08/31/2015

Sorry for the massive delay on this update it was just difficult to take the time to sit down and reflect on everything between all the new experiences and adjusting to an entirely foreign lifestyle! Luckily I have been making small notes in my carry journal about all the main points i would like to talk about during my first week at TCU. For those who don't know I am in Inzai studying all about Japanese language and culture. I am pursuing a second minor in East Asian studies as i have hopes of working in Japan one day doing live sound for some of the many live houses here and hopefully one day becoming an audiovisual engineer for Sony. I am a direct enroll student from my home university, Belmont university, in Nashville Tennessee. My major is audio engineering and my first minor is music business. Upon arrival I only knew some very basic conversational Japanese as well as hiragana. Thus far my most useful phrase has been "Nihongo no wakarimasen" literally meaning I don't understand Japanese. Many of the Japanese find humor in this and will immediately work with me to break down the language barrier. My first night here I moved into my dorm around 8pm on a Tuesday. The students in the women's dormitory set up my bedding for me and even moved my luggage up the steps for me against my pleading to let me do so myself. The english and Japanese students are incredibly kind and inviting to everyone here. I took a shower in the communal bathrooms my first night here and soaked in the Ofuro. I had a bit of scepticism about the public bathing though I quickly realized I had mentally made an issue out of something totally natural. I went to sleep around 11pm and slept wonderfully.
The second day I woke up around 6am wide awake! This is highly unusual for me. We went to a food mart that is right across the road from our university. This was when I 'discovered' Starbucks discoveries. These beautiful drinks taste just like the lattes you order in the store. The first one I tried was the caramel latte and it was so good that I decided to get one basically every day from then on out. The best part? They are only 200 yen. I also got some galbo minis in green tea and chocolate flavor and some instant espresso called Triplesso that is caramel flavored that I still buy for the mornings each day. One of my favorite people here is a senior named Emily. She has been great as far as answering all my questions about the culture and language. All of the EAI students went to Inzai and explored Aeon (Eon) mall. On this day I discovered my favorite place, Daiso, or the japanese dollar store. They have EVERYTHING. Crafts, makeup, toiletries, clothes, games, food, shoes, home items, cleaning products, and the list goes on... I bought a few things for the dorm at Daiso my first trip including some slippers, coat hangers and detergent. On a personal note I purchased some eyelashes and pink cream eyeshadow. So one of my least favorite things about Japan is the humidity. It makes my hair SO frizzy and unreasonable. It was so poofy and frizzy the first day I looked like the bride of Frankenstein. It also happens to make your skin very oily. They actually have facial wipes just for this purpose, facial wipes that I laughed at in Daiso the first day, but am now seriously considering as an investment. >_<
Since I didn't have a straightener that ran on 100 volts I had to find a hair dryer to at least somewhat tame my wet hair. Beneath daiso there is a larger store, I don't know the name, where I purchased a hairbrush/dryer combo. I was pretty skeptical about how well it would work for only 1400 yen. To my surprise it drys my hair pretty fast and the comb helps straighten it somewhat since my hair is naturally wavy. After Daiso and the store beneath Daiso we split up our group of about fifteen students and about six of us stayed to explore the mall some more and then eat at 100 yen sushi. We found a theater with a Miyazaki timeline that was pretty neat. We also went in an arcade that had a pillar of english comments that were highly questionable. Some of which included, "Boys make great pets!" "Women who seek equality lack ambition" and my personal favorite "Where there's a whip, there's a way!". It goes without saying that there is a sex culture here in Japan. It was shocking to see this so blatantly displayed in a place for children but I believe it was acceptable because it was in English. Inside of the arcade we took Purikura, this is a photo booth that makes you 'beautiful' by perfecting your skin and emphasizing your eyes. Afterwards you can decorate the photo with tons of different stickers and tools digitally. I got to try Taiyaki for the first time in the mall, a fish shaped pastry with red bean filling, and it was quite yummy. After this we went to conveyor belt sushi. When you walk in you chose the tables or the bar at the kiosk. Then you receive a number ticket and wait for your number to be called. You can choose any plate from the conveyor belt by pulling the plate up and lifting the plastic dome covering. There are touch screens that allow you to order specific items that come out on a trolley above the conveyor belt. Luckily I was there on a Toro (blue fin tuna) day. This is a speciality so one piece of toro Nigiri is 200 yen, and it is soo worth it! I also had a yummy iced coffee here. Nana Maeda is a Japanese student at TCU and one of my closest friends here so far. She took us to a convenience store after we got done exploring the mall. It was funny because they were playing Only by Nicki Minaj inside of the store and I was surprised that a public place would play something so explicit! It was really funny. Nana showed me the skin care section as I had mentioned to her that my best friend wanted some things to use from Japan. She recommended a moisturizer and charcoal that goes on like tape to remove dirt from the pores. Nana spent some time studying in Australia and her English comprehension is great. Nana also introduced me to my favorite snack, Vegips! These are veggie chips and they are so delicious and good for you. Another thing that is prevalent here is the massive availability of alcohol. In every convenience store or gas station you will find a wide selection of whiskey and always some beer and sake. Walking around Inzai at night is incredibly safe, calm, and quiet. We got back around 9pm that night and I went to sleep shortly afterward. The weather was rainy this day and has been since i arrived, i have yet to see the sky beneath the dense fog and clouds! Key word for today, Humidity.