Final Reflection: Jennifer Hong

As this Senshu program winds down to it's final day(s) I just can't seem to wrap my head around how I will no longer be able to come back to our international house after a "long" day full of many experiences. Admittedly I will not be leaving the dorm right after the program, I will be spending a couple more nights, but about half of us will be heading home, a bunch of us will be travelling together for a couple weeks, while others will travel solo.

The time we had together at this international house, chatting with each other and the Japanese students until late at night, waking up at the crack of dawn to finish studying and the homework I couldn't bring myself to do the night before thinking why on earth did I stay up so late last night, skipping breakfast, heading to classes and working hard together with classmates learning Japanese, going to the cafeteria for a delicious affordable lunch after classes, walking down the hill to Mukogaoka-Yuen Station to have the train take us to various destinations to explore Japan, occasionally rushing back to the international house to shower before the showers close otherwise we'd have to wake early the next morning to do so, and then rinse and repeat.

It feels as though we all landed at Narita Airport just yesterday, before we knew it a month had already passed. Though the nerves I felt before leaving Calgary are a distant memory, the nervousness and the worry of will I be responsible enough to care for myself for a month without my family to look out for me. It turns out I am quite capable of not starving myself to death and being able to do my own laundry without setting the international house on fire, though I still haven't attempted to cook for myself (laughs).

The nonchalant greetings common of Japanese people we so clumsily got accustomed to, the ohayou's, itadakimasu's, gochisousamadeshita's, ittekimasu's, itterasshai's, tadaima's and okaeri's we would occasionally forget to say during our first week here has pretty much become second nature for all of us. The feeling of family and home created by those daily greetings.

To actually think that all these things that have become such a natural part of my life here in Japan will be things that will no longer be such a natural part of my life, it's no exaggeration to say it's enough to make me want to break down and start bawling.

This one month here at Senshu University was both long and short, I've reverted to my bad habit of pretending unpleasant things don't exist, but reality is repeatedly slapping me in the face. The cardboard boxes in the dining area for donating unused toiletries, perishable foods, people walking by with cardboard boxes ready to ship out, people rolling their suitcases by, my Japanese friends begging us not to go back home, the list goes on and on. Clearly someone out there is not having me pretending this is not a thing.

Just like how before I left for Japan, actually being so scared and seriously thinking about dropping out of the program because of my nerves and just pure and uncontrolled fear. The time came to pass and I was whisked away to Japan by plane unable to catch my breath, The time I had here in Japan will come to pass before I am ready, there were both good and bad aspects of my time here, but I do not regret one moment that I had here. If I ever get the opportunity to return to meet with my Japanese friends again I will not hesitate to take up that chance. I want to thank everyone for all the wonderful and irreplaceable memories I have made here in Japan. 

Japan a final refletion

Having spent close to a month in Japan the time to return grows ever nearer. Although I wish I could spend more time here the restriction placed on be the beast known as money has voiced the end of the trip. But i digress, The trip has been wrought with many a good experience. I walked more than I have walked in the past year of my life, honestly not saying much but trust me I walked a lot. Many a time I went to Akihabara to peruse the Enemy of wallets, Anime/game goods. Walking from store to store, and climbing the many flights of stairs present in anime shops, quickly added up to quite the distance walked. Despite the large amount of walking Due to the fresh scenery and experiences I did not really feel the tiredness until the train ride home. However, despite the tiredness each Trip was extremely fun.

The next thing that I wish to talk about in regards to my trip is the home visit. The home visit was without a doubt the most nerve racking thing within the plans of this trip. the events leading up to meeting my host family were filled with deep breathing and panicked pacing. However after meeting and spending time with my host family I am happy that it is required by the program. my host family was extremely nice and allowed me to experience many fun and interesting things. on the first day ther
e I Made and ate takoyaki for the first time. It was delicious and making it together with my host family was fun. on the second day with them i was brought along to the family's karate lessons. Although I felt as if I would die from over exercising the experience was fun. On the final day I together with my host family climbed a mountain.. The mountain going by the name ooyama was incredibly difficult to climb the path was as off-road as can be.

