wildwinterwrens

Rain, rain, rain, and lots of rain

2008-06-11T21:22:00.002+09:00

The rainy season has set in here in Miyazaki~ It rains pretty hard most days and the humidity seems through the roof. Roads and side walks turn into mini rivers in a matter of moments when the heavy rain starts, parking lots turn into shallow lakes. I think shorts might be the best course of action during the rainy season, so the rain doesn't seep up the pant legs, taking forever to dry in the humid weather. But don't get me wrong! I love this weather. The rain is pleasant to listen to and the whole place turns green (with vegetation not mold :). The bugs are coming out and the temperature is getting hotter and hotter~ Summer is on it's way.

神戸の旅行 Kobe Travels

2008-05-28T13:10:00.004+09:00

今週末、神戸に行った。　AllisonとJackに会ったり、買い物をしたり、観光したり、友だちに作りました。　本当に楽しかったよ！　水曜日の晩にフェリーに乗った。　あまり人がいなかったから、しずかだ。　Allison とJackは木曜日にじゅぎょうがあたが、私と一緒に行った。　じゅぎょうは日本語のじゅぎょうだ。　おもしろかった、ちがいの文法や単語があた。　先生はやさしかった。金曜日Allisonと一緒い三ノ宮買い物しに行った。神戸のファシオンはすごくすてき！　ぜんぶ買いたい。あぁぁ～～神戸で世界に一番大きいのIKEAがある。人が多かった！三ノ宮からIKEAまでシャトルバスがある。IKEAの物は同じだから、日本で人気があると思っている。あとでAllisonのアパートに帰った。友だちと一緒にカラオケした～～すごく楽しかった！私とAllisonとゆいちゃんとひろみちゃん（Allisonのチューター）、一緒に歌った～みなは本当に上手だ！日本の歌難しいが、チャレンジだ！カラオケが好き！
土曜日はゆっくりの日、ゆいちゃんとよーよーちゃんと遊んだり、ケーキを作ったり、お好み焼きを食べました。日曜日はひろみちゃんの誕生日だから、ケーキを作った。Allisoｎのレシピをつかった、おいしかった～、Allisonは上手だ！日曜日、京都に行った～金閣寺にいったり、ケーキを食べしました。ひろみちゃんはうれしかった～帰るの時はさいごのバスをとった。月曜日、Allisonと一緒にアメリカの政治（せいじ）のじゅぎょうに行った。あとで三宮行った、帰りました。

And now for those of you who do not know Japanese or would rather not read my horrid Japanese, I present the abridged version with pictures~

I traveled to Kobe by ferry this weekend to hang out with the other exchange students from Evergreen in Kobe. I did entirely too much shopping but had lots of fun sightseeing and hanging out with friends :) When I arrived on Thursday I wound my way through the subways and railway lines from the Osaka port to Gakuentoshi, a station near the University in Kobe. After making it and trying to shake away the odd feeling that the world was swaying beneath my feet, because I had just spend the last twelve hours on a rocky boat, I headed over to the University to meet up with Jack and Allison to eat lunch. I joined an English study lunch club where I was introduced to several of my soon to be friends and the Japanese professor at the University. I then joined Japanese class after wards with Allison and Jack. Then Allison and I returned to her apartment where I promptly took a nap before we headed out to dinner with Allison's friend from China. On Friday we headed over to Sannomiya, a downtown shopping area in Kobe filled with more stores then I could ever imagine. This being my third time to Kobe, and probably my tenth visit to Sannomiya, I was discovering whole new levels and shops in the area, it is quite a shopper's paradise. We caught the free shuttle bus to the new IKEA on port island as well. The line was a good 100 meters long... I was really surprised. (See picture below)

On our way back from IKEA we were unable to fit onto the first bus it was so crowded! So we waited for the next one and chatted about how we liked the clothing that some people were wearing~ After we returned from our shopping spree we headed out to Karaoke with Yui and Hiromi (Allison's tutor). It was lots of fun! I find that Japanese songs are the best to sing because they are really challenging and can teach you lots of Japanese and is good practice for reading and speaking quickly.

Once we had sung to our heart's content we called it a night and headed home.

Saturday Allison and I spend some time doing homework and studying in the morning before taking a quick trip to the mall to view the stores there. Before heading over to Yui's place to bake a cake for Hiromi's birthday with her and Yoyo. Allison makes wonderful yummy cakes by the way! Yui also taught me how to make Okonomiyaki and we ate that while the cake was baking. The pan-shwoop, where you flip over the okonomiyaki with just the pan, was the most difficult part I think. I was rather nervous, but managed it ok~ Once we finished the baking of the cake, we headed back to Allison's place to let the cake cool for the night. On Sunday morning we arose bright and early to make it to Yui's place by 9am to finish up the cake. With everything complete, Yoyo went of to Kyoto first so we could suprise Hiromi with the cake when she arrived. We then went to Tarumi station to meet up with Hiromi and her friend and buy discount tickets for Kyoto, which cost about half the price that it would of cost to buy them normally.

When we arrived in Kyoto, we ate lunch then headed to Kinkakuji to view the sights and eat cake. We also visited a lot of other areas in Kyoto till it started to get dark and we figured we should catch a train home so we don't miss the last bus. Luckly we all made it back in time for the buses and were safe and sound.

I joined the American Political class taught by the current exchange faculty in Kobe on Monday before heading back to Sannomiya for a little bit of last minute shopping, and then headed off for the ferry. I met some nice people on the ferry and we chatted and shared some food for dinner. It was a wonderful trip and thank you everyone so much for such a good time! I hope to visit Kobe again! It is always a new and exciting adventure :)

Rules of the Road

2008-05-20T22:28:00.002+09:00

During my stay here in Japan so far, I have noticed many things about driving which seem to differ from the U.S.A, besides driving on the other side of the road. There seems to be four sets of rules which are fallowed on the road:

First is cars:
As a road was built for cars they have the main say in the end. But driving habits seem to be a bit.... different here. I have often found myself clinging to the sides of my seat praying to live through the experience. Don't get me wrong, there good drivers on the roads but they seem to be young people. When I feel as though I am in a life threating position seems to be when I am driving with older people, particularly women (not a sexist comment, just from my experiences). There seems to be a lot of stopping in the middle of the road randomly or turning from the wrong lane. But other then my scary experiences as a passenger I have observed the social rules of driving seem to be different. People are far more common to stop to let someone to the line, or just driving more passively in general. Also roads are quite narrow so there is often no actual turn lane, so people just stop in the middle of the road to turn and other cars swerve around them. Needless to say I am very cautious about my surroundings when a pedestrian.

Second is pedestrians:
Pedestrians are pretty much the same as the U.S.A. Stick to the side walks and cross walks and you are safe. J-walk at you own risk. Pretty Standard.

Third are bikes:
Bicycles are a mix between the pedestrian and the car. They can ride on the side walk or on the road. Side walks here in Miyazaki are plenty wide enough for both pedestrians and bicycles and are made for both. Most bicycles are one speed and come equipped with at least a basket in front for various things, some have the nifty platform above the back tire and or saddle bags for carrying additional loads. Most mothers have one or two child seats in addition to a basket. The bicycle is really the way to travel here in my opinion.

Fourth, last but not least, is scooters:
These things are a drive at your own risk. They tend to have a max mph of 30-40 and fit into no other group. Most people drive on the very edge of the road to avoid getting mowed down by cars doing twice the speed. When cars stop at a red light most mozy their way up to the front of the line between cars to get a burst of a head start before getting passed by everyone once again. I often see scooters drive up onto the side walk to park. Please wear a good helmet while driving one of these crazy vehicles.

Though I have made the roads seems unbelievable dangerous and should be avoided at all costs, there are actually very few accidents here in Miyazaki. Probably because there is not the shear volume of cars that we have in the U.S, maybe also because all these driving rules seem like something normal so everyone knows what to look out for. I tend to see tons of scooters around the school because in terms of getting a license it is much more affordable then a car. A scooter costs about 300$ where as a car license costs about 3000$. I personally enjoy being a pedestrian or riding my bicycle.

On an ending note.... I have seen one policeperson in my 7 months here in Japan, and he had pulled over a scooter because it was going under the speed limit. This is quite a different place indeed.

Busy Busy Busyness

2008-05-08T13:58:00.015+09:00

It has been quite a while since I last posted in my blog. My mom came to visit me in Japan for the last two in a half weeks, she is currently on the way back to the U.S now. We have traveled to many places and did a lot of shopping! We visited Osaka, Kyoto, Kobe, Fukuoka, Kagoshima, and many sightseeing areas around Miyazaki. So many places in so little time! I think I shall take the next few days to relax and recover from all the traveling. I acted as a translator for my mom while she was here, it was great practice for my Japanese. I could go into many details of the trips, but I will just post some pictures with descriptions~ I shall start from the beginning~

The first day we went to Kyoto. The shrine is called kinkakuji. I visited it in the fall last year, but it looks completely different in the spring.

After visiting a few temples and shrines, we went to the Kyoto botanical gardens. It is rather off the beaten path of tourists but it was great weather and we got to take a leisurely walk through the flowers. We also visited the large green house in the botanical garden. oooh pretty flowers~

We visited Kobe on the second day. I feel as though Kobe is much more fashionable then Osaka. We traveled up the Kobe ropeway (a gondola that travels to the top of a mountain) and walked down through the herb gardens. We also did a bit of shopping in the area~

After a few busy days in the Kansai area, we took the shinkansen and headed down to Fukuoka. There we met up with my friend Midori and went out to sushi. It was my mom's first time eating sushi so it was fun :)

In Fukuoka we also went to Dazaifu in Fukuoka. Much like Kyoto, it was almost like a different place in spring rather then winter. There were about three different high schools visiting the shrine, but luckly we were able to get in and visit the shrine before it was swarmed by students.

After a week of busy traveling with suit cases we finally arrived back in Miyazaki. But the busyness didn't end there. We continued to travel around the area visiting shrines and beaches in Miyazaki prefecture.

