Ok so since now I’m officially bored and I really don’t want to do anything, I’ve decided that mayyyybe, since I haven’t written anything for the past nearly half a year, I really should write something into this extremely empty space. Hopefully I will have time to keep updating and thus make up for the past 6 or so months. Now that I think about it, I actually have quite a lot of stuff to potentially blog about, but I’ve just been extremely lazy, so everything I think “I should blog!”, I also think – I’ll do it later. But I’m still in Japan, so I guess its not too late.
Since I probably need some motivation, I will now make a list of the things I have to cover so I won’t be able to laze away. So, here it goes:
My Natsuyasumi – I guess this has to be separated into a few post
Food
My Uni Life after 6 months of living here
HAHA. Short list for the win. This way no one can complain that I missed out on anything hahaha. But I will try to update regularly from now on. I promise. Maybe tonight. Ok. I will post this now.
I’ve been in Japan for nearly 3 weeks now, and I think it’s about time I blogged about something I’ve noticed ever since the 2nd day I got here – EVERY MAJOR CHAIN STORE HAS ITS THEME SONG!! I’m not talking about jingles which advertise the shops like our Coles “Down down, prices are down” thingy, I’m talking about songs that sound like a pop song that was recorded in a studio with people who can actually somewhat sing.
The first time I realised a shop had a theme song was when me and Dat went shopping for the first time at our local supermarket, Hallo Day. We were just walking around being amazed at all the products, when we heard a song that seemed quite catchy. We were thoroughly surprised when, somewhere in the lyrics, we heard the words HALLO DAY! Shocked, we listened much carefully to the song, to realize it was THE Hallo Day song. For a long time, we stood in the aisles looking up at the ceiling from where the music was coming from while all the other shoppers looked at us as if we were retarded. For the curious, here’s the link for the song (yes someone recorded and put it on youtube).
But it does not end here.
Remember when I said EVERY MAJOR PLACE has it’s own theme song? Well ever since the Hallo Day incident, we wondered if other places had their theme songs. And turns out THEY ALL DO! What’s stranger is that some stores can’t seem to think up an original song, so they use a famous song and put their own lyrics in. For example, Mr. Max, a discount store, uses When the Saints Come Marching In, but they just replace all the lyrics. Yodobashi Camera, a huge electronics store, has one of the most catchiest tunes I’ve heard to date. And it’s a jazzed up version of The Battle Hymn of the Republic:
One thing I haven’t mentioned is that the stores all love to play these songs seemingly on repeat! You walk into a store, and you get bombarded with the name of the shop repeated over and over again. So if you’re in there for an hour, prepare yourself to have the song stuck in your head for a very long time. Trust me. I speak from experience. I was at Yodobashi Camera for the afternoon sorting out my internet and phone. And I woke up the next day with the song still in my head. And I sung it in the shower too.
So there you have it. Japanese pre-pubescent idol groups aren’t the only ones who can release catchy songs. Supermarkets and electronic stores can too. And damn me if they’re not effective. Going to Hallo Day now….happily smiling =D=D=D
I’ve finally settled down and have a stable place to live, stable place to go to uni and stable(ish) internet, so here’s just a quick introduction about what I’m supposed to be doing for the rest of the year.
The uni I’m at is called Kyushu Institute of Technology, or KIT/Kyutech as we have come to call it. Even though I’m an undergraduate studying something that has nothing to do with technology, my status here is a research/observational student. Basically, that means I get to go to whatever classes I feel like. I do have to go to the Japanese classes, but I think I don’t have to take their exams. I do have to do assignments for UTS.
The other question I keep getting is: Why the hell do you have an office? Honestly, I have no idea either hahaha. I’m sharing the office with Dat, my tutor Kazuya and Dat’s tutor Tetsuo, so it’s a pretty good environment for study and chilling. I think I spend the most time in the lab. It’s basically like a personal space for studying, and I plan to utilise it as much as possible.
As for the uni in general, watch my video if you haven’t already to see what it’s like. I’m quite liking the uni environment at the moment, even though it’s a bit country, but I think I prefer it like that.
