KIT-IJST Long Weekend [Part 2]
Saturday, July 3, 2010

It's raining all day. Lebat pulak tu. Zannen! We couldn't go out to explore Nonoichi town as promised. Backup plan? Kitorang keluar jugak, literally walking in the rain, utk usha2 kedai behind Nishikawa Heights. KakDiya dah lama curious about kedai apa yg wujud kat situ. Apparently, nothing great pun. Terasa mcm orang tak betul pun ade, purposely berjalan-jalan tgk alam dalam hujan. Haha... After that, seharian berkurung dlm bilik, menyiapkan homework setakat terdaya, sigh~

Oh, this morning, we met Kidoguchi-san and Obaa-chan in front of Nishikawa Heights. They came to give us some souvenirs. Sangat terharu! Both of us received a bag of stuff from Hakuichi (gold leaf company mentioned in previous entry). Mahal semua tu *oh mata berkaca-kaca* Saya sayang host family Jepun saya sangat2!! (^___^)

Sunday, July 4, 2010

Today's raining as well, tapi beransur-ansur stop around noon. Apelagi, kitorg terus capai wallet & payung, then keluar naik Notty bus merah ke Nonoichi town area. Supposedly we shoud go to Tatemachi at Kata-machi again, but it's too far. 1st destination, Fashion shop. He he... 2 jam lah di situ sajer. Choice selection tak lah semeriah kat Kata-machi and LABBRO, but enough to get cute and cheap (penting nih!) clothes there. Next, Maruei grocery shop. I spent quite a lot here, but I got everything I wanted! Takoyaki, sayur-mayur, roti sedap, kek choc, etc. Happy!

We might go to Ninjadera or geisha/samurai district tomorrow. Oh, our long weekend is left with 1 day. Cepatnya masa berlalu...

8:07 PM | Category: | 0 cookies for me!

KIT-IJST Long Weekend! [Part 1]


Friday, July 2, 2010

Yay, the 4-day holiday is here! We're not going to Osaka like others, lepak2 around Kanazawa jer lah. So today, we're going to Kata-machi! The biggest shopping/commercial district in 3 prefectures: ishikawa, fukui, toyama. Really? OK jom confirmkan!



Naik bus from Kodai-mae to Korinbo, then jalan kaki ke Kata-machi district. Byk kedai tgh sale, 20% - 80% discount! Tapi disebabkan original prices pun da beratus, discounted pun still mahal. Forever 21, punyelah mahal T___T. Rindu USA, nak shopping! Fashion sense in Japan mmg kuat, baju cute2. Kebanyakan current style - baggy & labuh. But! Kat bawah (leg area) singkat sgt pulak. Mostly miniskirts, shorts. Kat atas nak bertutup, pelik sungguh.

Ktorang masuk this 1 shop, Harajuku style. Byk benar legal Lolita costumes! Excited jugak la nmpk yg original, bila tgk harganya mmg tersedak lah. Photography is not allowed, sorry tak dpt upload here. Then masuk anime and figurine shops. There's 1 section for doll making. Creepy, ade dolls merata-rata, pakaian cantik2, tapi mata dolls tu mcm tgh tgk kita. Ee, meremang roma! I found Dragonball Z x One Piece figurines (I got SuperBezict & Luffy!), and keychain son gohan, haha sronok! If only ade Totoro...


Had snack of banana choc waffle & caramel milktea tapioca drink. Yummy! Then, pegi LABBRO mall. OMG, sgt byk baju2 cantekkk! Rambang kejap. Nak nangis pun ada, sbb niat hati nak berjimat, tapi tangan terketar nak byr. Isk...nasib baik masih siuman. Takpe, bukan tiap2 tahun dtg Japan, next time nak dtg Kata-machi lagi! (>__<)



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KIT-IJST 3rd Week Classes
ok da malas nk tulis dlm full english. bantai lah dlm broken english-malay pon.

