A Big Announcement, Eh?!

Oh my goodness you guys. 

It's time. 

Finally after months and months of waiting I can finally share my Big News! 

And what is my Big News I have been so anxiously keeping in? Weeelllll...

Girl's Day! Hina Matsuri ♡

Good evening everyone! 

It's March! Can you believe it? I love love LOVE March in Japan! The weather is getting warmer, the school year is coming to an end and the cherry blossoms start to bloom! The best part of cherry blossom season is everything becomes pink! So many goods and special edition food and drink come out. It is just so cute!♡❀ 

image from google

Host Survivial 101

Hello!!

Guys! I am alive! I promise! 

I am so sorry for going MIA after proudly declaring my schedule was back on track, but I was quite busy! My friend from Canada came to Japan and stayed with me here in Osaka! She was here from May 4th to May 20th - a long and satisfying visit. It was totally fun but I forgot that being a host is a lot of work too! So I decided to compile a little list of Host Survival tips for fellow expats here in Japan (and elsewhere!) who may have friends or family coming to stay with them in the future! 

Over the Rainbow

みんなさん! ごめん!

Sorry about the late blog post! The school year has just started up as I mentioned, and this year I am without a JTE! Eep! So I've got a lot more planning and prep this year! But I've gotten back into the groove and that goes for my blog posts as well! 

This past Saturday I finally did something that I've wanted to do for a while...

Color (colour**) Me Rad!~~~

Kansai versus Kanto

     Ever since I was a little girl my dream was to one day pack my bags and move to Tokyo. I would look up photos of the bright lights, the huge crowds, the unique street fashions and become more and more obsessed. No other city, not even in Japan, was deemed worthy. I would get there no matter what and once I did, my life would be fabulous. But the universe had different plans for me. Instead I found myself accepted to study abroad at a university in the Kansai region. I was okay with this. I had friends at this university and viewed it as a stepping stone to the mecca that is Tokyo. What I didn't expect was that I would soon find myself completely and utterly in love with the area, and all its unique quirks and traits.

Kansai? Kanto? 

     Kansai, also known as the Kinki region, is the southern central part of the main island of Japan. It includes the prefectures of Mie, Nara, Wakayama, Kyoto, Osaka, Hyogo and Shiga. The cities of Kobe, Osaka and Kyoto make up the second largest population after Tokyo. Kanto is made up mostly of Tokyo and its outlining cities. I won't bore you with too much of the details. That's what Wikipedia is for!

image from google

     Many people I have spoken to tell me of their dream of visiting and/or moving to Tokyo. I think thats great! Tokyo is a beautiful, vibrant city. However sometimes I feel other parts of Japan become lost in it's shadow. There are so many other gorgeous and exciting places in this country! One of these places is Kansai! Kansai is definitely different from the rest of Japan, especially Tokyo and the Kanto region. So why should you consider Kansai as your travel destination or potential Japanese home? Oh I am so glad you asked...

New Beginnings

"What a strange thing!
to be alive
beneath cherry blossoms." 
-Kobayashi Issa

     
     It is my second spring here in Osaka. The cherry blossoms are blooming, the new school year is about to start and there is a sudden energy pulsing throughout the city. Not that Osaka is every really short of energy but spring time and hanami (cherry blossom viewing) season is different. Everyone seems a lot more awake. Maybe it is the excitement of picnics under pink flowers or the promise of a new school year, or financial year (which begins in April here in Japan) but there is just this undeniable feeling of lightness every where you go. 

     As I mentioned, the new school year begins in April. So for me, this is also a time of reflection. How did this last year go? How can I improve? Not just on a professional level but a personal one as well. This last year and a half I've spent in Japan has been a roller coaster ride. I hate using such a cheesy and overused expression but there really isn't another way to put it. There have been exhilarating highs and soul crushing lows with every imaginable twist and turn in between. I gained confidence, have fallen, questioned the very core of who I am, picked myself up and am still slowly and tenderly putting myself back together. But despite it all I can say that I am in better place now. I am still learning and still growing but that is what this entire adventure is for. An adventure that I am blessed to be experiencing!  So I thought it was about time I shared it with you all! I have re-amped this old dusty blog of mine and hope to share a little bit of how life is here in, what my friends and I affectionately refer to as, "the Dirty South" along with tips about the JET Programme, reviews on goods and makeup,  and the general day to day derpings of a young adult stumbling her way through her first years as a "real adult". So, as we say in Japan...よろしくお願いします!!! yoroshiku onegaishimasu!!! ヾ(＠⌒ー⌒＠)ノ