I'm just going to talk about what's been on my mind lately. It's kind of jumbled and not super happy since I'm typing this out as I think, so I apologize in advance! I just thought people would like to know what I mean when I you ask, "How's Japan?" and I say "Good!"
So, I've been trying to think of ways to spend my time lately when I'm not doing homework, but I keep ending up at my computer, alternating between checking Facebook, Twitter, and researching random things. My mind is really scattered lately and I feel like I can't let myself relax. I'm calling it OYR Syndrome (One-Year Regular Syndrome...that's what my status is listed as here, but it really just means I'm an exchange student). I'm so focused on the idea of, "I'm in Tokyo! I'm in Japan! I need to do ALL THE THINGS!" that I can't focus on anything besides wanting to do the things I want to do without actually having any direction. Even if I sit down and try to make a schedule, it doesn't work out because new things pop up or I suddenly don't want to do it anymore.
Don't get me wrong; I'm having a blast here and I'm experiencing a lot of new things. But what I'm aiming for on this whole study abroad trip is to push myself past my limits, whatever that may be in. I want to experience as much as possible in the time that I have. The problem is that there are too many things I want to experience and I end up frustrated with myself when I go through a week of schoolwork and realize I haven't actually made solid plans for the weekend. I mean, I can be spontaneous... I just like to have an idea of what to look forward to. I think that's why I've been going to so many concerts. The dates are set by someone else, so it's either "be there or be square," you know?
At my dorm meeting last night, we were told about a sheet we have to fill out regarding our travel plans over spring break (we have about 5 weeks off). I realized that I don't have any plans outside of going back to the states for 9 days. That means I have almost 4 other weeks to fill up. I have vague ideas of what I want to do, like go to Kyoto around cherry blossom time...but I haven't even sat down and researched yet. Whenever I think, "I'm going to sit down right now and look up ideas for places to go," five other things pop up in my mind that I should do or that I've been meaning to do.
The solution is probably to take a breath, slow down, and take a day to just think, but I don't really know when I'll be okay with that. I feel this sense of urgency that I always need to be doing something so that I can look back and say that I used my time in Japan to the fullest.
Like I said, I'm having fun and I'm fine. It's not like I'm sitting in my room having panic attacks or crying. I just thought it would be interesting to tell you guys about a side of studying abroad that's not always exciting.
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Monday, January 14, 2013
More New Year's Stuff
I totally forgot to include my video, haha.
What makes New Year's an exciting time for shoppers is that there are lots...and lots...and lots...of SALES.
Stores also make things called 福袋 (fukubukuro - lucky bags) that contain a bunch of the store's merchandise for a really reduced price.
I made a video of me opening two of the ones I got! They were Christmas presents to myself...
(This is also the video that got a bit of attention on YouTube)
What makes New Year's an exciting time for shoppers is that there are lots...and lots...and lots...of SALES.
Stores also make things called 福袋 (fukubukuro - lucky bags) that contain a bunch of the store's merchandise for a really reduced price.
I made a video of me opening two of the ones I got! They were Christmas presents to myself...
(This is also the video that got a bit of attention on YouTube)
Holiday Break - New Year's Eve
New Year's Day is a big deal in Japan. It's more like family time (kind of the opposite of the USA, huh?). It's so big that a lot of stores will go on holiday for sometimes 5 days after the actual day. It's not really boring, though, if you know what to look for...
On New Year's Eve, I headed to Shinjuku to meet up with some friends who were visiting Tokyo. They go to my home university, but they chose to study in Osaka and Hokkaido. They were doing a lot of sightseeing.
When I headed out in the afternoon, the station was eerily empty...
Our plan was to walk around Shinjuku for a bit (where I showed them my beloved little visual kei corner of the district) and go to Meiji Shrine for 初詣 (hatsumoude - first shrine visit of the New Year). We knew it was going to be crazy and crowded, but we wanted to go anyways.
Before that, though, we met with one of my friend's old friend's (sorry about not using names; I'm not sure if people want me to use them!). We found a nice soba place in Shibuya - it's traditional to eat soba around the New Year.
Soooooo delicious omg.
Since Meiji Shrine is in Harajuku and we were already in Shibuya, we decided to walk there. It was around 9:30 or 10 by this time. There were a lot more people out and about now. The closer we got to the shrine, the livelier it got. They even had a line of street food vendors. I got お好み焼き (okonomiyaki - it's like a Japanese-style pizza, sort of) while my friends got some 甘酒 (amazake - a sweet sake that has hardly any alcohol in it; they even give to kids) on the way back.
We got to the main part of Meiji Shrine around 10:30PM. Honestly, I didn't know what was going on, exactly. I was just told that we were going to Meiji Shrine and something would happen at midnight...so we basically stood around in a crowd for half an hour or an hour in the cold. I finally couldn't handle the cold and asked if we could just go in really quickly and leave (you could go in any time before midnight, but people wanted to wait until midnight). The crowd was huge and there were SO many policemen around, so I knew that the process was going to take a lot longer than just waiting until midnight. So...my 初詣 ended up being unsuccessful, haha. I guess there's always next time!