Sunday, June 27, 2010

We went to Bookoff & ¥100 shops. Da lewat petang baru nak gerak. Terserempak dgn sam, jackie, tiana. They got very cheap cup & bowl sets at bookoff. 3 plates + 4 cups = <￥1000! Murah! Maka berlari-larilah kami ke arah kedai tersebut, kerisauan sudah kehabisan, juga sudah lewat petang - kedai mungkin hampir tutup. Apparently, bookoff tutup 10pm, lega~ Kak diya sibuk mencari patung bear yg dia nak dulu, tapi dah takde. Too bad. Eventually, ktorg pusing2 usha benda lain. I bought 1 bowl set, 1 cup set. Soon, shopping @ ¥100 pulak. Lagi murah, so 'berjuta'lah barang yg diborong. OTW back, singgah @ Hokkahokkatei (take out bento boxes). Aritu cakap boleh pegi hokkahokkatei skali sebulan jer, masuk kali ni dah 3 kali beli. Nice lah.

Monday, June 28, 2010

RPro class start 10:40am! Yes, lambat sejam! As usual, we did research on our topics and made progress report. For JPN Comm, we changed classrooms into those @ 10th floor library. The view is nice. In class, we wrote thank-you letter to host family. Oh, how I miss them...



Suda-sensei brought us to 11th floor, a floor special for GIRLS ONLY! I found Sakurai Sho-chan's version of an-an! Hahaha, abunaiii! I'd certainly come again here!


Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Nothing unusual in Cultural class. For JST, we had another vocab quiz (sigh~) & new vocabs to learn (sigh lagi). Several students had to do presentation practice in front of us, I wonder if we have to memorize everything for the real one. O___o

Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Only 2 days till long weekend! Fujii-sensei sangat bersemangat dlm kelas hari ni, dia pun tak sabar nak cuti agaknye. Hoshigumi went to English class for JPN students, conversed in both JPN & English. I got 2 cool groups, agak talkative & funny. Groups lain byk yg pendiam. 1 of the guy said he likes Tohoshinki, ONLY. Eeee...hontou?? Ye la tuuh... Also, we wrote wishes and hung them on bamboo tree, for Tanabata festival.


After class, an all-girl trip to Strawberry Cafe! Me, diya, sam, jackie, and tiana. It's a western-style shop, based on maybe, 60's period. I got veggie cheese pizza & matchan waffle. So yummy! Walaupun mahal - ¥1100, I can afford that once in a while :)



Thursday, July 1, 2010

Multiculturism in-class presentation. We had to discuss topics within groups. I got myself "Ch.6: Transnational Migration of Women Crossing Boundaries". Menarik jugak, it's about how JPN women lari ke overseas drpd stressful work in Japan. Kat Japan, women is considered at lower rank than men. Sexist, kan?

Tak sabar, long weekend esok!

10:06 AM | Category: | 2 cookies for me!

KIT-IJST Home Visit!
Saturday, June 26, 2010

Finally, home visit day! Kidoguchi-san picked us up at Nishikawa Heights at 2pm, and we met his family consisted of his wife, 2 sons and a daughter. His mother and younger brother were there too. Obaachan was so cute and warm, Mama was very welcoming, their children (Takeshi-kun, Mami-chan, Atsushi-kun) were shy at first, but they gradually got spirited. Kidoguchi-san’s brother had been in Malaysia in 1995, he showed us several pictures of him and his Malay friends. It’s really relieving to have something familiar to talk about.

Then, Mama lent us her yukata; Diya’s so happy to wear yukata for the 1st time. This was my 4th time. They took pictures of us wearing yukatas, and then we visisted Hakukokan, a company producing Kanazawa gold leaf (kinpaku) using traditional tools, where the younger brother works as a crafts maker. Kidoguchi-san bought us oil-blotting papers made of Japanese rice paper; the cover was very attractive, I’m not gonna use it! I also bought an accessory shaped as a dragon w/ pieces of kinpaku inside. Stuff in the shop is very expensive! There’re gold leaf cosmetic product, edible kinpaku spray, kinpaku cake, etc. Apparently, Japanese eats Gold!

