.

But something I never saw in Tokyo... is a double decker train. In fact I stopped mid Japanese direction asking to go "OMG!" I made sure to ride in this car too. Just because.

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So yes, I did manage this by myself... taking the Keihan Line to Kyobashi, changing to the JR Line (WAIT! I STILL CANNOT USE MY PASMO HERE! Osaka is SOOO weird) where I rode to Morinomiyo. I met Vanessa and her friends from Nagayo at Osaka Castle. I got there 8 minutes before it closed so I just hung around the gift shop. I've made a note to go back there later.

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After resting, we decided to go to Osaka Tower. We stopped at the shrine, I gave some money, did a little prayer then bought a fortune. Mine was a so-so fortune... not sure, but I hung it on the tree anyways.

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So 2 subway stops later, switching lines, 3 stops later, we arrive to the Tower. The wait to tour the tower is 50 minutes. I've made a note to go back there too. We walk around, there are 3 Pachinkos at least in this area (Osaka... you guys have a bad addiction) and finally a small arcade with some purikura which we do. Supposedly there is no Purikura in Nagoya. The best Purikura I've been to was the one in Makino... with the monkey bars <3

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So after that, I headed back on my own... taking one subway line 3 stops, switching lines, going 2 stops. I get off the subway and notice... the escalator isn't moving... there is a train stopped with all the lights off O.O This isn't a power outage... I start worrying that it being a holiday maybe the trains stop running early... but at 7??? So panicking, I ran out the wrong exit... >.< So I go out exit 2 and ask a lady which direction the JR station was and walked in a heavy rain (good thing I grabbed my umbrella just in case this morning :D) by myself at dark. It was a little depressing. But I found it and everything was running so no worries.

I got by to Hirakata on my own a little early so I stopped at McDs for a fast dinner and went to Ring with Taka-san for Karaoke :) It was fun. We seem to sing the same types of songs too. I like singing with him. Ring is a bit expensive though. I kinda like my Smiley Karaoke better.

Friday, September 18, 2009

Yes, Yes, Yes :) No, No, No :(

Today was my rough schedule... I have a class at 10 am and a class at 2:30... LONG BREAK! So after Spoken Jap I took my make up quizzes and then ate lunch in the CIE lounge with Ash. I stayed around there doing my makeup/catch up work for Spoken Jap while hanging around with random people. At 2:30 was my Communication class where we played an awesome game... I would love to tell you all about it but I don't want to spoil the game for anyone. But basically I volunteered to try to communicate with people who did not speak my language and had a totally different culture than mine. I was to find out as much as I could about them. I was 1 of 5 and we all basically failed but I was sight chasing one guy around who would not communicate with me HAHA. I was so determined to get him to talk to me. I soon found out why he wouldn't. It was really interesting, I'm really starting to like this class. By the way the title of this blog goes with this little experiment.

After class I came back to the dorm to start dinner: mashed potatoes, yakitori, veggies, and Ash was making wings. I was making it for Kanako, my speaking partner. I found out why I struggle so much with peeling potatoes... I can't do it with my right hand... I have to do with my left. When I tried doing it with my right, I dropped the potato in the garbage. WOOPS. That's ok we had plenty of potatoes. So I cooked, luckily Ash got out of class early and got her wings done and we were done just in time for me to meet Kanako at the bus stop and get her to the dorm.

We ate in the lounge, one person commented that she wishes she were my speaking partner... Hiroki came in and I let him have some food... Eddy came in and told him that the food wasn't for him LOL. But Katie came in and ate some too. Ash and Katie and I heard some extra helped washed the dishes (I washed some while waiting for Kanako) and I washed the tables downstairs. Kanako and I and Ash hung out in the room for awhile. When I went downstairs to clean the table I asked Aki if she wanted to go to Hirakata with us to do Purikura and she couldn't but she wanted me to ask Hiroki so I asked him if he wanted to go and he did so about 10 minutes and fast costume change later we headed to Hirakata.

We did our Purikura, saw Kanako off, and went to Tsutaya to rent a horror movie. We didn't watch it tonight because someone wants to watch it and they aren't here right now. It was a good day :) Silver week has started which means NO SCHOOL FOR 5 DAYS! But I have plenty of work to do.

I have to learn to make Curry for Hiroki's bday. I'm cooking him dinner and he wants Curry... well I like curry :D Aki is going to teach me <3 yay!

Thursday, September 17, 2009

Ooooh poopie...

I dub Thursdays Bento Day.

