Sakurajima + band contest

Yesterday we went to Sakurajima, the active volcano located close to Kagoshima. My host brother Ryotaro was participating in a band contest with his marching band from school there, so we were going to see that first.

We took the boat over to Sakurajima. It was pretty windy, as demonstrated by my host father and Momo:

Sakurajima as viewed from the boat

The band contest... Well, if you imagine a combination of "the Nutcracker" (especially the part where the soldiers are fighting the mice), a bit of the 17th of May and a hint of His Majesty the King's Guards Band, and you have an idea of what it looked like. Both elementary schools, junior high schools and high schools participated. It was really impressive! I thought they played really well too, without being an expert on that.

Ryotaro's band (he plays the drums, dad!).

Careful, or you might step on them! You'd never notice... "Smurfer løper ikke fort, så tramp dem ned og tørk dem bort..."

After Ryotaro's band had finished playing, we went up to an observation point close to Sakurajima to take some pictures and get a better view of the volcano. It was really beautiful! There was also some information on Sakurajima around there, which was an interesting read. You could also see a great overview of Kagoshima city from the observation point.

My host family and me in front of Sakurajima

Me with Kagoshima city in the background. (Because, let's face it, I'm more important!)

After buying another cellphone strap at the tourist shop by Sakurajima (a phone strap with Sakurajima's ashes in it, no less!), we went down to see a famous torii gate (Japanese gates found at entrances to shrines) that was covered in ashes during the massive eruption in 1914. Now only the top of the torii gate is visible, although it is 3 meters tall!

Torii gate

This poster explained how the torii gate looked before the eruption and what you're now seeing.

The shrine - I got to put a coin in here and do the whole clapping-and-bowing-thing, which was fun!

29th

On the 29th of August we went by train to Kagoshima to visit the Science Museum and do some shopping.

On our way to the museum.
"Follow the yellow brick road!"

First we went to the science museum. There were posters around with lots of information about different things that I couldn't read since it was in Japanese, but I tried different simulators and had my host family explain some of it. Some of the things we tried included a wind simulator (what's it like during a typhoon?), earthquake simulator, a small room where it was 40°C and felt like being in a desert and at last... the cold feels-like-the-arctic-room! The outside was decorated with igloos, Inuits, polar bears and snow. Inside it was -20°C. My family stood around saying "waaah~samui! Samui!" (cold, cold!) while I stood in the middle gloating and stretching laughing saying "aaaah, kimochiii!" (feels good!) which lead to us all breaking up laughing. I'm from Norway! Muahahaha!
We also played a game with a robot and played around in an area where it looks like you're part of famous artworks or it looks like you're in a painting. It was really fun!

The robot

Momo inside the museum's ball room

After this we went back to Amu plaza (shopping center) where we watched a live radio show because Madoka's favourite singer, Atari Kouske, was being interviewed that day. We took some pictures of him too, even though it wasn't really allowed. (Well, everyone else did too. :P) We bought something to drink at Starbucks while this went on too. I bought a smoothie. Mmmm~

In front of Starbucks

The live radio show. I'm still not quite sure what the dog hoped to get out of it...

The Atari Kouske. I, being taller than Madoka(!), got quite good shots of him when I stood on my tiptoes. XD

Next we did some shopping.
School doesn't allow you to wear earrings, so I bought some new ones that's much easier to take out then the ones I have now. My hair was a bit to long to wear down too, and since I'm usually to lazy to put it up in the morning, I had Madoka cut it a bit so that I won't have to. She was very skeptical at first, but I managed to convince her to cut it just a bit. (My host mother refused even though I gave her my best puppy eyes. She was too scared to do it. XD) My host father laughed and said I had courage when he heard what I had asked Madoka to do. I joked with him saying he was next to have his hair cut. XD
Oh, I got sidetracked again... \(> < ;)/

My new earrings!☆ Cute, ne?

I also bought some various other items:

This necklace was really cute and different from those found in Norway, so I bought it. ☆

Hello Kitty book to collect my purikura in.

This is a Hello Kitty cellphone strap that is unique to Kagoshima. (They have Hello Kitty with different themes all over Japan.) Kagoshima is known for a delicious ice cream they call "shirokuma" (white bear), which explains Kitty's outfit and the ice cream she's eating. It's a typical Kagoshima souvenir and Hello Kitty - all in one! Perfect for me!

I put it on my pink DS lite☆


And this: Hamasaki Ayumi's latest single, Mirrorcle World! ☆ \(^^\)

28th: TV and Calligraphy

Momo has some homework she has to do before school starts, and this includes calligraphy. Of course, when given the chance to play with ink and prove my inferiority to an 8 year old, I never hesitate! XD

So I bravely picked up the brush and attempted calligraphy for the second time in my life. I tried to draw the kanji for yume, dream. With some help from a patient host mother and Madoka, it worked out in the end. (^^)

Momo getting a bit of coaching on how to do it. They did this with me too! :)

Momo doing calligraphy. In front: my horrid attempt at the kanji yume. Gomen nasai, Megumi-sensei! XD

Later that day we went to the grandparents house again so that Momo could finish another project for school. We watched TV where you picked out what you wanted to see. Let's just say I know two people who would be thrilled...

Pet Hedgehog, this is for you! *mwah!*

Hello Kitty strives to prove that, contrary to popular belief, she does in fact have a mouth. (And Pet Hedgehog, you better love me for posting this! XD There shall be no Snitty problems from here on out...)