After we got back, the kids asked us to play Wii games together. They’re good! The games were cute and amusing, I should get my hand on that thing too. We also played Jenka, Uno card, and Japanese card games. So fun being around kids again, I miss my siblings! I didn’t understand everything they’re saying, but enough to make me get the whole idea. The youngest, Atsushi-kun was so cute! He wanted to show how good he was in each game. Takeshi-kun, being the oldest, was very friendly and tried hard to explain things in simple English words. Mami-chan was more timid and indulged in manga more often. (Alert to Pao-chan and Asmaa-chan!) Both her and Mama love Arashi so much! Aiba-chan is their favorite! Hahaha… Aibaka…

Obaachan and Mama prepared us a table full of sushi, sashimi and yakinori. I love tako and unagi so much! The family ate so fast that they finished much earlier than us two. Goshisousamadeshita! (Thanks for the delish food!) Before we left, they opened our omiyage together. They looked very happy to receive various things from America and Malaysia. As a return, they gave us a Kanazawa dialect card game; it’ll be wonderful for us to learn the local dialect. The home visit was such a wonderful experience. I hope I can meet them again in the future…


At the lounge, I watched Kaibutsu-kun SP episode, Ohno-kun was very cute as Botcchan! Next show was Arashi no Nishiyagare. I wish Pao-chan and Maa-chan could be here…huhu…


3:50 PM | Category: | 3 cookies for me!

KIT-IJST 2nd Week of Classes
Monday, June 21, 2010

I received my large package from Malaysia! My family sent me a whole box full of Maggi and kantung (pre-cooked Malaysian dishes) products. After surviving on only udon, soba, eggs, nori, rice, furikake, I felt like crying out of happiness seeing the food. Now, I could save some food expense on shopping spree in after-program Tokyo/Osaka trip, can’t wait! >___<

Oh, I love my beloved family so much!



Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Another package arrived, this time it’s souvenirs from Malaysia meant for my host family and sensei. All expense was sponsored by my dad for his birthday was few days back.
In Cultural class, we discussed about Anthropology and multiculturism in Japan. Somehow, everyone seemed very gloomy and sleepy. I wasn’t sleepy, but my mood and spirit weren’t that great. Maybe, lack of sleep? John Ertl noticed this and he demanded us to write a review sheet next time he sees a sleepy student. Oh no! やばい！Today’s JST class wasn’t very difficult as we’re combining all classes together. We learned how to write a presentation outline and practiced it w/ friends. Oh, it’s hard to do a presentation in polite forms of JPN, considering it’s all about science terms! The fact that the presentation is gonna be recorded made me very nervous!

At 6pm, Diya and I met our host family in a brief introduction session. Kidoguchi-san was a decent middle-aged man, and talk very politely. We’re gonna meet his family this Saturday in a home visit. Luckily, I’ve prepared my omiyage. I’m excited!

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

We’re going to Yatsukaho campus, the other KIT campus consisting mainly research and development institutes) today. Diya and I (Biotech), Jackie and Sara Stewart (Med. Illustration) were put in 1 group under Fudano-sensei, and we met Dr. Tamori who developed MEG (magnetoencephalograph) machine. This machine can detect electric currents emitted by brain very well compared to other older technologies. It is kept in a metal-free room to prevent large noise from Earth magnetic field. Even MIT and Univ of Melbourne bought it! Impressive, indeed…

Next, we’re combined in other groups to visit product development building to see the technologies KIT has to offer. They won Best creation in Japan intelligence award (I forgot the award’s name) for a hybrid chair, made of glass fibers and carbon papers. It’s very light, but very sturdy. They’re planning to market it soon, I hope it will be great success. Go KIT!

We also visited Natadera temple which was built by monk Taicho 1280 yrs ago. The area was too beautiful, the forest bed was covered with green moss, the green color was very rich and appealing. I got to see Avalokitesvara (1000-handed Kannon) w/ my eyes; I’ve learned about this Japanese deity in Art/China, Japan, Korea class before. There’s a very big swan (3X bigger than normal) and big carp fish in a pool garden near Iwayama caves. The best thing was when I climbed the Iwayama rock stairs; it was a rainy season so the steep rocks were quite slippery. Despite the danger, I found it very adrenaline-rushing and fun! Hehe…

Thursday, June 24, 2010

John Ertl prepared an old movie called “The Ballad of Narayama”, winning Grand Prix award in an international film festival several years ago. John wanted us to see how a Japanese family was set up in ancient times. Honestly, the movie’s very crazy, weird and consisted of many dirty scenes! As a summary, a son needs to obey their village law to carry their old parents up to Narayama to die. He didn’t want to send his old mother, but she insisted. That’s the important storyline, but the existence of other characters was unnecessary! Seriously dude…