So I was going to "observe" the new Spoken class today at 11 and I had Reading/Writing at 12 and one afternoon class. So I leave here a little after 10:30 thinking if I'm a little late it's ok(I was trying to be constructive this morning and do laundry... and I forgot to do my homework and was rushing to get that done... and I woke up early and really wanted to go back to sleep...). I got there like 1 minute late. We just did some sentences, speaking with the person next to us... it's so nice. I actually understand what is going on. It's on my level now. Perfect. I left the class saying I loved it. I talked to the sensei after class to schedule make up work that I've missed while sitting in level 4.

After that class I went to Reading/Writing where we had a kanji quiz. This class is nice too... on my level. I love it. I am happy now because I know what I am doing! I'm looking forward to the end of class only because I am hungry and ready for lunch at McDs (I had no bento today) and some soft cream :D

..............I got out of my seat at the end thinking I have to eat fast because I have class at 1... and what time is it now? Well the class started at 12... so it hit me just then that I have 3 classes back to back. So I think to myself it's ok I'm not that hungry I'll go to McDs after class. So I got to my Psych class looking forward to lunch because by the time this 1 hr 20 min class is over I am hungry. This class gets out at 2... and being hungry, I forgot that McDs closes at 2. POOPIE! So for Thursdays, I must bring a bento unless I want to eat at the cafeteria... EWW. Yeah, Thursdays = Bento

So my debate: I can either spend 440 yen round trip bus far to go to Hirakata-shi and go to McDs and study there and find something to do to make the trip worth it besides eating... or I can walk toward the McDs near Midori, go to Midori and price the Denshi Jishos (electronic dictionaries) and I can even stop at the 99 store and get my water bottles. I decide for the walking. If I'm going to eat bad, I should do something healthy. So I walk... it's about a 20-25 minute walk. I wonder if when I get back home I'm going to walk to McDs... I bet the closest one takes that long at the most to walk to. But it's dangerous LOL. I'll revert back to my laziness when I'm in America for sure.

So I go to McDs and eat my 450 yen lunch (Shaka Shaka Chicken, Medium fries, Soft Cream) then head back toward Midori. I was told the sale ended. But maybe for some items it has, but my Denshi Jishos were still on sale :D So I find a good one snap a pic with my camera and leave. I decide against stopping at the 99 store because my case with my school stuff is heavy enough. So I just head back... about another 20 minute walk. These walks are nice when I have someone to talk to or my mp3 player <3

So I'm pretty happy with my classes... and silver week is coming up :D 5 day weekend!

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Today was a Bento Day

So I woke up this morning determined to talk to my sensei about moving down to Japanese 3. I've already decided I want to move down. I haven't finished Genki II so it only seems like a good idea. So after breakfast I get ready and go thinking she might be there early (like by 10:30) since class starts at 11 but she's not. So I wait til she gets there which is like 10 minutes before class starts so I don't have long to talk to her. I tell her I want to move down, explain the situation, and she tells me I should observe the class because it may be too easy. It's not too easy, I know this already. I try to explain it and she tells me she will handle it this afternoon.

So I go to the computer lab. Why should I go to the class if I'm leaving? I sit down there buying time until my new Reading/Writing class starts. I actually didn't want to go because I didn't even have my materials but I went anyways. There's a quiz tomorrow. Good thing I've only studied this lesson's kanji. But i need to review.

After the class I met with Shohei. Well, while waiting for him I bought a soft cream (MMMM) from Makudo (McDs). So Shohei met me with my soft cream melting all over me and I'm trying to eat it as fast as possible. He was nice enough to give me some tissues. We met with his friend and ate lunch. WITH MY BENTO! Yes, I made a bento... in fact a JAPANESE BENTO! I put my leftovers from last night in there and took it to school and heated it up and actually ate lunch today without spending money on nasty food! YAY! I think I can keep this up... make a big dinner and save the leftovers for lunch somedays. Can't do it everyday. I'm going to attempt to plan what dinners I make during the week (not like daily just what I will cook during the week). It'll make budgeting and grocery shopping easier.

After my afternoon class, I got a note in my box from Abo-sensei about me moving down... she still wants me to observe (GRR). So I sat with Joel and his Japanese friends. Thought I'd be sociable. Shohei was coming to meet me too. At one point one of the Japanese guys asked me if I'd see Ponyo... I didn't hear him correctly the first time he asked... if you think you will know what I thought he asked. I was just like "WHAT?" like why would he ask me that... then Joel told me he said Ponyo HAHA.

I still laugh thinking about how many people I know in the US were wanting to see it in theaters... and here I can buy the DVD HAHA.

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

POLAR BEAR!!!!.........wait~

So it is Tuesday... and I haven't updated since Saturday.

