Whao! Electronic Stores...

Whenever I go to this one electronic store called "Yodobashi Camera," it makes me feel crazy.

It's called "Yodobashi CAMERA," but it's an electronic store that sells ANY ITEM that uses electricity probably! That's not why it makes me feel crazy though.

From the moment you walk in, you have people shouting ads about this or that product, and EVERY inch of space is COVERED with advertisements or product descriptions. THAT makes me feel crazy.

I love looking through electronic stores and finding out what's out there, but this store....I can only be in it for so long. I don't understand why people don't feel crazy going to this store...there's just TOO MUCH information all at once.

Cherry Blossoms!

During the month of March and April, cherry blossoms bloom all over Japan. They bloom earlier in warm places and once in bloom, they only last for about a week, so catching a glimpse while they are in full bloom is crucial.

In Sanda where I live now, I think the cherry blossoms were in bloom last week. Ooooh, they are so pretty! The cherry trees often line the side of roads or rivers, and when they are in bloom, you can see miles of pink cherry trees. It's an amazing sight.

Days or weeks before the cherry blossom season, news stations start forecasting when the blossoms will be in full bloom, as knowing the EXACT date of when the blossoms will be in full bloom seems to be critical here.

It seems to be the custom here for family/friends/co-workers to go on a picnic under the cherry blossom trees. That's why they need to know the exact date of the full blossoms, so that companies can plan their picnics and make sure someone makes a mad dash to stake the best spot for the picnic, waaaay early in the morning.

The funny thing is, you'd think that if people are willing to go through so much trouble to get the best view under the cherry blossoms, they'd be environmentally aware and try to take care of the nature surrounding them. But instead, they eat their picnic "bentos" and drink alcohol, get completely drunk, thrash the area, and leave all their litter scattered about. How sad is that, huh? Sometimes, the irony that exists here is mind-boggling. Of course, that's what I see on the news, so I know there must be plenty of other people who also really enjoy the nature and leave it as they found it.

Other than the irony of some of the customs of cherry blossom viewing, there are some beauties of it that I've recently discovered. The cherry blossoms really are pretty during the day too, but more so than that, I've found that they are even more amazing at night, when they're lighted up from the foot of the tree. It's as if the whole tree is glowing and looks like it's "alive" in a way.

So these cherry blossoms, they're only in bloom for about a week, right? Well, towards the end of the week all the petels start to flutter away when the wind blows. THAT is a sight to see. It feels like you're in a dream of some sort, with cherry blossoms gently fluttering by. Time stops and you get caught in the beauty of the moment. I wish you could experience it.

When you look in the river, you can see a lot of cherry blossoms floating on by. Even that's pretty. At first, I was surprised that half the river seemed to be full of soap suds...but then my friend pointed out that they were cherry blossoms and it looked pretty once I realized that.

What might this be???

A student smuggled this fruit(?), vegetable(?) back from the Philipines on a recent trip. He gave it to us to try, but I've never seen anything like it before. What do you suppose it is?

Hey, My or SM, you guys have been to either the Philipines or tropical islands...what is this thing?

My curiousity got the better of me and so I cut it open, not knowing what to expect. Well, it was all yellow inside. Hmm, still had no idea what it could be so I smelled it, took a tiny tiny tiny piece and tasted it, but the piece was too small so I couldn't taste anything. I wasn't even sure if it was ripe.

After much poking and proding, I just stuck a spoon in and tried a scoop of it! I've never tasted anything like it before! It was really pastey and didn't have much flavor, but it was good. So far, I don't have a stomachache either, so it must've been ok to eat. If you happen to know what this might be, can someone tell me?

BON JOVI ROCKS!!!

Boy, I haven't had this much fun in who knows how long! I went up to Tokyo with my friend and met up with another friend at the Tokyo Dome. It was the first time for me to go to Tokyo Dome, so I was surprised at how big it was.

The concert was an absolute blast. I went to their concert once in Portland, which I thought was even better than the Tokyo one since they talked in between songs and the stage set was better, but the Tokyo concert was still amazing. I sang, shouted, clapped, and stood for the whole 3 hours so I just about lost my voice and was surprised when I discovered that my palms were bruised from clapping so much! I didn't even know that was possible!

Anyways, going to the concert made me miss home! In Japan, I feel like something is missing, but in the States, I feel alive. I think it's all the unwritten/unspoken rules of the land here. I don't understand them or I simply don't know what they are, and so I feel like I'm second-rate and not part of whatever is going on.

People don't really understand why, as a "Japanese," I wouldn't feel comfortable here. But people also don't know that in my own way, I went through hell here when I attended part of jr. high and high school here in Japan. I died here once. I think that's why in a way, I'm never going to be able to accept this place as "home." For me, my memory of this place, it's as if it were a concentration camp. I think the reason why I'm still here is so that I can come to terms with that experience. I'm still fighting it. Don't get me wrong though, no one ever laid a hand on me. But then again, violence isn't the only way a person can die.