On Tuesday the 29th we headed down to Aoshima, on foot. It is a rather long hike taking about 2 hours we arrived at the beach. It was full of surfers and the waters where clear blue. We went seashell hunting and walked down the beach to Aoshima. The island is surrounded by the "Uni no sentaku" or "devil's washboard" in English. It is a natural rock formation that is found along the coast just south of Miyazaki city.

Thursday the 1st I had no classes so we visited Kagoshima. It was a bit rainy but we were able to visit some places that Anthony and I were unable to see so it was quite interesting. The volcano, Mt. Sakurajima, was surrounded in mist and clouds so it was quite pretty. (You can see it in the back ground of the picture)

We also visited Udo Shrine on Sunday, it was golden week so there were many many people there. I was able to land one of the little clay balls into pool of water on a rock below the shrine~ Each time I visit the shrine it is always calming and pleasant, I wish it was a bit easier to get to from Miyazaki city.

And here is Miyazaki Shrine~ It is interesting because you can always tell where shrines are because they tend to be little forests in the middle of a city.

Other then sightseeing we did a lot of shopping. And I do mean a lot of shopping. It is shop till you drop here in Japan :P especially during golden week. It's dog eat dog in Aeon shopping mall here in Miyazaki.

Now my mom is on her way back to Seattle and I am gonna get back on my routine of classes and homework and living in Japan. I have decided to keep a nature journal to help me get through these next few months. This year has gone by so fast. When I reflect upon it so much has happend and I have learned so much. I am hoping to make the best of the last few months here. And I miss cheese so much!

Shiva's farewell

2008-04-12T10:53:00.006+09:00

For the past month or so I had been trying to find a new home for Shiva. He has grown up to be such a good kitty, and he needs more space and loving family to be with. Yet when I had to give him away it still hit me hard. He went to his new home on April 6th. He has moved to Nichinan, about an hour and a half drive away form Miyazaki Univeristy. I sent him off with some of his favorite toys. He was scared when he first got there, hiding under the table for a little while. But he is such a good kitty who loves people that he crawled out shortly and curled up in his new people's arms and took a nap. I have been keeping in touch with his new family and they sent me some pictures and reports on how he is doing. I am glad that he is in a good home with loving people :)

I am glad that I was able to help him recover from his sickness and find him a good home. I talked to my vet and he recomended contacting the Miyazaki dobutsu no inochi wo momory kai, a group in Miyazaki who helps find homes for abandoned pets. It was a relief to find this group here, I was worried about all the abandoned animals that live in Miyazaki, but now I am glad that they have people helping them. Anyways, I called them and gave them information on Shiva and sent a picture and they helped find him a new home.

This is their website:
http://www1.bbiq.jp/m-doubutsu/
and this is something pretty funny for those who like cats~ http://www1.bbiq.jp/m-doubutsu/cat%20commandments.html

I am sad that Shiva is gone, I wont hear his little padding feet running around the room at night. Or his happy meows and cuddles when I come home. But knowing that I helped him get well and find a loving home makes me happy.

さいよならシバちゃん I will always remember you.

P.S:
I think I am going to do some WTF cat photos with some of the pictures I have of Shiva hehe. He is just such a cute and slightly odd kitty~

Miyazaki Graduation

2008-04-12T10:41:00.004+09:00

On March 24th I went to the Miyazaki graduation held at Sea Gaia, a fancy hotel/resort by the beach in Miyazaki. Several of my friends were graduating including Kaori, Midori, and Satomi. It was rather short compared to Evergreen's graduation I think, just a few speakers and a small musical performance. All the girls were dressed up in kimono and hakata or pretty dresses and the guys were all in suits. It was pretty fun to see everyone all dressed up. It was so packed and busy with everyone rushing around. Anyway here are some pictures~

Ahhhh~~~ Everyone is starting the next step of their life's journey.

Karaoke~

2008-04-12T10:30:00.003+09:00

Hello guys~ I know I haven't blogged in about a month >< Sorry! I will try to do some catching up soon.

Last night it was once of my friends birthday so a group of us all went out to dinner and Karaoke. We went to eat sushi at a hyakuen, about 1 dollar, sushi place. It was so yummy and we all ate more then we should have! After eating our fill we headed over to Round-One, an entertainment center near Minami Miyazaki. Entertainment centers are quite popular here in Japan I believe. They have pretty much everything, karaoke, darts, arcades, bowling, and a multitude of other fun things to do. I often wonder how they fit it all in the building.

We headed for the Karaoke and sang our hearts out for a good three hours. If anyone wants to practice reading Japanese quickly I recommend doing Karaoke. The words zoom by so fast but most of the Kanji doesn't have furigana so you might be making up some sounds a long the way if you don't know much kanji. Along with a few microphones, there are Congo drums, little tambourine things, and maracas so people can accompany the singer/singers. It was super fun and we all had a great time~

I will try to post more of what happened in March after this.

Hina Matsuri

2008-03-13T12:16:00.009+09:00

Oops I forgot a little adventure! I should blog more often hehe.

On Sunday the 24th, the day after Anthony and I returned from Fukuoka, we went to go see the hina matsuri dolls at Aya, a little town north of Miyazaki, with Satomi. Satomi and I where dressed up in kimono and it was great fun! We went to a little lunch and tea restaurant before starting our walk around town.

There were a lot of people there and a lot of different displays. Some where owned privatively and others belonged to a company. There was also a little contest you could enter if you went to and collected stamps to fill out a post card and then mail it in. I'm not sure what could have been won, but I thought it was kinda cool.

Satomi and me in Kimono~

Fancy display in side a temple and me.

A road~

Kapa playing igo.
Sorry it's a bit blurry.

After we visited the main area, we went up to a old castle. It sat on a high point and the only way to get to it is to cross a bridge. We went in and explored the castle for a bit. The stairs were rather hard to clime up and down in a kimono. But we all made it to the top and saw a great view of the area surrounding the town.

Way to the castle.

The magnificent view~

...Tri-force?

After that we headed home. Satomi was heading to Singapore the next day and had to wake up at 3am. There was a lot of interesting things to see and wearing a kimono is always fun.

GSO retreat, Part three: Kumamoto

2008-03-13T10:43:00.007+09:00

On Sunday the 2nd of March we were given free time at the cycling inn to ride bikes around the area. There was a small 300yen cost, about three U.S dollars, and we could ride for as long as we wanted. It was beautiful and the sun was shinning. We rode around the bike path, I think we lost it at one point but we managed to find our way back just fine.

This is the group I rode with~

I realized how out of shape I was after that bike ride hehe, but I wasn't as bad as I had thought I would be. We pettled up some steep hills at the end which I was able to conquer so I felt pretty good. Once we got back and returned our bikes we were all ready to nap on the bus as it drove to our next location: lunch.

We ate lunch at what seemed like a tour bus rest stop. There were about four other tour buses that came in after us. We ate another Japanese style meal and got to see some pretty plum blossoms and shop for omiyage before heading to Kumamoto Castle.

Look at me! I am a pretty plum tree!

The main part of the Kumamoto Castle was, to me, not the most inpressive part. It was redone to be a modern museum on the in side with concrete walls and floors. On the other hand some of the outer buildings were kept the way the castle was originally built. With the old wooden floors and super steep stairs. These parts of the castles are more interesting to me then the modern looking exhibits on the inside. I like seeing how the castle was traditionally built by looking at the structures on the inside. The grounds were really pretty though and you can see the whole city from one tower. It was quite amazing.

One part of the city view.

The main part of the castle.

The cute little mascot~

Once we finished at the castle we all settled in for the 3 hour drive back to Miyazaki University. Once finishing this trip, I have traveled to each prefecture in Kyushu, Miyazaki, Kagoshima, Oita, Kumamoto, Fukuoka, Saga, and Nagasaki. Where next shall my adventures in Japan take me?

G.S.O retreat: the end~

GSO retreat, Part two: Nagasaki

2008-03-12T18:39:00.013+09:00

On the 1st we walked around Nagasaki, visiting the peace park, atomic bomb museum, and Glover garden.

The peace park was the first place we visited. It was built on the exact place as the epicenter of the atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki. It makes me sad to think of the devastation caused by it. The peace park is a reminder of the some of the devastation. It has part of the old church which was obliterated by the bomb as well as many statues donated from around the world and chains of 100 paper cranes(for peace).

This is a statue of peace.

This is a fountain in the shape of dove wings.

The fountan above is dedicated to all those who couldn't find water after the atomic bomb. It is in the shape of dove wings to represent peace. Not only was the city destoryed but many surrounding areas were damaged and there was not enough food, water, or medical supplies to aid those in need.

We walked to the atomic bomb museum from the peace park, they are connected. We were not allowed to take pictures but it was very shocking to see the amount of damage inflicted. Not even the makers of the atomic bomb knew what damage it could do. They felt regret after making such a horrible weapon to be used on people. What saddens me is that even after this destruction happened and, not only people but also the environment was harmed horribly by it, but people still wanted to use the bombs. Talk about short sited. Sure kill the planet and everything on it, that's one way to stop wars for sure. Anyways, it was a very emotional thing to see and I recommend anyone coming to Japan visit either the Nagasaki or Hiroshima atomic bomb museum.

After this sombering experience we visited the very lovely, Glover garden. It has out door excilaters going up to the part and covered moving ramps up to top so you can walk down from there. It was a lovely day with the sky just speckled with clouds. The park was beautiful with a great view of the city.

This is on the way up to the top.
To the right is a covered ramp way.

This is the view of the city from the top.
There is also an old European style house behind.

There was a place where you could dress up in
old European clothing and take pictures :P
Sadly we didn't have enough time.

The garden was built by the Glover family when they came to visit. It is a really beautiful garden and was a nice relaxing place to go after the atomic bomb museum.

Once we finished up at the garden we headed on over to Kumamoto. We stayed in a cycling inn in the country side, which was in the traditional Japanese style. Once we had all settled in and eaten dinner we headed off to see the lantern festival that was being held in town. It was hard to take pictures, but they were very beautiful.

There are little tea candles inside the bamboo pieces.

This picture only took 4 or 5 tries to get a nice one~
Tea candles on the ground in the bamboo but
lanterns are behind the large paper umbrellas in the back.

Awwww... aren't they cute!
I believe they are made out of little pods of silk.
They are sitting inside a piece of bamboo.

