いそがしい、いそがしい：Busy Busy

(いそがしい romaji: isogashii; pronounced eesogashee-ee)
((i suppose i should throw a little romaji lesson in here somewhere.))

yeah, i've been busy. i've got at least two backblogs in the works, but to do them i have to sort through mountains of pictures, and i'm tired. but i figured i would write something just to update people about what's going on.

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the past:

i've been up to so much that i haven't expended the engergy to properly write about yet.

field trip

at the end of october, i went on an amazing field trip to the mountains. it was cool and we did lots of stuff like cave walking, old-school japanese fishing, eat yakiniku, go to an onsen, make plastic/wax food samples, walk up a mountain road, stay in a historical inn, and go exploring in a historical tourist town. the details and pictures of the beautiful scenery from this trip are in the works for one of the backblogs i mentioned.

bike

i also bought a bike a few weeks ago. i absolutely love it. the bikes here are rather unique, but most importantly, it's quite useful and convenient. so now i can go more places, and do more stuff, and take more pictures, and with different people; all of which i can then share about here. details and requested pictures of the bike are another in-progress blog.

matsuri/festval

at the beginning of october was a massive festival called matsuri (simply meaning "festival"), celebrating the history of japan as well as each city's and neighborhood's respective history with various events, festivals/carnivals, and, most importantly, processions and parades. we went out to see the massive parades and festivals around the city. i think i have yet to properly talk about this experience, but that will hopefully be coming in the future. it's still a lot to process.

Oosu

durring this excursion, we also went to an area of Nagoya called Oosu, which is practically indescribable except awesome. some have likened the area to Tokyo's Akihabara, a technological, geek, and otaku mecca. but Oosu also has many clothing, souvenir, food, art, and other shops as well as a massive temple. many of these clothings shops are second hand and extremely economical. they have relatively high quality goods at very low prices, including a wonderful deni jacket for 600yen, which i quickly snatched up.

housing

i also have to take pictures and such of my living quarters. i've had some requests for this.

finally... chilly?

i have to give my congratulations to southern japan. the weather has been trying so hard to become autumn/winter. the other day, it was raining and less than 60 degrees F as well as windy. as i stepped out in my jeans, sandals (because i was late for class), and still very nice denim jacket, i thought 'hm... this is... uncomfortably chilly.' the japanese, philippine, and tennessee students have been complaining of the "cold" for weeks. the alaskan, northern midwest, and canadian students have just broken out the jackets. i finally used my heater the other day, but it's still usually set to 16 or 17 degrees C. my roommate has has the heated bed pad out for weeks. poor Pusan girl. (Pusan is a city at the southern tip of the Korean peninsula well known as a vacation spot for it's many beaches.)

the future:

i can't believe i've only got a month left in japan! there seems like so much left to do.

Sweets Paradise

tonight there is a group of people planning to go to go to a place called "Sweets Paradise," a buffet style restaurant that i hear is dedicated to cakes, fruit, and... pasta? i should probably go with them, but i haven't decided yet.

homestay

this weekend i am going to an "English" event for middle school students followed by a homestay with a local family. i have emailed with them and it appears that we will be going either to see autumn leaves or a famous temple... or both. i didn't really understand that well, but i'll find out.

Thanksgiving

i believe we are also planning a thanksgiving potluck for next friday. i'm going to try to recreate the infamous polish potato salad. should be fun.

Kyoto

next weekend i have plans to go to Kyoto with some friends. for those that don't know, Kyoto, a long with Tokyo, is one of the most well known japanese cities to Americans. Tokyo is more or less well known for being modern (not to mention the capital). Kyoto, on the other hand, is most well known for it's history and the countless historical buildings, temples, shrines, and castles preserved and recreated there. It has been very high on my list of things to do in japan and since it's in the south, (just west and maybe a little south of Nagoya) it's relatively close and nice for a day or weekend trip.

onsen/tokyo/maybe/probably/huh?

there is also talk of a girls' day visit to a local onsen/spa/relaxation parlor in the near future. i don't know how feasible it is, but i would love it if it worked out.

my mom is also trying to get me to go to Tokyo. i have no idea of any details surrounding that.

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but anyway, that's what's up here, even if it's just a skim over.

missing people back home. i'll post when i have more "articles" written. happy thanks giving.