Trip to Grape Country (Katsunuma, Japan)

8/30/2012 - 8/31/2012

View from the station in Katsunuma

Before heading off to Katsunuma, me and my friend headed off to Ogino to grab a quick lunch. We bought a few onigiris and a drink. We went a little earlier than planned so we sat outside the train station as we waited for the others. The station is right across from the supermarket so we didn't have to travel far. Within 15 minutes or so the others came and we bought our train tickets and headed to Katsunuma. The trip was about 1+ hours. When we arrived we all instantly went into out "Asian tourist" mode. By that I mean we all started taking a bunch of pictures lol It's not that hard when you're greeted by an awesome view that you don't see often.

The walk to the hotel from the station was a 30-40 minute walk. We didn't want to take the bus or taxi because they were fairly expensive. The walk wasn't too bad except for the sun rays beating down on us. It was hot and humid. but the view was great! We also walked along the grapes which there were plenty of! We were amused how a lot  of the grapes were bagged as they hung on their vines. That's something we definitely don't see a lot of. The grapes looked really yummy too! Some of us wanted to pick them right off the vine! Of course, that's illegal :P We also kept hearing gunshots in the distance. Probably someone hunting or something. As we neared the temple we saw a really interesting and creepy sight. One of the grape vineyards had the heads of mannequins. We were all like "WTF?" We quickly realized they were used to scare away birds. There were also random shirts and cds hanging. The heads were still creepy, though lol

Finally, after the long minutes walking in the scorching heat we've reached our destination! The hotel was sort of a combination of a ryokan (Japanese hotel) and a western hotel. The rooms that we stayed at were western/modern, but the entrance and several other rooms were very Japanese.  You can tell that these people don't get foreigners often. It's a good thing we knew some Japanese otherwise it would be hard to communicate with one another. After dropping off our stuff we headed to the Daizenji temple right next to the hotel. There was supposed to be a 500円 fee, but I'm not sure whether or not that was included in our hotel fee or not because we didn't pay before entering. We were the only guests at that time.

The temple was awesome. I love Japanese architecture so I was intrigued the whole time. There were lots of steps which is common. They weren't bad to the point where you would get tired as soon as you  reach the top. When we reached the end of the stairs there were several Japanese buildings. There was a temple which held many artifacts. We weren't allowed to take a picture inside so I can show that. It was pretty awesome seeing the various statues, scriptures, tools, etc. The guy who was there asked us a lot of questions like where we were from. When we said we're all from America he was genuinely surprised because we were of different ethnicities and I guess he didn't know that America has a variety of people. Outside of this building there was also a stage across. I'm sure it was a stage because I've seen pictures of it during my Traditional Japanese Theatre class. I think it's a Nou play stage, but I'm not quite sure. Close by there was also a graveyard. There was a whole other section, but most of us didn't go there. I'm disappointed that I missed it. We left the temple and decided to check out a shop across the street. The people were amused to see us Gaijin (foreigners). They were worried that none of them spoke English, but we told them we can understand Japanese so they were relieved lol

We returned to the hotel.In the main room we were greeted by tea and a bowl of grapes. As we sat there drinking and eating our grapes I looked around and kept thinking how awesome it was that we were in a place like that. The room was very Japanese with tatami floors and traditional Japanese items against the walls and roofs. There were Buddhist/Shinto items. There was a large paper with Buddhist writing on it. It looked like Chinese because of the lack of Hiragana/Katakana, but it was definitely Japanese. The doors were slide-doors where you can see outside. Outside was a beautiful sight. There was a traditional Japanese garden outside complete with a pond and a miniature waterfall. It's almost like what you see in movies, dramas, and animes. I was completely amazed. It's stuff like this that makes me love Japan.

We had dinner after we chilled int he room. We went into the dining room which was western style since we ate tables on chairs instead of on the floor. The food was AMAZING. The food was Japanese style. We were given several small dishes which is how Japanese traditional eat. Their was a plate of soba, bowl of rice, Edomame, Kimchi, Fried Shrimp, Fried Octupus (I think. Actually I don't even know. It was seafood of some sort though), a bowl of potatoe, beef, and carrot soup, small macoroni salad, and tofu. Oh, they gave us small grapes, too. When we first entered there were only a few dishes out, but they kept bringing us more lol Also, this won't be the last time we get grapes XD Since we were in grape country getting grapes was a very common thing. We sat in the dining room for about an hour. We all couldn't get over the fact of how good the food was and how Japanese it was. It's definitely something I've never experienced before, but would definitely love to experience again x3 This actually made me not want to leave the place lol I just wanted to stay there and eat meals like that everyday XD

A picture of a pic of the onsen

After dinner we returned to our rooms and headed off to the Onsen. I didn't bring my camera, but we ended up going to the same place again the next day (there's other stuff there, too). We only brought towels and a few other stuff with us because we walked to the place. It was about a 50minute walk!!! It felt like forever plus it was already dark and the humidity was still there so we sweated a lot. When we finally reached the place we were all relieved to be able to wash off all the sweat and just chill in the Onsen. I was nervous at first because at an Onsen you have to strip completely naked. It's not like pools where you can wear a swimsuit. Swimsuits are forbidden. I didn't like the fact that we had to be naked, but since we were already there there really wasn't anything you can do. It actually wasn't as awkward as I thought it would be. I guess it's because of the fact that everyone was naked so there's no shame. When we walked in we quickly washed ourselves and headed to the outside onsen. Btw, this was a modern Onsen not like the traditional ones. It kinda felt like we were in a Jacuzzi, but it felt sooo good. Especially, after being drenched in sweat. The outside onsen was awesome. We got a view of the city. It was dark and we could see the lights of houses. Next to us were the boys (there was a wall between us, thankfully). We can hear their conversations lol well I only understand bits and pieces. We eventually moved back inside. It was kinda weird because every time we moved the people who were already there would leave. Guess they were intimidated by us lol After about an hour or so chilling in the Onsen we decided to leave. It felt so good! Guess it would've been better if it were colder.

 When we headed downstairs we decided to grab a drink from the vending machine. There were some guys there and apparently they were talking about us. Since we were foreigners they quickly assume we couldn't speak Japanese. They kept saying "bye bye" when we were getting ready to leave. It was really annoying. One of my friends eventually said we could speak Japanese (in Japanese of course). They still kept saying bye to us. We eventually laughed it off. We took the taxi back to the hotel because we thought that there wouldn't be any point in going to the Onsen if we ended up being all sweaty again on the way back. Taxis are really expensive. Entrance fee itself is 700円 (~$10).