Nuff, I think you would have liked this. It's kind of a bad picture, but I think you know where it's from. ;)

The 27th of August

It's been a while since I last updated - gomen ne! But here's another load of posts (and massive amounts of pictures, as usual.) Rejoice! I thought I's post an entry for every day instead of clashing them all together, so... first up is the 27th!

Madoka and I got up rather early, because I had a Rotary meeting at 11 AM. (I can hear you gasping, yes?)
We first met with Mr. Kamikawa and the Italian exchange student Francesco (who turned out to be half Enlglish - what do you know!). Mr. Kamikawa took us to the bank, where I exchanged the dollars I had brought with me for yen. (Payment for a Rotary trip we'll be taking later this year.) Next we went to his school, Kamikawa English school, where he told us a bit about what we'd be doing that day and the "rules of the road". His main point was that these rules are made to help us and make us happy - not to put restrictions on us and be difficult. Well, no problems there.

After a while we drove off to the Rotary meeting and lunch with Mr. Kamikawas Rotary club. I had expected it to be kind of formal with lots of Japanese speeches I wouldn't understand - but nothing more than that. I hadn't thought I'd be doing anything else but eat... "No, mother, I'm only here for the food!" XD I was clearly mistaken. In the car on our way over to the Royal Sundance Hotel", where the meeting was supposed to be held, Mr. Kamikawa told us that we'd be "making a small speech" in front of everyone. Yeah, OK... Wait, what?!

Kamikawa: "Oh, and I don't want you to get this wrong... remember that ir's "Kagoshima minami Ryotari kurabu no minna-sama, konnichiwa", OK? And then introduce yourselves, ne?"
Helene and Francesco: ". . . OK." (@_@;) *sweaty palms*

Now, what you need to know is that "-sama" is the most polite title you can put after a name. Meaning this would be formal. Also, "minami", meaning south, was a word I wasn't very familiar with. This meant that I now had to remember a new word that I'd just learned, which is pretty hard if you're nervous. And Francesco and I practiced this sentence a million times on the way trying to figure out what to say. OK...

The hotel was really fancy, and I think both exchange students felt the pressure building a bit. This was before we'd entered the room, mind you. Once inside I found... A lit stage with a microphone! Japanese! In masses! In suits! With business cards! Oh, the horror! The horror! ...I feel very out of place as soon as it gets to be a bit formal - I'm more the jeans type. *cough* I only needed to look at Francesco to know that he felt pretty much the same way. Still, we put on our best Rotary-smiles and went in.

The next couple of minutes were spent greeting different people, lots of bowing and "hajimemashite" (something you say the first time you meet someone) and receiving of business cards. After a handshake round ( also known as "find every person you can and greet them while feeling utterly bewildered") we sat down at Mr. Kamikawas table to eat. Let me tell you - the food was delicious! Japanese all the way~♪

After finishing our lunch the dreaded moment arrived all too quickly. Before I wanted to know it I was headed for the stage with Francesco and Mr. Kamikawa. I could feel my heart beating in my chest, and I think I could hear it too: DUMP - DUMP - DUMP... I was, pardon my French, scared shitless. After frantically whispering to Francesco: "What was it? Mi... mi...?!" "Minami!" "O-OK!" I began our speech saying something like this:

"Kagoshima Minami Rotary Kurabu no minna-sama, konnichiwa! Helen desu. Watashi wa Noruue- kara kimashita. Zutto Nihon ni ikitakatta kara*, ima hontouni ureshii desu. Arigatou gozaimashita! Kore kara douzo yoroshiku onegaishimasu!**"

"Everyone in Kagoshima South Rotary club - hello! I'm Helene. I came from Norway. I always wanted to go to Japan, so now I am really happy! Thank you so much! From now on, please take good care of me!"
* Here I messed up a bit - I meant to say "desukara", which is a more polite form of "therefore". Ah, well...

** I'm not quite sure how to translate this. It's a very formal greeting, and it is often said after introducing yourself for the first time. I think it could be translated as something like this, though. Megumi-sensei?

Yes, I did the whole thing, bowing included, and felt very "Japanesey". :P It was kind of fun after I had finished talking. (Let me tell you - I was relieved to sit down with Madoka, my host father and Kamikawa-sensei again!) Seeing that even the Japanese who came up to speak were really nervous made me feel a bit better too. Madoka had to make a speech as well, and she looked slightly petrified. Ah, the joy of official meetings, ne? XD

After the meeting had ended, we went to Kagoshima Josei High School, my school, to pick up my uniform and meet the teachers. I hardly felt nervous here, except I felt kind of sheepish when I realized I had to take off my shoes - I wasn't wearing any socks in my "kind of dressed up shoes". The slippers we put on when we came in were taken off as we entered the staff room too. Ehehehe... The American English teacher there, Mr. Daisy(!) told me not to worry about it. :P He will be our school counselor, I think, and he's really nice! I'm glad he speaks English, because it's hard for me to express everything I want to say in Japanese. Since he's a foreigner too, it's also easier for me to discuss things with him because he can share some of his experience and help me "process things", as he said. Slightly sidetracked there. Anyway, after meeting and saying hello to the teachers, we sat down and talked and drank green tea, which was nice. Not so formal. ;P

The next thing we did was to go to a different building where they took my measurements and figured out what size school uniform I needed. My jacket is size LL! (But that's because I've got longer arms than them, right? Right? I fit into Madoka's except for the arms!) *ahem* Point is, it makes me feel a bit :/ . (Curious Incident, mom?) Still, it's pretty fun having a uniform for the first time! I'll post a picture when I start wearing it! *^_^*

I talked with Daisy-sensei in front of the school after having tried on my uniform. (Mom, he's lived in Michigan!) We talked about lots of things, and I said I thought youth exchanges were important to promote understanding and openness, and therefore also peace. I said I think people are afraid of things they don't understand, and if they're afraid they more easily resort to violence. He agreed, saying "Yeah, I mean let's cut to the chase - that's what this really is about. Peace." That's part of why I wanted to do this too - although the initial thought was just "I want to go to Japan and learn Japanese!!" This is a something that we as individuals can do for world peace. I don't think friends start wars that easily.

