Yes you read it right - I'm no longer in Japan! I'm in... Hong Kong!
This week is my fall break and a group of 7 KCJSers and me decided to hit up Hong Kong because of the cheap airfare there from Osaka. It couldn't have been a better time because 8 Hong Kong dollars are fixed to 1 US dollar - what a relief!!
So it's been amazing. In Asia, I have only ever been to Japan, and Hong Kong is such a completely different world. I really love it here, but it's more of a vacation spot than a living spot. In Japan, I feel like I have a grasping on the culture and I know enough of the language to get around, but I'm back to spot zero here in Hong Kong. When I went to Germany over the summer, I felt sort of lost and like a complete tourist, but at least in Hong Kong I don't feel as guilty speaking English to people. The people we've met so far have been really nice, and the food has been really good. And I get the best aspects of China bundled in - like getting fake Mario goods - without the crazy atmosphere of China.
I'm going to be here for another 6 days or so. I'm with a great group of 5 other girls, 2 other guys, and we get along really well. Every day we've been busy (haha not so different from Kyoto!) and we all have to take turns using the internet so it's hard to get done what I need. This year has been quite an amazing adventure and truly life-altering. I'm making such great friends, I'm so happy! :-D
Monday, October 27, 2008
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Videos from a Kyoto Schools Matsuri!
Gehhh I'm so bad at posting! I suppose ultimately it's difficult. I have a lot of stuff to say about the KCJS program, KCJS students, etc, but because this is a publicly accessible blog I feel like I have to keep things toned down. And at the same time I feel like I often have to supplement things with background explanations so that anyone can understand what's going on, not just my family friends. Sigh - it's difficult!
But as always, I've been a busy and active girl. This weekend I went to the Suntory Whiskey factory (yum yum yummy!), Nara, and Osaka! What a crazy sightseeing weekend. And yet I still might be able to sleep before midnight tonight? (Haha just wishful thinking.) At Nara there was a crazy cool concert at Todai-ji, a temple famous for having a huge, gold-covered Buddha. Apparently this rockstar was performing right in front of the Buddha and the temple was lit up in all these crazy colors. I sadly couldn't go in without a ticket, but I had fun hanging out with my friends just outside of the temple gate, listening to the echoing music. This weekend was an interesting contrast from previous ones - hanging out with 2, 6, and 1 other person for each respective day of the weekend. Vesus hanging out with 10+, as what often happens.
Each week Kay (my apartment mate) and I throw fun dinner parties, but they can sometimes get so hectic. This week we cooked Vietnamese-style spring roles, and Hiyashi chuka. Each week, we usually have 10 people come to our dinner parties or so because various people are busy each given week. But then the dinner parties started to gain momentum, and last week 20 people came! There are even a lot of people who want to come but we don't tell them about it or leave them out... which makes me feel a little bad. So we tried to keep it on the down-low this week and told people not to tell each other and not remind other people. But still somehow, one Kyodai student told another, and we ended up with 13 people (7 KCJSers, 6 non-KCJSers). It was cool and I met some nice Japanese guys (woohoo) but I hope we can keep up the dinner party tradition without it getting out of hand each week.
So, last weekend I went to a festival for universities in Kyoto. It was fun, and I thought I'd share some videos I took with the phone of the matsuri. First, there was a parade, with a band, some dancers, and below I have a video of some university students carrying a small wooden shrine-like thing (called a mikoshi). I made a wish the day before and tied it on - I hope it comes true! (I've been making so many wishes here in Kyoto, with all the temples and shrines I've been going to!!)
There were a lot of performances at the matsuri, especially with Kyoto sodefure. Here's a taste of what sodefure is (sorry for the terrible quality!)
This next week is going to be crazy - three tests (two of them three hours long blahhh), a presentation, two of Kyoto's largest festivals, two job opportunities, and then on Saturday I leave for Hong Kong! We have fall break so I'm going to Hong Kong with 7 other students for 10 days. I hope I make it through this week!
But as always, I've been a busy and active girl. This weekend I went to the Suntory Whiskey factory (yum yum yummy!), Nara, and Osaka! What a crazy sightseeing weekend. And yet I still might be able to sleep before midnight tonight? (Haha just wishful thinking.) At Nara there was a crazy cool concert at Todai-ji, a temple famous for having a huge, gold-covered Buddha. Apparently this rockstar was performing right in front of the Buddha and the temple was lit up in all these crazy colors. I sadly couldn't go in without a ticket, but I had fun hanging out with my friends just outside of the temple gate, listening to the echoing music. This weekend was an interesting contrast from previous ones - hanging out with 2, 6, and 1 other person for each respective day of the weekend. Vesus hanging out with 10+, as what often happens.
Each week Kay (my apartment mate) and I throw fun dinner parties, but they can sometimes get so hectic. This week we cooked Vietnamese-style spring roles, and Hiyashi chuka. Each week, we usually have 10 people come to our dinner parties or so because various people are busy each given week. But then the dinner parties started to gain momentum, and last week 20 people came! There are even a lot of people who want to come but we don't tell them about it or leave them out... which makes me feel a little bad. So we tried to keep it on the down-low this week and told people not to tell each other and not remind other people. But still somehow, one Kyodai student told another, and we ended up with 13 people (7 KCJSers, 6 non-KCJSers). It was cool and I met some nice Japanese guys (woohoo) but I hope we can keep up the dinner party tradition without it getting out of hand each week.
So, last weekend I went to a festival for universities in Kyoto. It was fun, and I thought I'd share some videos I took with the phone of the matsuri. First, there was a parade, with a band, some dancers, and below I have a video of some university students carrying a small wooden shrine-like thing (called a mikoshi). I made a wish the day before and tied it on - I hope it comes true! (I've been making so many wishes here in Kyoto, with all the temples and shrines I've been going to!!)
There were a lot of performances at the matsuri, especially with Kyoto sodefure. Here's a taste of what sodefure is (sorry for the terrible quality!)
This next week is going to be crazy - three tests (two of them three hours long blahhh), a presentation, two of Kyoto's largest festivals, two job opportunities, and then on Saturday I leave for Hong Kong! We have fall break so I'm going to Hong Kong with 7 other students for 10 days. I hope I make it through this week!
Monday, October 6, 2008
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