Today I arrived in Japan, for the first time after studying the language for 8 years! 

The trip began in SFO, where I was almost stressed as American Airlines did not update my flight to indicate that it was now TWO HOURS EARLIER. Also, turns out my flight was Japan Airlines (very high quality). I met a classmate of mine, Andrew, and everything seemed simple enough. There was a nice picture of some boats on the wall. Making my way onto the giant Boeing (I don't know which model), where half of the passenger seats were empty, I got comfy in my chair and sat without moving or using a blanket for the 11 hour duration of the flight. It was a hot one. 

Shortly after takeoff, we were given drinks where I started stressing (for some reason) over the first Japanese I was going to use. I also was given some rice crackers as a snack. I ended up with this:

Ringo juusu onegaishimasu --> Apple juice please

Shortly after that I used my second phrase of the flight in Japanese when I received my free lunch. The attendant handed me a laminated flyer with two lunch sets and I said:

Setto 2 onegaishimasu --> Set 2 please

Starting to see a pattern here.

It was really good! As you can see in the picture there were many things. Inside the foil was some sort of marinated chicken with sautéed spinach and sesame seeds in a sauce over rice. They gave out vanilla Haagen-Dazs for desert.  All for free! 

 While doing the customs check, I honestly had no idea what I was doing and forgot a pen. So this is where I used some Japanese again:

Ano sumimasen. Chotto pen o... ---> Umm excuse me. Your pen...

My neighbor handed me her pen and I preceded to check every box "no" to indicate I am not a threat to society. I felt a little bad as it took me around 10 minutes to buy an internet pass so I could look up my hotel phone number as the government apparently needed it.  I got to text my family though. Anyway I handed her the pen and then asked for it again around an hour later as I realized I forgot to mark my flight number:

Ano sumimasen ga, mou ikkai pen o... ---> Um sorry but, one more time, your pen...

In the meantime I kept myself awake by watching Spiderman: Homecoming, Dune, and then Breaking Bad. Relatively nothing else interesting happened on the flight. And then I made it to Haneda Airport! 

Haneda Airport was not that big of a deal. It seems very intimidating as it is very busy and there are many places you can go, but the signs are in English, come on. I got stopped in immigration check in because I wrote the wrong flight number (it was booked through AA so I was technically right). I made a Japanese employee laugh as she told me not to smile for the immigration photo, I said:

Majime desu ne ---> It's serious huh

After getting through I exchanged my money and bought a PASMO, which is like a Clipper card but better as you can use it like a reloadable debit card. I eventually made it to my hotel where I learned everything is cramped and there is no heating. But hey, I got to walk to 7-11 and buy onigiri (a rice ball sandwich with fish inside).  After the group went to bed, I stayed up to meet my classmates who worked hard in Fall 2022 and Spring 2023 to be able to study abroad in Japan. Unfortunately, one of them couldn't arrive and I was getting very tired so I returned to my room. I was able to take a shower in the bathroom definitely not tailored to my higher-than-Japanese-average height, and then was able to figure out the heater! Solving the heater problem was one of the two issues, the other was the loud clanging of the trains going by. I couldn't solve it. Thanks Grandma for the pajamas!

I woke up this morning at whopping 5:30 AM because I regrettably drank a lot of green tea the night prior, and that messed with my ability to sleep somehow. But, one thing while I was sleeping was a dream where every time I turned while sleeping I was charged ¥200-300 by the hotel. Anyway, I kind of just stayed there until deciding to pack my things and get ready to leave. I also finished my onigiri and green tea from the night prior. Around 7:00 AM I went downstairs to get my free breakfast along with two of my classmates who couldn't sleep well either. The food was really good! It's what Best Western wishes it was. I stayed and talked with everyone until more people came down, finished eating, and then eventually decided to take a short trip to the currency exchange in the train station. We went there and I got my favorite coffee, Boss! We sat around and talked until Dym-sensei let us know it was time to start heading to the airport. Before leaving I bought a pair of paper-thin slippers for ¥60.

We went from our hotel to the nearby Shinagawa station and proceeded on Keikyu line until we got to Haneda Airport. Getting our bags checked and everything was not the smoothest of rides but we all made it. We adventured around the airport, and found little before heading on our flight to Matsuyama. Our flight happened to fly directly over downtown Yokohama and Mt. Fuji. We arrived in Matsuyama, after I've been learning about the city for many years.  Matsuyama Aiport was kind of small, but filled with local Mikkyan mascot characters. I got a stamp at the aiport. We took a van taxi to the Miyuki Student Dorms by a wonderful older man. Upon arrival, I met Hidding-sensei who I have met previously online three times over the past three years. We were made to do some very strenuous paper signing before being shown our rooms and the laundry list of rules that we have to follow. After finishing, we met the Japanese English language students who will guide us on our trip. Fortunately, I had already met one of them through the Ehime Winter School online Zoom session run by Hidding-sensei. His name is Yuta, and we began to get along very well. 

