A new year and a new start...

Well, it's nearing the end of January and I have yet to update...*ahem*

New Year's was a first....

Instead of my usual watching the countdown on the BBC and heading to bed, Pete, Rory and I decided to meet up and do something different. Where a lot of Japanese people like to watch some music contest programme-ish thing called 'Kouhaku', we thought we'd go out instead.
We began in Shinjuku for a bit of Street Fighter in an arcade and then decided to head to the mahoosive temple, Meiji Jingu, located next to Harajuku Station. We ended up getting pretty lost but it was nice to catch up.

Street Fighter

We eventually made it to the temple before midnight. Meiji Jingu's paths were lit with large torches and guarded by boy scouts.

明治神宮

The place was absolutely packed and just before the countdown, it was as if a thousand more people just materialised from nowhere and squashed themselves into the surrounding temple paths. At this point, there was no hope of reaching the central temple grounds where the ceremony was taking place. There was some counting down and then a massive cheer so I guess 2012 had begun at that point. Fortunately, from our position I could make out bits of the ceremony being broadcasted on a large screen. There appeared to be some official member striking a large gong but this was all I saw...

動かないほど人ばかりだった．．．

After the countdown, we proceeded into Harajuku for drinks in 'Hub', Japan's take on a British Pub (not quite but...yeah, a good shot). After that, we pretty much spent the night just hanging out. We actually ended up in McDonald's for the first meal of the new year!

Goofing around in Harajuku

First meal of the new year

The next few hours were spent riding the Yamanote Line in its complete loop and listening to each of the stations' jingles (lots of them are repeated!). Back in Shinjuku, we headed to an izakaya for our final stop but by then we were pretty exhausted so we called it a night (or morning).

So....January. I spent the first couple of weeks repairing myself as a person and finding my motivation again. It took a little while but I'm there. In fact, there was one rather good moment when I was in Book Off looking at English teaching books and this tiny Japanese girl (about 7 years old?) turns to me and starts a conversation....in English!
"Hey", she says, "you speak English!"
I'm a little knocked for six..."Um...so do you. Did you learn it in school?"
"No, I lived in Hong Kong for a little while..."
....I nearly cried. She was adorable, and her pronunciation was spot on. Obviously, the teaching English teaching system in Japan is a load of arse and I really feel that it needs to be reformed. Perhaps that should be my goal? I could SO teach these kids...

Next bit January had to throw at me was some exams...
Well, the German exam I had no idea was actually happening during that particular week just appeared out of nowhere and well...whoops. I basically walked into the classroom as normal (it wasn't exam week so I didn't expect anything) and I thought it was strangely quiet...The teacher opens his mouth,
"So, do you think you need any more preparation time?"
"For what?", I pipe up.
"The test..."
"The what now?" .....(doomed).

So I failed that one (luckily it didn't matter).
Next up was Japanese (the one that does matter). I revised for some time before the test. The teacher had said it would be like the other Japanese tests we'd had and they were a breeze - just a test on the new vocabulary and grammar we'd covered in the previous lessons.....lying cow.
So this test, unlike the others, unlike what we had been told to revise for and had all revised for, was not a test of our Japanese skills per se....it was in fact a test of some general knowledge that we did not know or need to know. One of the questions was a series of famous Japanese Tanka (poems in a 5,7,5,7,7 syllable pattern) with some missing words and we were to fill in these words appropriately...(WHAT??!) The part I know I aced was the grammar part (a tiny portion of the test) because this is what we were told to revise. Bah! I did well, but not as well as the other two tests (98% and 99.5%)....

So, from now until April 1st, I am tooootally free and it feels quite nice.

キムぶろ、超久しぶり！A look inside the mind of a Japanese salary man during rush hour...

Well, there have certainly been some ups and downs over the last month. I realise it's been soooo long since I last updated my blog and I'm not proud of it.

So according to my last entry, I'd covered up to November 15th where I was reunited with the lovely Eve <3....To be honest, nothing happened whatsoever between the 15th and my birthday so I feel it more appropriate to cover my birthday in a separate entry (with a few photos of course).

Why waste a post, though? I think I'm gonna mention something I've learnt about Japan so far and its craaaazy lifestyle...

