Day One, Blog One

Kyoto is a lot that I expected and a lot that I didn't expect. I've been here for less than twenty four hours, but I am already overwhelmed. Osaka, which is the city I flew into, was covered with lights. A lot of the billboards were just neon light upon neon light. I was just surprised by how busy the city seems to be. The streets reminded me of different racing games, and since most video games are made in Japan, I now see where they come from. My flight was long, and at times I thought it would never be over. I spent the larger part of 13 hours attempting to find a comfortable position, a task at which I didn't have very much success. I will add details in my next blog from the written journal entries I will transfer over to my electronic journal. Today has been long and exciting. First I will tell you a little about my accomodations and then about my journey around the city. The first part is mostly for people who might worry about my ability to be happy in my environment, the second is meant to be more entertaining. I am currently sleeping on a tatami mat on the floor, which has a fouton pad on it and is relatively comfortable. I have a small, low to the ground table next to my bed which will double as a night stand and a writing/computer table. The room I am staying in came with a bedframe, but I would much rather use it for a couch, so I am hoping to find pillows or a comforter to make the conversion complete. I have a closet-like thing built into the wall which is where I am storing my clothing as well as my luggage. There is a kitchen area which has one burner, a sink, two tiny shelves over the sink, and a refridgerator. There is not much counter space, so I may try to find an inexpensive piece of furniture to use as a countertop as well as extra storage space. The room came with a television, and I have heard that Japanese TV can be very interesting and a good way to study the language and get some insight into the culture. Apparently Sumo is very intersting to watch on TV. I have not figured out what to do with everything yet, but I imagine that I will be using the floor for books and other things that don't need containment. I have an incredible amount of space, but not a lot of organizational tools. I did not bring much, but although there is plenty of room for everything, I have a lot of things left on my bed searching for a place. The bathroom is down the hall from me and the shower is outside. It is coin operated, although I am not quite sure whether it is amounts of water or time that you pay for. I am looking forward to going to the Sento, which is a Japanese bath. The way you bathe in Japan is to wash off in a shower before you get into the bath. This means that the warm tub stays clean and can be used to relax in instead of getting dirty. Even the shower outside of my "dorm" has a place for relaxing in a bath after one's shower.

My journey today started this morning, when I woke up at about 6 A.M. with the sunrise. I am not sure it is because of the sun, because of the time change, or because Matt said that I would wake up at that time, but I was up early and watched the sun come up over the city of Kyoto. The view from my window is interesting. I live in a residential area, so it is necessary for one to look over the tops of buildings to see the mountains, but they are there. There is also a mountain on the other side of the building, but it is much closer and so I am not sure exactly how big it is. The couple down the hall from me cooked me a japanese dish that is made with flour, an egg, and cabbage,and everything else you want to use from your kitchen, although they supplemented it with tofu. This was the most appetizing tofu I've ever seen. It was fresh, and probably handmade. The landlady had given it to them as a gift. She seems like a very kind lady, although we have difficulty communicating. I do not speak any Japanese yet, but I will have a crash course starting very soon. Luckily I have had a lot of help from the other students here at the center. I think my favorite thing about the center so far has been the amount of interaction I have had with the other students. There are only going to be 19 or 20 of us here this semester, and with the size of our school there is a great community feeling. Right now I am sitting in the lounge with three of the other students. I have already been fed twice. Breakfast and desert. I haven't eaten a lot today, but I bought some items like cream cheese and bread that I will be able to manage surviving on. I have to run now, because I have a lot to get done and even more to see. I will soon post my recent journal entries.