Let's Wrap This Up, Shall We?

Sorry. After I got back to the states, I was busy catching up with, well, everything. I finally finished up (All A's and a B+, not that it matters. It's pass or fail). So lets wrap up some loose ends.

Did I have fun?:
Sometimes yes, sometimes no. I don't like young people as you all know, but it was sometimes nice to be around people if that makes sense. To be around my "own age" for a little bit. And being in Japan was fun too. Everything was new for a good month, and when stuff started to become habit, I started to feel "cool." Also, I don't go out in America (besides to school), so it was nice to out out shopping, or for food later in the evenings. I felt independent. I felt "young." I don't know if I'd do that here, but it was fun in Japan. And it was just fun. I mean, I went to Japan. I always said I would go, but I really did it. And it was freaking amazing.

Was Japan what I thought it would be?:
Yes and no.
Yes, as in, it was a polite country. People were quite and respectful and somewhat understanding of American idiocy so they didn't mind us much. Certain areas were crazy like they were portrayed in the media (Harajuku, for example, was just as awesome as people think it is). But, it also wasn't "crazy." People were toned down most of the time, and it wasn't like living in an anime. I didn't think it would be that crazy, but sometimes I was taken back by now "Normal" it was. I didn't exactly have the culture shock, which was a shock in it's self. However, there were times were I thought "am I doing this right? Am I doing this right?" But the Japanese never made a show of they're distaste if I was doing something wrong (like when I ate ice cream on the train...Twice).

Would I go back?:
Yes, but hopefully alone, or with  a small group of well liked people. I'd love to go without the worry of school.

Am I mad I had to leave early?:
Um...Yes. Yes I am, because there was stuff I still wanted to do. I had finally gotten comfortable walking around and being by myself, so I wish I had more time that I could of just walked around Japan alone. That, and I was going to Disney the day after the earthquake! So, I'm a bit disappointed about that.

However...

How do I feel about the earthquake?:
As terrible as it might sound, while I'm upset I had to leave early, I am somewhat happy I got to experience it. I mean, I wen to Japan, and experienced my first earthquake. If that's not a story, I don't know what is.  I feel bad that I didn't know how bad it was until a few days after the earthquake (we were too worried about finding bread), but it was an experience I wouldn't give back.

Did I "learn" anything about myself?:
Well, one thing I learned is that I'm not as weird as I'd like to think. I know that sounds weird, but being black, tall, and with an afro, I was fully prepared for the cries of "Godzilla!" But no one cared (except for one girl that did ask for a picture). No one treated me like a monster in stores. No one was outwardly racist. And everyone was super nice (for the most part). To be honest, it was the most normal I felt since Japan isn't a country that openly mocks anyone like we're so well know for doing in Japan. I left Japan knowing I really wasn't that big of a deal. :P

So, that's the end of my little travel blog, and the end of my Japan journey. Thanks for following and I hope it was enjoyable for you. Hopefully I'll get to make another travel blog in the future. :)

Have a happy summer!

HapiNeko Cafe

I wanted to go to a cat cafe before I left. I paid about 15 dollars for an hour in cat topia. Was totally worth it.

Since I took so many pictures, I'll just share the facebook like to the album. Enjoy.


Photos

Not much to say about it. It's called "HapiNeko" (Happy Cat I'm assuming). The lady ws nice and it was really cute. I can see why people would want to just go and hang out in there. And the cats were all (mostly) very friendly. Had a few in my lap and so forth. None of them really like to be picked up, but they'd suffer through it. I'm happy I didn't find out about it sooner or yours truly would of been broke because of cats.

The Earthquake: Update

Well. Things are getting weird.

We still have aftershocks. Nothing huge by any means, but we are still shaking none the less. There is also news of a power plant that is also having some problems, but since I don't know the full details, I can't go in to that. To my knowledge, things with that are generally okay. The reason I say that things are getting weird is not because of the earthquake, but because of how people are acting.