I’m living on campus, at the student residence, which is the aptly named, KIT Student Residence. A few people have been asking for my address, so here it is…I think…
Fukuoka-ken, Iizuka-shi, Igisu, 1-4, 1-tou, 112B, JAPAN
I’m not sure if that’s my whole address, so if it’s different I shall update it. Please write me and send me stuff!! I miss you! I shall try to send stuff to you guys too!!
If you want a tour of my apartment then look here:
Anyway, that’s all I can bothered to write about my uni HAHA. Will update here soon for more going ons!
Since I did a last post in Australia, I thought it’d be weird if I didn’t do a first post in Japan! This is my 6th full day here and I’m still in the pr0cess of settling down and registration and getting stuff so yes. This blog is going to be quite random. I’m just going to sum up quickly what’s been happening for the past few days haha!
TUESDAY
Left Sydney at 8AM on Korean Air, and got to Seoul at like 6PM. An hour of transfer (where we had to go through customs and baggage checks again..) and we got on the plane for the hour’s trip to Fukuoka. After immigration and all that jazz, we got out of the gates at around 9PM. Our tutors (buddies), thank god, were waiting for us so they took us back to uni and the accommodation. Dat, Michelle, Vicky and I were thoroughly tired by then, but we still were super excited and pumped to actually be in Japan. Once we got to the accommodation, Dat and I met our roomate, Shohei, who is a super awesome hyperactive interesting guy. After that, too tired to unpack, we just slept.
Dat, Shohei and I
WEDNESDAY
Slept in, had some convenience store breakfast (Japanese convenience stores are the best. They have actual food – like premade lunch boxes and bread and EVERYTHING) and then met up with our tutors at 1PM. Since we slept in a sleeping bag the night before, they took us to buy all our necessities, including a futon and toiletries etc. Dat’s tutor is a masters student called Tetsuo, and he’s a really responsible guy who seems to know his stuff. My tutor, Kazuya, is probably the coolest (and best looking) guy I’ve met so far, so we’re both extremely happy with them =).
THURSDAY
Finally went into the uni to figure out what we’re actually going to be doing. We met our professor, Nishino-sensei, and HE SPOKE ENGLISH. That was a huge sigh of relief. He basically told us that Dat and I were basically considered ‘observer research students’ so we’re not obliged to go to any classes except the Japanese ones, and we would get a lab (research office) as well. So in our lab/office is Dat, Kazuya, Tetsuo and me. So it’s basically like our own personal space. Spent most of this day cleaning up the lab because it was filthy from last semester’s students, but it was a good work out haha.
UTS at KIT
FRIDAY
Went into lab in the morning, and ate lunch at the uni cafeteria with labmates. It’s a pretty cool service system and the food is pretty good! And cheap! CHEAP! Went to our first class and did a Japanese placement test which I think I failed miserably at. But oh wells. I can attend any class I want so I guess it’s ok…
SATURDAY
Went to Fukuoka! Took a taxi from our place to Shin-Iizuka station, which is our local station, and then from there a 1 hour train trip to the closest major city, Fukuoka. It was our scouting day, so we just walked around the whole city basically and marked out places where we wanted to come back to. Fukuoka is quite a nice city – my first impressions would have to be it’s small but cosy, and the Tenjin district is pretty nice with some good shopping. But I shall definitely be going back there for shopping. Also had the best ramen I’ve ever had at Canal City Ramen Stadium!
SUNDAY
Since we were so tired from the day before, Sunday was supposed to be our designated rest day. However, that plan disappeared when our room mate, Shohei, took us to explore our city, Iizuka, on our bikes. We went to Mr.Max, which is like a Kmart equivalent, some electronic stores and bookstores, supermarkets and the hundred yen shops. One thing that we kept noticing about Japan was that each and every store have their own theme songs. I should make a theme song of my own…
But yes. That’s a diary like summary of the past few days. I shall try to update this blog with random topics or whatever comes to my mind so yes. Thanks for reading!
As some of you may know, I’m leaving off to study abroad in Japan for a year! I don’t actually know what I want to say here, but it just seems like a good idea to post something haha.
When I woke up this morning, it actually hit me that I was going to be away from home for a whole year. Even though I had been anticipating this ever since 2009 when I started uni, it always seemed so far away that it felt like this was just something I said I was going to do, but never did it feel like it was actually going to happen. And now, I’m here, and it feels quite surreal.