Sunday, I didn't do much. Ash and I went walking around the other side of town stopping at Midori, and various other stores and lunch before heading back for study time. I feel like I didn't study that much. I had the review/replacement test for Reading/Writing Monday. I'm not sure how good/bad I did but as of today I had not heard anything. So I went to see my professor today and asked to be put into Level 3 for Reading/Writing which he has agreed to and would notify me by tomorrow morning about what section. SO NO CLASS AT 9 AM FOR ME TOMORROW :D WOOT WOOT! I think I can get through 4. I'm going to get into a routine for studying which will include studying the rest of Genki II grammar that I have not gotten to. That I can handle to tolerate Spoken 4. But I cannot, CANNOT, learn the kanji I have skipped that fast to stay in R/W 4. It's not going to work. So level 3 starts at Genki II L17 and carries through to the end which is perfect. I'm honestly still considering going to Spoken 3 though... but I don't think I'll benefit from it as much as Spoken 4. I was to talk to both my sensei at UWF and my sensei here... unfortunately if I want to speak to my sensei at KGU, I have to do it Japanese, or at least I'm expected to and I don't feel like it LOL

Anyways, Monday was just Japanese classes and then Ash and I went to Hirakata to get her alien registration done and 2 hours of karaoke and a little bit of shopping where I have held myself back from buying Beni's new CD until next month. I'm going to have a good collection by the time I get home. I cooked YAKITORI for dinner: chicken, onions, and carrots with rice. Tonight I'm doing it again except with gyuniku instead and adding potatoes... so yakiniku :D

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Today was Spoken Jap and Cross Cultural Relationships. I love that class. It's awesome. I met with Takuma for a bit before going with Diego into town to help buy a shinkansen ticket to Tokyo. He's going during Silver Week... which is our long weekend coming up. I was going but all my friends are busy there so... changed my mind. And I cannot budget myself LOL. Heading back, I saw this dog... that I coulda swore was a polar bear... but hello, there are no polar bears in Japan, not walking on the roads anyhow... or on a leash... it was a big huge fluffy white dog. The owner musta heard my exclamations about it and he stopped around the corner and I got to pet the dog and even asked if I could take a picture and he let me!

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Kumajyanaiyo~ Not a bear...

Saturday, September 12, 2009

Sports Festival!

Well, I really really wanted to join the festival but as I might have said I was somewhere else when the signing up and meetings were happening. I received email telling me to come and maybe there will be cancellations and I can join. Well, I woke up at 8:30ish (I think the festival started at 9?), got on facebook, and was reading from other KG student's FB statuses that it was raining... I was too lazy to check so I just took their word for it until Ash woke up and told her I think it's raining. She checked... looked like it HAD been raining but not anymore. Our plans for the day were to go to the school, let her get money, and go shopping around.

Of course, plans change.

We walk to the school around lunch time, she gets money, we eat McDs (I hate whoever put that on campus), and headed to CIE for a moment. Inside and out Gaidai students are recruiting for the Sport Festival. Outside, I told them no, I was going out with my roomie and I had no clothes for playing sports. Inside I realized that because of the weather, it was moved inside to play games. I was still going to go off with Ash until, I think his name is Hiro, comes and tries his hardest to get us to participate. Ash didn't want to... but I decided to go for it. I get put on the pink team.

We play inside games: the chopstick game (relay race, run to a table, pick up a candy with chop sticks, and put it in the box), the balloon popping game (relay race, run to the chair, blow up your balloon, sit on it and pop it, and run back), the gesture game (charades), the whisper game (like telephone), and the chopstick game again to break a tie between our team and the white team. There were 4 teams total. Pink team got 3rd place. I somehow ended up with our certificate. Oh well, memories.

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GO PINK TEAM :D

I was making plans to go to Karaoke with some of my teammates but they invited so many people so "OH DARN I REMEMBER" we have a Takoyaki (fried octopus balls) party at the dorm tonight... no, we really do, I just don't like takoyaki lol. So I tell them we will have to go another day. So I head back. In the rain. A good rain too. I don't sit long before deciding to go to the store to buy oil, salt, pepper, etc for cooking tonkatsu (fried pork cutlet). Going downstairs, I stop in the lounge to talk to Aki and.... and.... THAT OTHER GIRL! ;_; no I forgot her name. Anyways I ask about sauce to cook yakitori with and get the name before heading out.

*sigh* Another 2000 yen shopping trip. I FOUND MY AWESOME PIZZA THOUGH that I ate at Manami's house. So I bought 2 of those, butter, salt (which is not by the pepper), pepper, potatoes, oil, and................... oh the sauce of course. And I headed back and began cooking my tonkatsu. And Yuji taught me how to make rice using the rice cooker. I made enough to last me a few days. Cleaning the rice cooker is not fun. And I celebrate my success by cooking another meal telling Yuji "I can get married one day" and he tells me, as always "no, more" (I need to cook more food) haha.

