all the way to the edge of this world

I've been accepted to take a tour of Beijing this summer! Check back to this blog in the summer for my next adventure.

我 很 高兴!

Last night, I went to some little bar in Musashi-Koganei with my host mom and a few of her friends. For a while, we were the only people in the place. There was a matsuri (festival/parade) in the area the same night, and my host mother wanted to show me a matsuri because I wouldn't be able to see the massive one in Aomori this August.

The streets were crowded. The parade was huge, with tons of dancing and shamisen and taiko and flutes and kids running around in yukata holding bags of kingyo they caught from the games. So cool! I wish my camera's battery hadn't have died during it. It made me want to take up playing taiko. I think I'm going to do it.

When the parade was over, we headed back to the bar where it was pretty much filled up. There was a karaoke machine, so we could sing in front of people we didn't even know. A drunk salaryman serenaded me with an enka song (lol I don't think he knew I was not Japanese) but he had a good voice and kept blowing kisses at my host mom and her friends. Later, I sang Ladybird Girl by the pillows. :)

Today I'm going to see Yuriko. We're gonna do karaoke and eat yaki-nikku.

Finished up finals.
Last night was the farewell party for everyone in the class. Maybe it will be the last time I will see most of these people, I don't know, but I hope it isn't the last time.

My previous host dad showed up (the ones with the adorable kitten that wanted to kill me) and my current host family. My host sister Izumi was going on a class trip, so I won't get to see her right before I leave. She left me a very cute note which I read during breakfast yesterday morning and I started tearing up. I LOVE YOU IZUMI!!!!!! We went to an Italian restaurant the other night and the owner of the restaurant was talking to me, I told him the pizza was good (it was!). He looked like a bald, Japanese Mario. I also told him my last name and he was like "I know Italian!" and they sang happy birthday to someone in Italian (so funny, in Japan).

After the party I met this cool guy that liked the pillows and went to his apartment and we listened to music for a few hours. He was really nice.

I need curry.

Went to Chiba Prefecture today by car with my host family to visit my host dad's parents. While most people think that all of Japan is city-like Tokyo, Chiba is only two hours away from Tokyo and it's basically nowheresville, with farms and stuff. His parents have a nice yard, a garden, chickens, and a huge house.

We basically ate the whole time, then everyone took a nap (typical of even my grandparent's house when I visit hahahaha). Izumi played the violin and we watched some sumo and went for a walk.

Guys, I just got back from a 100 yen store, where I heard the pillows play on the radio.

I spazzed of course.

It was the third eye.

This was the first time I've heard the pillows on the radio, anywhere. I'm so happy and I almost cried.

Here's the video for it:

Went to Shibuya after presentations today (I haven't been here in over a month). This time, we explored the classier, less love-hotel infested regions of the trendy district in Tokyo. I also went with Jad, Steve, Natsue, Ani, and Anthony, which I lost as soon as I was distracted by Hachiko's doggy statue, two guys giving out Free Hugs, and the Tokyo Jazz Museum's performance on the street corner providing a cool soundtrack to my wandering.

We walked around the 109 Shibuya shopping mall (which is massive) and I found some cool things, but most stuff was wallet-murdering expensive there. I found some upa-rupa keychains (yknow, the axotol) and a realistic strawberry necklace for 300 yen. The 109 Shibuya is famous for providing Japan's consumer economy with Engrish t-shirts that would make your English teacher commit seppuku and the essential Hello Kitty rhinestone covered tricycle (every Japanese person owns one, and if you don't, you're poor and uncool).

Then Anthony decided it was a good idea to go to Tower Records and to point out a pillows live DVD on the shelf (which btw, they're playing a concert tonight 2 hours away by train and I'm missing it!) so I got it. YEAH, and Moon Gold and Kool Spice because I'm old school.

Meanwhile, I threw some gel in my hair and grew an ugly, messy afro during the course of the day.

Oh and I met a cool fellow foreigner in Mitaka yesterday that lives in the apartment next door. His name is Kermit and he told me that Mitaka had 3000 foreigners living in it. I had no idea!

