Time check … midnight, exactly. In roughly twelve hours time I will be leaving my dorm and beginning the long and arduous journey back to the UK. First off, here’s an appropriate tune by John Loeffler (not sure who sings it though), The Time Has Come.

Between trying to pack my life into various boxes and send things home via the Japanese post office (an expensive, time consuming and freakin’ heavy task by the way), I’ve tried to fit in a few more of my “When in Japan” wants and desires including making a few new ones which did kind of jump on me spur of the moment. So I guess now with my big ass hefty bag packed and my smaller hand luggage missing a few things (this laptop, my PSP and DS which are charging etc), I should tell you how I’ve spent my last week in the land of the rising sun.

First off I’ve not been able to go into university at all this week which was really gutting. As I keep banging on, at uni’s one of the few places I can meet up with Japanese friends who happen to live in a different prefecture from me. It was not that I physically couldn’t go, it’s that at the moment a lot of schools in Kansai have been closed down since the breakout of the Piggy Flu in Kobe, which in turn has spread to my own Osaka. Thankfully no one I know has been infected, though a couple are nursing regular colds.

During the week I managed to get in a final trip back to Kyoto with two friends (European and Japanese). Between the three of us there were similar things we wanted to see, as well as our own individual interests to follow. Buying bus passes for 500 yen (£3.33) which gave us travel across the city, we set sail for 金閣寺 (kinkakuji, the Golden Pavillion Temple).

The only thing that was against us was the weather. It was warm, so definately t-shirts, but it rained. This meant that the nice views of the Golden Temple could have been spectacular views. Not only that but it’s a pain in the arse trying to take photographs holding a brolly. During our time in the park we came across an interesting vending machine which sold disposable cameras and film, though this was not the strangest vender of the day. Walking to the bus stop we passed a vending machine selling neck-ties (fair enough), and hoover bags. Yes … hoover bags. The thing you stick in a hoover.

Next on our group voyage was one for me, a visit to another one my Leeds based Japanese teacher’s universities, Doshisha University. Carrying on from my adventure in Hiroshima, this was the second of three universities on my list. After taking a video (where the sound didn’t record properly) we headed off for a quick lunch.

Altogether we then went onto the 銀閣寺 (Ginkakuji, the Silver Pavilion Temple). Although the building was under construction, well, renevation, the Silver Temple (though actually brown and woody) was still a nice site, and so was the park area that accompanied it. At this point we split up, and I headed Southward towards 清水寺 (kiyomizudera).

In English we have a saying about “taking a plunge”, in Japanese the equivalent is “jumping off the stage at Kiyomizudera”. An awesome temple that is supported by strong 13 meter high wooden columns, Kiyomizudera gave spectacular views and good photos despite the crappy rain.

Before going home I wondered the streets of Kyoto’s Kawaramachi area before eventually meeting a KFC Colonel Sanders (life size model) in a kimono and Happi coat.

On Wednesday we all got together again for a trip down the Hankyu line to the 中山寺 (Nakayamadera). Nakayamadera is a Buddhist temple in 宝塚 (Takarazuka), and is known as a temple to pray for an easy childbirth. Though none of us were expecting (wanting) kids anytime soon, the excellent weather compared to Kyoto made for a nice day out (and also this was the first temple I’d been to with an escalator). After a bout of karaoke, we then went our seperate ways.

Time Check … 02:08 … crap. Sodding distractions.

That night me and a guy from France went to the Speak Easy darts bar in Umeda for a final drink. Originally due to the fact I still had a lot of crap to sort out I’d only intended on stopping for one or two (much like how I intended on writing this entry a lot faster so I’d be in bed by now), but as one thing led to another we ended up staying until the bar closed at around 5 am; hello sunshine. It’s thanks to this darts bar that we’ve been able to practice spoken Japanese with native speakers outside uni (the bar staff), but also I’ve developed a taste for Soft-tip darts (though am still not very good at it).

