The Internet here is so extraordinarily terrible that it's going to be a miracle if I can publish this post. It took me half an hour to get the last post online, and then I couldn't even check to see if it worked.
I have more pictures to share. The Internet in these dorms is killing me. It doesn't work most of the time, and when the pages actually do load it takes several minutes. I hate it. It's like not having any Internet. How am I supposed to live like this. I can't even check my email because NOTHING EVER WORKS!!!
This is incredibly inconvenient.
Friday, August 30, 2013
Thursday, August 29, 2013
First Observations
Being in Japan is really cool. Many things just look different. I like that I can walk down the street or notice little things that make it obvious that I'm in Japan.
I realized this the first time I was in Japan, but many cars tend to have a more compact, small, or boxy shape. Also, it's clear that everyone hangs up their laundry to dry, judging by all the different types of hangers that can be seen in stores and on balconies.
In Japan, bicycles are treated as vehicles. We got a whole briefing during the orientation about bicycles and how to go about them. Students may buy one to make it easier to get around. Bicycles are common. Helmets are not.
Japan takes bicycles seriously. You need to register the bike in your name once you buy it to prove ownership. Japan is the safest industrialized country, but bicycle theft and umbrella theft do happen. You are also required to apply for a parking sticker for your bike to be able to park it in the university bicycle parking lot. Otherwise your bike could be impounded. It's illegal for someone to ride on the back of your bike. It's also illegal to ride a bicycle while you're drunk. If you're caught doing this you could go to jail for a maximum of three years and pay a huge fine. If you're caught using a cell phone while you're riding your bike, you could also go to jail for a maximum of three years and pay a fine.
We also learned about traffic and safety. Bicycle accidents do happen, whether the bike is hit by a car or the bike hits a car or the bike hits a person. Each year there's at least one death in the greater area because someone was hit by a bike. Also, years ago a student was killed trying to cross the street on her bike. They really emphasized bicycle safety.
Another thing that was emphasized was being quiet. We live in a residential neighborhood and noise travels easily and far. We can't be too loud, especially at night. Otherwise the police might be involved.
Japan is also one of the cleanest countries in the world.
There are vending machines everywhere.
Garbage separation is required in this city. It's quite specific.
I may have forgotten several things, so I'll mention them later.
My time in Japan has been totally different from my experience in Korea.
I'm glad I'm here. This is what I wanted and I'm having a good time.
I've met a lot of people right away and have people to hang out with, which was usually not the case in Korea.
I noticed that since I was in Korea for one semester, I was really envious of the people who had done a year because I would have loved to do that too. But here I'm not jealous of the people who are doing a year. I don't care. I'm fine with doing one semester. Not that I would dislike studying abroad here for a year. I have to say the class offerings are great and sound interesting. Some of them are unique.
The programs are different as well. At Korea University we were fully integrated into the university academic-wise. We were just like the normal students, except most of us only registered for the classes taught in English (which are limited).
This did cause problems, however. Since students and teachers are forced into taking and teaching classes in English, they're sometimes not qualified or able to do it. Many exchange students complained that they were the only exchange or international student in their class full of Korean students, and that the teacher spoke in Korean anyway or eventually stopped teaching in English in classes officially listed to be taught in English. (Fortunately I didn't have this problem.)
Here there's a separate Asian Studies Program specifically created for exchange students. That means that it's much easier to find out what the classes are about and that the teachers can actually teach in English. We're even on a different calendar. I heard that in the spring, the Japanese Kansai Gaidai students started their semester around the time the Asian Studies Program students were taking mid-terms. This year in the fall, we start classes on September 2 while the normal students start on September 11. There are some Japanese Kansai Gaidai students in the Asian Studies Program each semester because they're required to do it before studying abroad. Also, there is an opportunity for exchange students to select a class taught in Japanese.
Here on this program, everyone is required to take the Spoken Japanese class for five credits. Those who don't know anything about Japanese writing or have never learned Japanese before must also take the Reading and Writing in Japanese class, which would otherwise be optional.
A lot of people I've met are anime fans or like J-Rock or Japanese fashion or other parts of Japanese pop culture. I've met many people who are enthusiastic about studying Japanese. Really, I've met a lot of great, nice people here.
There are activities organized by Kansai Gaidai students but what I don't like is that we have to sign up and places are limited. By limited I mean that only 3 or 15 students out of hundreds can participate. KUBA at KU was terrific and flexible.
I have the feeling that things here are more close-knit and that many people have similar interests. I also think this university program does a lot of things to take care of us.
Seoul is awesome and being at KU was easy and fun, but this program here seems better academic-wise (from what I can tell, since classes haven't started yet) and enjoyable as well.
I like being in Japan.
I realized this the first time I was in Japan, but many cars tend to have a more compact, small, or boxy shape. Also, it's clear that everyone hangs up their laundry to dry, judging by all the different types of hangers that can be seen in stores and on balconies.
In Japan, bicycles are treated as vehicles. We got a whole briefing during the orientation about bicycles and how to go about them. Students may buy one to make it easier to get around. Bicycles are common. Helmets are not.
Japan takes bicycles seriously. You need to register the bike in your name once you buy it to prove ownership. Japan is the safest industrialized country, but bicycle theft and umbrella theft do happen. You are also required to apply for a parking sticker for your bike to be able to park it in the university bicycle parking lot. Otherwise your bike could be impounded. It's illegal for someone to ride on the back of your bike. It's also illegal to ride a bicycle while you're drunk. If you're caught doing this you could go to jail for a maximum of three years and pay a huge fine. If you're caught using a cell phone while you're riding your bike, you could also go to jail for a maximum of three years and pay a fine.