Before coming to Japan, I had this preconception that the Japanese were among some of the most polite people in the world...Oh, ho ho! Perhaps I was wrong here. I actually find Japanese people more rude than the British! It made me consider not wanting to ever come back here to work but there are so many other aspects of Japan that are attractive so I think I'm aiming to come back and work in the future despite some of the attitudes I've encountered in Tokyo.

Actually, the Japanese are fairly polite and modest in general...but collect a large group of them, cram them into a train station and give them a destination and they become these merciless animals with only their goal in sight. Vacant but somehow determined stares, briefcases and handbags clutched at their chests, with no regard for any other human being in the station, they stride forward towards their platform....and once they start a-striding, nothing shall get in their way.

Being a short arse, I often find I've got the short straw in a place like Shinjuku Station at half past eight in the morning. Let me give you an example...

I shall take you inside the mind of a salary man in Shinjuku Station during rush hour:


"My platform is number 7 as I am to catch the Chuo Rapid service to Tokyo Station. My platform is on the far side of the transfer gate and I'm in a hurry (for no real reason as the trains on the Chuo line leave every couple of minutes). I'm in Shinjuku Station; there's an etiquette that I need to comply with. 


I shall either 

a) pull my briefcase up to my chest and break into a run (like a bowling ball in a skittles alley)...  

 or

b) to make sure I have a clear path to the platform in the distance, I will keep my briefcase by my side and use it as a weapon.

So I've chosen method 'b' but there are a number of obstacles between me and my destination platform (namely other persons). I'd like to have a bit of personal space between  myself and them so I think I will make some room. 


I will have to assess the situation appropriately for if I take a swing at a slightly larger person than I, it is fairly certain that my attack will rebound and I shall be sent spinning into a crowd of people walking the other direction. 


...Aha, large salary man ahead: I shall avoid him by walking around him but will give him a good jostle on his shoulder for good measure.


...Crowd of business women: method 'a' works quite well with these. I shall hold my briefcase up to my chest and break into a run. Watch as they tumble like dominoes. 


I'm back on track and the platform is well within reach. What's this?! A tiny gaijin? Yes, I believe it is and she seems to be making good progress to the very same platform as I. But she's so tiny...a well-aimed 'b' attack would rid her from my path and there's absolutely no chance of a rebound as she is much smaller than I. I approach at high speed, lift my briefcase a little higher and, oh my, this is perfect. She'd never expect a thing, not with her earphones crammed into her head, pumping out very angry Japanese rock...I hold my briefcase out to the side and push past her. The collision produces a marvellous, audible "smack" sound and...and...K.O! Tiny gaijin to the ground! The platform is mine to conquer! 


I pound up the stairs to the platform. I find if I hold my arms out to the side like the wings of an aeroplane as I run, the heaving crowd of passengers coming back down the stairs seem to just part. Sure, I look very silly doing it (what with my slightly overweight, typical salary man stature) but according to the rules of Shinjuku in the morning, I HAVE to be in a hurry.


I'm at my platform...and the 8:37 has just left without me. Ah well, see, this is a minor matter. The 8:39 will arrive in a few seconds and I shall just hop aboard that one. There's no rush."

Miraculous. Am I right, ladies and gentlemen?

キムぶろ、久しぶり！

Woah! I realise it's been quite a while since my last entry. I guess it's because I've been busier than usual. I suppose I could do a quick run-through of what has been going on...

11/3 (Thursday)
Day one of 明大際 (Meidai Festival). I plodded down to the station to meet Hiro before I jumped on stage to perform. I had my first ever ukulele solo, playing and singing Paramore's  "The Only Exception" whilst Hiro sat and recorded it. I was so nervous my legs were shaking and my hands were slippery with sweat so changing chords was rather difficult. It was the better of the two performances though. My second was Tokyo Jihen's "Killer Tune" where I provided the vocals to circle-mate Ryoma's guitar playing....the only problem was that his guitar was totally out of tune and that he seemed unaware of it...blegh.

明大際＠明治大学和泉キャンパス

Hiro and I wandered about the festival for a little while, exploring the stalls and watching the cheerleaders などなど。He hadn't brought his guitar so we just hung out and had to make do with my little uke. I cooked my 'nabe-ramen' thing, went to do some much looked-forward-to karaoke and got pretty damn drunk....(end of the day as far as my memory goes..*ahem*)

Karaoke with Hiro

11/4 (Friday)
We leapt out the door and headed down to Yokohama for a Musical Instrument Fair. Yokohama was a breath of fresh air. It felt so good to be out of Tokyo's suffocating streets and smellin' that ocean breeze....