I’m going to be going to Kyutech, which is down near Fukuoka, on the island from Kyushu. I know. What’s a pretentious law student like me doing in a technology uni. I have no clue either. But I am really really excited to be going there. From what I’ve heard and read about it’s not a bad place at all. But I think what I’m looking forward to the most is immersing myself in the culture and the place, and basically just having a blast. This is the first time I’ll be living independently as well so I’m also looking forward to the freedom. And of course, doing what a PN does best, making new friends.
Having said all that, I am going to miss Sydney so much. Three years ago I’d have told you I’d be so happy the day I left boring old Sydney for exciting Japan, but I’ve grown to love this city. But the one thing I will miss more are my friends and family. If you guys are reading this, know that I will miss you guys so so so very much, and no matter how much fun I’ll be having, I’ll also be thinking about you guys. So I can’t wait to come back, if only to see you guys once again.
It’s now midnight, and I have to leave the house at 5AM in order to make my flight at 8AM. So on this note I think I shall end this post, and the next time I write I’ll be in Japan!
Now that things have finally calmed down, I’m thinking it would be nice to do a post about this time’s Peer Network (PN) experience and continue to share some orange love =D.
As some of you may know, this was my 3rd time in the orange family. I must admit last year I was slightly hesitant about doing it again for the 3rd time, because – a lot of my friends were goneskies; I didn’t want to meet newies; Mingling always gives me a headache; Johnny Wu would bully me etc. Actually it was mainly the last reason.
But now, I can honestly say that this PN has been the best one I’ve ever done. I’ve met people who I know will be lifelong friends, inseparable by Orange Love, and have gotten closer with my fellow oldies. However, John still bullied me. Damned PPN power.
I don’t want to go through the experience day by day, but I shall try to make a list of what, for me, were the most memorable moments. If I left something out, I’m sorry, but every moment was just awesome. Orange Love Forever.
By the way, most of the photos were taken by Tuan Nguyen, who is the most awesome photographer ever.
Training Day 2 was..like any other training day I suppose. I coordinated with my gang of oldies to all be on the same training day, and coming out of a 2 month break where nothing was really happening, well, I was really looking forward to seeing everyone again. However, the one thing different was that I actually got to know some newies quite well, bonding over Wong Fu and dirty jokes it seems. And I daresay that most of the newies I got to know very well during the 2 weeks were from that particular training day. Cheers guys~
Oldies Newies was a pretty awesome event too, and it helped that I knew all the oldies, and more than half of the newies due to Training Day, InpUTS and SHS. It also helped that food was served early and everyone went a bit crazy on the dance floor. The karaoke session afterwards also helped, even though certain people *cough cough* didn’t go.
The first day – hectic as always. I must add in here that every morning I was half asleep, so that didn’t help my mood. But as someone put it: “his gloomy exterior is hiding a radiant sunshine that always fills everyone around him with warmth”. I’m paraphrasing, but you get the gist. Official Welcome was super busy, mingling was tiring. Even though I’ve done it many times, it is always scary as hell when you go up to a bunch of people and try to talk to them
Campus Tours – my favourite part of orientation. Most people would disagree with me, but there is just something about taking new students and showing them around the place that appeals to me. Maybe it’s the sense of being the centre of attention. Maybe it’s the power I wield. Maybe its the iPad. It feels good all the same haha. It was also funny when people told me “You have excellent voice projection”. I felt embarrassed as I think, and always will think, that the title of ‘Loudest PN’ should only belong to my dear friend Stanley Ibrahimavic.
Ku-Ring Gai – I’ve never been to KRG, so I really wanted to do it this time around. The best thing about it was that I actually could sleep in because I live closer to KRG than City. And I must say KRG was pretty damn fun. The campus is small and cosy, albeit confusing, but it is easy to get used to. There was a bit more lazing around at KRG, so I definitely liked that. The national park setting helped too =D.
