Changing impressions

It has been about 4 months since I came to Japan and also has been 4 months to take Anthropology of Japan class. Both were my very first time in my life. I have been very happy about the fact that I am in Japan and experience new things. Plus it was a huge oppurtunity for me to take Anthropology of Japan becasue I went and saw things that I would never experience in my country Korea. And most importantly I  learned something out of it.

I always thought Japan and Korea are very much in common in many ways before I came to Japan but while I stayed in Japan, I realized that Japan and Korea are quite different. And during 4 months, my impressions have definitely changed.

First of all, Japan appreciates the time of being alone more than I thought. This is one of  the biggest differences that I found in Japan. Almost every restaurant or cafe that I have been has individual seats. I was very surprised of the fact that even Macdonald has a very nice seat for individuals because it is very hard to see those seats in Korea restaurants. Every thing has to be ours in Korea. Our family, our house, our friends..But after few months obsevation in Kansai gaidai campus, I found that many Japanese students are very independent and enjoying spending time alone studying, reading and eating. I don't see myself eating alone in restaurant but it is very natural thing in Japan which I think it is very nice.

Second of all, Japanese people are very concerned about other people's feelings and they care about very small things which most of people wouldn't be realized becasue it is too small to care about. One time I went to shopping to get some clothes and it was raining so hard that day. I was so worried about the paper bags that have new clothes that I bought. I thought those bags are going to be soaking wet from rain. However, I didn't have to worry about it because they offered me a paper bag covered by plastic bag. On rainy days, all of Japanese shops are offering their customers the paper bags which are covered by plastic bags. I was so touched by this bags because they could've just offered normal paper bags but they see things for the futre. This is the thing I like about Japan. They come up with something that most of people would've not thought of. There were so many things in Japan that I was surprised at but there are too many to remember. I think they do this because they really see things and know how to think beyond.

My impression has changed a lot in a good way after I really experienced Japan by myself. Hopefully I could keep this up next semester too.

Japanese temple vs. Korean temple

When I first arrived here, the first thing I realized was that there are a lot of traditional temples in Japan. I was very surprised when I saw the temple which was located in the middle of the shopping centers in Kyoto because it is very hard to see a temple in a crowded town in Korea. I have to go certain areas or mountains to see temple. My family or at least my grandma had very deep belief in Buddhism. When I was young, whenever I visited my grandmother’s home, she always sings to me the songs which are from special Buddhism books. The songs didn’t make sense to me at first but they grew up in me. After a while, I couldn’t sleep without my grandma’s songs.

Because of my grandma’s strong encouragement to go to temple, my family usually go to the temple on Buddhist’s day. We go there, pay money with our appreciation for our family’s sake and have free lunch! People working at temple offer free vegetarian lunch for people who come to their temple. It is very delicious and very healthy. I think I have been many temples more than people who are in my age right now. As I grew up, my family and I went to temple less and less. As time went by, I was in the place that I had to concentrate my school and manage my life besides going to the temple and there was no grandma who sings me the songs, holds my hands and takes me to the temple anymore. (She passed away…) And now I am in Japan, the country which has lots of temples and reminds me of my childhood and grandmother. I was very happy to see these temples and somehow these temples and the smell of the temples make me calm and make me find my center.

                                                    Korean temple's (See? not many colors)

My friends and I went to ‘kiyomizutera’ which is in Kyoto. I found the differences right away. The most obvious difference was that temples in Japan are more likely have bright radish colors such as red and orange. Basically the entire temple was colored by orange. It is very rare to see those kinds of colors in Korean temples. The temple was so different and so pretty. I was so moved just by standing there and looking at the temple. In Korea, they barely use colors and if they have to use colors, those are usually green, brown, grey or partially red. Korean people tend to keep it simple and try not to use many colors when it comes to building temple. Simple is better. That’s Korean’s motor. It was very nice to see different style of temple for a change.

                                   
The other difference that I was surprised was that they have all kinds of make-a-wish activities in the temple. People come and write or draw their wishes on woods and hang them on special place. Also there was a special herb that is supposed to heal people’s illness. Most of people were hoping that their illness will go away by breathing and washing their body with its smoke and smell. I did it wishing all my hidden illness would go away. The other interesting activity that I loved was so-called ‘Love stone’. There were two stones which were about 4 meters away from each other. If you reach one stone to the other with your eyes closed, your love will be realized soon but if you don’t, it will take some time to realize your love. They also offer three different waters that have different meanings; Love, success and happiness. People don’t get to know the meanings before they drink it. They have to choose by chance and after they get to know the meaning.

My friends and I tried to do many things as we could in Kiyomitustera area. On the way back down to Kyoto, we dropped by many cute stores and had little green tea ice cream. It was one bite of heaven. Even though it was little bit hot and hard to get to the top but it was definitely worth it. This was one of the best trip I have ever been in Japan.

Kobe

This is Kobe at night. Beautiful is the only word that I need to describe Kobe. Absolutely beautiful city. Kobe is the sixth-largest city in Japan and one of the cities to open for trade with the West.
I went to Kobe with my friend by ourselves. There were no Japanese people or people who knows to get there. We wanted to figure things out by ourselves and it was sucessful! I took a book, map and some lunch we made.

We followed the map which have the major sight seeings and everything. First, we went to kitano park and had lunch. It was so beautiful. But it was different than what I expected. Unlike Kyoto which has many traditional Japanese elements, the buildings and houses are very different from standard Japanese style. It reminded me of Montmartre in France. Very Europeanish and westernized. Many things catched my eyes. It was little bit hard to get there but it was worth it. They played music and musician was trying to entertain people and had nice foods.

After having fabulous lunch, we moved our feets to Kobe tower. In kobe town, there was a huge river between the bridges. We could've took the boat but it was expensive. But it was enough for me to just look at them and enjoy.

We spent about 5 hours in Kobe tower area and we saw many foreigners who were having fun as we were. There were two hotels which looked so elegant and classy. The one that we actually entered was fulled of people and seemed new. The other one seemed more private and expensive. I really wanted to get in but I couldn't..

I also went to third biggest china town in the world. This is officially my first time to go to any china town in the world. My friend and I couldn't find it first but we knew right away when we saw red signs.

Almost every single person was holding foods in their hands and eating while they were walking. It is hard to see in Korea. And actually there is no China town in Korea. They have foods, goods and people.

We went back to Kobe tower and enjoyed our first night at Kobe. Everything looked even better at night.

Kobe is the place that you can feel three different atmospheres; Japan, Europe and China. How facinating! I would never expect something like this from Japan. It was very interesting and fun night in Japan. Kobe became one of my favorite city in Japan.