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Me cooking

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Yuji making takoyaki

Friday, September 11, 2009

AND I COOKED AGAIN :D

Today was a pretty busy day. I'm glad the weekend is here...

I didn't have class til 12 so I got to laze around the room all by my lonesome. I ate my leftover mac and cheeze (tasted good actually... I usually don't like leftover mac and cheeze). I think around 10:45ish I headed to school that way I would sit and study. Today was the Japanese replacement test to make sure we were put in the right levels... sometimes I joke they are moving back to Japanese 1. But yeah, if anything Japanese 3... but I dunno. I think I did pretty good on the translating but not good at listening. I'm just bad at listening to those CDs or anything. It's one thing talking to a friend... but those CD... I've been through this before.

Anyways afterward I sat around with Vince and his friends, eventually getting tempted by McDs and going to get some (despite eating already). So I get some, eat, hang around using my computer. I didn't take my little brief case today... carried my books and took my laptop instead since I had a long day on campus. At 2:30 I had my Communications class. I think I will learn to like it. It will be important none the less.

After class and getting a copy of the reading because I was too lazy to buy the reading packet and now they are out, I went to the lounge and sat around with Jess and Diego before trying to find the clubs I want to join. Both the circle (that is just a fun circle) and karate club supposedly had meetings today but I never found them. Maybe they haven't started up yet. I sent an email to both parties. So I sat around until 6 pm when the Osaka trip meeting was. nothing much said just basically what we were doing.

Afterward, Ash and I went grocery shopping. By golly, I'm gonna cook something! SO bought meat, veggies, rice, and........yaeh that was about it. And cooking stuff (flour). AND I found precooked hamburger steak... just zap it in the microwave and it was done. So upon returning, I decided to make a hamburger steak (came in packs of four) and some mashed potatoes... I've never made mashed potatoes before but I've seen my mommy do it (before she began cheating and started buy bags of precut potatoes :p ) and it doesn't look that hard. Given, I did email her for directions.

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TADA! Does that not look OISHII (delicious)? Shoulda done some sort of veggie. Oh well. Once I get cooking well, I'm going to plan my weekly dinners so I don't have to go out so much. That can also help me plan what to make so there can be left overs to make a bento if I need to the next day.

So I can currently cook:
1- Mac and Cheese (until I run out)
2- Hamburger steak
3- Mashed Potatoes
4- Tonkatsu

I want to learn to cook:
1- Yakiniku (cook chicken and beef)
2- Gyudon
3- sukiyaki
4- karaage
5- anything else good

Anyways Ash and I went down for kitchen duty and there was no one in there. So I start thinking we are off the hook when in the stairwell we see Aki and ask her and she says there is a party a lot of people went to (I'm not a big party-er) and if we want to clean it can only be the 3 of us so we did. I don't want to live in a pig sty, I don't mind cleaning.

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Would you like GRAVITY with your rice? YES PLEASE!

So today was MY first day of classes since I had no reason to go to my class the other day. Technically I'm still in it. I haven't gotten my copy of the drop/add form saying I'm officially out and in my other class. I had Spoken Japanese 4 this morning. Just basic orientation, 50 minute class, what we will be covering. We only speak Japanese in the class. The teacher only speaks Japanese in class. Luckily I understand it. My problem is that I have trouble retaining what I hear in Japanese compared to me hearing it in English (I can recall it better)... but then again maybe I was just tired so I had trouble paying attention HAHA. I think I'm ok in this level but we'll see. We have a quiz Thursday and the review test on Friday... which if we make a low score on we may be asked to move down. I think I'll be ok though. Except for vocabulary, the 10 minute reading homework was understandable to me.

The second class of the day was Cross-Cultural Relationships. This class will be fun. The teacher is an actual clinical psychologist. But he seems like he is a good teacher. I think this will be a good class for me.

After classes I went to the LL (Language Lab for those who forgot) to listen to my reading and I ended up just email the files to myself to listen at the dorm (note to self, get my jump drive!). After sitting in there for 15 minutes I proceeded, I think the long way, to the 99 store (called kyukyu store) where everything is 104 yen with tax (so like a dollar store). They have my big water bottles I keep in the fridge for 104 yen (compared to 178 yen at family mart LOL). I also picked up some more food and snacks.

While walking to the bus stop (the bag was heavy so I thought that was plenty excuse to ride the bus back) I realized my foot was sore. I know I have like blisters from friction walking in my brown flats so I thought it was those... I look down and I have like this blister, liquid filled, bulging on the side of my foot. Looks like a second ankle bone! And it hurts. So I decide I'll return to the dorm and pop it. I'm not sure if this was a good idea... but it was painful and scary looking so I thought... why not?