The festival was quite large and there were a lot of people. We were also on a time limit and wanted to make it to the onsen before we had to go back (the showers at the hotel were very, very small.) Once we had finished up we packed back on the bus, made a quick stop by 7eleven to get some snacks and drinks for the group party/announcements thing that night, and headed back to the inn. The group gathering was mostly about the new group of international representatives, a group that organizes going away parties and sports events for the international students, and just to learn everyone's name and get to know each other. But after a long day many people where tired and I think wanted to go to sleep hehe. The next day was going to be another fun filled day.

GSO retreat, Part one: Saga

2008-03-12T18:03:00.012+09:00

The weekend after my trip to Fukuoka there was a trip with GSO, Global Support Office for international students, on the 29th of Febuary through the 2nd of March with the other international students. There were 41 of us international students on the trip, so needless to say we took up a lot of room where ever we went and we had a tour bus all to ourselves.

We first headed to Saga. It is a little prefecture in the northern part of Kyushu right in between the Fukuoka and Nagasaki prefectures. We visited the Saga castle which was recently reconstructed about four years ago. In side were also Hina Matsuri dolls which I will talk about later.

Hey guys! It's a hall way.

The castle had exhibits and displays showing how it was reconstructed and it's durability. They sure knew how to made things last back in the day, the castles are built to with stand earth quakes and typhoon. Just don't light a match any where close, they are rather flammable being made mostly out of wood.

Lots of paper and wood....
This castle met is end in flames originally.
Burning seems to be a technique when conquering your foe here.

A video game in a museum.....?

This exhibit I thought was pretty amazing. I have seen several of these sort of "game" exhibits here in Japan. It is a full virtual model of the castle which you can walk through with a joystick and press buttons to open doors. All they are missing is ninjas and samurai and you would have a full on video game. In a museum in Kagoshima you could play as a young student in ancient Japan. Pretty interesting I think.

Oncer we left the castle we made our way down town to see the hina matsuri dolls. They are dolls that represent the imperial court and are displayed at this time of year. Hina matsuri is on the third of March and is also know and girls day. They are very expensive to buy so most sets that you see are old privet collections or owned by a company. Now heres some pictures~

These are actually in the Saga castle.

These dolls depict an old Japanese folk tale of the princess found in bamboo. (also in Saga castle)

And these are my favorite because they are made of flowers~

Once we finished seeing the hina matsuri dolls we headed down to Nagasaki where we were to stay the night before continuing on our adventure. Once we got there we ate a traditional Japanese style meal and headed over to the China town. I believe Nakasaki is famouse for it's China town and population. For one thing I see a lot of Chinese objects and symbols on Nagasaki omiyage, as well as a few exhibits showing the festivals they have there. It makes since, as it is the area closest to China.

In the morning we ate another Japanese style meal, and headed over to the peace park. Which shall be talked about in the next installment of my blog~

Dazaifu

2008-03-09T15:19:00.006+09:00

On Saturday Anthony and I made our way over to Dazaifu. It is a town near a very large and very popular shrine, named Dazaifu. It took about 45 minutes from Tenjin station in the middle of Fukuoka to get there, with one transfer along the way. The shrine is for learning and it was packed! We went around time time of College and High school entrance exams, so many people might have been praying for good luck on their tests. As you walk up to the main temple there are a lot of little shops along the side of the street selling omiyage (souvenirs), and food. To me, it had a bit of a Leavenworth feel to it.

The is the little shopping street.
The crowd is rushing up behind us,
so it looks pretty clear hehe.

We walked around the plum blossoms first before heading to the main shrine. The plum blossoms were just starting to bloom so the branches were spotted with little white buds waiting to open into the warm sun.

This is the Tobe Ume. A famous plum blossom
tree in the middle of the large shrine.

The shrine was full of people and easy to get lost in the crowd. Luckly for me I am easy to spot in a crowd of black hair. Once we tossed the five yen coin into the little shine box and prayed for wisdom we headed off to look around the area. There was a multitude of other little shrines past the main one which were almost diviod of people.

I enjoyed the little shrines better then the large more "comertial" shrine. I just felt like they had more personality then the large ones which everyone flocked to. One in particular that I liked was up on top of a hill over looking Dazaifu. It was peaceful and we only saw a few other people.

This is the walk up.

This is a the little shrine.

This is the walk down.

Once we had explored the area and visited the shrines we headed back to Hakata station where we hopped on a bus heading back to Miyazaki. The whole trip was a great experience and I love traveling and seeing different sides of Japan. From the laid back country side life of Miyazaki to the bustling cities of Fukuoka and Osaka. They each have their charm, but I always enjoy returning to Miyazaki after a busy weekend of traveling.

The Storm of Traveling!

2008-03-06T16:33:00.010+09:00

Fukuoka and Nagasaki 2-21-2008 to 2-23-2008

The travel starts at Kibana station. Anthony and I wait in the cold for the train to come at ten to seven in the morning. We hear it coming before we can see it. The ringing of the train crossing guards are easy to hear in the still morning air. Once on board we welcome the heat of the train, taking of scarves and gloves, only to put them on again two stops later when we exit at Minami Miyazaki station. We wander over to Miyako city bus station to wait for the bus to take us to Fukuoka at 7:40am. We pop into a little fast food/cafe in the station to pick up a bite to eat before we catch the bus. We finish just in time and board the bus, showing the bus driver our SunQ bus passes (a three day anywhere in Kyushu bus pass for roughly 100 U.S dollars). On the bus we find our seats and settle in for the four hour bus ride. Anthony drifts off to sleep and I pull out The Golden Compass and start to read. Time flies and re arrive in Fukuoka around 1 in the afternoon.

First thing on our agenda is food. We head over to the canal city near Hakata station and, after looking through the extremely expensive restrant side, settle on a KFC and Basken Robbins for dessert. The Japanese Basken Robbins has some of the most awesome flavors and they all rotate through the year. Half of their coolness is the names which are all slightly odd but fun.

There were also a bunch of small fountains and things around the
area as well as a water show with music.

Whew enough of that writing style~ After we explored the Canal city for a while we headed toward a Robot museum. Sadly when we found it it had been closed down :( So we headed off to our hotel. After a few buses and a subway ride we arrived at the hotel. We were a bit confused at first because there are four hotels in the area all starting with the same name. But we found the right one and set our stuff down before exploring a bit more.

Once rested up, we headed over to the Fukuoka botanical garden and zoo. It was fun to see the animals, but sad because non of them had enough room or interesting things to do. Some of the animals were shows signs of boredom by walking in the same path over and over. This is the second zoo that I have been to in Japan. I really with that I could help the zoos here by becoming an animal behavior specialist and work on habitat enrichment for the zoos. But that must be put on the end of my list of things I want to do in life.

This snake was doing some pretty
nifty acrobatics

After the busy day of traveling we headed back to our home base of heiwadai hotel for the night. We watched some Japanese TV which is always interesting... and a little odd... It was about two guys fishing in the snow and ice in Hokkaido I believe. Just kinda an odd TV comedy/talk show thing that there are a lot of here in Japan.

Nagasaki

On Friday we headed to Nagasaki. It is about an two and a half hours south east of Fukuoka. After grabbing getting our bearings and grabbing some lunch in the main station, we started out sightseeing. We had an all day pass for the tram, kinda like a train that runs on the road, so we were able to ride with out paying each time. We first visited Dejima, the island where the Dutch stayed when they came to Japan. It was quite interesting to see the mixing of Japanese and European architecture.

European on the outside......
(awww look it's Anthony :)

Japanese Tatami mats on the inside~

We also visited several temples and China town while we were there. Sadly we didn't have enough time to visit the peace park and the atomic bomb museum because they were on the other side of town :( The China town was interesting though. It is different from the China towns found on the west coast I think. I also asked a few of the Chinese exchange students about what they thought, and they said it is very different from China. They said it had more of a Japanese taste to it, kinda like the U.S has more of a U.S taste to it I guess.

This is kind of the main street into the
the China town.

After exploring around for quite a few hours we hoped back on the bus to Fukuoka. We arrived back in Fukuoka at night and visited a few of the more busy night parts of Fukuoka, particularly Nakasu Kawabata. I haven't been to any of the super flashy night places in the U.S like Vegas or something, but this was pretty intense. (See Anthony's blog for more pictures) We walked to the river front and saw plenty of signs for hostess bars and "soap lands" they weren't trying to hide what they were, a specially when they have their prices underneath the name of the banners. I don't think a bath would cost over roughly 200 dollars with out a few extras :P (The average price for an onsen, Japanese public bath usually around hot springs, is about 500 yen including soap). It was a pretty neat experience walking around though, but not what I would be drawn to every night. There were the little ramen and odon shops along the river with people packed in and a long line waiting. It was the other side that can't be seen during the day.

These are the little stalls, the people waiting in
line are way back in the back of
the picture.

Once we walked around there for a while, we headed back to the hotel to get rested up for the next day's adventure to Dazaifu.

Next entry: Dazaifu and the return home.

The calm before the storm

2008-02-15T14:46:00.003+09:00

Recently it has been rather relaxing around Miyazaki. I am done with classes until March and the weather is getting nicer. Anthony and I are planning to use this time do to some traveling through Kyushu. But that will come next week!

On Wednesday we met up with Kaori and headed to Udo jingu. While it has been the third time for me to visit, I still find it most spectacular and inspiring. The weather was gorgeous and the birds were chirping in the bushes. We visited and prayed at the shrines as well as tried to throw the clay balls into a small pool of water, I have yet to succeeded at this but I hope to have more chances.

This relaxing time is the calm before the storm of traveling set up for upcoming weeks. I will blog about that more once it happens!

A summary and reflection of my time, so far, in Miyazaki

2008-02-04T16:39:00.001+09:00

This is a quick over view of my experiences and thoughts of Japan so far. Please enjoy~~

I arrived at Miyazaki airport around 10pm on October 4^th, after a good 17 hours of traveling. It was dark but rather warm and humid. Kaori, Hirase-sensei, and Iwamoto-sensei were all at the airport to meet me. My first experience of Miyazaki was driving from the airport to the university, noticing how dark it was. There was just open expanse of darkness, no light of buildings or street lights. The hills and fields were dark. It was so unlike anything I had seen around the Seattle/Olympia area. There, one can always see the lights of houses in the hills or buildings. Once we dropped off my luggage at the dorm, Kaori and I went to the nearby Joyfull. Once I ate and returned to the dorm, I unpacked some of my items and settled down for my first night at Miyazaki.

