Afternoon at an onsen!!

Ahh last day of January, guys!!

We had bread that Yuko said she made for breakfast today! It was really, really good. There was a lot of it like when I had the raisin bread that day. And I was trying to eat it all when Yuko asked if I wanted jam. Ohh okay, that makes more sense. I was wondering if it was a thing to eat that much plain bread in Japan lol.

Also, I've found a hair in my food the past three meals I've eaten (breakfast and dinner yesterday and breakfast today) and both cat and human (and not my own)... 0_0

Ha writing that face reminds me. When I was in the computer lab one day, I couldn't find the freaking underscore on the keyboard because Japanese keyboards are different (a really cool thing about them is the @ sign has its own key, so you don't have to press shift). Anyway I asked the Japanese student sitting next to me, but he couldn't find it either! I eventually found it and showed him, but it was really funny.

This morning I was trying to decipher the tag on the sweater I bought yesterday to see how to wash it and all I got from it was that you can't wash it in a test tube haha

Anyway, it was really nice weather today, just about 40 and sunny with clear skies. If I was a runner and didn't have the long ass commute I do, I would've gone for a run. But that's not happening anytime soon.

Every morning on the train I see this really long red bridge with a castle on one side. It's before I get to Nagoya station. I really, really want to go there, but I have no idea how or what station to get off at or anything. One day I will find out...

Since I caught the early train and had time, I walked over to Cafe Downey, where a friend from back home used to work. It's literally right on the corner where I turn to get to Nanzan, I just never noticed it! It wasn't open yet, though. :(

(Look how pink this picture is, omg. When I saw the petals on the ground at school I just had to...)

So school was chill. I hadn't felt like bringing my textbook today what with my backpack being filled with towels for the onsen, but luckily Kandou sensei didn't use it in class. I tripped up a bit on my dialogue check because my partner used the name of one of my classmates instead of the example name (Takeshi san) and that surprised me, but whatevs. Also, I was a little worried because the girl in my class who said she'd come to the onsen too, was absent. Then Fu, who had been thinking of coming, said she wasn't going to because it was the Chinese New Year, so she had other plans. And since Rana and Emma didn't want to come, that left me as the only girl! Normally I'd be cool with that, but at an onsen, you're separated by sex and I didn't want to go in the bath alone!

Between classes though, I went down to the CJS lobby and Esteban introduced me to his Japanese friend who had organized the onsen trip. I was about to say I wasn't going to go anymore, when I saw Taylor passing by, so I grabbed her and asked if she wanted to come and she did! Yay! I wouldn't be the only girl anymore!

Then I had project work (you know, that class where I'm the only one left haha). I kind of liked being the only one though because I got to talk with Takeda sensei some in Japanese. But most of the class, she had me use the computer to research about my topic for my presentation.

After class, I walked to Dagane, where I found Esteban, Tom, and Rashaa sitting. I got some sides and joined them to eat.

(Mah lunch.)

The chicken stuff was soooo good!

When I finished eating, we all went back to the CJS lobby, where I'd told Taylor to meet us since she ate earlier when everyone else did (because basically no one decided to take project work lol).

Rafael wasn't there yet, so we went into the Japan Plaza (where you can only speak Japanese) to wait for him. It was fun because we got to play with the Japanese toys! They were wooden balls on a string connected to a hammer like thing and you had to get the ball into the little ball shaped divets on the sides of the hammer. It's hard to explain, I'll post a picture in the future. But they were hard to use!

When Rafa showed up, we all headed to Yagoto Nisseki. We rode the Meijo Line for one stop and then transferred to the Tsuramai Line. Then we rode that for 20 minutes. The scenery out the window was sooo beautiful! We were definitely in the countryside. There were lots of rivers and space between the houses.

When we got to the station, we paid the 650 (whoof) yen it took to get there, and then Esteban's Japanese friend led us across the steet to the onsen.

 

The entrance

Pretty painting right when we entered.

When we got in, we had to take off our shoes. Then we put them in lockers and paid the 500 yen to get into the onsen. Everyone but Rafa and I paid an extra 200 yen for a hot stone sauna ordeal, but I don't like hot things on my body or saunas or anything, so I was like, "I'm good!"