So yesterday (Thursday) I managed to tick off two more things off my list. First of all I finally got around to going to a media cafe. Most of my fellow foreign students use these as a cheap(er) means of having somewhere to sleep when you miss the last train, but because I normally don’t venture far enough away that I couldn’t get back on Shank’s Pony I’ve yet to have the need to kip in one. Now I know that these vary from place to place and company to company, so I’ll just give a quick overview of the one I was in, Cats. Cats is a mens only cafe with shower facilities (at an extra charge I think). The room I got was small, but comfortable, with fast internet access, reclining leather seat and access to the plentiful DVD and Manga library. I wish I could say I nosed around a bit more, but I had something I needed to find online; the final university.

I was lucky in that my final teacher studied in Osaka, but I was unlucky that it was Osaka prefecture rather than Osaka city. I’d never taken the monorail here, but because it’s very similar (aka pretty much the same) to taking the regular train I didn’t have to worry. The Osaka University of Foreign Studies in the Minou area of Osaka, had merged with and became a part of the Osaka University in 2007, but remains in the same location.

After taking a video message at the university, as done for the others, I then walked the long way back to the train station exploring the countryside area. In a way it seemed to remind me a lot of various pictures of Shirakawa (Gifu) that I’d seen. I guess because I couldn’t get to Shirakawa this time around, Minou was a nice alternative. However for some reason every dog there seemed to get angry at me.

Which brings us to today (Friday), my last day. The time is currently 02:39.

First let me top up your background music. This is one of my favourites to do at karaoke, Anata by Akiko Kosaka.

Me and a couple of friends (the same 2 who I went to Kyoto with) had decided we’d head to Sushiro for lunch (sushi on conveyor belts). On the way we made an important stops though. I have a bank account here in Japan and since I’m leaving the country we (Konan exchange students) have been recommended to close them, unless we intend to return to Japan in which case we need to give the bank our home address. After a lot of explaining and mangled Japanese from me (and a lot of patience and understanding from the girl who served me) my address was changed and we headed off for lunch.

Not really much to report on as far as food goes in comparison to last time we went, except this time we got the worst table at the very end of the conveyor belt, meaning every other buggar got the best choice. Should I make a dorm/homestay comparison I wonder?

After lunch we popped into Softbank so that I could cancel my phone contract. Doing this early meant that I had to pay for the remaining period of time on there, but since I was quite smart at the start (smarmy buggar aren’t I) it was only a few thousand yen. From the sound of some of my friends because they went for more expensive contracts (some as long as 2 years, as well as actually costing more) they’ve had to pay up to £200 to get out of their contracts early. Now what to do with my Japanese handset. Ebay?

We headed back to Umeda for a wander around and ended up eating a crepe; mine being banana chocolate & strawberry, but soon parted ways with some tears.

Right … tonight … nearly done. Pachinko is a funny ol’ game isn’t it. Me and a European friend finally had a go on the game that holds it’s own popularity in Japan. Now because of the fact neither of us had a clue on what we were to do or how to play (other than the fact it used tiny balls pinging into a machine), we found a pachinko parlour that seemed to be quite empty and had a staff member easily visible (for when we cocked up). Splitting a bucket of balls between us we cracked on and after wasting at least half of them found out what to do (thanks to sed staff member). Our 1000 yen (£6.64) bucket was soon gone (after about 10 minutes), so we headed off. I guess once you know how to play and learn how to work the machine, you’re bound to get better.

For dinner a few of us went to our local 鳥貴族 (torikizoku, the 280 place) where after eating my usual Chicken Heart and drinking my huge glass of beer, I tried a black ice-cream. It tasted like burned bread.

We ended the day with a trip to a games arcade where I held my own in Virtua Fighter 5, but got my ass handed to me in both Tekken 6 and some tennis game.

So I guess this is it. The next time I write on this blog I’ll more than likely be in a different country and will have left the land that I have come to love. I want to thank every one that’s made this year possible (except for the jerks … you know who you are (if you’re reading this, you’re probably not one, so rest easy)) and really mean it when I say that I will come back if it’s the last thing I do; didn’t fancy quoting the Terminator.

