January Picture Update

My room for the New Years Party

Pictured with Ryoko, Shoko and Jenee

At the Shiga University Party; pictured with Masa, Ayako and Gereth.

At the Shiga University Party

The restaurant in Osaka where we dined for Kelly and Shige's birthday.

Pictured with Kevin and Shige

On the train to Osaka with Matt and Shige

At the restaurant. From left to right: Matt, Yui, Kelly, Shige, Adam, Kevin and I

At the bar "Rock Rock" in Osaka

From left to right: Back Row: Kelly, Matt, Kim, I, Jenee, Shige

Front Row: Yuuta, Andrew

Three Weeks into January

My life in Japan right now is going fantastically well; I think mainly because I comprehend much more in class than I was when I left in December. As a member of the returning students, the senseis have looked to me more often to answer questions and voice my opinion. In addition, at this point in my language learning I hope I understand better what I need to do.

The other day Kim, Adam, Kevin, and I went to CoCo Ichibanya Curry House with our friend Shigenori. The curry runs from level zero to ten, and Shige has never eaten level ten. As level ten veterans ourselves, Shige asked us to lunch with him and Kim graciously accompanied us as our photographer. In my opinion, curry is more painful than spicy. Since the spice here is not derived from a pepper, the whole pain experience is different. Shige ended up sweating from the spiciness.

The other day I went to the barber for a haircut. The process of getting a haircut here is fascinating. First, my hair is cut with scissors, then another employee shaves my face and forehead, then I am given a shampoo complete with a quick massage before a final check that includes a device to trim any hair on my ears. The whole experience takes about thirty minutes, uses four different barbers and assistants, and costs ¥1900.

I have been assigned a new conversation partner yesterday, and I have a good feeling about Takayuki. Takayuki is a 27-year-old insurance company worker who plays baseball on the company team. Since Takayuki takes English classes here on Monday and Thursday nights, our meeting time will be sometime after his class ends. I think the process will be a bit more formal than with Akio, since the time slot will be clearly marked. I think I will make talking points as well, to lead the conversation better.

A Few January Weeks In Japan

The first few weeks in Hikone have gone by well. Japanese class has been a review of material that I have covered, but now the grammar is clicking much better. Overall, my Japanese is improving to the point where there is a bit of nuance. I still have a long way to go, but I am happy I am making progress.

My sensei switched this semester. I now have Kitasaka-sensei as the primary sensei, whereas Aizawa-sensei is the back-up or recitation sensei. The good cop/bad cop dichotomy works very well. Kitasaka-sensei is very methodical and Aizawa-sensei teaches in a rapid-fire style.

I am still not cooking. I still have curry and pasta in the cabinets, along with pounds of coffee and some of Kevin’s tea. Kevin has been doing most of the cooking, making a bunch of Japanese dishes that his girlfriend taught him over break. Yui bought me a fantastic coffee maker because she accidentally broke my old French press, so I am trying out different Japanese brands. Japan has as few major brands such as Ogawa Coffee and UCC, and when I get sick of that, I can just run to Starbucks and pick up coffee I am used to.

The first weekend back in Hikone, I stayed around the dormitory instead of get out of the city. I went to the city of Nagahama, about a ten minute train ride north of Hikone, for a nice dinner with my friends and a few of the new students. I took everyone to a nice restaurant I went to over the summer. The pasta dishes turned out to be very good, but the pizzas that the rest of us ordered were simply cheese melted onto toast. Consequently, at the bar we went to afterwards, “2nd Booze,” I had an order of fish and chips. The bar had a nice European atmosphere and a good number of the beers available were Belgian.

Last weekend the students at Shiga University and Shiga State University threw a welcome back party. Unlike the last two semesters, the students this semester do not seem to be as into partying and more into drinking. Consequently, the number of Americans in attendance was low in comparison to Japanese. However, we all had a good time and had the opportunity to speak to more Japanese students. After the party a group of us went to Mos Burger, a Japanese burger chain, for a meal and then to a restaurant for drinks.

The transition back to Japan was smooth, and I am pleased to be settling in so well.

A train ride across central Japan

The flight back to Japan was thirteen and a half hours. I fell asleep after an hour or so and spent the rest of the flight in some sort of semi-lucid state. I remember watching two of the films, and periodically reading. I ended up finishing one book and getting a third of the way through a second. Once we arrived in Tokyo’s Narita airport, I made my way quickly through customs and out of the terminal. Any concerns I had had about finding a train station were dispelled by the Japan Rail station in the airport. I purchased a ticket to Tokyo Station and then a Shinkansen (bullet train) ticket to Maibara, the city north of Hikone, for $150. I lugged my bags down to the platform, and found my seat in something of a haze. As the train pulled out of the Narita station, I promptly fell asleep again.

Tokyo Station has been undergoing construction since the first time I visited last summer. The current condition is of barely controlled chaos. I followed the signs for the Shinkansen up escalators and down a maze of hallways, continually carrying more bags than most of the Japanese seemed to think was prudent. However, once I arrived at my platform the train left promptly, and I found myself sleeping in another train car. Sleeping is the best active camouflage for riding Japanese trains. Part way through the three-hour ride from Tokyo to Maibara, I purchased a shot glass of coffee off the attendant for $3.

A ten-minute taxi ride from Maibara got me back to the dormitory. My friends who were spending the evening in the apartment I occupy with Kevin greeted me upon my return. Yui gave me a new coffee maker and Kevin got me a Starbucks tumbler from his trip to Kobe.

I am content to be back in Japan. Hikone feels like home just as much as Michigan does, and being back in classes and having a daily schedule is nice. The group of new students much more sedate and uniform than the last two semesters, but after talking to a few, I have met some interesting people. Kevin cleaned up the apartment and added quite a few posters. We now have two from a Kyoto club, one from the Israeli bar in Osaka, a political poster and a “Jesus Christ = Superstar” poster from when the Japanese version of the musical came to Hikone. Overall, I could not be happier with the state of the room. Now I just have to get to the store where Yui bought the coffee maker for me, as the handle broke off this morning.