When we got back most of the others decided they wanted to buy wine. The wine apparently was fairly cheap for the size that they gave. Me and my other friend were the only ones who didn't partake in drinking the wine. We all did chill in the main room for a couple hours. We talked a lot about various stuff. I was already getting tired. After a couple ours we finally headed back to our rooms and went to sleep.
The next day we had breakfast. It was Japanese style again. I was expecting fish since having fish for breakfast is common, but no fish =( For breakfast we had egg, rice, miso soup, natto (most of us didn't eat it lol), salad, and yogurt. It was lighter than I expected. We also had more grapes lol

Anmitsu

After breakfast we headed back to the onsen place. The place that had the Onsen also had a hotel, art museum, winery, etc. It was a very fancy place. Oh yeah, the walk there was twice has bad then the night before since at least at night there wasn't a sun that was beating its rays on you. The walk felt a little longer. We went back there because the others wanted to do wine tasting which is apparently cheap (1100円 to try all the wine you want). Me and my friend (the non-drinkers) decided to check out the art museum. It was small and we only saw a few paintings. They were gorgeous, though! We also went to a small tea shop in the same building as the art museum. I bought a dessert called Anmitsu and my friend bought grape sherbert. The dessert I had was sooo goood. Very pricy though =/ But totally worth it especially because of the weather and after all the walking we did lol Afterwards we headed back to the main building where all the wine bottles were. We wanted to buy omiyages (souvenirs) so we looked around. I bought two grape-scented postcards. Afterwards we decided to head back on our own so we knew they were going to take a while tasting all the wine.

The walk to the station was closer. About 15minutes or so. We missed the closest train so we had to wait about 40minutes for the next one. The train took us to Ootsuki. The train from there back to Tsuru was an hour away so we decided to chill in Ootsuki for awhile. We walked around looking for a place to eat, but everything was expensive. We decided to go to a konbini (convenient store) and bought snacks. I bought a Niku man (meat bao). We saw the others (looks like they took the next train after us). They didn't notice us though. We got on the train back to Tsuru which arrived 20minutes early. We sat inside and eventually the others appeared. They were shocked to see us. We told them how we missed the train when we went to the station.

We got back to Tsuru and everyone headed back to their apartments. About an hour or so later we had to leave again because we had to partake in a matsuri. I will talk more about that in my next entry =) Right now it's super early (why am I even awake!?) and I'm hungry so I don't want to write about it right now XD In a couple hours I'm gonna partake in a parade for the matsuri so I'll probably update when I get back (or the next day. Depends on how tired I'll be).

Until next time!

Matsuri (festival) Prep and Other Happenings

So, this coming weekend there's a festival happening in Tsuru and we're participating in it! Well all, but 2 of us EAPers are participating. We'll be partaking in the parade (which I honestly am not looking forward to considering I'll be walking for 2 hours under the sun in clothes that will probably be hot). 6 of us are chamber maids which is what I will be. We have the easy part because all we have to do is wake, smile, and wave. Some people have to walk in a special way and some even have to dance while they walk. I'm glad we don't have to do that because that looks more tiring lol

We had our first meeting on Sunday. Everyone who's partaking in the parade were there. We met at the school gym. We practiced the parade walking along the court in the gym. I think we walked around 3 times before we finished. It was pretty hot in there. It was pretty awesome, though. Even though it wasn't the actual parade you still get a sense of how Japanese it's going to be. There were guys who were chanting on those speaker phone things. I love stuff like this so it made me happy :) I'm excited to see the real thing this weekend! Just not looking forward to me sweating and getting exhausted haha Also, this was our only practice. Not much is done anyway. I hope the guys can keep up with their dancing lol

The next day we got clothes that we're supposed to wear for Friday. All of us thought we were getting out clothes for the parade on Saturday, but apparently something else is happening on Friday. I totally forgot the name of the clothes that we're supposed to wear, but everyone is wearing the same things. I also get to wear tabi! Kind of ninja-like shoes x3 it's a shame we don't get to keep these clothes. Would have been awesome haha

Monday we had our midterm. I think I did pretty well on the Kanji part save for one that we totally did not just learn. I think I did bad on the grammar/reading part though =( I actually almost cried... I teared a little. I literally just stared at my paper and got frustrated because I couldn't even answer half of one page. I think the teacher knew I was frustrated because I kept rubbing my head in anger. Ugh.... I'm scared to get the results back =(

Tuesday we had our speeches. We wrote about our cherished/important item/story. I wrote about Luna, my dog. At first I thought there would be more people watching, but not much were there. That was a relief. I felt a little better since I didn't have to speak in front of a lot of people. But this isn't our only speech. We still have others and there will be more people watching... so not looking forward to that...

Tomorrow me and 6 others are going to an onsen (hot spring)! So excited! Not excited about bathing yourself in a public bath though.... You have to do that before entering the hot spring and usually the baths are shared by others. Same gender, though, so that's an upside. We'll see how this goes ><

An interesting Friday and Volleyball with the locals!

WARNING: REALLY LONG POST

Friday 8/24/2012 (notice that I stopped doing the bullet points lol)

So, yesterday was a really interesting day. Thought it would be appropriate to write about it XP

The day started with class which wasn't very interesting... I'll skip that part so I won't bore you.

After class I went back to my apartment. As soon as I entered I hear my phone ring. I check it to find that I got a message from my host family. That made me really happy x3 I haven't heard from them since Monday. The message was long and filled with cute emoticons and gif images. I love using Japanese cellphones because I can put those images in my messages x3 It is pretty Japanese and probably would be weird if America starts doing that lol but I certainly wouldn't mind :D
Anyway, in the message they were hoping I was doing well in the very hot weather. I told them it's hot but I'm completely ok (^.^). I'm not sure if I should write in detail what the message was about because of privacy reasons xP Let's just say that they were happy to have met me during the Welcome Party =D So excited to meet up with them again ^_^ and I can't wait to meet the dad. Hope he's nice as the girls in the family haha

It took me about 30minutes to reply back because I wanted to make sure I was saying things right and that I didn't sound rude or anything haha  I can't going back and forth between my message and theirs since there were some things I forgot how to write in Japanese. I hope I become pro soon lol I'm definitely  bringing my cellphone back with me to America =3 it probably wouldn't work, but it'd be great to keep it!

