The Japanese know how to celebrate

Hello everyone,

despite what you now might think from reading the title this is not about me going partying in Osaka. Today I would like to write about two festivals (祭り) that have a very long tradition. They are both held every year on the 22nd of October.

The first one is Jidai Matsuri (時代祭り) which literally means the festival of the ages. The first Jidai Matsuri was held in 1895 as a celebration of the 1100th anniversary of the founding of Heian (the former name of Kyoto) by Emperor Kammu. It is a five hour long procession from the Imperial Palace to the Heian Shrine (平安神宮) in which about 2000 performers, dress up in costumes of the different periods in Japan, participate. I went with a group of friends from my school and we watched the procession walk by. This took about one and a half hours, and to be honest wasn't as exciting as I hoped it would be. One problems was probably the rain, that started and wouldn't stop, it would get stronger and lighter but kept pouring. The other thing was, that we didn't have enough information. There were some announcements in Japanese explaining the characters and their clothing, but we couldn't hear it very well and it was very hard to follow. Nevertheless I took some very nice pictures and a little video so you can get an impression.

The second festival we went to was Kurama Hi Maturi (鞍馬火祭り) which is celebrated in a small town north of Kyoto called Kurama.  We arrived at around 5 and so had time so look around this beautiful little town in daylight. It is very traditional with wooden houses along a narrow street ringed by mountains and woods. The atmosphere was really great and I will try to come back another day just to look around and go the the onsen there. At 6:00 in the evening the town was lit up with torches carried by children. Soon after that the local people parade through the streets carrying a great torch and yelling along the way until they gather at the shrine at around 8 o'clock. It is a fantastic sight, but the festival is so famous now, that there are just way too many people to really enjoy it. Hundredth of policemen and volunteers are in attendance to get all visitors to walk a pre organized path through the town. We watched the spectacle for two hours and then decided to leave. It took us almost 30 minutes to get back to the station, a distance of about 500 meters at the most. 
Most interesting were the costumes of the male participants. They were wearing not much more than a thong. 

 Here you can see the traditional clothing :-P

Newspaper article about the festival

How to take a bath in Japan

Hello everyone,

my cold isn't quite over yet, but I still decided I couldn't stay home all weekend. So after relaxing (and studying) all day on Saturday, I went out on Sunday.
Hirotake-san was so nice to take me to a few more really nice temple. First we went to Ninnaji (仁和寺), founded in 888 by emperor Uda as a residence for the emperors, and a place for studying buddhism. It is really famous for its Sakura Trees which bloom later than other Sakura and are shaped more like a bush than a actual tree, through which the blossoms are on eye level, which is supposed to be very beautiful. Like many other temple this one was also destroyed repeatedly by fires and so all buildings were rebuilt over and over.

After Ninnaji we went to the more famous sister-temple Ryoanji (龍安寺), with supposedly the most beautiful stone garden in Kyoto. I have to admit that I didn't think it so extraordinary and because of all the people sitting and standing in front of it it was impossible to take a proper picture. The big pond within the garden surrounding the temple was really nice to look at and a good place to relax. 

We left at around 11:30 a.m. to eat Lunch at a very small Ramen place. When we arrived it was already full (10 seats) so we had to wait about 15 minutes. But the Ramen was really good (hand-made Ramen noodles and soup). It was a great experience.

Hirotake-san had to work from 1 p.m. (like every day) and so I went to Nijojo (二条城) on my own. It was originally built in 1603 as the official Kyoto residence of the first Tokugawa Shogun, Ieyasu (everyone with a little knowledge of Japanese History knows the guy). When in 1867 the fifteenth Tokugawa Shogun retururned sovereignty to the Emperor, the castle became the property of the Imperial family, until it was donated to the city of Kyoto in 1939. The Ninomaru Palace within the Nijojo is open to the public and worth a visit. You can walk trough all the rooms where the Shogun lived, and received Guest like Daimyo from all parts of the country. The drawings on the walls are all really beautifully made (unfortunately it is prohibited to take any pictures within the building so I can't show you). The gardens of Nijojo are really wide but if you have been to other garden in Japan they are really nothing too special.