Daisy-sensei also told me that schools in the country side tend to be a bit more conservative than those in the cities. Apparently this school is also more focused on sports - students here are not known to have the best grades, although they are by no means inferior to students at other schools. He said that as an exchange students I could forget about homework - the school here doesn't give much of it to the students, and what I'll do get I'll most probably not understand anyway. Another thing I might find hard, he said, was the clubs. ""Clubs" sound like having fun - really these are more like sport teams." He said some clubs expect very much of you, and can't quite understand why exchange students might not want to meet up 5-6 times a week. ("You signed up, obviously you want to do this...?") "The important thing is that you know exactly what you're getting into before you do it." The karate club was apparently a very demanding one, so I don't think I'll join them. The kyudo club was apparently a bit easier, but I haven't decided yet! So much I want to do~ XD

The place we went to get my uniform. See the palm trees!?

This is the building where people who live at the school because they live too far away to go home eat.

A road near the school.

After chatting at school, Madoka and I headed downtown on foot, which was really nice - to me it's like being in a greenhouse every time I walk down the street. The vegetation, the sounds and the smell makes it feel like... well...a sub-tropical climate. Duh! Point is, it's pretty neat! We bought something to drink at one of the many vending machines along the way (Ichigo Mashimaro!), and once at the store we bought a pair of white socks for my school uniform. Inside the shop was a room that was full of these game machines where you can win prizes and small things - and a photobox were you can take pictures (stickers) and decorate them, better known as purikura! We went in here.

Madoka at the vending machine. Green tea~

The purikura looks like this (although you aren't really allowed to take pictures inside the mall).

You had several options available, and we chose one where you do the poses shown on the screen. Theme? "Love". It was really fun - I'm definitely doing more of this! It's a nice way to remember things too - and very Japanese! XD

On our way home from the store we met some kittens - they were so cute! I became really good friends with one of them, and we had a loong cuddle. (Helene does not get too much physical contact at the moment... XD) I also took a picture of what it looks like around Hioki (sort of):


I also saw a bird with a blue back! Am very amazed by this.

Location: Japan!
Mood: tired (it's late)
Listening to: -
Eating: Green tea pocky
Drinking: water (from the tap!!)

Quick school update...

I know know that I'll be starting school around the 1st of September. I've tried on Madoka's old school uniform, and I can use a lot of those clothes. Except for the summer skirt (too small), winter shirt (too short in the arms) and the blazer (same problem). Oh, and the winter skirt was OK, but probably too short, since it was like one cm over my knee... XD Madoka will take me to school one day so we can get new ones that fit me. And then we'll take purikura and buy some Japanese clothes for me (the kind they wear after onsen and such). Yup, yup!

27.08.08 update:
Today was made of awesome! I did loads of things, and talked to a lot of people and... oh, I can't wait to tell you! Except I must, because I don't think I have time to write it all now. Tomorrow, okee? :P

Three words to set the wheels turning:

School

Rotary meeting

Purikura

...

Suika samurai!

Yesterday evening we went out to see my host father’s grandparents. We ate suika, and we played a game that’s often played during matsuri, Madoka told me. You get blindfolded, and then they make you go in circles around the stick you’ll be carrying ten times (in my case all the while rambling “kowai, kowai, kowai yoo!” (scary, scary, scaryy!)). Then they tell you which way to go (right, left and straight ahead) in order to reach and preferably hit the melon. I only scratched it, but I think it was the closest we got. Until Madoka and Momo took off the blindfold and went berserk, that is! XD

We went to deliver some watermelon to the neighbours too, and on or way back we went to a shrine! I hadn’t brought my camera, though, so I’ll have to take pictures some other time. It was really beautiful, and the forest looked a bit like the one in Tonari no Totoro. (Or at least I thought so.) I saw some really big and colourful spiders too!

Afterwards, I spent some time talking with Sayaka. She showed me pictures on her cell phone too, and played some music that I thought I recognized…

Helene: *waving hands frantically*

Sayaka: *plays another tone*

Helene: “AAH! AAH!”

…yep, it was Gyakuten Saiban! XD The next 3 minutes were spent playing different tunes while an overly happy Helene announcing the name of the songs in English, or Japanese where she could “Tonosaman!” “Cornered ~variation~!” and Sayaka laughing. “You know a lot about this, don’t you?” “Well, yes… It’s Gyakuten Saiban…”

We talked a bit about anime, and Sayaka said she’d seen and liked Mushi-shi too. When we got home, she showed me the Mushi-shi manga she has. The drawings were lovely. I’m impressed that they managed to transfer it so well to anime!

I’ve learned that my host mother’s a big fan of a Korean actor. (Sayaka told me when she showed me pictures on her camera.) Later, while we were eating dinner, Sayaka said something like “oh, there he is…” after which my host mother bent around the bookshelf that separated her from the TV, staring at the screen. Madoka jokingly said “Kaa-san no kareshi!” (Mom’s boyfriend). The commercial ended, and my host mom reappeared from behind the bookshelf, nodding and showing the thumbs up. It was so funny! XD

Oh! I watched Mummitrollet in Japanese yesterday morning! I’d seen the episode in Norwegian before, which probably helped, but I understood the main things! I felt so proud. Oh, and they call Mummi “Mumin”. And the opening theme is completely different!