When the clock struck midnight, I was waiting on the train platform in Shinjuku to go home, listening to my iPod alone. It wasn't such a bad way to ring in the New Year, though; after all, I was in Tokyo, exactly where I wanted to be!
On New Year's Day, I woke up to find that my roommate had left me some soup that is traditionally eaten at the New Year. It was so sweet of her! :D
I was really tired, so I ended up not doing much on New Year's Day besides making cupcakes...haha. My parents sent me a few boxes of cake mix for Christmas, so I needed to get rid of them somehow! :P
So, that was my New Year's holiday! The way I spent it wasn't the epitome of tradition, but it was fun.
On New Year's Eve, I headed to Shinjuku to meet up with some friends who were visiting Tokyo. They go to my home university, but they chose to study in Osaka and Hokkaido. They were doing a lot of sightseeing.
When I headed out in the afternoon, the station was eerily empty...
Before that, though, we met with one of my friend's old friend's (sorry about not using names; I'm not sure if people want me to use them!). We found a nice soba place in Shibuya - it's traditional to eat soba around the New Year.
Since Meiji Shrine is in Harajuku and we were already in Shibuya, we decided to walk there. It was around 9:30 or 10 by this time. There were a lot more people out and about now. The closer we got to the shrine, the livelier it got. They even had a line of street food vendors. I got お好み焼き (okonomiyaki - it's like a Japanese-style pizza, sort of) while my friends got some 甘酒 (amazake - a sweet sake that has hardly any alcohol in it; they even give to kids) on the way back.
We got to the main part of Meiji Shrine around 10:30PM. Honestly, I didn't know what was going on, exactly. I was just told that we were going to Meiji Shrine and something would happen at midnight...so we basically stood around in a crowd for half an hour or an hour in the cold. I finally couldn't handle the cold and asked if we could just go in really quickly and leave (you could go in any time before midnight, but people wanted to wait until midnight). The crowd was huge and there were SO many policemen around, so I knew that the process was going to take a lot longer than just waiting until midnight. So...my 初詣 ended up being unsuccessful, haha. I guess there's always next time!
When the clock struck midnight, I was waiting on the train platform in Shinjuku to go home, listening to my iPod alone. It wasn't such a bad way to ring in the New Year, though; after all, I was in Tokyo, exactly where I wanted to be!
On New Year's Day, I woke up to find that my roommate had left me some soup that is traditionally eaten at the New Year. It was so sweet of her! :D
Holiday Break - Christmas
久しぶりでごめんね！ (Sorry it's been such a long time!)
For whatever reason, I keep neglecting this blog. I'm trying to define what exactly this is. I've decided it's more of a personal blog than something with which to inform other people about Japanese culture.
If you want to know more about Japanese culture, you should start looking at my YouTube Channel! I'm going to make an effort to make videos there. I've gotten a bit of attention lately...I tagged my latest video (which I will explain later!) as a response to a popular Japanese vlogger's channel; she liked it and shared it on Twitter, so a lot of people have been checking out that video and giving me suggestions for others. So, give me suggestions!
Anyways, I'll talk about the Christmas part of my holiday break in this entry.
In Japan, Christmas is more of a couple's holiday than one to spend with your family (if I mentioned this in another post, sorry). I don't have a boyfriend or anything, so I decided to spend Christmas with my friend who was studying in Mito. She came to Tokyo for about a week.
We spent a bit of time around Shinjuku and tried to find more illuminations.
After she had to leave, I met up with a few other friends to go see The Hobbit! It was awesome. :D Even though I felt a bit lonely seeing couples everywhere, I'm glad I spent Christmas with some great friends.
(This post is a bit short, but I want to split up the holiday into sections)
For whatever reason, I keep neglecting this blog. I'm trying to define what exactly this is. I've decided it's more of a personal blog than something with which to inform other people about Japanese culture.
If you want to know more about Japanese culture, you should start looking at my YouTube Channel! I'm going to make an effort to make videos there. I've gotten a bit of attention lately...I tagged my latest video (which I will explain later!) as a response to a popular Japanese vlogger's channel; she liked it and shared it on Twitter, so a lot of people have been checking out that video and giving me suggestions for others. So, give me suggestions!
Anyways, I'll talk about the Christmas part of my holiday break in this entry.
In Japan, Christmas is more of a couple's holiday than one to spend with your family (
We spent a bit of time around Shinjuku and tried to find more illuminations.
After she had to leave, I met up with a few other friends to go see The Hobbit! It was awesome. :D Even though I felt a bit lonely seeing couples everywhere, I'm glad I spent Christmas with some great friends.
(This post is a bit short, but I want to split up the holiday into sections)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)