My first few months were full of new experiences, sights, sounds, and smells. It was a little hard to adjust all of it at first, but after about a month I felt as though I had gotten used to my surroundings. I was able to meet my tutor, who helped me set up accounts, apply for alien registration, purchase a cellular phone, and just be an all around great friend. I decided from the very beginning that I am going to make my experience the best it can be. Miyazaki and Japan are new and different places. Life here has its own rhythm it follows. I take things as they come, always working toward my goals, and experiencing life here to the fullest.

After meeting with Hirase-sensei, the professor in charge of the exchange students, I set up a class schedule for my Japanese language study and environmental studies. I decided to take all of the elementary level and one of the beginner Japanese courses, a total six Japanese language/culture studies classes. For environmental science, I was able to work with my professor, Iwamoto-sensei, and his students on field studies and an environmental conservation class. The environmental class was in English and was comprised of other international students. During the last month of the quarter, the environmental conservation class turned to Japanese, which was a good challenge for me and my Japanese language skills. Even in Japanese I was able to understand most of the class, with my trusty electronic dictionary next to me for the difficult times.

Outside of class, I have met many of the other exchange students and Japanese students, participated in Japanese cultural events, and visited many sightseeing areas. The students living on the same floor as me (the fourth floor) have all been very kind and understanding. They helped explain how to clean on the group cleaning days, and how to sort and take out the trash. I always enjoy learning and talking to people while making dinner and lunch in the communal kitchen on the fourth floor. As for events, I attended a Kimono festival with exchange students from China and Korea. We were taught how to wear a Kimono and had the opportunity to wear one in a contest. Another community event I was invited to join by my Tutor and her family was a soba wheat harvesting festival. It was a great community event in a little town north of Miyazaki city. People came from many areas to assist in harvesting the soba grains. The tools used were tools invented back in the Edo period, but still work extremely efficiently. There was no need for gas powered machines or extension cords, the tools were powered by the people using them, and used simple things such as wind and gravity. After the harvest, we gathered in the community center and shared our thoughts and gave thanks to those who helped and gave their guidance. Throughout all these events and meetings with people, I have noticed a flow of information, whether it being a person wondering how to speak another language or someone being curious about the world around them. I am glad I can be a part of this flow of information. I am happy to share my experiences and thoughts about America as well as absorb information and knowledge about Japan as well.

Traveling has been another part of my experience in Japan. I have traveled to Kobe, Osaka, Kyoto, and Kagoshima. Each city has its own unique personality consisting of the people who live there, the architecture, and the surrounding landscape. Through the books I have been reading and the documentaries I have watched, I have been noticing the great impact that the natural environment has on the people of Japan. It is so deeply rooted in their culture, but as large cities and industrialization happen, I am afraid that this respect and awe for nature may be shunted into the background. But one can always see little bits of it pop up in modern culture. Take Hayao Miyazaki’s movies for instance. Many of them have environmental messages which are trying to be conveyed to people today. I believe there is still hope for the environment and nature in this ever growing world.

I will continue to do my best throughout my remaining time here in Japan. I am planning to do an independent research project on the bird populations in different ages of forest surrounding Miyazaki. I will continue to enjoy myself while I am here as well, since I believe that enjoying oneself is an important part in gaining the most out of an experience.

The Trip to Kagoshima

2008-02-03T22:12:00.000+09:00

(Above: Mt. Sakurajima)
Today was the day Anthony and I made our little day trip to Kagoshima, on the southern tip of Kyushu island. We had been planing this trip for about a week, and decided that today was the day to go. We struck out on our all day adventure around 6:20 in the morning, after giving a rather energetic Shiva his breakfast and medicine. The train brought us to Minami Miyazaki station where we would catch the highway bus to Kagoshima city. We were hoping that the Mister Donuts near by would supply us with our rations for the adventure, but sadly they did not open in time. Once we boarded the bus, we settled down for the two and a half hour bus ride and prepared to rest for the busy day a head.
Once we arrived at our destination, we sought out the Kagoshima visitor information center for directions. After receiving some pamphlets and an all day city bus ticket for only 600yen (including discounts to many major museums visitor sights, we used our poor sense heading skills to try to find the first museum we wanted to visit. After a few moments we decided to give up walking to a museum and took the bus instead, upon which we found we were walking in the opposite direction. Our first destination was the Museum of Meiji Restoration, or the Saigo Takamori Museum. It was a very interactive museum, with lots of information about the beginning of the Meiji restoration. They had a "videogame" where one would walk around in Kagoshima city back in the mid 19th century as a young boy training to become a samurai. They also had a drama/history presentation which talked about Saigo Takamori's history and the other major people in the Meiji restoration. The museum seemed to put a lot of thought into the different displays to make them informative and interesting to many people.
(Below: Anthony with Saigo Takamori and Okubo Toshimichi)

After we explored the museum, we headed to our next destination. It had started to drizzle by this point but because we are good seattlites we paid no heed, at first. We took a picture of the Saigo Takamori statue at our next stop, then headed off to find some nutritional foods. We found a yummy ramen shop to rest in and fill our bellies. When we prepared to leave how ever, we noticed the rain had increased in intensity. We took refuge in a little gazebo in a park near by until the let up a bit and our was about to arrive. We rode the bus to the cave where Saigo Takamori hid. It was a bit smaller then I had imagined it to be... but still neat!

Then after I hopped off at the wrong bus stop, Anthony and I wandered around looking for the Saigo Takamori memorial park. Anthony asked for directions from some people so we were able to find the memorial with out too much problem. The memorial was for all the samurai who had died in the Satsuma Rebellion in 1877. It was a beautiful park over looked by Mt. Sakurajima. It also had this nifty looking phone booth!

After we visited the memorial we headed off to the Kagoshima City Aquarium. I must say, Japan has really good museums and aquariums. I have been reading a book lately, and it mentioned that many of the large companies give money to create and build these attractions. Anyway, back to the aquarium! The Aquarium was four stories high, with a fifth smaller landing which served as a place to rest and had a nice view of Mt. Sakurajima. The exhibits all had very informative explanations and a list of species with their names and pictures next to each tank. Through out the aquarium there were also little bits of environmentally conscious writings. It was really moving to see these sorts of things, and they were all conveniently translated into English for us :) They seemed to be aimed at adults to help inform them of current environmental issues, in a nice subtle way.

<---This one was probably my favorite. (bellow: red sea turtle)

And here are some really cute fishies! It was fun to see how excited all the kids were to see the animals.

(bellow: Some cute fishies in the sea annenamies)

(bellow: very large crabs)

After buying Omeyage for everyone, we started off back to the bus station to catch the bus back to Miyazaki. When we arrived at Minami Miyazaki, we grabbed some dinner, and then headed back to the college. After such a long day, I am going to snuggle up with a sleepy Shiva and sleep soundly.

P.S Shiva has figured out how to clime all the way up the screen door and hop on top of my dresser and then walk across the curtain rods... He is a very talented kitten.

Shiva's sad day

2008-01-25T11:00:00.000+09:00

If some of you don't know, Shiva is the little kitten that I adopted and took to the vet here in Japan.
He has been doing well, eating a lot, very energetic, but now that he is seven months old I was thinking it is about time to get him neutered. So I called the vet and made an appointment for yesterday, the 24th of January.
I decided to get him tested for two common viruses found in cats, Feline Leukemia Virus and another one I can't remember the name of now, while he was there just as a precaution. So we left because he was going to have the operation. Anthony and I were on the way to lunch when the vet called me. He informed me that he has Feline Leukemia Virus and that there really isn't much we can do about it. Most cats die with in three years of contracting the virus and kittens are most at risk. I decided not to go ahead with the surgery that day because Shiva has been sneezing lately and his breathing has been odd, and with the virus he has a greater risk of having complications with the surgery. We have him on antibiotics for his sneezing now and plan to take him to get neutered in about half a month.
Satomi helped drive Anthony and I back to the vet to pick up Shiva around six o'clock. The vet gave me some information on the disease and the medicine. When we got home Shiva ate and then curled up into a cute little ball to sleep after an exhausting day at the vet.
I keep thinking that I did something to make him have this disease by letting him share food bowls and the kitty litter with other cats. But I know that he might have gotten it from his mother, or before he came to the dorms. I am going to give him a good life though. I also won't spoil him just because he is sick! The vet said that he was a very good boy and that I can be proud of him. It made me feel a lot better to hear that despite the fact that he is still ill.
I will continue to do well in my studies though despite this emotional hardship~
Shiva at 7 months old (below left) Shiva at 4 months old (below right) My how he has grown and he still plays with his tail!~

2008-01-21T10:51:00.000+09:00

So I haven't really posted in my blog lately. I caught a cold when Anthony and I were in Kobe a few weeks ago and have just now gotten over it. So nothing much happened during the sicky time. But a lot happened in Kobe and Osaka so I will post about the Airport adventure in a little more detail.
Anthony and I stayed in a hotel on Rokko island for a night before heading to the airport. Rokko island is another man-made island designed for tourists it feels like. It is a little odd though. There are lots of shops and shopping centers both empty and full with not many people around. It feels little like a ghost town sometimes. Anthony and I explored around this little flat square island for a while before heading to the airport around three o'clock. (Below: A picture of Rokko island's little watter fountain. They have a lot of water fountains and streams at Rokko island, in buildings and out side.)
The trip to the airport was the usual long journey full of the elaborate dance of the subway transferring followed by a long ride on an airport express train, which stops many more places than the actual airport but the airport is the final destination. After a small train adventure, we arrived at the airport around fifteen minutes to five and were greeted by a massive line in front of and winding around the Uninted airlines counter. After queuing up in line, we asked one of the people working what the line was about, because it seemed a little long and slow just for checking baggage. They handed us a peice of paper stating that the air plane had operational problems and would be unable to make the flight that day. Along with that information it also gave us a number to call for information, which conveniently closed at 5pm. So we pulled out books and game boys and got ready for the long wait a head.
There was a group of mid twenty somethings in front of us whom we started to chat with. Two of them were from the JET program and a friend of theirs was visiting. After the first hour or so we started to take shifts watching the baggage. The Kansai airport has a huge shopping and restaurant area that is accessible by all people in the airport. After hour rather lengthy wait in line we finally reached the counter. All of the employs looked exhausted, understandably so after dealing with probably a thousand people wanting to change their flight to the next available. Anthony offered to take a flight three weeks later. The man working at the counter was so happy when we asked for that. He upgraded Anthony's ticket to a flexible business class ticket. Once we got out of line, around 11:20pm or so we sprinted to the airport hotel. The hotel restaurant's last order was at 11:30 and we were very hungry. We made it just in time and ordered yummy food. Once we ate we went up to the room and crashed, preparing for the busy few days a head of us in order to get back to Miyazaki.