At first after leaving the dorm, we travelled to Lawson to grab snacks, I guess some people wanted them. Upon walking back, we could see Matsuyama Castle. We returned to our dorms to realize no one had towels for our bathrooms, so we made a journey to Daiso and I was able to talk with Yuta, and now Miki, in Japanese about various things. I spoke so much Japanese than I cannot remember any one specific thing to put. We returned once more to our dorm, but along the way I asked Yuta which restaurants he recommends. Upon his suggestion of a local udon restaurant, I asked him if we should go for dinner and he decided to ask the entire group. Once again, walking back to the dorms we realized no one had shower or soap fixtures either. So Yuta, being a real one, went and got everything for us, including a shower curtain for me. We went to the udon restaurant and I ordered nabeyaki-udon which apparently happens to be a winter special and a local specialty of Ehime. It was a kind of chicken broth or something else that was light with thick udon noodles, beef, shrimp, shiitake, among other things. It was really good and I felt bad for being unable to finish it.

We all left, and returned to the dorm. For helping us out so much today, I gave Yuta one of the special bracelets the study abroad office gave us to give to other people during our trip. I got everything configured in my room and took a shower. The bed was a pain!

**All time stamps in the pictures are unadjusted from PST, if you want the Japan time add 17 hours**

Unfortunately today started out poorly, with a downpour of rain. I woke up at 6:30 and spend one hour getting ready before some of our group decided to head to Lawson for breakfast. I bought another Boss latte and I chose some "spicy" beef curry. Morning was largely uneventful. So we got on the taxi to Ooshima!

On the way we stopped at the Shinanami Kaido Bridge visitor center, however we didn't go inside. The taxi we rode took us to the Imabari City Murakami Pirate Museum (Imabari-shi Murakami Kaizoku Myujiamu), where we discovered that pirates were as big of a thing in the area as samurai and ninjas. While walking through the museum, I unfortunately couldn't understand much of the content as it was too focused for my otherwise highly generalized Japanese. The camera feature on the Google Translate app helped, but my connection was spotty. There were many things I learned about such as the pirate ships, weapons, and castles. This pirate family, the Murakami family, ruled the Seto Inland Sea during the Sengoku period in Japan (1467-1615). They used knowledge of the dangerous currents in the area to attack others and gain control. Their power grew to a height where they could even take castles from others. It was a very nice museum, I wish I could visit longer. Afterwards we walked across the street to a ferry building that takes visitors to the ruins of the castle on Noshima Island. We didn't go to the island, but instead ate amazing Japanese curry. In Japan, curry is associated with seafaring as the Japanese Navy has historically served really delicious curry to sailors. After we finished eating, we returned to the bus and continued our day.

We went to another island called Omishima where we could visit the Oyamazumi Shrine. It is famous for a sumo fight every now and then where a man fights a spirit but in reality is just fighting by himself and making himself lose. It is called hitorizumo (one person sumo). We went through the massive shrine and walked around a tree 7 times as it apparently gives you good luck, I started to lose hope as the local Japanese stared at us confused. We went to the main shrine and paid our respects (literally) before heading to the shrine office where some people bought omamori (good luck charms), and some bought omikuji (fortune telling paper). My omikuji was very bad luck. We headed back to the taxi where we all tried the local specialty: mandaring oranges. They were like Cuties but way more juicy and harder skin. We boarded our taxi and headed somewhere.

Our taxi pulled into a small community nestled at the foot of some mountains, even the taxi driver was confused why we stopped there. Turned out we were going to hike a part of the Shikoku 88 Temple Pilgrimage. The temple we were visiting was number 38, and we climbed up the mountain to get there. We saw a very interesting orange colored beetle and beautiful views of the Shimanami Kaido Bridge. We kept going and after a while, we arrived at temple number 38 and met up with the rest of the hiking group. The rest of the hike we enjoyed a beautiful view of Imabari and the sea before arriving at a beach where everyone took pictures. We kept walking and reached our taxi, which had been waiting for us near a campground. 

Every day, we are supposed to write a short journal entry on  our trip to truly turn it into a study experience. For today, I discussed our short hiking trip and several aspects of recreation which I have learned. You can read a short excerpt of mine below:

For most the hike we went on was just a footnote in our journey, however for one familiar with the field of recreation such as myself, can notice certain things. Typically during difficult excursions, in this case a hike, we can notice a sort of "hero's journey" occur in each member of the experience (this is the purpose of recreation therapy). Despite the short duration of the hike, I have noticed a change amongst the general behavior of our group.

It seems the strenuous nature of the hike for most members of the group provided us with a shared difficult experience that allowed us to open up a little more. Jay, Connor, and Edgar as well as myself all became more relaxed and began joking more. Maybe because now we can enjoy our experience more easily, but Alyssa, Tanya, and Natalie took more pictures together today than I had seen previously. Yuta and the other Japanese students today began to joke with each other and talked more than the students did yesterday. Maybe it was just the effect of the beautiful Japanese environment as well.

Besides my study of the recreation experience, my parents also have a phrase for this kind of social development: "getting off your phone and talking to each other like it's the 80's."

We took the taxi back to Matsuyama, however we stopped somewhere to watch a beautiful sunset overlooking many small islands while eating amazing specialty ice cream but, there were clouds blocking it. I got coffee ice cream but it wasn't as good as coffee ice cream from the Sac State dining hall. No pictures to show, it wasn't too exciting. We did get to witness the Dutch Ehime University professor, Hidding-sensei accidentally be very condescending to some high schooler. It was very fun.

