I woke up at 9:15 this morning so I could meet Saho, my homevisit friend, at 10AM at school. We were going to see her sister Mizuho play the trumpet in her school band concert.
Unfortunately, it was pouring down rain at the time I woke up, so that made things a little hairy. But just before I set off to campus on my bike, the rain stopped. What good timing! I met Saho outside the CIE lounge, and we walked to Hirakatashi-eki. We were able to chat fairly well, although there was much frantic dicitonary use, and I'm sure I misunderstood a lot of what she said.
From Hirakatashi we took a train and two subways to a really neat shopping center in Osaka. It was like a six storey mall, which was sweet. Japanese ladies' clothing stores are a little different than I'm used to, though. For one thing, everything is very, very expensive, at least compared what I'm used to. $40 for a sweater is absolutely standard. For a Target shopper like me, that's absurd. The clothes I saw were really cute, but they were super trendy--lots of leggings and loose tops and big jewelry and clunky purses. That's great, but in the US very few people dress like that unless they're in Elle or going to a very important date, so I really can't feel justified in dropping $250 for an outfit that will (still!) look cheap in Japan and be totally absurd in the US. I'm keeping an eye out, though, for that timeless, well-made, stylish, versatile, Tim Gunn-approved article that I know I'll find here somewhere. ::sigh::
Side note: Also at the mall I bought Nikki's souvenir. (Haha, Nikki, bet you want to know what it is...too bad!)
For lunch Saho and I went to Mos Burger for my First Time Ever. It was delicious. I now know why Americans who return from Japan speak so fondly about the place. The Mos Burger I went to was in a subway station and was very crowded. The tables were close together, which has been my experience in all Japanese fast food places. I had the Chicken Burger Set, which we would probably call a Chicken Patty Meal at home; I had a chicken patty sandwich with mayo, lettuce, and mustard, a Coke, and fries. It was like the most delicious thing ever. I totally want another chicken burger. Yum!
After discovering the joys of Mos Burger, we continued on our way to Saho's old middle school in Osaka. As soon as we got off our train, it began to POUR down rain. Absolutely soaked us! We both had umbrellas, but this was a ridiculous downpour. We had to walk maybe half a mile in it, too, and these cars kept splashing us. However, we did pass another Kofun tomb, which I thought was cool. Also, there was a lake that had all these cormorants diving in it. When we arrived at the school we had to walk up a hill that had pracically turned into a waterfall, and then across the swampy baseball field. It was terrible, but at that point we were both so exasperated that it really didn't matter. We arrived looking like a pair of drowned rats. I was afraid that my cute new over-the-knee socks would be ruined by the mud, but they turned out okay.
Mrs Nakahara met us at the door of the gym and helped us get dried off a little. We arrived late, but the rain had delayed some of the concert setup, so since it started late we didn't miss anything. Saho and I fanned ourselves with the concert programs, and we actually were dry by about halfway through. The downpour continued through the concert, though, and at times it was actually hard to hear above the rain and thunder.
It was held in the middle school gym, which looked just like an American middle school gym. The only difference was the presence of a genkan (shoe removal place), and the fact that they provided the guests with slippers to wear after you removed your outside shoes.
The concert was divided into three groups, and from what I could tell they were based on the performers' ages and skill levels. All three groups, though, were really good. They played the same kinds of music you'd expect at an American band concert, as well as a few pieces by Japanese composers whose names I didn't recognize. They made it a lot of fun, though, by having a few songs where some of the kids did silly dances in costumes and such. They played the Indiana Jones theme, and before it did a little skit where this boy was trying to steal a bundle of treasure. It was pretty amusing. I thoroughly enjoyed myself.
So, how do I put this lightly? Wittenberg Band, you're great and all, but I have to say you just got pwned by a bunch of Japanese 13 year olds in school uniforms. Maybe if you include cute dancing cupcake-like people in your next concert you can impress me like they did.
After the concert, the Nakaharas treated me to the most delicious soft cream--vanilla soft serve ice cream. Geez, that stuff was way more delicious than it could have been. So if you're ever near a place called Lic Joe (what a terrible name in English!) try their ice cream. Yum. We were able to chat a little, mostly about cartoons. We discussed Pokemon, Sailor Moon, Dexter's Laboratory, and Ninja Turtles.
Saho had never heard of the Ninja Turtles, although her mom was sure that Saho had watched it once when she was little. It's kinda hard to explain Ninja Turtles in Japanese, especially since it involves so many terrible stereotypes about Japan! I told Saho that it's about four turtles who are good at kendo and karate and stuff, and they eat a lot of pizza. I don't think she was terribly impressed; she just kinda laughed. I guess if you don't grow up with the glory that is Ninja Turtles, it's hard to get into it. Also, it's really hard to explain Fairly Odd Parents in Japanese. I did not do that show justice at all ("There's a boy, and he has a weird family...").
Then the family drove Saho and me back to the train station, so this time we didn't get totally drenched. She helped me find my way back home, and that was that.
Oh, well, I did have a problem getting off campus. The gate I normally use to get home was locked because it was Sunday, so I had to make a slight detour, during which it started to sprinkle again. By the time I made it back here around 7:00 I was grumpy and in desperate need of a shower, but pleasantly tired. And now I'm ready for bed.
It turns out that I have a kanji and vocab quiz in my reading and writing class tomorrow, so I've got to study a bit before sleep. But first, a list of observations and things to remember:
- According to Saho, many Japanese kids don't like carrots or tomatoes. I had heard about the carrots before, but I find the tomato thing surprising. She thought it was strange that American kids usually don't like fish. I wonder if there's a country where children love peas and lima beans?
- いっぱい (ippai) means something like "packed" or "crowded."
- 雷 is read かみなり (kaminari) and means "thunder."
- The Disney character Stitch is much, much more popular in Japan than in the US.
- アンパンマン (Anpanman) is a Japanese children's cartoon superhero. I didn't know anything about him before, but today Saho told me about him, and since this morning I've seen him in lots of places--on kids' socks, on purses, keychains, etc.
- Note to self: Don't use と申します when introducing myself in regular circumstances. The Nakaharas laughed at me for quite a while. It must be too formal for meeting a home visit family. >.<>
- I keep seeing all these little flags with a picture of a child and the number 110. I asked Saho about it today, and she said it was something to do with kidnapping. At first I thought maybe 110 is the number of Japanese children snatched in a certain amount of time, but I just now realized that 110 probably refers to the emergency 110--the Japanese equivalent of our 911. I think they're flags asking people to keep an eye out for creepy people stealing kids. Anyone know for sure?
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