After I finally sent them a reply I headed upstairs to another EAPer's room. We kinda just chilled there for a bit. I honestly don't remember what we did lol but I remember I ended up back in my room again. I think I was supposed to help her with ordering stuff on Book Off (a store that sells used books, cds, and stuff) online, but that didn't happen.

 So, I just chilled in my room for a bit. I was probably on fb, tumblr, and youtube haha. While I was browsing the internet my phone rings again. I check and it's a message from my tutor. He asked if I was in my apartment and I told him yeah. He wanted to bring Nimono that he just made. That made me happy since we're pretty awkward around each other. It's mainly because I have a hard time communicating with him in Japanese since I get super nervous when I talk to native speakers. Oh, Nimono is a type of Japanese food. I don't really want to explain it lol you can google it XP I waited for a bit. I knew he wouldn't be quick since he probably lives far. About 20 minutes later I see someone from outside my window on a moped. At first I thought it was the delivery guy, but a few seconds later my doorbell goes off. It was Shinsei! (my tutor). He gave me the Nimono, which was delicious btw! He also told me about a soft volleyball event that's happening the next day and that we had to a festival meeting on Sunday. I told him how I never had Nimono before and he said that I should definitely try it and hoped that I will like it. I said thank you and waved bye to him. Not to sound like a creeper, but I watched him drive away in his moped lol Hey, I can't really help it if my back door faces the road that leads to the apartment XD Mopeds are really popular here in Japan. I see them everywhere! I've even seen a gang of moped riders lol I really want to ride one =3 it looks like a lot of fun! Getting a license would be a waste though since I'm not staying here long. I want to ride one back in America, but that'll probably be hard xP I ate the Nimono and I really liked it! I gotta remember to return his taperware back to him on Tuesday (note to self).

Later that day me and my EAP friend (same one as earlier) made sweet and sour pork in her apartment. A lot of stuff around here is super expensive so we had to improvise. It turned out delicious, though! Haven't had sweet and sour in awhile so it was great =3 After dinner we headed upstairs to another EAPer's room. They were pregaming cause they were heading to a place called the Gibson House which I think is a bar. I've never been there myself so I don't know what it is exactly. It probably sounds weird that I actually went considering that I don't think. I actually drank a little bit of alcohol. I think it was sake, but I'm not quite sure. I was told that it was 20% alcohol which is probably the most I've ever had. It didn't taste as bad as I thought it would. I only drank once that night so no worries! I didn't get drunk or anything haha Anyway, I spent most of the time playing Super Smash Bros Melee. I'm not pro-status or anything, but I'm probably above average. There were a lot of pro players, though. I'm still amazed at how good some people are XD One of the tutors is really good at it. Apparentlly, everyone who faces him get really angry because he's always winning lol. I think the reason why he came was to play Smash lol I managed to beat him twice :D haha but then I had help since it was 4 people playing at a time. Oh, I found a favorite character for Melee, Fox! haha

After the pregaming most headed to Gibson. It was just me and my friend (who were at the pregame party) that didn't go. We didn't really want to waste time there since we're both not heavy drinkers. The others kept telling us we didn't have to drink, but then again it'd probably be boring just sitting there. Instead we made a quick trip to the 7/11 and bought a few snacks. We went to my apartment and did some Kanji HW (at like 11:00pm at night lol). It was good that we did that though since we have a midterm on Monday and we have to memorize our speech that we have to present infront of people on Tuesday (super nervous o.o ugh why do we have to do this!?!?!?). After an hour or so we suddenly hear talking outside. The others were back. A few of them already headed upstairs but a couple stay downstairs and chatted. Me and my friend decided to go outside and greet them. They were drunk.... some more than others. One of the tutors who went with them to Gibson was also there. I'm sure it's because he was worried about the others. He was pretty sober even though I'm sure he drank, too. Poor guy, I think it was his first time experiencing being around a drunk American. One of them was really tipsy. He was always making sure she wouldn't hurt herself and was genuinely worried about her well-being. He's a nice guy and I'm glad he was there to help out. I honestly wouldn't know what to do. Oh, this was also my first time experience that type of drunkenness, too. Even though I go to UCSB I usually avoid those so I don't see them as often.

We were out there for awhile. The others talked about some Japanese shows and stuff. We eventually headed back into our rooms. Me and my friend chilled in my room for another hour. While she was memorizing her speech I was busy getting some anime from her external hard drive into mine lol She eventually went back into her room and I got ready for bed.

That's the end of my Friday. Interesting? not interesting? Either way it was an eventful day for me XD haha
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Saturday 8/25/2012 SOFT VOLLEYBALL!

Me and 5 other EAPers headed to the school gym because there was some soft volleyball event going on. My tutor and another tutor went also. At first we stood on the bleachers and watch people play then some guys came up and asked us if we wanted to play. At first we were like "no... we're not very good. We can't play" (in Japanese of course). Eventually one of the EAPers and my tutor decided to go play. We watched them. My tutor's pretty good at volleyball! He plays badminton so maybe that's part of it.

Oh yeah, let me explain why it's soft volleyball and why it's not regular volleyball. That's because they were playing with softballs instead of regular volleyballs. A lot of people who were playing were older people so maybe that's why. Also, it wasn't regular volleyball that's for sure because people were using their feet and heads lol

The rest of us went down to the volleyball courts. Most of us just wanted to watch. I actually wanted to play. A couple minutes later 3 of the EAPers decided to head back. It was just me, 2 other EAPers, and the two tutors. Me and the other EAPers played a round. The ball was a lot lighter than I thought and since I naturally hit volleyballs really hard I hit the soft balls hard so sometimes they went flying lol It was ok, though, because it was supposed to be a fun event and nothing serious. During the court switch one of the players switched with my tutor. We didn't do so well in the end. It was really fun though!

We rested on the sidelines for a bit. The guy who invited us to play on his team showed me some pictures on his camera. They were pictures of Japanese castles, places in Yamanashi and Nagano and he even showed me a picture of a Japanese olympian. The places he showed me were really beautiful. I kept saying how beautiful they were and how I wanted to go. Sometimes he spoke a little English with us. He liked that we could speak Japanese, too. Actually, every time we speak Japanese to someone here they all get surprised. I remember buying something at the supermarket and I said thank you in Japanese and the lady has a surprised look on her face lol It kinda feels good haha

I played another round. I was the only EAPer playing this time. I didn't hit the ball as much since it barely came to me XD We lost that round, too, but it didn't matter! Cause it was fun :D I love playing when we just play for fun. To be honest, I hate it when we play seriously because some people can get too serious...