Well... lets just say it became even more painful to walk afterward. So I try some first aid, use some neosporin, put on a hello kitty bandaid, and put some gauze on it too... THEN SHOHEI CALLS! Hey I haven't seen him since I got here... he's at KGU so I decide to meet him and go out to eat dinner. So I limp to the bus stop... the next bus isn't for 10 minutes. I could walk to KGU in that time. So i do... limp... and I dunno if the hello kitty bandaids suck, or if bandaids don't belong on that part of the foot... or maybe my first aid skills... or maybe it was the the heat and humidity... but both the gauze and bandaid were falling off (hence my limping). So, he better consider himself special... I went all the way back up there for him.

So we meet up, I try going to CIE for another bandaid but they said the clinic has them and so Shohei and I went there and it was closed... BUT I REMEMBERED! I put two bandaids in my purse that day I wore the shoes. So I pile those on so I have 3 bandaids... that eventually fall off. Shohei and I take the bus Hirakata where our first stop is the pharmacy to get better bandaids... which we get, bigger and stickier. So this one is working ^.^ Then we go off to eat. That boy can eat let me tell ya! He ate part of my meal and his meal and got two extra helpings of rice.

SO SPEAKING OF RICE! On his second bowl of rice, he poured an egg in with it. He asked me what we do in America because we don't put egg in our rice... I tell him we usually put gravy on our rice. Gravy? What's that in Japanese? Well my pocket dictionary was no help for that... was not help for a lot. So I ask him if he knows what gravy is... he thinks I said gravity! So I'm like "well yeah we have gravity on our rice too! it would be hard to eat if it was floating!" So that is our joke... rice with gravity. We seem to have a lot in common. I'm going to meet up with him and his friends next week. Tanoshimini~~~

Monday, September 7, 2009

Success! I have COOKED FOOD!

This morning after lazy-ing around, I finally decided to get up, get dressed, and go to school to take care of my class changes. I didn't know what was full. Upon arriving I saw just about everything that I could use is full. I tried to talk my way into a full class, didn't work too well, that option is there, but for now I have switched out of Labor, Culture and HRM (which was today) and into Intercultural Communication in Japan. No long day on Thursday now <3 Hopefully this is permanent and works out. Drop/Add here is a pain because you have to get this form from CIE and get the signatures from both the professor of the class you are adding and the class you are dropping. So much easier at UWF. Online.

So my new schedule looks like this:

MONDAY
10:00 - 10:50 Spoken Japanese 4
12:00 - 12:50 Reading/Writing Japanese 4

TUESDAY
10:00 - 10:50 Spoken Japanese 4
1:00 - 2:20 Cross Cultural Relationships

WEDNESDAY
9:00 - 9:50 Reading/Writing Japanese 4
11:00 - 11:50 Spoken Japanese 4
2:30 - 3:50 Intercultural Communication

THURSDAY
10:00 - 10:50 Spoken Japanese 4
12:00 - 12:50 Reading/Writing Japanese 4
1:00 - 2:20 Cross Cultural Relationships

FRIDAY
12:00 - 12:50 Spoken Japanese 4
2:30 - 3:50 Intercultural Communication

Today was also the day the clubs/circles (well only a handful of them at least) were setting up to give out info and invite you to join. The only one set up that looked interesting was Aikido. I might go but it's 3000 yen/month. The information table with the book with all groups was crowded the whole time but I heard that the book lives in CIE so I'll check it out tomorrow. Where is the Ikemen club???? ^.^

So that's all I did at the school today... switch classes, hang with Ash and her speaking partner, Tori, and ate lunch. Afterward Ash and I went to the grocery store. Time to cook, but we need some food.

I bought: 6 eggs, what I think are potatoes, milk, butter (took time to find), some chicken and fries that are cooked and I'll heat up later, some ore ida fries (YAY), and pancake mix... yeah I think that is it... OH and peanut butter... extra crunchy, no creamy here I guess. I didn't see grape jelly either. Oh well. I forgot maple for my pancakes ;_; I'll have to pick it up. I need to take a Japanese shopping with me because I want to make hamburger steak. YUUUUUM. And tonkatsu. YUUUM.

Tonight's meal is macoroni and cheese since I found milk and butter. I'm counting down to cooking. I have kitchen duty with another group this week at 9 pm tonight. Blaaaah. I guess it's ok. I rather not live in a pig sty.

I'm kinda typing this as the rest of the day goes on SOOO...

