Darlo's World

Today a friend and I made a trip down to Kyoto where a free Japanese Culture Experience day was being held by the Kyoto Prefecture International Centre. Obviously in dorm-life we don’t get to experience a lot of Japanese traditions, and the fact that it was free was extra icing on the cake. This was only my second time in Kyoto and we went by JR (instead of Hankyu) which meant I got to see another part of the city.

Available for visitors was the opportunity to join in with 8 different activities; 源氏物語 (Genji Monogatari, The Tale of Genji), 書道 (Shodou, Japanese Calligraphy), 着付け (Kitsuke, Kimono Dressing), 華道 (Kadou, Flower Arrangement), 香道 (Koudou, Incense Ceremony), 茶道 (Sadou, Tea Ceremony), 邦楽 (Hougaku, Traditional Japanese Music), Woodblock Printing and an interesting looking game that involved throwing fans at a bell. Though we didn’t try everything, we did try a lot including Sadou (something I can finally tick from my ‘to do list‘.

After having a ramen lunch, we headed for a wander around the area at some shops. One of the shopping centres appeared to be closing down for a refit, so the shops had generous discounts offered. Unfortunately this discount wasn’t enough to pry any money from my cold, long fingers. Kyoto itself seems to have a certain charm about it that is different to Osaka and Kobe. It seems to match the ‘city-ness’ of Osaka with the relaxed attitude of Kobe. That isn’t to say that I prefer Kyoto to Osaka of course, Osaka’ll always be my number one (sorry Telford).

We arrived back at JR Kyoto Station and found a local map. We’d decided to return via Hankyu (as it was a lot cheaper and more convenient at the Osaka end), so for a while we were ‘umming and ahhing’ about what we could look at in the area and end up near the right train station. The amount of time we spent there and also the fact that we were pointing (almost insanely) at the map must have looked very suspicious (looking back I’d say it definately was) and we were soon joined by two members of the local police asking us if we were ok.

Calmly the police officers explained who they were and asked us who we were. We explained that we were exchange students and that we hadn’t decided on where to go yet (in a combination of English and Japanese … their English was really good). Before arriving in Japan we’d been told that Japanese police officers can stop you and ask to see your 外国人登録証明書 (gaikokujintourokushoumeisho, alien registration card) or passport (if in Japan under 90 days). This was again told to us by Konan when we arrived, so obviously I always keep it with me.

As I expected we were asked for ours. We gave them over and stood waiting, quite nervous mind you. It wasn’t just that the police were talking to us, it was another country’s police force with different understandings of situations and anything lost in translation could have done more harm than good. However the officers too kept calm and we were on our way moments after. The police even made a suggestion of a nice place to go.

Now the thing is, I’ve read lots of people’s accounts of dealing with similar situations and they appear to have all gone tits up. This is mainly because the person being questioned appears insulted to have been ‘singled-out’. This lead to arsey remarks, sarcastic comments and really bad handling of the event because from the get-go the ‘questionee’ felt like the victim and didn’t co-operate fully. But folks the simple thing is, if you just co-operate with the police whilst they do their job, it’ll be over with in moments. Unless of course you have something to hide. My advice if it happens to you is don’t dick about, don’t play the ‘victim of international hatred’, just give your card, stay calm and polite, then be on your way.

Moving story back to the ‘will I won’t I’ scenario on going to Gifu. I’ve been putting away some yennies every now and then and have decided I’m going to just bite down on my pride and go by train. I know how much I really wanted to walk, but if I’m going to go at all I’m not going to be able to go on foot, not with the time I have left anyway. So whenever I get some free time, probably in May before flying back home, I’ll be heading to Shirakawa.

On that note I re-watched season one of ひぐらしのなく頃に (Higurashi no naku koro ni) to gear myself up for it (at the same time introducing the series to one of my dorm mates) and must again complement it’s storytelling and art styles. Yes there’s extreme graphic violence and torture scenes but on this scape it works … really well. Last night I went to sleep considering different parts of the series and how they work with and off each other, and when I woke up I realised I was still contemplating. This didn’t help my sleep at all though, I was pretty knackered on the way to Kyoto.

