Japan Halloween Parties

Another day in Japan, another holiday to celebrate. And what surprises me more than the sheer amount of holidays in Japan is that they never forget to include our American holidays as well, like Halloween. Perhaps to make those of us abroad feel welcome? I got the impression the Japanese were somewhat surprised about this as well, but despite not know much about its origins celebrated the holiday all the same.

Van's Halloween Party

Saturday, the 18th of October, 2008. I got off the train at Van's station and realized I was one of the last ones to arrive. Well, all but Van, of course. There was Celeste, Joel, Kaitlyn, and Van's yet-to-be-girlfriend Kirsten whom I'd never met before. We were all headed to Van's house for a Halloween party, lured with promises of food, candy, and kids with costumes. Van was late and we ended up walking up the large hill towards his house to meet him, upon which time it became immediately apparent why he took so long: she was already dressed full on into her kimono, which allowed for limited mobility (oh baby).


Van's house was the biggest I'd yet seen for a personal house in Japan. In fact, out of the houses I went into during my stay, his easily took the cake. While my host family's home had the necessities and was comfortable to fit three of us, Van's host parents owned a house with a large garage and a gate out front, a very spacious two stories inside, and a garden out back (I think). Certain rooms, like Van's, had a more Western style, with an actual bed above the ground! Van was never able to find out exactly what his host parents' occupations were... After admiring the house and decorations around it, the rest of us changed into our costumes: Celeste into her yukata, Joel into his orange pumpkin/tigger outfit, Kaitlyn into her frog outfit, Kirsten into her witch outfit, and me into my jujitsu gi and sunglasses.


We met Van's host mom, Himuro-san, who was very nice and kind of eccentric like Van was saying, as well as their kids. Van had a very elaborate plan for the evening; each of us foreigners would have a bag of candy with questions, and when the kids would come to one of us in their costumes and say "trick or treat" we would ask them a random trivia question like, "in what country were cell phones created?" They get it right, one piece of candy for them! Eventually the kids started showing up in some of the most random costumes, usually with a certain theme, but others with whatever they could find. We got some absolutely delicious food from a huge table's worth that Van informed (read: warned, j/k) us he helped out with preparing.


As time went on and things got going, I went back and forth between hanging out with friends, eating, playing trick-or-treat with the kids (they were so cute!), and talking to other people who were there. Our friend Paula showed up a little later, too. A lot of my time was actually spent talking with a British man and his Japanese wife, both of whom were fluent in Japanese and English, so I switched between both. He gave me some good tips on studying the langage and living in Japan, which I don't seem to remember specifically but I'm sure it made an impact at the time.:p When it started to get pretty late, one of Van's host mom's friends offered to givee Joel and I a ride back to our homes.

Dorm Halloween Party

That would not be my only adventure of the week (or holiday), and soon I was preparing for the Halloween dorm party right off campus. This was put on by a student organization and a cover fee was charged at the door, but it turned out to be a great place to make friends that would last the remaining two months of my stay. On Friday, the 24th, I opted not to wear my jujitsu gi to school, but instead changed in the locker room shortly before heading over. I can't remember what I did beforehand, whether I went home or just hung out with friends, but somehow I made it back to campus.

The dorm was literally packed with people, so tight you couldn't really move sometimes, or take pictures with your friends for that matter (though we managed to). It kind of reminded me of the trains in the morning except with nearly all of the good friends I'd made in Japan so far, and of course with everyone wearing costumes. One popular set of costumes was the traditional school girl and boy (often cross-played), and another was kimonos. Van was a kitty, haha. There was music (which could have been louder), drinks, snacks, and areas to chill, so there was definitely something for everyone.