Today was pretty much fabulous. I saw a very smelly hobo on the train this morning. He was massive and smelled so awful. Then after class, my group discussed some stuff for our project and Jad, Steve, and I went to Harajuku. Even though I've been through Harajuku, I've never actually been there to look around. Since I didn't need to be in Yuraku-cho until 6, we wandered around Harajuku for a while looking at all the clothes stores and stuff.
We ran into Anthony who was just chilling and eating a crappy burger at Lotte Burger. Then we did Purikura and decorated them (pictures coming soon because Jad stole them). We looked at more stores (I took many pictures of Harajuku) and then went to the food court and we talked to some girls there about being Waseda students. Everyone's really impress when they find out we're Waseda students. :3
Also, there were too many other gaijin there so we didn't feel very cool or different. Harajuku wasn't a big deal lol.
And then I left the boys because I knew if I didn't get out of Harajuku now, I wouldn't make it to Yuraku-cho in time for TAKARAZUKA! But first, I went to a make up store and was crouching down to look at the lipstick on the bottom row, and there were some schoolgirls on the stairs and they giggled and I looked up and saw panties... uh yeah. That was awkward.
Okay so I got to Yuraku and walked around for like an hour trying to find the Takarazuka Revue. I walked by it a few times before ending up in practically Ginza from the messed up directions people gave me (I did get to see the poster for the 20th Century Boys movie though... I want to see the movie, which comes out this August. I read 24 volumes of the manga series and the cast looks so much like the characters in the manga it's so awesome!).

Takarazuka was awesome. It was so girly and sparkly and pretty. The singing was awesome and the dancing was so well choreographed. For those who have no idea what Takarazuka is, it's basically an all girls acting troupe where some of the girls play male parts. The male actors were so cool and my host mom was totally swooning over their "kakkoi" ishness. I would say that the audience was 95% female, and the 5% males were the husbands of the ladies there and they pretty much fell asleep as soon as the curtain raised. As for the story, it was Red Hot Sea by the Flower Group. I don't know if it had a much of a storyline (there was some love story in Egypt and then someone in jail with tons of melodrama and then after the intermission there was girls in brightly colored fish patterned costumes and a disco ball hanging from the ceiling as they did the can-can so IDK if there was really much of a story). I only bought a pamphlet which I can scan when I get home, but I took a ton of pictures of the inside of the pamphlet with my camera. I think I want to write my final paper comparing and contrasting Takarazuka with Kabuki, which they are obviously very different (like, I didn't fall asleep during Takarazuka because it was just too suburashi!!).

Today, for our project, my group and I headed over to Kudanshita to visit another shrine. Yasukuni is a very famous shrine to commemorate all Japanese soldiers who have fought and died in any war. Also, today was one of the hottest days in Tokyo, and the fact that there were many vendors selling grilled/boiled/fried food in Yasukuni made it feel like it was 120 degrees. In the museum, I went around and took notes on basically everything that contradicts or glosses over what US history books say about Japan so we can compare. The museum was crowded with old people who were probably directly effected by WWII in some ways. Two old ladies tried to speak Japanese to me and I was like "ah gomenasai, eigo desu." or something. I mean, I should stand out because I'm not a pencil thin Japanese girl but oh well (BELIEVE IT OR NOT, THERE IS SUCH THING AS FAT GIRLS IN JAPAN, BUT THEY ARE ALWAYS HIDDEN OR IN OTOME ROAD).

Then Steve and I went to a Subway and omg Japanese tuna fish sandwiches are awesome, they just didn't put enough tuna in it. I'm eating candy right now though because the hard candy they have here is really cool (yogurt flavored grape, Mitsuya Cider, blueberry mint and cream!).

Then I came home and called Jenni on skype and I feel really happy for some reason. And Vinzi IMed me because we're in similar time zones (she's in China).

THE COLLECTORS ARE AN AWESOME BAND OMG.

My host mom and I just ate Thai curry while listening to and discussing the lyrics of songs by the pillows and Mr. Children. She's a huge Mr. Children fan. Has anyone seen me when I get all fangirl about Sawao? She gets like that about Sakurai, even calling him Sakurai-kun, and trying to describe how cute his face is while he is singing. I like my host mom. lol we're going to have fun at Takarazuka tomorrow.