Around 6:00 PM we arrived at the dorm and all decided to do our assignment as no one really wanted to do it later. Around 7:00 PM we all met to go to Kura Sushi nearby with Yuta. It was okay. Afterward we went to the nearby Family Mart where I had a complete misunderstanding with the cashier when trying to buy a bottle of water. I paid the wrong total and the cashier was pointing to the total, while I thought he was asking me to donate for disaster relief (which I did of course). We all returned to our dorms as it began slightly raining.

For today's morning, I and two other students decided to just start walking somewhere before trying curry breakfast at the dorm cafeteria. We walked east of the dorm along the creek, seeing many students bike to school, until we came across the Russian Prisoner of War Cemetery. During the Russo-Japanese War in 1904-1905, Russian POW's were taken to camps in places like Matsuyama, however it was described more as a summer camp and everyone had a really good time. We ended up going back, and ordered that curry. It was very good and like every morning I drank Boss coffee.

We met up with Hidding-sensei and Dym-sensei to head to the Ehime Culture Center for a traditional tea ceremony. We waited for a slight amount of time before meeting with Matsumoto-san and other people who were going to show us. We left our coats and bags in a large tatami room before heading outside to an exterior garden and tea house. I went through the traditional hole-in-the-wall kind of opening that made everyone bow before entering (there's a lot of history) and we all stood around and watched the ceremony. Only Hidding-sensei and Dym-sensei received matcha and wagashi (teacake I guess). The entire time Matsumoto-san (an elderly woman) directed everyone around and it kind of became funny.

We left the tearoom and had a little free time, so we headed to an okonomiyaki spot that Yuta recommended. We walked way down into the city and then entered the very warm restaurant. Yuta and Yui already ordered ahead so we had food quickly after arriving there. It was Hiroshima style okonomiyaki which uses thinner dough and more noodles than the normal Osaka style version. We each got a melon soda as well as received some ice cream after our meal before realizing that we were going to be slightly late to the Ehime University meeting and rushed.

Our first meeting on the Ehime University campus was in MUSE 215 for a lecture from Hidding-sensei about some local aspects of Matsuyama including poetry. Haiku was invented in Matsuyama! After the lecture we were put into groups in order to try to translate Japanese poetry, it was very hard! We sat with an Ehime student named Denzel but he is actually studying abroad from Pennsylvania. I am not quite sure where the sheet we worked on is, but it is somewhere in my room. From there we headed downstairs to the Ehime University Museum where Dym-sensei deciding to have us recite the Buddhist sutras in practice for visiting temples as part of the famous Shikoku Pilgrimage. From there we continued to check around the museum, but as it was mainly focused on research, we found ourselves bored until we entered the bug room. So many different kinds of Japanese beetles and other bugs of different kinds. We found a free short comic book about the importance of protein and most people found it really weird. I took a copy! They were free! 

Afterward we headed outside to the Emica store (a student shop named after the school mascot). I found myself slightly late as I remembered we had to be somewhere, so I made it back to the classroom where we were going to have a food party. Some of the girls from the university prepared us food so we could all make maki rolls together. But before we began eating, a representive of the Japanese half of the Sacramento - Matsuyama Sister City Corporation came by and gave us many maps and random things as a gift. He gave me his card as I told him about my interest in the American half of the corporation. Afterward a representative of the International Office at Ehime University gave us some things and a poster referring a local traditional Japanese instrument concert (which I unfortunately could not go to). We had nori sheets, sticky white rice, thin Japanese style hot dogs, tamagoyaki (rolled omelet), and cucumber. There were many snacks spread out on tables, at this time I went and shared my Ghirardelli squares which were very popular save for the mint flavor. My classmate gave out Almond Roca which was popular as well. During a busy time I gave Ferrero Rocher and Pete's Coffee to Hidding-sensei as thanks for hosting me on the Ehime University Winter zoom meeting for the past three years. 

At my group I talked much with a Taiwanese student named Steve, and we tried natto together. Since middle school I have heard the slimy bean specialty was divisive, however I tried it and it tasted like nuts and a cheesy aftertaste. We all stayed there together and eventually we had to clean up. We all tried our best to help out with everything but as I noticed a couple girls in the back washing dishes, and my home chore being the dishes, I asked if I could help with them:

Ano sumimasen ga, tetsudatte agete mo yoroshii deshou ka? - Um, excuse me but, is it okay if I help you out?

People followed me to help with the dishes and we got done quickly. When we were done, we said our goodbyes and some of us left with Yuta to go do karaoke (a Japanese word meaning empty orchestra). We took the Iyotetsu streetcar, which is more like a one car light rail that has it's own dedicated rail line off the street. The cars are usually painted orange, like the orange specialty of the prefecture. We got off at Ookaidou (literally "Big Boulevard") a covered pedestrian street where one may say the main street is. We went to a karaoke place where we found out you can get unlimited corn soup. I sang songs like Mr. Brightside, Misery Business, The Beginning, Don't Stop Believing, Love Story, Crossing Field, Rouge no Dengon, and possibly others. We all were extremely tired by the time we ended and had to take a 35 minute walk through backstreets to get back to our dorm as the streetcar was done for the night.

