おはようございます！

Im up early again.. you know what that means right? .. School!!!

Last semester I was in shock at the number of classes I had to take in English despite having worked really hard just to come to Japan. I don't feel like i improved as much as I could have so this semester im taking a whopping 7 classes just in Japanese! and only one intercultural communication class just for practical purposes. Anyway, from now on I hope I can post more frequently, its been so busy around here with all the new and confusing things the school is making the students do this year that even the Japanese students are confused by it.

Anyway, as short as this post will be, I wanted to introduce what ive been up to during my free time these last few days. 炊飯器焼き物！！Thats right.... to make up for the lack of an oven the last 6 months, the moment I realized I could bake things using my rice cooker, I went crazy. Up to now I've made cheesecake, chocolate banana coffee cake, quiche and beer bread! Dont believe me? see for yourself...

My first experiment.. the Cheese cake!!

Banana Choco-Coffee cake

Guiness Bread. Actually, all of the breads Ive made so far are made with different beers, I still need to try making a normal bread with milk!

The Quiche..

お酒を飲むと日本語ができます

In the last few weeks, i've met so many new people. In between riding my one speed bike to Beppu and meeting the new exchange students moving in to the Kaikan, its been exciting. I've definitely been putting to use everything I've learned so far in Japanese... and its not easy. I was somewhat of a shy person before I came to Oita, but with how things have been as far as starting a new life, ive had to get rid of some old habits and make new ones. I could say that I'm actually pretty happy at the moment with being able to use the language ive been studying for two and a half years. I know I have a long way to go too.

Also, im pretty happy about the new ryugakusei. We have new students from Britain, Australia, Korea, Norway, and of course the US. Just over the last few days, some of us old timers have been spending time getting to know the new people and just tonight we had our first nomikai. As crazy as its been.. still with the obstacles of getting to know people from other countries, its been fun. I feel its safe to say im happy with the new people and look forward to being friends with them and sharing more interesting Japan experiences.

Its always good to see people making new friends .. Japanese phones are great too.. you can just send your profile over infrared.

Nomikai!

Some of the original crew..

Plus.. some of the new crew!

Haruyasumi South Korean Vacation

One thing you have to be ready for when you come to Japan is....

Making a bunch of Korean friends!!!
That's right, something you should know when you come to Japan as an exchange student is that you will probably be around other exchange students most of the time unless your Japanese is reallllllly good. The interesting thing though is that you will probably improve your Japanese alot by talking to Korean exchange students who usually have a pretty good grasp on the language and speak it more frequently than others.

Thanks to some of these friends Ive come to learn about some differences between Japanese food and others coming from Northeast Asia. Ive really come to like Korean food actually. Shoot, I used to really dislike kimchee back when I first experienced it in the states. Now, I recently found myself searching for it at grocery stores only to be disappointed. Somehow the Japanese really missed out on the whole spicy food thing. = / Anyhow, this newfound love for Korean food eventually sparked and fueled the idea for a Korea trip. ..

During this trip I was lucky to visit quite a few friends... some I hadn't seen in a while either. However, to be honest.. my second larges reason for coming to Korea was food. It was like going from the land of "happy meal" size portions to the land of "Omg how do you expect me to finish all this?!!"

The first thing I notice the first morning... there are lots of motorcycles overpacked with who knows what.

Our first meal in Korea. Filling!!!!




Nathaniel. ahh the first of my friends to move to Asia. He's sort of my cousin..
either way, explaining my relation to him was rather confusing to everyone.


Mmm my first car.


Found a few flags with some Korean mythical creatures...

Pegasus?


Not sure... wouldn't want to mess with it though.


Band Pic w/Alex.. Charlottes sis.


Awesome underground library/mall/restaurant complex at Ehwa Women's Univ.


Mickeys favorite place.


Wait no.. this was his fav place.


Bon chan!!! (spelling not correct)

It was awesome seeing Charlotte... nice and 元気 again!!
Her mom is an awesome cook.

The BL5

Hoon Hoon Hoon.... the best guy I know.. the master of haggling shop owners
everywhere he goes.

The fortress at Suwan was probably the best cultural place to go if I had to pick one.
It takes about an 2 hours to walk the walls around the entire fort.



Just part of the Oita Daigaku International Family

mmm found this Shark looking creature inside a grocery store at the World Cup Center.

Back in Oita

From old people and porn shops to maid cafes, nerds and electronics to graffiti and fashion, the Honshuu trip was quite a success. For not being able to constantly keep up to date on what I experienced in other cities in Japan I apologize.

While traveling with a group of 9 was a bit exhausting, the trip went smoothly and we each were able to enjoy the things we wanted to in each city. Because of the simple layout of Osaka's subway system it was really easy to find your way around town. And being in one of the largest cities in Japan I got to see many things I've never seen before.

In the subway in Osaka, this was my first time seeing a traincar only for Women.

The streets of Shinsaibashi at night


Im pretty sure this is famous!


If McDonald's ever owned a night club, this would be it!
There was even a security guard.


"Love Lockets" by the Asian World Trade Center

The ferry we took to get to Osaka port all the way from Beppu.

Sonic! my favorite SEGA character of all time


Osaka-Jo aka Osaka's Castle










I dont know about you, but i'm pretty sure im not as fashionable as the girls behind me.





And of course, you can't go to Osaka without having some of the best Takoyaki.

I can't leave out what I saw in Nara and Kyoto. Honestly I didn't know much at all about Nara except that there were alot of deer roaming around. I thought that the moment I stepped out of the station, it would be nothing but forest, but i was wrong.

This place wasn't all forest but there were deer! It was a bit troublesome to feed them cuz they would start competing with eachother or start nibbling on your clothes.




We went to Todaiji temple which housed one of the largest wooden buddhas in all of Japan.





This was the guardian at the gate, pretty "BA" if you can see it.


Gold Plated!


This is Kiomizudera, the Water Temple



Kyoto is the first and only city i've been to where young women and girls still wear traditional Japanese clothing.

Omiyage shop

Wandering the old streets where the Geisha and entertainment district used to be and still is.


Kyoto Tower

Oh, and apparently this place has everthing you could ever want.

Although I already posted on what I saw in Tokyo, I can't leave out some of the most important things. Half the reason to visit Tokyo too was to see some good friends of mine! Special thanks to Ken, Han, Coco and Yoko for coming to meet up and hang out!

It was good to see some friends while splitting off from the big group. I got to see some cool things like China Town, Yokohama bay, Meiji Jingu and Harajuku.

This statue at Shibuya was dedicated to a dog whos master passed away. He came to the same spot in front the station year after year everyday to wait for his master to return home.

Went to the Channel 5 broadcasting station. They air shows like Doraemon and Shin-chan.


The gate at Meiji Jingu


Yoyogi Park


This statue actually came from San Diego!


Yokohama Port

At the temple in China Town.