In my small area of Ontakesan, we were not truly affected. We were shaken, the trains stopped, but we are not flooded and there was no damage beyond something falling off of something else. However, people are buying up food rapidly. Anything bread based (cake, buns, etc.) are gone. The selves have been empty since Friday after the quake. Super markets are closing, and the one that is open has a line out the door. Small bakeries are overwhelmed and are almost bare.

They've closed the school because of the country's recommendation that people should stay home. It will also be closed tomorrow.

I'm not scared of the earthquake because I'm not going to be anything but shaken, if anything. But the people are the ones that are freaking me out. With everything closing and people buying food like it's Armageddon, it's very eerie. We went to another town today and it was even getting bare in some of the big shops in the train station.

There are black outs in the city. They're scheduled to help conserve energy. It has been said that we will not be affected, but with shops closing down, I think we might have a few hours of darkness eventually. I just don't know.

Kids are leaving. Two kids in my dorm have already flown home. I hear more kids are being brought home by their parents. They say they plan to return, but that their parents just want them home. Most of my dorm does plan on staying since we haven't truly been affected. Unless something goes horribly wrong, we have no reason to go.

I can't wait for things to get back to normal.

The Earthquake

First things first, I'm fine. Nothing's broken, no wounds, no damage. I didn't reply to my text because my phone's charge/plan expired. It happened today, and I was going to renew it after school, however, their was an earthquake after school, so my plans changed.

NOW! The earthquake. I was at school when it happened. All of the sudden, you just felt things shaking. I at first thought it was me. I remember thinking, "Wow, I must be tired. The room's shaking." But everyone had the same face of, "...is it just me?" Then it REALLY started to shake. Like, stumbling around trying to get away from the windows.

We had to stand outside (which was confusing...because I thought we had to stay inside), and when it stopped, we returned...until the building started shaking again. Our teacher told us to just go home.

HOWEVER!

We couldn't go home because the trains were down. People were just crowding around in the station because, well, people weren't sure what to do. I ended up going back to school, thinking I could wait it out. I left briefly to get some dinner and since everything was still, I thought, "alright. I'll be able to go home tonight."

Well, around 7:30 they made the announcement that they would be allowing us to sleep at the school. At that point I finished my dinner, got something to drink and left. That's right. Close to eight at night, I made the choice to walk home.

Now, it wasn't totally crazy. I know my train stops. I know them well. I didn't plan on going alone, but no one else wanted to go, and I wasn't staying. The walk from the first station (Tamachi) to the second station (Shinagawa) wasn't bad. Lots of signs and such, and it was one straight line. The next stations? Very, very difficult.

Japan does not have street signs. At least, not like I'm used to. There is not a name for every street, just big main roads. That's it. I was able to practice my directional Japanese because of the mass of police men that were directing traffic, people, and keeping things orderly (people were walking in the streets a bit). In total, it took me three hours to get to Kamata station which is, get this, the half way point. By the time I got to Kamata, it was 11:14PM, I was hungry and my feet were killing me.

But I had a stroke of luck!

The Tokyu lines were up and running! I walked to the next station when I hear the train bells. And I was able to get a ride to my stop at Ontakesan. I was not the only one at the dorm. There were lots of other walkers who refused to stay at the school and simply walked.

You're probably thinking, "Gabby...Why in god's name didn't you take a taxi?" 1. It was extremely congested. I'm pretty sure I was moving down the street faster than any taxi. 2. I simply didn't want to waste the money. Once I started walking, that was it, I was walking. I had money on me, in case I gave up or something, but I was able to make it home, all for free. :D

I was also not walking alone at night. LOTS AND LOTS of people were walking. And it wasn't just the "oh, it's a night on the town" crowd, there were tons of working class people walking. I was not alone on the dark streets even once.