**Something went wrong with my SD and/or camera so for now I believe all media is lost. This is why you don't buy cheap things.**

Today's morning I was the most tired of all days, in large part due to the late karaoke the night prior. So, I took a morning shower for the first time in a while and ate the entirety of my mom's Christmas cookies for breakfast. We then proceeded to get on the bus and ride to a town called Uchiko, which is slightly into the mountains.

We proceeded to get off into very cold weather and walk around. The first place we visited was called Uchiko-za, a traditional theater which is also protected by the government. Each tour guide was a very kind and funny elderly Japanese woman from the area. I put on slippers that ended up not fitting me at all before entering the grand theater, which is now around 100 years old. They had some people as an example sit in a small wooded off area which indicated the seating. It was very cramped, literally wooden boards slightly off the ground that indicated 5x6 foot spaces where up to 4 people would sit. From there we were shown the top of the theater trapdoor called a suppon, which is very similar to the word for the soft-shelled turtle. Afterward we stood on the main part of the stage which rotates, and then headed downstairs to what they call "Hell." They call the area underneath the stage Hell because it is almost completely dark and very hot/humid. In old times 16 men would rotate the wooden floor above. 

Afterward we headed to to the Uchiko Town Life Museum where we were able to see the lives of a well-off family that lived in the town. Nothing else to it really. From there we walked and bought some souvenirs before visiting the Kamihaga residence, which showcased Japanese construction techniques and parts about Japanese houses like the Shinto kamidana and the Buddhist butsudan. After that we travelled to a smaller village part of Uchiko city but actually way out.

After Uchiko we visited Ooda village, a very small place with around 200 people. We visited the community center that a man named Mr. Okayama started after buying an akiya (abandoned house that are very common in the countryside) and renovating it. It used to be a bookstore, but he has since turned it into somewhere that holds workshops, classes, coffee, alcohol, and a playplace for kids. There wasn't actually very much there for us at that moment, so we walked up the road to a hotel that he had also renovated. There we were given a special kind of curry and listened to a presentation by Mr. Okayama about the results of population decline in rural Japan and his own work to combat it in Ooda village. From there, we returned to the bus and went to the town of Tobe which is famous for pottery. I wrote a piece in our daily assignment being a mock report of a class I took last semester:

For context, in RPTA 42 with Professor Duncan the purpose of the class was to develop each student's understanding of the importance of places. Each question was phrased "If this place wasn't here, what would we miss out on? Why shouldn't they just turn it into a parking lot? How does this place affect the people living here right now at this moment?" If I were to write an assignment on the two places we visited in Ooda, it may go something like this:

The Do it Bookstore was previously an akiya, facing the possibility of abandonment despite being designated as a national cultural property. Luckily through the work of the new caretaker Mr. Okayama, the nearly one hundred year old building has been renovated into a new community center. If there were no Do It Bookstore, there would be no afterschool hangout for the elementary schoolers, there would be no after school English study, there would be no cafe in the town to draw in newcomers, there would be nowhere to prepare for disasters, nor would the other building, the hotel, allow people to explore the town. If the hotel wasn't there, where would we have stopped for lunch and learned about the issues in the countryside? There would be a huge financial loss to the town as well as spirit. The Do It Bookstore was a catalyst for others in the area to begin their own town improvement projects as shown on the map. If it disappeared tomorrow these people would lose spirit. 

When we arrived in Tobe, it was very empty and no one seemed to be living there. So, the Ehime University professor Hidding-sensei tried to show us around and explain with her prior knowledge. We entered a Japanese stairway kiln or however it is called. The fire from the bottom rises and can heat other floors. We went from there to a small museum dedicated to the local pottery, and then walked through the pottery factory while people were working. I felt strange literally entering their workplace without invitation and walking through. But it seemed to not be a problem, and then we headed to the store where we spent a long time.

We took the bus to the covered main street in Matsuyama called Ookaidou, and spent some time buying books in the department store. A very funny, lively Ehime student named Mai helped us choose books. I got the first volume of Doraemon, the first volume of a local series called Aoashi (blue feet), and a short novel that Mai-san chose. Afterward, we went downstairs and met two students who visited Sac State last year. Their names are Yuri and Ayumi. We all ate karaage (Japanese fried food) and then left for the arcade. 

At the arcade in the covered walking street, we stayed for quite a long time. Almost everyone won something at crane games even if they spent a lot. Someone spent so much and then asked an employee to give him the prize and they did. I won a small Jiji keychain, which was kind of the only thing I wanted. In addition, there were many games that people played. Some played Mario Kart, the taiko rhythm game, and air hockey. Me and another student played some hair hockey with Yuri and Ayumi. It was a crazy game where sometimes many smaller pucks would drop. Another game was a sort of whack-a-mole one where many gators would come out and you bash them on the head with a partner. I tried with Ayumi and then Yuri tried it with another Sac State student. Many people developed a gambling addiction this night. We parted our ways with everyone, and then headed back to the dorm for the night.

