#ipenagoya

Howdy Umich IPE Blog, I am Connor Gilfillan, a rising junior Mechanical Engineering student about to spend the summer at Nagoya University in Japan. I will be taking both an introduction to Japanese course and an Automotive Engineering course. The automotive Engineering course is the one I am expecting the most out of, as it includes trips to numerous automotive factories such as Toyota, which, fun fact, was founded in Toyota City, which is within the boundaries of the Nagoya Area.  I am super excited to share my wacky and zany adventures with the world, so make sure to keep up with my blog. 

(This is a photo of me on my way out the door, I was listening to Movin' Out by Billy Joel)

To begin, I am a PROUD New Jerseyian. I love my state and how ridiculous it is. So I wanted to say goodbye to it and all my friends and family before I left for new adventures abroad. Some highlights include going to a multitude of diners and having a BBQ with my friends. But after all that fun, I had to say goodbye.

I began packing about three days before I left, which mostly involved me and my mother running a bajillion errands because I forgot to bring a lot of stuff home from Michigan. Luckily, she is the best, and kept me on track as I was a bit frantic towards my departure date. She even let me get three pairs of new shoes.

(My fully packed suitcase, The moment I finished packing and realized I was in fact leaving for another country. And yes that is a fanny pack)

I got into Tokyo quite late after two long and sluggish flights. Having to go through Japanese customs wasn’t too bad, but I had to go in and out to catch another flight which left me quite stressed (I accidentally ended up at the wrong terminal). After my flight to Nagoya, I was able to make use of my totally super complete Japanese skills, (thank you 3 weeks of Duolingo) to read the subway map and get to my hotel. 

(Boarding the plane before my flight to Nagoya from Tokyo)

After spending a night here, my nerves have calmed down quite a bit and the excitement is kicking in. Breakfast here was quite good, I had one of everything at the buffet, and I was one of the first people there (jet lag made me wake up at 5 am). My favorite part of breakfast was this really fancy rice dispenser they had where you were able to press a button and it dispensed a small, medium or large amount of rice, it was super cute. But now I have a full day of fun ahead of me and I will make sure to keep all of you guys updated with photos and my experience. I really hope I make lots of new friends here.

(This is the view from my hotel room)

(My breakfast which included chicken, eggs, rice, orange juice, and three kinds of fish)

Connor Gilfillan

Mechanical Engineering

Howdy y'all, it's me Connor back after another week jumping around Japan. And oh boy this week was one for the books as it was Tokyo week, but I'll get to that later.

Classes have continued on ramping up as my finals for Japanese and Engineering begin next week. I have been spending a lot more of my free time in the library rather than exploring the city, yet still I am always excited to learn. Japanese is such a fun language and I can't get enough. However I would be lying if I said I'm not stress about our final this Friday.

This is a photo my friend Ethan and myself in the library about to work on our engineering presentations. The topic I chose was car materials and applications. I am doing a deep dive primarily into the interior systems of a car and the different types of plastics and electronics that are used. I have a week left and lots of research to go so I'll get back to everyone on my findings.

We also had quite a few outings this week tied into what we were learning in the classroom:

These photo were taken in the National Traffic Safety and Environment Laboratory. This is a center dedicated research to improve automotive quality within Japan. My expectations were blown out of the water by this experience. They had a state of the art fog room (Left) where we got to see how they tested headlight power and visibility. They also had a massive anechoic chamber (Right), it was so quiet and they use it to make sure vehicles on the road are not too loud.

Another huge portion of this week was motorcycles. We got to visit both the Suzuki and Yamaha museums and see their massive displays of motorcycles and history. The top photo is in front of the Suzuki factor. The photo on the left is me sitting on the Suzuki Hayabusa, a motorcycle which when produced was so fast and had so much power that it changed the way motorcycles were produced forever, (There were laws made because it was so unsafe). On the right is Suzuki's most recent Motorsport bike. I did not know much about it but regardless the experience was a wonderful time.

This is a photo from inside the Yamaha Museum of the MT-09 an 850cc motorcycle. It was my favorite in the museum and there was so much to see. I even got to ride in a motorcycle simulator which was a ton of fun. I learned so much about motorcycles this week and if my mom were not reading these blogs I would say I want one.