 After climbing a a natural staircase to the top of the mountain i was greeted with the amazing sight from the top.

At the top of mountain, sasuga nihon, there was a restaurant although the selection was limited and I along with my host family ate cup ramen. Due to being on top of a mountain it was far better than regular cup ramen. after finishing climbing the mountain i was faced with the sad fate of parting with my host family. Although the time spent with them was very small it was a very good experience.

During our stay there were also many organized tours and field trips. The tour of kamakura for example was an extremely fun experience.

being toured around by my conversation partner was a very extremely fun and I was able to see many cool sights such as, the daibutsuen,

 and the bamboo forest.

 Although at the end of  the day I was utterly exhausted I was still extremely satisfied. The field trip to Asakusa was incredibly interesting Although the transit their was tiring the actual place was beautiful. The shrine/temple or whatever the proper terminology is was huge and an amazing sight.

the ceremony that took place was also interesting, although I did not know what was going on I still found it fun to watch.

The final thing i want to talk about is my trip to takaoosan with my conversation partner. takaoosan is another mountain in japan. Compared to ooyama  takaoosan is extremely easy to climb the entire path is paved and relatively flat. After a relaxed walked to the top, stopping at many little shrines the whole way up we reached the peak. From the peak you could see fujisan and ooyama. the entire experience was extremely fun and the view from the top was extremely beautiful.

ONe more thing I almost forgot to talk about was food. The food is delicious and cheap. Near the place we are staying there is many amazing and cheap restaurants here is some pictures


As for my final thoughts on the trip. It was good....




The fresh places I have gotten to see. The people I have gotten to meet. The practice with the language have all been extremely good experiences. Although I am not ready to return to Canada  the memory's I have made are something I will never forget. If possible I will try to once more study abroad in japan before graduating.

Reflection: Hager

When we were told that the month would fly by before the trip, I didn't quite believe it. Now, days away from my return to Calgary, I have to admit that time really has flown by in the blink of an eye.

If you'd asked my what my favourite part of Japan would be before coming here, I'd probably say something like "the food" or "all the cool shops and sights". While I do love the aforementioned things, what's really made this trip special is the people I've met and the friends I've made.

In all honesty, I was incredibly nervous because I hadn't met any of my fellow Calgarians before the culture sessions. I was filled with all sorts of worries: would I get along with everyone? Would I be able to make friends? I'm so glad to say that I didn't have any need to be worried.

My fellow Calgarians, roommate, the RA's, and all the conversation partners and friends I've made along the way have been nothing less than welcoming, open, and kind. When I've been stressed, confused, or just plain bored, there's always someone there to help. Even though I'm so far away from my family, I almost never felt lonely (though at times, loneliness can't be helped when you're in a new, different place). As much as I'm going to miss things like the Japanese convenience stores and efficient transit systems, it's thinking that I won't be able to see everyone all the time that makes my heart ache. I'm so lucky to have met everyone. I'm at least thankful that we live in a time where I can keep in contact with people on line.

Another challenge that I was wary of was, well, actually using Japanese. I've been studying for a few years at university but still, speaking Japanese in the classroom isn't going to compare to being in Japan and having to speak it 24/7...

That being said, I decided that there was only one thing to do: just jump straight in and do my best. My goal wasn't to speak perfect Japanese- it was to speak understandable Japanese. I think that way of thinking really helped me out. Rather than stress out about messing up, I just spoke. No matter how strange some of my sentences may have sounded at first I just wanted to get comfortable speaking it. I found that all the Japanese students were more than happy to help me out. They gently corrected me when I needed, as well as complimented my speaking abilities. While I know I still have a long ways to go, I've become much more confident in my Japanese skills. I feel like I know enough to get by- I can have conversations and joke with friends, go to stores and restaurants on my own, as well as ask for directions when I lose my way (as I did, many times. I have a horrible sense of direction). I'm so excited to continue learning more and more Japanese, and I hope that I can return soon and keep putting my skills to the test.