This morning was hectic, being very tired from staying up late. I was able to get everything ready for the day by skipping breakfast though. But it's okay! Today we were going to head to the Matsuyama Castle which we had been seeing around the city. It's hard to miss as it sits on a tall hill in an otherwise flat city. Dym-sensei did not meet up with us this morning so we just walked to the castle with Hidding-sensei. She brought her 9 year old son named Yoji who we called Yoji-kun and it was interesting to hear her scold him in Japanese and Dutch. We climbed one mile uphill for the castle before meeting Dym-sensei and Yuta at the entrance. As we climbed up and into the castle we took so many pictures. The castle is one of the only ones still intact after hundreds of years. Before entering actually, there was a shop with a specialty in ice cream of all things and a local orange juice drinking fountain. Back to the castle, the inside was full of exhibits including weapons, armor, scrolls, and historical information. As supposedly boring as Matsuyama is now, the history is the same with very few fights actually taking place in Matsuyama. The views at the top were amazing, we could really see the entire area. There's not much else to say about it other than to look at pictures.

After leaving the castle, a classmate and I were invited to visit the Ehime Prefecture Art Museum to give feedback for an upcoming exhibit regarding the Seto Inland Sea that is one half of what surrounds the island of Shikoku. It was a very fun meeting with Kiyasu-san who I had actually previously met on the annual Ehime University Winter School. My classmate who specializes in history described how she sets up museums in Sacramento, and I shared my experience from my RPTA 42 class regarding how to analyze the importance of places. I shared information regarding how most museum visitors don't quite remember everything unless if they are highly familiar with the content, how it might be a good idea to write the importance of the item, and the RPTA 42 idea of how something's existence is currently changing people/society/the world. After our conversation, I shared my ideas on her notes and we all took a picture.

-e no taisetsu sa - the importance of the picture

-moshi kiete shimattara, nan no kouka - if it disappeared, what would be the result

After the meeting she presented us with free tickets for the temporary (highly popular) Studio Ghibli exhibit at the museum. Studio Ghibli is as famous as Disney, with a somewhat similar style of 2d movie production. We didn't quite go in yet! We first went to each lunch in the Japanese equivalent of a food truck called a "kitchen car." Some people got pizzas, someone got a hot dog, and I got a pita sandwich with curry seasoned potato wedges. The wind was so strong that it blew our trash away, we picked it up and threw it away, but we went inside. Unfortunately we weren't quite allowed to take pictures save for a few parts, and nothing was in English so I struggled to read most of anything. Our group broke apart during the trip and ours was left between a Sac State student named Alea, a Ehime student named Kana, and myself. Luckily Kana was majoring in English Education and with my 8 years of Japanese experience we were able to converse. If it were in English and in the US, I think the exhibit would bring in a lot of people no matter where they brought it. It seemed that people came from afar from places like Hiroshima which is a three hour ferry ride away. It was very interesting, please check the photos!

Afterward, we walked to the train station so I could get back to the dorm and do laundry. I sat working on my blogposts until a Japan club member named Jay decided to take me to the laundromat to teach me how to use it. We walked through the narrow neighborhoods to get there, paid about $12, and then walked into the supermarket and bought dinner. At the supermarket we found out that a single normal strawberry is worth around $1, fruit is very expensive in Japan. After picking up my clothes we walked all the way back to the dorm and along the way we saw too houses with Christmas lights. I took a picture of one, however at the second house there were people walking and I was unsure what the Japanese customs are regarding that. That pretty much concludes my night.

Because I worked hard and got everything done the night prior, I was able to wake up at the right time without many issues. I knew today was going to be tiring as it is the day where we walk a portion of the Shikoku Pilgrimage, so I prepared by buying a Georgia Emerald Blend coffee and a Boss Latte. I chugged them down, put on my happi which made me very happy (it's a large shirt used for special occasions), and we walked to the nearby streetcar station. We took it all the way to a proper station where we departed for Kume station which is near the Ehime University International Dorm. When we arrived, it was warmer than expected so I was wearing my new Columbia jacket. 

The first temple we visited is number 49 of the Shikoku 88 Temple Pilgrimage called Jodo Temple (Jodoji). There, Dym-sensei showed us how to light incense, donate, and recite the Buddhist sutras. There was a smaller temple next door dedicated to a monk named Kobo Daishi who went to beg to a rich man named Emon Saburo. Kobo Daishi returned several times to beg, but each time Saburo turned him away with increasing aggression until he attacked him. One by one, each of Saburo's children began to die, so he traversed the island looking for Daishi until several years later he finally did. He asked Daishi to forgive him, he said yes, and then Saburo died. Later, his wife gave birth to a ninth child who when met with priests held a stone that said "Kobo Daishi reborn."

We traversed neighborhoods until we arrived at the second temple, number 50 of the pilgrimage, called Hantaji, where we did the same thing as prior. While walking, I talked to a Taiwanese exchange students about life in the country and Japan. After leaving Hanta temple (Hantaji), we were stopped by an older man who we called Ojiisan (gramps) who gave us strawberries, many mikan, tea, rice crackers, matcha tart rolls, strawberry tart rolls, and a greatly weak alcoholic beverage called amazake (sweet alcohol) with less than 1% alcohol to where even children drink it. Hidding-sensei told Ojiisan and his wife that I was trying to study abroad in Ehime so he told me:

asobi ni kite ne--> come to play, okay?

