I was inspired to write another blog post after noticing the article about cherry blossoms coming to Kentucky. Two weeks ago Japan was in the heart of the sakura season where all of the cherry blossom trees were in full bloom. The trees are very delicate and once they bloom they only stick around for a week and a half or so. In Japan it is a very special time of the year and people of all ages rush to their favorite spots in the middle of the day to enjoy the beauty. Offices take the day off to bring their employees out for a picnic under the trees, kids skip class in order to have a drink with friends in the parks, it's really a special time of the year. For that week and a half, Japan was one of the most beautiful places I have seen. After class one afternoon I headed to Sakuranomiya where 5,000 cherry blossom trees line the river. I sat under the trees with some friends and ate lunch knowing that this opportunity wouldn't last long and that it is something I may not be able to experience again. I look forward to seeing the trees in Kentucky and encourage anyone who is interested to attend the festival when it arrives downtown in May.

My Spring Break came a week after the University of Kentucky's. On Saturday I returned from a 6 day trip to the island of Okinawa. For the first 3 days we stayed in a beach front resort and finished the trip staying in a hostel near the main city of Naha. Unfortunately the trip to the resort took us a total of 10 hour travel time. We flew out of the Kobe airport into Naha and then were forced to take two buses and a taxi from the south of the island up to the north. Needless to say it was quite an uncomfortable journey trying to keep track of all 15 people and their luggage, while navigating an unknown place. When we finally made it to the resort we were greeted by lovely ocean views and warm weather. Since it is still technically off season for the beach we shared the resort with very few other guests. During the days at the resort I mainly found myself relaxing and trying to recover from the past two months of school work. The resort was quite far from any sort of large civilization but it was nice to be removed from city life. Okinawa is home to the second largest aquarium in the world, and several members of our group decided to visit. I however opted to stay behind and relax. After our three nights were up at the resort we hopped in taxis and headed to Naha. Since Okinawa has a lot of American military bases, it also has a lot of American influence on food and culture. This of course meant that we were able to enjoy endless amounts of taco rice. During our stay in Naha we spent a lot of time shopping up and down the famous Kokusai Street. We also got to take advantage of the well designed monorail system and visit Shurijo. Shurijo is a lovely red castle not far removed from the heart of the city. On one of our last days in the city we decided to go and visit the main American Air Force base in Kadena. When we got to the exchange we were greeted by prices in USD, American fastfood chains, and nothing but Americans as far as the eye could see. After living in Japan for two months now, I found myself experiencing slight culture shock, adjusting back to American life if only for a few hours. Now I am back home in Hirakata-shi, back to the cold, and back to school. Unfortunately here we have midterms after Spring Break. Starting tomorrow I will be greeted by a full week of tests after tests. 

Japan has fantastic food, and it is very hard to come across something that isn't appetizing. I thought I would share a few places that I have been and some of the things I have eaten. Don't get too excited there isn't anything really out of the ordinary so far. 

 In Kobe we found ourselves hunting for Kobe beef so we decided to eat at this hibachi style place in the heart of the city. Of course little did we know, as I mentioned earlier, Kobe beef is just as expensive in Kobe as anywhere else. So we opted for beef raised the same way, but didn't quite make the grade when it came time to be eaten. Overall it was a delicious meal and a lot of fun. We enjoyed several courses, starting with salad, then onto soup, followed by vegetables beef and rice. 

Next we have one of the most fun meals I have eaten while in Japan. Just as a disclaimer I would not recommend going to a place like this without a native Japanese speaker, unless you are relatively fluent and confident in your speaking skill. There is a small grill in the middle of the table and you simply order plate after plate of raw meat. While we were there a constant stream of meat was being brought to the table, one after another. It got to the point where I had no clue what meat was what and was blindly eating anything I was given. Of course no meal is complete with just meat and dipping sauces, so there was salad and rice as usual. 

Both of these were rather extravagant and relatively expensive choices for dinner. As a college student, in a rather 

expensive country I can't always afford to eat like this of course. Luckily there is a fantastic, cheap, quick place to grab lunch down by the train station. It's about a 15 minute walk or so from the University, but for about 400円 you get quite the bowl of food. When you walk in, instead of ordering from a menu from a waitress, you choose your meal from a machine. All of the dishes have names and accompanying pictures, you simply press the one you want, press the size, and insert your money. Next thing you know someone is bringing the food to you and you're eating lunch. It is a very efficient system, especially if you're on a tight schedule. Be careful though, a lot of the time dishes are served with raw egg which most American's aren't used to eating. It is a little strange and unappealing at first.  

Finally I'll wrap things up with what everyone would expect I suppose. Sushi. I've actually only eaten sushi twice since I have been here and it took me almost a month to go the first time. I have no problem consuming raw fish, but if it seems off-putting to you, it is certainly not the only thing the Japanese eat. The place I have gone both times is roughly a 15 minute walk from the seminar house I live in. After sitting at a table you have two options, anxiously wait until the sushi you want makes it way around the conveyor belt, hoping that no one grabs it before you, or using the touch screen panel to have a small bullet train deliver it to your booth. Not to mention you pay by plates, so at 105円 a plate, everyone wins. 

For the next four months I'll be studying abroad at Kansai Gaidai University in Hirakata-shi, Osaka, Japan. If you're thinking of studying abroad, especially in Japan, I will try and maintain an updated look at my life abroad through this blog so you can get a sense of what life might be like for you. I arrived in Japan January 28th, so I have only been here a week. Since arriving in Japan I have been to the main campus of Kansai Gaidai as well as taking a guided tour of Kyoto accompanied by current Japanese students. You might be wondering why I am here, no I am not a Japanese language student, in fact I have very little experience with Japanese and cannot hold a conversation or navigate the city on my own. If you want to study abroad but are afraid of the language barrier, don't worry, it'll most likely be okay. I'm also not an Asian Studies major, I'm here studying mass media and popular culture in Japan as part of my MAS major. Anyway that is enough of the boring details about myself. So far being abroad has been extremely exciting and an experience that you cannot expect to create staying in your comfort zone. I came here knowing little about the language, and no one to help me assimilate. At the same time I feel if I came with a group of friends or even aquaintances it would have been harder to adapt and fit in to the new surroundings and culture, and would not have put myself out there as much to meet the large amount of people I have already come to befriend from all over the world. 

Thinking of studying at Kansai Gaidai, or curious about what a Japanese University might look like? Here are some pictures from campus.

Maybe you think school is boring and campuses are lame, so here are some pictures from my trip to Kyoto. 

I'll add more stories and pictures as things progress but for now my Internet is very slow and this seems like a good enough place to stop.