Sakai- class trip

Phew. I've just arrived home from a trip with my classmates.

There are yearly winter and summer trips for this particular class that I'm taking, and as usual I participated. The Winter trip is usually for the 3rd year students - who have to prepare a kind of framework for the dissertation that they (I) have to write.

I barely slept on Monday and Tuesday and only barely finished an outline at about 2 in the morning the day we all had to go. I'm still fuzzy on my topic but it will be something to do with relief operations. (Like humanitarian aid/intervention, the ICRC, Medecins Sans Frontieres etc)

Our trip this time was to Awaji (the island- which is by the way, a first for me). Of course, as per 'tradition' it is an onsen trip so we had access to hot springs but a relatively nice view of the beach. The bus we took from Sannomiya barely took an hour and a half. We left at almost 11am and so arrived a little after 12 noon. I'm not sure if it's the weather, the bus or the roads there but I was car/bus-sick for almost the whole way that I could barely walk straight after getting off the bus.

After arriving, we had an hour break for lunch before proceeding to the meeting room (which was actually a very fancy-like mini-hall that completely overwhelmed me). There was a podium and a microphone and everything! It was just a little too much for the 12 of us (oh, that was 5 3rd year students including me, 6 2nd year students and the professor) - so we rearranged the tables to a big rectangle and made ourselves comfortable. 4 hours straight (well, there was a 10-minute break in between) for the presentations - approximately 30-45mins per student. I was so embarrassed in the beginning because I only had one sheet of A4 to give out as a handout whilst the others mostly had an A3 sheet... twice of what I had managed to prepare. BUT! It turned out much better than expected. As usual my extremely kind professor summarised everything I wanted to say and gave me due corrections and even sorted out what I should be doing next. (T.T) I'm always forever grateful to him. The others gave excellent plans for their own topics as well.

When the presentations ended we had some time to spare before dinner so we all decided to go and take a dip in the hot springs. I'm getting fairly used to the hot springs now, though I still cringe at the fact of the need to strip whilst amongst complete strangers. Anyway. I went out with my host family (the one I hadn't met in 3 years) just last week, and they took me (and Bolor) to a public bath house that had a rotenburo (outdoor spa). -The hotel in Awaji also had the rotenburo (woot!)! It's probably about on the list of my favorite activities whilst here in Japan. The rotenburo (outdoors, as I mentioned before) can be quite challenging to reach (seeing as we have to step out to the cold outdoors, it still being winter here). But there is definitely some pleasure in being outdoors in the cold while sitting inside a huge bathtub (sort of) - full of hot, steaming water, looking over towards the sea and hoping for the clouds to disappear so we could catch a glimpse of the stars... which we couldn't. But that still doesn't ruin the appeal of the rotenburo to me.

Anyway. Dinner was very traditionally Japanese. I even managed to finish half my plate of sashimi before giving the rest to someone else. I'm good with sashimi - but to 100% okay with it just yet. Nami and Yukichi (the other 3rd yr girls) and I went back to take on the rotenburo again for an actual bath after dinner - afterwhich we rejoined the whole group to what is probably the main event of the trip - the night entertainment. Last year we the 2nd yr students cooked up a quiz - something the 2nd yr students this year decided to hold as well. Only after the quizzes- there was another session Bakuro-taikai. Basically everyone had a list of questions prepared before-hand that had to be answered. Most of the questions had to do with romance, relationships etc. ...Last year we all stayed up till 5 in the morning talking, but this year everyone was so tired that we all ended up sleeping at around 2am instead. Which was great because some of the other girls and I had decided to go and use the rotenburo again to watch at least the sunrise. Well. We were half an hour too late but it still felt good.

The next day (today), we had planned to go to a museum but then cancelled it in favour of going strawberry-picking! We went to a place called England Hill, a farm-park where we made a bee-line towards the strawberry-picking area. It was a whole load of fun going around. We also went to play with the sheep (lol) and then went off to look at the koalas and parrots etc etc. We were hanging around a flower garden when suddenly everyone just sat down and did not move for some time. It was obvious that everyone was getting tired. So we all decided to get a move on and just go back to Sannomiya.