The final academically tied experience was a trip to the Yokohama Rubber tire factory. Sadly I was not allowed to take any photos inside but the plant was massive and we got to walk around the factory floor seeing each step of how a tire is produced. If anyone plans on going in the future just know the factory is hot and smells terribly of burned rubber.

Now for the Complete Tokyo Review

Granted this won't be the largest review as I really only had one night and one day to explore but oh boy did I do so much.

This is me at Shibuya Crossing, one of if not the most famous crosswalk in the world if not for Times Square. We went on a Friday night and it was so amazing. The streets were packed and it was louder than any other place in Japan it was so exciting. In addition Shibuya Crossing is the home of the Hachiko statue. There is a very large history to this statue that I highly recommend everyone look up, it made me tear up a bit. We had a quick hot pot dinner that was amazing and I went with a huge group of my friends. That was just about the end of the first night in Tokyo as we got in super late and did not want to miss the last train but I had a massive day ahead of me.

These are photos of m at the Meiji-Jingu Shrine. I was not allowed to take photos within the shrine, it was very elegant however many of the shrines in Kyoto put it to shame. What was really cool was the massive Torii gates, the inner garden, and the famous sake wall. They were all spectacular and the garden was beyond serene. The one downside is that there were way more tourists here than in Nagoya.

The upper photos are from the Sinso-Ji shrine. It was exceptionally beautiful and there were a ton of shops around that I got lost in. I found this full fish skewers near a live performance and got one. It was unsurprisingly fishy and salty. The bottom photos are taken from the Tokyo Skytree the largest building in the city. The Tokyo Skyline is amazing and the city is so much bigger than I could ever imagine it was beautiful. I had such a full day in Tokyo and it really was amazing. Next up are all the roadside adventures we had.

This is a famous volcano we stopped at. It reeked of sulfur but was very cool otherwise. It was well know for its black eggs. They are hard-boiled eggs said to increase you life-span by 7 years and they only sold them in counts of 4 so hopefully I enjoy the extra 28 years I get. The bottom photo was just at a gas station on the side of the highway where you were supposed to be able to see Mount Fuji but it was covered in cloud and not in great view so I got this cool photo instead.

The last stop was a skywalk on the longest suspended bridge in Japan. This thing swayed back and forth like crazy and I was terrified walking across. However on the other side there was a ton of cool stuff such as this owl exhibit where you to pet and see owls up close. Although I also got a finger bit off I would do it again in a heart beat.

Because this week was so busy I do not have a ton of food pictures however I do have one very funny photo from Tokyo.

This was a bowl of ramen I received in Tokyo. I ordered a small and it came with this massive mountain of bean sprouts. I was very determined to finish it and it was so delicious but it proved to be too much.

Anyways, that about sums up my week so I will see y'all after finals.

Until next time, さようなら, また 来週

Connor Gilfillan

Mechanical Engineering

Howdy y’all, it’s me Connor, checking in after my first week here in Nagoya, Japan.

First off, holy guacamole the culture shock is real. Who could have guessed being in a country 6000 miles away from home is a bit disorienting. However, I have begun to get used to all the changes. Because classes have yet to start I have done nothing but eat, explore and experience this amazing country, that I have somehow found myself in. So let’s go over some highlights together:

First day in I visited the forefront tourist destination the Nagoya Castle. There is nothing I can say about this location other than stunning, an absolute marvel of scale and human ability. Every inch was intricate and precisely made.

This is a photo of me in front of Nagoya Castle. Sadly the main portion (The white building) was closed to visitors however I was able to tour the palace (The smaller wooden building) which was astoundingly beautiful. The entire area was filled with history and I was able to learn so much. I even got to see the largest stone ever placed in a handmade stone wall (Photo not included).

(left) A cup of matcha and a green tea mochi dessert I had. Both had a wonderful earthy flavor which I really loved. I even got to sit at a traditional Japanese table on the ground it was a ton of fun. (right) a photo I got with two real life ninjas at Nagoya Castle. Later this week we even got to explore Iga, a city renown for the Ninja arts.