I started feeling sleepy and thought I'd go to Hirakata and buy a date book from the Pookie store (Kiddy Land) and possibly my bento and what not... so Ash and I headed down there, went to Kiddy Land where I did buy what I need and Book Off were I did a good job not buying 50 yen CDs LOL. We found 500 yen on the sidewalk. I split it with Ash... I saw it, she picked it up. Free bus ride home :D

We returned and I started to cook my macoroni and cheese :D

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Start with my pot to boil water

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Then at the noodles.....

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BOIL TIL TENDER AND MIX AND WALAAA!!! You have made Mac&Cheese in Japan.

IN FACT I sold one of my boxes for 400 yen (~4$). I could start a business with Kraft Dinners. We have figured out what the mysterious switch underneath the light switch by door does... it turns on this mysterious grate on the other side of the room... I'm not sure what it does. Anyways, almost 9 pm, almost kitchen duty time. I'll end this blog for I think nothing fun will happen unless Yuji turns up.

Sunday, September 6, 2009

Karaoke, Pookies, and Purikura!

So today after the house meeting the plan was for my speaking partner to come here to the dorm and I was thinking we could all go visit the shopping road together. Well plans changed because my roomie and I wanted to go to Karaoke today too. I asked Aki if there was a place nearby and she said not here but near Hirakata Station. I asked Kanako if she wanted to go, and she did, so instead we met her at the station. We ate McDs first then asked where a place was. Stupid enough, later, I found the directions and ad for the same place on the tissues I had in my purse. Well, at least we know for next time. The place was so crowded we actually had to wait 35 minutes. But we did karaoke for 1 hour, Ash's first time. It was great. I sung one of my new Crystal Kay songs :D They have a lot of Bonnie Pink songs at that place. We should do all night karaoke there, I can rock the house <3

Afterward, Kanako had to leave and it was just Ash and I. We decided to explorer because she wanted to look for a magazine and I wanted to just look around for deals. So we hit up Tsutaya and Book Off.

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Book Off... under the train tracks.

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Tsutaya is that way (you can see the sign)


Afterwards, I found my FAVORITE store in Osaka... KIDDY LAND!

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This is like Pookie Paradise <3

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I'm going to buy this bento as soon as I learn how to cook well enough for me to start taking bento school. Of course it won't be everyday, but enough where I don't have to eat school food. Too much McDs around here tempting me.


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Me and my pookie bear... they have Peanuts stuff too! And Hello Kitty! And Cinnamoroll! That place is just awesome <3


So after my pookie overload, we take the bus back to the dorms. We were going to ask about the game center/purikura place in Makino (we asked in Tsutaya if there was a place near but she told us near Makino). On the way to Makino is the shopping streets I wanted to go so I thought, HEY LET'S GO! Unfortunately, it's Sunday and almost 6, so they are all closing...

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Here is the bus stops at the station.

So after resting a bit at the dorm and me grabbing my map to make sure I go the right way, we head out once again... TO MAKINO! The shopping street is closed but when it is open I bet's awesome. I'll take pics next time we go back. Just nothing much to take pics of when it's all closed. Heading to Makino we learn that the supermarket over here is much closer than the other one... but it's not open 24 hours. We learn that on the way back. We walk, keep walking, and I see some fun looking buildings... CAN ONLY BE... pachinko -_- Stupid Pachinko (like gambling places). I swear for every one Pachinko place I see here, I can find 3 game centers in Tokyo. Osakans must love Pachinko.

And after crossing some railroad tracks I see more fun buildings! Yes, one is pachinko (this is pachinko 3 or 4 on this 20-25 minute walk). BUT! It is also bowling, karaoke, purikura, and game center :D I WIN! So we do purikura. We go into this fun booth with like monkey bars to hang on too... I choose 3 backgrounds and we take 3 pics... the first one is kinda obvious, the camera and screen is right in front of us so we line up... the second... I can hear a pic is about to be taken... but there is nothing on the screen... then I realize afterward that there are 3 camera, and this one was below the other and we were suppose to sit down... so we got a pic of our legs. The third was on the other wall so we move. Then we get 3 more backgrounds and I get to hang on the monkey bars :D That pic is my favorite. We hang around in the game center after decorating and printing them... i try the UFO Catcher (like claw machines back at home but this requires skill I do not have >.<) 3 times... losing 600 yen... before Ash pulls me away and we leave. Here is the place at night.

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We walk back wanting to stop at the supermarket but it was closed.

So, without food, I decide when I get back, around 9 pm I was gonna eat me some ABCs and 123s. Seems like everyone is eat... Yuji and Aki are in there along with other dorm people. I felt like I've never seen half of them... ANYWAYS, I heat up my food and sit at my computer (and actually I was typing this blog). After finishing, I was separating the pieces of my container and Yuji asked what I was eating. I told him it was like spaghetti but it was shaped like ABCs and 123s (HENCE THE NAME!). He didn't quite understand so I went back up to my room and brought down the other one I have plus the ravioli one and show it to him. He says it looks good so I told him next time i eat it I'll share it with him.