So to sing us out, here’s Vera Lynn with We’ll Meet Again. T_T (finished @ 3:34 am)

Well folks I’ve returned from our final whole-class field trip during my year in Japan and am happy to say for the vast majority of the time I had a very nice time. Since this is going to be a fairly hefty entry, writing about three days and all, let’s start off with a little background music shall we? The song is called New Soul by Yael Naim, one that I’ve only recently heard about but it’s pretty cool, especially with these pictures of Yotsuba (if you read the series you’ll know why it fits so well).

• Day 1 – Shinkansen, Hiroshima, Peace Talks, Someone Elses University
• Day 2 – The Island, The Bridge, The Discrimination
• Day 3 – Clapping, Caving, Cop-Out, ID?

Day 1

Shinkansen, Hiroshima, Peace Talks, Someone Elses University

Having a trip not going in the direction of Osaka meant that I didn’t have to be sour about having to skip breakfast; the previous 2 class trips had us go all the way to Kobe to meet the group then head back through Osaka (moments from the dorm) to get to the destination. Something also was different on this morning and that was the fact that because the dorm I’m in now serves breakfast from 6:30 instead of 7, I didn’t need to skip it at all, though with the amount of mayonnaise on the plate I just stuck with the toast.

On this trip we were taking the 新幹線 (Shinkansen, bullet train) a first for many of us, so timing was crucial. The meeting point was also at a different station to what we were normally used to, but because we left earlier than usual we didn’t feel much of a rush, knowing full well we’d be on time. I was thankful to see that all the other students also made it on time, knowing for a fact they’d get left behind (something that didn’t happen in previous trips, much to my dissapointment).

Passing a vending machine with a rather funny sign urging us to “drink tobacco” (photo taken of course), we boarded Nozomi 101 and took our seats and prepared for the trip. As expected from a train with an operating speed of 300kmph (186.4 mph), travelling to Hiroshima was incredibly fast, arriving in just one hour and 15 minutes.

In Hiroshima we met up with our very friendly, though a little nervous, tour guide. The bus seemed to be where most people felt at ease as the majority of us soon found ourselves falling asleep. This was a feature common throughout the whole trip, regardless of how much sleep we’d get at the hotels.

Stop one was lunch and for this we went to お好み焼き村 (Okonomiyaki Mura, Okonomiyaki Village) for some Okonomiyaki. Hiroshima, it seems, has become famed for it’s style of okonomiyaki, much to the same way my own home town of Osaka has for the same reason (read this short article for differences between the two). Our food was already ordered before we got there (the ’speciality’ okonomiyaki) so unfortunately for me I had no choice in what went in it, meaning I couldn’t say “please … no mayo”, which has happened every time I’ve had okonomiyaki in the past. However this time it was different, no sign of that awful white gunk could be seen at all, and I managed to eat the entire thing getting a satisfyingly full stomach.

When I look back at the photos I took of and in our next destination, the 広島平和記念公園 (Hiroshima Heiwa Kinen Kouen, Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park), I feel … something. I’m not sure exactly what it is and I don’t want that to come across as one of the many generic “Oh my gawd I can’t believe we did that to those people”-type comments that I heard way too often from tourists when I was there, but something in the park definately had some kind of effect on me.

The only times that I’d seen the A-Bomb dome, the skeletal remains of the Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall, a building that’s structure survived largely due to it being at the epicenter of the atomic blast, was from はだしのゲン (Hadashi no Gen, Barefoot Gen). Barefoot Gen by Keiji Nakazawa, is a manga (later an anime) which depicts the semi-autobiographical tale of a boy surviving the nuclear blast which, in itself, also had a profound effect on me. Perhaps it’s because I don’t know much about the war itself, or much of what happened either side of it.

My feeling of ’something’ was further emphasised when we went onto the 広島平和記念資料館 (Hiroshima Heiwa Kinen Shiryoukan, Hiroshima Peach Memorial Museum). Seeing simple things like a watch which stopped at 8:15am (on the 6th of August 1945) and models showing before and after versions of the area that we were in were a bit too much for some, as they left the museum back through the entrance rather than see the whole thing. Perhaps that was a good thing. Had they reached the part of the exhibition that showed how people were walking with their skin dripping from their bodies and jumping into rivers filled with blood to cool down from the heat only to realise it was boiling, who knows how they’d have reacted.