No tats allowed, guys

The lobby area. It had UFO catchers and games and snacks.

The little flaps for the entrance into the onsen. The green says men's bath and the right says women's bath. Taylor told me the bottom kanji is the old way to write ゆ, which is the word for bath.

At the entrance into the bath

 So we went our separate ways into the baths. I'm so happy Taylor was there with me because she'd been to an onsen before and knew what to do. 

I was kind of nervous about like, you know, getting nakey in front of everyone else there, but when I actually did it, it was nothing! It's like I didn't even notice I was naked haha. And I'm happy it was with someone my age too, like Emma went with her host mom and I'm not sure I could have done that.

Anyway, so the only thing you could use to cover yourself up, was a little towel (you had to bring a little and a big towel, but the big towel was only for afterwards), and that covered like nothing. So I was just like, whatevs, we all have the same stuff, it's really nbd.

Taylor and I got all nekkid at our lockers and put our clothes in and then we went to the sinks and there this little old Japanese lady told us that the showers were outside. So we went out there and washed ourselves off.

Then we got into this huge tub that was inside there, that a few other ladies were in. When we had had enough of that, we went into this jacuzzi area I saw where there were three chairs underwater with strong jets blowing. So we sat in those chairs. The jets felt really good.

Soon we got too hot, though, so we went outside. There was such a variety of tubs outside! And it was all cute little bonsais and bamboo fences and stuff. It was so Japanese. I totally wanted to take a picture, but obviously couldn't.

First, we went into this bath where the water was white. I think it was salt like is used in the baths in Spirited Away. But that bath was 43.8 degrees, while the others were 40-41, aka that one was super hot and we could feel it. We both felt like pins were sticking into us in that bath. It hurt!

So we moved to this shallow bath. I noticed a bunch of raised platform things and told Taylor that I thought maybe we were supposed to put our heads on those and lie in the bath. So we did. 

It felt sooo good! That bath was my favorite! :) It was kinda awks that the water didn't totally cover us in that bath like in the others, so people walking by could literally see everything, but like I said, at this point I didn't care anymore. Oh, and all those scenes in anime are a lie, where the water's all opaque and stuff. No, all the baths except that white salt one had super crystal clear water.

We lay in there and talked a long time. Another lady joined us after a bit and we saw we had done the right thing by lying down. 

Next, we got into the individual tubs. There were three of those. I liked those too, because you got the whole tub to yourself. :) And there was a bamboo pipe with water continuously flowing into the tub because when you get in, it displaces a lot of water.

Then we got into this big stone tub that looked like the onsen you see in the mountains. Taylor said the one she'd been to before was like that, where it was one big onsen outside in the mountains, but she liked this one better because it had variety. Anyway, there was a tv above this tub and a movie was playing that a bunch of ladies were watching.

When we got too hot in there, we moved to the last tub we tried. It was three chairs with pretty shiny, colorful, stones decorating them. There was water where your butt goes and in a pool below where you put your feet and some water flowing over the armrests and down the sides, but for the most part you were out of the water. It was nice and cool with the breeze blowing. There was a bar to rest your head on too. We both felt like we could fall asleep there.

When we got too cold, we went back in the stone tub and talked more and then decided to go inside to get a drink, because we'd been out there for an hour already! I put my clothes on and Taylor put on the robe she'd gotten for the hot stone thing. Then we went upstairs.

Taylor got a cookies and cream ice cream. They had no idea what she was talking about when she said "cookies and cream," haha, so it was then that we read the katakana and realized it was called "cookies vanilla!" She let me have a taste and it tasted just like cookies and cream! There was an apple flavor of ice cream that I really wanted to try, but I didn't want to get sick. :(

While she was eating the ice cream, I saw this sauna that was 94 DEGREES CELSIUS!! HOLY SHIT! That's almost boiling! So of course I went in, haha.

Literally Hell

   OMG I DIED!! It was sooo hot, my face hurt. It felt exactly like Houston in the summer.

The inside. *Shudders*

The door back out to freedom. If this thing had locked, I would have literally died in there.

After I came out, we saw the guys leaving one of the rooms where you lie on hot stones. It turned out Esteban's Japanese friend had bought Rafa a hot stone room pass anyway because he wanted him to have the experience, but Rafa didn't like it. So he sat with me while everyone else and Taylor went back in. There was a room with white stones to lie on, a hotter room with black stones instead, and a cool-off room.