Now I would like to come to the main part of this post. At night Michiko-san and I decided to visit a public bath near our home. Those public bathes were really common and much frequented when it was still unusual to have your own bathroom and bathtub in your house. Japanese people have always been much more clean than people in Europe, bathing long and often (even now it is common, that people take a bath every day).
The concept is really great, but nothing for shy people, since you are completely naked in a room with other people (of the same sex). There is some kind of ritual to follow when going to a bath house. First you undress completely and wash your body with soap and water. Only after that will you enter one of the big bathtubs (depending on the size of the bath house there are more than one tub with different temperatures, some even outside). There you soak until you can't stand the heat anymore and then go into a small tub with ice cold water (it feels really good). You repeat this as often as you like. Usually people will stay about an hour and then go back home.
When going to Japan I have been to Onsen (basically the same, just bigger, and usually natural hot springs) and shared bathes in Ryokan before. The process is always similar, but the mindset is kind of different. When going to an Onsen you do it to relax, have fun and often get more healthy because of minerals in the water. When going to a public bath house it is only for the purpose of getting your body clean, like taking a shower (only going to a public bath has more style, at least in my eyes).

Well I hope you have learned something new and interesting. I will write again soon!

Having a cold!

Hi everyone,

I decided to let you know, that there is really nothing to write about. I attend school every day, go home, do my homework and study. I would also go out with friends, but I have been carrying around this cold for a couple of days, and so decided to rest a little bit more and wait for it to pass.
Well, it doesn't. Today I wanted to go to Uji a very nice small town near Kyoto, but instead I will stay home, relax and try to get rid of my cold.
There is one good thing in all my misery: I have a lot of time to study and prepare for the Language Proficiency Test in December.

So I will let you know as soon as I did anything of interest. Until then, have a nice day!

A very typical Japanese weekend

Good morning everyone,

today is a holiday in Japan (Sports Day) but we are awaiting a very strong typhoon so I will stay home, write down all I experienced on the weekend and clean up my room. If I get really bored I will probably study, thats really what rainy days are good for, right?

My weekend started on Saturday with a trip to two very nice temples with Hirotake-san, the son in my host family. He took me along on his scooter, first to Kenninji (建仁寺), the oldest Zen Temple in Kyoto, founded in 1202 by the pries Yousai, wo made the green tea very popular in Japan. We arrived very early (before 10 so luckily there were not so many people yet, even though it was a weekend. Within the Temple the most famous is a painting of the Wind and Thunder Gods of the famous Meiji artist Tawaraya Sotatsu (俵屋宗達) (you might want to remember that name, he was very famous and painted a lot of really great stuff). Very impressive was also the drawing of the two dragons on the ceiling of the Hattou Hall, but since it was painted only recently it doesn't have such a high value.

The Wind and Thunder Gods (Tawaraya Sotatsu) 

 Stone garden within Kenninji

 The twin Dragons

Garden within Kenninji

After leaving Kenninji we still had time to go and visit another Temple. We decided to visit the little brother of Kinkakuji (the Golden Pavilion, 金閣寺) namely Ginkakuji (the Silver Pavilion, 銀閣寺). Despite what you might expect, it is actually not silver. When we asked about it, we were told, that when they wanted to make it silver the money ran out and it couldn't be accomplished. But despite not being silver it is a very beautiful temple with a beautiful garden around it and was named a World Culture Heritage Site.

 Map of the whole temple complex

 The Silver Pavilion

 The garden at Ginkakuji

Pond with a lot of coins (You are supposed to throw your coin on the stone, if you hit it you will get luck)

Around 12 p.m. we returned home. After a very hasty lunch we (Michiko-san and me) left right away to go to a performance at Mibudera (壬生寺). The traditional theater called Mibukyougen (壬生狂言) has a long tradition and is played without speaking. We watched 5 plays in a row, which took about 5 hour, but it was really interesting (though it could have been shorter, my butt really hurt afterwards).

