Exploring Ishibashi
So I haven't been writing for fear that I would be boring you with details about my job or the housewife duties... because until yesterday, that is about all I have been doing since I wrote last. I decided to spice things up a bit yesterday, though, and after my Japanese lesson and lunch with Casey, I went to Ishibashi station to explore. It is very close to Osaka University, and I have already been there before when I was lost, so I had a better idea of the layout of the place this time. It was fun to walk around without any real itinerary, and I enjoyed seeing the various shops on the shopping streets- I didn't realize there were so many! I stumbled upon a few places of interest. The first was a 100 Yen shop (like a Dollar Store but with much higher quality items).
It is there where I found the animal crackers with the names printed on them (from Karen's Farewell party), which is great because they are a lot less expensive than I thought they would be!! Looking at the back of the box is almost as entertaining as the crackers themselves... they have the names of the animals written in Hiragana AND Katakana, so I can figure out all of the Japanese names for the animals. Don't know if I will have the patience or real need to learn them at all, but it's still sort of neat. (Okay I'm a dork.) Another noteworthy snack that is detail-oriented are these little Koala 'biscuit' snacks with chocolate in the middle. Each one of the Koalas are doing a different thing on each biscuit. Sometimes they are mad, or even crying. Sometime I will take a picture. Who knew food could be so entertaining? (Yep, I'm really a dork...)
Another shop that interested me was a clothing store where most of the clothes were under 1,000 Yen (or about $10). So I found a shirt for 500 Yen with 'Engrish' on it (I love that the word 'important' is spelled wrong). Sometimes these seem to try and have a deep meaning but it is definitely lost in translation. The one I bought is a little tamer than some I have seen. It will be strange to wear these shirts in America... but if someone really reads it, it should be a fun conversation-piece.
Other than that, I walked around, got a ton of interesting looks (blonde hair will do that), and went grocery shopping. I cooked again last night and it turned out alright. At least I bought the right ingredients this time... I just didn't cook it quite long enough. Everything was fresh, though, so we didn't have to worry too much.
Today I guess I will be cleaning the apartment (joy!). I got a lot of things for work accomplished today so I already feel pretty productive. Oh, and I am trying to cut down on the electricity use- we got a bill yesterday that was OUT OF CONTROL. And it's basically because I have had the heater on during the day while I'm here. Looks like I might be piling on more clothes! Oh well... maybe with any luck, it'll get a little warmer around here. :)
Not sure what I'm up to tomorrow, but Saturday I am going on a bus tour with Yanagi-san and some of the International students to Himeji Castle. Should be a good time! I'll write again later.
-Ashley
It is there where I found the animal crackers with the names printed on them (from Karen's Farewell party), which is great because they are a lot less expensive than I thought they would be!! Looking at the back of the box is almost as entertaining as the crackers themselves... they have the names of the animals written in Hiragana AND Katakana, so I can figure out all of the Japanese names for the animals. Don't know if I will have the patience or real need to learn them at all, but it's still sort of neat. (Okay I'm a dork.) Another noteworthy snack that is detail-oriented are these little Koala 'biscuit' snacks with chocolate in the middle. Each one of the Koalas are doing a different thing on each biscuit. Sometimes they are mad, or even crying. Sometime I will take a picture. Who knew food could be so entertaining? (Yep, I'm really a dork...)
Another shop that interested me was a clothing store where most of the clothes were under 1,000 Yen (or about $10). So I found a shirt for 500 Yen with 'Engrish' on it (I love that the word 'important' is spelled wrong). Sometimes these seem to try and have a deep meaning but it is definitely lost in translation. The one I bought is a little tamer than some I have seen. It will be strange to wear these shirts in America... but if someone really reads it, it should be a fun conversation-piece.Other than that, I walked around, got a ton of interesting looks (blonde hair will do that), and went grocery shopping. I cooked again last night and it turned out alright. At least I bought the right ingredients this time... I just didn't cook it quite long enough. Everything was fresh, though, so we didn't have to worry too much.
Today I guess I will be cleaning the apartment (joy!). I got a lot of things for work accomplished today so I already feel pretty productive. Oh, and I am trying to cut down on the electricity use- we got a bill yesterday that was OUT OF CONTROL. And it's basically because I have had the heater on during the day while I'm here. Looks like I might be piling on more clothes! Oh well... maybe with any luck, it'll get a little warmer around here. :)
Not sure what I'm up to tomorrow, but Saturday I am going on a bus tour with Yanagi-san and some of the International students to Himeji Castle. Should be a good time! I'll write again later.
-Ashley
posted by Ashley at 1/12/2006
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