I sat back down and watched two other teams play against each other. Another EAPer was talking to my tutor about our Japanese. He kept saying how good our Japanese was then she brought up how when we say こんにちは(Hello) to someone they instantly say that our Japanese is really good. That's soo true lol He said how he's trying his best with English and me and other EAPer told him "You can do it!" He responded with "I can do it!" Adorable haha She also explained to him that a lot of the times when some of us try to speak Japanese we get really nervous. I instantly responded with そうそう！(That's right!) I think he understands now why I don't talk to him as much. I just get really nervous and embarrassed when I start speaking Japanese. He even said he feels the same way when he tries speaking English. I think the awkward wall broke down after that because we understand each other now! Yay!

After the game we headed back. The other tutor went off on his own way and my tutor walked a bit with us back to our apartments. We talked a bit mainly of how hot it was (it's super hot!). When one of us sneezed me and the other EAPer said "bless  you" Shinsei (my tutor) instantly asked us what that means. We gave each other looks and laughed a little because we weren't sure how to explain it lol In English, I asked the other EAPers if they knew why we say bless you and I just told them how I was told it's because when you sneeze your heart stops so you say bless you in hopes that God will make your heart beat again or something (I don't remember where I heard this). Shinsei had a confused look and I said how I couldn't really explain it in Japanese. The other EAPer managed to do it, though. He was surprised. He said that the whole "bless you" thing is weird, but that's understandable. He says that when people sneeze here others don't usually say something. Sometimes they'd say "Are you ok?" and stuff but that's it. I think he was happy though because he learned something about America lol

When we reached the end of the road we parted ways with my tutor. Oh, btw, he had his moped with him. He walked it while he was walking with us. The others were amazed that he drives one lol and we all wanted to ride one XD Before heading off he told us that he's going back home soon. We were all sad :( He'll be back for the next term, but we won't be seeing him for a couple of weeks. Hope he has fun back home, though ^_^

After that we headed back to our apartments and that's where I am right now =) (I was sad that my package from Book Off hasn't come yet. Hope it comes tomorrow!)

SORRY FOR THE SUPER LONG POST. It's probably too boring to read since it's all text XD sorry!

Meeting our Host Families

Monday 8/20/2012

6:30pm we head to the school cafeteria. There a Welcome Party is held which is pretty much a party where we get to meet our host families =3 Each person gets their own host family. There were a lot of people which made the get together a lot more fun! The tables were set so that there were 2 EAPers at each table. They split us up for the purpose of letting us sit with our host families and for game purposes. We first introduce ourselves. All 14 of us EAPers went to the front and did our usual 自己紹介 (self-introduction). Any tutors who were there also introduced themselves along with the EAPer that they're tutors to. As we introduced ourselves we were also introduced to our host families.

My host family consist of a mother, father, and two daughters. The father wasn't there because he was busy that night. The mother and the two little girls are so adorable =3 The youngest was shy at first. Every time I tried talking with her she would ignore me >.< but she slowly got acquainted with me ^^ The older daughter seems like an out-going girl. She got jealous when I said that I have 3 dogs. They live in an apartment which doesn't allow pets. I'm going to show them pictures of my dogs next time we meet :3 Another interesting thing is when I told the mother that Pokemon is actually quite popular in America and that we also have McDonalds she was actually quite shocked. I was surprised that she was surprised XD lol Oh yeah, the littles girl likes stickers. I'm thinking of buying her stickers next time I go to Tokyo or something :3 In Japan, they're called Seals which I thought was pretty interesting. I can't wait to meet the dad. Just hope he isn't scary x3 haha I was sad that I forgot to bring my camera so I couldn't take a picture with them >< they had a camera though so we still took a picture together =3

At the table were these 2 other people. I wasn't quite sure why they were there to be honest. I'm thinking they're part of the other EAPer's host family who was at my table. I was told that one of them studied abroad in America and that he's actually been to Santa Barbara. Of course, he would ask me about Halloween in IV. He says it was fun when he went last time. He asked me if I go often and I told him I didn't. The main coordinator of the Study Abroad program also sat at our table. She asked me what Halloween was like in SB. I just told her it's pretty scary and dangerous. I didn't really know how to explain it in Japanese lol so I just used simplier words XD While I was talking about Halloween in Santa Barbara my tutor was impressed haha

Besides the talking we also played a couple games. I totally forgot the name of the games. Not sure if they actually had names lol
The first game we played is pretty much a telephone game. One EAPer goes up and are told a phrase (in Japanese of course) then they must say the phrase to someone at a table and that person passes it on and so on. The other EAPer has to be last and must write down the phrase. We had to say the phrase we got out loud (which was embarassing knowing that you got the phrase wrong lol). Our table only got 1/3 right. Not too bad.
The next game we played was the game host (my tutor, btw) would give us a topic and everyone in the table must think of a word that relates to that topic. The goal is to have as much people in your team to write the same word as possible. The first topic was Japan. All the Japanese people on our table said Sushi and the two only non-Japanese said otherwise lol I put Ramen and the other EAPer put Natto. I felt dumb not putting Sushi after that lol The next topic was America. Me and the other EAPer put Hamburger. Two others also put Hamburger. The other answers were pretty funny lol The last topic was Yamanashi-ken (the prefecture that Tsuru is in). Majority put Budou (grapes) while some put Mt. Fuji. In the end we didn't do too well in this game lol

After the games the winners were given prizes. They were all snacks XD haha We didn't even place, but it was alright because we still had fun =3 Afterwards we talked more with our host families. I tried to get acquainted with the girls more. They're really cute x3 I love kids. It's a shame they don't have pets, but that's alright. My host family seem like really nice people =3 can't wait to see them again!

富士山に登る Climbing Mt. Fuji

1:45am I get out of bed to get ready. We leave our apartments at 2:30am-ish and walk to the bus stop at the school. Along with us 14 EAPers, there were 5 tutors and couple others (mainly exchange students from China and few people from the school). The bus takes it's leave around 3:00am and the ride to our destination took about 1-1 1/2 hours.

We arrive at about half way up the Mt. Fuji which is where the main starting point is. I'm glad because I don't think I'd be able to start from the bottom XP Everyone heads the restroom to change and get ready and before heading off we have a little orientation. After doing warm-ups we head off. It was about 4:30am when we started walking. As we walked we could see the sun starting to rise. The view was absolutely amazing. Pictures can't compare to the sight you see with your own eyes. Probably one of the better sun rises I've ever seen in my life!

