Wednesday, October 16, 2013
Monday, October 14, 2013
Saturday, October 12, 2013
Tuesday, October 8, 2013
Sunday, October 6, 2013
Friday, October 4, 2013
this video just made my day in a rainy morning.
This video made my day; it deserves a place in my blog. Go figure and check for yourself why.
Wednesday, October 2, 2013
A year after I lost my knapsack in Narita airport
The Earth has made one complete evolution in its orbit since
I came here in Japan. I am glad I took the risk of coming over even under on
study leave without pay. I was thinking twice if I can survive Tokyo touted as
one of the most expensive cities of the world with only one money source. I am
more than overjoyed because I found out what I can still possibly do despite
the adversities of establishing myself in a foreign land.
Days before my coming here a year ago, I was not that excited. I was engrossed with all my skywatching and lecture commitments that I was running after time. I was so very busy I never had the chance to savor my last few days in the Philippines. In fact, I did not even have the time to emote because I was catching up breath each day to set things before I leave. It is only in the airplane where I got to practice my introductory message in Nihonggo to my research adviser only to end up like this right after I went out of the airport’s meeting area.
adviser: welcome to japan!
siraris: *^*(*^&*! Where is my knapsack?
I completely lost whatever grace I have thinking that my bag contains my research data and important documents. I would like to cry at that time but I hated I cannot because of the place and in the presence of my adviser. I cannot understand Nihonggo at that time but I can sense that my adviser seemed to be cancelling/changing appointments by the tone of his voice. He was calm and I was not. He was somehow amused of the situation and I was fidgety to go back. However, I was made to wait as if it was an eternity to check and trace my path. When I saw my green bag, I hugged my bag as if it was a long lost dog. I had never gone out of the airport and I already had a blooper.
I am a light traveller. However, I was not when I flew here thinking it would take a year before I can go home again. I know exactly what to bring when traveling abroad and stay for two weeks which was my longest but staying for a year is a different challenge. Now try to imagine how to fit in in your luggage food and stuffs. I maximized the baggage allowance so I brought two luggage, a knap sack, a sling bag, and two paper bags. Now, do you wonder now why I lost my bag in the very first place? Well, we rode a train in going to Tokyo but we used an escalator. How can you manage to pull it off with all my belongings? Shamelessly, I asked my adviser to carry my other luggage and that makes for blooper number 2.
For the third blooper, I was stupid not to realize that the door is automatic glass door.
and it goes on and on…
- asking for switches to turn on the lights in the hallway
- pulling the plug without twisting it first
- shouting in the shower every time I have to take a bath because it is too hot for me to handle. I used to forget that Japanese set their shower at the warmest temperature.
- cooking my agumaa, dried fish, using sake, an alcoholic drink. who would not think that the liquid below is not a cooking oil? it goes with other seasonings.
- telling a fellow student I wanted my document photocopied, folded and stapled. He nodded and I hurriedly went back to third floor to get my stapler only to find my photocopied documents folded, sorted and stapled by the machine. Now imagine how stupid do I look holding my stapler.
- bumping on glass doors when I expect it to open
- apologizing for causing the power plugs to fall only to find out it is magnetically attached to the wall
- losing myself in Shinjuku
- finding out that the air dryer for hand can be found at the side of the sink
- experimenting with the bidet (it is so embarrassing I don’t want to tell)
-causing so much trouble for not wanting to have cellular phone in the next eight months
- replying "f*ck y**" in my sweetest voice as well to kids who think i am an american because i speak english and they don't even realize what the meaning of these words
- mimicking students who check on me without them knowing that they reflect on my laptop's computer screen
- cooking dried fish to the agony of Japanese every time I do it especially on a rainy day forgetting to switch the ventilator
- walking on the yellow lane which is reserved (honestly I was stupid and naïve) for the PWD
- looking, ok staring at high school couple smooching in the bench of a mall
- describing a Japanese woman fat. In the Philippines, it is common to greet someone, “uy nagtambok ka.”
- using what i thought was lemon grass but it was not ruining my sinanglay, using a leafy vegetable which i thought is kulitis
- showing my how-can-you-afford-to-go-out-with-that-kind-of-looks face
- telling some people that “cheers” or “kampai” equivalent in Filipino word is “numta” from inom tayo instead of tagay or mabuhay
- laughing at Nihonggo words like futa, fufu, keki, suka, taiyaki, and yuta.
- laughing upon understanding the meaning of katakana. for example, dora is dollar while toire is toilet.
- shouting in convenience store, “is there anyone who knows English here?” whenever I am frustrated to buy stuffs and nobody can understand what I wanted exactly
- carrying my back pack as is without transferring it in front during rush hours
- laughing like there is no tomorrow in my desk thinking i was alone and everyone was in their class
- letting people serve me alcohol without returning the favor. it is rude in japan not to.