A summery of winter break busieness!

2008-01-06T17:15:00.000+09:00

Happy new year!　あけましておめでとございます！

I'm sorry I haven't posted anything over the break. It has been so busy here. Anthony and I have been traveling around and seeing lots of Miyazaki and the Kansai region. We visited Kyoto and saw kinkakuji and hein jingu. We explored the city and shopping areas of Osaka's Shinsaibashi area, and saw some amazing fashion! I wanted to ask if I could take a picture, but Osaka is so crowded, stopping was a bad idea at 6pm on a Saturday with a lot of sales all around. Kobe is a bit less crazy then Osaka, but doesn't lack any part of the amazingness! The ferry is a whole experience of it's own. We chatted with people in Japanese, tried the on boat Onsen, and were very perplexed by the "casually frozen food". After all the hustle and bustle of the Kansai region, I was happy to return to the calm, laid back atmosphere.

The busyness didn't end in once we left Kansai. We explored the Miyazaki culture and sights to no end. We experienced the "young peoples" culture with the Christmas eve date. We visited some illumination around the area, went shopping, ate dinner, and caught the bus to the train station (which was full of the other couples). We spent a nice quiet Christmas chatting with family, opening presents, and attempting to cook a large Christmas dinner with the equipment and ingredients available. It ended up being some spaghetti, miso soup, and apple pie. Not quiet the U.S.A version of Christmas dinner but it was oishii! Max joined our little Christmas dinner as well, most of the Japanese students and other exchange students had left for the break.

A few days after we visited Takachiho. Satomi (my touter), her boyfriend, Anthony, and I all made the long twisty road to the area in the rain. We got to learn the legends around the gorge and the omaterasu cave. We got to take a tour of a few temples and learn about them. At the Omaterasu cave, we built little stone towers for our wishes. There were tons of them! They covered almost every surface, it was hard to find any spare rocks or an empty place to build new ones. We also road the little boats through the gorge, despite the fact that it was raining cats and dogs.

New years was an adventure of it's own. We went to an Isakaya with a few friends, Max and Midori, for Yakiniku. It was an experience in the way of Izakaiya in Miyazaki! It is nice because many restaurants in Miyazaki have coupons for discounts such as all you can eat or drink for 3500yen. I love the way that so many Japanese foods are interactive. Such as cook your own meat, make your own okonomiyaki, dip your own tempura; I wish we had these sorts of restaurants in the U.S! Once we finished eating, we caught the last train home after having fun with puri-kura, the little pictures that you decorate with a bunch of sparkles and writing. Once we grabbed some warming clothing, we headed to the temple near the college campus. There was a bunch of omikushi, fortunes, that people would pick at the turning of the new year, and we could drink hot sake, and pray at the temple. People brought good luck charms from last year to burn ad buy new ones for this year. Someone brought one of the many cats that live around the dorms as well. The shrine was a small one, but we were still able to experience the culture around new years in Japan.

Basically this winter was a blast. I have studied mostly Kanji with a little bit of grammar. But most of my learning has been though experience. I believe that experiencing a language or culture is really the best way to learn. I am glad that I have such a wonderful opportunity here in Japan and I am going to use it to the fullest!

An adventure to the Kansai region

2007-12-19T15:40:00.000+09:00

I spent this past weekend, starting on Friday, in the Kansai region of Japan. The Kansai region consists of Osaka, Kyoto, and Kobe. Each of these cities are with in an hour of each other by train, which makes it easy to explore all these areas. The region is so big though I think it would take at least a year to explore it all. But I digress~

My adventure started on Thursday night when I boarded the Miyazaki car ferry bound for Osaka. It takes twelve hours and sails over night to it's destination. It was really quite an experience and a lot of fun sailing alone. There is a section on the ferry dedicated for women only to sleep and keep their stuff. Which is really nice, it made me feel much more comfortable. One very odd thing was the "casualy frozen food" vending machine, it was placed next to the beer vending machine. (Sorry it is a little blurry) Once I disembarked the ferry around 7:30am I got to take a crash course in taking the subway system in Osaka. I am so proud of my self that I was able to figure it out and ask people for help~ I was able to make it to my hotel around 8:30am, after wandering around the Shinsaibashi area for a good hour or so after becoming completely discombobulated on the subway. Lucky for me I was able to ask someone in a Starbucks where my hotel was. Once I checked into the hotel, I walked around the large shopping street near by to do some Christmas shopping and such~ Bellow is a very small section of the Shinsaibashi shopping street. It is so long I wasn't able to walk the full length while I was there. I left for the airport around 3:30pm to pick up Anthony. The kansai airport is about 45 minutes to an hour away from the Nanba eki. Just a few stops south of the Shinsaibashi subway station. The main stations around Osaka are huge! They have arrows pointing to many different exits and they have shops all over the place in the larger ones. Lucky most things have English as well as Japanese. After picking up Anthony at the airport and returning to our home base for the next few days, we went to explore the shopping area together and eat dinner, then fall asleep exhausted.

The next day we meet up with Charlie, to explore Kyoto! Kyoto is only about a 45 minute train ride from the Osaka JR station. It was very interesting. Every few blocks there was a sign pointing this way or that to various temples and shrines. We visited a few and walked around the area a bit. The first temple that we went to was Kinkakuji, the golden temple(above). It is painted in real gold! We were really lucky and got a tour guide, one of the local university students offered to give us a tour of the temple, I believe it was for a project. She explained what the different levels of the temple were for, as well as other various sections of the park. The first floor of the temple was used for Noh plays, the second for poetry writing, and the third for meditation. The temple actually burnt down in the 1950s by a crazy young monk. After they reconstructed it they put a phoenix on top to protect it from fires in the future. After we finished the tour of Kinkakuji, we wandered around finding other temples and such. We got a little confused at one point, but a nice lady helped up out. It must have been obviously that we were a little baffled by the lack of street names, with us looking at a map and staring up at street signs and point every direction. After she helped us we found the subway, with a few wrong turns, and headed on back to Osaka.

Another thing about Osaka, the shopping...is...amazing. There are so many shops. Near the Osaka station there is a large shopping mall with an electronic section which has many many floors. On the bottom is cellphones and computers, then home appliances, the games and toys are on the 5th floor I believe. And there were a lot of games. Japan has turned the Nintendo DS into more then just a game system. You can buy what is basically software for your game boy. There are cook books, learning software for math, science, history, you can buy face training/exercises , kanji learning games, dictionaries, and much more. I think it is a very interactive way to get kids to learn while playing video games :P But the games are not just for kids even, there are plenty for adults as well, to help with Kanji, and such. The clothing shopping is also amazing~ But I held back my urges to shop~

On Sunday Anthony and I headed to Kobe. We were heading to meet Charlie who we stayed with for a few nights while we visited Kobe. Thanks Charlie! :) We toured around the Sannomiya shopping area, visited the Kobe tower, saw the luminarie, and ate at many yummy restaurants. The Sannomiya shopping area was pretty amazing, there was one street that ran underneath the train tracks. It started off in nice fashion and got weirder and weirder and we headed down the street. Kobe is a pretty nifty place. Not as busy and crazy as Osaka, but not as slow and sleepy as Miyazaki. It was nice to experience a different part of Japan. We were going to attempt to see the luminere on Sunday but the line was insane. There were a bunch of police helping control and corral the crowds. They had us walking all around the down town area. We walked for about 30 minutes before we found a sign that said the wait was 90 minutes. (Bellow: the line that we were to wait in, we were no where close to the lights yet.) So we decided to visit the Kobe tower instead and come back the following evening. The Kobe tower was pretty cools, we could see much of the city and the bay. Harbor Land, a shopping area and kinda a hanging out place with a Ferris-Wheel. (Bellow: Yay Kobe Tower!
On Monday Anthony and I took the train to Himeji to visit the Himiji castle. It was spectacular. I visited is on my trip to Japan last summer, but the castle is still amazing. They were restoring part of the castle when we visited. I think they are always restoring some part of it, because it is so large once you finish you have to start over again. We climbed to the top of the main castle, which is about six floors, and saw the shrine to protect against fire. The shrine was originally moved from it's original place when the castle was first built, but people kept getting ominous feelings so they moved it back, to the top floor of the castle. From the top, the whole city is visible. I can see why it was such a strategic place to build a castle. Anthony and I were thinking the whole time how difficult it would be to actually try to storm the castle. The paths are all windie and twistie with holes in the walls above for people to pelt one with deadly objects. The walls are also built out of a lot of stone so burning them isn't much of an option. Plus by the time one actually gets to the castle, there are supper steep steps and a lot of hiding places for defenders to launch sneak attacks. It was fun and adventurous to clime it all~ After stocking up on Omiyage, souvenirs, we headed back to Kobe to see the luminarie.

