the last day of this month b4 i start a new section for april and to put other pics up. i have sakura cherry blossom pictures , not in full bloom, but i know it's coming very soon. this weekend most likely, where i plan to get trashed under the pink tress :) AND i found the vending machine selling used high school girl's undies! i took pics of that :) but for now, i'll finish the updates for korea.
on the last nite in korea, i went to this area selling fake designer hand bags. now, i wouldn't mind buying them if they looked like the real deal, but the problem is, the logos were wrong! i mean, a Dior bag, was spelled Diok. i think it's pretty obvious that's it's fake. same with Gucci's little g's printed as e's. it was really cool, again, reminded me of Hong Kong's fake designer bags. though Hk's quality were a lot better, at least they got the print right! but it annoyed me cuz koreans were speaking to me in japanese, trying to rip more money off from me. and those make shift restaurant stands, some lady grabbed my arm and tried dragging me to go inside and i'm like telling her, no! i was so annoyed that the whole nite, i used english all the way! when peopel spoke to me in japanese, i used english to them saying i have no clue what you're talking about.so here' sthe street where i went. some chinese bitchy family, when i took a picture of the area, they said in english "why would anyone want to take a picture of this area?!" i got pissed and i said loudly in english. "because i like this area, i want to take a picture. it's no one's business." and that bitch women turned around and looked at me. if she didn't hear it, her husband did cuz he was rite next to me.
i finally gave up cuz i was starving and decided to try those little stands. of course they greeted me in japanese, and i used english! it was fun cuz the guy was struggling with english, he made a really good effort and i commend him. though i had this evil thought that after paying, i should use japanese and say to him "that's was good! bye!" then he'll probably go chasing after me cuz i made him suffer >:) lots of choices where u can pick and point what u want, and they'll cook it on the grill for u
on the day of my flight, need to go to at least 1 historical place! i really wanted to go to this palace that was home to the korean kings until the 1500
s until the japanese army came and burnt it down. it was restored 10 years ago. funny though, i read the plaques under each section, there was both english and japanese. both mentioned that the japanese people came and invaded korea and burnt it down. but in the japanese guidebook, it NEVER mentionned anything like that! guess the government in general still doesn't want anything published to make them look bad.
here's the restored from of the front of the palace
and inside the palace walls, this is the main temple that's surrounded by the lake and behind it, the mountains. the temple of happiness.
after that, back to where i got lost the first day and i didn't get lost! if i'm in korea, need to eat as much spicy food i can get my hands on! and this boiling pot of spicy food which was very good but it gave me a runny nose and burning lips! but it was worth it!
and that's the end of my trip to korea. next updates for april, cherry blossoms and the manga convention and vending machines!!!
march 30,2004
my bad, couldn't update last week. tons of exams that's finally over but still a lot of other stuff to do. so some pics from korea that i took during the too short spring break 2 weeks ago.
the first day , COMPLETELY lost! couldn't read a word of korean, couldn't understand a word of korean! i assumed they could understand english to a point but nooo!!! it was all about using japanese. i guess they took a look at my jacket and the koreans would start using japanese to try to get me to buy their stuff. i didn't mind but after awhile, it pissed me off. especially when i go into a store, they FOLLOW me. i don't know if that's what they do to every tourist or to even koreans too. here's the street where i went in attempt to go to the seoul tower, myeoung dong street . a really trendy street for young people. took me over an 1.5 hr to get to seoul tower with getting lost and weaving thru the area.
some sexy guy showing off his legs and he's wearing the fish nets !
went to seoul tower, look how close i am to calgary! 8519 km only
1988 summer olympics in seoul! same time when we had the 1988 winter olympics.
ah, the canadian flag, miss home so much!
after that, went to lotte world, a smaller version disney - like theme park. everywhere is lotte! lotte world, lotte hotel, lotte department stores! but it was fun next to a fake magic kingdom castle.
after that, returning back to the hotel, i FREAKED out! i saw a cockroach and screamed so hard and i jumped on my friend's back , freaking out.my friend was like what what, i tried explaining. and then when i looked at it again, it was only a leaf! here's the damn leaf that scared the hell out of me with its cockroach imitation.