It’s so much fun here – everything seems different. The smells, the sounds, the scenery, the language and the etiquette… Still, people will be people wherever you go, and we’re basically the same, which is kind of comforting to know sometimes. “We’re not that different at all!” At the same time I’m learning “things I never knew I never knew” every day, which is great! Thank you, Disney…

This way, Momo! (Grandpa’s watching)

Momo hitting the suika. Well, almost…

Dizzy yet?

I think it’s around here somewhere…

My scratch!

Sayaka and Momo going for the kill! Every watermelon for himself!!

I took a video of it too – so for your viewing pleasure:

Dango to onsen

I’ve tried dango for the first time! It’s delicious! (/^o^)/ Mmm~
We bought it when we were in the store because I pointed at it and went “kore wan nan desu ka?” (What’s this?) and Madoka answered “kore wa dango” (this is dango) to which I replied “Aah, dango desu ka… *starry eyes*” Haha!

Yesterday we went to the “Family onsen” which is a small place where you pay to be allowed in a small room with a tub (that looks like a itty-bitty swimming pool because of the tiles) filled with water from a hot spring. In Japan, you wash yourself or take a shower before getting into a bathtub or the onsen, because everyone uses the same water. (Also, I think the bathtub’s used more to relax than actually wash yourself. It’s probably more hygienic too.) I went with Madoka and Momo (and Momo’s tokage – (green slime) lizard. She loves bugs and lizards.) I used the shower while they sat on the two small plastic chairs and washed themselves. Then we stepped into the onsen - the water was really warm! Kimochi yokatta~ We didn’t stay for too long, though, or I think we’d faint, haha! It was pretty hot standing in the small room (hall) next to the onsen while drying ourselves, so I was happy when we went outside and there was a light breeze blowing. We went to the supermarket where we bought something to drink, and where I met Sayaka’s friend whom I at first did not recognize (I had lunch together with them the other day). He looked at me and smiled, and I smiled back while my brain was working to figure out where I’d seen him before. (No in “The Last Samurai” or “Memoirs of a Geisha”, although he does look a little like Ken Watanabe, as he said himself too. Hehe!) When I realized, my reaction was something along the lines of “Oh! It’s you! I’m so sorry!” He laughed and said something like “you didn’t realize at first, did you?”. Aah~ gomen nasai! o(>.<)o That was kind of funny and bit embarrassing, I’ll admit. But he was cool about it, so no harm done, I guess. (Oh, and he has the kind of spiky hair I always want to ruffle. Must… not… touch... spiky… hair! XD)

Dango eating as demonstrated by Momo

Momo had a machine full of these toy balls. She had some with Mini Moni things in them, OMG! She gave me one with their logo~
:D Madoka laughed at my reaction to these. ^^; This is a pin with Mika-chan.

Today we’re going to their grandparent’s house to eat suika, watermelon. (“Sui” is the other reading for the kanji “mizu”, water. I know because I copied some of the first year kanjis, haha!) I think it’ll be fun.

OK, I shall ask Saya to let me use the internet and then I shall proceed to be social! XD See you!

Location: Japan
Listening to: Tori Amos (must educate the Japanese, ne?)
Eating: nope
Drinking:

How to comment...

This post isn't so much about my exchange, but the thing is:

I've got some mails and comments saying that it's hard to comment on my blog. So I'm here to help you learn how to do it! ;D *bows for applause*

Ready? Okee! Here we go: you see my blog post, right? At the bottom it says something like:

POSTED BY HELENE AT 12:49 AM 3 NEKO
TAGS: JAPAN EXCHANGE

Now, the reason I've made the "3 neko" bold, is because this is where you can see how many comments I've got. It's just that I've switched "comments" with the Japanese word for "cat", neko. Simply because I thought it was fun and I like (big) cats. :P Also, if you click this button, you'll be able to give me a comment! Pretty simple, really, although it can be hard to see, I know.

~ So keep them coming! XD ~

I took a short video of the fireworks last night too, and I thought I'd put it up here to see how it works. You can hear people's reactions to it too, so you can imagine what it was like standing there.

Matsuri!

Yesterday I went with my family to Dolphing Gate to watch hanabi, fireworks. There were so many people! And lots of them were wearing yukata~ It was hard following my host mother’s umbrella in the sea of people. I didn’t want to get lost... (o_<;)

When we arrived at the Dolphin Gate the fireworks had been going on for a while. Everyone stood together and watched the fireworks (no one launched their own), and the atmosphere was really special. (Haha! It took me ages to remember the word “atmosphere”. What will it be like after 10 months?) I wish we’d do it this way in Norway too – it’s much safer and much more fun. This way, you actually get to see and enjoy all the fireworks. (As opposed to constantly turning your head and missing half of them because there are so many.)

I met a Japanese couple who wanted to speak English to me for a while, and some other gaijin. One was from America, and spoke some Indian language fluently. (Cool!) He told me his wife was Japanese, and told me not to worry – I’d understand more Japanese after a while. Also, I saw lots of “Engrish T-shirts”. This one girl had a t-shirt that kept annoying me: “All girls loves sweet cherries”. It made my inner English teacher cringe. Some of the more fun shirts included “Like fridge – not belong here” and other things I can’t remember but had a kind of hard time not laughing at. (Okay, so I snickered. Silently.)

After the matsuri we went to a restaurant to eat. (Yum!) I learned the kanji for my host family’s last name (we wrote on a napkin) and I managed to read this because I realized I recognized the kanji for “kaeru”:

This is what it looks like when trying desperately to follow your Japanese host family in a maze of people.