We arrived at 4.30pm and, well, seeing as everyone slept on the bus back - most of them wanted to go back. Whereas Shino, Asami and I went around and did a little shopping. I think we spent nearly an hour looking inside this shop called Lush with all their bath-related goods. We even hovered over this place that gave free facial-pack samples and tried quite a few ourselves. I think I may have bought my first ever facial-pack. I think I may be trying it for the first time... very very soon. LoL. It was 6pm by the time we felt like going home... to which point I dragged them to a tea and jam store hahaha... I even bought some myself. I loooove mix-berry jams. Then, we finally got really tired and so decided to just head back home.

Which leaves me to where I am now. Haha...

Well. I thought that I'd just write about what I've been doing. It does seem as though I haven't done anything like this recently.

Anyway. Here's to a peaceful slumber-filled night.

I hope that annoying dog that my neighbour has doesn't start barking it's mad little head off tomorrow morning because I really need sleep. I don't think I've ever felt as murderous towards anything as that stupid dog. And maybe its owner.

Mamma Mia!

Well. Since the movie was finally out - Bolor and I went to watch it!

I admit I was extremely apprehensive and skeptical at first but it turned out to be embarrassingly good!

Tomorrow I'm going to meet up with my host family - I haven't seen them in 3 years!

booksbooksbooks...

I went up to borrow books from the library today and what ho! It was snowing!!

Well, it wasn't snowing so much or else I would've doubled back to my apartment, but it was enough to bother my glasses.

I'm working on trying to figure out how to write a thesis. Actually, more like, how to compile what to write in a thesis. Whatever. That was why I went up to borrow (probably almost 5kgs worth of) books from the Social Sciences Library. (=__=) I didn't walk up of course - went up with a bus, but I walked back to the apartment. I forgot how heavy books can be. And how far the apartment is from the S.S.Library.

I should really start looking for online journals instead.

Long awaited pictures!!

First off!! My baby V aio! (which is barely bigger than both my hands put togethere!) lol





And now the purikuras I took today with Tomoko!!

We hadn't seen each other in so long so we decided to go and have lunch at Hep5 and take purikuras afterward!! hehe.. Purikura.... it's been soooo long...









And these last two are my favorite!!

Bastard Keynesianism. (I'm not kidding - that's the name of my reference book hehe)

I'm dyyyyyinnngggggg.

I was so sure that I never signed up for economics classes....

Then why am I reading up on Keynes and Bretton Woods????

Another page and a half left and I'm free.

One page and one half.

WHY does that seem soooo very far way...

Seriously, I'm half in tears right now hahaha (though mostly from laughter at how pathetic my situation is)...

I'm goin' crazeeeeeeyyyy.....


Okay. That was sufficient complaining for the day. I hope. I'm going to go watch another episode of Kuroshitsuji and laugh my head off for about half an hour and then go back to this last page and a half that I need to write.

Yes. Then I'm going to sleep. I need sleeeeep...

post-last exam

My mistake, it was a Urban Culture - not Civil Culture. Anyway. It's over. It just finished.

I have no idea if I answered the question correctly. All I did was splash all around about view of how identity is made and who/what controls man's destiny/actions. Hahaha... ugh. ....


(=__________=)



Seriously.

I'm off to write my report now. This next one is.... 日本思想交流論... Exchange of Japanese Thoughts/Idea. ...?



Which means... I'm going to have to go and borrow a book on Japanese history... post-WW2, which means, economics!!!! Eeeeeep.

Sometimes I wish I took some beginners classes in Econs.

Wait.

I think I may have.

Uuuuuhhhhhh.... but it was in Japanese!!! But. I guess I'll go hunting for An Idiot's Guide to Economics or something like that. LoL. I hope they have it though. I didn't realize how necessary some /some/ knowledge of economics is, studying what I am studying. Doing what I'm doing.

市民文化論

That Civil Culture exam I've been reading all these books from is in 4 hourssssss......

(=____________=)

I'ma sooo dead. LoL. I have no head for philosophy. Just what exactly am I supposed to write about???