But like I said, it was a great place to meet people. I talked to some Japanese students randomly inside, then I went outside and was hanging out with others. A few of them were from the International Friendship Club that I went to occasionally (they may have been the ones who put this party on, now that I think about it), and after the party was over we all decided to walk down to a nearby gyuudon (beef over rice) place to get a bite to eat. The only gaijins there were myself, Celeste, and Suguru, and each of us was talking to different students, so it was a refreshing change of pace. I got to finally see how Japanese college students hung out and had fun, and met my buddy Kouta who became my best Japanese guy friend while I was over in Japan. When it got really late, Kouta showed me the way back to the train station and I finally headed home.

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Impressions from Japan: "Japan Update"

I think the time has come for another straight-from-Japan entry that takes a break from the steady flow of events, and covers my overall status at the time. This one was written in mid-October, and on this blog I've already completed all but one of my events before that point (the one being Owariasahi Matsuri, but it's coming), so if you've read those then you're pretty well caught up on where I was. Once again, I'll be keeping the wording intact for authenticity. Enjoy!

２００８年１０月１６日 [10/16]
I've been really horrible about using this journal. In addition, I've not even updated my online blog about Japan once [haha], and have only occasionally put up pictures and videos on Facebook. However, this is not due to a lack of material. On the contrary, as I thought could happen before coming to Japan, I'm involved in so much that I just haven't had time to sit back and write about my adventures.

I've done a lot lately, and whenever I think about updating this I also think about the million other tasks I've given myself. "You're in Japan, so get to it and study Japanese, or go places that are only in Japan." Even now I'm itching to get back to studying Japanese by working on either reading the text closer from the beginning, compiling vocabulary to create a list on a program I downloaded [Anki, great for virtual flashcards], or play a kanji game that organizes them by grade learned [Tadashii Kanji Kakitori-kun].

One of the things that I expected when coming to Japan is that I would get culture shock, but it hasn't come. Not to say that I don't miss everyone back at home, but perhaps that I'm too busy to think about the things I would normally do in Maryland. And at the same time, I wonder whether I'm integrating myself into the culture enough. I hang out with American friends, watch American shows online [Heroes], and talk to Jasmin and other friends [from back home] all the time. Being with a host family has forced me to be on my toes with Japanese, but I'd like to have more 日本人友達 [Japanese friends] to hang out with.

Like usual, I've let my work get out of control. Perhaps I just give myself too many tasks, but for a long time now I've noticed that I simply don't have the time to be bored. So much for leading a simple life! The key here, of course, is prioritizing, and the assignments due in the short term almost always come first, so everything else that takes a little more time is pushed to the side and contributes to the dreaded list.

Class has been going relatively well in Japanese. I got out of my oral test today with a 100%. The other tests and quizzes are probably the easiest I've encountered in the 2 years I've been studying, but that's probably due to the difficulty of Nadayoshi 先生 [sensei]. Class times are extensive, but they're broken up in such a way that we're always in a rush and don't have time to realize we've been sitting there for 3 hours. However, though homework is also relatively short and simple, I've come to dread it, since there are all these other projects I want to work on, and sometimes I'll just blow it off since I'm so tired. Perhaps my 1 hr. commute contributes to that as well.

As for my other classes, History is extremely easy and the most I have to do is take notes; we haven't even had a test and won't be getting a midterm. But with Foreign Policy, next month we have a book review due on a book I've barely started. I have a feeling the pressure close to that date is the only thing that will bring me to get it done, but Jasmin is coming for 9 days and I doubt I'll be reading much then. Maybe I should have taken some art classes... but I can't think about that or I might regret my decision.

Off the top of my head, here are some topics I'd like to cover:
-Tokyo Game Show [done!]
-Nagoya Matsuri [actually Owariasahi Matsuri, and like I said it's coming]
=Kodomo Matsuri [done!]
-Nagoya Castle [done!]
-Whatever other event pics I've taken [done?]
-Neko Matsuri [done!]

There you have it! As you can see, I had reasons for not updating this blog as often as demand was probably there. And now with no demand whatsoever, here come the posts, right? :p As you'll see I got better about doing things with Japanese people, but still not to the extent I would have liked. Expect another one of these style posts in the near future.