After the museum, at the recommendation of one of my teachers I then went to the nearby 国立広島原爆死没者追悼平和記念館 (Kokuritsu Hiroshima Genbaku Shibotsusha Tsutou Heiwa Kinen Kan, Hiroshima National Peace Memorial Hall for the Atomic Bomb Victims). Topped with a simple water feature, made with tiles from buildings destroyed 63 years ago, you are made to walk down a seemingly never ending hallway with information points along the way, until you reach the main hall. From here you get a 360 panoramic view of the area in ruins, again with a very basic water feature in the center of the room. In the next room was a wall covered in changing pictures of the people who had died and were being mourned for. There were also computer monitors if you wanted to look for specific people (no Darlingtons were on the system).

Back in the park I was treated to my first viewing of 桜 (sakura, Japanese cherry blossoms) in bloom. This is something that has been gradually getting earlier with lots of people suggesting global warming, however I can’t find any decisive sources to agree or disagree with that. So going into artistic cameraman mode i tried taking plenty of different shots with different angles and backgrounds and managed to get a few nice ones (as well as a heap of not-so nice ones). It was quite funny though as later on the bus one person commented that “anyone can become an artist by taking a photograph of sakura”. I laughed a little.

On that note there are still new photo’s of my time in Japan being updated daily.

We headed to the hotel and were joined by students from Matsuyama University’s English Speaking Society Club for a Peace Study Session. In this session we talked about the dropping of Little Boy on the city we were in, and whether any aspects of it could be justifiable or not. Arguements ranged from “It’s all fair in love and war” style comments to whether or not America was using the citizens of Hiroshima as “Human Guinea Pigs”, as they really didn’t know what would happen.

After this we were free to head out for dinner or whatever. The hotel closed it’s doors at midnight so our only limitation was to be back before then. I already had my plan for that night before we even left Kansai. Lately my inspiration has been yoyo-ing like the toy of the same name, so I wanted to see somewhere that inspired someone that I looked up to, and this being Hiroshima was my chance.

One of my Japanese teachers back in the UK studied in Hiroshima, so I wanted to get a photo of the university not only for my own inspiration increase, but also something to send back to say “look where I went ^_^”. After searching the best way to get there, wasting a couple of hours before the trip when I should have been packing, I eventually realised I was looking at the wrong university. Think of it as someone saying they studied in Leeds, naturally one would assume they went to the University of Leeds, but no, they went to Leeds Metropolitan University. That’s what I get for making assumptions.

Unlike the trip to Kanazawa, I couldn’t find anyone daft enough to join me on the trip which, according to googlemaps, would take just over an hour and have me walk over an unpathed, unlit mountain. However I changed the route to suit my need of being able to see where I was going. I had to take two trams to reach my walking starting line, but here I hit a snag. In Japan I’d only taken trains and taxis as public transport. I’d avoided taking busses from fear of looking like a complete burk, but it wasn’t until I reached the tram station I realised I had the same problem. I had no idea what to do.

Somehow I was at the front of the queue, so after letting everyone onto the tram before me, observing what they were doing, I got on and took and sat down. From there I had a few stops to learn how to get off and pay properly, unlike trains I couldn’t merely get off and go on the tram going the other way until I’d figured it out. Unfortunately for me from the next stop it got too busy for me to see what was happening, and thus when my stop came I simply muttered to myself “oh buggar”. I headed to the driver and simply asked “中電前からいくらですか。” (chuudenmae kara ikura desu ka, How much from Chuudenmae?), and whacked the appropriate amount in the slot, pretty much the same as busses in Birmingham … ish.

The walking section was nice and peaceful. It actually reminded me somewhat of walking from Okamoto train station to Konan University, only at night … and much longer … and up more hills … and I didn’t really know where I was going. I was also a little surprised at the number of police cars going past, lights flashing, but as long as it wasn’t me they were after I don’t mind. After finding the university, about a half hour walk away, I took a photograph of the main gate (I didn’t go in because it was a womens uni), and made a little video message to my sensei.

The walk home seemed to go really fast, and I did feel like I was more inspired to work my arse off. I think I’ll make similar trips to my other sensei’s uni’s (thank goodness they’re only in Osaka and Kyoto).

