Neighborhood Hirakata

When I arrived in Japan, I came before orientation week began. During this time, I was placed in seminar house 3 where I had the opportunity of meeting students from all over the world. Here, I met a girl from Morocco and became very close friend with her. However, I had to leave seminar house 3 after orientation week was over, and I had to move to seminar house 4, which is located right across the park. I frequently visit my friend, and each time I must sign in. At first, the Okasan that works at the front desk was not very friendly, and she would barely say anything to me. Over the past month, I tried to talk to her so she sees that I am trying and that our one minute talk can be better. Even if it took a while, our brief interaction has improved.
When this blog theme was presented in class for our assignment, I thought about Okasan at seminar house 3 because the perception that I held about her has changed over time. Now, when she greets me, she actually asks me about my day, and our interaction is much longer. Today I visited my friend, I told Okasan about our assignment and asked her if I could write about her and take a picture of her with my broken Japanese. Without thinking twice, she responded by saying no and that I should take a picture of someone young like my friend. She asked me why I would want to take a picture of someone old and kept saying no. She thought some more in puzzlement and then discussed my requestment with her husband. After a minute of dialogue between them, they both said no. I thanked her for her time. As I was leaving, they requested for more information about my blog project. Finally they agreed upon the enough information that I provided for them. I immediately took my camera out and snapped a picture of her. Before I could leave, she and her husband wanted to approve of the picture I had just snapped. I was very thankful that she and her husband were flexible on their decisions. I think that if I had asked her in September, she would have never agreed to change her mind. I think that because she has gotten to know me, learn to trust me and like me, she felt much more open and comfortable. I think this example of Okasan is a perfect model of how time can change everything about a person. It is very important not to judge people on first time interaction and it is crucial to be open minded and flexible.

I like this picture because it clearly shows how crowded Japan has become over the last decade or so. I like how this picture shows the old and the new. The old in the sense that the houses are small and the streets are narrow. And the new in the sense that there is over crowdedness, modern clothes and cars. I know that when I walk to school every morning, I feel kind of claustrophobic with the lack of space there is available. I am always worried that there is not enough room and because everyone is in a hurry, I always make sure to take extra caution. I have noticed that in America, drivers are made sure to stop at pedestrian crosswalk but here it seems that drivers are less likely to stop for the pedestrian. Additionally, I like this picture because it shows the way Japanese people dress is not that much different from the way foreigners dress. Thus, this shows that the traditional Japan is transforming into a more western style and yet there are still things that remind people of the traditional Japan.

Early Impressions of Japan

Before coming to Japan, I had the impression that everything in Japan was modernized due to technological advancement that has been fostered by globalization. I thought that it would be hard to find traditional things in everyday life. After arriving in Japan and adjusting to our new life at the dorm, the school made a day field trip to Kyoto. On our way, I was amazed at the complex train system and it seemed impossible to figure out how to get from one place to another place. I noticed that almost all the girls wore very modern clothes and that they were all on their cell phones, which allowed them to communicate massive web of people instantaneously. As we made our way to the temples, I noticed the narrow road trying to fit the cars, the motorcycles, the bicycles, the trucks, the pedestrians etc. I think this was the first time I noticed how crowded Japan really was. As we were walking to the temple, I noticed this woman wearing a traditional outfit standing in the middle of a very modernized atmosphere. I did not want to be rude and so I politely asked her if I could take her picture and she nodded yes without hesitating. What I really like about this picture is the kindness and the gentleness that you can see from her pose. I like this picture because it reminds me of the traditional Japanese culture that I have read about from the classes that I have taken in college and that I have seen being portrayed in American Hollywood films. This picture is great because it represents the modern and the traditional culture simultaneously.