After meeting them, we left and I talked with Yuta about different things in Japan like voting and Okinawan bases until we arrived to our final stop Ishite temple (Ishiteji --> Stone Hand Temple [because of the story]}. Dym-sensei bought us some yakimochi (baked mochi) which tasted very good. All in all, there were many stores on the temple ground likely due to its importance. We walked up, touched some "power stones" and did everything just like earlier. At this temple, there was a cave that goes up to a big Buddha statue on the mountain. I didn't go up to the Buddha but I went all the way through the cave to get to the street where people start walking up to it. I went back down through the cave where my Japanese professor, Masuyama-sensei, had a "supernatural experience" where her phone battery died and flashlight died. The tunnel was cool, with small Buddhist statues lining they entire walkway as well as some bats. I headed back down into tthe meeting area of the temple where they were preparing a special ceremony for the recently deceased of Ishikawa prefecture earthquake, We were very lucky to meet with another two girls who visited Sacramento last year. There names were Hiroyo and Nonno. We agreed to all go down to Dogo to see the famous hot spring (onsen).

At Dogo our first sight was the train station, followed by the Botchan Train, and then the Karakuri Clocktower. I took pictures as we went inside one of the most crowded pedestrian streets I've been. Everything seemed kind of expensive, almost 2-3 times more than in other places as the Dogo walking street is very touristy. One of the girls suggested we get a local specialty called tai meshi (sea bream rice), which I ordered the meal set of, and received too much food. Cooked tai just tastes like cooked fish, it's not quite that impressive. But the sauce, however, was amazing. It may have been one of the best meals I've ever had. After lunch we walked back into the Dogo walking street to finally see the Dogo Onsen. We took some pictures of it and then I read an excerpt from my textbook regarding the famous location:

(Please use Google Translate for the translation)

日本の名所と言えば、温泉も忘れることはできません。日本は火山が多いので,日本中に温泉があります。温泉には観光やレジャーが目的で行く人が多く、温泉では大きいお風呂に入ったり、おいしい料理を食べたり、浴衣えお着たりしてリラックスします。日本人はお風呂に入るのが大好きで、外の景色を見ながら入れる露天風呂は特に人気があります。たくさんある温泉の中で、愛媛県松山市にある道後温泉は日本で一番古い温泉で、3000年の歴史があると言われています。「ぼっちゃん」や「こころ」という小説を書いた夏目漱石がよく行ったそうで、道後温泉にある旅館の3階には「坊っちゃんの間」という部屋があります。

皆さんは、日本に行ったらどんなことをしてみたいですか。どこに行ってみたいですか。日本に行く前に日本の地理をよく調べて、楽しい旅行をして下さい。そして、お城を見学したり、温泉に入ったりして、楽しい土産話を帰って下さい。

From here I told people about how I wanted to buy omamori (Shinto good luck charms) and how I thought Isaniwa Shrine would be a good idea. They said alright and so we walked all the way to the entrance where I should have looked more carefully on Google Maps to see what it really looks like to go there. You can see too by looking at the picture. We reached the main shrine office where I proceeded to buy 23 omamori, an amount that surprised everyone including the miko (female shrine employees). We walked back to Dogo Onsen where we met the rest of our group and took a picture alongside many rikisha (rickshaw) runners. From there we said goodbye to Hiroyo and Nonno, and later to Miki who would bike to dinner with us. Some people bought some more souveneirs, I saw orange sake and thought about getting it for someone but I was too scared about the weight and glass factor in my suitcase so I didn't. We took the streetcar to Okaido, the main pedestrian street so we could meet everyone for dinner. On the way we stopped by the gacha machines, where I  got some, and we headed to the arcade so Yuta and I could play the taiko game together as we are both musicians, all before heading across the street from the station for dinner. It was a karaage place that wasn't quite the best as other places but still good. We gave some gifts to Miki and Yuta for helping us out so much and then said our goodbyes for the night as they were going to see us again later.

Tonight I had to pack most of everything as I have to wake up at 5:30 AM tomorrow so we can leave.

Woke up at 5:30 AM this morning to get my room all set for leaving. I had to figure out how to tie all of my futon bed together in a furoshiki (large handkerchief). I figured it out with the help of a classmate and we were almost good to go. The final part was figuring out what to do with trash, as we were told to put everything in one bag which is not at all normal in Japan. In Japan everything is highly sorted, and most of us wanted to try doing that as we felt bad. In the end Hidding-sensei just told us to put everything in the burnable section.

We boarded a taxi that took us all the way to Matsuyama Station where we received our tickets and waited to leave. I had brought everything Ojiisan from yesterday gave us, so I "chugged" three mikan oranges before boarding the train, and had two left and one amazake. Miki and Yuta gave us some snacks for the road and we all waved to each other for a very long time before boarding the train. Much of the station and train were Anpanman (Bean Bun Man) themed because the series originated in Kochi Prefecture which borders Ehime to the south.

We arrived at Okayama Station, and from there we had around 20-30 minutes before we got on the shinkansen (high speed train) to Himeji, and then Kyoto. Because our car was Anpan-man themed I decided to buy anpan at 7-11 along with dorayaki. They were both good! We then quickly went to and boarded the shinkansen to Himeji.

Himeji was a cold and windy place. When we disembarked at the station we quickly took a picture in front of the towering Himeji Castle UNESCO World Heritage Site. At the same time a random man started talking to us and scared us. We went up almost to the castle and bought some gifts at a sketchy tourist shop. From there we went across the street to the entrance of the Himeji Castle. We met with an English speaking tour guide named Ito-san who took us through the entire castle but through the route an intrude would take. She described all the possible attacking methods, ambush points, and other aspects of fighting that may have happened. All in all, Himeji Castle never saw battle despite all the drastic defense measures.

