1st (2) Weeks in Japan!


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Asia » Japan » Tokyo » Roppongi
June 24th 2008
Published: June 30th 2008
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On June 11th I arrived here in Tokyo. After leaving Narita Airport, I went to go see my new apartment in Roppongi, one of the most well-known districts of Tokyo because of its night-life. My apartment is nice- it has just enough room for my boyfriend and I. The most interesting part about our apartment are the buttons- the incomprehensible ones even to my boyfriend who has had two years of Japanese. In the kitchen there is a set of buttons to turn on the bath and heat the water. When the bath is full, the sound of a woman's voice sounds (translated): The bath is ready- go and play! Although the washing machine/dryer was difficult to figure out at first, we were finally able to do a load of laundry last night. Victory!

On weekdays, I work in Temple University as a research intern. Everyone here is nice and helpful and I haven't had much trouble getting around. Currently I am researching about Chinese immigration into Japan, as well as attempting to create my own project researching AIDS in Japan.

So far, I have visited a number of different "must-see" districts. In Roppongi, I have wandered the streets in search of clubs, bars, grocery stores, and malls. Surprisingly, bread here is very expensive so I mostly eat noodles, vegetables, and fish. After making the unfortunate mistake of shopping in an "upscale" grocery store, I found another one in Roppongi that is much less expensive.

In Shibuya, another well-known part of Tokyo, I was invited to a wedding reception. After asking a few strangers where the best places are to go in Shibuya, we were invited to a wedding reception where the Japanese family paid for our food and drinks. It was a great time and an interesting cross-cultural experience. One of the member of the family was a comedian, and we asked him to send us his business card in the mail. Yesterday, we received his business card, along with a nice letter and two little gifts. Most people here are wonderful.

In Harajuku we ate crepes rolled up like ice cream cones that contained ice cream and cake. Many people like them here. Harajuku is the type of place that you go to to see all walks of life. There are girls who are dressed up like dolls, punk rockers, goths, etc. It's an interesting place to go see.

I guess the most difficult aspect of Japanese culture for me to undertand is the repression that many people talk about. Everyone that I meet is very polite but apparently very restrained. All around Japan there are different venues to release stress and tension ranging from love hotels and maid cafes to rooms that people pay to enter so that they can break anything they want inside of it. I think this cultural phenomenon may be changing with the new generations. It will be interesting to come back in ten years and see if it has changed.

-Aleksandra Kuczmarska


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2nd July 2008

Welcome to the world of blogging
Such a cute blog. Makes me want to cry! A little stiff, though. Relax, tell us a story! :) p.s. My favorite part of Japan? you

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