Tonight was the night! Last episode of Sunanare! I missed earliest 15min due to homework, but I still managed to watch the rest. I was so happy that I contributed in increasing their rating for the last episode! Jae-oppa was very cute, handsome, kakkoi, and everything…! But, I couldn’t watch him again as Doctor in the drama, I’ll miss his clumsy Doctor character…Oppa~ T___T

Onegai, a Special (SP) Episode of Sunanare! Please, please, please…Director-san and Eriko Kitagawa-san!!

Friday, June 25, 2010

The JPN Comm II class w/ Ono-sensei was fun. She taught us the proper manners in Japanese houses since we’re gonna have a home visit tomorrow! Just 1 thing keeps bothering me, Hoshigumi class often didn’t get handouts as other classes do. For RPro class, we submitted the topic for our presentation. I chose to do EcoGarden based on my observation at the EcoHouse. Hope it will turn out well…

At 5pm, we went to our 1st meeting of Art Club. Oh yeah, we got accepted into the club! Ryo-san, the club leader, welcomed us very warmly and brought us to an artroom in South Campus area. We made a self-introduction in form of picture of anything we prefer. I drew Peninsular Malaysia map to show them where I live, my family in stick persons, and a few space-filling cartoons. Next, all members joined us the exchange students (留学生) for dinner. Each of us bought a bento dinner at Hokkahokkatei and ate together at Nishikawa Heights’ lounge. It was fun being with them~

3:05 PM | Category: | 2 cookies for me!

KIT-IJST Anamizu Trip!
Friday, June 18, 2010

We’re going for a 2-day + 1-night trip to Anamizu Bay! Both KIT-IJST and Kapiolani kids went there in 2 buses. First, we visited Ishikawa Ecohouse that was newly finished this April. The eco-technologies were incredible; small wind-power generator, solar panels, hot and cool tubes, airtight insulation walls, so on. It was created for a 3-generation family, and highly depends on natural energy. I was impressed that it even has special plants that can absorb CO2 and CO 2-3 times higher than normal ones. Everything was built with eco-purpose in mind, and the house consumed about ¥10,000,000 (US$0.1 million!). I wonder if anyone will actually spend that amount for this kind of house…


On the way to Anamizu, we went to Nanao Fisherman’s Wharf for lunch. Many fun stuff, but since it’s a tourist spot, they’re so expensive! Diya and I wandered around the stalls trying free samples, took pictures of teruterubozu (weather dolls) made by school kids, and bought a strawberry cheesecake ice-cream at Gelato shop. It’s so good! I should try green tea flavor next time, I heard it’s awesome. When our bus reached a place called Chirihama, it made a sudden turn to beach area. We’re on beach sand! The sand was very dense that it’s possible for heavy vehicles to move on it. Sugoi!

It’s a light rain, so we’re still able to go to Anamizu by KIT cruise boat. Yes! It was about 40min journey through the sea. I enjoyed the sea breeze and waves splashing against the boat. At last, we arrived at the resort bay. But we had to walk up a steep hill to reach our hostel. I got into same room as Diya, Sarah Sugarman, 3 Hawaiian students (Marikriz, Sher, Aida). Since KIT Japanese students would only arrive at 7pm, we got some free time to play sports at gym or hang out in hostel room. I played badminton, others played volleyball, basketball, ping pong. Also, Sam and Rachel did some capoeira performances.


At 7pm, barbeque started! Many seafood and veggies available, so I didn’t worry about meats at all. Shingo, one of JPN exchange student in RIT early this year, is from Kanazawa and he joined this trip too. Good to meet him again, he still remembers me. He put himself as the griller for “no-meat section – seafood & veggie only”, and he was good! I got myself so much stuff, and I could barely socialize w/ JPN students while eating. I talked to some friendly JPN, showing interests in Malaysia and Islam regarding diet restriction and scarf wearing. They also taught me some new JPN vocabs, thanks guys! After dinner, it’s time for bath (おふろ)! For those who don’t know this, taking bath in Japan means getting naked with others in the same room and going into a bath pool together. I won’t tell anything more than that here. I didn’t hang out w/ others for games or anything for the rest of the night, I just slept right away. But they’re being so noisy out there…..