We continued on with a couple uphills. Being a physically inapt person I started getting tired right away! We haven't even reached the main parts yet >.< After a couple minutes of walking we finally reach the point where the trek was going to be rougher. We took a small break at the point where thew view was equally as amazing! At this point you can see the clouds. They were really puffy. Almost wanted to jump on them lol After the short break we headed off. This was the point where we started to split off. The fast group went way ahead, the middle group stayed at a steady pace and the slower group took their time. I was between the middle and slow group. I was with one other EAPer and we kept each other company while heading up the first trail. We took quite a bit of breaks. Going up slopes is really tiring. Also, at this point I started hating stairs because they require a bit more leg energy. Eventually, we made it the first rest stop. I've already gotten really tired and my legs were already in pain. We took a break for a couple minutes. We stocked up on energy by snacking on some food and water.

After the first stop we were introduced to just how rough the road to the top was going to be. The next trail required actual climbing. Rough, large rocks required you to use your hands and to carefully plant your feet so you wouldn't fall. I actually found that part to be a little fun and a little easier. It was more dangerous and rougher, but I found my self less tired since I was able to distribute my energy a little more equally instead of using mainly my legs. At the end of every trail were a set of stairs. I've never hated stairs so much in my life x.x A couple of times I found my self using my legs and hands to climb up the stairs because I've gotten tired already. Sometimes I sucked it up and climbed up using just my legs, but I soon found myself not caring how undignified I looked XP Trust me, when you're that tired and not wanting to severely hurt yourself you wouldn't care how you climb up that mountain haha.

After that were a couple more trails and more rest stops. The trails consisted mainly of rocky paths that required climbing, but there were also regular sloping paths. Every time we stopped at a rest stop I got happy because my legs were so tired they felt like they were going to fall off x.x They felt like they were going to numb out on me! And every time we walked pass a rest stop without stopping a little bit of me died inside, but I kept going knowing that with every step I was getting closer to the top. The climb was so painful I often found my self saying もうだめだ！(No more!), もうやだ！(I don't want to do this anymore!), 死にたい(I want to die...), できない！(I can't do it!). It was that bad x.X but thanks to the support of the others and just knowing how close I was I kept going. Also, things were getting a little scary when we started to hear thunder not too far. We were actually warned about there being a thunderstorm on Mt. Fuji that day. Quite scary, but nothing bad really happened.

We eventually reached the last stop. By this point I've slowed down to the slow group. The trail from here to the top was the toughest and most painful one of all! That one long stretch was the worst! It felt like Hell x.x I wanted to stop soooo badly. I had to stop like every 10 steps because of how difficult and painful it was. It didn't help that I was already tired and my legs felt like they had no more strength left. For awhile I was on my own. I ended up being the last one of the EAPers, but at that point I didn't care. I wanted to get to the top and I wanted to get there in one piece. Eventually, one of the Chinese exchange students caught up with me and we ended up as walking buddies. I'm glad because I seem to do better when I have someone with me. It's more encouraging and makes you want to not give up and keep going. I wish I knew her name, but I wasn't able to get it :( ありがとうね！

Shop at the summit

After that horribly and painful trail we saw a temple gate with two lion statues. Of course we stopped to take pictures haha but this was also the sign that we've made it! Because right beyond that point was the summit! やった！できた！I did it! I've maid it to the top! After 6 long hours of trekking up those high and rough trails I've finally made it to the top! The great sense of accomplishment you get after going through a rigorous activity like that is beyond great. That's one experience I'll never ever forget! At the top I spent a bit of time at the stores there to buy some souvenirs that proved my achievement ><b but unfortunately, because I spent some time in that store and the fact that I was one of the last ones to get to the top I wasn't able to get a picture of the view below from the top because the group were heading back down. I'm sad I wasn't able to capture the view :( but it was really cloudy when we reached the top so you couldn't see much anyway. I'm still sad about it though....

Now let me write about the way down! Since we left so quickly I had to put on my rain gear while we were heading down since it was starting to rain. Let me tell you, it wasn't that easy xP I was only able to put on a rain coat since everyone was in a hurry to get down. I ended up being in the last group, but who cares. The path down was a little easier since it mainly consisted of a zigzagging slope. I was actually more painful than I thought. At first I just walked down the slope carefully. I found my self sliding a lot. I had to keep myself from falling over and it took a lot of energy in my legs to prevent myself from falling. My feet were starting to hurt since my feet were sliding in my shoes while I was going down the slope. Also, I wore tennis shoes which weren't exactly waterproof. I had to stop at one point to put on an extra pair of socks because my feet were starting to get cold and I didn't want to get frost bite.

We eventually reach a point where a few people in our group were. Well actually, it was like 3 other people plus one of the guides. We headed off down the slope again. One of the guides ran down the slope and I thought it would be fun to try so I did. And it was fun! I just ran down the slope and caught up with the guide. He was quite surprised. His reaction was はやい！(You're fast!). He thought I ski or something but I said I didn't and he suggested that I do XP haha I kinda want to try now lol Anyway, running down the slope was actually a lot easier than walking down. It was more dangerous, though, because as you run down the slope you have a higher chance of leaning forward and tumbling, tripping over a rock, and just losing your balance. As I ran I just made sure to keep my body from falling forward and to make sure to avoid any rocks or gaps. It really wasn't that hard, though, but then again maybe I was just being optimistic haha.

We stopped at another point. At this point I found out that I was actually a head of the others. At the last point a lot of the others decided to take a restroom break. Also, me running down the slope gave me a little head start. I talked with the guides and how I was able to run down the slope. They asked me where I was from and I told them how there's no snow where I was from so I've never tried to ski. Eventually, a couple of the others made it to the point. We took a little break there. After most of the others making it we headed off down the slope once more. I ran down again. It was a little harder here because the slopes had bigger rocks so it was more dangerous. I was in the faster grouper who were the ones that were ahead of everyone else. It was me, 3 other EAPers, a tutor, and one of the guides. Eventually, the guide just went on ahead on his own. We were quite impressed because he was a couple slopes ahead of us! Me, 1 other EAPer, and the tutor ran down the slopes. After every other slope we stopped to wait for the other two. I'm glad though because running down the slopes became rougher. Running down required a bit more oxygen and sometimes I get light-headed if I kept running. My feet were also starting to get painful. I eventually stopped running down the slope and walked down. Another EAPer eventually caught up with us.

