Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Friday, February 11, 2011
必用 (Essential)
Well, it's finally as finished as it's going to get. It only took what, 3 months?
For those who don't know, this is essentially just a collab of the various and miscellaneous videos I took while living in Japan. Instead of just merging them end to end I decided to combine them in a more amusing fashion.
Basically I took the same format as my older Kezia video and rehashed it shamelessly and less well, but it serves its purpose. Also, a lot of the film is blurry - this is due to me being an amateur photographer at best and using appropriately amateur equipment. Please enjoy regardless!
*Note: the One Piece section got screwed up due to codecs, but I'm not going to bother fixing it. You can at least see what I was trying to do.
哲学 (Philosophy)
It feels wrong, making this entry. Everything I want to say or think about at this point is selfish - how could it be otherwise? In direct contract to the previous 4 months, I've spent the last two weeks completely... free. The second day here I was shocked when my host said he was leaving for the day, here's the house key, see ya. But what was I expecting? That he would take me by the hand and lead me around? Well, I suppose so. I had spent most of my trip in Japan leaning on others: teachers, friends, host families.
But that's fine. That's what made it so extraordinary, that so many people were willing to have me lean on them. And after only a few days propping myself up, I found it wasn't so hard after all. How thrilling it's been, to taste, almost exactly, what life would be like should I choose to live here. Of course, in my most brilliant fantasies, I have perfect Japanese - that's going to be something to work towards.
I could go on and on about my admittedly selfish things, but this is a recount, not a diary. Have some words, places I've been, and silly pictures. And maybe an anecdote.
Places I've been recently:
- Ginkaku-ji
- Kyoto Imperial Palace (when the Emperor lived here)
- Daimonji (and others)
- Lots of good ramen places
- Osaka (and purchased chocolate nato for my friend for Valentine's)
- Drinking shochu with my friend's professor (he invited ME, I swear)
Do you know what Setsubun is?
For Setsubun, a few of us gathered for some of the practices, but mostly just to hang out. One of the most interesting things we did was eat long maki rolls while kneeling and facing south-southeast and not making a sound during. It sounds completely random, but that's tradition for you.
Another of the traditions was for someone to put on a oni mask, and for the others to toss beans at it to symbolize the chasing out of evil spirits and the accepting of luck. In our case however, Mao commandeered the mask early on and played a character so endearing that no one even thought to throw beans at it.
Relevant words:
- kaiteki: comfortable
- shoubu: battle; match
- tebura: empty-handed
- oroka: someone foolish or ignorant to the point of inducing sympathy
- tendon: tenpura donburi; tenpura on rice (officially delicious)
But that's fine. That's what made it so extraordinary, that so many people were willing to have me lean on them. And after only a few days propping myself up, I found it wasn't so hard after all. How thrilling it's been, to taste, almost exactly, what life would be like should I choose to live here. Of course, in my most brilliant fantasies, I have perfect Japanese - that's going to be something to work towards.
I could go on and on about my admittedly selfish things, but this is a recount, not a diary. Have some words, places I've been, and silly pictures. And maybe an anecdote.
Places I've been recently:
- Ginkaku-ji
- Kyoto Imperial Palace (when the Emperor lived here)
- Daimonji (and others)
- Lots of good ramen places
- Osaka (and purchased chocolate nato for my friend for Valentine's)
- Drinking shochu with my friend's professor (he invited ME, I swear)
Do you know what Setsubun is?For Setsubun, a few of us gathered for some of the practices, but mostly just to hang out. One of the most interesting things we did was eat long maki rolls while kneeling and facing south-southeast and not making a sound during. It sounds completely random, but that's tradition for you.
Another of the traditions was for someone to put on a oni mask, and for the others to toss beans at it to symbolize the chasing out of evil spirits and the accepting of luck. In our case however, Mao commandeered the mask early on and played a character so endearing that no one even thought to throw beans at it.
Relevant words:
- kaiteki: comfortable
- shoubu: battle; match
- tebura: empty-handed
- oroka: someone foolish or ignorant to the point of inducing sympathy
- tendon: tenpura donburi; tenpura on rice (officially delicious)
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
嵌まってる (Taken In)
Just like the hypnotic, harping verses of the AKB48 hit "Heavy Rotation" that show up in every supermarket, restaurant, or mall, Kyoto has completely taken me in. It's seriously an amazing place, and every time I come, I find a new reason to love it.
...So, yes, I've arrived safe and sound, broken free from the boundaries of the program that brought me here, and am spending time with the nicest people in the world, it turns out. This is where the true vacation begins.
And the change was swift, too. I've only been here for 2 days, and today I spoke almost exclulsively in Japanese (except to Mao; we speak in something of a hybrid of the two languages. Often she'll speak to me with English vocab but Japanese grammar: "Everybody ga win da yo"). I must be blending in too, because unprecedentedly, I was approached and asked for directions from a Japanese lady. At first, I thought she was asking if I was lost, but she was saying SHE was lost. Surprisingly I knew where she wanted to go, and since I had just walked from there, was able to direct her. Huh.
So that's it. I just wanted to let you know that I'm here, and haven't died yet. And assuming I don't die from overeating (of the ramen variety) or from drinking snake venom in Okinawa or get impaled by an icicle in Hokkaido, you'll see me again in less than a month. mata ne
Topical words:
- tsurara: icicle
- mitarashidango: the best food ever
- tonkotsu: pork bone-based ramen broth
- hade: flashy -> Kinkakuji
- jimi: plain -> Ginkakuji
- kuri: chestnuts
- mamemaki: scattering parched beans (to drive out evil spirits)
...So, yes, I've arrived safe and sound, broken free from the boundaries of the program that brought me here, and am spending time with the nicest people in the world, it turns out. This is where the true vacation begins.
And the change was swift, too. I've only been here for 2 days, and today I spoke almost exclulsively in Japanese (except to Mao; we speak in something of a hybrid of the two languages. Often she'll speak to me with English vocab but Japanese grammar: "Everybody ga win da yo"). I must be blending in too, because unprecedentedly, I was approached and asked for directions from a Japanese lady. At first, I thought she was asking if I was lost, but she was saying SHE was lost. Surprisingly I knew where she wanted to go, and since I had just walked from there, was able to direct her. Huh.
So that's it. I just wanted to let you know that I'm here, and haven't died yet. And assuming I don't die from overeating (of the ramen variety) or from drinking snake venom in Okinawa or get impaled by an icicle in Hokkaido, you'll see me again in less than a month. mata ne
Topical words:
- tsurara: icicle
- mitarashidango: the best food ever
- tonkotsu: pork bone-based ramen broth
- hade: flashy -> Kinkakuji
- jimi: plain -> Ginkakuji
- kuri: chestnuts
- mamemaki: scattering parched beans (to drive out evil spirits)
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