Travels in November

Happy middle of December everyone, here's a new November update! During the first week of the autumn month, I had a chance to catch-up with some friends from Gustavus in Osaka and Kobe! In the northeastern side of Osaka lies Kansai-Gaidai university, where some Gustavus seniors have been studying there this fall semester. Some of the many classes they're taking are art and interior design, global business, a Shinto religion course, and gender and sexuality classes! Chatting with them, I learned how some Kansai-Gaidai professors helped write the popular Genki textbooks. (Genki textbooks are one of the most readily used textbooks to learn the Japanese language). It was nice to catch up with them over some okonomiyaki (お好み焼き, a Japanese savory pancake made up of assorted veggies, proteins, and/or seafood), and to add another Japanese-English pun to the ever-growing list of puns: "Umai (うまい, meaning 'delicious!') god!". Here's a quick shout-out to this Gustavus student for coining these terms, as it's certainly a clever expression after eating something delicious.

Gusties After Dark in Japan!

Osaka Castle

View from Osaka Castle

Taking a train to the opposite end, and out of Osaka, comes the thriving city of Kobe. I had a chance to reunite with Tamir Beeler, a Gustavus alumni and current ALT at Awaji Island (淡路島). We had some yakiniku (焼肉, similar to BBQ in the States (in terms of grilling meat)) for lunch; walked around the Chinatown district (which had a surprising number of Spider-Man statues); visited a sticker shop; participated in some shenanigans in the mall (playing mini golf at a golf store, going clothes shopping, visiting Toys R Us etc.), and had a wonderful time catching-up in the bustling city.

Some lunch and good company!

Here's one out of the four "Spider-Men" we saw!

A new place to spend one's paycheck!

When we visited the bay area, we also had a chance to talk about issues in Japan and America. Although Japan may have its own set of troubles (some similar and some different problems compared in the States), we agreed the safety within Japan's public areas, schools, and on the streets is much greater. While talking and reflecting on persisting issues like racism and discrimination, LGBTQIA+ rights, public safety, the loan/debt system, women's rights, worker's rights, climate change, homelessness, etc., it led us to ultimately ask "why can't we all just get along?". Despite the ceaseless number of answers to that question, living abroad for a mere four months has broken it down to why we can't treat each other with respect and dignity. This moment also reminded me of an exchange student's observation of American citizens: "a majority of people living in America just don't seem happy." Delving into these interactions have opened up some conversations about issues back home and new perspectives as well.

The Kobe Bay area

Getting back on the Japan train, the following week I was able to travel with Mal, Aimee, and Ryuma to Toyama prefecture! We visited a beach collecting seashells, had some great yakiniku (round two), and had a chance to visit the Kurobe Gorge (黒部峡谷). On Tripadvisor, the gorge is highly rated, and I'd personally recommend going to this spot for some sights of the changing seasons, the lakes, monkeys, and hiking paths. There's also some good photo opportunities and trivia as well!

Sunsets in Toyama Prefecture

One of the many sights in Kurobe Gorge

A treasure of a group to spend the journey with (Mal, Aimee, and Ryuma)

Transitioning to things back in Ushitsu, I've had a few opportunities to keep learning Japanese. Among rewiring how to say things in Japanese with Mal; diving in to the WaniKani journey (an app for recognizing and reading kanji); and undergoing language sessions with Miho and Bruce (one of the two couples from a local church) and Takata sen-sei (one of the teachers I work with at the high school); I'm slowly learning a lot of goi (ごい, vocabulary), expressions, and nuances in Japanese. Differentiating how to say "or" between the formal and casual way; learning how to say "coincidence" (which is guuzen (偶然))"; and how to express "I have a missed package delivery notice" over the phone has been very helpful. (Despite living here for four months, I always forgot this expression. And every time I called the delivery service, I fumbled trying to say "I'm home and I'd like my package delivered now"--to the point where the delivery people didn't understand what I said, and instead, confirmed my request with: "Wait, is this Alex?" Those have been some fine face-palm moments lol). Over the Italian dinners and conversations in Japanese (with Bruce and Miho), we've been able to have puzzling inquiries between the English and Japanese languages. One example was explaining when to use "I hope" and "I wish" ("I am hoping to be there." vs. "I wish I was there.") in English. Conversely, asking how to say "interesting" in Japanese branches out into two (possibly more) different sayings: omoshiroi (おもしろい, meaning "interesting" as if you saw/heard something funny) and kyoumi bukai koto desu ne (興味深いことですね, meaning "it is interesting..." as if you saw/heard something fascinating). The nuances and the head-scratching have created space for curiosity, listening, and attention to detail while learning another language. This month has given me a lot to think about, and I'm hoping to reflect and apply these aspects for the near future.

Thanks for tuning-in,

Alex