The Luminarie was a little better on Monday. We decided to try and get in line early, around 5pm instead of the 6:30-7pm we tried on Sunday. After about 30 minutes of wandering around in an ever moving light we finally got to see the start of the luminarie. Then everyone started to stop and take pictures every two meters. But it was awesome and very pretty. There was also a little matsuri, festival, near by so we grabbed some snacks before continuing out wandering. (I am only posting one picture for the sake of length, but I have many others to show~)
On Tuesday we got packed and ready to leave. Then we visited Charlies's college and ate with one of the professors that did the teacher exchange to Evergreen. We also did last minute shopping and brousing. I bought gloves because I was tired of my hands freezing off every night in Kobe. But they created a nice little Murfie-field and it has been warm in Miyazaki ever since I returned. We headed to the ferry on Tuesday evening. A nice lady helped us find the right bus stop to the ferry, and showed me how to fill out the form. The ferry ride was uneventful. I tried out the onsen on the ferry. It was interesting, but it felt nice. The same lady who helped us find the ferry also gave us a ride back to the dorms. It was an amazing stroke of luck. It was nice to return to Miyazaki after all the hustle and bustle of the large city. There are positives and negatives to each setting. The trains are more convenient in the Kansai area, but Miyazaki just has a nicer more laid back atmosphere.

I am glad to be back in Miyazaki, and spend the Chirstmas holidays with Anthony :)

Visit to Kaori's part 2~

2007-12-13T16:14:00.000+09:00

Sunday!
Sunday started in a flurry of waking up late and trying to leave on time. The house was very cold in the morning and the blankets were so nice and warm~ I wanted to stay under the warm blankets for a while longer. We all ate breakfast and packed in the car to start the adventure to Oita prefecture. Oita prefecture is the neighboring prefecture to the north of Miyazaki.

We started the four and a half hour adventure around 8am. We realized that we had gotten a little turned around when we passed a sign saying "Welcome to Kagoshima" the prefecture north of Oita prefecture. After looking at the maps for a bit we got back on track and made our way to the longest and highest suspension bridge in Japan. It was recently built so it was packed! As we walked across the bridge we could feel and see it sway with people walking on it. It was kinda scary, but the view was amazing. It was just past the fall colors but it was still spectacular. We ate ate one of the little restaurants near by then started on our way to the next sight seeing area.

Driving through the country side of Oita really reminded me of the mid west in America. It was full of rolling hills, surrounded by very large mountains. After taking some lovely pictures of the country side we made our way to a little tourist town near the bridge. It was full of people as well. And there were many large buses trying to navigate the small roads crowded with people. It was a cute place with lots of omiyage, souvenir, shops.

Once we broused a few shops we continued onto the next tourist location. We drove through an "African Safari" zoo. This was indeed interesting.... For one, half the animals in the zoo were not animals that belonged in the savanah. But it was fun and we got to see a lot of animals. I kinda felt sorry for them being cooped up, but they all had a lot of free ranged. We went at feeding time, and the black kites and ravens were all hovering around waiting for left overs.

Once we finished at the "African Safari", we made the long trek home. On the way I saw some real hot springs on the side of the road which we spewing steam and sulfer. It kinda stank but it was cool and you could see the sulfuric build up on the rocks. The funny thing is, is that this was in the middle of a town. We stopped at an izakaiya for dinner, kinda like a fancy Japanese bar, they are really popular and sell a lot of yummy food, and of course alcohol.

Sorry this entry is rushed, I am about to leave to get on a ferry to Osaka to meet Anthony :) I will edit it when I get back with more pictures and information about the trip~ I will also write about the adventures in Osaka :)

Bye bye for now!

A weekend with Kaori's family :) part 1

2007-12-10T08:19:00.000+09:00

This past weekend I was invited to spend it when Kaori's family. We drove up on Saturday morning and stayed until Sunday night. They showed me around the area and we went on a day trip to the Oita prefecture just north of Miyazaki prefecture. I got to experience their home life and learn more about her family.

Saturday we, Kaori, her two sisters, and I traveled up to Hyuga, where her parent's live. Her father has lived in the same house sense he was a high school student. We pasted the high school and middle school where all of Kaori's sisters and her went to school. Their hows was old but very large and nice and comfy. They had many flowers because Kaori's grandma really enjoys planting flowers. They also had two small fields where they planted veggies and fruits. Her mom grows azuki beans, red beans that you mix with sugar to create a sweet dessert, green tea, soba, and many other veggies. The community they live in is a little country side community. All of the neighbors know each other and stop by to chat anytime. I meet a few of them :) It was really nice to see such a tightly close knit community.

After meeting a few neighbors, relaxing and chatting, and playing with their little bunny Kerosuke-chan, we went and toured around the area near by. The ocean here is really beautiful and clear. We drove around this loop that stopped at many of the popular view points. After doing a bit of sightseeing, we went to pick up ingredients for dinner. They taught me how to make Chicken Nanban, a famous Miyazaki dish. It is a lot of fun, and relitavely easy! I want to teach and cook some U.S dishes for them as well. We also ate hand rolled sushi. It works kinda like making your own burrito. Add rice, pick the insides and roll it up. I ate way too much, and it is a trend that followed through the whole weekend. I think it is time for me to take up jogging again.

Once we finished eating we all sat around and chatted for a bit, and ate cake... I helped teach them some English words and they helped me with some Japanese. The whole day was a lot of fun and exciting. Thank you so much everyone ! :)
Next time: Sunday, the trip to Oita prefecture and beyond!

Harvesting of Soba

2007-12-03T09:35:00.000+09:00

Sunday December 2nd was another short story in the long novel of my adventure here in Japan. I was invited by my friend and tutor, Satomi, to go with her family to help harvest soba. Well to be more precise, thresh the soba. Soba is harvested when the flowers wilt and the little seed pods appear. The soba is then cut and the seeds removed, and separated from the bits of vegetation left over from whacking the plants. We were helping with the seed removal and separation. The event was a small community event in the mountains of Miyazaki. It took us about an hour to get to the field where the soba was grown. When we arrived there were already a bunch of people working. We placed the cut portions of soba onto a tarp and started whacking the seed ends with sticks to make the seeds fall off. After all the seeds were removed we sifted out the larger plant material that we didn't want, and then put it through a hand-powered-wind-tool-thing to separate it further. The machine was a large box with a papeller in one end and a shoot for the seeds to fall down in the other. When the papeller was turned it created a wind that separated leaves and small debris. The seeds are heaver so they fall down the shoot. It is amazingly effective and easy to use. The machine was invented about one hundred years ago during the Edo period and they are still using it today.

After the harvesting was complete, we went down to the town community building to eat lunch and make mochi. It was a tasty lunch that consisted of miso soup with soba dumplings and pork, onigiri, and some veggies. People are always amazed when they see I can use chopsticks. They are always saying 箸がじょずですね！translation: wow! You are good at using chopsticks! But it never really fails for me to drop something after someone says that...

Once we were all finished eating, people moved outside to help make mochi. Mochi is a rice cake made by mashing cooked rice until it becomes a sticky past. The rice is put into a large stone bowl (see picture for better explanation) and then mashed with a very large hammer. Everyone took turns mushing the rice. It was difficult but a lot of fun. The hammers are pretty heavy :P It was fresh, warm and delicious~

I feel as though I am really luck to see this side of Japan. The small town and the community that comes together to harvest the soba. While there I felt a feeling of sadness, wondering whether or not these small traditions and communities will be able to survive the ever-changing world we live in today. I think there is hope though. There were some young families that attended. I believe that as long as people are curious and interested about their communities and culture that it will survive. Japan still has it's most unique culture and I believe they will never lose that. Urban culture and rural culture are closely intertwined, thus effecting each other in both negative and positive ways. Hmmm I do believe I have another interesting topic to look into~

Until next time~

December is here!

2007-12-03T08:16:00.000+09:00

December is here! It is hard to believe I have been in Japan for two months now. Sometimes it feels like more, sometimes it feels like less, but it almost never feels like two months. I have been doing so much I feel as though time is flying by. My Japanese has improved and I am starting to formulate a more consistent study schedule. I am going to focus on learning more kanji, because in the time that I have been here, I have found it to be very important in everyday life, as well as a good tool for learning vocabulary.

This past weekend and part of the week, Thursday through Saturday, my friend Charlie from the Kobe exchange with Evergreen visited Miyazaki. Kaori and I showed him a round to some of the nice sight seeing areas close by. On Thusday, we visited the Udo jingu just south of Miyazaki city. It is the large shrine that was built on the side of a cliff inside a cave. The weather was rainy and windy, but the view of the waves was spectacular. The powerful waves crashing against the rocky shore seemed to fill the place with power. We also tried to throw little rocks into a small pool of water on a rock in a little out cove. If you make it, you will get good luck for the year or an upcoming event or something a long those lines. It is really hard, but Kaori made it in on the first try! Yay Kaori! For those of us that don't make it, we can buy our luck with little charms that are filled with the clay balls that made it into the pool of water . After the Jingu we stopped at a road stations, a supper rest stop basically, and grabbed some ice cream and a few omiyage, souvenirs. The rest of the weekend was full of more sight seeing and yummy foods. We went to the Haniwa peace tower, the shopping district downtown, and the Miyazaki prefecture natural history and cultural museum. The Haniwa peace tower is pretty awesome. It does this cool little buzzy sound when you stand in a particular spot and clap your hands.

The shopping district downtown is full of cute stores and yummy foods. I was successful in fighting the urges to buy many a cute thing~ For lunch downtown we went to a cute little cafe that sells chicken nanban, a famous Miyazaki dish. It was very deliciouses~ I think that cafe was probably one of the most fancy places I have ever eaten but it was still very affordable~ After lunch we did some more souvenir shopping for Charlie at the Miyazaki train station. Bellow the platforms they have a large area shopping area for little souvenir gifts and such. Lastly we took Charlie to the Miyazaki prefecture history museum. It is a very awesome place that has information about Miyazaki's natural history, including plant and animal species for many different ecosystems, geological history, and endangered species. The second floor has the cultural history of Miyazaki dating back to the first peoples. It is a very detailed museum and it is free! They also have traveling exhibits, but those cost money. After the museum we showed Charlie off at the ferry terminal.

It is nice to have someone visit and show them around the place. Thank you Kaori for driving us everywhere and hanging out with us! :) I feel like I have learned my way around Miyazaki city pretty well. From Miyazaki station there are a lot of nice places with in walking distance or a short bus ride away. As I start to feel more comfortable in town I feel like I can do more exploring to learn about the areas near by. I will keep exploring through out my time here in Miyazaki!