Rafa and I were hot, so we went to the balcony outside. We put flip flops on out there. They had lounge chairs to lie on with a really nice view!

The rest of the guys came back out then, but Taylor was still in the stone rooms, so we all decided to go back down to the baths. I went in alone this time and got in the stone bath outside with the tv. I watched this medical show like Gray's Anatomy except with Japanese people, but then there was so much effing blood that I began to feel sick and dizzy, and it was super hot in there anyway, so I went to an individual bath and sat in there a bit. Then I went to the jacuzzi inside.

Then I showered with soap. In Japan, you clean yourself and then get in the bath. But I don't do that at home and didn't here because I feel like I get dirty again when I get in the bath cause you know, it has everyone else's dead skin and hairs and shit (my host family doesn't change the water between each person's bath). So I felt super dirty after this onsen.

After I showered, I got back into my clothes. I noticed Taylor's key was back in her locker, so I knew she must be done. I walked back out and everyone was already there with all their stuff, but they said they hadn't been waiting long at all.

We got our shoes back and then walked back to the station. It was really fun! We all commented on how tired we were now and how soft our skin felt! :)

Esteban's Japanese friend took the Tsuramai in the opposite direction, so we all said "arigatou gozaimasu" and goodbye.

Then the rest of us got back on the Tsuramai towards Nagoya. Tom got off before we hit the Meijo Line. Esteban had to go to Yagoto Nisseki because Yagoto wasn't on his route, so he went back there and Taylor stayed on the Tsuramai. So it was just Rafa and me on the Meijo towards Nagoya.

We sat and talked until Rafa got off at his stop.

This Japanese guy's cute bunny suitcase! And Playboy bunny bag lol

Then I got off at Kanayama. I missed the super rapid train by two minutes, so I had to wait eight minutes for the next one. Esteban got there right before it left! So he and I rode home together. Then I rode my bike home. My hair was still a little damp, so it was a really cold ride home!
When I got home, we had dinner. It was just Yuko, Miyabi, and me because Ken worked really late. I haven't seen him in two days because I went to bed before he got home last night. We had eggs, meat, and lima bean things over rice. I was like, "takusan tamago..." aka "It's a lot of eggs..." and Yuko got the picture that I didn't want that much and told me I didn't have to eat them, but I did anyway. She told me Ken had said I ate them when he cooked them for me Sunday, so she'd thought they'd be okay. Crap.
I told her I didn't like it Sunday but hadn't wanted to say anything, and she told me I should have told him, because you should always tell the cook.
The meat looked like ground beef, but tasted way better!
I talked a whole bunch at dinner. I told Yuko how tomorrow I'm meeting another friend of a friend and she asked if I'd met him before or if I'd met Una (who I went to the temple with last weekend) before, and I told her it was my first time meeting both of them! And she thought that was so awesome, haha!
I also told her about the onsen today and she asked if I'd been embarrassed to be naked and I said no, and then she was like "even in front of Taylor?!?" hahaha. I told her nope, not at all!

Then Miyabi and I played jump rope. Then Miyabi studied English with her mom while I wrote this entry. I'm going to go to bed soon, because the onsen totally wiped me out!
And tomorrow two friends, of this adorable couple from Nagoya who I know at Tech, are going to show me around Nagoya, yay!

My bonsai's flowers are getting bigger!

A まあまあ day...

Nothing really exciting happened today, but I've heard so much positive feedback regarding this blog that I decided I'd write a post anyway.

That being said, all you lurkers out there, please leave a comment! I love getting comments. They make me happy! :)

This morning at breakfast my iPhone fell off my chair and dented a tiny bit. :( It's really bumming me out. Because that wouldn't have happened if I had a case. But I've been looking everywhere and the only cases I can find are $17 and up. The hyaku en store only carries cases for iPhone 5 and 4/4s. I guess the iPhone 5s is still too new for Japan... Sadness.

But, hey, we did have cereal for breakfast! And the orange tea I really like and was craving last night. But of course cereal always comes with salad... Haha I still can't...