He told me he was cooking rice. And it smells good. So I go and smell his rice LOL. It does. He grabs his chop sticks and tastes it. Then give me a taste. Tastes good. I told him I want him to teach me how to make Yuji Gohan ^.^ So he is going to teach me how to cook rice with a rice cooker :D I move his container of rice while he is washing his dishes (I enjoy watching a man do dishes LOL... or maybe I just enjoy watching him do dishes, I dunno). So he was surprised to see his rice gone but quickly found it. I go to the fridge and get a cookie, I offer him one... he asks why they are cold and while I keep them in the fridge... I don't really have a package for them and I don't want to leave them out in the open and also I don't want the humidity to get to them from the room, but they taste good cool from the fridge. He then begins to steal my rice crispy treats... Yuji likes my American food I guess? I give him a few.

He then goes to his fridge and mixes a drink for me that tastes like Sprite. So we share that for awhile before discussing our cleaning duties. Starting next week, me and another group led by Aki clean the kitchen everyday at 9pm. Then afterward we move to HAVE FUN, SENTO (like Sauna/Onsen), STUDY, and SLEEP! So I only have study everyday for a week once a month it seems... and I get to sleep for a week too?? Haha I just laughed at it. I'll take a pic of it one day.

So that was my day~ full of fun and laughs. Best day ever here thus far <3

Saturday, September 5, 2009

"CHECK-IN!" *strikes Daisuke's pose*

I still don't get that joke... must be Nihon Joke...

So I am now officially checked in to my dorm. I took my sheets down and got in line to check out as a temporary orientation resident to a permanent resident. I got a paper to fill out about room damage and to make sure I have everything. So I get my set of keys to my room, the side gate and door, and the kitchen cabinet. Next to my room number it has the kanji for top/above (上) and I was wondering why... I thought because I'm on the top floor or because I got the first set of keys...

So I go to the room and fill out my paper and check over the room noting first the stained curtains in front of the sliding door. Ash is standing in line at this time to get her paperwork so I go downstairs to the kitchen and check that stuff. I go to #41, the first one I see, which is on top... stick my key in, open, check, and return. When I talk to Ash I find out why I have the top kanji... I thought the whole time her and I share the one set of dishes in that cabinet but there are two cabinets and I coincidentally opened the correct cabinet, the one on top, hence the reason I have the top/above kanji on my keys. Her's is below mine. We scope out the room marking a few other little things and go down stairs to turn it in and get our hangers and new set of linens. I hate making my bed in America... and not only do I have to make up futon but supposedly I have to put it away every morning in my closet. Putting the sheet on the futon blanket is like putting a pillow case on a giant floppy pillow. I should get a video of me doing that. It's not fun you guys... not fun.

Here are some more pics and video of the dorm!

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Entrance way, view from 4th floor hallway window

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The park and library I pass every morning when I leave the dorm to go various places (school, bus stop, shopping)

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Me and the beautiful view of Japan in the background :D

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Seminar House 2 :D In the daytime.



I realized today 2 things about the dorm... 1) we have 4 bathroom stalls and 4 set of slippers for the bathroom and this morning when I went, 1 set of slippers were left... so that means 3 out of 4 stalls were in use. The doors don't stay open so I didn't know which one was not occupied so I returned to my room and fiddled before returning, hoping it was easier to find a stall. Well, I learned (after doing my business wondering why when you don't lock the door some "OCCUPIED" word doesn't show up on the other side) that when you lock the bathroom door, the lock color (it's a small dot i never noticed before btw) goes from blue to red. OK! So that won't happened again. Also 2) we have an all call in the dorm. Yuji just used it to announce our meeting is in 10 minutes. I heard this sound and was like "is that Ash's computer? a bell somewhere outside (we keep our balcony door open, it has a screen and such so no bugs get in... i like to think at least) and then I heard Yuji's voice... great he's like God, I hear him everywhere... but yeah, it's an all call system in the dorms.

We have monthly house meetings and monthly parties :D September is a yakitori party! YUM! Here is the video... not so much a tour... just me being silly I guess. I call the elevator on the 1st floor, change my mind and take the stairs, then call the elevator on the 2nd floor... I'm so weird :D



Oh, we have to fold and put up our futons regularly BECAUSE if you leave them down all semester, the tatami mat underneath will mold. So we should fold and put them away and lay them out to dry twice a month. Well... that is fun to do. I'm sure I'll become an expert and putting away my futon by the time this trip is over. I need a chair to sit at this little table. Right now I'm sitting on my pillow.