We also learned about traffic and safety. Bicycle accidents do happen, whether the bike is hit by a car or the bike hits a car or the bike hits a person. Each year there's at least one death in the greater area because someone was hit by a bike. Also, years ago a student was killed trying to cross the street on her bike. They really emphasized bicycle safety.
Another thing that was emphasized was being quiet. We live in a residential neighborhood and noise travels easily and far. We can't be too loud, especially at night. Otherwise the police might be involved.
Japan is also one of the cleanest countries in the world.
There are vending machines everywhere.
Garbage separation is required in this city. It's quite specific.
I may have forgotten several things, so I'll mention them later.
My time in Japan has been totally different from my experience in Korea.
I'm glad I'm here. This is what I wanted and I'm having a good time.
I've met a lot of people right away and have people to hang out with, which was usually not the case in Korea.
I noticed that since I was in Korea for one semester, I was really envious of the people who had done a year because I would have loved to do that too. But here I'm not jealous of the people who are doing a year. I don't care. I'm fine with doing one semester. Not that I would dislike studying abroad here for a year. I have to say the class offerings are great and sound interesting. Some of them are unique.
The programs are different as well. At Korea University we were fully integrated into the university academic-wise. We were just like the normal students, except most of us only registered for the classes taught in English (which are limited).
This did cause problems, however. Since students and teachers are forced into taking and teaching classes in English, they're sometimes not qualified or able to do it. Many exchange students complained that they were the only exchange or international student in their class full of Korean students, and that the teacher spoke in Korean anyway or eventually stopped teaching in English in classes officially listed to be taught in English. (Fortunately I didn't have this problem.)
Here there's a separate Asian Studies Program specifically created for exchange students. That means that it's much easier to find out what the classes are about and that the teachers can actually teach in English. We're even on a different calendar. I heard that in the spring, the Japanese Kansai Gaidai students started their semester around the time the Asian Studies Program students were taking mid-terms. This year in the fall, we start classes on September 2 while the normal students start on September 11. There are some Japanese Kansai Gaidai students in the Asian Studies Program each semester because they're required to do it before studying abroad. Also, there is an opportunity for exchange students to select a class taught in Japanese.
Here on this program, everyone is required to take the Spoken Japanese class for five credits. Those who don't know anything about Japanese writing or have never learned Japanese before must also take the Reading and Writing in Japanese class, which would otherwise be optional.
A lot of people I've met are anime fans or like J-Rock or Japanese fashion or other parts of Japanese pop culture. I've met many people who are enthusiastic about studying Japanese. Really, I've met a lot of great, nice people here.
There are activities organized by Kansai Gaidai students but what I don't like is that we have to sign up and places are limited. By limited I mean that only 3 or 15 students out of hundreds can participate. KUBA at KU was terrific and flexible.
I have the feeling that things here are more close-knit and that many people have similar interests. I also think this university program does a lot of things to take care of us.
Seoul is awesome and being at KU was easy and fun, but this program here seems better academic-wise (from what I can tell, since classes haven't started yet) and enjoyable as well.
I like being in Japan.
Orientation Week
I have a whole lot to talk about. I hope I remember it all.
First of all, I’ve been very busy this week. I’ve barely
been online so I haven’t gotten to most of my emails. Not to mention that the
Internet connection at the seminar houses is horrible.
Now that I have some time, I’ll blog.
On Monday I went to the Intro to the Orientation program,
where people welcomed us, explained the orientation schedule, and answered
questions. The mandatory general meeting on Wednesday morning was essentially
the same thing.
On Monday I also paid my fees, turned in my signed forms,
and went on a campus tour. There is an ATM on campus where I can withdraw cash,
but I’m not sure what the charge for doing that is. In addition to a few cafeterias,
there’s also a McDonald’s and a Seattle’s Best Coffee on campus. The campus isn’t
that big. Most buildings look the same on the outside, which was confusing at
first.
On Monday afternoon two Japanese college students approached
me and we ended up chatting for five hours. During which mosquitoes stung me at
least 20 times. Now I have more than 20 bites. I don't know why I've had such a problem with mosquitoes.
On Tuesday morning I reviewed Japanese because my placement
test was scheduled for that afternoon. It went fairly well. Then I went to a
banking session to set up a Japanese bank account. Now I have at least six
different bank accounts in four different countries. Don’t ask me how I keep
track of them.
My third, temporary, roommate arrived on Tuesday night. She’s
from Iceland and she’ll be moving out this weekend to go stay with a host
family for the semester. So far I’ve met people from the U.S., Japan, England,
France, Sweden, Latvia, Russia, Portugal, Germany, Thailand, Hong Kong,
Australia, and South Korea.
Yesterday, after more orientation sessions, I walked to the
train station with some people. Hirakata city hall is close to the train
station. We submitted our addresses to be written on our residence cards, which
we received at the airport upon our arrival. We also looked at a few shops in a
nearby department store.
I’ve been extremely busy because I’m out on campus or around
here during the day and when I’m in my seminar house I’m always hanging out in
the kitchen or in the common area near the lobby. I really like the seminar
houses. It’s easy to meet people.
I thought I had a ton more to talk about…
I’ve learned some things about Japan that I’ll write about
in the next post.
Monday, August 26, 2013
First Pictures
I got my laptop registered for the school & seminar house WiFi today but it's not working. The LAN cable is working this time though. For Facebook and all other sites.
Here are some pictures
at the airport
Here are some pictures
at the airport
in Japanese, English, Chinese, and Korean
during the bus ride to Hirakata
this is where seminar house 4 is
my room when I arrived
inside my seminar house
the kitchen area in my building
some of the food I bought
in the lobby
pictures I took when I walked around and went to stores yesterday
Success!
luckily they also sell the same brand I use at home
a gift from my roommate's mom
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