JapAnnie Adventures

Kyoto

2009-11-09T02:33:00.000-08:00

KYOTO

On November 3rd was a national holiday and I got a day off from school! I desperately have been wanting to see more of Japan, so my friends Aiko and Kaoru kindly offered to show me Kyoto :o)

Kamo River.

This river is famous for spot for tourists and local to visit. You can go walking on either side, and if you're hungry stop for a bite to eat at one of the many cafes stand along the bank.

We skipped down a side street to find a place for lunch.

We found a cozy traditional Japanese restaurant for lunch.

This was my first course: some fish, potato, tofu, and ginco beans.

Main course: salad, beef, mushrooms, miso soup, and of course RICE!

Yasaka Shrine

Yasaka Shrine is a Shinto shrine which was built in 656 AD.

It was absolutely beautiful!

Entrance to the shrine.

Upon entering the shrine there is a "holy water house" as my friends and I established. There is a fountain holding bamboo cups with long handles. You dip your cup into the fountain and pour water over one hand, and then the other. Next you pour some water into your hand and drink it. Now you are cleansed and ready to enter the shrine. But before entering you pour the remaining water over the handle of your cup to make it "clean" for the next visiter.

The first thing I noticed was the stage. This is where many religious dances and ceremonies are performed.

Because this day was a holiday (Culture Day), there was a special religious ceremony being performed. My friends who have been to Kyoto hundreds of times throughout their lives said they had NEVER seen this particular performance before. It is very sacred and only performed at very select times. I was very lucky to see it!

Here's a clip of it for you to see too! I wish I knew what it was called, but because it is not performed often no one really knows the name of it. Enjoy!

The shrine itself.

The tradition when passing by the shrine is to throw a 5 cent piece onto the platform, ring the bell, clap twice, bow, clap again, then pray. On this day no one allowed to ring any bells because of the performance. So their ropes were tied to the pillars (can you see them?).

Something you could do upon entering the shrine was to buy a fortune for yourself. First you pick a wooden box depending on what kind of fortune you would like (romantic, health, money, etc.). I picked a rather general box. You shake it until a stick slides out of a tiny hole. The stick has a number on it, and you take your number to a "cashier" and they give you your fortune, which is a piece of paper. Mine said my life was horrible and that is I wasn't careful I would lose my way and find myself in even more trouble... I can't believe I paid 200 yen to hear that! If you want your fortune to come true you tie it to a string (showed above). I told my friends I DID NOT want mine coming true, so I kept it (I also wanted a souvenir!).

Heading towards Kiyomizu Temple

Pulled carriages!

These guys have to be incredibly strong! This area was entirely uphill the whole way!

The walk towards the temple is all uphill, but there are stairs to "ease your way". As well as a bunch of shops to distract you from the pan you feel in your knees ;o)

Kiyomizu Temple

Kiyomizu Temple (Pure Water Temple) is a Buddhist temple built in 798 AD and renovated in 1633. Can you believe there is not one nail in the whole place? And it's still standing strong!

We finally made it!

Kaoru, myself, and Aiko.

It was SO COLD! But so worth it!

Entrance to the temple.

One of the statues guarding the gate of the temple. He looks scary in order to ward off evil spirits or malicious invaders. This guy must have been thirty feet tall!

When I was there is was too dark to see the statues inside their protective crates (I pulled the first picture off the internet). This was all I saw of them. Can you see that one yellow eye starring at you? It gave me the chills!

Another building next to the entrance, still part of the temple.

A quiet rest area. I thought it was so "kawaii" (pretty)!

Inside the temple facing the entrance.

I'm not sure what these are or the significance of them. Students and visitors were trying to lift them, and a tour guide was explaining what to do. Of course he was speaking Japanese, so I only knew when he was saying "Yes, that's right", or "No, that's wrong" ;o).

Looking down from the famous platform, you can see the water house. This water is said to have healing powers; that's why it's called Kiyomizu (pure water) Temple. The line to just a sip curled all around the path. It was quite a site!

View from the platform. I will never be able to take a good enough picture to do it justice!

Purification.

You light and burn incense, waving the smoke over your head to make you smart. It was funny to see all the young students waving smoke over their heads like their lives depended on it!

A view from the opposite platform.

Making our way down the hill.

Markers for donated cherry trees.

Exiting the temple.

Heading Home

Our final destination was this street. Many years ago is was famous for being a "geisha" street. Now there are many shops and restaurants, as well as a renowned denim dye shop.

Thus, ended my first trip to Kyoto.

We were cold, tired, but extremely happy about our day in Kyoto!

Trick or Treat!

2009-10-31T19:09:00.000-07:00

It's the Great Pumpkin OCC!

Halloween is not celebrated in Japan the way it is in the USA. There's no trick or treating and not very many costume parties. It's a very "American" concept, which is why it is appealing. But Japanese people like the decor and wearing cute little halloween hats.

I felt it my duty to introduce my students to an American Halloween!

Class Party

On Thursday before Halloween I hosted a Halloween party for my second year English students.