Yuko told me I looked kawaii this morning, so I think with my new 400 yen outfit, I'm finally starting to blend in!

(Whoo selfies! And see guys, no pink! I didn't even wear my uggs because I saw it was supposed to rain. But you know me, I have a pink shirt on underneath ;) )

So I found this Subway earphone thing in the street one day and I really like it! It's cute.

(See? It's a little sandwhich sticking out of my phone haha)

The trains still really baffle me. Like yesterday, I got on the 7:57 train and at 7:58, it still hadn't left yet. It was just chilling there with its doors closed. Then the doors opened again! So I guess if someone had been late they still could have hopped on, but no one did. Then finally, at 7:59 it left.

Today, I got up to the platform at 7:58 (I should have speed biked but I didn't think I was that late) and the train had already left! Whaaat, I'm so confused!

So I had to catch the 8:07 :(

But then, the 8:07 train showed up on the opposite side of the platform (aka behind me) and I didn't realize it, so I missed that one too!!! Ahhhh.

So I had to take the 8:17. Damn I was so scared I was gonna be late to school!

The train I finally got on at 8:17 made a stop before Kanayama, which was weird. I want listening to the announcer because I was too busy trying read what my new game was saying, so I almost got off, but I looked up and didn't recognize the kanji, so I just stayed in the train and thankfully Kanayama was the next stop.

Since I missed the subway I usually take, I was like oh man, I'm gonna miss the blind lady too. I like watching her because I'm seriously in awe of her. But she was on my subway!!!! 

Maybe I caught the one I usually take after all? Idk. Or maybe she was late today too.

So yesterday I bought Pokemon Pearl because I figured I could play it even without understanding it because I played it so much when I was younger. So yeah, it's been a challenge so far. Like at one point this guy on the game was saying something about a monster ball (which I figured meant pokeball) button and he kept saying it over and over again, until I finally realized I had to tap this button on the pokeball on the lower screen to make him shut up lol.

And this is the first screen where I completely understood what I was reading lol.

(Although I've never heard それとも used before)

When I came out of the station, it was pouring rain. That was a fun walk to school. When I got to school, I talked to my friends for a bit. Then I went up to class. One of the CJS ladies told us that Matsukawa sensei was "osoi", and I was the only one who understood that that meant he was late, so I had to translate for everyone else.

Class was pretty boring. At lunchtime, I met up with Rana and Emma and we walked in the rain over to Dagane. Emma told me that her host mother always sees pictures of me on Facebook and has started referring to me as "pinku ga sukina hito" aka person who likes pink. Omg.

I got the sides again because they had fruit and salmon!!

(Whoops someone already ate the noodles :P )

And then I got rice too because I was still hungry. Gosh, I eat sooo much here I've probably gained so much weight lol. But the scale in the bathroom at home is in kilograms and I hate converting all the time.

After lunch Emma went home and Rana went to the dorms with some of other friends. I didn't feel like going, so I went to the library to watch some of the movie, Onmyoji, that I was supposed to watch for class today. Whoops.

It took a while with my broken Japanese to talk to the librarian and find out where to get the movie and where to watch it, but I did it! The system here is that they keep your student ID card at the circulation desk and then you get a remote control and you can go watch the DVD on a tv that's in a little cubicle.

The movie was actually pretty good! I would have liked to watch more than the half hour I did, but I had to go to class. Apparently things get really weird later on in the movie though haha.

And it took me like 10 minutes to figure out how to make the freaking subtitles show up. But I finally saw the kanji for English so I selected that and bam, subtitles!

In class, the teacher was having so many problems with her computer so we lost a lot of class time.

After class, it was dark out. Esteban and I walked to my locker so I could get the manga books Emma gave me.

(The books. The one in the middle looks pretty risqué lol)

And then we rode home together. 

When I got home, I couldn't get the door open with my key for some reason, so I rang the doorbell. Miyabi answered with two girls I'd never seen before and told me they were her friends.

Their mom was here too. It was 7:02 when I got home, so we ate right away. We had curry on top of rice and salad. I spoke a bit of Japanese to the mom of the two girls, telling her where I'd got my outfit (so many people asked me that at school today, so now my secret shopping spot is known among the girls in CJS and this lady, dangit!) and about my long commute to school and how I effed up at the station this morning. It was a little intimidating at dinner because no one had told me we were having guests, so I hadn't been expecting them and I was trying to remember all the things Yuko had taught me about what to do and not to do at the dinner table.