Newspaper article of the play in Kyoto Shinbun (this is the only picture that I can show you, since taking pictures was not allowed)

On Sunday me and Hirotake-san went out again to see some temples. First we went to Shoukokuji (相国寺) which was first finished in 1392 but burned down again and again (as many other temples in Kyoto and the rest of Japan) but was rebuilt as often. In the "Great Fire of Tenmei" in 1788 were 3/4 of Kyoto burned down, almost the whole temple was lost. Only the Hattou Hall remained, which is now the oldest Hattou Hall in Japan (build in 1605). Really impressive is the ceiling of this hall, where the painting of a gigantic dragon can be seen. No matter where in the hall you stand its eyes are going to follow you. Sadly taking pictures is not allowed and so I can only tell you how impressive it was.

Next we shortly went to Shimogamojinja (下鴨神社) a Shinto Shrine. There is really not so much to say about it. But we saw a wedding couple, which was really beautiful in its traditional clothing.

Lastly we went to Yogenin (養源院) a very small but interesting Temple. Within were many drawings of the famous Tawaraya Sotatsu. Really creepy was the ceiling in one of the rooms, it was brought to the temple and installed there as a ceiling after about 300 Samurai committed suicide on it (when it was still a floor in Fushimi Castle). On this ceiling it is still possible to see hand and footprints of the dead. 

After all that culture I went to a sports festival (運動会) in the area where I live. Michiko-san was on the committee and so she knew a lot of people. It was very interesting how young and old took part together in sports games. After making second place the district in which we live had a small celebration in a house nearby. There was a lot of food and drink and everyone was loudly talking about this and that. It seems to me, this was also a very typical Japanese experience. 

Last race at the sports fesival

 Dinnerparty at night, with lots of food

 Me and Michiko-san with the cup (I don't know why they wanted me to take it, I didn't do anything to help them win it)

And so my weekend ended! My family is really great to take me along everywhere and to let me experience so much!

School life

Hey everyone,

this week my school life started. As I already wrote very shortly, my level exam was on Monday. On Wednesday was my first day of classes. I got in level 5 of 8 which is a little bit easy for my, for there are many things that I have learned previously or at least heard before, but sometimes a little repetition is not too bad. I have classes every weekday from 9 a.m. till 12:15 p.m. which is really not that much. Everyday I have first pronunciation exercises and Kanji practice. After that its either listening, writing or speaking and last its grammar and reading. So we practice everything that you need to learn a language. I also get homework everyday and we have to take small Kanji quizzes every morning and lesson tests every Friday. So you see its really a lot to do.
In my class we are about 15 people from all over the world, there are people from China and Korea but also Finland, Iceland and other countries. We have two very cute teachers who are both talented at explaining complicated things in an easy way in Japanese.
I really hope I will learn a lot and be prepared for the JLPT in December.

These are some pictures of my school:

Meeting friends

Hello everyone,

I spent the last couple of days meeting a lot of friends, Japanese as well as Foreigners.
On Sunday, after breakfast and a short trip to Tooji Temple with the son of my hostfamily I took the train to Kobe. Its a one hour ride, but I didn't have to change trains so it was comfortable enough. Even though I was a little worried I met my friend Mayu without any problems at Kobe Station. Together we went to a really fancy restaurant at the harbor of Kobe. Mayu works there sometimes and so we were able to get the very expensive and famous Kobe Beef for a cheaper price. While eating a five course menu we talked about our time together at my university in Germany (she was an exchange student for one semester) and about everything that had happened since we saw each other last (sometime around January).

I actually forgot to take a picture of the soup. Since Mayu knew the owner and the staff they wanted to be extra nice and gave us a lot of meat. By the time (our forth course) we were already full. So we tried our best to eat as much as we could. And I am proud to say that although I didn't manage to eat all the meat, at least I was able to eat the desert which was delicious. Further, the owner gave us the leftover meat to take home and eat another time. After sitting and eating for one and a half hours we though some walking around would be the best idea, so we went to a mall nearby and tried to find a dress for Mayu. Apparently its not dress season anymore for we couldn't find one anywhere.