All in all, I'm safe. Sore and sleepy, but safe. Oh, and guess what? I got to do this three hour walk with a huge bag of vegetables on my back. I bought vegetables before the earthquake, and got to carry those guys around the whole time. How much fun...

Nakano & Ghibli Museum

So, today was the Nakano and Ghibli Museum trip. I had to google Nakano (I was interested only in the museum) and it seems to be a place for anime fans and collectors. While I do enjoy anime, I'm not really one to drop 50 dollars on a 4 inch figurine. It was really nice to look at, but there wasn't much for me to personally buy, since everything was really pricey.

It started out...bad. First, we were too early. Almost everything was close when our tour arrived. We had a tour guide, but it really wasn't needed. Nakano Broadway is like a mall, so imagine getting a tour around a mall...yeah, pretty pointless. Once we were let loose, it was a lot better. Just able to wander around and what not. Here are some pictures.

They had some art galleries around. I thought they were
rather nice.

Yup...Isn't it wonderful?

They were drawing on the walls (a project of sorts). It was
pretty nifty.

What I bought from there. 700¥. I'll hang it up...somewhere.

After that, we got on the train and made our way over to the Ghibli museum. Now, I was already excited about this place. I love Miyazaki's work. I always have. His stories are always touching and fun and the art is magical (He's like Japan's Walk Disney). The museum did not disappoint. It was a great place. They had a huge room of his sketches and color pallets, still cells, and great diagrams of walks of many characters and creatures.  It was wonderful. They wouldn't let anyone take pictures, but I was able to take some outside. Here's what I was able to get.

We also were able to see a short film, only for the museum. It was really great for multiple reasons. The art was great and the store was adorable. But best part was that there wasn't any dialogue. I know this is going to sound freakishly cheesy, but it was a great experience for me, since I want to be an animator and all. Everyone was able to laugh and react all at the same time, with nothing but the movement of the characters, their expressions and timing. At the end, when our little corner was cheering, there was a really small child who was cheering with us. We turned and clapped with the little girl and it was touching, because even though we must of been strange to her, and could barely say anything (and I'm sure the child didn't even know where she was or why we were clapping), it was nice that we could all come together over something as simple as a cartoon. I'm happy with my choice in majors.

Here's what I bought. The intention was not to buy a stuffed animal or trinket, but something distinct to the museum (kinds sorta). I bought an art book for the movie Spirited Away (hard choice. I like a lot of his movies, but those books are 30 dollars a pop) as well as a small stuffed keychain of the character in the cartoon. The cartoon was really endearing, plus, I had a "moment" being all animator-ish. I had to get something to remember it by.

I'll be treasuring this book. I'm
glad I bought it.

She's the たまごひめ！ Or Egg Princess.  The story was
cute, she was cute. I loved it.

I really enjoyed that place. A lot. It was worth the money and the crappy tour. I'm now going to finish watching season 1 of mad men.

I am D-O-N-E with dorm life

I'm sick of it I tell you, sick of it! I hate young people (90% of them). It's like they're suffering from brain damage. I don't think they sleep. They just wander the halls at night, spewing gibberish. All they care about is getting drunk and partying and the boys are a special treat because they just care about women (and they're vulgar about it, which gives me hives).

They're also dirty. I may not be the master of clean, but I can lean food residue off of a dish. And someone decided to use the microwave, have something explode in it, and just walked off. WHO DOES THAT!? This isn't someone's personal home? I can let MY microwave get dirty because it's MINE. That doesn't work when the microwave is shared by 20 girls. And there's also a girl that doesn't wash her hands. I was in the bathroom, she walked in, used the toilet (and did her business) and just walked out. She didn't even look at the water. SHE COULD OF AT LEAST FAKED IT.

Did I tell you that they're rude? Besides just wandering the halls, they couldn't greet someone if their life depended on it. Would a "good morning" really kill them? Would it!? I've quit saying good morning in this dorm, because it doesn't even register in their heads. They either ignore it or just continue to lumber through the halls. The Japanese are better at greeting me, and they're scared of me.