I chose to walk the entire trip back instead of taking the two trams so I could see a lot more of Hiroshima than the others, seeing a whole range of stores, restaurants, buildings and of course the local prison (Hiroshima Detention House). Passing a small arcade I tried to replicate the luck we’d had on the Kanazawa trip by winning a toy from a UFO grabber. Though I didn’t manage to get a huge toy like we did on the last trip (I still have no idea how I’ll be sending that buggar back to the UK), I did manage to win a small Doraemon keyring.

Buying a carton of hot chocolate from a vending machine (yes, that’s right), I headed on towards McDonalds before heading back to the hotel.

Day 2

The Island, The Bridge, The Discrimination

I’m guessing the song playing may have ended by now, so here’s 手紙 ～拝啓　十五の君へ～ (Tegami ～ Haikei Jyuugo no Kimi e ～, Letter ～ Dear 15 Year Old Me ～) by Angela Aki.

The problem with a buffet stlye breakfast is that if there are things you don’t like (or can’t eat) then you’ll soon find yourself with a very boring plate. Yeah it’ll piled up as much as possible, but a mountain of one or two things hardly excites the tongue. I was however really happy to see that the Aster Plaza Hotel (I’m not sure if it’s actually a Youth Hostel, but if it is then it’s definately one of the better I’ve seen by a long shot) also provided breakfast cereal in the form of Frosties and Choco-cornflakes. Man it’s been so long since I’d had either of those, definately a welcome break from all the toast I normally eat at breakfast.

After brekkie we headed further west to the island of 宮島 (Miyajima) by ferry (and bus, obviously). Miyajima like Nara, is home to a great deal of 鹿 (shika, deer), however unlike Nara where you are encourage to feed them, here tourists were warned not to do so, and to especially avoid any deer with antlers. Miyajima is also home to the 厳島神社 (Itsukushima Jinja, Itsukushima Shrine), a world heritage site that is popularly photographed with it’s 鳥居 (torii, Shinto shrine archway) partially underwater. Of course I also joined in this by taking a few shots. When we were there the tide was in, though some students were brave enough to try to walk out to the torii (despite waist high waters and no spare trousers) to try and touch it and get a photo.

At this point we split up for lunch, a few of use taking a walk up unto the hills where we found a fantastic sitting area and a small cafe with a hoard of blooming sakura trees. After finishing a bowl of udon I was back up with my camera. Likewise the walk back was full of serene views and excellent photographic spots, however because time was starting to go against us I just enjoyed them for that moment, rather than take a dozen pictures.

After arriving back on the mainland we then went even further west to 本州 (Honshuu, Japan’s largest island)’s most western (located, not necessarily styled) prefecture, 山口 (Yamaguchi). We were heading to the 錦帯橋 (Kintaikyou), an impressive bridge whose steep arches resemble snakes … or possibly Nessie, in the 岩国 (Iwakuni) area. In Japan white snakes are considered very lucky, and Iwakuni is no exception with many facilities and viewing spots dedicated to white snakes.

Taking a cable-car up the mountain, we headed to 岩国城 (Iwakuni Jyou, Iwakuni Castle), which was now an impressive museum of the area. It played host to a vast range of swords, armour and other artefacts and an amazing 360 degree view from the roof that was only marred by a couple of morons (sadly from my course) trying to convince one of the patrons to let them play with the swords.

Before heading back to the bus a few of us tried some ice-cream from one of the many (seemingly endless) ice-cream sellers. Given the time of year I tried Sakura flavour and to be honest … it was a flavour I couldn’t even try to describe. I’ll have a go anyway; it was bloody fantastic. This is my new favourite flavour ice-cream (sorry coconut, mint, choc-chip combo) and something I’ll be thinking about everytime I have an ice-cream when I get back to England … with a tear in my eye.

The Hotel Park Avenue (very posh sounding) was nice. Nothing magical, but nothing poor either. Having a TV with a 24 hour anime channel was nice, but to be honest I didn’t watch that much. Strangely enough there was also a channel which only seemed to play Ugly Betty and Desperate Housewives.

