(><)

Yesterday, I asked my Japanese friend to help me with my national healthcare application form.  I asked in Japanese, using what I thought was a kiddish/babyish voice.  After I did this for a minute, he said to himself in English, "So slutty."  "Slutty?!?"  Apparently, what would be considered a kiddish voice in America is considered slutty in Japan.  Ugh!!

ていねいな国 (A Polite Country)- Emoticons

When I first got my Japanese cellphone and started exploring all its features, I was amazed by its library of emoticons.  On my American phone, I can probably make about 10 or 11 different emotifaces with a combination of colons, semicolons, asterisks, the letters “d” and “o,” and either parenthesis.  On my Japanese phone, I have a whole section of classic and more complex emoticons as well as little pictures of animals, buildings, food, etc.  There is sure to be an emoticon that can appropriately enhance any message you write to someone.

For my Reading and Writing Japanese class, I learned a new usage for the phrase 「～の方」”~no hou.”  From what I understand, this phrase can be added in certain circumstances for the sole purpose of making a statement more polite.  Essentially, (in this context) it holds no meaning whatsoever and only serves as a softener for the statement (which may already be pretty soft in the first place). 

In the last month, I’ve only had lunch with my Japanese speaking partner once and run into her once, yet I love her.  Why?

As we were making plans through cellphone messages to finally hang out again, I noticed that she usually uses at least one emoticon after every sentence.  I think her favorite one is the chick.  I thought to myself, “I love her!  She is so freaking sweet.  Look at this little light bulb she put in!” and it hit me that, just like 「～の方」, emoticons largely serve as a softener for messages.  I do it myself, looking for the perfect variation on the “oops” face to make my “I’m so sorry I forgot to message you again!!!!” (a message I oft-send) seem more genuine. 

I originally thought that emoticons reflect the Japanese youth’s desire to be fun, cute, and different from their parents’ generation, but now I believe there’s also the deeper, perhaps subconscious “polite” usage that maintains traditional cultural values.  But maybe not, cuz my host mom is polite, but she never sends me emoticons in her messages.  

Further Evidence

I have a good Japanese friend here who shares the same face template as Jack Black.

Kansai Assessment

I haven’t thoroughly explored them yet, but now that I’ve at least hit up the three big cities of the Kansai region—Kyoto, Kobe, and Osaka—here are some initial thoughts.

Kyoto 
What the natives told me: Considered the cultural center of Kansai and of Japan.  Lots of temples.

My take:  Lots of temples, and that’s mostly all that I saw here.  I’m not much of a temple/shrine person.  They creep me out a little.  That night, I went to kaiten zushi (revolving conveyor belt sushi restaurant) in a shopping area, and I liked that area because I’m a consumerist, at least in Japan.

Kobe 

What the natives told me:  Kobe is lame.

My take:  I went with some SUA kids to check out hotels in the area.  Kobe is my favorite of the big three so far; I didn’t think it was lame at all.  Lots of weird Western architecture.  Lots of foreigners: many black people and Indian people and lots of openly-interracial couples pushing baby carriages.  Chinatown.  Harborland!  And a BMX park thingy.  Kobe is where I mistakenly bought really weird and nasty cheese cake… literally, cheese on a cake.

Osaka

What the natives told me:  The only thing in Osaka is the Osaka Castle, the former home of a daimyou (Japanese feudal lord). 

My take:  It was plum blossom season when I went, and both the plum trees and the castle were beautiful.  I had a lovely lunch by the castle with my fellow SUA students as well as some upperclassmen who graduated.  There’s a time capsule located at the park, and it is to be opened in 4,960 years.  Because Osaka Castle is supposedly the only thing in Osaka, we went to dinner in Kyobashi, a city nearby.  I’ve heard there’s a pretty big shopping district in Osaka, but I didn’t get to check it out this time.

I was a Baka Gaijin

In my last entry, I complained about a cashier who kept offering me a plastic bag.

Today, my mom laughed in my face as she explained to me that in the Japanese context, you don't say, "No (I would not like a plastic bag)." You say, "I do not need one."

I was confusing the cashier big time because I should have been responding with「いらない。」instead of 「いいえ。」

UGH!!!!!!! I was a stupid gaijin.

Not This Time!!

Today, I went to buy delicious dark chocolate at the 100 yen store by my host house. The cashier lady asked me something, which I didn’t exactly understand, but I assumed she was asking whether I wanted a bag for the chocolate, and I said no. She gave me a questioning look and said, “No?” Thinking that maybe I had misunderstood her, I was all, “Ohwhat?” She again asked me, and I again said nothanks, and she again gave me an odd look and asked, “No?” I gave her another “huh,” and then she asked, “ふくろ？” which I know means bag, and I said ohno. She pulled out a plastic bag to show me, and I said, “No.”

なんとかなんとか？

いいえ。

いいえ？

アッ、ハァ～？

なんとかなんとか？

いいえ。

いいえ？

アッ、えェットォォォ～～～？？？？？

ふくろ？

アッ、いいえ

「プラスチックバッグを見せる」

いいえ、いいえ。

This time, I was NOT a stupid gaijin.

*Follow-up entry

Count the Zeros

Today, I meant to withdraw 9,000 yen ($90ish) from my American bank account. I then went grocery shopping, and my groceries ended up being about 1500 yen. I pulled out a 10,000 yen note from my wallet. …10,000 yen. All my bills were 10,000 yen. I withdrew $900 instead of $90.

I checked my bank account online when I got home, and yuppers, I withdrew $500 more than I had in my account. I transferred in some money from another account and was out of the negative, but I didn’t know if everything was set right.

So I thought, “Ok, call the number that the bank gave you. Hopefully, it’s a 24-hour hotline for study abroaders.” But I couldn’t figure out how to 1) do an international call from my cell phone and 2) do a 1-800 number. I tried a couple things, and then I tried

1-1-800- …

I first noticed something was up when “Emergency call” came up in the caller ID.

I second noticed something was up when a calm, collected, and direct Japanese male answered.

I third noticed something was up when I finally recognized a word the man said: “accident.” I apologized and told him I had dialed the wrong number, and after he confirmed with me that everything was all well, we hung up.

The phone had recognized and called118, which I've just looked up and discovered is the number of "emergency at sea." 110 is for police, and 119 is for fire and ambulance (aka kyuukyuusha, the cutest word ever).

I did eventually figure out how to make international calls, and I did reach my daddy, and everything was all settled, but I had to pay a $22 overdraft fee… which would be 2200 yen…?

On another note, when I reread this entry, I noticed that I was missing some indefinite articles. Slowly, my mind is thinking in Japanese.