Day two was orientation, this is the first day where I met all the new people I’m going to be spending the next month with. Luckily everyone was super friendly so I had no problems introducing myself. I moved in with little issue and got done with the orientation for classes quickly. We even had a huge party afterwards with the professors and some other Nagoya University students.

A banquet and party held by the staff. This is where I met a lot of the tutors who are current Nagoya University students who are helping us adjust to life here. They are all super cool and telling me I shouldn't be a Chunichi Dragons fan (The local major league baseball team) but I still can't wait to go to a game (Hopefully next Friday).

This is my dorm room, it is actually smaller in real life but I can't wait to call it home for the next month.

The next couple days were spent on a huge group trip to the cultural capital of the country, Kyoto. We saw a ton of amazing architecture between the number of castles and shrines we visited along with the clustered and vibrant streets of the downtown. This trip is when I met a lot of my new friends too. I had such an amazing time and plan on going back at some point later this trip.

The first of the temples we visited in Kyoto, this was the Kinkaku-Ji. It was a massive gold structure surrounded by beautifully cut wilderness. This will truly be a place I will never forget. Funny enough this temple was also known for its mochi, I got the brown sugar flavor which was quite delicious.

This was our trip to the Kiyomizu-Dera one of the most famous temples in the entire world. This is where you wash yourself with sacred water which was a wonderful time. Another absolute wonder of human ingenuity. Most of it was built simply with wood fittings and no nails.

I lit incense and candles at temples for a number of reasons. I was shown how to by some of the staff for the NUSIP program and how to properly pray to ensure my wishes come true.

This was me visiting the Fushimi-Inari Shrine (More commonly known as the primary Torii Gate Shrine). Fun fact I woke up at 3:45 am to see this and it was well worth it. Another absolute marvel of scale with there being about 10,000 gates you can walk through.

On the left I am joined by some friends at a river in Kyoto we actually took a quick dip in because it has been exceptionally hot and humid out this week. On the right it is another group of friends I have made at an Izakaya, a type of Japanese restaurant often know for its large number of appetizer-like courses and large drink menus.

During the Kyoto excursion we also stopped in Nara, another huge cultural center of Buddhism within Japan, more important though, THEY HAVE SUPER FRIENDLY DEER THAT YOU CAN FEED AND PET.

Finally the weekend came and we were left to our own devices:

Saturday we has a chock full day of visiting Nagoya's very own shrines which although less impressive than the ones in Kyoto were beautiful never-the-less. This day also included a trip to the Nagoya Port Aquarium where we saw an amazing dolphin show.

Sunday we went to Nagoya Spaland. It is a combination amusement park, water park and spa. It was so much fun and there were no lines and I even went on the longest roller coaster in the world. Sadly we got caught in a massive rainstorm and you can see me and my friends rocking trash bag ponchos to protect ourselves. We got laughed at by everyone but we made the bus so it all ended well.

Classes are finally going to start this week and I am eagerly awaiting them. I have gone over all of the syllabus for my engineering course and I am going to learn an incredible amount about the automotive industry. I truly cannot express my excitement as Japan is just filled to the brim with automotive history. I am also ready for my Japanese skills to improve with class. Its been fun being the Americans who don't speak any Japanese but it has made traveling quite a bit harder.

Lastly for a little surprise here is a tik I made in Kyoto to the song Kyoto by Phoebe Bridgers :)

Until next time, さようなら, また 来週

Connor Gilfillan

Mechanical Engineering

This week was a very relaxed week. I was kind of tired from all the traveling and waking up early for the program’s events in Tokyo, so I took it easy. On Sunday, I went out by myself looking for gifts and such. I ended up stopping by this one store called Object (I’m pretty sure it’s Korean) that was recommended to me by one of the girls in the other program SILP. SILP is another 6-week program for international students at Nagoya, but instead of the automotive related classes, they do research in a lab at the university. Their program was a lot cheaper, but they didn’t get taken on any excursions or tours. They only have Japanese class and their research lab. Anyways, you get to decorate your own little pouch and stuff so I made a little makeup bag. I also got an old point and shoot camera and I love it. Also ran into some of the other NUSIP students in Sakae, so we got Sushiro + did some more roaming/shopping