Since I wasn’t planning on visiting anywhere random that night I went for dinner with a few friends. We headed down one road until we eventually came to an Indian restaurant called Ganesh. This is where things went tits up.

There were two factors that enticed us into this restaurant for dinner. First of all was the fact that they had a very nice student offer in the window, and we being students thought it just up our alley. Secondly it was somewhere recommended by some of the staff members that had come on the trip (and were already in there when we entered).

We flicked through the menu, as is customary despite knowing already what we were going to order, when a member of staff came over. We then (in Japanese) ordered the student deal for each of us, when he asked if we had student cards which we then brandished. He then asked us to wait a moment for another staff member, at the time I thought it might have been because he wasn’t confident in using Japanese.

When his friend came over we did the same again, same order, same language, to which we were told that the student offer was only for Japanese students (as oppose to foreign students). Urm … what? Yes that’s right folks. Here is our first real receiving of racial discrimination in Japan … and it came from an Indian restaurant. Even if this were the actual case (something I didn’t buy for a second), how did he know that we weren’t in fact Japanese? Believe it or not there are people who are of non-Japanese origin that are born in Japan, or even people who have been naturalised as Japanese. But it seems not in the eyes of Ganesh, where only 100% pure-blood seems to count. But no it didn’t stop there.

Opening the menus (which were written in English and Katakana … I don’t actually remember there being any kanji in there) our polite and very help fellow then asked (in English) if “we were having trouble reading” the menu. Now perhaps if we’d gone in speaking Danish, Italian, or one of the two languages that wasn’t printed in the sodding menu that would have been helpful, but when a group of customers come into your restaurant the last thing you want to do is insult their intelligence. To his comment one of my friends replied “I can read” (the first time an English word was spoken in the place by one of us), to which the restauranteur said “yes but it’s …”, “yes I can read” repeated my friend.

For me, I’d had enough. I told my friends I’d see them back at the hotel and that I was going elsewhere. Thankfully I didn’t have to go far. Right opposite that crap-shack was a nice little udon place. While I was looking in the window at the plastic display versions, one employee was heading back into the restaurant and gave me a smile and a welcome.

I ordered a cheap udon dish called うどんむすび (udon musubi), which seemed to be a basic udon (thick Japanese wheat noodles in soup) with tempura pieces and seaweed. It also came with a freshly made お握り (onigiri, rice ball), something I’d only ever eaten from a fridge wrapped in plastic. When in came time to pay I and the lady on the counter made small talk in Japanese, and soon I headed off. There were no other customers at all in the restaurant, but it had some great 演歌 (enka, traditional Japanese style song) playing so I could really enjoy my experience.

Ladies and gentlemen, if you find yourself on Ginza Street in Shunan in Yamaguchi (Japan), and want to be treated badly and like a complete idiot (and possibly even lied to and/or discriminated against), then go to Ganesh (here’s a link), but if you want to go somewhere nice, then head to the udon place opposite from them. And just so my Japanese friends don’t miss out on my little warning …

皆、もし（日本の）山口県の周南市の銀座通りにいたら、悪くて取り扱われたかったら（ばかのような人だ、多分あなたに嘘をついて、差別することをくれる）、ガネーシュに行くべきです（こちらはリンクです）。でも、良い所に行きたかったら、向こう側のうどん屋に行く方が良いです。
私は日本語が下手なので、失礼します。T_T

(on that note if anyone from Ganesh is reading this (that is if they’re capable of reading it that is … snide remark over) feel free to comment at the bottom)
(this topic has also been covered on Japan Probe.com)

Day 3

Clapping, Caving, Cop-Out, ID?

Day three’s music comes from The Who, and it’s that classic track Won’t Get Fooled Again.

Despite living in Japan the last time I had a Japanese breakfast was at New Year. Normally the Japanese option at the dorm doesn’t quite appeal to me as much as the toast I’d normally eat, but at this hotel it was our only option so I took it as a welcome change (though I was thankful orange juice was still available).