BBQ – I’ve been in every BBQ PN’s have been involved with ever since I joined PN, but I must say this was the craziest BBQ line I’ve ever seen. I have never seen lines that curved up 2 enormous staircases and kept curving till past the great hall. That is amazing. Foodwise..it was BBQ food. I can honestly say, after basically 2 weeks of BBQ, I probably don’t want to touch BBQ for a long long time.
Just Hanging Out at Mob, Rego Desk, PN Space – As usual, there was a lot of downtime, especially during the days where there was no official orientation. And we basically used that time to just annoy each other and do silly things, sometimes in the privacy of the PN space, sometimes in the not-so-private lobby of the Tower building. And we wonder why new students are scared.
International Cocktail Party – It is usually one of the best events of the 2 weeks, as there is great company, and free alcohol. Unfortunately, this was also the most eventful day for me, and one that I will unlikely forget for the rest of my life. I was, for the most part of the cocktail party, stuck in an elevator with 18 other people. Even though the sign clearly stated the safe load was 12 people, people just couldn’t read and crammed in. It gets worse. One genius, in the middle of the ride, decides to tell everyone to ‘JUMP’, and so, a few other geniuses joined in, and, what do you know, the elevator jams, and we get stuck in there for an hour. It was hot. And sweaty. But I can tick that off my bucket list. I did however find it amusing that everyone’s main concern, including mine, was not the situation, but whether there would be any alcohol left by the time we got to the party. After an hour, the lift guy helped us, we got out, and the party was awesome.
Last Day – The most pumped up day. For me though, I had extremely silly mood swings, which spoilt some people’s days (sorry ><). I did have a lot of fun though, as a whole myriad of feelings run through your body – the relief that comes with knowing PN is over (forever, in my case), and at the same time, extreme sadness that these 2 weeks of awesomeness have come to an end. Network Cafe was, as always, the highlight of the day, with the flashmob being the pinnacle of awesomeness. The look on all the international student’s faces is always priceless, and it is, without a doubt, one of the things I will miss most about PN’ing.
But the best, and most memorable moments about this PN experience, is, like all the other times, just making new friends and hanging out with old friends. It is amazing how people can become so so close over the span of 2 short weeks, but there is something special about our Orange Family.
To all my friends who I have done PN with in the past, thanks for doing it again this time. To all the new people I met and now cherish as really really dear friends, thank you for blessing me with your company. I hope, and know I will, see everyone soon in the near future. ORANGE LOVE FOREVER!
Temperament: Still Excited. Tired. Slightly depressed because of the weather.
So I woke up this morning and looked outside. And my face fell. It was cloudy, totally in contrast to what the weatherman told me a few days ago. Damn him. I had heard that Jervis Bay usually has great weather, so it was just bad luck. A quick breakfast of scrambled eggs, pancakes and copious amount of syrup and ice-cream, a generous helping of sunscreen and we were out once again to enjoy the day, never mind the clouds.
Our plan was to hit up the famous Hyam’s Beach for the morning, get home and make a late lunch, then continue to explore Booderee NP. After a bit of road rage when parking, we finally arrived at Hyam’s Beach, reputed as the beach with the whitest sands in the world.
Hyams Beach
Unfortunately by the time we got there, the clouds were still hanging about, thus making the beach not as spectacular. However, it was still a beautiful beach with beautifully textured sand which squeaks with each step. The waves were perfect to ride, even for the shortest member of our gang, and the water breathtakingly clear, so much so that we were able to spot quite a few fish swimming about.
A lunch of beef burgers and salad followed, after which we drove upon the unpaved and unsealed roads to do some bush adventuring in order to reach some remote destinations.
View from Cape St George Lighthouse
Moes Rock
Stony Creek
After some exploration, we chanced upon Green Patch (Beach), which, in my opinion, was the most interesting beach. Granted we arrived at a little past 7PM, which meant that we had the whole strip of beach to ourselves. There really is nothing like being on a remote beach with no one but your friends.
It was also, as we discovered, a wonderful spot to snorkel, with rays and fish in abundance. Most of us had never seen rays just chilling in the water, and one of us was so scared that she’d get stung she refused to go within 1 metre of them. But that was definitely the highlight of the trip, hands down.
