Konnichiwa! The week after Oppama Y Festa, it was fall break and everyone went off to explore on their own. I will talk about my experience during fall break. じゃあ、始めましょ!
Tuesday 10/30- Fall break for KGU did not officially start until the next day, but my Japanese Cultural Studies professor decided to cancel class that day. Therefore, I decide to venture out to Tokyo Skytree, a television broadcasting tower and one of the landmarks of Tokyo located in the center of Skytree Town. I went all the way to top at 450 meters and since the weather was clear that day, I was able to see Mt. Fuji from the observation decks. There was also a large shopping area at the base where I did some omiyage (souvenir) shopping.
Wednesday 10/31- I decided to venture off on my own by first going to Kyoto. I went by the Shinkansen bullet train and it took about three hours from Yokohama to Kyoto. That day I visited two shrines/temples; the Nishi Hongwanji and the Fushimi Inari Shrine. I will not go into much detail about the shrines, so I will leave links at the bottom so you can learn more about them. The best part was that these shrines were FREE! At night, I went to the Gion Corner show which was a theater that showcased Kyoto’s performing arts including, koto (Japanese harp), kado (flower arrangement), kyogen (ancient comic play), kyomai (Kyoto style dance) and chado (tea ceremony) where I was one of the two audience members that participated. I stayed at a modern hostel that was only around $26 USD a night, so it was a good deal. And since it was Halloween that day, it was weird to not see many people dressed up in costume especially in Kyoto, except for one foreigner dressed up in a unicorn onesie at a ramen restaurant. On a side note, the place where many people dress up and celebrate Halloween is Tokyo specifically, Harajuku and Shibuya area. That is the last place you would want to be on Halloween in Japan since it can get crazy!
Nishi Hongwanji: http://www.hongwanji.or.jp/english/
Fushimi Inari: https://kyoto.travel/en/shrine_temple/180
Thursday 11/01- The next day I went to Yasaka Shrine which was also free and nearby was the Teramachi shopping district. It is where all the junior high school and high school students buy stuff to take home and many are affordable. Therefore, I did a little shopping in that area. After that, I was off to Hiroshima by bullet train which took about two hours. At Hiroshima, I saw the Atomic Bomb Dome, and the Children’s Peace Monument, and Peace Memorial Park. The Atomic Bomb Dome looked so real with all the rubble remaining after the bomb dropped. For the Children’s Peace Monument, I have a very special connection. In my senior year of high school, I held and origami crane drive where I encouraged the students at my high school to make origami cranes and donated them to the Children’s Peace Monument. And here I am three years later at the place where all the cranes ended up! I also saw many elementary school groups come for school field trips where they donated cranes and prayed in front of the monument and sang a song. During the night, I stayed at a Japanese-style guesthouse which was around 39$ USD a night. The gentleman who owned the place was really nice, and even took me to the supermarket to get some food.
Yasaka Shrine: https://www.discoverkyoto.com/places-go/yasaka-jinja/
Friday 11/02- My time in Hiroshima continued the next day by going to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum. I was very touched by the exhibits displaying the day that the atomic bomb dropped. It was also a little bit sad because there were many artifacts and pictures where people where injured very badly, and even burned. Because it was a little traumatic, it was hard for me to take a lot of pictures during my visit here. I even saw a peace “watch” tower that indicates the number of days since the A-bomb was dropped and the number of days since the last nuclear test. The last nuclear test was conducted a year ago in the United States and that made me feel sorry.
I am not a huge fan of politics, but I could tell that my country has taken a big step back with what has been happening recently. However, there is still hope that someday all nuclear weapons will be abolished. I even signed a petition at the museum about this act. Overall, it was one of my goals to visit Hiroshima during my time because I am familiar with the atomic bomb drop, the story of Sadako Sasaki and the origami cranes and I am proud to say I achieved that goal. After visiting the museum, I ate Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki (Japanese savory pancake) at a place called okonomi-mura, a “theme park” where there are many okonomiyaki restaurants in the vicinity. Then, I returned to the Children’s Peace Monument to donate two cranes that I made while I was here.
As I was on my way to the station, I stopped by this cool facility called the Hiroshima Orizuru Tower, named after the folded paper crane. From the rooftop observation deck, you can see a view of city including the atomic bomb dome. There are also activities where you can learn about the art origami cranes such as making one and throwing it down the orizuru wall. It is a really cool place with a modern aspect, and I highly recommend while anyone is visiting Hiroshima. After that, I took the shinkansen back to Yokohama. The last two days was the first time I traveled by myself and I didn’t really do a lot of planning, I just went by ear. But, I was able to get around safely without getting lost at all!
Saturday 11/03- My host family along with a family friend went to the annual windsurfing event sponsored by the KGU windsurfing club at Tsukui Beach coast located in Yokosuka-shi. Now, being from Hawaii I have never surfed in my entire life, so I was a little nervous. And as it turns out, I did not do so well the first try as I struggled to balance on the board, and falling off eventually. As soon as I was able to maneuver the vessel, I went out too far past a point where I was screaming “Tasukete!” (help!); luckily I got towed back to shore. I almost lost my glasses when I fell off the board, but they were able to be found. It was a close call, and I should have taken another pair with me just in case. My host mother was not as lucky as I was because she too fell off the board and she completely lost her glasses which never ended up being found. She was also supposed to take me back to the dorms that day, and without them she wouldn’t be able to drive. However, another family that she invited lent her a pair, so everything turned out well. But for the most part, a lot of my time was spent screaming, swimming in the water, and playing in the sand. I wish I had more time trying to windsurfing, and I think I am the first International student that failed at windsurfing.
After the event, my host family along with my KGU buddy ate dinner at a food court in a shopping complex. Then, my host mother took me back to dorms which meant my homestay had come to the end. I enjoyed spending time with my host family. I will miss being greeted by their dogs when I arrive at the door and playing with them, the breakfast bentos my host mom always makes me every morning, the super comfortable bed in my room which is actually my host sister’s, and most of all the おもてなし (hospitality) and strong relationship between my host family and I. Overall, my homestay experience became one of my happiest memories. The moment before I went back to the dorms, I hugged my host mother tight before we parted ways. After leaving my host family, I had a bit of withdrawal and I even played James Arthur’s “Say you Won’t Let Go” because of it. I hope to see my host family again before I leave Japan.
Monday 11/05- The International Center organized a bus tour for international and Japanese students where we went to a variety of places. First we went to the Yamanashi Shinbun Mochi Factory Tour where we got to see kinako mochi being made. At the gift shop, I tried about four pieces of one of their kinako products. Then we went to Misaka Farm for some grape picking and had lunch. After that, we went to the Lako Loho Lake Experience studio where we made gel candles at Kraft Park. Finally we went to Oishi Park where we could see Mt. Fuji but unfortunately, the weather was very cloudy so we could not see it. It turned out to be a great time bonding with buddies and other students.
I happened to make the most of my fall break because that is one of the only times that I was free and had no studying to do. For future participants, if you have a weeklong break like mine, I strongly encourage you to really take advantage of it by exploring many places and doing many activities. You might not have time near the end of your semester to travel due to final exams and projects. And I will say this again; 90 DAYS IS NOT A LOT OF TIME for a semester abroad program. So don’t be afraid and explore while you have the time (but be safe about it.)
Excelsior! (In honor of late Marvel creator, Stan Lee)
じゃあまた(see you later)
-アリッサ
(Disclaimer: I apologize that these posts are coming out so late. The last few weeks had been busy with final papers and presentations, plus I had not been getting much sleep. Again, sorry for the delay in these posts and will try to get them posted as soon as possible.)