Then I made origami with the two girls and Miyabi. The older girl, Kaori, was really good at origami and showed us all how to make 3D cubes that we all then played ball with.

Then it was time for dessert. We had strawberries for dessert. We each got four of them. They were so, so sweet and tasted better than American strawberries for some reason! I was excited and surprised because strawberries are expensive here!

Then I played with the girls a bit more before they had to leave. Then I played with Miyabi. Finally, after that I sat down to memorize the stupid dialogue I have to do tomorrow.

But hey, at least I'm going to an onsen tomorrow!! Yayyyy!

Shopping and sneaking into temples :)

We had the clear noodles again for breakfast. I really like them!

During breakfast, on the news, they were doing this show about these awesome things being sold where you get a model of something, like an aquarium was one of them. Then you download this app in your phone or iPad and put that on top and it projects 3D images into the model below!

Like it had 3D fish swimming around the aquarium! Then you can use a second phone in your hand to add elements. Like the guy added a fish hook and then one of the 3D fish ate it, so he swung his phone up as if to reel it in and then the fish appeared on his phone! 

It was sooo cool!

This is a huge thing in Japan right now. A bunch of places had interactive illuminations, where you could swipe a picture on your smart phone and it would appear giant for everyone to see on the illumination!

I was really slow this morning and ended up leaving when Miyabi left at 7:40. Yuko kept asking if I was okay lol.

It was cute. Miyabi gathered with a bunch of other elementary school kids in yellow hats and they all walked to school together. I waved goodbye to Miyabi and got on my bike and speed biked to the station. I made it there in 8 minutes - a new record! But damn my legs hurt.

Annnd I still caught the 7:57 train, whoo! 

I liked this sign on the train:

This morning and yesterday morning I rode the subway with this blind lady. I'm so amazed how she can navigate the trains without being able to see. I'd be so scared! But she moves slowly and follows the people and on the train, she makes sure she stands by the doors.

This morning Emma brought me some manga her host parents had given her that their last host student left. I'm so excited! They look really interesting. I left them at school today so I wouldn't have to carry them when I went shopping, so I'll post a picture tomorrow!

This is my classroom:

(Such a nice view. Good thing I'm not teaching, or I probably wouldn't be able to concentrate.)

I got a 100 on my katakana test and 96 on my actual test, so I'm doing fine with barely studying lol.

We only had communication class since it was Wednesday, so at 11:05, when class got out, I went to lunch with all my friends in 400.

We went to Dagane and I decided to get a bunch of sides rather than the lunch. I think I get a better deal that way since the sides are 100 yen each and a bowl of rice is only 80 yen.

(Yummay)

Emma and Rafael got this dish called oyakodon, which is chicken and eggs and literally means parent and child lol (get it, because the chicken is the parent and the kid is the egg?)

(Oyakodon)

After lunch, everyone except Emma left to go to YKK (one of the dorms), I assume to play video games and stuff. They invited me, but I wanted to go to Sakae. 

I'd been planning on making the long trip to the bank today to cash a check, but the lady in the CJS office told me not to use checks because, since Japan is super not check-friendly, it costs so much more to cash a check than to have my parents wire money. She told me she cashed a $100 check and only got 2000 yen as a result...

So I didn't go to the bank. I invited Emma along to Sakae and she agreed.

We took the subway and got off at Sakae and took the exit that came out into Oasis 21. 

(Girl with cute Rilakkuma book cover)

It was a really beautiful day today, sunny with perfect weather in the high 40s. It was just like Sunday had been, and Ayuko had told me that's called "goharubyori", which means a day like spring (you only say it in winter, obviously).

We walked to the building behind Sunshine Sakae, the one with the Book Off and Daiso, because I wanted to go get that llama kanji book I'd seen at Daiso that time.

And of course I ended up buying way more than I'd planned!

I'm in love with the fuzzy pink pencil case that I'll think I'll use as a toothbrush/toiletry case because the one I have is too small. 

And I like the pencil pouch I bought because it has Japanese on it! And I needed a pencil pouch.