A lot of people in the program really wanted to go to a maid cafe, me included, so we planned a trip to Maidreamin in Osu. One of our tutors, who had never been to a maid cafe, also tagged along. The food items were so cute. Overall experience was fun! Quite expensive, but that was expected. (photos taken with the camera i bought hehe)

We also went to the Toyota Museum and Plant this week which was super cool. They had a ton of cars on display in the museum that they let you sit in which was super sick. The plant was super interesting as well. They gave us bento boxes for lunch as well as pencil cases made out of seatbelts. They were making all sorts of cars in one line which surprised me. For some reason, I always thought factories manufactured cars separately like they would do one model a day or something, not mixed in with each other. Another thing that surprised me about the Toyota plant was the number of female workers. Compared to the other factories we went in, Toyota had much more female workers on the line.

Afterwards, I headed to Nagoya Station to do some shopping around the area and look around. I ended up running into some of the people in the program on my way back to the dorm and they invited me to meet up with some of the students from NagoyaU's Automobile Club. They were super chill and it was a fun time. All of their cars were super cool. We had a long weekend this week, so a lot of people from the program went to Osaka and Tokyo, but I stayed in Nagoya. I really enjoy Nagoya, I think it’s my favorite city. It’s a big city without being overwhelming and crowded. There’s a lot less tourists which makes it a lot easier to get around, and I think it immerses you more.

We got back a little late, but the next day we went out for Hitsumabushi which is a famous eel dish in Japan. It was quite expensive, but it was sooooo good. I love unagi-don, so I had no worries going in, but it was really the best. I don’t know if I can eat any other eel again.

It was definitely more of a chill week this week. Kind of winding down, getting gifts, and getting ready to go back to the States ;-;

Thank you for reading!

Natalie Do

Computer Engineering

We only had class for 3 days this week, but we got this special calligraphy lesson where we were taught how to do calligraphy. Honestly, I was expecting them to teach us stroke order and such, but it really was just copying the Kanji/Chinese characters. It was fun though we made cool little post cards.

Then we headed out for Tokyo on Thursday. On our way there, we stopped by the Suzuki Museum and Yamaha Museum/Plant. I loved this part so much. Honestly, I don’t know that much about cars, but I love motorcycles. A lot of the other students were geeking out as well. Both museums just had so many bikes and the Suzuki museum had a few older cars. Once we arrived we got some free time, but I just got some food and rested in the hotel.

Then for day 2, we first went to this National Safety Lab which was actually really interesting. They had this crazy Disney-rollercoaster-looking driving simulator. We aren’t allowed to post any pictures of it though. Then after that tour we had free time for the rest of the day so me and a few others started out in Yoyogi Park. Last time I was in Tokyo, we had stayed near Yoyogi Park, so this really brought back some memories for me. It was a little cloudy this day, but I was thankful cause it was less hot. After the park, we went to this really nice bar which was hidden behind a gachapon machine. Apparently some youtuber guy owns it, but I don’t know who it is. After that we got some dinner. We got Monjayaki which was on my Japan bucket list. It’s a Tokyo staple and I really liked it when I had it 2 years ago, so I really wanted to get it again. I’m glad I was able to get it.

Day 3 we headed back to Nagoya. On our way, we stopped by the Fuji Motorsports Museum. Once again, I don’t know much about cars, but this place was sick. We were lucky enough to catch some cars doing laps because they were preparing for a race. It was so cool. This was the museum that most of the other people were super excited for. I think it was also really awesome and lucky that we were able to catch the cars actually driving. After that, we went on this boat ride for lunch. It was so random, but we went on this older looking boat called the Ocean Princess and had a buffet. The food was fire and we saw dolphins.

I have really enjoyed this program. It has taken us on so many trips to places I would never / could never have gone to. I was a little apprehensive on whether or not I would enjoy the tours they took us on, but I had a really great time. I'm also very thankful for all of this. I was not expecting them to take care of us this well. I'm thankful for all the people I've been able to meet through this program as well. Not meaning to get sentimental on week 4, but the free time during Tokyo was a nice bonding time.

Anyways! Thanks for reading.