We started with a burping contest... that's right a burping contest. A few weeks before they girls asked me what my sisters and I did for fun that our parents didn't like. The only think I could think of was the four of us chugging Coke and having burping contests. As soon as I told them this they demanded I host one for the class. So I did, and they had fun... and I still have my job ;o)

I made them a "Pin the Tail on the Donkey" game, which they LOVED. They thought my donkey was cute ;o)

From left to right: Maho, Mihuyu, Marika, Marni, and Erika. Marika won the burping contest!

Erika was the brave and went first, and ultimately won the game!

Mao, Erika, and Marni had fun spinning Marika around and around and pointing her in the wrong directions. They REALLY enjoyed tricking each other!

Poor donkey... ;o)

We ended it with Charlie Brown and the Great Pumpkin (thanks to my sister Katie!). They had never see it before, and they LOVE Snoopy, so it was perfect! I also showed it to all my tutoring classes. I watched it ten times this week and I'm still not tired of it! It also came equipped with Japanese subtitles!

Thanks Katie! :o)

The Student Festival

Every year on Halloween the school has a Student Festival. Sort of like homecoming.

On Friday there were no classes and students got to participate in a talent show. All the teachers and second year students voted for the best act, and that act would be able to perform at the festival for the community the next day. The acts were so cute. There was a lot of dancing and singing. There were groups that performed songs from "The Sister Act", "Aladdin", and "High School Musical" (of course!). When they announced the winner the girls screamed and cried with joy! Even though the acts were cute and somewhat simple, the students worked SO HARD to make them perfect. And they have so much school spirit they considered it such an honor to perform for the community the next day. Looking at them you would have thought they had won American Idol... they were so happy!

Saturday was Halloween and the open campus portion of the festival. Each club had a tent and their own fundraiser. There was food, candy, flea markets, pottery, painting, you name it! The atmosphere was full of bustling excitement!

The ESS club booth.

My girls made a balloon dart game (which is new to them). They had candy prizes as well as big prizes for those who hit all the balloons. It was VERY successful.

I offered to do face painting for the group; something else Japanese people are not familiar with. And oh boy! I had NO IDEA what I had gotten myself into! Everyone LOVED the face painting! We had to set up a "waiting area" for people who wanted to get their faces painted. Half way through one of my students stepped in to help me, and she DEFINITELY was a help! I couldn't have done it without her! It was fun to see kids (and adults) come back for seconds, and even thirds! For some reason they absolutely LOVED it!

The booth next to ours.

I made this template for my face painting booth. Of course Mickey Mouse was the most popular AND the most difficult to do! Now I am a master at Mickey Mouse face painting! The Jack-o-lantern and cat were also very popular.

Japanese chicken barbeque.. it smelled SO good!

Annie's Halloween Party!

After our busy day Saturday, I hosted a Halloween party for the ESS girls. I had so much fun making the decorations!

I had some games and activities planned, but we were all SO TIRED! So we all decided to sit around and eat! They wanted to know more about Annie the girl (not Annie the teacher ;o) ). So I talked about myself, answered some questions they had been DYING to ask me (such as "What is your love story?", that was an interesting one!). Some told ghost stories, but a few girls got scared and we had to turn the lights on! Haha, just like when we were little!

Bad picture:

Maho wore a Buddha mask and stuck her fingers through the nostril holes. It was SO FUNNY! ;oP

Namba

2009-10-22T02:53:00.000-07:00

NAMBA!

Namba is THE place for shopping in the Kansai area.

There are stores every where you look and any street you walk on.

The lights, people, food entertainment, and music make it a super happenin' place to be!

This is a famous billboard. It's not a particular person, but for some reason

it's very famous. ALL the tourists want to get pictures with it...

...so of course I did too!

From left to right: Namba Man, Hosana, me, and Hanae.

I guess this is another seafood restaurant, but I just thought this guy was awesome!

Hanae and me with little Namba Man!

We had dinner at the "Donkey Kong". I know that sounds like the gorilla in the Mario games, but the character is an actual donkey. The restaurant was VERY cool, it looked like a jungle. I ate Japanese steak with chopsticks.... oh ya!

From left to right: Hanae, me, Donkey Kong, Kaoru, and Hosana.

This is a famous seafood restaurant in Namba. It may be hard to see, but this giant crab's arms are moving. It scared me half to death the first time I saw it... it's HUGE!

Out and About

2009-10-07T04:46:00.000-07:00

This post is a work in progress. I will try to upload picture and stories as often as I can :o)

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Here are some videos of the elementary students practicing for their sports event. They did a routine to Pirates of the Caribbean music, but I missed it!

It may be hard to see, but you can listen to them scream and chant as they go into formation. It was fun to watch!

Here's some photos and a clip from downtown Abeno. I am standing on a bridge that connects to every street which runs over the traffic. I was on my way home from Japanese class and I thought I'd give you a taste of Abeno at night.

You'll see a big building with "Mio" in lights on it. That is a shopping mall.. it's huge! There's also the Tennoji train station, another mall, and the ABC crafts store!