So around 4 I took the train back to Kyoto (it had started raining by that time) and was home around 5:30 p.m. at which point my hostmother said she would make dinner soon... and I didn't want to refuse here (even though I was still full) and we had a very tasty Japanese dinner.

My bellies revenge came in the night when I felt so sick and my stomach was so upset that I couldn't sleep anymore and on the next that ate as little as possible.

Yesterday I had my level test at my school (written was hard, oral was easy). Afterwards I went back home and relaxed for I was still feeling sick. In the afternoon I made my way to my old university Kansai Gaidai located in Hirakata only 30 Minutes by train from Kyoto. The campus felt like I had never left and meeting old friends was the best thing ever. First I met my spanish guy Uri who is now studying for a masters degree in Japan and later went to eat with my super cute friends Ai, Miku and Sayaka to one of my favorite stores in Japan called TekuTeku. The owner is a great guy and it was nice to see him again.

Last but not least I met a german friend today. We attend the same university in Germany and she is now studying at Kyoto Sanyo University. So we met at Kyoto Station, went around for a while, had a Matcha Frapuccino at Starbucks (I missed it sooo much) and ate Udon!

Arrival and first day in Kyoto

Hiii everyone,

the way to the airport was short and checking in my baggage was also very fast. I said goodbye to my parents and my best friend and went trough security. I didn't have to wait long until boarding and my aisle seat was also quite nice, since the seat next to me was empty. I watched some movies (Vampire Academy, Elisabeth and Harry Potter, the last one in Japanese). Unfortunately it was relatively cold and thats why my throat hurts now.

The stay in Dubai was only 3 hours but it felt like forever. I tried to sleep but couldn't, then I tried to read but I couldn't concentrate. At 3 o'clock in the morning (local time) I was sitting in a window seat finally on my way to Japan. Inside this plane it was uncomfortably hot and this made it hard to sleep, also. But I managed to get some 4 or 5 hours of interrupted sleep and a stiff neck along with it.

My arrival at Osaka International Airport was at 5 p.m. (local time) and it took me over an hour to get trough immigration. I hurried to the MK Shuttle desk inside the airport (for fear they would leave without me), but I actually wasn't even the last one to arrive. With the shuttle it took about 1,5 hours to get to Kyoto and the address of my hostfamily. Michiko-san my 73 year old host mother was already worried waiting for me. We talked trough the house rules (essentially there are none, I can do what I want, which is really nice) and I had some late dinner (Chirashizushi). After showing me to my room (Tatami, actually pretty big) and unpacking, I took a really nice and relaxing shower and finally went to sleep at 11 p.m.

Until around 4 o'clock I couldn't really sleep very well and woke again and again. I also started to have a sore throat which really annoyed me. Around 5 i finally fell asleep and woke again at 8:30.
I got up, got dressed and went downstairs where I had breakfast. At 10 me and Michiko-san went out to look for some bicycles, on the way to the store we saw a small market for handmade things and looked around a little bit. There was also a stages with performances.

We went to two different shops for bicycles, there were no used ones and the cheapest new one costs around 10.000 Yen (which is about 70 €). Michiko-sans son Hirotake (47 years old) also took me with his bike around the city, but we couldn't find anything cheaper. So Michiko-san and I went back to the first store (a really small shop, with a really old owner) and bought the bicycle for 10.000 Yen. Michiko payed 40.000 and I the rest (she will keep it when I am gone). I was very happy for her offer and safed some money. From the shop we made a small trip to the school that I will attend starting next week. By bicycle it takes about 10 to 15 minutes. I had to find my way home on my own because Michiko-san has a meeting of some sort.

Tomorrow I will go to Kobe to meet Mayu. So please look forward to the next post.

Today is the day!

Hey everyone,

today is finally the departure day! I am really excited but also a little bit nervous. But I guess thats normal. In another 6 hours I will be sitting inside a plane on my way to Dubai!!! Since I couldn't wait I already checked out all the movies that I could watch and also the food menus on board.
After repacking twice yesterday I finally got almost everything that I wanted to bring with me in my suitcase. Now I just have to wait until my next journey starts!

I will give you an update on my flight and my arrival as soon as I can, hopefully with pictures!!