Natalie Do

Computer Engineering

I’m so sorry about the delay! I’ve been quite busy as we have had a pretty packed schedule these past weeks. This blog is going to be about some of the lab tours we went on and our trip to Osaka.

TOURS (NO PICS ALLOWED)

We toured a Honda manufacturing plant which was really cool. We got to see the very end of the production process where they are assembling the car and driving them off onto the lot. They were manufacturing their N-series cars which are the little box cars that are popular in Japan. I personally have never been inside a factory, so it was very fascinating seeing their assembly line process and heavy machinery. I don’t think that job is for me.. I would definitely forget something or mess something up. They took our phones, so no pictures, but it was really cool and interesting.

We then had two Nagoya University lab tours. The first tour was through some of the vehicle safety labs where they conduct tests with crash dummies and driving simulators. They also were developing autonomous cars/devices. They had a really cool 6-legged autonomous robot which looked super sick. I was looking at all of their research and stuff to try and get inspiration for my EECS473 project this semester LOL.

The second one was at a lab focused on drive trains and power electronics. The second one was definitely my favorite, it was right up my alley. They were talking about DC/AC inverters in cars and the lab actually tore down real inverters in EVs to analyze them. It was really cool and all of them were so smart. There were a lot of international students in that lab which was cool to see. Kind of made me want to pursue a master's in Japan...

OSAKA

After a lovely weekend full of learning, a few girls and I decided to go to Osaka.

We did some sight seeing. Last time I went to Japan, we never actually went inside the Osaka Castle, so I was glad I was able to go in this time. The view from the top was crazy. I’m glad the weather has been nice for almost the entirety of the program. We also had this crazy good onigiri. The wait for it was insane, but the onigiri were huge and super good.

This year is actually the year of the World Expo, which they held in Osaka this year. For those who don’t know, this event only happens every 5 years and it’s in a different city every time, kinda like the Olympics. There is a theme each year, and this year was about the future and stuff. Each country has their own pavilion where they can share what their plans are for the future and some fun tech.

We were quite lucky to have it happen while we were studying abroad in Japan. I had no idea what to expect, but it was actually jaw-dropping. The sheer scale of the event was crazy. The atmosphere was so zen despite being packed full of people. There was this giant wooden ring around all of the pavilions that was so nice to walk on. We went on it at night and it was so beautiful. I’ve never experienced something like it. You can go inside the pavilions and the countries set up their own mini museum/experience to walk through. Unfortunately, I was only able to go into the Philippines because the other ones I wanted to go in had long lines and it was getting late, but we were able to see a lot of different mini booths. I was also able to get some cute Osaka World Expo exclusive merch.

The one from Croatia was so cool. The pipes hanging down from the ceiling are filled with water that is the current temperature of Croatia.

Very tiring and hot experience.. I think the step count at the end of the day was 40k, but it was totally worth it.

A little bit of a shorter blog, but I hope you enjoyed. Thanks for reading!

Natalie Do

Computer Engineering

Hello! I’ve just finished up my second week in Nagoya, so I am going to update on some of the things I’ve done.

CLASSES

I wanted to talk a bit about the class structure now that I’ve gone through a week of them. I’m in Elementary Japanese and it’s actually a lot of fun. The class is about 90 minutes long, but it really goes by quickly. The teachers are very nice and fun. Even though the class is a little early sometimes (8:45AM), I am still excited and alert for the entire time. It also helps that I can get a Redbull from the Lawson on the walk there (the purple flavor is so good..). For now, a lot of the class is just us learning basic phrases to say (all shown in romanji/english alphabet). I kinda wish there was more to do with the hirigana/katakana/kanji, but it definitely would be a lot to cover in 6 weeks and the workload would probably be a lot more. I’m assuming it will be introduced later on once we get passed the “basic survival” portion. The class is very chill and there has only been like one easy assignment per week that we do in class together.

As for the Automotive class, it works kind of like an anthology where different lecturers come in each day and explain a different aspect of the automotive industry. They are about 3 hours long, but there is a 15 minute break halfway through. All of the lectures have been pretty engaging so far, but they only really go into surface level concepts. As for homework, there is a simple one-page report we have to write for each lecture. It’s basically just a check that you were paying attention in class.