speaking of bugs, koreans sell these digustingly gross silkworm larvae for sell, 2 bucks a cup. it really reeked and my friend could only eat 1 of them b4 giving the cup to someone else. i have no clue how they can eat it. even looking at it made me sick!
but other than disgusting bugs, they had good cheap vendors, example of this greasy tasty pancake filled with cinnamon. hm....pancakes....
the 3rd day, shopping near the university with lots of little streets. reminds me of hong kong with cheap shops and people trying to pull you in. guess this pic doesn't flatter me too well with this pig next to me!
anyhoo, hope that's enuf pics here to make u happy til tomorrow!
march 24,2004
back from korea! have tons of pics to upload by the end of this week hopefully, if the midterms don't get to me first -_- went to korea for 4 days and stayed in seoul only but was just enuf time to see pretty much the whole city. unfortunately, not speaking of a word of korean put me to a big disadvantage. i assumed they could speak some english, but for the most majority, i think pointing to the map and using hand gestures were the key that i got thru. i still remembered getting lost for 1.5 hrs on the first nite cuz i couldn't read the damn map with the korean alphabets! anyhoo, will update by tomorrow or by friday, though i'll do it little by little to make u guys come back more often to check my page :)
on another note, the cherry blossoms are approaching soon! i can't wait to get drunk under the pink trees! already planned it out roughly as to wear to go, who to go with etc etc. and this sunday, planning to go to a manga convention. first time in over 7 months to see some real otaku geeks and cosplayers. though i left my costumes at home, i can't participate in it :( :(
march 12, 2004
now that u saw the seedy side of japan, let's go back to the normal picturestic side of how we imagine japan. cuz the plum blossoms were here last weekend and the weekend b4 that, a lot of people go out to the parks to view them and have picnics. i went last weekend and it was already a week past the full bloom but they were still there and it was really beautiful. i can't wait for cherry blossoms! i even took a few of the blossoms home to press and dry them out. when the cherry blossoms come, i'll have to grab a handful hoome >:) sorry jennifer, i can't cut down the tree and send it back to u!
this pic is a little bit dark cuz the number of trees surrounding osaka castle park.
there were mainly 3 colors to the plum blossom, lite pink, white and hot pink. of course, i like the lite pink one although the close up of it didn't turn out as clear as the other ones.
some people enjoying the view, or should i say, blocking my view!
the osaka castle just overlooks the plum blossoms on top. that was the residence of one of the 3 unifers of japan, i believe his name is hideyoshi if i remember my history correctly.
my fav shot with the lite pink flowers
and walking up towards the castle, an overview of the park
i walked around the osaka castle but i didn't go in cuz my old host mom said that's it's not worth it and it's disappointing. they renovated the whole castle so the inside is more like a museum instead of the origanal state. sorta stupid, i've been in japan for more than 6 months and i live so close by osaka yet it took me that long to actually SEE the place!>_<
in front of the castle was this guy doing tricks. it turns out he's from canada. ok, don't mind that, cuz he also speak fairly decent japanese. i then pretended that i'm not from the same country as him cuz near the end , he asked hte audience or told them, to donate some cash cuz he's not paid to do this. makes me wonder why he's doing this job.
that's all the update for now! spring break starts tomorrow! or actually, after school today at 4 pm and i'm free for a week! i'll be going to korea this tuesday to friday but since i have a shitload of exams, i'll have to bring my textbook with me >:( enjoy the pics and if u have any requests of what places or kinds of pics u would like me to take, let me know!
march 11, 2004
alrite, let's start showing the seedy side of japan aka. the host and prostitues stuff. thanks to my aussie friend dave, who's doing a project and interviewed some hosts and went down prostitute lane and had the balls to take pictures. ok, hosts i can do that. but taking pics of the women being advertised on the boards, i don't think i can do that cuz people would think i'm weird cuz i'm also a female.