Sleep can be considered a very important aspect of life by most people. Not me. Personally I’d rather be doing stuff than spending the recommended time, 8 hours (a third of the entire day), doing something else. An overdue essay, a drawing, sending the Christmas gifts that you should have sent (before Christmas), these are just a few of the things I’ve been having to put off lately because my body demands rest. Ironically when I do submit and go to bed, it usually takes another hour or so to actually get to sleep. This being said however, I have finally managed to sort myself out a (somewhats) regular sleep pattern, aswell as finishing that damn essay.

Technically speaking I’ve moved again. I’m in the same room, only I’m not sleeping on the bed anymore. A few nights ago I wanted to keep up late working but I was getting too tired. I compromised with myself that I’d have a little kip, but would sleep on the floor where it would be colder and less comfortable, meaning I could get up easier when I did drop off. Twist of fate would have it that it’s actually a really comfortable floor, and I’ve been sleeping there ever since. Now all I need is a proper futon, and not just a blanket, and then I can tick off another box of daily achievements of Japanese lifestyle.

My new years resolution (aka the thing which I’ll actually just do for the first few days of the year and then agree to sod it) is to do or go somewhere new every day. So far I’ve managed to keep that resolution; the first two days I explored new spots of my local area and today me and some friends went to Kyoto. Overall, though it was marred by cold and damp weather, the environment and scenery were very easy on the eye.

I did however rekindle my old hatred of tourist areas due to the kind of people they attract the most. Tourists! I know initially this will sound very hypocritical, me being a tourist most of the time, but the vast majority of tourists really do my nut in. Their attitudes and lack of a moral and social conscience not only leave a negative impression for all people wanting to visit an area, but also ruins the days of pretty much everyone (unless the weather got there first). Personally I’d like to see some sort of tourist licence that meant that only people who understand that going to a new place doesn’t mean that everyone there is your servant, can go and visit places. I know this sounds just more like a rant, and I guess it kind of is, but as my time passes in Japan I certainly want to try to leave a positive impression of foreigners.

This isn’t to say that all the tourists I encountered got me irritated. I was incredibly impressed by one American woman (I think she had a Texas accent) who couldn’t find her way to a shrine and asked us if we knew where it was (as I said in a previous entry, this I don’t mind, but foreigners coming up to me wanting to just speak to me because I’m foreign I generally do). Not only did she ask us in a very polite manner (scoring major points in my book anyway), but she asked us in Japanese. It was very simple Japanese, clearly she’d learned a few key phrases, and this was a huge impression left with me. To be honest when I first saw her approaching with a map, I had a vague idea that she’d be asking directions, but well done that lass for going that extra mile. For the record we directed her in English.

I’d first discovered Fukubukuro when reading Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei a couple of weeks ago. A fukubukuro roughly equates to a lucky bag, and come New Year shops start making and selling these depending on what kind of store they are. Nozomu Itoshiki (aka Mr Despair) basically describes them as a way of getting rid of the stores junk and unwanted items, and walking around Kyoto today I saw them at almost every single store, large or small. Prices of these lucky bags also varied depending on what you might expect to get in it, with the most expensive one I saw at 80,000 yen (just under £570) at a jewellery shop.

I’m pretty much open to trying anything at least once, especially with food (unless mayonnaise is involved, then it can go get stuffed) and in the past have enjoyed weird combinations; cucumber dipped in apple sauce and KFC with maple syrup to name a couple. So today when I saw a new flavour of ice cream I felt I had to give it a go. Personally, the taste wasn’t so great, but in reality I don’t think many people could eat Pumpkin and Chestnut Ice-Cream. Giving it to my friends there was a mix of reactions, but at least I know now to stick to mint chocolate-chip.