We stopped at the last rest point. We stayed for quite a bit. Another group caught up with us, but as soon as they came we left a few minutes after. The path had just a few more zigzags then eventually it became one long path. I kinda didn't like that because I liked the fact that we took a little break at every other zigzag point. But it wasn't too bad. There were parts that had stairs which I liked because using stairs to go down was a lot better than using stairs to go up. I ran down the slopes a few times despite the pain my feet, but I just wanted to get down plus I got to rest a bit more waiting for the others XP We stopped a little at one area. There were horses there. You can actually rent a horse to use to go down, but it's really expensive.

We continued on our way down.  About 30 minutes or so we finally made it back to the starting point. Oh the satisfaction and relief you get after climbing up Mt. Fuji and making down in one piece is amazing! However, at that point all I could think about was taking a shower and going to bed lol I was so beat I felt like I couldn't do anything anymore! I was surprised that I was still able to walk!

A view from Mt. Fuji

Climbing Mt. Fuji is one experience I'll never forget. The experience was very painful and rigorous and so many times I just wanted to stop and give up. When you're forced to keep going even though you know you're at your limit is really difficult. I felt like dying so many times because of that, but you learn to suck it up and keep going. I've gotten so far I wasn't about to give up. That's the thought I had in my head the whole time while climbing Mt. Fuji. It took nearly 12 hours to climb up and to descend the mountain. 12 hours was long and it felt a lot longer than that, but hey I managed to make it and I'm glad I was given the opportunity to do so! I honestly didn't think I would be able to do all that within one day! Even though, this experience is one that I'll never forget and one I'm glad I was able to have I don't think I'll ever climb the mountain again. Knowing just how hard it is and how just how high the mountain really is I don't think I'd have the willpower again. It was fun, but climbing up Mt. Fuji is one experience I probably won't do again.

Japan vs America 1

Thought it would be fun to make these type of posts :3 Here I'll describe some differences I've found throughout my time Japan.

1. Trash cans are scarce! You'll find  yourselves stuffing your trash in your pockets or bags because there aren't a lot of public trash cans.

2. Free fans! and tissues! Since it gets really hot here you can find free fans at stores. Very convenient don't you think? Even if they're just ways to advertise, who cares? It's a good way to cool off!

3. One lane roads. There are a lot of one lane roads in Japan. Cars coming and going basically share the same road so you  have to be very careful!

4. Right of way on the roads? None really. At least from what I've experienced :P At areas where there's a cross walk and a car turns I noticed that most of the time the cars don't wait. Even if you're within a foot or two away from crossing a car will still go ahead. So, the rule of thumb is WATCH OUT FOR CARS

5. In a small town like Tsuru people get really surprised seeing that we Gaijin can speak and understand Japanese. Don't be surprised to hear some people saying that to others xP It's not really an insult more like a compliment lol

6. In a small town like Tsuru you'll surprisingly find yourself get really happy when you find/meet another Gaijin other than the people in your EAP group lol

7. Another thing about the trash. It's actually a complicated process. Don't want to explain really XP

8. Cicadas, the crickets of the day. If you watch a lot of anime or Japanese movies you notice those screeching sounds during hot summer days. Those are cicadas and that's really how a typical hot summer day sounds like in Japan. Personally, I like it.

9. CUTENESS EVERYWHERE

10. About doing laundry. You actually have to hang up your clothes to dry. It's an interesting experience but personally I prefer using the dryers. It's also really inconvenient when it rains or there's no sun. So not looking forward to washing my clothes during the Winter >>

(Non Study Abroad Post) Korean vs Japan Drama

Sorry, this post has absolutely nothing to do with study abroad. I just wanted to write about it somewhere XP Feel free to skip this part. You're welcome to read it if you're interested hahaha

Ok so I started watching Hana Yori Dango (the drama). To be honest, I never thought I would actually watch this drama because I've actually seen Boys Over Flowers (the Korean version) and liked that one. At first I didn't like how the guys looked in the Japanese ones, but the more I watch it the more I think how they look better than the Korean ones hahaha. I started watching this drama because of one actor. That's usually how I find stuff to watch. Like for anime I watch anime where my favorite seiyuu (voice actor) is in. For dramas it's actors. That actor is Oguri Shun. Before he didn't really catch my attention much. I think it was after watching Hana Kimi that I didn't really care since I don't like the Sano character. But a few days ago I decided to watch the original GTO drama which was back in 1998. Oguri was in it and he was 16 years old I think. OMG he was so adorable back then >< It's really surprising because all the dramas/movies I've seen him in before he always played the tough and cool character so it was different. After GTO I watched Summer Snows where he plays the younger brother of the main guy. He's weak in this one, too. And adorable! I seriously never thought I'd find myself thinking that lol Also, I think he's a pretty good actor. He did a good job in Summer Snow where you played a hearing impaired teen. Since his character can't hear he has to talk differently. I think he did a great job with that.
Anyway, back to HYD. So yeah, the reason why I decided to watch it is because of Oguri Shun. He plays the quiet and nice guy. In the Korean one, the character's name is Yoon Ji Hoo. Personally, I think Oguri looks way better and so far is doing a great job as the character. Also, he's so freaking adorable >< As I continue watching the drama I'm starting to like it more and more. The characters grew on me pretty quickly. The other two members of F4 haven't really stood out for me yet, though. I really like the main girl in the Japanese one. Also, the main guy isn't as annoying as his Korean counterpart. The hairstyle fits him better in my opinion lol Yeah, the characters grow on you pretty fast. Darn it,wondering why I didn't watch this sooner >< Well, back to watching :D

Tsuru river, more adventures, and the changing weather

Last Friday us EAPers and a couple of the tutors went to a River to hang out.

The river below the bridge

• The river was soooo far..... Took about 45 minutes to walk there.
• The scenery on the way there was really awesome, though. Got to see a variation of houses. Some modern and some traditional. 
• The grasses are sooo green. I almost want to eat them lol
• We passed by another river, but this one was bigger. We walked across a bridge over it. There was also a small waterfall in the distance. It was really beautiful
• It was another maybe 15-20 minutes until we finally reached the river we were to hang out at.
• There were a few people fishing at the river. Their fishing poles were long hah
• There were also these scarecrow like things on the river. Not exactly what they're there for lol
• A couple people swam into the river while others stayed dry or only put their legs in the water.
• I helped take pictures so I only walked in as far as my legs can reach which wasn't far hahahaha
• Those who swam went towards the back of the river where there was a really high wall. There were steps and so they used that to jump off and dive into the river.  I think I took some really good pictures of that lol
• Later we played Suikawari!!! I've always wanted to play that game :D
• Suikawari: It's a game where you put a watermelon on the ground. Someone will be blindfolded and given a big enough stick that can break the watermelon. The person must spin around the stick (I think 10 times?) then by being guided by everyone else must find their way to the watermelon and try to break it. It took 3 people to break the watermelon. It was fun! Oh, I didn't play. I was taking pictures haha
• By the way, I took photos using someone else's camera so I can't really show them. Sorry!
• We also found this really interesting bug that was chilling on one of the bigger rocks. No one knew what it was. A lot of the girls were very squeamish about it which was pretty natural. I wanted to hold it, but I didn't know what it was so I didn't touch it :P
• The walk back felt longer since we were all tired and the fact that there were more uphills haha. I ended up taking more pictures (with my own camera) on the way back. I really love Tsuru. It may not be a big city, but it's very peaceful and calm.
• I later found out that the bug was a Lobster Moth Caterpillar. Very interesting specimen.