Takoyaki, small balls of yum with a small squid inside.
(“Yum” since I don’t really know what it is. It’s just… um… yummy!)

Hanabi~

“omochi kaeri dekimasu” = you can take it home (takeaway).

…of course, the only thing I could think of was: “Uwhaaa~ Kawaii! Omochikaeri~!” –Ryuugu Rena

I’m writing this as I’m sitting in my room with Madoka and Momo (who’s unwillingly doing her homework about bugs (still, she loves bugs))and Madoka has put on “The Sixth Day”, a CD by Gackt~ XD (Every fangirl, scream with me! *cough* okay, okay…) Madoka’s said that we can go to the small family onsen (hot spring) tonight! Yay! I’m looking forward to that.

Oh, and I thought I should start learning some more kanji and all the readings for the kanjis I already know, so I’ve copied some off of the poster on the wall in the hall. (From the part for six year old first year students, haha! I’m such a pro! XD)

Behold my gruesome handwriting, Megumi-sensei…

Location: Japan
Mood: "it's hot!" m(_ _ ;)m
Listening to: the airconditioner
Eating: cheesecake (Japanese type) brought by ojii-san
Drinking: -

Update on the last few days

My host father has helped me buy an adapter for my laptop, so now I can use my own again! Also, it means that I can tell you what's been going on! *happy tears*

So - I’ve officially watched weird Japanese television. I saw a commercial with Hamasaki Ayumi. One was a program with Gyarusone from the pop group “Gyaruru” (that Nozomi Tsuji joined before getting pregnant). Gyarusone was given loads of special dishes from all over Japan that she ate and rated. The competition was to see which she liked the best. Every time they brought in some more food her reaction would be a delighted “Waaaaaaah! Oishisou!” (“Waaah! It looks delicious!”) followed by a huge mouthful of some kind of food with rice and an outcry of “oishii!” (“Delicious!”) My host sister Sayaka sat beside me commenting “ooki kuchi…” (“big mouth”) “Kanojyo kirai tabemono ga aru ka na” I asked. (“I wonder if she has any food she dislikes”.) Sayaka replied that she’d never seen that. XD Also, I saw a commercial with Hamasaki Ayumi!

They have English television here too. It’s like an educational program for kids with loads of English speaking gaijin in it. They had a ballet class to, where they showed the first position and had things like “heels together” written on the screen. You’d like that, mom! :P And then they had a competition where you should touch what they said in the correct order: “elbow, stomach, head” and so on.

. . . OMG. I’m listening to Vanilla by Gackt. It’s a different version than the one I’m used to. I just heard “iku~!”. I had to fight not to burst out laughing. I’ll keep pretending I don’t know what that means. *cough cough*

The other day Momo and I spent some time alone in the house, because my host mother had to go out for a few errands. I found this letter lying on the kitchen table:

The letter

I understood most of it, except the part about the fridge where she describes where the milk is (which Momo helped me with), and a word that my dictionary said meant to stay at home, take care of the house ect. I guessed correctly on which word meant refrigerator, but I didn’t catch the full meaning although I think I should have since I understand the words in “ichiban shita” (directly translated “no. one under”). Still, it was early in the morning… After eating breakfast with Momo, we played Super Mario on the TV for a few hours. (It’s on this really old machine, so it looks like the game for game boy. I know you’d love it, Tonje! ;D They have PS2 and Wii too, though.) Together we managed to beat a few bosses, which was followed by lots of gloating and high-fives.

What else… oh!

My host mother has promised to teach me how to make Japanese curry, which is delicious~ Yay! (Dad: don’t worry, it’s not that hot. It can be sweet too.)

And I’ve gotten further in “The curious incident of the dog in the night time”… and I’ve read three pages of Disney’s “Aladdin” in Japanese with a little help of my dictionary. That was all I could manage in one go, haha! XD It’s kind of frustrating sometimes, not being able to understand things and not being able to say all the things I want. Like when I read my book and start laughing, and I’m not able to explain properly why it’s so funny (although I try). Well, it’s only been 5 days… :P Still, I’m looking forward to starting school – I want to learn more of everything so that I’ll be able to express myself better in Japanese, understand more, be able to read and write more… In short: I kinda want the red pill (or was it the blue?). Still, half the fun is learning, so I guess I’m just impatient. :P

Madoka helping Momo with her homework

Heaps of delicious green tea-filled, sweet jelly balls called kuzumochi. Mmm~

Location: Japan

3 percent battery left!

Japan day 1:

Well, my computer died... and I can't get my coputers charger into the adapter. So I'm using Sayaka's laptop. (Aroigatou, ne!) Where the heck is apostrophe?! I'm currently copy-pasting an apostrophy here... (-_-;)

After my blog post yesterday we visited my host mother's grandmother and grandfather and we ate Japanese supper together with them. They were really nice. They had all kinds of things, including a samurai armour and a katana! If I understood the grandfather correctly, he said it was because the house used to be a warriors home. I think. I also met their cousin, Chihiro. (Yes, Chihiro as in Spirited Away~ Even with the same kanji!)

