スイパラ、文化の日、皇居、大江戸温泉物語！

I have been so busy lately! Classes have started, and that in tandem with having started my home stay means I have no time to post to my blog after doing so many things and commuting home! These amazing things include an all you can eat dessert restaurant called Sweets Paradise, Participating in a Japanese traditional arts day, going around Chiyoda ward to see the Imperial Palace among other things, and also going to an Onsen or Bath House/Hot Spring/Theme Park.

Here is a super fast summary, just so I can get a blog post out :P

Classes are very short, once a week for an hour and a half each class. There is little work and the classes seem for the most part easy. The professors vary in terms of teaching skill I imagine, but there are great ones, including my professor for Political Economy of Human Rights, a professor from Hope College.

Many Many people got together to go to Yokohama and eat at an all you can eat desserts restaurant called "Sweets Paradise." It would kill a Diabetic person, but it was wonderful. Stuff your self full of very high quality desserts for an hour and a half. That was Friday.

Kay Itoga (Sweetest Japanese Student who is Taking a Japanese religion Class with me) and I!

Cake! (This Place Would Kill Kiran)

Saturday was an all day event where the study abroad students participated in traditional Japanese cultural arts such as Tea Ceremony, Paper Craft, Calligraphy, Flower Arrangement, and most popularly, wearing Kimono for girls and Hakama for men. The garden that we did this at was a beautiful one in Mejiro, and the staff was wonderfully sweet.

Myrna and I experiencing Japanese CultureSado or Tea Ceremony (Vitoria, Gideon, and I)

Washi or Japanese paper Crafts

Myrna and I Wearing Women's Kimono and Men's Hakama

Sunday was a trip to Tokyo station to sight see. Attractions included the Imperial Palace, Hibiya park where a global festa of NGO's was occurring (I also saw a statue of Dr. Jose Rizal, Red) The National Diet building, the Prime Minister's residence and the Cabinet meeting area, and Yasukuni Shrine, a very controversial shrine due to its internment of Japanese war dead including convicted war criminals. Interestingly enough, our Japanese friends would not pray at this shrine because they felt uncomfortable or 怖いからしない。Thank you so much to the above mentioned Japanese friends for coming along! Kahori, Mariye, and Yuri, it was so fun!

Imperial Palace or Koukyo

Dr. Jose Rizal In Hibiya Park Near the Imperial Palace

Yuri and I in Front of Kokukaigijidou, or Japanese Congress Building

Kahori and Marie with the Hello Kitty Tour Bus

Myself at the Highly Controversial Yasukuni Shrine

Finally we finished the day off with a trip to an Onsen in Odaiba, it was called the "Great Edo Onsen Story" or 大江戸温泉物語。It was an amazing recreation of Edo era Tokyo, and was full of various baths. The baths felt amazingly good, from extremely hot baths to one that was very cold. My favorite was a combination of a blazing sauna directly to a cold bath. It was an amazing experience, and so relaxing! All though many of the study abroad students were very shy to be naked in front of one another, it was no problem at all. Every one of us got use to it right away, and the consensus was "Lets Go Back!" It was probably the most fun cultural experience I have had yet Japan.

Bus That Took Us From Tokyo Station to Onsen,
Of Course I couldn't Take Pictures in the Onsen ;)

Cary