Kodomo Matsuri

The morning after going to Nagoya Castle (I was on a roll!), my host mom dropped me off on the doorstep of my friend Joel's host parents' house. It was my first time there, and he showed me around a bit and introduced me to his cat, who appeared to be threatening to jump out the window. His host parents returned a short while later and we set out on the road. Our destination? A festival (matsuri) for kids (kodomo)!

From what I can remember, it was a good 40 min. drive (during which we watched sports on the car TV) from the host parents' home to their daughter's. She lived there with her husband, son (Joel's host grandson? or son? Or does it work like that... lol), and their newborn baby. They also live right next door to her in-laws, with a beautiful garden separating the two houses.


We were already late to the start of the festival, and after a quick introduction we hurried to meet up with the kids on their path. These were elementary school kids carrying a golden shrine model to the nearby shrine, for a good luck blessing and candy from the priests. I had the chance to chat with some kids who weren't carrying the float, and at the end of the journey we took a group photo - all of the kids, and then me and Joel. It seemed a little funny, sure, but we never expected this picture would later be published in a local newspaper. haha


As it turned out, there were five different groups that were carrying in floats, and after taking some good pictures of the shrine we returned to the house for a quick break. We had some delicious snacks that included melon cream soda *drools*, then Joel and I went to hang out with the grandson in his room, later joined by his cousins - a boy and a girl. They were older and knew a bit of English, but were obviously much more confident in Japanese so we stuck with that. We chatted about topics from Naruto to travels to Guam, and they gave us small Gundam figurines as a gift (Chris J., you should know how special those are!). I also got a handkerchief from the grandson's friend, which was very nice and I still use it to this day.

For lunch, the whole family took us out to a very traditional Japanese restaurant, my first one where sitting on the floor was required. No one seemed to actually be trying to sit properly so I didn't bother either. :p I remember the meal being delicious, whatever it was, and for dessert we had fireworks ice cream (ice cream with sparklers) to celebrate Joel's and his host parents' grandson's birthdays.


Finally, we returned to the shrine to prepare for another big event. It turned out that they celebrated men who were turning 40 (I think) that year by having them stand on a platform and throw mochi (rice balls), bread, and other candy or snacks into the crowd. They separated the adults in the front and the kids in the back and let the fun times begin. And let me tell you, it helps being a tall gaijin (foreigner), except when it falls onto the ground (just give up, those ojii-sans have you beat). Of course, we found out later that only the men's families usually participate. Oops!


We got back and went to the inlaws' house to compare and trade our stashes. After a small snack, we played/learned some Japanese board games, which was a lot of fun. Then the family showed Joel and I a shrine that they had for their deceased loved one, and taught us a prayer associated with it. It was so nice of them to include us in their family activities, and I felt bad that I wouldn't see them again for the rest of my trip, and probably my life.

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Nagoya Castle

Yet another item on the long list of "Things Japan has but America Doesn't Let's Cry About It" is castles! Specifically actual, traditional castles dating back at least 3-4 hundred years would be nice for historical appreciation, but we wouldn't object to refurbished ones either. For better or worse, the local Nagoyajou (Nagoya Castle) was refurbished after being burned to the ground during WWII. For that purpose, my host parents made it clear that they weren't quite as wild about it as other castles, but it would still be a good experience.

For having been over a year ago, I can still remember the event as if it were yesterday. I remember passing the elementary school sports day, studying kanji cards on the drive into the city, and picking up my small Death Note bag out of the car to catch up with my host parents. The castle is surrounded by a large moat completely dry of water, and trees line the walking path that Mitsuko-san tells me is beautiful during Spring when the sakura (cherry blossoms) bloom. She then describes a field trip she went on in school that had the kids climb the moat walls - and I think she mentioned there was water then, too.


