Japan... Reflections a Year Later.

ASU Summer in Japan 2007
created by Nikolai de Vera
music by Hearts Grow, "Yura Yura"

Has it really been over a year since I've been there? Wow. That was pretty fast. I was looking through my posts and I was expecting to cringe at some of the very "heartfelt" stuff that I wrote back then. Surprisingly enough, I only cringed at a few typos and misuse of tenses... other than that, what I wrote brought me back a year ago - right at that moment. I'm even listening to the same music I did at that time! There really is a lot to be said about Japan. It was so special. The blog was only a fraction of what I've experienced - but enough to be able to share with you guys.

In a couple of days, I'll be leaving for my 2 month trip to the land where the sun never sets... yeap, to the UK. I'm definitely excited, but at the same time, I'm a bit scared knowing that Japan has made a deep impression on me. The bars have definitely be raised. Then again, I shouldn't be doubtful. If there's one thing I've learned in the past couple of years, it was to embrace change. The more you do, the better it becomes. It's not like I'm replacing memories over another. I'm collecting them, savoring them as they explode in brilliant pyrotechnics.

Need I say that my trip to Japan was not my last by all means? Hey, I might be back sooner than one thinks.

Until then, enjoy the video I made and be sure to check out my new blog
Nikolai's Summer in the UK 2008.

Dewa mata minasan!

Hajimeru...

Hikari

That's Hikari - the train that we rode to Kyoto and back. Too many places, so little time! I am doing this update back home. I didn't have time when we got back from Tokyo because I had to prepare for our flight the next day.

Walking in Kyoto is like running through history. In every block, there's a site, whether a temple or shrine that dates centuries ago. We saw the Sanjusangendo, Ryoanji, Kiyomizudera, Kinkakuji, Ginkakuji, Anrakuji, Honen-in, Kodaiji and lots more. We also watched a show at Gion which truly impressed me how much they've kept their tradition. Notice how I seem to be rushing through this. That's because I feel really sick right now... jet-lag, fatigue, I don't know.

But I'll let some of the pictures do the talking!








As my summer in Japan comes to an end, there is one last update that I will be doing next week. The pictures that I've shown you is just a fraction of the 9 gigabytes that I took while I was in Japan. There's so much memories in seeing the pictures, listening to the music and just recalling what I have experienced during this summer. Words can't really describe how I feel. But I'll try to - in the best way I know how.

Kankou

Look what I ran into:

Along the streets of Shinjuku lies the place where a little game called Final Fantasy is being made. Tetsuya Nomura is probably working on the latest Kingdom Hearts two floors above me.

Tokyo is insane. We spent the past 2 days walking around from Akihabara, Shinjuku, Shibuya, Harajuku, Downtown Tokyo, Ueno, Ginza and Shiba. Here's pictures from the Tokyo Tower.



Tomorrow, we are riding the Shinkansen to Kyoto.

Yuujin

We are going to Tokyo tomorrow so I'm not sure how much I'll be able to update next week. Everybody's already packing (so am I) and some are making friendship bracelets in the lounge. I just needed to relax for a little while so I blogged.

There are plans to come back next year (uh-oh), but just by ourselves so we're not bound with schoolwork. And of course by then, we would already have partied all the time back home. It's still a bit ridiculous because that's like a year from now. It's not a bad idea at all, though. I'll definitely miss Hiroshima.

To all the Japanese friends I've met from 広島修道大学, I'll miss you all! 皆さん、楽しかったですよ！アリゾナへ行ったら、一緒に会いましょう！私の家はちょっと小さいですが、大丈夫ですよね。皆さん、ぜんぶいいおもいでよ。じゃ、またね!

To my fellow Sun Devils, 毎週マーコドさんの家にあいましょう！I still owe people lunch and somebody needs to tell me where the hell the inoshishi has gone!!

If I don't update next week, I'll update once I get back home. It's not over yet, folks.