Sunday sunnyness

2007-11-25T21:03:00.000+09:00

I can not believe that November is almost over. I have already been in Japan for two months. I feel as though my understanding of Japanese is getting much better. I try to speak as much as I can with my friends, but I also help them with English sometimes which is a nice trade. I hope to expand on my vocabulary by studying because I am finding grammar rather easy to pick up on. I am excited to continue to learn while I am here. Sadly I have not been able to study the environment the past few weeks because I have been so busy and the students who I do field work with are busy preparing for a large science exhibition next month held in Miyazaki city.

This past Sunday, the 25th, I went to a Kimono Festival with several other exchange students from China and Korea. It was a lot of fun! We had to make the train at 6:50am in order to make it to the festival in time. From the Miyazaki Jingu station it was only about a ten minute walk to the There were a lot of beautiful people in Kimono. We got to put on a Kimono and get our hair and make up done as well. The Kimonos are all so beautiful. Before we put on the kimonos we had to do a walk through rehearsal, which I didn't understand any of but it was all pretty simple so there were no problems. Everyone is so pretty! There was a competition for people to tie their own obis. We didn't get to compete because none of us knew how to tie an obi hehe. There were also different examples on how to tie the obi in different ways and how to put on different kinds of kimono. It was all very fun and I had a great time! The women who were looking after us were very nice and helped out a lot by showing us around and helping us into the kimonos. Putting on a kimono is no simple ordeal. It probably took each of us about 15-20 minutes to have someone help us put it on. But it was worth waiting because they are so beautiful. Also, all those anime where you see women running around with long strides in a full kimono are a lie! It's rather restrictive in leg movement and even people who are used to wearing them have to take small steps because of how the kimono is wrapped. They are very elegant though, and I got to learn a few customs of how to wear a kimono, such as bowing and how to walk properly. The whole festival was great fun and a wonderful learning experience. I really want to buy a kimono for nostalgic reasons, but I know they are far too expensive for me~

I am having a wonderful time here in Japan and I want to bring back good memories for all of my friends and family:)

Friday madness

2007-11-25T19:58:00.000+09:00

Today was the end of another fun filled weekend. I visited many places and saw many people. I got to experience more of Japanese unique culture and learn the language. On Friday we, Satomi, Oo-san, a student from China, and her tutor, went to Takachiho to sight see around the area. Friday was a holiday for the Japanese labor thanksgiving, this made every where we went quite crowded but we made it through some how. (Below, a common traffic jam in the place we were, looks dangerous huh) Takachiho was about eight hours away by car so we started the adventure quite early, at seven in the morning. It was almost like a mini road trip. There were conbinis, Japanese coveniant stores, about every ten or fifteen minutes while we were on the road. We visited the Takachiho gorge, but we weren't able to ride in the boats because there were so many people. It seemed rather dangerous at times with a very thin road and tons of cars and people, but it was very beautiful and lots of fun :)After visiting the gorge we went to watch some Kagura, traditional Japanese song and dance, at one of the many shrines around the area. It was ... very interesting. Suposidly this is a different type of Kagura than what is in other parts of Japan. It was quite comical, and people seemed to understand what was going on. Two of the actors, if that is what they are called, were carried around on large bundles of branches which I believe were a suppose to represent hourses. They asked people in the audiance to help take them around out side and then carried them inside the shrine. It was very entertaining. Once we finished the kagura, Satomi took me to an Onsen, Japanese hotsprings. It was my first time so I was unsure of what to do, but it was fun and very relaxing. After that we started the long journey back to Miyazaki city.

While I was away I asked my friend on the same floor as me to baby sit Shiva-chan and make sure he got fed so he was well taken care of while I was away for many many hours. He is still very energetic as always, as is any kitten. I miss Thanksgiving in the states, but I am thinking of cooking some Thanksgiving foods for my friends in Japan. I think they would find it very interesting.

The kitten has a name!

2007-11-16T16:39:00.000+09:00

Today was a day full of ups and downs. It started off by waking up at 5:30 because the little kitten wanted to play. I have been thinking for a while about taking this new kitten to the animal hospital to see a vet, because it was abandoned at the dorm about two weeks ago. I did a little research on some pet vaccinations here in Japan and discovered that Japan does not have rabies. There are only several parts of the world that can boast this status, some Pacific islands and a few countries in northern Europe. Most of the countries are islands and have very strict pet immigration proses to keep rabies out of their country. I am still not quite sure what sort of vaccinations would be good to give this little kitten.

Anyways, I asked a few friends about local veterinary clinics. I was referred to another exchange student who is currently studying veterinary science at Miyazaki University. I started off by visiting the clinic at Miyazaki daigaku, but allas they had changed their policies and only take animals that have been referred to them by a privet clinic. But the exchange student offered to take me to another veterinary clinic in a part of town near by. We got there right when the clinic opened at 3:30. Being the first one to take the little guy to the vet, I got to name him :) His name is Shiva (or シバ in Japanese), named after the Hindu god Shiva. I also got to claim a temporary ownership of him because he was abandoned. It was a basic exam for ears, eyes, etc. He does have a slight infection in his left ear, but I was able to get some medicine from the doctor to put in his ear three to four times a day. He also has some flees so I was able to get some flee medication as well. The doctor confirmed him to be about four months old. I was wondering if I should get him neutered or not... It would probably be a good idea if he is going to visit my room a lot hehe. Right now Shiba-chan is having a nice long and deserved nap on my bed after a bit of soft food for doing such a good job at the veterinary clinic.　　(below is the same but shorter explanation in Japanese) (also below, Shiba-chan right after we got back from the clinic. He is tired from the adventure)
今日はおもしろい日でした。５：３０時起きましたが、新いねこはあそびたいんです。二週かんぐらい、ねこちゃんはまいのりょうにあきらめる。：（　私は動物病院（どうぶつびょういん）にねこをもってきたいです。でも。。。動物病院しりません。＞＜　それから、私の友だちに聞きました。２：３０ぐらい動物病院に行きました～。先生はねこちゃんは四月かんさいと言っていました。ねこちゃんは元気ですよ～でも、左耳は伝染（でんせん）があります。でも、大丈夫～耳の薬があります。ねこの名前はシバちゃん～

The trip to the animal hospital was very fun and interesting for me, but maybe not for Shiba-chan. He did very well in the car though, just sat in my lap and looked out the window. Luckly for me the vet knew English, but I tried to communicate in Japanese as much as possible. Although, sometimes it just got too complicated with all the specific scientific information. I am glad that I was able to take Shiba-chan to the vet today. It makes me feel much better knowing that he isn't sick or have any infections.

Tomorrow is the start of the Miyazaki University Festival. I'm sure I will have plenty to post on when it is over as well!

Wandering weekend

2007-11-13T08:34:00.000+09:00

I have not posted in my blog in what seems like quite a while. Things have calmed down over the past few weeks. My life in Miyazaki is starting to form a pattern, class, homework, hanging out with friends. I am still busy pretty much everyday of the week so time flies by, but I feel as though I am starting to get used to life here. One of the challenges that I have is cooking. It is not that I don't enjoy cooking, but finding the proper sauce and ingredients in the grocery store is rather difficult. I am going to cook and swap recipes with my friend which will be fun and help me with the cooking :)
On Sunday, the group I went hiking with held a nabe, a soup dish with various vegetables and meat cooked in a broth, party. We went to a stone river bank and cooked four large pots of nabe. It was a lot of fun and I got to practice a lot of Japanese. On our way back I saw my first traffic policeman. He was catching people who were going under the speed limit... Mostly scooters and bicycles.
There is a new kitten around the dorm now. Before there was only an adult kitty, but someone left the kitten in a box next to the dorm :( But the students take good care of the cats. The cats never need to worry about having enough food. I believe that some of the students take the kitties to the vet to get shots sometimes, but I am not sure. I hope they get well taken care of. Older kitty, Sei-chan (below) New kitten (above)
I am preparing for a trip in December to Osaka to pick up Anthony when he comes to visit me for Christmas :) My friend, Midori, is helping me with travel tips and with booking hotels and such. She has helped the previous greener exchange students as well. I am looking forward to the trip and to up coming events in Miyazaki! I will continue to post in my blog as these new adventures happen.

Living with the land

2007-11-03T16:46:00.000+09:00

Today I was invited to go bird watching with Kawano-sensei, a retired professor from Miyazaki University, and a group of bird watchers from around the Miyazaki area. There were about ten people including me. We were bird watching a long a river near Kawano-sensei's cabin in the forest by Aoshima. Kawano-sensei and his wife picked me up at the dorms around 10am, before we headed to the cabin, we stopped by a sort of farmer's market to pick up some mandarin oranges for the meeting.
The walk it's self was very educational. We identified more plants than birds I do believe, but the Japanese names escape my memory. I was shown many plants that were edible and ones that weren't. It is a good thing I know the meaning and difference of たべられない、(cannot eat) and たべられる (can eat). We picked wild strawberries, other fruits, and these little things that grow on vines that you cook with rice. There was also lemon balm and I believe some sort of plant from the mint family. Plants here confuse me a bit. Some of them look as though they are from Washington's evergreen forests, and some look as though they come from the tropical rain forest. I have decided to invest in a Japan plant field guide to help me in identifying these mysterious planties. Other than the plants we did identify quite a few bird species as well. Mostly by call and sound. We heard and saw a total of seventeen species, including one goshawk, several species of tits, two common kingfishers, a few brown dippers, and some other various birds.
After we finished birdwatching, we cooked and ate lunch together. I got to see several more traditional ways of cooking food, and several more dangerous ways as well... I wanted to help but I feel as though it might have burned down the forest if I did. So, I figured I would just help with the clean up and take a lot of pictures in the meantime. We had more food then I knew the names of, and all cooked in a variety of ways. The fish was cooked "Hokkaido style" I believe, from the few words I could understand. A grill is put over hot charcoal and you let it cook and just flip it over every once and a while. Sometimes the juices from the fish will fall down into the fire and start a flame, which can burn the fish, so it needs to be watched. The way the rice was cooked was interesting as well. There is a mettle sort of casing with a grill at the bottom where a fire is lit. The rice pot sits on top and is cooked from the heat of the fire. I got to help light the fire with a flint and striker set, or what ever those fire making thing-a-ma-gigs are called.