Like the other places we visited, we were required to take off our shoes and put on slippers. Mine were the right size but they still felt like clown shoes. We walked up the floors, taking in the spectacular views of the city, until we arrived at the top, the lord's room during battle, and then we went all the way back down where we took more pictures. The entire time my back was killing me because of my backpack.

From there we went back to the station where we boarding our next train and took off to Kyoto. Arriving in Kyoto, we found it very busy especially as the train station is located with the shopping mall. We took our things to the APA Hotel near the station and relaxed for a moment before heading back into the station for dinner. There was much deliberating, but we decided to split everyone between two groups: those that wanted to drink and have Italian food, and then the other was people who got ramen with me. I think the ramen we got was soy sauce as it was very salty, but I'm unsure. From there we went around trying to find sweets as someone people wanted some for dessert however I didn't want anything. Perhaps by good chance of the weather, it started snowing a little bit! We later all left the station to go find something cheaper, but as it got colder we realized it was snowing. From there I headed to the hotel and that was that.

Today is our first full day in the world famous city of Kyoto. A city being so culturally important that the United States strategically decided to never attack it during the war. Leaving the war part, our hotel gave us meal coupons for a buffet, it was very good. Afterward we got ready to leave and walked all the way to Rengeo-in temple which is famous for having 1001 Buddha statues. Along the way, me and another student got held back from the group by an Ojiisan who was excited to teach us about the mountains and touristy places. We got to walk by the Kyoto National Museum which looked amazing. There were many other impressive temples as we walked by as well. In Rengeo temple, they made it clear that all fun and comfort was to be left at the door. It is a serious temple for serious people. No food, drinks, bags, money, hats, shoes, phones, or enjoyment allowed. It was impressive seeing the supposed one thousand hand sculpted golden Buddhas arranged with each other complimented by hand carved wooden sculptures.

From there we left for the world-famous Kiyomizu-dera Buddhist temple just up the mountain. We walked through Gion, the geisha district in Kyoto, to get to it. Upon entering the district, some of our group went to rent kimono's for our visit. Me and a couple others walked on up the hill all the way to the temple. It is definitely an impressive sight. Despite being a Tuesday, it was completely packed with tourists from other countries as well as local. The least I can say is that we took many pictures. We did get to clean our hands in the lucky water fountain at the temple. It seems there are many things you can do in Japan to receive good luck, however it seems I continue to do things that result in bad luck. From there we walked down and grabbed snacks and souvenirs along a very nice looking street. We then walked back down to the kimono rental shop where everyone changed, and we headed back through Gion. We walked around searching for a tree, but ultimately succumbed to exhaustion and took a taxi back to the hotel.

For dinner we agreed to go try Japanese Mexican food. We struggled taking the subway from Kyoto station up two stops but managed. Someone got lost in the station, the first place wouldn't let us in as we had too many people, and then we got lost in a bookstore not knowing it was the floor beneath us. Luckily, we made it and ordered food. I ordered a large beef burrito with chips/salsa, and Coca Cola. It was very mediocre but for Japan very accurate to Californian burritos. There was lettuce, tomato, black beans, Mexican rice, and beef in mine, however the salsa and chips were not the best quality. They brought out the entire staff to make everything so we could finish right when they closed. Afterward, we walked two the first Wendy's in Japan for frosty's but they were unfortunately closed. Afterward we just walked down until we eventually ordered McDonald's and kept going until we returned to our hotel before seeing a giant temple, castle, or something.

Today we are going to Osaka! The "west coast" of Japan which used to be the sister city of San Francisco, is seemingly more similar to cramped areas of Los Angeles. We woke up early, I enjoyed the APA Hotel buffet, and we bought shinkansen tickets for when we leave tomorrow. From there we went to our train where I slept a little bit on the one hour ride to Ebisucho station in Osaka. From there we walked out to a model shop as it was 10:30 AM and everything was still closed. I waited in there until eventually Yuta came along and we went places. I wanted to go to Don Quixote where I heard I could buy a cheap kimono/yukata for home. We walked through Nipponbashi and into Shinsekai until we eventually found people feeding pigeons outside the store. It was interesting seeing everything get progressively worse and worse as we went into Shinsekai.

Shinsekai (New World) is considered one of the worst neighborhoods in Japan due to economic neglect.

The Don Quixote store is like a massive Dollar Tree where you can get almost anything for very cheap. But they unfortunately didn't have any yukata or kimono as they were out of season. We all left and walked back up to where we first met everyone, to meet everyone else again for lunch. We originally wanted to get Osaka style okonomiyaki, however the store was closed. We all instead went into the Namba Parks Mall to their food court. Yuta, two of my classmates, and I all went to eat tsukemen, which is a type of noodle dish where you dip them into a sauce instead of being served in a broth. While talking with Yuta, we had a sort of "revelation" moment where we remembered that it is not good to give eye contact when talking with Japanese people and simultaneously apologized to him. Afterward we headed to Dotonbori to take the obligatory photo of Glico man on Dotonbori bridge. Nearby was a quite large Book Off store, so we all went to check it out. Unfortunately I had already bought all the books I wanted for full price, so I wouldn't be able to save any money here. 