Saturday, June 19, 2010

I was woken up by “Let the River Flow” piano melody, followed by announcement “Ohayoo gozaimasu (2x)” few times. Is this how JPN schools wake students up at an overnight trip? We had an early morning gathering in the gym. JPN kids sang their national anthem, and then, we got a little aerobics session. Haha, so cute!~ After a pleasant breakfast, John Ertl held a Culture lecture for both American/Hawaiian and JPN students, in English! Now it’s time for JPN kids to get baffled over foreign language…hehe. Based on a question “Where do Japanese come from?”, we made a comparison of Japanese and American family trees. Myth stories of Izanagi and Izanami (gods who created JPN) were quite amusing actually, w/ the Land of the Dead, monsters, and everything…something like a zombie land, I suppose. During 1hr free time, I presented myself to personal ‘dreamland’, no mood for sports or gossips. For lunch, finally I got to taste original Japanese curry! It’s made of veggie stock, specially made for me and Diya. Awwhh, thanks sensei and OIP staff! They’re very considerate and caring ~(>__<)~ Around noon, we left Anamizu to visit Ketataisha shrine on the way back. The shrine was 400-yr old, very Japanese-looking w/ some delicate wood carvings. Ketataisha is famous for housing the God of Love, so I bought a love fortune for ¥200, and Hideyoshi-san helped to translate it. Very interesting, indeed. Diya got the highest level of fortune, ceyh. Hideki-san told me he’s been in Malaysia before, at Langkawi, J.Bahru, some others. He could pronounce ‘nasi goreng’ pretty well! The Anamizu trip was overall very fun and exciting. Oh, now I have to make a report on Ecohouse…
Sunday, June 20, 2010

It’s Sunday! Despite of joining other girls to a shopping trip to an anime place at Kanazawa downtown, I stayed home to finish my laundry and homework, cook, and lay around. It’s a beautiful Sunday…

1:03 PM | Category: | 0 cookies for me!

KIT-IJST 1st Week Classes
Monday, June 14, 2010

1st day of KIT-IJST classes! Mostly, we did self-introduction (じこしょうかい) and review for easy materials. There’re 8 people in Hoshigumi – me, Sam, Jackie, Sara Jackson, Derek, John, Tim, Morgan. In the morning, we had JPN Communication II for 3 sessions w/ Fujii-sensei. She’s a kind teacher. Next was Research Project (RPro) class w/ all other sensei. We need to find a topic regarding technologies used in Japan and do research about it. At the end of IJST program, we’ll have to present the topic in front of others, including KIT president-sama! Ugh, I hate presentations! T_____T

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

We had JPN Cultural class w/ Dr. John Ertl (the only American sensei we got) whom actually teaches at University of Kanazawa. He was fun and open-minded. For an anthropologist like him, it was no wonder that he knows how to approach people well. For the 1st class, we only shared stories and experiences in Japan so far. And the best thing, we could use English the whole time in this class!

Next class – JPN for Science & Tech (JST) – was for learning useful terms in science & tech which can help us in the RPro presentation. Mostly, it was computer session, how to use JPN laptop w/ different type of keyboard, how to understand JPN commands, etc.

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

I had only JPN Comm II class / Ono-sensei today. It was still easy, we reviewed casual form and make simple conversation between classmates. Also, some preparation for Anamizu trip and Ketataisha visit this weekend. In the evening, I went to Art Club (びじゅつぶ) meeting to survey for J-club of interest. There’re 3 guys playing video games in the room, I got confused if they really had a club meeting. They told us afterwards they only meet on Friday, and other days are for free activities. I ranked Art Club (1st), Photography (2nd), and Manga Research Club (3rd) for choices, sensei will determine the club for us.