We have had one lab tour so far. We toured a professor’s lab on campus where he had car simulators and custom cars with a ton of sensors on them. He used these to test and collect data on elder drivers. It was very cool

MORE ON NAGOYA UNIVERSITY FOR FUTURE NUSIP STUDENTS

There is a scholarship that the program offers called JASSO. It offers 80,000 yen per month, so 160,000 yen overall. It seems like many of the people in the program received this stipend, and it was quite the easy, straightforward application process. I’m not sure how this will change in the future, but it is really helpful and if it is offered, definitely get that form filled out. They give you the money in cash once you arrive. It’s something to keep in mind if financial issues are why you are apprehensive about applying or committing to the program.

The dorms that the program puts you in are off campus and about a 15-20 minute walk away from the classes. There’s a Lawson and 7/11 nearby as well as a few grocery stores. The girls in my dorm haven’t been cooking a lot, but I know some of the boy dorms have been making family meals and eating together which is fun.

There is a cafeteria on campus which has multiple options. There are basic rice dishes, noodle dishes, and a halal section. The prices are pretty good. Depending on what you get, its around 500-700 yen for a nice meal. The cafeteria does get a little crowded around lunch time though. There’s also a few restaurants/cafes between the dorms and the campus, but I haven’t been to any of them.

EXPLORING NAGOYA

During the week, I didn’t really do much. I think most of it was just walking around, resting, and doing assignments. On Tuesday, it was one of my rooomate’s birthday though, so we went out to karaoke and a club. It was kind of dead, seeing as it was a Tuesday, but we met some fun Japanese girls and we just yelled kawaii at each other the whole time which was funny. I was able to use some of my very basic Japanese to introduce myself.

My exploring of Nagoya has mainly been through shopping.. There is the main district called Sakae which has a ton of department stores. There’s also this covered market style street called Osu which has a lot of vintage/retro/second hand shops. I haven’t been able to try any of the food stalls yet, but they all look really good and I do plan on trying them out.

On Friday, there was a night market, so me and a few others headed to Sakae to do some shopping before going to that. We went to the Parco there and found this pet store with crazy exotic animals. Like they had a whole capybara on sale in a mall.

We then went to the night market which was really cool. It was on this canal thing, so it was pretty, but very packed. I got deer and wild boar meat sausages which were actually so good. The guy hunted them himself which I thought was cool. I wasn’t sure about the gun/hunting regulations in Japan, so I didn’t know you could do that. There were lots of other stalls selling ethnic foods like Thai, Viet, Chinese, British, etc.

On Saturday, me and a few others went thrifting in Sakae/Osu. Honestly we didn’t end up going to many clothing stores and instead found ourselves drawn to card shops. But we went to this fire Mexican place that had really good food. I had been craving a burrito since the semester ended, so I got a chicken burrito and it hit the spot. It was really good. It’s called ‘Sayulita Tacos & Craft Beer’. There’s a little bit of a wait because there are probably about 14 total seats on the inside, but definitely worth. I will be going back.

The girls in the program also went out to the Peanuts Cafe with the tutors and it was really cute. I got strawberry shaved ice and it was very interesting. It had like a marshmallow fluff on top and some type of jelly at the bottom.

This night we also had Domino’s because there is one right by the dorm. There were some fun flavors but honestly a little mid… I know some of the others really enjoyed it though.

Sunday included more thrifting, but this time I actually went to clothes stores. I got a couple of good items. I also went to this Japanese Italian chain called ‘Saizeriya’ and it’s sooo cheap with big serving sizes. I think it was about $9 for pasta, unlimited fountain drinks, garlic bread, and tiramisu. The food was quite good too. I had the Tarako (Pollock Roe) pasta and it was really good. I will probably get it again before I leave.

Overall a pretty good week, lots of good food. I think I’m going to chill out this week because a few others and I are planning to go to Osaka this weekend and I want to make sure I’m feeling good for that. A lot of people in the program have been getting sick, so I’m hoping I can avoid that. Anyways, thank you for reading, I hope some of this was helpful and engaging.

Natalie Do

Computer Engineering

Hello! We got back from our 2-day trip to Kyoto, Nara, and Iga, so I wanted to share some stuff about it as well as what I’ve been up to.

