Profile
Blog
Photos
Videos
Where should I start? Things have only become more exciting since I last wrote. I'm sorry it has taken me this long to write again, but I will try to include as much as I can remember from the past 3 weeks.
Last time I left off, I was planning to go to Tokyo. I went, and it is awesome. That Saturday I went with a few people to Ikebukuro, Harajuku, and Shibuya, 3 famous districts in Tokyo. Ikebukuro is where my local train line connects to Tokyo, and it is the second busiest station in Japan. Nearby is Sunshine City, an enormous mall so extensive it is called "a city within a city". Inside there are hundreds of shops, restaraunts, an aquarium, theme park, and more. We looked around for a bit before heading to Harajuku, a well-known "fashion district" where the young and hip crowd the streets. Next was Shibuya, known for shopping and entertainment, another favorite among younger generations. Next to the station is a famous statue of a loyal dog, Hachiko (see picture) and the busiest crosswalk in the world. That night we ate at an izakaya... kind of a fancy Japanese bar.
The next day, it was back to Tokyo! I went with an even larger group to Akihabara, AKA electric town. Once there we split up into smaller groups for a few hours, and had fun exploring the streets where you can find any electronic goods you could possibly need. By no coincidence, it is also a favorite spot for otaku (anime fanatics), and anime advertisements and shops are abundant as well. My group spent some time in Animate, a well-known chain of huge anime stores. Don't forget the maids... themed cafes where the waitresses dress up in cute maid outfits have become common all over Japan, but no where are they so famous as in Akihabara. Every 20 steps or so you take, a maid will try to hand you a flyer advertising a particular cafe. There are MANY variations of cafes catering to a variety of customers, and it isn't always maids... there are butler cafes as well. We did not go to any that time, but I'd like to try at least one while I'm here.
The following Tuesday night, I went with a group to a karaoke joint near the school. In Japan, the common karaoke place is where groups rent a room for a certain amount of time, and pay per person per hour. During that time, you can sing as much as you want from a very large database of songs. The next day I got my Japanese cell phone so I can communicate with my new friends and host family easily. That Friday was my birthday, and I had class for most of the day. For dinner I ate with my host family, who presented me with a cake and cards. Afterwards I went to karaoke with friends for a short time.
The following day, there was a barbeque held at a nearby river bank (the river flows between where I live and the school) for the purpose of introducing JSP students to a few other TIU students. This is the first time it has been held, and the other students had not started school yet, so there were not many of them, but I met a few new people. The next Wednesday was a "PA event", a trip arranged by a couple of the PAs. They took any student who wanted to go (of course I went) to Korakuen, another part of Tokyo most well known for the Tokyo Dome, home of the Tokyo Giants. We went to Tokyo Dome City, an amusement part across the street from the dome. It was a fun, tiring, action filled day. I even made a stop in Ikebukuro on the way home to check out the Animate there (It is slightly geared towards female otaku so I was curious).
The next weekend (last weekend) was a 5 day break from school due to Japanese holidays falling on Monday and Wednesday. On Saturday, I attended my host sisters' undoukai (athletic festival). Both sisters attend the same grade school, in 2nd and 5th grades. Undoukai are standard practice in Japan, but to me it was new and interesting. It was a school wide event where each student was assigned to either red or white team. There were events for different grade levels, and whichever team won scored points for that event. Maika, the enthusiastic 10 year old (with quite an attitude I might add) was on the red team, and her adorable little sister was on the white team, so we were rooting for different teams during different events. Events included dancing, foot races, tug of war, giant ball-pushing races, and building human towers. At the end of the day, white team was victorious, though the difference in points was not huge. I used to hate PE, but if we had events like this, it would have been different! That night I went to karaoke again.
On Monday, I went with a few people to Ueno. Another part of Tokyo, it is famous for its large and historic park (think Central Park-like). It was the first park in Tokyo, and there are still some historic shrines and statues. Our main destination for the day was the zoo. For only about 6 dollars, I went to a zoo as good as any other I've been to. Though a bit crowded, I was able to get some great views of animals. I did not get pictures of them all, but I am posting post a few.
Today was back to school, and tomorrow more of the same. On Saturday I will go with some students to Tokyo Game Show, a huge video game convention where all the latest news in Japan video games is released. I have a feeling it will be very crowded (of course) but fun. Let you know how it goes next time!
- comments