Izakayas, barbecues & Kamakura.

Life in Tokyo isn't as dramatically different from life in Australia like I first thought it would be. The exchange program at Keio University runs almost identically to a normal semester at Melbourne University. This means it won't be overly difficult to get used to, but has a similar downside - your semester will only be as exciting as you make it. Back at home I'm quite satisfied with boring semesters but it would be kind of a waste to let the same thing happen over here. And I might as well introduce you to two gaijins (derogatory Japanese term for foreigner/alien), Leonar from Taiwan/America & Stefan from Switzerland. They are both also on exchange at Keio, and the first few people I met when I arrived. The locals in Japan are quite shy & reserved (until you get to know them better), and with an uninvolved program at university, it makes it difficult to make local friends. Furthermore, we have been extremely free since classes don't actually start until the 24th of September. As a result, us three gaijins' have been spending a lot of time together since we're all in the same situation. So much so, that in roughly a week or so we have covered all the main areas of Tokyo, including Shinagawa, Tokyo (station), Ikebukuro, Shinjuku, Shibuya, Harajuku, Ueno & of course Tamachi, where our University is situated. Side note: having either a H&M, Topman or UNIQLO wherever you go is a convenient way to waste the little money you have left after splurging on endless amounts of food and having to purchase the world's most expensive train tickets.



These are some pictures taken nearby to my campus in Tamachi. On our first day wondering around the area we passed by a sort of community centre called 'Shiba no Ie', which appeared to be a restaurant since everyone inside was eating and talking. One of the staff came out and attempted to describe what the place was all about, and it turns out it was a place where people working or living nearby brought their bentous (packed lunch) to eat, kids came to play after school, and even where clubs met. All the staff are Keio students or graduates, so we decided to buy some lunch and join them. They were really warm and welcoming, and answered a lot of the questions we had at the time. Since then we go spend some time there on most days where we have to go to uni. I find it really amazing at how helpful Japanese people are if you approach them the right way. Those people had never met us before but they were researching for us the cheapest mobile plans and student commuter passes. I went to DoCoMo with Stefan so he could apply for a mobile phone, but since they didn't offer prepaid, the lady printed us a map with directions to the nearest SoftBank store (which by the way is their competitor!). You might or might not be familiar with Japanese customer service, but it is extremely polite, efficient and friendly. The language here as a whole hierarchy of politeness, and every sentence can be rephrased so that it is either rude, casual, polite, humble or respectful. When talking with customers you usually use a combination of humble and respectful forms of speech. My first impression was that it was simply a formality, and that the person serving you is likely to be saying it without any integrity whatsoever. I now find that this is only true to a certain extent, because so many people (even random people on the street) have given more help than I expected when asked. You really can't help yourself from sensing in them a genuine desire to be nice to others.



On Sunday morning, we went to a morning barbecue organised by Takashi (the second son in my host family) and a bunch of his friends. The food was really good, and it seems as though every Japanese female has the ability to cook in their genes, while every male knows how to pick out good food. The night before was my first ever experience at an onsen which is a Japanese bath house. I was really looking forward to it, since I've always thought of it as the ultimate method of relaxation and indulgence. When entering the facility you have to take off your shoes and put them in a shoe locker (lots of restaurants and other places are like this), then proceed to the reception to pay. This particular one had a traditional style dining and relaxing area for friends and families. After that male and females are split into there own areas. Upon entering there is a changing room with lockers to keep your clothes, and then a room with a huge pot of water and bamboo scoops to rinse your body. I'll let you know the whole nudity thing was seriously awkward for me, and it didn't help that it was a busy Saturday night, but you get used to it sooner or later. After rinsing yourself you enter the shower bays where you have to sit down on a stool and thoroughly clean your body with shampoo and soap before proceeding to the spas. There was a plethora of spas to select from: hot, cold (mizuboro), jacuzzi style and bed style. All of these were both indoors, and also outdoors in a traditional garden style environment under the night sky. There was also a sauna and a special spa which I later found out was filled with some kind of milk mixture. Being adventurous I tried them all, and my conclusion is that the Japanese really like their baths hot, like 42 degrees hot. But overall I really enjoyed myself and would go again without a doubt, probably next time to the real ones in the mountains.

One of our many redemptions here is that Leonar has many contacts with a huge group of local Keio students who went on exchange to her university in Seattle last year. We've met up with a few of them on different occasions for meals and such. More recently, 11 of us gathered together to go to Kamakura which is an area South of Tokyo famous for temples and certain foods. It was the first day of Silver Week, the second longest series of public holidays, and as a result the place was ridiculously crowded. Imagine the whole town being as crowded as a shopping centre on Boxing Day. None the less it was pretty fun, the first picture in this post shows planks of wood where people right down their wishes and hang them up. Since the school entrance exams are coming up, the temple has had great business lately. The mosaic above includes a picture showing white paper which is folded up and tied to bamboo branches. This is where all negative things and bad fortunes are scribed and... supposedly dispelled? After temple exploring, we fled from the crowds and headed to Yokohama to eat dinner at an Izakaya. On the way we even fulfilled the ancient Japanese tradition of PuriKura, which is the abbreviation of print club AKA sticker photos. An Izakaya is a restaurant where you get your own cubicle with your friends and continuously order, through an electronic menu, small dishes and alcoholic drinks until you are satisfied or out of cash, whichever comes first. Total train expenses: 2500 yen out of a total expenditure for the day of 6500 yen.