Culture was another point of stress for me. I was worried about whether I'd accidentally do something rude or offensive. I very much believe in the saying "when in Rome, do as the Romans do" so I really wanted to fit in as best as I could. I was prepared for a lot of things, thankfully. When it came to things like aisatsu I was fine with remembering things like "tadaima" and "ittekimasu". I always made sure to use the phrase "つまらないものですが” when giving omiage. That being said, I did make some mistakes here and there. The one I remember most clearly is during my first trip to the grocery store. I went to bag my items next to the register like we do in Canada- turns out there's a totally different area to do so here. Thankfully I haven't done anything truly offensive, just a lot of small mistakes.

One of the less stressful things I was looking forward to was the food. My expectations were both met and exceeded. I got to try many delicious things like okonomiyaki, karaage, and Japanese style curry. Even natto was pretty tasty! The only food that didn't agree with me would have to be umeboshi, it was slightly sour for my taste. One of my friends/conversation partners, Rina, visited me at the dorm and taught me how to cook a japanese meal. We made some grilled saba, miso soup with wakame and tofu, tamagoyaki, boiled vegetables, and rice. It was tasty and informative!

I could go on and on about my experiences, but I think this post will be too long. I'm going to wrap it up here, because I'd say these are the most important points of my experience. The friends I've made, the language, the cultural barriers, and of course, the cuisine. This month really has been life changing, in a good way. I'm so glad I came on this trip. Japan is a great country, and though like every other country it does have flaws, I really love it here, and I can't wait to save up and come back again.

Senshu2016 Final Reflection - Sean Ko

As my trip nears its end, I look back at the days I've spent in Japan. I remember when I was first telling my best friends how scared I am before coming, because it is a new experience just waiting in the yonder. The days quickly accelerated to the fateful day of my departure. As I was waiting for my flight anxiously, I remember fiddling around with my phone, sending messages for the last time for quite awhile. I remember playing Shiritori with a few of my comrades in arms before our flight as we feigned ignorance to our nerve-wrecked emotions. However, the moment I landed in Japan, I decided to do one thing - if it's the last thing and the only thing I'd do, I'd keep my eyes open for as long as I can, for as much as I can, to absorb and paste the memories I would be making deeply into my brain, and engrave the best ones. Turns out, all my memories are etched to my head, and I remember them as if it was only yesterday all these events took place.

Upon landing, we had an almost 2 hour bus trip to the Senshu University dorms. Even while travelling in the bus, I kept my eyes peeled and absorbed all the scenery I could, and embraced the country of Japan in all its glory. When we reached the university, we were greeted by the RA's and RP's, and they brought us to the dorms. After a short briefing I remember the feel of the first shower I've had in almost a day - yes I actually shower thrice a day because it's a habit as a Singaporean, or so I'd like to think. After the shower, I joined the guys and walked to the convenience store, all while absorbing the beauty of my surroundings. Even buying an Onigiri and a Melon Pan in itself meant another check on my to-do list. I don't want to go into the details of everyday, but I remember every other day as clearly as I did the first day. My list of to-do's during my stay in Japan were all filled, all except one.