First on today’s trip was a visit to the 瑠璃光寺 (Rurikouji), a Buddhist temple best known for it’s 5 storied pagoda, which, I was told, was built as a symbol to show the wealth of the land owners (in 1442). In the area of the temple was a small outdoor stone staircase where if you clap or stamp your feet in front of it, it (the clap sound) turned into a strange kind of duck-like quack noise. Quite amazing really, especially with a group of 50 (ish) people all clapping or jumping at the same time. Perhaps it was built to show how quickly humans could be turned into clapping seals so easily.

A traditional Japanese lunch, served in bento form, was provided for us at a nearby souvenir store just ten minutes away, just enough time to get to sleep on the bus before being woke up.

After lunch we headed to the 秋芳洞 (Akiyoshidou), the largest cave system in Japan. On the coach I had a chortle as someone commented “I wonder if it will be cold in the cave, or if it’s one of those heated caves”. However my gigglation (love making up words) soon came to an end as we entered the came to a short warm blast of humidity. In the caves were lots of stunning rock formation that seemed to glisten with the run off of water coming from above, or perhaps that was just people’s sodding flash photography (yes I’m a hypocrite, I used my flash at times ¬_¬).

It was in the caves that I considered my own list of things I wanted to see/do/achieve while in Japan, and how I could actually do some of them by bending the rules slightly. For example, I wanted to take a photo of Mount Fuji, but can’t afford to get there. However, one of the rock formation in the cave was called Mount Fuji. Photo taken, job done. ^_^ Likewise I wanted to see live sumo wrestling, and conveniently enough there was an event in Osaka. But it was too expensive for me to go. However, I did watch a live sumo match on the TV. ^_^ Now I know you’ll be shouting “cop-out” at me, if not you, then certainly I’m shouting it at myself, right before I treat myself to another melon pan.

Our final bus trip was to the Yamaguchi station, where we said goodbye to our tour guide and driver. We were going to be riding part of the way on a steam locamotive 特急 (tokkyuu, limited express) train, something I found to be remeniscent to going on the Severn Valley Railway when I was younger. A lot of the group compared it to the Hogwarts Express (or something) from Harry Potter, but for me it was more like the Flying Pussyfoot from Baccano!

Changing at Shin-Yamaguchi station for the Shinkansen line, we were then given lunch of a sandwich bento and a juice carton. The juice was nice (orange), but I ended up just giving away the sandwiches. Once I’d discovered mayo in over half the sarnies I just gave up and instead went to the nearby udon place (believe it or not, I’m not addicted to udon).

The shinkansen trip home proved to be a relaxing (tiring more like) time for most of us, as it was a pretty quiet trip. I too had headphones in drifting in and out of slumber for the short trip. I did get up and go to the bog at one point and let me tell you this, standing up and going for a wee at 186 mph is not easy. I’m only thankful that I wasn’t on top of the train doing it >_<.

We arrived at Shin-Kobe and then headed our seperate ways.

After getting back at the dorm in just enough time to miss dinner, a friend and I went to the 99 yen shop for some food. Feeling the mood I also bought a can of beer. However something happened that hasn’t happened to me in Japan before, or anywhere else for a long time. I was asked for ID to prove I was over twenty! Wow, I wasn’t angry, just shocked for a moment. To be honest I’m glad it happened because it means that there are people in Japan who will ask you to show it, and since I had my 外国人登録証明書 (Gaikokujin Touroku Shoumeisho, alien registration card) with me, something we have to keep with us by law I might add, I was happy to show it and be on my way.

Ladies and gentlemen this concludes the story of my recent trip to the west of Honshuu. I hope you’ve enjoyed reading it (or bits of it), and welcome any comments. I’ll see you next time!

After leaving the new version of Lotaku in a reasonable state after pure destruction, I looked out the window and saw some incredibly fine looking weather. The sun was out, not a cloud in the sky and it looked genuinely warm. The weather for Osaka was predicted to be cold, but since I saw no signs of that I took it to be a balls up on the weather man’s behalf. Dressing lighter than I had been later (eg without a scarf) I headed out and realised it wasn’t quite as warm as I’d let myself believe. Don’t get me wrong it wasn’t as cold as it had been, but I could definately feel the nippiness.

Making my way to the local shrine where the Ebisu Matsuri was being held (check the last entry for details on that), I gave a small offering and prayed to Ebisu, participating as much as I possibly could without having a clue as to what I was doing. I was happy to see some of the things I’d learned in my religion class in practice, such as the Kagura and why the shrine maidens were performing it.