Yokohama

The fair was indescribable. There were musical instruments of all shapes and sizes, some that I'd never encountered before and the event featured some very talented musicians on stage. I'm so grateful for Hiro for taking me along. It was MAGICAL.
After the event, we wandered around Yokohama's harbour area and eventually took a train to China Town for nosh and touristy fun.

Just one of the guitars...

A visit to China Town

11/5 (Saturday)
Back on the stage for me. Despite being really, really faint, I think I pulled it off. I provided the vocals for a rendition of Paramore's "Misery Business" and Tokyo Jihen's "Marunouchi Sadistic", both of which went down very nicely with the audience - mission accomplished. After the event finished, I went to my first 飲み会 in Japan (a sort of drinking party...). I left earlier than most as I was SUPER tired and ill. Fun though...

11/6 (Sunday)
Went to a Rock 'n' Roll gig with my housemate Miriam. Some of the music was to my taste...some not. NEVER in my life have I taken in so much cigarette smoke that my lungs ached. I got so used to the smoking ban in the UK, coming to a Japanese club was a total shock. Still, I like to experience new things so I agreed to go along. "The Bunny Tail" was the best act of the night and ultimately the one we went to see. Their bassist was so charismatic!

11/8 (Tuesday)
Crappy morning...and then BAM!!! My new uke arrives and it's the most beautiful thing in the world ever and kfgildbbfgawilufgcuhlwg!!!!

There she is...

11/15 (Tuesday)
EEEVEEEE!!!! I had the opportunity to meet one of my closest friends from senior school again and it truly made my day perfect. Eve, Alicia and I wandered around Harajuku, in toy shops, clothes shops and ate wonderful Harajuku crepes. Glorious. I had no idea Eve had missed me so much. I'm so gonna make it up to her and stay in close contact from now on. She's a true friend and I love her to bits! xxxxxx

Crepes at Harajuku

....So, that about brings us up to date...right?
Not too much happening until my birthday. I am planning, however to go and visit Mount Takao and take in some fresh air at last with my friend Todd. I really hope the weather is good!

"The Stick of Encouragement"...

Friday involved lectures as normal (which I forgot to bring half my completed homework to....durp!) followed by a trip to a temple..er..somewhere to partake in a 'Zazen' experience. (Wooo!)

Ahem, so a fairly large group of us piled onto the Marunouchi Subway Line and where whisked away to a rather random station (Hon-Komagome) where a certain temple (龍光禪寺）was to be located. It turns out the staff accompanying us had forgotten where the temple was too...

After a few wrong turns we finally arrived at the temple. It was fairly small and situated in the middle of a residential area. Walking inside and removing our shoes, we encountered a rather large tatami room with a couple dozen cushions laid out on the floor. Taking a cushion each, we were given a long complicated Japanese explanation of the practise of 'Zazen', a sort of meditation.

龍光禪寺

Cushions at the ready...

 After the Priest had sounded a pair of wooden clappers three times and struck a bell four times, we were to begin Zazen for twenty minutes. This involved sitting cross-legged (you know that uncomfortable way where your feet rest on top of each thigh), keeping our eyes open and fixed on a certain point on the floor in front and controlling our breathing - just counting our breaths in sets of ten and trying not to think of anything else....difficult when the Priest is patrolling the room, armed with a 'Keisaku' (encouragement stick). If one felt that one had not cleared their mind of all thought, they would place their palms together in 'gassho' and wait for the Priest to come and strike each of their shoulders twice with his Keisaku. It sounded SO painful but apparently wasn't....

We were given a quick break to recover our dead legs before another twenty minute session...

After a total of forty minutes absolute silence (and in my case, trying to force myself to stay awake - my eyes kept doing that flutter thing and my head kept nodding back and forth) we were allowed to uncurl our legs again and were given tea and some cake thing. If you want an honest description, it tasted of a mixture of egg yolk and sugar.