I am extremely happy to have been able to:
- Go to a convenience store in Japan
- Eat Melon Pan/Onigiri/Tsukemen/Ramen/Japanese Curry/and whatever else that is served almost exclusively in Japan
- Go to Akihabara
- Enjoy the sights of various temples and visiting the big Buddha statue
- Smell and hear the freshness of the sea in Odaiba, Yokohama, and Enoshima
- Tour around Kamakura
- Enter and exit the ninja restaurant
- Visit Odaiba and reminiscing the scene from Digimon
- Ride the Ferris Wheel at Odaiba
- Play and win at a crane machine
- Participate in a Home Visit
- Enjoy the nostalgia of the school bell every hour and a half in the University
- Sit and study in a Japanese classroom with great Japanese teachers
- Make many friends, including getting close to my roommate, and various other Japanese people
- Improve my Japanese
- Visit an Aquarium
- Eat at a Maid Cafe
- Visit an anime-themed cafe
- Visit a myriad of malls
- Eat Dagashi at a Dagashi store
- Sing Karaoke at a Japanese Karaoke place
- Understand the Japanese train system
- Eat at a revolving Sushi restaurant (ok I forgot what this is called)
- Meet up with my Exchange student
- Visit a Matsuri and buy foods and toys such as the Japanese yo-yo from the stores
- Bask in the culture of my dreams at full force

There are probably many others in my checklist, but all of them has been fulfilled. I can say that I will leave Japan with no regrets, though I will miss the place dearly. This trip has refilled my motivation bar to reach my dream in being an English teacher in Japan. The trip has not only made me more satisfied with my life, but has also made me create new bonds that I will treasure till the end of my life. The bonds I created stems from all the RA's, RP's, and CA's.

I especially love the RA's that have taken care of me - they're all like my brothers and sister. They're always dependable and friendly - I will especially miss jumping on top of Ryousuke and Naoki whenever I see them.

The RP's have been extremely friendly, and I have made friends with quite a few of them, and some closer than I expected - Kazuki, Ayane, Mana. But they're always there to bring life to the house, and the bonds we share is akin to that of a family.

The CA's come and go, but the returning ones that I spent most of my days with - Saudi, Miri, Yuya, Mayo, Soichi, Atsuki, Arisa, are the ones who aided in making my trip especially eventful and fun.

Thank you all who has been there during my eventful trip. There's so much more I want to write, but so little time. I might pick up more from where I left off here in the near future to convey my feelings clearly, but for now, I will leave you all with a picture of the Senshu 2016 Family:



I hope to see you all again! May our paths converge in the new future! I love you all!

Week Three: Jennifer and Ryan

For this week Ryan and I decided to visit the counterpart of the prim and demure maid cafe that was the Cure Maid Cafe and went to Maid Cafe maidreamin all for the sake of fulfilling Ryan's dream of going to this kind of cafe at least once. On our way to the cafe we ran across Maid Cafe Shangrila which was dedicated to adorable maids with a fuller sized figure, their mission is to promote positive body image which I can fully get behind, no pun intended.

Signboard outside Maid Cafe Shangrila.

Five of us had decided to go to the maidreamin, when we were ushered up the narrow steep stairs up to the second floor I was feeling a little apprehensive about this experience because I've watched YouTube video's of other people's experience with maid cafe. They were all always over the top which made it embarrassing to watch never mind experience firsthand. Imagine to my surprise I was totally alright with the entire experience. The maids were in cute little uniforms with their squeaky high pitched voices that was just the right kind of squeaky that didn't grate at my nerves.

Narrow steep scary stairs.

So sketch.

We all decided on the desert course which included a drink, desert, a little gift, and a picture taken with a cute maid (which would of course be the entire reason for going). Our drinks and deserts came out and they had us chant a little "spell" to make them delicious, which was probably one of the things I was most dreading. It was done in a more modest manner than what I had seen in videos so I was quite pleased.

Little rubber key chain that came with the desert combo.

So customized.

I'm very amused by the fact that the wet napkins are also customized.

After a little bit, a maid came by with animal ears and placed it on our heads, Ryan got an extremely full looking pair of bunny ears, which he looked absolutely fabulous in. I got a smaller pair of bunny ears, and one of our group Gaby got bear ears, We finished our cute animal parfaits and we all got our pictures taken individually with a maid and were all asked to make cute poses.

Ryan looks like he's not sure how he's supposed to feel about this.