We finally got to the entrance, where my host parents paid my ticket fare despite my clear objections. I'm never good at that... The symbol of Nagoya Castle was a famous golden dolphin (that totally doesn't look like a dolphin), which sits at the top of the castle and is replicated throughout the castle grounds. The area around the castle was actually quite large and it took us a bit of a walk through gardens and paths to get there. When we got closer to a one side of the castle, there was an opening across the path where you could see part of the city, and the distinction it made felt rather surreal. We made a quick stop in a small hut with lots of figurines, in which I remember thinking "I'll never remember going in here at the end of the day." Take THAT, memory!


We made it to the castle at last, and the outside architecture alone was awesome. On the inside, however, the focus was less on traditional architecture than on models, pictures, paintings, and other forms of historical education that you might find in a museum. And that's essentially what it was. They even had a mock-up town on one floor that included a rest area, library, armor shop, and models of food you may find in feudal Japan, complete with lights that dimmed every once in a while to signify night time. Lastly, at the very top there was a small git shop that sold just about anything loosely related to Japan. It was fun, I learned a lot, but it just didn't feel authentic enough. For dinner, we ate on the castle grounds for some traditional Nagoya cuisine, including kishimen noodles (very thin), sweet miso dip that covered fried katsu, and an anko sweet. Delicious!


When we left Nagoya Castle, we still had one more stop - the Noh theater across the street. Once again, the outside architecture was beautiful; zen and simplistic, with clear water running under and around the building. We went inside and learned that a wedding was taking place in the main theater. My host parents talked a friend who worked there into letting us walk INTO the wedding, to take pictures and videos quietly from the back. To this day, this is the only wedding I've ever been to, and it was highly traditional in Shinto and Buddhist practices. And after all was finished, my host parents had me take pictures with the bride, groom, and guests. x_X What a gaijin! We played around with some masks in the hall and then headed home for the night.


Ahh, natsukasii...

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Neko Matsuri

One of the biggest parts of the Japanese culture is their passion for festivals. Seasonal festivals, city & town festivals, holiday festivals, fertility festivals, you name it and there's a chance they celebrate it in a big way. One year ago today (that's how behind I am on blogs), I attended the Neko Matsuri - or Cat Festival - in Nagoya, Japan. Yes, they celebrate how awesomely cute cats are. They may have this festival in other areas as well, perhaps at other times, but in Owariasahi it seems to be in late September.

Saturday the 27th, I must have been off doing other things because my host parents had gone to the festival and took pictures on their own. They came back and showed me what a fun time they had, so I decided to go with them when they returned the following day.

"Downtown" Owariasahi was only a 5-min. or so drive away from our house, to the last Meiji station on the map. It didn't initially look like a whole lot was going on, but as we approached the main building we saw a huge banner, heard music playing, and saw a large cat statue out front. Inside they were selling replications of the large cat in at least a hundred statues and omiyage of varying sizes and designs. There were also sections for arts and crafts, and I got a temporary cat tattoo on my hand that proved quite difficult to get off later.


As we were walking to the shopping arcade, my host parents told me that in order to fit in I would have to get my face painted like a cat. But, but there were lots of people, especially adults, without any face paint at all! Oh, that didn't matter, I was a foreigner and needed to experience a life's worth of activities in four months. So we found a lady in cat ears to paint my face, and soon enough... I was a cat.


We shopped (and pranced) around the area a bit more, and it seemed like the stores had been cleared out completely and replaced with all cat-stuff. So I got key-chains, cell phone charms, and stickers, but had to leave before I had too much omiyage to carry home.

On our way to play games outside, we finally saw our first (and only that day) REAL cats, in the way of two kittens hiding under a parked car. They were cute but we didn't get to pet them. :/ At the games area, I competed with host mommy Mitsuko-san at scooping small cat figurines out of a tub of water using a paper scoop. I didn't even realize it would break until Mitsuko-san's did, but I still managed to get a few more. Then I won a couple more games and got more statues as a prize. Yay!


I had just enough time to wash my face and take another couple last-minute pictures, before running to catch the train to meet friends for my next adventure. I was so busy in Japan!

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