Sayaka and I went up to the attic together, and she showed me all the different magazines and manga books (Naruto!) they had there. I also flipped through a game magazine there... and guess what I found:

Eirik, look what I've got... XD

Gyakuten Saiban! And it's all mine! Inside there's lots of info on all the Ace Attorney games (I think, although I'm not able to read too much of it because of all the kanji...) and sketches from the development of the characters! Nihon e youkosou! XD

Today Momo and I went hunting for "mushi", bugs. (Mushi-shi anyone? :P) We (OK, Momo...) caught several. And I saw a big yellow butterfly! BIG! They were quite surprised when I told them that I'd never seen one like that before. I also started reading "The curious incident of the dog in the night time". Momo wonders what I'm laughing at, but I'm not able to explain it in Japanese. :P That's when I wish mom was here - some of these sentences are exactly kind I know we both find funny. (However subtle they may be.) Great book, mom! Still, I haven't really gotten that far in it - I keep falling asleep around 3 or 4 PM. It's hard concentrating and trying to understand all the time. Eeeehhhh... Also, Momo's freinds came over today - they played hide-ad-seek. I hid Momo in my red suitcase. It took some time before they found her. Great fun! XD

Also - the toilets are just as freaky as people say! I had to ask Madoka for help on how to flush the first time - I didn't understand all the buttons. Tured out it was the small handle at the side of the toilet! XD Still, it's really weird. The seat's warm, and the buttons are... myterious. One shows a bum with a spray of water under it, one says "stop" (do I have to push another button to make it stop!?) and one shows a face(!) Madoka told me it's some kind of "combination"...ugh. Ayashii! I haven't dared touching any of the buttons yet, but I put up a poll... I feel brave now. Madoka laughed when I was standing bewildered in front of the toilet going "eeeeh?". I'm sure she'll laugh even more if I actually dare to try the oh-so-intimidating-button(s).

Madoka's leaving for Germany sometime in December for one month. I'm going to miss her.

Kagoshima's really hot. Hothothot~ XD And the food is so good! I tried umeboshi today. The taste was quite special (salty and sour), but I quite liked it, although it might take some getting used to.

I gave my host mother the book about Norway today. I explained (by use of halting Japanese, much bodylanguage, electronic dictionary and drawing) lafting, the 17th of may, cheeseslicer and binders (and how ridculously proud we Norwegians are of these inventions), stavkirker, polar bears and midnattssol. And the poem "det kom et skip til Bjoergvinn i 1349" and the last name "Oedegaard". I'm amazing. XD

Alexia: How are you doing? Daijyobu? Gakkou wa? :) I read your letter on the plane - thank you so much! It was lovely! :) I'm missing you too.

Gapkin: If you're reading this - welcome to the internet! I'm proud of you! ;D And I brought some of the books you gave me - I think they might come in handy.

Now it's soon time to go to bed - but because I fell asleep during the day I'm more awake now. Aah~ mendokusai naa! XO And it's hothothot~ Oh well, I'll manage. ;)

Mata, ne!

Location: Nippon!

In Japan!

OK, hold on tight: I'm officially in JAPAN!

The toughest part was definitely saying goodbye to mom and dad - although managed not to bawl my eyes out(!) I almost started crying again when I read mom's note in my book, though.

We took the plane from Oslo to Frankfurt (where we were almost late for our flight because of a lady that dodn't understand how our tickets worked) and finally from Frankfurt to Nagoya. There we were met by Japanese Rotary members who took care of us and helped me get my ticket - I had to take another plane from Nagoya to get to Kagoshima. We ate together at the airport before I was told that we had to hurry to catch my plane. I waved goodbye to Jack and a Swedish Rotary exchange student and followed the Japanese rotary member to the security check. The second I was done, a Japanese lady came over to me, smiled, grabbed my luggage and started to run with me to my gate. Apparently we were late...

Still, I made it! I only managed to sleep on the plane to Kagoshima, so I was quite tired when I landed - at sometime around 12 on the 20th. I think. I was greeted by my host family (everyone except for Ryotaro who was playing in a brass band at the time) and Mr. Kamikawa. They were all very nice and helpful! Later we went to a restaurant to eat again, but since I had eaten on the plane I wasn't too hungry, so I had a small side dish.

I slept a lot in the car after Madoka had assured me that it was OK. I did however manage to see some things through the car window: bamboo forests! And palm trees! And places in the sea where they make nori! ZOMG! This is definitely not Norway anymore...

We also made a short visit to my school, which I'll be attending in a week from today. Guess what - I heard cicadas! Like in all the anime you've ever seen... except this one's without subtitles. I didn't understand everything they said, but apparently an Italian exchange student will be attending the school too, and my summer uniform isn't quite ready yet although I do have a black bag (or "kaban") that I'll be able to hang my stuffed Norwegian moose on! XD

The room I'll be sleeping in has tatami mats on the floor, a sliding door, a small Japanese table and cushions. I've been told I can borrow my host sisters' desk and have my clothes in one of their chest of drawers. This house is really small, lovely and full of Tonari no Totoro! XD

...so now I look forward to getting to know my family and Japan better. I'll probably get some more information at the exchange student camp I'll attend in a few days as well - although I can't remember the exact date now.

This was what it was like - no kidding! *click for full size*
Reads from right to left - like in Japan! :P

On the plane to Nagoya. The hostess was really sweet.
She helped me with my katakana, and I really wanted to hug her. Awwh, man...

Almost in Nagoya!

Genki de ne~

Helene (in JAPAN!)

Location: Nippon!
Mood: tired, bewildered, amazed...
Listening to: people speaking Japanese... everywhere!
Eating: I ate potatoes! Haha! XD
Drinking: *drank* herb tea

I'm off!