Buncat hybrid, much cute.

Umm.

So much cute.

After this entire experience I couldn't help wonder why there are things such as maid cafes that exist, then I remembered how the maids addressed us all as masters, mistresses, and even princesses. Despite my initial thoughts before going, I was not all that embarrassed being addressed in such a way. I came to realize it was all in good fun, if I take the experience too seriously I'm completely missing the point of the maid cafe. Being in that cramped little cafe with other people also sharing the same experience, I came to understand we were in a created space occupied by cute girls in maid outfits who play a fun role to make a fun experience for people to get away from all the bustle and hustle of daily life. It's just one of the many different ways people keep themselves entertained after a hard day of work. For some curling up with a good book and escaping into the world printed on the paper, for others it's heading out for a night out in town with friends having good food and drinks. With so many different kinds of people in this world it's interesting to see how different people find different things to do to occupy their time.

It should be illegal for food to be this cute.

I think this bear is missing a nostril.

Maiddreamin is perhaps the antithesis of the disconnected experience found in cafes back in Canada. Unlike the monotonous experience of ordering a drink or snack from a disinterested shop keeper, waiting for you order to finish and finally departing from the store.
The experience at Maidreamin began outside of the door. A small Maid outfitted person was calling in customers from the streets. Opposed to Canada the people working at the cafe actually actively call in customers, spending many hours just advertising their respective shops on the streets. After being brought into the shop by the maid we were greeted with an incredibly small shop. After being seated in a very cramped table we were waited upon by maid with an unnaturally high voice. The maid spoke to us in English, probably based upon the general gaijin appearance of our group. Another difference from cafes in Canada is that you must pay a cover charge for just being seated in the cafe. The cover charge is 500 yen per person per hour.
 After explaining the cover charge the maid explained the menu options for the cafe. Within the realm of my understanding there were two main options for what you could order. option one was the food option which came with a drink, a gift, a meal, and an photo with the maid(also probably a desert but i forgot....)for some where in the mid 3000 yen range.
The other option which every one at our table went with was the desert option. The desert option was around 2200 yen and contained a drink, a desert, a gift and a photo with the maid. Each of the deserts was a parfait in the shape of some sort of animal with. The drinks were just the standard drink menu in most Japanese restaurants melon soda, cola etc... For the gift we were each given an maid outfit keychain. After placing our order we were told to perform some moe ritual. The reasons for the ritual are beyond me but I digress. Having completed the ritual  we waited for our deserts to arrive, nothing really special happened. Eventually the deserts arrived, They were good.....

Week Three: Sean and Hager

For our final blog post, Hager and I will be covering a cafe that we found near the outskirts Mukogaoka-yuen Station. The cafe was called Cafe Gusto and unlike the other eccentric cafes that we have covered in this blogpost, or very heavily themed cafe, it was extremely normal. However, what's normal in Japan would still then be different from the contemporary cafe that is seen around Calgary.

The cafe was a normal cafe where the waiters and waitresses did not dress up in any fancy clothes. They were in fact, just normal waiters you'd expect to see in a any normal restaurant. The cafe was also not themed in any specific way that caters to any individual's specific and or eccentric taste. It was a normal cafe you would expect in Japan - normal foods, a drink bar, and a very normal atmosphere. This normality is different from the normality that is seen and felt in Calgary cafes, in the sense where despite it being a cafe, it also functions as a restaurant, and has a higher quality service and food than that of the typical cafes like Quickly's or OCup in Chinatown Calgary. The food, although there are very cafe-like foods such as desserts and certain drinks, is also different from the typical cafe foods in general, because it has foods meant to be served in the restaurants such as hamburger steaks and so on. In addition, the ambience was something that of a cafe - its lighting and music gave it a very nice feel, which is not translated into Calgary's cafes in general.

The food was reasonably priced, they even had glasses of wine for only 99 yen.