And I bought the only two kanji books they had lol.

And they had an even better deal here than the grocery store!!! I found chocolate chip melon pan, two for 100 yen!!!! Ahhhhh!!!

(Got kinda squished on the bike ride home)

So I bought two of them.

Emma got some pencils and lead, and then we went upstairs to Book Off because Emma wanted a game.

While she bought the game, I looked a the clothes (Book Off also sells clothes) because they were having this super awesome 200 yen sale.

And I got this super cute outfit!

(Ahhh I'm in love with it! And it was only 400 yen total! ^^ )

When I went into the dressing room, I didn't take off my shoes, and a little while later a sales attendant came over to my room and called for me to come out, so I did and she told me to take off my shoes. Whoops.

I was really happy all the skirts I tried on fit me though! I was afraid I'd be too big to fit into Japanese clothes haha. But most were so short it was immodest, so I didn't get them!

(I love how when you buy things in Japan they tape the bag closed for you)

Then Emma told me the games were 20% off, so I went ahead and bought the one I wanted. It was only 750 yen, omg!

After that, we walked over to Parco, which is this huge 8 story department store with three different wings.

We had fun looking at all the clothes and laughing at the Engrish we saw. There were a while bunch of 70% off sales, but the clothes were priced so high to begin with, they were still expensive with 70% off.

(I see this store everywhere and it cracks me up every time!)

(It says "SWEAR"... Why??)

(Engrish!! "How god" haha)

(Ooo strawberry and pineapple massage woman)

And there was a cake shop on one floor! I love looking at cakes!

When we left, we saw a shrine across the street in the middle of all the hustle and bustle of the city and plethora of department stores.

I wanted to check it out, so I started opening the front gate. This lady came over to walk in this side door we hadn't seen and we looked over at her. She motioned into the door and said "dozo", telling us to go ahead. So we went in! The whole time though we felt like we weren't supposed to be there, especially when these two ladies came out and pointed at us and talked among themselves for a bit before they went back inside haha.

It was really, really pretty!

There was this huge bell that you could ring so I went up and rang it lol. It was really loud!

(Mikan tree! I really wanted to eat some)

(The bell)

(Me ringing it)

Then since we were pretty close to Osu, we just walked through there to the Kamimaezu Station. 

(Pretty fountain!)

Then Emma took the Tsuramai line home and I kept going on the Meijo to Kanayama where I transferred to the JR.

It was a really nice bike ride home. It was daylight for one thing (I've been getting home so late recently) and the weather was so nice.

I always pass this sign for a coin car wash and I think it's really cool, because they made the accent mark things on the kanji into bubbles! It's so cute!

I got home like a second before Yuko and Miyabi. When Miyabi came in and saw me she said I was "hayai" (early) lol because it was only 4:40ish.

I told Yuko I was going to go take a nap because I was exhausted!

I slept until 6:20. Then I went in the living room and practiced kanji in my new kanji book while Miyabi did her homework. 

What I don't like about the kanji book, though, is that it doesn't show me how to sound out the kanji. So Miyabi had to help me with some of them because they had other ways to say them then the ways I knew.

Then Miyabi got out this paper and her calligraphy brush and water. And she dipped the brush in the water. I was wondering where the ink was. Then she put the brush down on the paper. And I was like wth, she's gonna paint with water?

But it turned out it was this magic paper that got really dark wherever the water hit!

Then she brought in a second sheet of blue paper and a pink sheet and asked me which one I wanted. Did she even have to ask?

I was so excited she was letting me draw! She asked me in Japanese what I wanted to write. I was like, well pink paper, I'll write love! So I did.

Miyabi said I was "jouzu" (good at it). That was so nice coming from a Japanese person! :) It made me happy, haha.

We had fried chicken and French fries along with the usual salad, rice, and soup tonight. It was good!

During dinner Yuko told me how Miyabi still doesn't have her wisdom teeth, so the dentist is getting worried because in Japan, they're called rokusai kyushu = six year old teeth and they're supposed to come in at age six.

After dinner, I showed Miyabi the days of the month rap Lindsay and I found last year and she thought it was so funny! She made me play it again and again haha. Then we watched some other movies about learning Japanese and we both practiced kanji.

(My bonsai's blooming!!)