Going Down to Kansai Again

CJ gets ready for a bath before we head out.

After a lot of questions, calls to home, and talking with my friends, I decided to take a break from Tokyo and go to the much safer region of Kansai. An Orthodox priest's family had invited me to come down and spend a day or so with them in Kyoto before they went to Hiroshima. Luckily, I have a sempai near Kyoto who offered me a place to stay with him, should I need it.

At this point, I need it.

I was able to get one of the last tickets on a night bus from Tokyo to Kyoto for the super-sketchy night bus on Thursday. My plan is/was to organize my room for the new roommate and just in case I don't come back, pack and take the bus, arrive in Kyoto on Friday morning, stay with the priest and his family for a while, then move in with my friend Kai and then with my friend Gina. Fool proof plan since I have a friend with me every step of the way. But, of course, Thursday night is the time when I have to get all emotional and start acting like I'm never coming back. I started going around and taking pictures and videos of things, crying at every turn, saying good-bye like I'm moving away to a new city forever, and basically being a baby about the whole thing.

Hmmm, left-overs! I actually made a mountain of this
stuff, but somehow managed to eat it all.

In retrospect, I did eat really well that night, because I had to cook all of my remaining veggies and tofu in a last soup so nothing would be left in the fridge after I left. I wolfed it down, hoping that it would keep me filled all night, but it didn't (booo!!). But for added fun, I got to use the ingredients that other girls before me had left behind (yeah!!).

I was only allowed to carry one large bag, one small bag, and one purse due to the bus's rules, but that was more than enough for me: after traveling with Gina and from my experience as a pk, I am well trained in the Tetris-like art of packing. After I got all my stuff packed and moved into the lobby, I went back for my food. Daddy had made sure to stress that I needed to carry nonperishable foods that needed no prep-work just in case I found that Kyoto was just as hard pressed for food as Tokyo has become. So I packed almonds, dried apples, a log of salami, crackers, and tuna packets into any extra crevices in my bags. I didn't think that I would need it all on the little trip, but I figured that I could always give it to Kai in return for staying at his house. As for my last loaf of bread, I gave that and a bottle of Meghan's Coka Cola to Matthew, who was staying in Tokyo longer than the rest of our family.


Lastly, I interrupted Miki in the shower and told her that I'd be leaving in an hour. She followed me about for awhile as I sobbed all over Keyaki, then gave me a few presents before I left: she called her mom and let me talk with her one last time (her mom was really supportive this whole time and invited me back to their house should I ever come back to Japan), gave me a small piece of chocolate for the bus ride, and gave me a face mask for the trip down there (I think that the mask was supposed to help keep other people's germs off me and protect against the radiation somehow). She even walked me to the bus stop and used her Wadaiko-super-strength to tote my bags the whole way, but kept remarking, "You're really taking all of this with you? Unbelievable!" I don't bring many bags, but I jam-pack them full of stuff!

Instead of taking the bus, since the bus schedule was all out of wack, I got a taxi ride with another ICU exchange student named Kara. She and I were in the same Japanese class, so I knew her a little. She was actually up in Sendai when it all happened and was getting ready to run away to Okinawa that night. At the train station, we went our separate ways. Getting to the meeting place for the bus was a hassle, sine it wasn't an official stopping place, just a sidewalk that the company commender at the wee hours of the night. When I got on the bus, no one told me where to sit, but I had heard someone say that people going to Kyoto were in the front and those going to Osaka were in the back, so I sat in the front, only to have a flustered couple ask me to move to the last seat in the last row in the back. The bus was cramped, but I was used to not having much space in Tokyo. I was just happy to be sitting down out of the cold wind (since I had shown up to the meeting place an hour and a half ahead of time as to not miss the bus). I decided to take a nap, and when I woke up, the bus was stopped at this rest area and it was snowing!!! I got back on the bus took another nap, and woke up in Kyoto around 7 am.

At least I had made it to Kansai! I lugged everything to the nearest McDonald's and had a breakfast sandwich while I waited to get warm again and meet Marie, my pk friend from Canada.

What's Next?

A few things have happened during the last 5 hours. 