 The following days I didn't really do anything too spectacular. I'll write about it anyway :P

• Saturday we were all going bowling, but not everyone went. I didn't go either since it was pretty expensive (though cheap in a sense. 1800円 for 5 games, but then I didn't want to play that many games) plus they left really late and it was a long walk to the bowling alley.
• Instead me and 2 others went to 7 11 to buy something to drink. There I found a shounen magazine and decided to buy it because it had a Fairy Tail poster (I love Fairy Tail!! ^^ ) and it was only 270円. Who wouldn't buy it? XD hahaha
• We returned to the apartment and chilled in one of our rooms. We ended up watching Glee on tv. It was very interesting hahaha. It was dubbed but they kept the singing voices and only subtitled it. I might end up watching it every week lol
• On Sunday I ended up waking up really early to watch Saint Seiya Omega on TV lol It was on at 6:30am in the morning. I watched Super Sentai and Kamen Rider after  ^_^ Yes, I'm a Tokusatsu fan :D and proud of it! Though, I admit I'm not very into the recent ones. I still watch them when I can, though.
• I went out shopping twice that day. The first time I went with one other person to Seria which is kind of like a $1 store (not sure if I mentioned that already lol). This time we got time to actually look around without feeling rush. There's a bunch of really nice things in that store. You don't know how many times I said "omg that's sooo cute" XD hahaha, but seriously there were a lot of cute things in there! I bought a Stitch pencil pouch from there XD
• Later we went out again with 2 others to go to Okajima which is another supermarket. We went to buy groceries. I bought some things for curry and onigiri :3 
• The rest of the day I ended up watching GTO (1998) on my computer. It's been awhile since I've watched Japanese dramas, but on TV I saw the remake of GTO and I liked it. I've caught up with the current series so I decided to watch the older one. The older one is really nice. Highly recommended!
• Monday was class again. After class we had an orientation for Mt. Fuji. That's right! We're climbing Mt. Fuji this Saturday!!! :D Super excited! But at the same time I don't want to go because it's going to be so tiring ><
• The rest of the day I watched another drama. This time I watched a drama called Summer Snow. Such a great drama.  Has various themes dealing with the 5 main characters. I highly recommended this one, too! The pace is great and it's not a mushy mushy, typical romantic drama. It's rather old though (I think 2000?) but honestly, in my opinion, Japanese dramas were better back then. 
• Afterwards I went to Ogino with another EAPer. On one of the Coin Toy Machines I saw Fairy Tail and, being the Fairy Tail fan that I am, decided to get one. It was 200円 but so worth it! I got a Natsu keychain :3 I have no where to put it right now, though :(

The weather has changed recently. It's been raining these past few days. It was actually a surprise for me because I thought it would be hot for the remainder of the summer. Actually, although it's raining it's still pretty humid. It's kind of a gross combination, but still better than humidity + heat. I bought an umbrella so no problems :) 

Well, that's it for now. Thanks for reading! \(^o^)/

Fireworks, Class, and Little Adventures

Sorry for boring titles. I'm bad at being creative >> Anyway, on to the blogging!! yay!.....

Hanabi Taikai!

• On Saturday we went to Ogino (a supermarket here in Tsuru) to buy our Yukatas :3 They were real cheap! And they come with everything. I've never bought a Yukata before so this is the first time. I really love my Yukata ^^ I might get another one before I leave XD haha
• Eri, one of the tutors, came by the next day to help us put on the Yukatas. It's a complicated process. Also, it has to be fitted tightly so it doesn't fall apart. It was kinda hard to breathe lol
• Also, the Yukatas generally come in the same size (except there's separate sizes for children), but there's away so it can fit you. I'm the shortest of all the EAPers and I'm sure we all got the same size. My fitted just fine thanks to the expertize of Eri-chan ^o^
• On Sunday (two days ago) we went to a Hanabi Taikai! It's basically a fireworks festival :3
• We took the train there which actually took longer than I thought. Me and another EAPer were lucky cause we got to sit down on the way there.
• Once we reach one town the train became so packed! I was scared that the others would get off and we wouldn't know XD
• It turns out that majority of people who got on the train were also heading to the hanabi taikai so no problem there!
• It was a bit of a walk to the place from the train station. It really wasn't that bad.
• When we got there we decided how to split up  because going in a big group would be too much trouble. 
• My group ended up with people who've never been there before lol so we got a little lost. It didn't help that most of us were hungry, too XD lol
• One of the tutors kindly went out on his own to find food for us. やさしいね。It was mainly chicken, yakitori, and dango! おいしかった！
• We then headed out to find a place to watch the fireworks. We found most of the others so we watched it with them.
• The fireworks were really pretty. The show was really long, too. Longer than any I've seen in America. Just when you think it was over they'd fire more lol I did get tired after awhile, though, but overall it was fun ^o^
• The walk back to the station felt longer because I was super tired. Did I mention that I stood up the entire time? My knees felt stiff and my feet starting hurting, but I sucked it up XP
• Of course the train ride would be packed since most people were going back at the same time. Once again I was afraid I'd lose the others. It's not fun getting lost x.x
• I ended up standing up in the train this time. The whole entire time I stood up. It was painful, but it was ok. 
• I got to talk with a few of the tutors on the train. I mainly talked to Dai-chan who's actually an exchange student from Korea. He kept wanting me to translate what he says into English haha He wanted to practice his English. I also learned what type of music he likes and who his favorite author is. He's a fun guy.
• When we finally got off the train we headed back to our apartments. After taking a shower I went to bed XP The next day is when our classes start.