Obligatory Jumping Shot at Green Patch
Chilling with Wallaby
After some obligatory jump shots, and wallaby sightseeing, we drove away…
…only to stop some minutes later as my friend had hit a wallaby with his car. Unfortunately, there was nothing we could do about the poor animal, our only consolation being that it was killed quite quickly. Also, watching a local ungraciously pick up the corpse and dump it on the side of the road so as not to obstruct traffic, we realized the harsh reality of what a common occurrence this must be.
Dinner was slightly spoilt by the fact our accommodation did not have a can opener (yet had 4 bottle openers..) but largely thanks to the skills of our cook we still feasted upon a meal of spaghetti, cream sauce and soup. All that was missing was the sardines.
Day 3
Weather: Fine. Pretty.
Temperament: Sleepy. Tired. Starting to feel beach withdrawal symptoms.
Check out was at 10, we didn’t want to wake up. Nor leave. But we had to. So we did. But we still stayed at Jervis Bay because none of us wanted to head back to Sydney.
We hit up a few beaches, had some fun at lunch making cups out of foil. I must say it is not as easy as it looks, and that my cup was the definite standout. Then we returned to Hyams Beach because, lets face it, it was the best beach. AND this time there was sunshine.
Hyams Beach in the sun!
I’m not sure if it’s the whitest beach in the world. I’ll leave that up to the Guiness people. But it was definitely the whitest beach I have ever encountered in my life. Everyone, literally everyone, was wearing sunnies if they were not in the water, and if you weren’t, there was probably a high chance of you being blinded for a couple of hours. The water was amazingly blue, and at the perfect temperature. Originally we planned to leave the area around 3PM. We ended leaving close to 6PM.
The drive back was uneventful, but the weather got steadily worse and worse as we neared Sydney, so much so that when we entered Sydney itself we were driving in the midst of thunderstorms and lightning. Driving at 40km/h does feel strange after a couple of days of driving at an average of 80km/h.
But we all made it back in one piece, and I got home at around 11PM. It was a wonderful 3 days, spent with some of the most awesome people in the world, and I seriously cannot think of a better way to start 2012 than this!!
So a while back a bunch of us decided to go to Jervis Bay. I had never been to Jervis Bay. So I had no idea what to expect. I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed exploring the area and would love to visit again. It also helped that the company I had were totally awesome. So here are some of my thoughts~~
DAY 1
Weather: Beautiful, Blue.
Temperament: Excited, Surprisingly Un-tired.
There’s honestly nothing better than starting the new year with a group of your closest friends and beaches. Lots and lots of beaches. Which is what Jervis Bay is all about. A surprisingly fast 3 hour drive away from the humdrum life of Sydney places you at a beautiful location where water, sand, trees, flora and fauna are naturally abundant, where locals are friendly and is basically a lovely place to relax.
We were holed up in a place called Sanctuary Point, which is about 15min drive from the main Jervis Bay tourist destinations. The area is definitely a place where a car is a necessity, as I did not notice a single public bus in the area, let alone train lines, so without a car one is basically stranded.
Upon the recommendations of a few friends and the internet, we decided to buy a pass into Booderee National Park, which would be one of the key attractions of the area. For those who are thinking about visiting Jervis Bay, I highly recommend buying the pass, as it allows access to a great number of beaches, most of which are beautiful to chill or to explore. One other thing is that the pass works for 48 hours, which is much more than the usual National Park Day Passes we buy around Sydney.
Murrays Beach
Murrays Beach - Rocky Outcrop
Hole in the Wall
Murrays Beach at the end of the National Park is definitely worth a visit, and provides wonderful photo opportunities, whereas Hole in the Wall was a slight disappointment, with the addition of a not-so-nice smelling beach which none of us was impressed by.
After exploring the beaches for a few hours, we decided to call it a day, go home, and hopefully find a beach near our place from which we could watch the sunset. Unfortunately, since there was no beach which faced west (and we were tired and lazy) we just cooked our dinner of Japanese Curry (without the chicken), Pasta and Mushroom Cream Soup. Before drinking games however, someone came up with the brilliant idea of watching a horror movie, which scared us all into oblivion and making none of us want to go to the bathroom by ourselves. However, a few rounds of drinking soon cured our fear, and we bravely retired for the night.
supChinky 