Unfortunately, our time in Osaka was up after around five hours and so we all said our goodbyes to Yuta and took the train home. Despite my efforts, I still ended up sleeping on the train. Upon arrival I bought beef curry, coffee, and coffee jelly at the Seven-Eleven. Then I went to my room where I relaxed for the rest of the night and wrote.

**Please check day 12 and 14! I added pictures!**

Once more I had the hotel buffet, it was very delicious. Going on to later meet everyone in the hotel lobby, we had to give our final presentations. It was raining, so presenting outside was out of the question. We went to a karaoke bar, but it was so early that it was closed. We went to another karaoke bar where we were allowed in and we spent an hour or so giving our final presentations on the trip. 

My presentation can be found here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1y4ZcnRfcAUzbNeO5HSNseY7gQ9rg_uQkZeKgTMe1OqM/edit?usp=sharing

After our speeches, we headed through the rain into the station mall to buy lunch. We got very disorientated in the mall, as it is a Japanese train station, and gave up navigating it. From there we went to try Japanese McDonald's which honestly is the same as the US save for some specials and desserts. I ordered a Big Mac set including fries and Coca Cola as well as a 5 piece macaron set to try. The set was exactly the same as the US but the macarons obviously aren't on the American menu. The macarons were good, but some were harder and some were softer.  From there we took a bus to Nijo Castle, the former home of the shogunate until the Meiji Restoration of imperial power was completed here in 1867. In the case of fighting, it doesn't seem as if it would be formidable. Appearing more as an architectural wonder and symbolic location, than a true castle. The inside was marvelous, however pictures were not allowed.

From there we all split up, with my group deciding to head to Kinkaku-ji, the famous gold plated temple in Kyoto. We took a bus up, and then walked through Kyoto backstreets until we finally arrived. We received a pamphlet and some sort of paper talisman/omamori that we were not sure what to do with. Kinkaku-ji is very beautiful, however there is not very much there. One cannot even enter the golden temple, but you can take pictures of the temple and garden, as well as buying gifts or omamori. One of my classmates bought me an omamori in exchange for me paying his bus fare twice. From there we took a a very long bus back to the hotel, and we unintentionally made a lot of noise, it was almost funny. 

I arrived at the hotel and spent some time getting ready for writing, but before I could finish some classmates wanted to go to AEON (pronounced ion) to explore the mall. We went to the fourth floor and visited all the gachapon before we ate dinner. I got 8 takoyaki balls, then azuki bean Baskin Robbins ice cream, and tried a teriyaki twister wrap from KFC. The takoyaki and ice cream were good, but KFC wasn't that great. At this point I don't want to get the English menus as the prices are always a little bit higher, seems to be around 100 yen higher. From there people split off but I stayed with a classmate. We went to the crane games where he won some plushies. A family tried winning the character Pochita from the recent anime Chainsaw Man for their daughter, but they gave up. My classmate won it and gave it to them and they were very grateful.

After that we walked back to the hotel.

I woke up early this morning, in my room which I cleaned before realizing I had lost my final breakfast coupon. Oh well, it wasn't the end of the world. I packed up, dropped off my things at the lobby so I didn't have to carry them around, and went by myself to Umekoji Park. As I learned it is quite expansive including a more familiar grassy field type park on the East side, as well as a sort of landscaping and design reminiscent of the Japanese mountains. Walking through the southwestern portion of the park quite earnestly did feel like a walk in the mountains. Besides the park design, this is where Kyoto Aquarium is located, the Suzaku Garden, and many different cafes made out of old train cars. I also found a Pokemon decorated storm drain lid!

When I returned back I met with some of my classmates and we walked to the AEON department store. It's such a massive building, Walmart has nothing on it. Because I didn't eat anything, I ordered a ramen, karaage, and rice set for around 1,300 yen ($8.77), and then noticed that from vending machines the common cost of something is between 110 to 160 yen ($0.74 - 1.08). From there we went to the arcade where we proceeded to win nothing, give up, and go check out clothing stores. I didn't buy anything, of course, as I am a 21 year old miser. We started heading back to our hotel to grab our luggage which they graciously held for us. After that we went to Kyoto station where we successfully navigated ourselves through a confusing Japanese train station.

We took the shinkansen to Shinagawa station where I said farewell to my classmates and headed to Haneda station. I successfully made it through check-in and Japanese TSA before I found out that my flight was once again two hours earlier than written. No matter, I knew something would be wrong and came earlier. Had no issues and then boarded my flight home. Once again the plane seemed to be half empty, to where people were laying across multiple seats. This flight was around two to three hours shorter than the first flight, so it was not that difficult. I listened to music, watched a movie, and ate food and then I was home.

The ease of US Customs in comparison to Japanese was night and day. I just walked up, gave the officer my passport, vaguely told him something I had, and he let me go. It was certainly an experience. When I got home I gave my family different souvenirs that I had bought, and we all tried the Matsuyama specialties Botchan dango (small mochi filled with azuki bean paste on a stick) and hitokuchi tart (cake roll with a bean paste filling).

Can't wait to go to Japan again.