And it seems that not only are they rude, but they're illiterate, since they can't read the signs about "quiet hours" or how sound travels when you talk in the hall, which is why they request you don't do it (not that they care, because what do they have to wake up for? Oh yeah...CLASS). I guess this is also the reason that at one or two in the morning I can be woken up by the lovely sounds of someone slamming the microwave door shut, because walking down to the kitchen and letting me sleep would be too much for them (My room is next to the "kitchen" area upstairs, which is why it's a special peeve of mine).

I want to know how they function. They obviously don't sleep, so how are they going to class? They're more then willing to skip class to shop (I kid you not), but it seems that class takes the back seat. I'M NOT EVEN GETTING GRADES FROM THIS SCHOOL AND I CARE MORE. >:[

Did I miss out on this super powered young people gene? I need sleep, and I know how to shut the hell up, and I can read a sign. Did I miss something? I'm done with dorms. Stinky, awful, loud dorms. Never again!

After this I'm moving into a retirement home and playing scrabble.

P.S. Honors Announcement (I'm bragging, bear with me):

Please, join me in congratulating: The Honors Program students who also made the Fall 2010 DEAN’s LIST and The third-year students who have completed at least 4 honors courses as of Fall 2010 and are on track to earn the Honors Program Certificate (Medallion. I'm not doing this for paper)! In your honor, please attend the annual Deans List Luncheon & Junior Pinning Ceremony.  Enjoy dining with the Dean of your School (major) and or receiving the Honors Pin, bestowed by the Dean of your School.

(Can't go. I'm in Japan)

Honors Dean’s List 

* Deans List and Junior Pin Recipients   

Digital Animation                  Gabrielle Minor*

P.P.S. I can't really understand your comment, Dad, so I'll just say thank you. :)

Snow in Japan

 It snowed. It was really quick. It snowed that night and it was gone the next evening. I saw someone fall (badly) though because of it. She got help, but that goes to show you that snow is dangerous, doesn't it? I was really worried, because I come home late, and I didn't want it to freeze over, but it was really all gone. I heard that for Tokyo, that was a lot of snow.  Here's a small video of the snowfall and my ramblings:

 

Well, my most favorite food now is tempura. Tempura japanese sweet potato actually. We went to a tempura place and studied the menu. I found out what I like it called "imo." They also have tempura pumpkin, which isn't as horrifying as it sounds. It's actually very, very tasty.                

I also had french toast from a place called "PanDoll." It was a big hunk of bread toasted (fried?) and covered in sugar. It tasted like a big square piece of funnel cake. It was really, REALLY good, also pretty cheap, only 100¥. I was quite happy with it.

Until I came to Japan, I've never seen hot(cold) chocolate sold like this. In powder form, in little fancy starbucks cups, but not like this. Of course I bought it. Cold hot chocolate isn't half bad. It's not my favorite  thing in the world, but it isn't bad. Also, why hasn't anyone told me that "coco" is actually "cocoa?"

Also, my earphones broke today. =_= I had been using them since freshmen year actually, and they blocked out EVERYTHING, so I'm very sad to see them go. I actually don't even remember what the brand was, since I got them from the school store. Headphones are something I really care about, because I hate hearing noise, and I hate hearing my neighbors who are up and ghastly hours, so I ran to the nearest store. I was sad, because I know that I wouldn't find ones as good as the ones I had (without spending a lot)...

However, I was able to replace them with Disney earphones!  Yup, that's what I spend my money on. It's important to me. They aren't as good as my old ones, but I suppose I'll just get used to mediocrity when it comes to my music. Nothing seems to "pop" anymore...but at least I have mouse ears on my head. :)

I've been having money nightmares. Everything costs something. Why can't anything be for free? Or at least last longer? =_= Oh well, what can you do?

Special thanks to my mom for letting me borrow her camera. It's very nifty. :)