KYOTO

On Thursday, we took a bus to Kyoto where we went to Kankakuji, Arashiyama, and Kiyomizu-dera. It was so hot and sunny everyone was using umbrellas and fans, but that wasn’t enough to stop the sweating.

Here’s a picture of me and some of the other NUSIP students in front of Kankaku-ji, a golden temple. (Me, Sanjana, Amelie, Selena, Logan)

We then went to Arashiyama for a buffet lunch. Afterwards we were allowed to explore around a little bit. We took a little too long eating, so we didn’t have too much time to walk around, but some other students and I quickly went down by the river and checked out the Miffy store.

Next stop was a textile center where we saw a worker making a piece in real time. The loom was so fascinating, everyone stood around it most of the time trying to find out how it worked.. Truly a group full of engineers.. When we went to Kiyomizu-dera, they had pouches/bags made from the fabric made at that textile center which was pretty cool.

At Kiyomizu-dera, some others and I drank water from the fountains that they have there. There are three streams: Study, Romance, and Life. I think everyone (including me) drank from the study stream LOL. We also walked down the street of shops which was incredible packed. I got another Mokeke [モケケ] which is one of my favorite little characters. I got one in Kyoto last time I went to Japan, so it only felt right to get another one for this trip. This one (tan w/ peppermint arms) is and says Yastuhashi on it which is a little dessert from Kyoto. It’s like mochi shaped into a triangle with anko in the middle.

Afterwards, we checked into a hotel and a group of us decided to go with some of the tutors to the Fushimi Inari shrine which is the shrine with 10,000 torii gates. We did not go all the way up because it was dark by the time we got there and everyone was tired from the hot and packed day we had. But it was pretty nonetheless.

NARA and IGA

We then set out for Nara the next day where we went to Todai-ji (picture above) which is the largest wooden structure in the world housing an enormous Buddha statue. The structure today is 33% smaller than the original that burnt down, but it was still massive. I couldn’t imagine it being bigger. It was truly a marvel to see. Outside of Todai-ji, there are the famous bowing deer. I didn’t feed them, but some people from NUSIP did and some of them got harassed. There was a pretty tight schedule this day, so there was no opportunity for exploring or shopping.

Honestly pictures don’t do it justice, it is HUGE. They had a hole that you could crawl through which was the size of the statue’s nostril and many people were able to get through. I didn’t try cause there was a big crowd, but some of the others did.

We then went to Iga which is home to a ninja museum. There was a short demonstration of a ninja house, small walkthrough of some ninja gear, and then a performance. There was no photography/videography allowed during the performance, but it was super fun. Some of the NUSIP students were called down to do demonstrations of the weapons. They also let people throw Uchiya which are like throwing arrows. We then went to a little castle/museum they had nearby which was cute.

BACK TO NAGOYA

I spent my Saturday at a mall near Nagoya Station. I was in desperate need of sneakers because I didn’t bring a pair and the shoes I had brought (hightops and boots) killed my feet. After walking 20k steps per day during the trip, I physically could not walk in them anymore. I got a pair of adidas shoes with a colorway only available in Japan at a shoe store called Atmos. It happens to be my favorite color, so I was really hyped to find them. I also bought some gifts.

On Sunday, I went to a hair appointment that I had scheduled with 「wit circle」 before I got to Japan. I really wanted to get a straight perm because I have curly/wavy hair that gets sooo frizzy in the humidity. I think they did it really well.. They said “別人 (betsu jin)” which means different person, and yea I agree LOL. The perm is so good and perfect because the humidity and rain started up the next day. It was right next to the Pokemon Center, so afterwards I went there and got some merch and cards.

First time I've had bangs since I was like 5. I hated them last time because I thought I looked like Dora, but my hairstylist Kanae did me right 🙏 @kanae_wit on Instagram.

It’s currently Monday, and I’m writing this during the break between our Japanese class and Automotive class. Japanese class was quite fun we learned basic introductions and got our names in katakana. My name’s been shortened to Nari [ナリ]. Mishigan Daigaku.. thank you for reading :D.

Natalie Do

Computer Engineering