Strange cake

An hour of self introductions, our thoughts and the opportunity to ask questions, we finally left. I zoooooomed back to Meidaimae to throw on some fairly dark clothes, slap some dark makeup on my face and stick my hair up in all directions. Ten minutes is the fastest I've ever been getting ready for a party (I normally take three hours...). This little Hallowe'en party was something thrown together by the international department at Meiji University and lasted a grand total of two hours! It consisted of a room full of people dressed in silly costumes and various snacks and drinks laid out on tables. I didn't think it was worth 300円 to get in so I snuck in for free, took some photos and skipped off to a rather urgent meeting with my circle.

A scene from the Hallowe'en party

Hallowe'en costumes?

I practiced the songs that I'll be performing at the festival nyada nyada nyaaa and then wandered back to the international house to sneak into a second party (a Hallowe'en house party) again without paying. Glorious. It was a familiar sight to behold; a corridor and kitchen area packed with very drunken people playing loud music. I perched myself in the corner next to the speakers and took control of the music. I met Masashi, who shares the same love for Paramore that I do so I sang to him as he seemed to enjoy it.

A corridor full of drunken people

I went back to my room earlier than most after being nampa-ed by this drunken Korean bloke, to sort out some registration online and such.
Crazy Friday, crazy.

Other than seeing a baseball game on Saturday...I can't really remember what happened. I think it was baseball followed by more festival rehearsal and an early bedtime...meh.

Back at Meijijingu Stadium

かっとばせー！

~More antics soon....

An action-packed week ahead....

Title says it all, really.

Today was the Monday of that same crazy week. I had a job interview scheduled, which went smoothly but I had to cut it short cause I didn't want to sign my name on anything until I've sorted all the crap out at the university. So much crap. The manager of the cafe did say that if I couldn't find work as a teacher, I could always make it as a model. (I just took it as compliment.)

Tomorrow is Tuesday. I have another kanji test that I intend to ace, again. (Tentens, don't let me down!) Also, I plan to raid Claire's Accessories for the cheapest set of ears/horns for the cheapest Hallowe'en costume EVER! We shall see if Shinjuku can provide.

Wednesday. Erm...nothing but normal lectures, I believe? I need to learn the lyrics to the songs I am performing at the 学園祭 and I (stupidly) set myself the deadline of Wednesday for that. So nervous!

Thursday. I have to give a speech in class. I had one of my original speeches that I wrote for a presentation at Sheffield University that I was quite proud of. However, my teacher at Meiji University insisted on shortening all my sentences and taking out any words that sound too complicated. (So she basically 'dumbed it down' to first-year level and I'm not too pleased.)

Friday. Essay due for Friday, gotta crack down on that. Straight after class, I shall be heading down to the International Lounge to attend a 'Zen Experience' at a temple. It sounded intriguing so I put my name down. (Also, it's free and free is good.)
Finishing that, I have to slap on a tonne of makeup for a Hallowe'en party, which I shall be half attending, the other half spent with my circle, practicing for the perfomance the following Thursday.

Saturday. Not yet confirmed but I was planning to see a baseball game between Waseda and Keio Universities (早慶戦）. It's rather like the Japanese version of the Oxbridge Boat Race. I also intend to do a LOAD of washing on the weekend.

Sundaaaay. I shall spend the day doing some homework, some psychology report and then join 'my maaan' for some Korean barbecue, which sounds AMAZING. (I discovered how tasty kimchi is today and I would assume that Korean barbecue would include kimchi somewhere...)

Yeah, ...lots to come. I shall try not to forget my camera this week.

Mid-October Happenings

Ho my, I realise the 10th was like...almost two weeks ago and I haven't updated since then! (Sorry...)

So anyway, here's what I've been up to in the last two weeks....

(The first of the two weeks)
First up, Wednesday: A spontaneous visit to Tokyo Tower. Having just finished my Applied Linguistics class, I stroll back into my dorm from my dorm and find Strahinja sat in the entrance. So out of curiosity, I ask him if he's waiting for something. He says that he's waiting for some friends and then they're all going to head off to Tokyo Tower, some sightseeing at night as it were. He then says I'm welcome to come along....
(Brief pause)
I'll just dump my things in my room and be right with you! ~♪
So I did. And we travelled quite a long way in search of this tower. The nearest station was Daimon and we walked from there.

Approaching Tokyo Tower 

Ascending the tower cost around 800円 but luckily with student discount, we were granted access for 720円.

