My trip to NipponBashi

Yesterday Rose ( another American student who attends my Japanese High school) decided to venture out into Osaka on our own. Even though Rose has only been in Japan for three months she can get around pretty much on her own. Unlike myself who needs to be walked to the school in order to find her way home.

NipponBashi was so huge! I'm glad I had rose with me. Even though we didn't "get lost" we did a lot of extra walking to find a store. A store.. ha! We all know i was looking for the anime store. I didn't take any videos in the anime store Rose showed me for many reasons. One being that a good portion  of the first floor was nothing but hentai and body pillows with explicit content on them. So there's no video of the shop, but i can do my best to tell you what was in the "pg" part of the store.

So on the first floor there was obviously the "adult" area, but the second floor was absolutely heaven for me. It was anime key-chains, posters, random accessories for days!! There was even a cosplay section. It was just so perfect, i didnt want to leave! 

Without even realizing it we spent over 2 hours exploring the store. After forcing ourselves to leave the amazing anime store we went to look for lunch. Since we're both living in Japan you would think we would eat some traditional food right? Wrong.  We ate pancakes and had french vanilla lattes.

After lunch we had to head home because it was already 15:00 ( 3 O'clock PM) and she had to be home by 17:00 ( 5 O'clock PM) . We didn't leave before the nerd ( Me) seen Iron man and had a mini fan girl attack. So of course I made Rose pose with him. 

After searching for the train station , and Rose asking for directions ( In Japanese!) we finally found it an hour after we started searching. We walked past it twice. Unlike on the way to NipponBashi we didn't have to take the Subway to get home. Just two trains. 

Yesterday was the first time I've walked home alone from momodoni station. It was a lot easier than i thought it would be. I think i'm finally getting used to being in Japan. It's to bad I only have three weeks left!

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