Can you see the ABC sign?

A panoramic shot for your viewing pleasure ;o)

Campus Tour

2009-10-07T02:55:00.001-07:00

Take a look around the OCC campus :o)

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Entrance to the OCC campus.

Chapel tower. Despite how big it is it's impossible to see

from the main street. It's quite striking if you happen upon

it while coming up the little alley way to the school. But you may not

even notice if you don't look up!

Pathway to Chapel. Very pretty.

Chapel. I will actually be speaking in chapel on October 20.

Needless to say I'm a little nervous ;o)

Pathway to the Child Education building

and library.

Bikes are about as common as sunshine in Osaka. Biking

through Abeno-ku is quite the experience. Rather

like the game "Frogger"... I'm the frog ;o)

Ceramics room in the Child Ed. building where I am

allowed to go and play every Friday afternoon! :o)

All education students take art classes so they can

decorate their future class rooms. I think that's so cool!

Main building. This is where I have my offices: one in the International

Relations department and one in the English Communication

room. It's also where I am a teaching assistant for two classes and teaching

two adult community classes.

My office in the International Relations department. I'm not here

very often because it is easier for the students to find me in the English

Communication room. Here I share an area with my helper Seike,

who has helped me with everything thing from biking through Abeno to

navigating through the crazy Tennoji train station. Inoue sensei also shares this space.

He the head of International Relations and has been very kind to me :o)

My desk at the English Communication room. I am here most of the

time between classes. Students will often come in to talk with me, and ask

questions. They really enjoy looking at the picture of my family

up on the wall and frequently ask to see more of them. They say we

look like funny people! ;o)

This is Su. She is the "go-to-gal" for English Communication. She is so

nice to have around in the office. She even took me to a high school talent show! She has also invited me to her house out in the country. I told her I am also from the country and she said anytime I feel homesick I can come stay with her hike in the mountains and streams. We get to talk a lot during the day, and she also helps me with my Japanese! She's a good friend :o)

This is Hanae. She is the president of the English speaking club

(English Speaking Society). She and I are working on the group's fundraiser for the

Student Festival on Halloween, as well as the Fall Party at my apartment! :o)

Here's the whole office (my desk is in the far right corner). Every Wednesday students are invited to come in and have lunch with me. I often have company on any given day, but that's

the official "Eat Lunch with Annie Day" :o). It's also a good time for students

to tell me about Osaka and the rest of Japan. I already have offers to go various parks, zoos, and temples, Universal Studios, Disney World, Hiroshima, Kyoto, Nara, Namba shopping

mall, and the Osaka aquarium (which I hear is an incredible must-see!).

This is a guest house on campus, and is actually where I do a lot of my teaching.

I teach seven English classes a week here. It's a very casual environment where we all

sit in big comfortable chairs and I help the students with their English and lead

vocabulary building activities. So far so good!

Hope you enjoyed the tour!

I'll keep you posted ;o)

Humble Dwellings

2009-09-21T20:34:00.000-07:00

Take a virtual tour of my apartment :o)

1-3-12 Maruyama-dori, that's me!

The brown door is how I enter my apartment from the street.

And here is my trusty bicycle that takes me safely through

the hectic streets of Abenu-ku ;o)

The stairway leading up to my apartment.

Be sure to put on some slippers!

Bathroom at the top of the stairs.

Notice my tiny little square tub on the right,

and my itty bitty washer on the left :o)

Other half of the bathroom.

My bedroom :o)

My bed consists of two twin beds put together;

They don't make bed to fit 5'11'' Americans ;o)

Living room .

My TV has sixty-four channels, five of them in English ;o)

The window at the end looks over the street at an

elementary school playground. The sliding door leads to my little balcony.

Dining room and part of the kitchen.

My kitchen.

Stove is gas powered, so I turn on the gas every

time I use it. The same goes for hot water :o)

View from kitchen window.

The elementary school I can see from my living room

or my bedroom. During the week it is full of children

in bright blue and red caps. And everyday they sing the

Mickey Mouse theme song together: so cute! ;o)

Living next door to me are the Parry's.

Here is one of their sons James, and their dog Yuki (Snow).

Yuki has yet to warm up to me, but we're making progress!

I hope you enjoyed getting to see where I live.

Feel free to visit anytime! :o)

Hi Everyone!

2009-09-20T19:08:00.000-07:00

Hi Everyone!

Thanks to all who are interested in hearing about my adventures while here in Osaka Japan. I am so excited to be starting this new chapter of life in a place like Japan. I will be working as a teaching assistant at Osaka Christian College, which is a junior college for girls. I will also be holding tutoring and studying sessions as well as teaching an adult community class.

Along with being a teacher I will also be taking on the role of student! I will be attending Japanese language lessons twice a week until Christmas. I also hope to travel as much as I can to experience and learn as much about Japan as possible! I have a lofty goal of climbing Mount Fuji before my stay is over. I will be sure to let you know if that dream materializes :o)

I will post stories and pictures as often as my job allows so you can all share in my JapAnnie Adventures!