Thursday, June 17, 2010

In Cultural class, we discussed a review paper as presentations. Nothing much to talk about. Later, we had JST class. Now I have stuff to write. The class was sooo difficult! We talked about Ecohouse and its functions in generating natural energy itself. The terms were very new and hard to pronounce right away. John, Tim and Morgan (UIUC, Hawaii) are actually far ahead than RITians in JPN knowledge so they survived the class pretty well. But for us, we’re at a complete loss. After class, we even considered to changing class into Tsukigumi, so we consulted Fujii-sensei. She was surprised w/ our sudden appearance, and assured us; “みなさんは大丈夫と思う“ (I’m sure everyone can do well) many times, we couldn’t complain further. She will adjust the difficulty level next time. ありがとう、先生。。。

That night, I watched Sunaoni Narenakute or shortnamed as Sunanare on TV. May I give a spoiler here? Oh never mind… but the 10th episode was really unexpected! A twist occurred in the storyline involving 1 of the 5 friends in Sunanare Club. I literally shrieked when it happened, and also when Jae-oppa as Doctor appeared (hehe of course). Now, Sam and Tiana had seen my die-hard fangirl side, oh how embarrassing… Next Thursday will be the last episode! OMG! T___T

12:58 PM | Category: | 0 cookies for me!

KIT-IJST Program - STARTO DESU!
Thursday, June 10, 2010

First day of official orientation of KIT-IJST program! All 27 of us (RIT, RHIT, UIUC, Hawaii) gathered in lounge to meet all sensei and OIP staff. Fudano-sensei: Program Director; Fujii-sensei, Suda-sensei, Sakuma-sensei, Ono-sensei, Murata-sensei – all of them studied in USA. It was a brief 1-hr meeting, enough to make me nervous+excited. The rest of the day? Free day again! We walked to a very cheap manga shop called Bookoff – you can get a popular manga at ¥105 (= US$1.50). Next, ¥100 (Hyakuen) shop. Everything’s only ¥105! These shops are very cool, but it takes 20min walk. It’s pretty far, but when you get used to it, no problem!

Friday, June 11, 2010

2nd day of orientation. We had a formal event where KIT president gave a speech, followed by short notes from other KIT committees. At 1pm, we had a placement test! I was so nervous since I didn’t finish studying all materials. The written test was easy, except some parts. But the oral test was unexpected! We’re asked to create a 20-30 secs story based on a strip cartoon. How do you call a doghouse in JPN? I used 犬の家 (literally means ‘a dog’s house’). Sensei might find that funny…

At 6pm, SGE (Student Global Exchange) threw a Welcome Party for KIT-IJST and Hawaii-Kapiolani programs. So many food! I love takoyaki and mashed edamame! Plus, we met Japanese kids, both outgoing/friendly and shy/smiling-all-along types. Well, my JPN still wasn’t good, so it’s like a conversation btwn chicken & duck. Anyway, it was fun. We headed to a game arcade later on. I played a car racing game, I flunked all tries. Ughhh….

Saturday, June 12, 2010

The result of placement test was out! I was put into Hoshigumi (星組), the advanced class (o__O). We had consultation session with sensei to see whether we fit for the class (actually, it’s like a welcome session into the class – no consultation at all). Fujii-sensei will be my class teacher. Diya got into Intermediate – Tsukigumi (月組). The other class was Hanagumi (花組). I feel the pressure, but I really hope the class will help improving my JPN.

Also, we received laptop from KIT. This is important since we cannot use personal laptop to surf internet in many places in KIT. They only recognize IP address from KIT’s laptop, and no wireless access – we need an Ethernet cable. I felt I’ve been spoiled too much being in the USA. I didn’t get to call my family through Skype or Voipstunt yet. So frustrating! Luckily there’s an international phone outside Nishikawa Height which accepts only ¥100 coins, at least I’m still able to make calls.

Later, all KIT-IJST kids went out together to Nonoichi town by Notty (のっティ) bus. The bus was so small and cute! There’re 4 Notty bus routes, we used the red one to reach Stop 13. The bus was overpacked w/ us and other Japanese, it made weird noises during turns or bumps. Poor bus… We went to Shopping Plaza nearby Town Hall, the most interesting place was electronics store. So many cute, practical devices in Japan, ex: flower-shaped waffle-maker, dog-shaped vacuum cleaner, etc. At cellphone section, I saw Arashi posters promoting AU by KDDI phones! I saw other idols and actors as well, if only Tohoshinki is still active…I’m sure there’ll be my 5 beloved oppas here and there… T___T

We also went to a flea market. Brian and Derek each got a mahjong set, apparently they know to play it very well. Others bought beautiful crafted cups, traditional stuff. I found many interesting things, but I didn’t buy any. On the way back, I dropped by at BookOff again to buy a Rilakkuma teddy bear for ¥500. I named it… Pokky! I guess I miss my Shinbi a.k.a. Baeby too much…I got you a new friend! Oh, we also met a few Indonesian guys at the bookstore. It’s weird to meet familiar faces in Japan. Oh well...