I'm leaving tomorrow at about 10 o'clock. It's scary~! But I'm excited too. I just hope I won't end up bawling my eyes out at Gardemoen. Although I think I will... Mom will be there. OK, I most definitely will. *sigh*

I followed Alexia to school today, so I got to meet my friends one last time before I leave. I sat with her and all of the first year students. It was so much fun! They were all so nervous! I, having gone to this school for two years already, know that there's nothing to be stressed about. I think it's a great school! I really like the social environment there. Alexia thinks it will be tough with so much being said in Norwegian - understandably, but I think she'll do just fine! Don't worry! A couple of months and you'll understand much more than you ever thought you would! ;)

I've been emptying my computer today, so that I now have almost 10 GB of free storage. Wow! (I did, however, not delete my anime! XD) Lots of pictures from Japan to come~!

Whoa... 22:19. It'll be the 19th before I know it. I hope I'm not going to freak out completely! XD

...will I be able to sleep tonight?

Kareshi ni aitai! :@

Location: In the sofa!
Mood: disbelief, nervous
Listening to: Snow Patrol - You Could Be Happy
Eating: supper
Drinking: -

Chibi fashion!

I want these clothes by Loving Heart Designs. *_* The illustrations are so cute - and they're chibi! Now how perfect is that? They've got other cute designs as well: "kawaii" and "disney"... I believe I love google. (BTW, if you google "chibi child", I'm on top of the list. Muahaha! *cough* Okay...)

These are the kind of T-shirts I like - packing for Japan I realized that I hardly own any T-shirts without prints on them. And those I usually plan to decorate.

There's a slight chance I might buy some of these in Japan as well... *sigh*

Look, Karoline, cupcakes!

images from zazzle.com

Location: at home
Listening to: Dear You -Feel- (Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni)
Eating: -
Drinking: -

バイバイ

I had a bye bye party at Peppes pizza the 14th. I had invited most of my friends, and it was really fun and touching that so many of you came to say goodbye to me. Thank you so much!☆

We met at 5 pm, and stayed there for about 4 1/2 hours. We ate pizza, talked, laughed, took lots of pictures and simply had a good time. I had not-so-strategically positioned myself at the corner of the table, with my back to the wall, which meant that a lot of time was spent crawling under the table to get around to talk to people or go to the bathroom. This continuous ducking, oh-so-graceful-scrambling and reappearing my friends found rather humorous, and needless to say there was lots of laughter and a few pictures being taken. I was smart enough to change seats later, though, so I got a chance to talk to my other guests as well.

Being able to meet, chat and laugh with everybody again was wonderful! It gave me strength and made me feel more like I can do this. Sometimes I wonder "what on earth am I doing?!" What I'm most worried about is how I'm going to manage at the airport. How will I find my way, how will I know where to do what... The stress is killing me. ( >_< ;) But with everybody's support I'm sure I can do it! And, hey, I'm not completely helpless. I always manage in the end. Somehow. :P Having everyone there with me made me so happy~ I'm so grateful to have friends like you! I'm very lucky to know each and every one of you, and I love you all to death. Just so you know.☆ \(^_^ \)

We're adorable. There's no denying it.

*poke poke*

My girlfriends ordered a pizza they called "Yaoi Special". Somehow I don't think the waiter got the joke.

Emilie was the first to get her pizza. She was very pleased with herself. XD

Our pizza, a Rio Grande with chilli, nachos and spicy deliciousness~

Location: At home
Mood: Tired, it's late. :P
Listening to: -
Eating: -
Drinking: water

5 days until Japan!

I still can't believe this. O__o

Today was my last training at ju jitsu, since I doubt I'll have time to train on my last day before leaving for Japan. It was kind of weird, and a bit sad. I think I'll miss it. Still, I got to fight with Ali and some of the guys, so it was a lot of fun. (I was the only girl training XD) ...and, yes, I did get a hug too. o(^^,)o

Next time I come back they'll have moved to another facility, and I will probably be out of training. *sigh* Guess I'll just have to work hard, ne?

With just five days left, I guess it's time to make a list of things I have to do...

To-do list:
- Pack!
- Take a copy of important papers and put them in my bags
- Make some pins and bracelets ect. for small gifts
- Print out e-mails from friends and glue them in my book that I'll bring to Japan
- Write another short e-mail to host sister (in Japanese)? With a picture?
-Take loads of pictures before I leave!
- Remove loads of unnecessary files from my laptop (I need space for Japan...)

...watch anime...

"Procrastinators unite! ...tomorrow..."

Mood: disbelief

Soracon + Lolita meetup

In the beginning of August I went to a anime-convention called Soracon, lasting for two days, arranged by japani. It's basically a convention for everyone and anyone interested in Japan, manga, anime, cosplay, J-pop/rock and Japanese sub-culture. <(o^__^o)>

The first day was originally going to be held outside, with games and barbecue, but since it was raining we went cosplay bowling in stead! XD I dressed up as Anna Kyoyama from Shaman King, but I didn't get any good photos of it. That's too bad.

The second day was held at Oslo kongressenter. I went as Temari from Naruto again (debuted at Desucon), and took the bus downtown in my costume. As son as I arrived at Oslo kongressenter, I realized that there'd be more people than I expected. The line went all the way into the street! Still, since I'm a good girl, I went to stand in the back of the line. I started talking with the L-cosplayer standing next to me. Her name was L(ise), and she came from Fredrikstad. We became friends pretty quickly, and ended up hanging around Soracon together. I took lots of pictures of cosplayers. It was so much fun!

It was quite amusing walking around in my costume carrying a giant fan in the middle of Oslo - you get a lot of funny reactions from people. One guy at Oslo S shouted "Look, it's Temari! Cool!" when Lise and I ran by to catch her train. XD

Day 1, bowling:

Rena goes for the kill...

Day 2:

Mononoke Hime~!

I loved this guy's cosplay! Ryoga (Ranma 1/2),
the only character I can relate to when it comes to sense of direction...