- providing a very bad and offending example in a Japanese class
how it went? Japanese root word plus you means telling someone of doing things together. For example, tabe (for eat) when added with –yo becomes “let us eat”. When it was my turn to give example, I thought of the expression at home when we tell each other “tulog na ‘ta! Hay gab-i na”. I told someone nemasuyo which would mean “let us sleep together” and I told a woman.
hay, turog ta! I learned my lesson no to do it again and I am terribly sorry for my ignorance, okay you may call it stupidity.
Days before my coming here a year ago, I was not that excited. I was engrossed with all my skywatching and lecture commitments that I was running after time. I was so very busy I never had the chance to savor my last few days in the Philippines. In fact, I did not even have the time to emote because I was catching up breath each day to set things before I leave. It is only in the airplane where I got to practice my introductory message in Nihonggo to my research adviser only to end up like this right after I went out of the airport’s meeting area.
adviser: welcome to japan!
siraris: *^*(*^&*! Where is my knapsack?
I completely lost whatever grace I have thinking that my bag contains my research data and important documents. I would like to cry at that time but I hated I cannot because of the place and in the presence of my adviser. I cannot understand Nihonggo at that time but I can sense that my adviser seemed to be cancelling/changing appointments by the tone of his voice. He was calm and I was not. He was somehow amused of the situation and I was fidgety to go back. However, I was made to wait as if it was an eternity to check and trace my path. When I saw my green bag, I hugged my bag as if it was a long lost dog. I had never gone out of the airport and I already had a blooper.
I am a light traveller. However, I was not when I flew here thinking it would take a year before I can go home again. I know exactly what to bring when traveling abroad and stay for two weeks which was my longest but staying for a year is a different challenge. Now try to imagine how to fit in in your luggage food and stuffs. I maximized the baggage allowance so I brought two luggage, a knap sack, a sling bag, and two paper bags. Now, do you wonder now why I lost my bag in the very first place? Well, we rode a train in going to Tokyo but we used an escalator. How can you manage to pull it off with all my belongings? Shamelessly, I asked my adviser to carry my other luggage and that makes for blooper number 2.
For the third blooper, I was stupid not to realize that the door is automatic glass door.
and it goes on and on…
- asking for switches to turn on the lights in the hallway
- pulling the plug without twisting it first
- shouting in the shower every time I have to take a bath because it is too hot for me to handle. I used to forget that Japanese set their shower at the warmest temperature.
- cooking my agumaa, dried fish, using sake, an alcoholic drink. who would not think that the liquid below is not a cooking oil? it goes with other seasonings.
- telling a fellow student I wanted my document photocopied, folded and stapled. He nodded and I hurriedly went back to third floor to get my stapler only to find my photocopied documents folded, sorted and stapled by the machine. Now imagine how stupid do I look holding my stapler.
- bumping on glass doors when I expect it to open
- apologizing for causing the power plugs to fall only to find out it is magnetically attached to the wall
- losing myself in Shinjuku
- finding out that the air dryer for hand can be found at the side of the sink
- experimenting with the bidet (it is so embarrassing I don’t want to tell)
-causing so much trouble for not wanting to have cellular phone in the next eight months
- replying "f*ck y**" in my sweetest voice as well to kids who think i am an american because i speak english and they don't even realize what the meaning of these words
- mimicking students who check on me without them knowing that they reflect on my laptop's computer screen
- cooking dried fish to the agony of Japanese every time I do it especially on a rainy day forgetting to switch the ventilator
- walking on the yellow lane which is reserved (honestly I was stupid and naïve) for the PWD
- looking, ok staring at high school couple smooching in the bench of a mall
- describing a Japanese woman fat. In the Philippines, it is common to greet someone, “uy nagtambok ka.”
- using what i thought was lemon grass but it was not ruining my sinanglay, using a leafy vegetable which i thought is kulitis
- showing my how-can-you-afford-to-go-out-with-that-kind-of-looks face
- telling some people that “cheers” or “kampai” equivalent in Filipino word is “numta” from inom tayo instead of tagay or mabuhay
- laughing at Nihonggo words like futa, fufu, keki, suka, taiyaki, and yuta.
- laughing upon understanding the meaning of katakana. for example, dora is dollar while toire is toilet.
- shouting in convenience store, “is there anyone who knows English here?” whenever I am frustrated to buy stuffs and nobody can understand what I wanted exactly
- carrying my back pack as is without transferring it in front during rush hours
- laughing like there is no tomorrow in my desk thinking i was alone and everyone was in their class
- letting people serve me alcohol without returning the favor. it is rude in japan not to.
- providing a very bad and offending example in a Japanese class
how it went? Japanese root word plus you means telling someone of doing things together. For example, tabe (for eat) when added with –yo becomes “let us eat”. When it was my turn to give example, I thought of the expression at home when we tell each other “tulog na ‘ta! Hay gab-i na”. I told someone nemasuyo which would mean “let us sleep together” and I told a woman.
hay, turog ta! I learned my lesson no to do it again and I am terribly sorry for my ignorance, okay you may call it stupidity.
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