Sunday, June 13, 2010

SGE arranged a field trip to Kenrokuen Garden – one of the three most famous gardens of Japan – and Ishikawa-mon Gate. The traditional landscapes and castle are very impressive; I couldn’t describe it properly here. I really love the rich greenery. That day was very warm, so was my heart while witnessing the beautiful God’s creation. If only it was spring…then hanami (花見) of sakura blossoms will be so great! Nevertheless, summer view was still very much breathtaking. But my camera went weak soon before we finished touring the garden, so I didn’t get much pictures at the castle later.


SGE students led us to wrong direction, and we got lost for a while. Then we managed to reach Fish Market, something like Pasar Siti Khadijah, but far cleaner. For lunch, I bought large squid and scallops on sticks for only ¥350! So yummy! I’d certainly buy that again. FYI, Kanazawa is the main city in Ishikawa prefecture, very near to Sea of Japan. That’s why seafood and fish are very fresh and awesome-tasting here.

I got an awesome news from home! My sister has given birth to a beautiful daughter. Congratz to Kaknaz and Abg Jay! Now I got a pair of babies – a nephew and a niece. Khairien Zufairy must be happy to get a sister so soon, he’s only turning 2 this August. I’ve been wanting to buy cute frilly dresses for baby girls…just wait I get my hands on Khairieyna Zuhairah next year (^___^)

12:52 AM | Category: | 0 cookies for me!

さようならロチェスター, こんにちは日本！(Sayounara Rochester, Hello Japan!)
...In the Name of ALLAH...


I'm finally in Japan! So great to be at the land of rising sun, one of a place I've been dreaming to go to since childhood. Plus, I am now stepping on the same piece of land as my JAE-oppa! HAHA! (sorry, my fangirl spirit is really strong nowadays xD)

Okay, now I'll be updating this blog twice per week, Insha-ALLAH... With limited internet access here, I can't afford writing too often. But I'll try my best. Sorry for the delay, everyone.


Monday, June 7, 2010 (American time)

Diya and I boarded NH011 All Nippon Airways on 10:50am. The flight was cozy and full of Japanese families. The stewardesses were very polite and the service was awesome! They offered drinks every 10mins! But the food wasn’t that good since we ordered for veggie meals (Muslim meals might contain non-halal chicken). I gave ANA 7.5/10.

Tuesday, June 8, 2010 (Japan time)

We arrived at Terminal 1, Narita Airport around 1:30 pm. So excited to see Japanese staffs greeting and bowing to us. そろそろ、日本に着いた！The customs procedure wasn’t hard, we passed easily as 外人 (gaijin). First, we sent our baggage to KIT through ANA service – Japanese trains/buses do not have spaces for large baggage. Then, we converted US dollars to yens at post office; we’re so nervous to speak in Japanese that I messed up a bit! Since we’re using overnight bus to Kanazawa, we rode 2 trains to Shinjuku bus station; it took more than 2hours! Funny thing, I saw like 70% of train passengers no matter males or females, young or old, they have cute accessories in form of stuffed toys, etc., hung at cellphones, backpacks, handbags. Important to note, the toys were hugeeee!! Those toys should add some weight to phones especially, I wonder how they can make calls with stuff that size hanging around. Still, it’s interesting/amusing to watch. Too bad we didn’t go to Tokyo first, I really want to see Tokyo Tower w/ my very own eyes; plus, Jae-oppa might do his shooting somewhere nearby! (^___^)

We met other 9 RIT kids at Shinjuku, and I had my very first real Japanese meal there! Udon w/ tempura, yummy! At 11pm, we boarded the bus. Guess what? All seats occupied w/ sleeping hood, like one in baby stroller! It’s for passenger’s privacy while sleeping. So cute!