Overall, for what is known to be a normal cafe in Japan is set to be a higher class than those in Calgary. The atmosphere and foods served seem to give off the vibe of that of a higher-classed society. In addition to this, Japan's normal cafes adopted a drink bar, which allows guests to have an all-you-can-drink scheme. This scheme in itself is already better than that of Calgary cafes, which served drinks at about $5 each. The Calgary cafes are generally more expensive and more backward than those compared to both Japan's normal and themed cafes.

Week Two: Sean and Jennifer

For our duo of the group, Jennifer and I decided to pay a visit to Maid Cure located in Akihabara. Not only is the cafe famous for giving off a stereotypical quiet, peaceful, and prim-and-proper vibe, it is also the work place of a character of the famous Love Live anime series that has taken quite  abit of the world by storm. As a result of having some affiliation to the Love Live series, the cafe has bits and pieces of Love Live decorations in the front of the cafe near the cashier.

Apart from the small hint of influence by the popular idol anime, Maid Cure is also different from the normal cafes you find in Calgary, namely Quickly's and OCup, in the sense where not only the maids, but also the guests are expected, and do, give off a high-class vibe, which almost makes it feel like this is a cafe for the high class - and what more to contribute to this feeling when they serve tea in the white conventional teapots, with a fairly normal (but overpriced) menu. The price of the items were very much standard to any other cafes in Japan in general, although these drinks and foods are on average slightly more overpriced than those in Calgary. However, the effort that was put into the preparation of these foods were definitely on a higher ground that those of Calgary's aforementioned cafes. Furthermore, although this is probably to protect the privacy of both guests and the maids, we were not allowed to take (many) pictures without the maids first checking the contents of the picture to deem if they were appropriate, but we did get a few to post in today's post.

Did I mention the cafe was promoting a quiet, peaceful, and prim-and-proper vibe? Well we were the only table whose voices can actually be heard by others - and we were whispering too! The cafe promotes a very quiet environment that actually allows people to work in. We noticed a few people with their mini laptops typing away at something - what, we didn't know, but we could easily infer it was for some sort of work.

Maid Cure, unlike the other cafes that surround and sprung up in Akihabara is definitely different because it has a very quiet and relaxing atmosphere, whereas the others in general are filled with noises, and the invasion of others' privacy (including one's own voice) isn't frowned upon.

The cafe is tucked away on the sixth floor of a building with shops primarily selling anime goods. We actually almost walked right past the cafe if it weren't for our eagle eyed friend who pointed it out. The first floor had an impressive amount of Gashapon machines which made it near impossible to walk away without giving it a try.

Neko Atsume gashapon from the first floor.

If you can make it through the first 5 floors without spending all your money you are rewarded with being greeted politely by a waitress in a floor-length Victorian style maid outfit. The interior of the cafe gives off a homely, rustic atmosphere with trellis-like dividers inter-woven with vines set between tables for customer's privacy. All the furniture is made from wood, and piano music is played in the background to add to the atmosphere.

Narrow stairway up to the cafe.

Front entrance of the cafe, and yes I did ask for permission despite what the sign says.

After being seated and ordering our food. I noticed everything from the napkins to the tea cups, saucers, plates, spoons, forks, knives all had Cure Maid Cafe meticulously engraved onto them. I ordered waffles and tea, and the maid carefully set out our food and poured our tea for us. Jaylene's food was decorated with a rabbit in chocolate syrup. After being taken care of in such a refined and cared for manner it's not hard to see why Cure Maid Cafe is still around since it's creation. And why it can be proudly called the first maid cafe erected in Akihabara. I feel that you can fulfill your want to be cared for but not be smothered in attention at this cafe and that is why these places are created, to momentarily be in a space where the outside world and troubles can be forgotten for a short while.

You can't see it in this image unfortunately but all the silverware is engraved with the words Cure Maid Cafe like the sign at the front entrance.

Jaylene's dish with the rabbit decoration.