First, my dorm has enacted a restricted entry/exit rule for the next 1-3 days. Due to the radiation scare, students, parents, and professors are paranoid about the radiation levels. They are closing off the vents, turning off the air-conditioning, taping the windows shut, and refusing some students to return from outside. Seeing this intense fear of the air (even when researchers claim that Tokyo levels of radiation are not dangerous to human health) has me growing more and more fearful. I would rather not have to deal with such regulations and fears.

Second, schools in America and other countries have started recalling students to the states. My friends and I were huddled on the sofa when one of the boys received and email demanding the other 5 students from his home university leave Japan as soon as possible. Wittenberg has suggested that we leave, but has still left it our own decision since so many of my classmates are already in Kansai, however, there has been talk that they will also issue a summons back to the states.

Finally, some family friends from New York are going to the south and have offered me a chance to go with them and be with someone familiar. After the earthquake yesterday morning and last night, receiving requests from my family in America, and seeing the students becoming so frightened, I have decided that making the move to the south for a while would be the best option for my safety, health, and peace of mind.

Now, earlier at night I was laughing and joking with my friends, eating at a tabehoudai in Kichijoji. Then, when we got back to the dorm, and I saw the others students worrying, I was freaking out. Now, I'm not in tears, or jumping off the walls, but I'm getting a little antsy as to why my friends and I are some of the only ones who haven't gone to pieces from fear. We were having great time at dinner, when we got another quake. This time, we were all underground and the size of it was pretty surprising. By the time we got home, everyone had started freaking out, again. So, it looks like I'm off to the south (or west, depending on how you see it) for a little break. I hope that things clear over so I can come back for spring term. I'll just hang out down there for a while.

Robot Tour!!!

Having only two weeks off for Christmas vacation isn't quite what I'm used to, but I made sure to make that time count this year! With the help of one of my best friends, Gina (we would have brought you with us if we could have, Anna Sophia), I got to backpack across Japan in the "Long-awaited, Cross-country, Pan-Japan, Caffeine-infused, Giant Robot Tour of 冬休み2010". Special featured performances by random bus friends, McDonald's lady, Miki's family, helpful direction givers, Nagoya Hoststay family, and the Japanese train system.

"Was it epic?" you may ponder. "What about Giant Robots is ever un-epic?" I would respond.

The exciting saga is airing on my blog as of March! Stay tuned for more!

Thank You for Your Patience

Hello everyone! Merry Christmas! Happy New Year! Long time, no see!

I just got back (lies - I actually got back yesterday) from my winter vacation trip. Maybe you have heard of it? No? Well, it is just a little thing we like to call the Long-Awaited, Cross-Country, Pan-Japan, Coffee-Infused, Giant Robot Invasion of 冬休み (winter vacation) 2010, sponsored by Lawsons 100 Yen. Phew! Did you get all that? On we go then: I took over a thousand photos in those 10 days and kept an ongoing travel log, but I can't write about anything just yet since Gina has almost all of the pictures and we all know that is the more interesting section of my blog. This short post is just to let you know that I made it home alive (although there were a few close calls) and I'm back into school. I feel like it has been a month since I last logged onto my blog, but I updated almost all my photo albums before I left *hint hint go look hint hint*, so those of you who noticed had something to read while I was gone. Hopefully there will be more frequent posts (once I get those photos!) since my New Year's resolution is.....wait for it.....wait for it.....don't procrastinate!! But I'll worry about that later.

I will say this, we did this trip in what may be a record low budget. Considering the cost of living is so high here, and the dollar is currently the same as Monopoly toy money, Gina and I made sure to stay on the cheap side of everything. Maybe not the best idea for some things, but it all worked out. We still had fun, don't get me wrong, and even spent time lounging in various spa baths for 3 hours, but it was all dirt cheap: 3 hours at the spa was $10 - New Years Special Pricing!!!

On a more serious note, I think that my spoken Japanese has just plummeted since I was so busy being with Gina that I forgot to use Japanese during most of my time. I do, however, have a higher kanji count now thanks to all of the place names and frequent train rides; always a positive side to things. But all things considered? I wouldn't have traded a second of this experience.

Blessed New Year, everyone!