I then went for a look around the usual festival stalls, as usual lots of different foods were on offer as well as a range of games and souvenirs for sale. Having known how most of these games ‘work’ I decided to try my luck at the shooting gallery. After shooting off a few light-boxes winning myself some sweets, I had a crack at the impossible stuff. I knocked over the marker for a Nintendo DS, but the rule is that it had to fall off the shelf rather than just fall over. I didn’t mind, of course, I had my sweets.

Winnings – 1 x Milky, 1 x Choco Ball (yoghurt flavour), 2x Fuppii Ramune

I then proceeded to walk south to meet some friends at Osaka Castle. I hadn’t been there before and only had a brief idea of where it would be, so this was definately another one of my fun adventures. Unfortunately for me the glorious sunny (yet frickin’ cold) weather that had been brightening the day went behind some clouds and the cold really started to kick in. From checking the temperature daily on google I knew that last night it was actually colder than back in Telford, but I wasn’t preparing for the snow that began falling from above.

Yes, this was the last thing I was expecting for Osaka. Hmm … well, maybe not the last thing, I’ve still not seen any … um … well, moving on. I rang a friend in Kobe and discovered that it was also snowing there, and from the sounds of it it might have been snowing heavier. Just as quick as it started though, the snow ended. Not even leaving any damp patches on the floor. This was a snowfall for the moment, for the memory.

I met my friends at Osaka Castle but because I decided to visit the shrine (and faff about on a website) beforehand, they’d already been up and around. Not wanting to spend money to run around it while they waited, I made myself pleased to be able to take some awesome photos. Even though this was the first time I’d been to Osaka Castle, it’s a walkable distance from the dorm so I can always come again another (warmer) day.

I decided to have dinner at Matsuya again tonight having with hands so cold they make ice get jealous made using chopsticks a nightmare. Thankfully a spoon was on hand as I’d ordered my old favourite, curry rice.

Going back for a second, I noticed when I was doing the new Lotaku site how easy and useful Wordpress was. This being the case I’ve decided to make Darlo’s World a wordpress site. I don’t know when I’ll convert it over, I don’t know when I’ll have time, but the end result will definately be a nice touch.

Well I’ve been back at Uni for three days and in turn my New Years Resolution has gone to squatt. Yeah I could claim that covering new Japanese grammar points or learning a new kanji character counts, but sod that, they’re boring. Except for the takoyaki onigiri, that was pretty sweet. I guess I’m just trying to get around to the fact that life in Japan is mainly now consisting of a combination of trying to learn, matched with my trait of forgetting everything … and commuting.

One of the main problems with living in a dorm compared to a homestay is the lack of information you are given or have access to. Had it not been for a lesson on popular Japanese religeon yesterday, I wouldn’t have known that there was an Ebisu Matsuri at the Nishinomiya Shrine today. I didn’t go for various reasons, but had it not been for my own complete and utter boredom and looking for a certain 100 yen shop, I wouldn’t have found out that a shrine somewhats near the dorm was also having an Ebisu Matsuri. Why didn’t I go? Well, I walked around a little but I don’t know, I guess I didn’t really feel the mood.

It would be easy to say that if you want to experience things like this just ask around and turn up to things. Trouble is, how would you drop it into conversation? “Oh by the way, are there any traditional events or festivals coming up” I’ll say to a friend out of no where while they’re trying to work. Or walking past a temple or shrine I see activity and decide to tag along, only to realise it’s a private funeral function as I’m being ushered away. Not having ‘an introduction’ doesn’t limit itself to things like this. There are a lot of small bars and restaurants in my area but without wanting to get the skipped record effect there’s no possible way to go in. At least with a host familly, a member could go with you on your first time to help people get used to you. I have done it (gone into a random place) and at first it’s always an incredibly tense and awkward feeling. Sometimes that tension eases, sometimes it does not. I’ve yet to go anywhere a second time.

Since it’s the weekend and I have no plans that involve me actually going anywhere and/or spending money, I’ll be sure to upload some more photos.