don't know if u people know, but generally people with tatoos are associated with the yakuza, the japanese mafia. people did warm me that a lot of host bars are owned by the yakuza but when i went, i didn't see any mafia people (and a good thing too!). so check the pictures out, and hold on to your stomachs to make sure u don't puke. these pictures are not pretty at all. in fact, i think they're BUTT ugly!
mr. tatoo buddha
this INCREDIBLY disgusting pic of a host blowing up his stomach.
and VERY BUTT UGLY host. i think osaka's hosts in general are butt ugly when comparing to the hot hosts in tokyo. i didn't go to a host club in osaka but i see them hanging out at the bridge in shinsaibashi, the polluted river side.
then dave took some pics of the prostitute billboards.
and THEN he took a shot of a client and the introducer. the introducer telling the perv client where he can get some and the address. and behind them, pictures of your choices.
well, i fulfilled you guys' request of seeing the seedy side of japan. i was only able to do that once in november with the vending machine in the mountains, but with dave's camera, i mite be able to get some more!
march 10, 2004
not too sure how to start out but on monday nite at 11 pm, an international student from australia got killed in a bicycle accident near the dorms. i don't know the details very well but yesterday the atmosphere at school was very very heavy. i never talked to her but i know who the girl was. i feel sorry for the parents since they'll have to fly to japan and i have no idea how the school was able to explain to the parents what happened.made me think of how UC told all the students going abroad in january to sign a form that if we die, we don't hold the UC responsible. and they even said not to worry cuz they never had a student that didn't come back to them. but i did say b4 in my previous entries that riding a bike in hirakata is insanely dangerous cuz it's damn narrow.
alrite, on to a more cheerful subject. visited an elementary school last friday near the school. i didn't enjoy this visit as much as last semester cuz they were TOO many international students for 2 gr. 5 classes. i'm seeing about 40 students there vs last semester, it was just my jap class for 2 gr. 5 classes. so it turned out to be 5 students per classroom and it gave us lots of chances to interact with the kids. i was able to, but not as much. plus they made us play dodgeball during recess. i HATE dodgeball since i was kid cuz it hurts to have the ball thrown at you if you don't see it coming. i was able to sit wiht a small group of kids during lunch. some shots of the kids.
shoko helping to pass out the lunches
this is one of my fav :) yui was embarassed to drink milk wiht one hand cuz u can see her mouth thru the bottle so she uses both hands to cover it up. reminds me of an infant :) caught her offguard and other kids came over to see the pic and she was embarassed.
next, natsumi drinking it the normal way. he's cool, baseball lover.
ha ha, i caught yui agin with her orange.
a group shot of my lunch kids table
2 cute kids, shoko on the left and eiko on the rite. they were part of the lunch duty group for that day.
and last, a classroom shot with us international students. i wish i could be that happy again in school like these kids but it's probably close to impossible >:(
march 8, 2004
a short update with no pics cuz my brain is not in my head recently. good weekend with shopping and seeing the plum blossoms, not so good, in fact, shitty that i dropped my cell phone in the bathroom and it killed the phone off cuz it got completely wet. the fact that i had a non functional cell phone for 24 hours did not make me feel secure cuz if i get lost, i get lost bad that i have no idea how to get home by calling my host family. stupid of me to drop the phone rite b4 watching lord of the rings movie again in the theathers. well, i got a new one yesterday with the same number and email at least to make it easier for people to e-mail so i can get their info. but it sucks cuz in the old phone, there goes 100 people's info PLUS over 1300 emails that i collected over the last 6 months and i'll never be able to get out again. the phone has a 5 sec reaction when i turn it on and then goes dead again. >:( so here's the deal, i need all your info again! japanese people, give me your cell number and mobile phone e-mails please. international students, same thing. people back home, i know your emails so no biggie :)
updates later this week!
march 5, 2004
it's another miracle! i'm updating again! damn, i just out of my law and business class, i don't know if it's better to die or to try and struggle to stay awake in that class. i swear, every hr, it's nodding off and finally zzzzz for a good 15 minutes or so.
jsut went to visit an elementary school today as part of my jap class field trip, will be updating those pics too. today are pics from the soccer match towards the olympics btw korea and japan! too bad it's not china and japan, i would have sat on the china side! unfortunately, the tix were on korea side. so for the 1st half of the game, we sat on the korean side.