Start of ILP (Intensive Language Program)

• Monday is the start of our language classes. Last Friday we took a placement test which would determine our level.
• I think I was placed into the more advanced class since the sensei told us in our class things will be faster compared to the other one.
• Classes follow a certain schedule that's usually Kanji -> intermediate japanese -> Conversation/Composition.
• I think I'm the least capable in my class x.X I can read and write Japanese fairly well, but when it comes to listening and talking I fail so hard. Whenever the sensei asks me a question I often don't know how to answer because I can't understand everything he says. He talks pretty fast so my mind can't process the words as fast...
• I wish my hearing would be better D:
• The next day (today actually) we had another teacher. She talked slower than the other which I liked. She's quieter, but  I liked that she talked slower XD lol
• Today we have homework. Just Kanji nothing, too hard. 
• From now on I'm gonna be nervous about going to class because of my poor listening and speaking skills :( -sigh- also have a speech thing we have to do soon.... ugh, why is it required? D: Can I just watch the others do it ><

Other Adventures

• Me and another EAPer went to a supermarket that she claims to be cheaper than the one we've been going to. I can't really say if it is yet. It is a bit far, though ><
• We went there to buy a thank you gift for one of the tutors who's always done really nice things (he paid for us for karaoke, bought food and drinks at the hanabi taikai, and also drove us to Softbank). We bought him a Japanese snack thing and Oolong tea. I also bought myself a bento there since the cafeteria is closed for the remainder of the summer :(
• Later that day one of the tutors (the one I mentioned in the point before this) took me and two other EAPers to Softbank. Softbank is a phone company in Japan.
• The nearest Softbank was actually pretty far. I got to see more of Tsuru, though. I honestly didn't think it was a big city until now.
• It actually took a really long time to do the application. There was 3 of us, but it took more than an hour to do all three. But in the end we were able to get our phones after so many failed attempts of applying online! :D I won't feel like a lost puppy now XD lol
• The phone is so complicated! It took me so many tries to figure things out XD Good thing there's an English option on it! It just sucks that I can't type in Japanese while my phone is in English (unless there's an option to do it and I just don't know how to activate it o.o)

Tsuru Cont'd (excuse lame title)

I was going to blog after going to the Hanabi Taikai, but decided to do one right now so I don't end up making a long post again. Also, I'm too lazy to sub-title these XP sorry for the laziness!

• We got a tour of the school by a few of the tutors. The school's really nice. It's pretty small, which is understandable. 
• I've noticed that I've lost my sense of direction since I came to Japan. I'm still lost on where most things are at the school and in the city alone.
• I got to see a dojo that was in their gym. Pretty  legit! Wish I took a picture, but I completely forgot ><
• After the tour we went back to city hall. Another long and painful walk... we went their to pick up our cards.
• The next day we didn't really do anything. I can't even remember what I did that day... probably sitting in my apartment watching the only few channels that we get. You find some really interesting things, though :P
• Oh wait, I remember what I did that day (which was a Thursday, btw). During the day I did pretty much do nothing. Later that night I had dinner at one of the EAP student's apartment and had Japanese Zuchinni and Onions. とってもおいしかった！I got to know two of the EAP students more and they're really awesome people :)
• After dinner we headed next door where a bunch of the other EAP students were having a study group for the placement test tomorrow.
• The next morning we all headed back to the school to take our placement test. To be honest, it was easier than I had anticipated. The only part that was really difficult was the 2nd part of the grammar. Even the interview part was super easy. I was actually hoping it'd be harder so they'd know how terrible my speaking really is ><
• We were supposed to meet up with a few of the tutors at the lounge about our cellphones, but a few of us couldn't make it because the interview part was individual so it took awhile. So, I wasn't able to apply for a cellphone yet.
• Later that night we went out to karaoke with one of the tutors! I've never gone out to karaoke not even in America so it was a fun first experience.

• Everyone was so lively and energetic! Ryouta, the tutor who went with us, was super energetic whenever it was his turn to sing. It really was fun watching everyone :D (and no I didn't sing. My singing would damage people's ears ><)
• Oh yeah, I ended up buying a drink called Oolong Hai. I chose it cause it was Oolong. I later found out it was an alcoholic drink lol I actually figured that after tasting it. It was good!!!

• The next day, Saturday, we went to Ogino to pick out our Yukatas. They're so pretty! And cheap! The one I got is black with pink flower designs. I think it's cute =3 which is probably weird for some people I know because they know I'm not a very girly person >< lol
• The Yukata was about ￥2,800. Super cheap in my opinion. Some tutors are stopping by today (Sunday) to help us put it on. A lot of EAP students are worried since they tried them and they were long. I'm not worried even though I'm the shortest of the bunch :P I've actually tried on my friend's yukata before and she's like twice my size.
• After buying the Yukatas some of us went to Seria. I bought laundry detergent since I needed to do my laundry. (I reallly hope what I bought was detergent. It looks like it...)
• It took me about half an hour to figure out how to use the washing machine. A few days earlier two tutors came by to teach me how to use it, but I've forgotten >< I've eventually figured out how to use it.
• Since there's no drier I had to dry my clothes outside. That's when I learned that I didn't buy enough clothes hangers. So, I had to interchange them. Whenever one was dry I'd switch with a wet one. It was tough, because by the time I was done washing there wasn't much sun in the direction that my back balcony was facing. 
• I need to remember to buy more hangers so I don't end up with the same problem. I'm drying some of my clothes again right now since there's more sun our. 
• Yesterday night (that's Friday, hope you're not getting lost haha) I went to Mos Burger with a few of the EAP students. It's a fast food restaurant like McDonalds. Japan's known for small portions and man were those burgers small! But they were quality delicious! I had a fish sandwich which was pretty plain, but it was sooo good. Better than the ones I used to get at Wendy's. Their fries were good to. I think next time I go there I'm gonna try their Korean BBQ sandwich :3
• After Mos Burger a couple of us went to a cake shop. The stuff they have is really cute and delicious looking :3 I bought something called スターダスト which I assume is Star Dust. I bought it because it was only￥105. It was really delicious!

スターダスト

• Oh, I forgot to mention that I got help from one of the EAP students with ordering a cellphone online. Unfortunately there were a few technical difficulties so I have to try again. Hopefully, the next time I try it'll work and I won't have to worry about being phoneless for the rest of the time I'm here (it's super painful not having a phone or some sort of communication device on hand. Trust me, I've experienced that already....)

Well, that's it for now. Right now, I'm just waiting for the tutors to come by to help us put on the Yukatas and then we're heading out the the Hanabi Taikai!