Friday, October 23, 2009

Another day in Tokyo

Yes really busy wif daily 3hrs Japanese class and afternoon work. I slept at 3am on Thur mornin' n still gotta wake up at 7. I was so tired tat i even lost my train ticket on the train the day before ytd n got no ticket to get out of the station... lol. However, people are really nice here, i didn't even haf to pay a single cent to get out.

The sleepy me... dreamin' of the bed+pillow...

My Hiragana quiz, imagine we got a quiz jus after 3 days of Hiragana class. Next week is Katakana quiz, i've not memorized the Katakana chars yet. =)

Saturday, October 17, 2009

Life in Japan

I'm beginnin' to get used to life here in Japan. People are nice, friendly and polite, i like the food, and i love the weather (for the time being, not winter) too. My very gd friend Jesse is here too, he is really nice, always checking how i am doing so far in Japan, am i still alive, etc. My colleagues are awesome too, although they barely able to speak English, they always make the effort to go lunch or dinner with me. I really wish before i leave the place, i am able to communicate with them in Japanese... tats the thing i really wanna achieve here, and i am working hard on it although learnin' languages is not my virtue.

Yes everyday my time is so fully-occupied, busy runnin' errands, e.g. mornin' Jap class everyday, afternoon work, etc. Weekend for e.g. today... i will have to do wat i would never have to do in Singapore, just to name a few: Change bedsheet, wash clothes and blanket, dry them, vacuum the floor, clean the furnitures, etc.... tired tired.... =)

Men can multi-task too

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Tiring days...

Wake up at 6plus or 7 everyday, Japanese class in the mornin' fr 9-12, followed by work. I still have not mastered the Hiragana letters, quiz is on Friday. On top of this, i m also rushin' for a paper submission which is due in a month time. Jesse asked why he cldn't see me online in the evenin', hmm... yes actually i fell a sleep very early these few days... too tirin'. Ok back to work, Ja mata.

Thursday, October 08, 2009

Powerful typhoon approaching

Today a powerful typhoon will strike Tokyo... all of us haf been warned. The violent storm is likely to be the first typhoon to make landfall in Japan since 2007 (read channelnewasia: http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific/view/1009776/1/.html). But i still gotta go for Japanese class soon, early in the morning and its far away from where i am staying. Its freezing outside, the rain has not stopped for the past two days... when can we see the sun again? Jesse said he hopes the trains will have to stop so he need not go for work. =) Ok i jus woke up, gotta prepare for class.

Tuesday, October 06, 2009

Welcome party

Today there was a welcome party for me, lotsa food and beer. My face is sooo red now, and the party was really fun, the people are so nice and entertaining. =)

I am quite drunk, but i can't sleep yet, i am rushing for a paper submission which is due very soon. Gdnite everyone.

Sunday, October 04, 2009

Kyoto trip

For the past week, i was in Kyoto Japan for conference. Kyoto was the imperial capitial of Japan, and is now the only few Japanese cities that still has an abundance of prewar buildings, castles, shrines, temples, etc. I reckon it really depends on what you like, you may not enjoy being in Kyoto. If you are more into shopping and fancy stuff, Tokyo is more a place for you to visit.

First two days I was at Kyoto University, a national university in Kyoto. It is one of the top two universities in Japan. Pretty cool place for studying, i like the environment very much.


The following four days it was held in an international conference center, a really huge and beautiful place as well. Take a look....

Me, Yow and Cipolla (the program chair) in the conference.

I went touring around after. One of the very famous places to visit is the Kinkakuji (Golden Pavilion). It was constucted in the 13 century as a new residence for the retired shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu. It was converted into a Zen temple after his death.


Some well-wishes on the entry ticket.

Lotsa coins were thrown by the vistors trying to get into the hole, for good luck or something I guess.

Popular ice-cream there...

This is the Kyoto tower, its standing 130+ meters tall just across Kyoto station.

One of the many temples in Kyoto. This is the Higashi Honganji, Its main hall is Kyoto's largest wooden structure.
Next is the Nijo castle (Nijojo). It was built by Tokugawa leyasu, founder of Edo Shogunate. It's still surviving in its original form and even sunlight or camera is not allowed in the room, to preserve all the paintings.



For shopping, you can try some of the shopping streets around Sanjo-dori and Shijo-dori. There are enormous number of stores and specialty shops to keep any avid consumer busy.





And lastly i wanna share with you this signboard outside one of the hair salons... its hilarious isn't it? =)
 
Copyright © 2018 http://jimaddlee.blogspot.com. All rights reserved.