Seminar House 2!

Today, didn't do too much. Jess, one of my roomies left for homestay. Just Ash and I until the semester ends. We have room now to move our room around, futons and table. I set up earlier, looks super nice. Anyways, I laid around til about 10:30ish until Jess and I decided we'd go up to the school, eat lunch, hang around... So we left at 11:30.

We stopped at Hotto Motto for lunch... I remember eating Hotto Motto last year, I don't remember when, where, why, and what I ate, but it was the chicken. The chicken was so greasy but fries were yummy. We ate at the CIE lounge. Afterwards we checked on her cell phone (no luck) and I got some money out. It all came in big bills so I decided I'd go to Hirakata and break one for easier bus fare when needed. So I went to Tsutaya and bought Crystal Kay's Best of CD :D Pretty cheap for a Best CD maybe because there was no DVD. As much as I would like one, the price would have made me changed my mind. I've seen Best CDs go for as much as 8000 yen. I browsed and saw that some American TV drama sets such as Full House, Desperate Housewives, and House (called Dr. House here) range from 8000-10000 per season (House being the most expensive).

After browsing around Hirakata and buying some snacks and another big water bottle for the fridge to refill my bottle (I think I'm saving money... but maybe I only save money when I buy the big bottles from the 99 store... yeah, I should start going there more often) I took the bus (that was sitting at waiting for once) back to the dorms where I napped. For 3 hours. After moving furniture (we're not suppose to rearrange furniture but I don't think that applies to futons and the table in the tatami room. Oddly, we have our futons in front of the other person's closet. This is because when I moved in (I was first), there was a line of futons against the wall and I took the one near the AC (because I need to be cold to sleep and I dunno I just chose that one) and I sat my stuff on the desk right near it... but because the close on that side of the room was a bit blocked by futons, I took the closet on the other side. So, it's a bit weird. Oh well. No splitting this room in half HAHA. Here is my dorm :D

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The Lobby. With the "Wel-Come" sign LOL. See the little doorway to the right? That is where I enter, you can't see but closer to me to the right is where I go and take my shoes off and put on my slippers.

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Yeah I got 4 pairs of shoes in there...

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Seminar House 2 RA's: Yuji (male) and Aki (female)... I'm pretty sure Yuji doesn't look like that underneath it all..


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Lounge Area

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Computer Room. Useful during orientation week when nobody can access internet through their own PC's/Macs. But if you have your own computer, once it is registered for internet, unless something happens, you will never set foot in this room again.

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The "Dinning" room as Yuji refers to it HAHA.

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The cabinet where hopefully I can start getting dishes tomorrow and start cooking. I'm so cooking Mac and cheeze :D

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The fridge... I guess 6 people can share a fridge... just respect other's food. I try to, I put my water bottle in my family mart bag that way I know it's mine.

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SNACKS :D Look my cookies are almost gone :(

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Uh oh this pic is upside down LOL but do you see the bag? That's my big bottle of water to refill my little one

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Microwaves. You can heat anything in these things. I make toast. Doesn't matter if it's wrapped in something or naked food... just pop it in here. No fires!

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Cooking :D Gas stoves... i've never used one. Man, am I gonna have fun cooking ^.^

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Washers and Dryers in the shower room... but I don't use the dryers. They suck

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Shower

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MEN NOT PERMITTED BEYOND THIS POINT~ I don't understand why we have this rule just on the 4th floor (and it's for girls on the 3rd floor that is all boys) because on the 1st floor (all boys) is the lounge and lobby and what not so girl can be there (have no choice) and all the 2nd floor (all girls) is the kitchen so boys have to be there so you can't have this rule but on the 3rd floor (all boys) and 4th (all girls) we have this no opposite gender allowed rule......... just strange.

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Room 041 is mine :D

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The room... the table is close to my futon because i was sitting my computer there and using it. Notice how my futon is on that side of the room... my closet is in front of Ash's futon haha

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The closet

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The Desk



Anyways I hung around downstairs, trying to be sociable, and met the two girls from Thailand and our two RA's. Yuji was trying to make a sign announcing tomorrow's house meeting, we will become official residents tomorrow. Yeah we are "checking out" and "checking in" tomorrow. I had a feeling Yuji would hurt himself trying to make that sign...

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He misspelled "dining room" (dinning room... so now we have a pineapple? in the middle of the word) and he put the 7th when I kept telling him the 6th so we have this odd 6... I added the "@ 12:00" myself because Yuji was so confused.

Tomorrow after the meeting, I'm meeting with my speaking partner, Kanako, and she's coming here to hang out then I think we are going to try to see what this Shopping Street is on the map... has shopping in the word :D Sounds like fun.