Wednesday, June 9, 2010

We arrived at Kanazawa JR Station – train and bus stations – at 7am. After struggling w/ all weird Kanji all around the station, a kind old man helped us in finding the right bus terminal. It was ¥330 to reach Kanazawa Institute of Technology (KIT) in 30min. My heart leaped w/ joy to see the campus, it’s not large, even smaller than RIT. But there came a feeling that this’ll be my spot for 6weeks, it should be good. We met Miyamoto-san, Office of International Program (OIP) staff, who’d been emailing us during pre-departure period, and now she helped us w/ apartment rooms and orientation packets.



Diya and I got same apartment – 47.509 – occupied w/ 2 bedrooms, living room, kitchen, bathroom, and toilet. The hostel called Nishikawa Height, and we could see the river view separating KIT and hostel from our balconies. So cool! For the remaining day, all RIT students went out exploring around KIT hunting for food, toilet papers, etc. There’re a lot of ramen restaurants, unfortunately I couldn’t eat ramen here, its soup contains beef/pork stock. Instead, I got a luxurious bento lunch of tempura rice, only ¥580. That night, I wasn’t that sleepy, but I slept anyway on the futon – so comfy~

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Midwest@Purdue '10
...In the Name of ALLAH...


Finally, i could say out loud that i've arrived at Midwest Games in the USA! last year was a terrible tragedy due to H1N1 flu phenomenon, it's tragically cancelled by MSD. this year's was held at Purdue University, from may 28 - 31. RIT sent quite a number of people, but only 70% of us were actually participating in sport events. I, myself, were in bowling team. my skill is not that good, but at least i can bowl pretty well... ha ha ha!

i left in a car with muni, akmal, dila, and taufik at about 9 am. other cars and vans had left earlier. the journey was quite fun; i played UNO cards and Hangman with dila and taufik, muni and akmal couldn't stop quarreling and nagging each other. i wonder what will happen when they get married... LOL. by the way, we arrived at around 8pm, and we didn't get any proper dinner that night. dila, muni, hawa and me stayed at knights inn, where hundreds of other Malaysians were as well, while the boys stayed with friends on campus. i met my long-lost best friend, ZANA, at the inn. oh, so happy!!


on saturday, the tournament started. i watched UC Davis played in volleyball before going for my bowling match. hmmpph, my game was not that bad, but not the best i've had. joe suddenly got the strength and powerful skill to get strikes and spares! awww come on! seriously joe, you made me looked like an idiot out there. later in the evening, it's RIT's turn to play against nebraska and free agents. we won for 1st game, but not that lucky for the 2nd one although they managed to catch up by continuously 10 points! by night, we found out that we got into quarterfinal! on sunday, the intense games resumed. RIT vs. MSU and UMich. we won both games, and proceeded to semifinal. and there we were, playing against free agents once again. it's now or never. the boys played really cool, and i really thought we could win this shot. i almost lost my voice shouting and cheering for them. but lady luck was not on our side, we lost by 2 points. sigh~ it was a good game, though... the final was between free agents and purdue teams. and guess who won? of course lah, purdue!


the dinner was awesome with midah as my company. i really missed her cute jokes. the midwest night, what could i say? it wasn't free from flaws...many mistakes happened. i don't want to elaborate on that, though. hope next responsible university will learn from this event. oh my, i forgot to mention that RIT performed zapin tari tualang tiga! it was great! apa really stole the spotlight when he made an obvious mistake (haha!) but it was cute. i meant it. xD

in overall, my decision to go to this midwest was a correct one. i really wanted to meet all my friends, including the 'long-lost' ones (like zana =P). i met all jenan friends but we didn't manage to take pictures all together. i might crop and paste their faces into 1 pic. in terms of meeting friends, it was a big success! thanks to those who made my days in purdue =)




my car left for chicago on monday morning, and we got kfc halal! um ummm so goooodd! then, we headed to rochester, and stopped by at a random shopping outlet on the way (thanks to muni who saw the signboard). it was a difficult journey, i told you. it was raining like crazy, we couldn't see what's outside. but alhamdulillah, all 5 of us made it. i love it, really...and i'll miss the moments after i depart for japan later~ sayounara my friends =D

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