東京タワー

The view was.....the view was....well, it was a view of Tokyo at night to be honest. It was very similar to the experience I shared with Hiro at the the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Office, only this time it wasn't free. The added bonus was the view of the Rainbow Bridge linking Tokyo to the artificial island of Odaiba (albeit being very very far away).
Having said that, the atmosphere was great. There was a restaurant and a live band playing very familiar bossa nova tracks (The Girl From Ipanema etc) and unusual instruments. I would say that Tokyo Tower is the ideal night out for a couple: romantic view, romantic dinner and romantic musical accompaniment. (Really missed a certain someone at this point...)

A view from the tower

The fantastic live bossa nova band

Thursday!
I had scheduled to meet up with Misato Abe, who I hadn't met since Sheffield yonks ago. I met her outside Ochanomizu Station and we wandered into town together to have lunch and a good catch-up.
I had tempura for the first time and it was delicious!

天丼

The stunning Misato

Ahh, it was so nice to meet with someone familiar and have a good girly chat about..er...things. We chatted for about 3 and a bit hours (because we girls can).
It was sad having to part with her and having to watch her skip off in the opposite direction...ready to catch the Tsukuba Express....and be taken away.....*sad face*.

(The second of the two weeks)

NOTHING BUT NOTHING BUT NOTHING BUT 勉強！
I had so much homework and preparation for a Japanese exam that counts towards my grade (it happened Tuesday last, and I missed one question, giving me 98%. Win).
....Study, study, study, homework, homework, homework (quick mess-around on my camera), homework, homework.......JESSAMY!

Sundaaaaay!
I met with my friend Jessamy in Ikebukuro just to hang out for a few hours. Ikebukuro is like Akihabara...only more aimed at girls than horny little boys (so there are less attractions with massive bewbs and more with cute fluffy things).
It was fun to have a wander around a new area of Tokyo and to have a MASSIVE girly catch-up, only to realise that we have so much in common....it was kinda scary. Jessamy bought herself some AWESOME new headphones. They are Kaomoji-kun ones and are mega cute.

Cute Rilakkuma plastic food

Gintoki, Sadaharu and Elizabeth

I HATED having to say goodbye. It was so hard to watch her turn a different direction.....round a corner so that she disappeared from sight....ready to catch the Tsukuba Express.....and be taken away...AGAIN! (Why is everyone I know located in the Tsukuba area?! Methinks I'm in the wrong city....)

サークル things...

Mondaaaay. Today was Nation Health Sports Day ..or whatever, which basically meant a day off lectures (for me, no classical Japanese. YAHOOO!)

I started the day with a sob 'cause I really fancied a sing-song but my guitarist lives 1,150円 away.... I cooked some strange mixture of vegetables, rice and natto. (I've realised recently that natto tastes AMAZING in everything; I put it in omelette, in my ramen, with my soba....)

Following that, I settled down at the kitchen table with a hot mug of tea and made a start on my MAHOOSIVE pile of homework. I think I managed about half of it before I lost the motivation to do anything so I wandered off down to campus to join my circle and do some much-needed sing-songing.

Success! I found a guitarist worthy of accompanying me. He goes by the name of Kohei Watanabe (or Bei for short) and has the ability to play anything after hearing it once. I played him a potential song I wanted to perform at the school festival on my iPod. He'd listened to the track once, nodded and started to play the song exactly the way it had sounded on my pod. I started to sing along and we made it through the whole track.....sorted! We shall be playing together at the 和泉学園祭。

A few hours later, I received an unhappy text (albeit adorable) from Hiro, who was worried that I, having found a new guitarist, would no longer be in need of Hiro's playing. NO NO!  Silly baby. I made sure to explain to him that nobody could ever replace him, EVER.
And then he told me we was thinking of joining a guitar circle at his university...and found that I had the exact same response; that perhaps Hiro would find another vocalist at his university and would then have no need for me. He too assured me this would not happen. We're as bad as each other.

I returned in a happier mood and finished all the homework I needed to finish before Tuesday. In my stupid four and a half hour break in between lecture and pointless seminar, I shall be heading for the immigration office to see if I can obtain working permission....hmm.
I'm really hoping the university doesn't need to give permission, otherwise I have no idea how I'm going to be able to enjoy life here.