the koreans were very passionate too like the japanese with cheering. oh yeah! b4 the match started, they played the national anthems for japan and korea! since i'm canadian, and 2 aussies were there, we didn't know if we should stand up or not since we're not japanese or koreans! but my aussie friend said we should at least stand to not like a bunch of bastards. the japanese, they do NOT sing during the anthem. this surprised me since in canada, we DO sing along to the anthem. the japanese anthem was sooo slow, it reminded me of a funeral march!
then during the break, we went our way toward the japan side seats. so many people were there trying to go back to their seats that i was a wave of people. so we just waved our tickets, hiding the seat numbers and got in!
this side of the soccr field from the japan seats.it was sooo much diff sitting on the japan side. the japan side, all the people had cheering songs! somehow, i got in and cheered for japan side. shit, if my parents saw me, they mite demand me to come back home! but it was good fun at the soccer match.
japan scored 2 goals during the 2nd half of the game, perfect view cuz we were in the japan seats! japan won and all these soccer cheering club leaders were waving flags around. the only thing i'm not pleased about was that they were waving the japanese imperial flag. to them, it means nothing cuz it was b4 the war. but i do know a lot of chinese people who are very sensitive about seeing that flag.
there were so many soccer maniacs, i donned him with the name mr. japan! u can see him with the japanese flag drapped around his shoulder, and he's wearing a soccer as a hat with japanese flag! i saw him close to me, but b4 i could whip out my camera to ask for a photo, he disappered off into the crowds to the front. i was really tempted to ask him to let me borrow the hat for a pic! but i know that i would look like a fool. if u look closely, u can see him in the pic. but it mite be hard since i made the pic smaller.
here's some pics of my soccer mates who went with me. tatsuro, the guy who doesn't speak japanese but instead uses tatsuro-language all the time. i have YET to take a normal pic of him. he's always screwing up the picture! EVERYTIME japan scored, he would throw his chips in front so it rained down on the audience. and of course, the fans would get pissed and look back at who did it. of course, they would narrow in onto my foreigner aussie friends since they have white skin and they stand out. probably they were thinking "those bastard foreigners!"
his buddy, i forgot his name. but he got wasted and someone said he threw up. i'm not sure if it was at the match cuz people would be getting away from the smell.
group shot of us all minus the drunken guy
alrite, weekend! updates next week!
march 4, 2004
hey people, finaly i'm gonna be doing some updates! i've finally got a bit motivated cuz my friend gave me some excellent pictures to show the seedier side of japan and which i know u'll all be looking forward to! but b4 i do that, i need to backtrack to around feb 11 th or so when i had the holiday. me and an aussie friend mel went to kyoto to redo the touristy thing. and we visited the heian shrine, built in the 1100's when kyoto was still the capital of japan. plus the emperor's still resided in that city so it's very well kept this shrine.
the entrance to to the famous shrine
inside the area. it has lots of open spaces and the temple that i'm shooting, it's the main building and there's 2 or 3 other sections next to it. when i went up closer, the priest was conducting a ceremony but i couldn't get a pic cuz of the sign saying, "pictures forbidden".
the gardens were pretty too, decided to do sepia shot instead of traditional color.
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another pathway around the gardens.
lake overlooking the whole area
and some creepy huge birds choosing to roost on the temple's roof. and they weren't moving! sitting motionless for a good 10 minutes.
onto normal days in the cafeteria to show u people that i DO go to school. hanging out with my buds , advertising our CC lemon drink and free water (free water provided by our school). the CC lemon, advertised by the simpsons. i guess yellow people advertise lemony drinks?
me and my new speaking parter mayumi, she's so cool! she plays the koto, the traditaional japanese harp. bet u anything we were put together cuz on my interest sheet that i submitted, i listed violin as my hobby. so i'm glad the school put us together cuz she's chatty just like me!
paul, damn, he looks like he's gonna blow the can away!
also did cultural events, like seeing my violin teacher's concert since she's such a nice person. she's really young, maybe 27 or so and already played in orchestras overseas.
