The Japanese Tea Ceremony at my High School

I sort of mentioned this in a previous blog, but it's something so important i thought i should really explain it more, or at least try to! So please stick with me while i attempt to relay the day the Tea ceremony took place.
After the long school day my International counselor ( Ayu sensei, who handles all four of us international students) escorted me from my lovely classroom on the third floor ( WE ARE NOT ALLOWED TO USE THE ELEVATORS. I climb up and down the stairs everyday, and PE is on the seventh floor) to the building we call Seiko hall. To my surprise there were so many Americans ( 9 from New York, and the girl i go to school with,Rose) waiting, along with around 10-15 Japanese students who attend my school. After I arrived the Americans ( including Rose and I) were told to take off our shoes ( Wabaki (school slippers) for rose and I) and shown into a tiny room i didn't know Seiko Hall had. There was a thin blue carpet covering the edge of the tatami mats for us to sit on.

Since i've never been to a Tea Ceremony before i was extremely nervous! I kept thinking I wouldn't be able to sit on my knees long enough. I did though!


Soon after we were all escorted into the room, a member of the Tea ceremony club came in and bowed to us. She said ( In japanese) that the club is honored to have us attend their Tea Ceremony. Another member of the tea ceremony club brought in a tray filled everything she would need to make a (1) bowl of tea.

All of us watched her carefully as she filled the bowl with water and added a 1/2 scoop of a green powder. She used her whisk and mixed the powder and water together for at least a minute, her final whisk being the Japanese Character for no. I idiotically thought she was going to make us all a bowl individually. But as soon as she finished four more members of the begin to bring in bowls of Ocha (tea). As they sat the bowls in front of us they bowed to us and we bowed in return. Picking up the bowl with our left hand, supporting it with our right we were told to raise the bowl in the air to show respect to our host. Using our thumb and index finger we all turned the bowl clockwise twice then took a drink.Most of us finished our bowl in one gulp! The tea was bitter, but it tasted good at the same time.
Doing as we were prompted we wiped the part of the bowl our lips touched with out thumb and index finger and turned the bowl counter clockwise twice. The members of the tea ceremony club then bowed to us once more and took the bowls out of the room ( presumably to wash them).  It was such a formal ceremony and i am honored that i was included in it! Hopefully some of you will be included in a tea ceremony too and see that my writing this just doesn't do it justice ( I left out a lot and i am just a terrible writer)


     PEACE!
                                                                                  Strawberry

my first week in japan

this is really lame, but im kinda sad ive already been here a week. that means i go home in 5 weeks! I'm not ready for that.  I'm just getting used to everything here.  It took me a week to get used to being called 　かわいい (kawaii- cute) over ever little thing I do (including reading books meant for children and studding when I attempt Japanese ). Plus I'm still adjusting to how shy the guys are here! I took a picture with a guy in my class , then someone yelled something in Japanese and he took of yelling ばか (baka-idiot,fool,goofball) at them. It's such a change from American guys, but a good change.

I've made a few friends here, none of them speak English except Rose. She's American like me! She went to the mall with me and けおと (keito - my host sister who speaks English ) and we had a blast. I taught her how to take pictures of cute guys (without them knowing.... don't judge. We deleted it later. We just wanted to use it as reference so we weren't pointing at them and whispering at our table),  we had ice cream, walked around the Disney Store (yes. I am 17 and still live disney.) And the ninja store.

This first week flew by. I hope the next five don't .

My first Japan blog post

I've been in Japan for 5 days now, Osaka 4 days, and attending school 3 Days.  It's so weird going from being home schooled 3 years to public high school. Let alone a Japanese public high school. It's so different from what my friends in America say their school is like. We don't change classrooms, the teachers come to us. I only leave class on Wed. for Japanese for foreigners.
In America I don't go anywhere by myself, my grandma drives me plaves. Here I go wherever I please, of course some of the older Japanese people stop to look at me, but that's because there aren't many foreigners in school uniforms where I'm staying .
Overall I think I'm going to like it here. One week down, five more to go!

Purr packs review

 

I've been so busy with preparations for japan i have forgotten to write a review for 3 products. I haven't even posted videos for 2 of them yet. Todays written review ( If i only do one) will be about a subscription box called purrpacks. 

 

After my package arrived i noticed the heart under my name! I don't know if everyone go that or just me but i absolutely loved it. I'm a sucker for anything that catches an audiences attention and that caught mine. 
 

Packaging : The box of course was just that, a box. But it had what some of my other reviews did not, character. It had the kawaii ( cute)  cat and stamps, plus it has my name handwritten on the box. To me that makes it seem a bit more personal for some reason!  Inside, all of the toys and treats that were sent were buried under blue grass like stuff that made it both adorable and made sure everything wasn't moving around to much during transportation .It also made it impossible for me to tell what i had received before i opened the box. 
5/5 stars

 

Shipping: As you can see in the picture above PurrPacks offered priority mail 2 day shipping on their boxes. If you read any of my past blogs you know i am in love with 2 day shipping. so that gave them a 5/5 stars on this front. 

 

 

Quality: Inside the box was a lot of products, meaning that what was said on the site is true. You get way more than you pay for. The box was like it was advertised ( A box made for cats, Not humans.) and i completely loved it. Since this box stayed true to what it said i'm  giving it another 5/5 stars. 

 

 

 

 

So , for the first time on this blog , i am awarding a product a 15/15 stars!

 

Peace!
Strawberry

Cozy-phones head phone review

Hey guys and sorry for taking so long to post another blog. Like it says in the title, this will be a review for Cozy phones headphones. I want to tell you in advance, that even though i received this product for FREE, these ideas are mine and mine alone. The following is  my honest opinions of the product. 

 

Shipping - 5/5 stars
May 30th, when the company and i agreed i would get a free set of headphones to review, they gave me a tracking number and said the package would arrive within a few days. On June 1st the package arrived at my door. JUST TWO DAYS FOR SHIPPING! I have done a few reviews, and have bought many items online, but i have never had two day shipping. So for me that was a major plus. 

Packaging-  4/5 stars 
Unlike my other reviews, when the package arrived it did not have fancy packaging. It was just a plane yellow envelope with bubble-wrap. Inside the envelope was an small, sealed plastic bag that contained my headphones and a black bag just for them!  I absolutely love that. 

 

quality- 4/5 stars 

The only complaint i have about this product is the fact that when i wear it to go on a run the headband is a little snug and pushed my glasses into the side of my head. Other than that when i sleep with them on they feel super comfortable .The headband is super soft. You can remove the headphones so you can wash the headband or adjust where the headphones are. Other than it being a bit snug and squeezing my glasses i love it. Don't be discouraged by me saying the headband is a bit snug, i have a large head!  The cord for the headphones is simply amazing. It didn't tangle or kink at all during my run or when i slept with the on. The speakers themselves are absolutely amazing and are quiet loud. I had my MP3 Player on 50% volume and had to turn it down. 

Overall  i give this product a  13/15 stars. I think it is an amazing investment and i would recommend this to anyone! I even allow my sisters to use mine while they watch Movies on the portable DVD player. I will be taking these on my trip to Japan! They are absolutely perfect for that 15 hour plane ride!