Kickin' It

PII gives most of its students quite a bit of work, but if you're dumb enough to get stuck in the basic second year level like me, then you'll find you have some free time on your hands. So here's what I've been doing when I'm not reading Momotaroo.
On the weekends, the Katamachi district in Kanazawa has a reasonable nightlife. There's karaoke, furikura, bars, and clubs. Since I turned twenty on the flight to Japan, all of this is open to me, although it seems the drinking age isn't very strictly enforced here, so really its open to anybody who looks reasonably mature. Not that I look mature, but my international ID gives me some confidence that can be mistaken for maturity.
My only big night out thus far involved Karaoke and Chuu Hai, a beverage that tastes like soda but is 7% alcohol. Thanks in part to the Chuu Hai, I rocked the mic that night. My rendition of Break Stuff by Limp Biskit was particularly moving. Or scary. It depends on who you talk to.
Generally, I'm too tired and too poor (I was down 3ooo yen after my Karaoke binge) to go out. Luckily, chilling with my host family is always a worthwhile experience. They've taken to teaching me various Japanese games, and most of them are awesome. I'm a particularly big fan of Shogi, a Japanese variation on Chess. There are quite a few differences between the two (just check out the starting arrangement above) but the main difference is that in Shogi, when you capture an opposing piece, you get to keep it, and drop it into play at some later point in the game. I beat my host 13 year-old brother with the help of my host mom, and yesterday, I beat my host sister without anyone's help (and yes, I just bragged about beating a ten year-old girl. I'm not ashamed.)
For alone time, I've picked up a few books at the international library located in the same building as PII. I just finished Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami, it was a bit strange. Now I've moved on to the Harry Potter series. Sure, I've read them all before, and they have absolutely nothing to do with Japan. But come July 21st, I will never be able to enjoy these books the way I have for the past nine years of my life. So they deserve one last read.

The Second Week

I was told before I left for Ishikawa that the weather here during June and July is less than ideal. June is the rainy season. While the July is the start of a hot and humid summer. Although I cannot say I have loved the weather thus far, I think it is unfair to categorize it as "bad", especially when one compares it to the weather in New Haven. Yes, the picture on the left was taken in Ishikawa, and yes, I had already been drenched in rain when I took the picture. But that torrential downpour was one of only two of its kind that I have experienced thus far. And it occurred on one of the three rainy days. After living in New Haven for two years, I like those numbers.
Despite the rain on the day I took the picture, four Yalies and a Swarthmore ...on? (just kidding) made it to the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art. The building was beautiful, and several of the installations were fascinating, but like most contemporary art, the place was a bit hit or miss. Nonetheless, it was worth the walk and the wet.
The museum is one of several sites of cultural interest in the Kanazawa area. I've also been to multiple shrines, and the beautiful KenRokuEn garden. I particularly like the shrines, since they were all practically deserted when my host family took me too them. There's still more for me to see, including a ninja temple complete with secret passages.
Although I am a Yalie, and so I should be most excited about the places listed above, or the Japanese class itself, neither of those things compares to the the home stay experience. My family remains fantastic. Every dinner, I learn more about Japan than I ever could in a classroom or with some gaijin at a museum. Today, for example, my host mom and I talked about the Japanese perception of the Mormon Church and the Amish. It turns out its somewhat similar to most Americans', but it was still fascinating. I know I couldn't have had this conversation with a nihonjin I hadn't already gotten to know quite well. And with my Japanese skills, for a nihonjin to get to know me well, he/she would either have to have a lot of free time, or live with me.
Ok, next time: happy hour!

My First Week In Japan

Above, two pictures of Kanazawa from the top of some government building (thanks for the camera sis). Note that one picture has the sea in the background while the other has mountains. As my host mother keeps telling me, Kanazawa is the perfect mix of city and nature.

I'd like to say hello to my parents and Kelly. If you are one of the handful of people who are not obligated to read my blog but have stumbled upon in it anyway, I welcome you too.
In my first post I mentioned that my host family has a dog. In response, Maruyama Sensei told me a few useful commands I could use on dogs in Japan. I would like to add one more: くつ　を 食べない で. This morning the dog, Wendy, ate through the strap of sandal. If she eats my shoes too, then I will have zero footwear in Japan. And unlike my hometown in Arkansas, walking down the street barefoot in Kanazawa is unacceptable. So I think I will be saying "kutsu o tabenai de!" quite a bit for the next few months.
Besides this minor incident, the first week of life with my host family has been a wonderful experience. I've already played Wii Sports with my 10 year-old imooto, Rio, and 8 of her classmates; I've listened to my 13 year-old otooto, Kooji, play the drums; and I've played cards with my okaasan, Eriko, and barbequed with my otoosan, Ken. The only family member I haven't spent much time with is Yuta, the 16 year-old. His schedule easily puts the ambitious american high schooler's schedule to shame. He is out from 7 in the morning till 10 at night from monday to saturday. However, tomorrow he plans to show me around town with another of his friends. Before arriving at Princeton in Ishikawa, I was most nervous about the homestay portion of the program. I thought that I would unknowingly offend my family several times, isolating myself. Luckily, my family is used to gaijin, so they have not gotten angry at the many rude things I've probably done. It also helps that the three oldest members of the family can speak English when a misunderstanding arises.
Although I have not been forced to speak Japanese at home all of the time, I think my Japanese has improved dramatically over the past week. When I first arrived in Japan, I was so nervous about speaking, I could not even buy a train ticket by myself. Instead, a more confident and competent gaizin bought it for me. Today, however, I think I had my first real success with Japanese. Friday night, I had lost my umbrella, just like my dad had predicted I would. So today I retraced my (semi-wobbly) steps, and when I told the cook at the curry restaurant "yuube wa, kuroi kasa o wasureta n desu kedo", he immediately produced the black umbrella I had left the day before. He said "doozo." I said "arigatoo." And now I have my umbrella and some new found confidence in my language ability.
Next time: a few more a facts about Japan, a few less anecdotes about my life in Japan.
Jaa, mata nee.