As my time in Japan draws to a close, I’ve been taking some time to reflect on the experiences I’ve had, the friends I’ve made, and all the little things about Japan I grew to love as my time here passed.  But mostly I thought about food.  While I love Japanese food and will dearly miss by daily onigiri and miso, the list of foods that I intend to ( Read more... )

Chances are that if we’ve spoken at all during my time here then you’ve heard me complain about Japanese TV.  For those who haven’t, this will all be new to you, then.

I just want to preface this entry by saying that I really don’t like Japanese TV.  In fact, depending on the day and how tired I am of watching game shows, I even hate it.  So this ( Read more... )

 
           Okay, here’s the deal.  I’ve been neglecting updating my blog for a couple of reasons.  No, that’s a lie.  One reason:  I really don’t want to write about Tokyo.  Don’t get me wrong, my spring break in Tokyo was amazing; but that’s the problem.  I did so many things (and ate soooo much good food) that the idea of writing about it all is ( Read more... )

Considering that my spring break was going on three weeks in the past, I figured it was about time to stop procrastinating and actually write about some of the things I did there. I’m going to break it up into manageable segments (probably by day) so I don’t go crazy writing it all in one sitting and you all won’t go cross-eyed from reading a ( Read more... )

As an American going abroad I knew that I would encounter certain stereotypes while I was in Japan.  I was expecting people to comment about how obese the American population is, and they did.  I was counting on them asking if Brittany Spears and Paris Hilton were typical American girls, and they did.  What I wasn’t counting on was pure admiration ( Read more... )

I’ve had a lot of good experiences in Japan. I’ve seen some amazing sights, eaten some incredible food, and have stumbled upon oddities that I had never encountered before. But no matter what I’ve seen, put into my belly, or been weirded out by; my all time favorite thing in Japan is watching little children’s expressions when they catch a glimpse ( Read more... )

Yesterday was a good day out for the simple reason that it was a simple day.  For once, Erin and I were out by ourselves and weren’t being tugged around by other people.  This meant two things: 1; we got to do whatever activities we want without having to worry about any one else, and 2; we got to take our *time*.  For some reason every group we go ( Read more... )

Sometimes when I get homesick I go grocery shopping because they play American oldies over the sterio system there.  On some level I think that lip syncing to Stevie Wonder in the middle of a supermarket may not be the best way to fit in here, but on that petulant American level deep within my soul I just really can't bring myself to care too ( Read more... )

  Gee, I've been reeeeally terrible about updating this blog in a timely manner.  I'm just going to say it's because I'm out experiencing Japan first hand and not admit to sitting around in the kitchen watching High School Dramas and eating toast.

Moving on, then.

On the 17th I signed up for a tour that my school sponsored that would take me ( Read more... )

This past Saturday Erin, Adrianna, Yasahiro and I decided that we wanted to go to Osaka to visit the Kaikukan (Osaka Aquarium).  That morning we awoke to a pleasant sight: snow was drifting lightly down into the streets and accumulating slightly on the leaves of the trees in the park across the way.  "How pretty!" we all said.  We walked to ( Read more... )