Well it's sideways but you can get an idea of how it works. It only looks slightly dangerous... Once the cooking was finished we all sat down to a rather healthy meal. It was fun to watch the interaction of the people there. Most were husband and wife couples in their 50s to 70s. I was able to understand an occasional word or so but most of it was a little to fast or complex for me to fully understand. While we were finishing up a Goshawk, オオタカ, flew over head so we all got up to look at it. It is a winter visitor to Miyazaki, but is rather uncommon. For dessert we had fresh baked yams. They were about as fresh as one could get. Pulled from the ground washed and put in the pot in all under five minutes. They were delicious!

After lunch, we got to learn about a tea ceremony. Two women in the group knew it, so they helped teach everyone else. It was funny because everyone was trying to figure it out with written instructions while the women were preparing the tea. It is rather complicated, but we tried with the written directions at first. I believe we made a few mistakes because she explained the proper way to do things, and we tried it again. The second time went much more smoothly than the first. We also got to snack on sweet candies while they prepared the tea. To conclude the day we all sang songs about nature, I think. Mrs Kawano-san helped me by telling me how to pronounce the Kanji as it came up hehe.
I enjoyed spending time and learning from this group of people. The day was full of new and exciting experiences. I hope that I will be able to join them on another excursion of theirs some time soon.
Also, I finally figured out how to post pictures!

Adventurous Weekend

2007-10-29T15:24:00.000+09:00

This past weekend was rather busy. There was a bus tour for the international students on Saturday and hiking on Sunday. The bus tour first took us to the disaster preparedness center, were we got to try out simulations or different situations. There was a room with smoke in it where you had to find your way through as if you were in a fire. My friend and I had a little bit of a hard time with this part. No one should ever paint their house purely white inside just in case they have to find their way out when it is smoky, it's rather difficult. There was also an earthquake simulation in the back of a truck. A group of four would sit in the simulation room and it would show you the straighten of the earthquake it was simulating. It was pretty cool~ We got to tour around the different emergency vehicles as well. While one group was looking at an ambulance it was called out to duty.
Once we were finished at the disaster preparedness center, we ate lunch near a field of cosmos flowers. There was some sort of event going on there as well because there was a bunch of booths and a stage with people preforming. After we ate lunch we went of a tour of the burial grounds that were around the fields of cosmos flowers. We also visited the museum of history or the burial tomes and the surrounding area. On the bus ride back to school there was the option of Karaoke but I think everyone just wanted to sleep after such a busy day.

Sunday was the day of hiking. We traveled to Inohae valley about 50 minutes away from the campus. The group organizing it was a international student association where Japanese and international people staying in Miyazaki can go to events together. It is a good way to meet new people and make new friends. The valley was beautiful, we hiked a long the edge of a river up to the top where there are a series of three or four waterfalls. We criss-crossed back and forth over the river about six times a long the hike so we had a nice view of the river. Once we made it to the top we had a few snacks before we started the hike back. The full hike was only 5km, about 3miles, so we were able to have a nice leisurely hike through the woods.

The weekend was very fun but very busy. I am glad that I am meeting people and being able to see different sights around Miyazaki at the same time. I hope that my stay here continues to be an adventure!

Fashion and Shopping

2007-10-25T12:58:00.000+09:00

I went shopping yesterday with Kaori, Satomi and Max at the Aeon Mall in Miyazaki. It is a large mall with many brand name stores and yummy restaurants. Something that was interesting was the fact that half the store names were in English. Now, having English as my first language I look at all these shop names and think...."huh?" A few examples are, Kuchiku (a children's clothing store), Know Beans (a fashionable clothing store), Drug stories (another fashionable clothing store). I was explaining to Kaori and Satomi the meaning of the names and they told me that they never really thought about the meanings before. I guess it is the same with U.S T-shirts with Kanji on them.
Japanese fashion amazes me. People are fashionable all the time. Whether they are going to do field work, or have a child, or in the office they always seem to be very fashionable. Not just the women either, the men too. The layered effect is also very popular in Japan. It lets you have many different combinations with only a few different outfits. I think I will have a lot of fun shopping in Japan!

Kojima Island

2007-10-21T12:00:00.000+09:00

The island of monkeys. My teacher, Iwamoto-sensei, invited me to come a long with him and one of his students to the island. He was helping with a parent and child event teaching about the monkeys behavior and cultural aspects. It was a fun adventure. The monkeys would walk right up next to people and pay them no mind. It was quite amazing. We had to leave a little early because the tide was coming in and we were going to get stranded if we stayed too long. The road to and from Kojima runs directly a long the cost line. On the return trip we stopped at several "road stations". Basically they are really fancy rest stops for people going on drives around the cost. The views were wonderful. The ocean just seems so endless when I look out upon it. We also stopped at the Udo shrine. It was built in a cave on the side of a cliff. It was spectacular to see the way the shrine was built in the cave. At the shrine people try to throw small clay balls into a pool of water on a rock surrounded by the waves. It was definitely an adventure and I want to visit again!

English the international language

2007-10-16T16:44:00.000+09:00

So English really is an international language. Each of the exchange students I have meet know their native language as well as English and are learning Japanese. It is amazing how they can learn all these languages. It makes me want to improve my Japanese quickly~ It has been great getting to know other exchange students because I can learn about their country as well as their experiences so far in Japan. It has been a great learning experience for me and I look forward to meeting more new people.

Other then meeting new people, I have gone sightseeing in the past few days. My tutor, Satomi, and I visited the Aya suspension bridge (I will post some pictures when I find a way). It was spectacular. It hangs 148m above the bottom of a river valley. The forest was bushy and thick and you could hear the birds, little waterfalls, and the large multitude of tours through out the forest. From a few places one can see the bridge spanning the gap far above. It was quite enjoyable, the hike through the forest is about three kilometers but rather steep in some places, but not as difficult to stop anyone who wanted to take the rather breath taking stroll around the forest. It is climbing in and out of a valley so there is a definite up and down slope. The view and scenery is worth the little hike.

I am having a wonderful time in Miyazaki and am excited to learn new things. I do miss family and friends back home but I know they are supporting me in my adventures in Japan. I want to make the best of my experience so I may bring them many wonderful tails when I return home.

P.S I will find some ways to post pictures. My blog site is all in Japanese so it may take a little time :P

Japan has Mosquitoes just like anywhere else

2007-10-12T19:20:00.000+09:00

Today was my first day of field work here in Japan. Like usual when working in a moist, warm conditions there were mosquitoes. Many many Mosquitoes. We worked in a 10 meter by 10 meter plot and did a vegetation sample in a middle succession forest in Aoshima. We picked a little place that was beside the road and blazed a trail to the site. We passed along a recently used wild boar trail. It was interesting to see what they do to the under story. luckily for us they are mostly nocturnal. We measured the standard DBH (diameter at breast hight) of the trees and also tree hight. Most of the trees were deciduous with a one or two evergreen trees. Where we are in Japan the evergreen trees are the most advanced stage of succession.
While in working we saw many birds. Including the Black Kite, Japanese wight-eye, Long tailed tit. We also heard a wood pecker and a bird called a bulbul. It was interesting to learn the birds by the Japanese name, much harder then learning the English names. These field days every Friday and I am looking forward to participating in many of them.

But other notices. I am setting into my dorm room. Besides the ants crawling in my bed and the cockroaches skittering around my room it is rather nice. I have no idea where all the ants come from. I feel as though I squish 20-30 a day. Hopefully as the weather cools the ants will disappear. I am making a few friends, few in the dorms and a few from school. I don't think I will have much problem living in Miyazaki. It feels much like Evergreen and Olympia. I hope to be able to improve my Japanese and learn about many more birds!

Crepy Crawlies

2007-10-08T19:21:00.000+09:00

For being a small country Japan seems to have rather large bugs, especially spiders. While walking around the university campus I observed a large number of rather large spiders. They were yellow and black orb weavers. I am surprised that there are any flying bugs left in Miyazaki with the amount of spiders I saw. It seems as though they have created a net between the trees capturing anything that wanders in. I wonder if they have to build their spectacular webs again every time it rains, hopefully not judging by how often it rains. On the news today there were large bugs. There was a short program on large wasps. Very large wasps, probably 2-3cm long. They were showing them eating little honey bees. I never want to run into one of those, I hope they are far far away from me. At least the cockroaches are small. I have killed my fair share of cockroaches and ants crawling around my dorm room.
On other less creepy crawly topics~ There was a thunder storm today. I met up with my fellow exchange student from Evergreen, Max, today and we walked around campus attempting to find the library with the fabled internet access. We found it, but to our dismay with was closed to the national holiday.
I am slowly learning Japanese from Kaori and her sisters. I am very lucky I have a friend who is willing to help me while I am here. I am still getting used to my surroundings here in Japan but with time I will manage. I miss my friends at home and most of all Anthony. But I will pull through and enjoy my time in Japan to the fullest.

The First Day

2007-10-06T20:22:00.000+09:00

Well I'm finally in Japan. I can tell because while starting a blog here the instructions were entirely in Japanese... I guess I should have set one up while I was in the U.S.A. It was a long journey but I arrived safely in Miyazaki airport at 9:00pm, surprisingly only 10 minutes late. One of the most memorable events on the plane was watching the parents place DS while their children read/slept. I met Kaori, Iwamoto-sensei, and Hirase-sensei at the airport and they helped me to the dorm. It was quite homely with the stuff left behind by previous exchange students. Among the treasures there is a fan, toaster oven, mini fridge, various kitchen (I think) cleaning supplies, a multitude of lamps, and a happy little plant.
This morning consisted of organizing said treasures and destroying the cockroaches and ants scattered around the room. I keep thinking the ants are going to plot revenge but that just be my slightly jet-lagged mind. The afternoon was filled with buying required living materials and exploring the large shopping mall on the outskirts of the main city with Kaori and her sisters. Most of the store names were in English which I found interesting.
After shopping we went back to Kaori's house and I made chicken strips for dinner. It was a busy first day. It has made all the difference having Kaori here to help me. It would have been much harder both mentally and physically without a good friend present.