Shaman King

They were playing tor Sasuke...

Rena from Higurashi! I glomped her! XD

The day after Soracon, I had agreed to have a lolita (as in the Japanese street fashion, not the book) meetup with my friends Anne, Rakel and Eirik. We met at outland, where we played a round of the card game munchkin before we decided to go to an Indian restaurant. It was lovely! (And people complimented our clothes. XD) The food was really good too~ I had a great time!

At the restaurant:

My friends being cute <3

Aaawww, aren't we adorable?

Girls in frilly dresses attract attention - because we're worth it! XD

In the evening I went to se "Mamma Mia!" the movie (ABBA) with grandma and mom. A little girl came up to me and said something along the lines of "you look really nice". She was very cute! The movie was so much fun - it was really funny and perfect for the three of us! I recognized the songs and there were wonderful actors. I wouldn't buy the dvd, but it was a great watch and it really put us in a good mood! \(^_^)/ Honey, honey~

Ghost in the bed

Just 8 days until I leave for Japan! Whoa.
Dad and Alexia are in town in order to get a stamp on her visa. Apparently it can only be done at one police station, and that just happens to be the most crowded one where all foreigners come to get their papers. So they're no. 374 in line. For a stamp which will take about 2 minutes. Tops.

I went with them, and showed Alexia my school where she'll start on the 18th. We went down to the station later, but I went home after a while since my stomach decided to cramp up. Ooowww... ><

...So now I'm lying in bed watching "Ghost in the Shell" and feeling sorry for myself. Eirik will come over for a short visit later. He's promised to tell me all about the line of study he'll be taking at university - Japanese! He went there for a briefing today.

Fall's slowly arriving and everyone's starting all over now - with school, university and a whole new semester. It feels weird that I won't be a part of it. My new beginning will be something else entirely...

Oh, and I got a mail from my host sister Madoka! She seems like a really sweet person. I think I'll get to practice my Japanese a lot - neither she nor her family speaks any English. But she said they're looking forward to see me.
...and my Japanese name seems to be "Heren"..?

Location: At home. In bed.
Mood: Tired
Watching: Ghost in the Shell: Innocence (anime)
Eating: Chocolate
Drinking: Japanese green tea? ...no, I can't be bothered to get up and make some...

A short note of panic

Alexia, our exchange student, is coming in three hours! Three! ...and my room looks like a war zone.
I've been sorting my clothes to make room for hers, and things from my drawers are now lying scattered about the floor. And I need to take as shower. Gah!

...and I just found out that Lufthansa has canceled my flight to Japan on the 20th. Which means I might have to leave August the 19th instead. I hope they're ready to receive me in Japan then? Oh boy, this is too much...

Edit: My room's clean(!), Alexia's arrived, and yes, I'm leaving on the 19th. Hopefully it won't cause too much trouble for those picking me up in Japan. Fingers crossed! (^_^)v

Location: in my messy room...
Mood: stressed
Listening to: songs on my mp3 player
Eating: -
Drinking: -

Late night anime watching

So, I just finished watching "Mushishi" last night. Kind of sad, actually, because I absolutely loved that anime. It's become one of my favourites. ^o^ To give you a short summary of the story:

"They are neither plants nor animals. They differ from other forms of life such as the micro-organisms and the fungi. Instead they resemble the primeval body of life and are generally known as "Mushi". Their existence and appearance are unknown to many and only a limited number of humans are aware of them. Ginko is a "Mushi-shi" who travels around to investigate and find out more about the "Mushi". In the process, he also lends a helping hand to people who face problems with supernatural occurances which may be related to the "Mushi"."
source: ANN

I think one of the best words to describe this anime is "peaceful". Watching Mushishi is relaxing. Just the opening theme - "The Sore Feet Song" by Ally Kerr, sets the moon straight away. In fact, the music throughout the show is lovely. The animation's really good, and I find the artwork in this anime absolutely beautiful. The scenery, the backgrounds...even the lighting! Like I said, it's a quiet anime - there's not much action, but I still looked forward to and enjoyed every episode (26 in total). Also, each episode is a small story in itself, so having seen all the previous ones isn't necessary to understand what's happening. The characters are well rendered too. I must say I really like Ginko.

If you haven't seen it yet, I strongly recommend it! :)

Ginko <3

My first thought when I saw this: "Ginko cosplaying Kakashi?" XD

Host family mail

I've been putting it off for ages, just because I kept pondering what I should write. I don't even know if they understand English! Still, I guess one of the older girls in the family might be able to read it and translate it for me. I hope. :3

Well, today I finally mustered up the courage to write a mail to my host family (all four sentences , whoohoo!) and clicked the "send" button... only to get a message back from some delivery service that informed me that the mail address didn't exist. What!?
Did I misunderstand my host family's writing?

I ended up sending the mail to Mr. Kamikawa, my district chair, asking him to froward it to them. Hopefully I'll get a reply soon. Whooo, I'm exited! I'll update when I know more.

Oh, and I've added a countdown to my blog! It's pink~ It makes me all nervous and exited just to look at it! 14 days? Just two weeks!? "...what am I doing!" ^o^;

Edit: I got a reply from Mr. Kamikawas wife, since he's currently on a trip to Okinawa (Blood+!). She said she'd forward it to my host sister Madoka, since they my host family doesn't use the computer that much and therefore have some trouble receiving e-mails. Hopefully I'll get a reply from my family one of these days? ...maybe?

Location: At home (in my bed)
Mood: slightly tired
Listening to:
Reading: Vampire Knight, Brain Powered (manga)
Drinking: Japanese green tea