Classes seem great and two very interesting encounters...

Well...Let me start with my classes.
In general I'll say they all seem wonderful.
More specifically I'll start with Japanese. I have it every morning as my first class at 9:15. Those of you who know me know this is no problem for me as far as waking up goes. What does make it interesting is that even if I leave 30 minutes earlier than I would need to to get there on time I am still in the middle of rush hour. Tokyo rush hour happens in the trains and it gets so ridiculous sometimes. Seriously, on monday I was almost sitting in this guys lap because I had been standing in front of him when 20 more people decided to squeeze in. And they aren't daunted by the fact that the people inside the train are already squeezed in so much they are pressed against the doors. Nope...they manage to find space. But when the train starts none of them seem to be able to keep their balance and they somehow manage to fall back against everyone else pushing everyone back another foot. Yet they never seem to be able to move back forward...so there I am, practically sitting on this guy's lap. It was only a little awkward.

Still..riding the trains during this time is an experience. I've learned never to go for the very first or last cars..try to find one in the middle...they tend to be a little less crowded.

Anyway. Japanese class seems great. I like my teacher...she is enthusiastic which I enjoy. I think I'm going to learn a lot and it seems like I'll get a lot of homework for this class. This is also good as it keeps me up later and gives me a lot of practice. The guy I met named Justin is in this class so I know someone which is good too.

Hmm. Next I'll do Cinema. Justin is also in this class and I'm very excited about it. It turns out the extra cumpulsory hours are on wednesdays(the only class I have on that day is Japanese so this works out perfectly). It seems to be a discussion based class and I think I'm going to love it! Some of the films we are doing are Kurasawa's Roshukan(sp???), some Ozu movies, Miyazaki's Spirited away, this movie called "after life" which looks great, a comedy called "the funeral", and a bunch of other really interesting looking movies. The only problem? I got my registration results back and it turns out I didnt make the class due to priority. So I'm going to talk to the teacher tomorrow and ask her if she'll let me be in it...it requires a tiny bit of paperwork on my part which she has to sign but I think I can convince her with my passion for the class(and its only been one day!)...hopefully I'll get in.

The Literature Survey also seems to be a good class. The teacher has a very quiet way of speaking but still manages to convey a sense of excitement. We're going to do a lot of reading, which I know I'll love, and also a lot of discussion. One of the main things we are reading (from? its really long so Im not sure if the whole thing is what we're reading) is 'the tale of genji'. It looks to be really interesting, as does the whole class. Andrew is in this class as well.

Japanese Women's History is of course taught by a German male. He seems to have studied the topic for some time. He also really seems to have a lot of knowledge on the subject and I could probably listen to him for some time. Anyway..he explained a lot of things that we may be discussing and its completely a discussion and essay based class....no tests. Should be fun^.^ Also...since I've never taken Japanese History before(of any kind) I'll probably have to do some studying of the subject in general on my own. So if anyone(I'm kind of thinking DaD) knows some nice...not too long...books with some good info on some general Japanese history...please let me know.

Religion and the Arts turns out to be more of a religion and music class which makes sense and still makes me very happy. Yet another discusion based class with essay writing and a lot of reading assignments. I'm going to lkie it a lot though because I'll get to learn about music and relgion around the world.

And finally, Topics in Japanese art history. This is the only class that worries me. The teacher speaks very slowly and pauses all the time, even in the middle of sentences...I think it will be all right as long as I take good notes. I'm also worried about the fact that almost the entire grade is based off of two tests. still...note taking should help. I do not think this is a discussion based class at all though I think Ill have a fair amount of reading to do. If anyone knows of some good japanese art histry books I can read...please, once again...let me know^.^ I could probably use some background info for this class.

So those are my classes. A lot of reading, writing, and studying. But I'm pretty excited. I think it's going to be great!

Now for the special encounters:
#1-Random Student at Sophia
So andrew and I are walking to class talking when all the sudden this Japanese student in a suit comes up to us and asks us something really fast. I thought he was speaking french for a second and also thought he might be trying to give us a hard time. Turns out he was asking us where we were from. SO we sort of chat for a bit. He wants to practice his english with us and become friends...his words. Since we dont have cell phones we give him our email address' and he give andrew his cell phone number. It was really random and his friends kept apologizing for him. It was really fun.

#2-Foreign Guy on the Train
So...first let me note that I have noticed on trains there seems to be this sort of unspoken rule that foreigners do not acknowledge, much less speak, to each other. At least...of all the foreigners I see on trains(and there is always at least one besides me), not one has tried to speak to me and they always seem embarrased when they notice me looking at them or if I nod a hello. It's wierd to me. Anyway, having gotten used to this, I was compeltely surprised when this guy asked me where I was from on the train. We started talking. He's a 26 year old student form Sri Lanka who has been studying here for 2 years. We exchanged emails and he said he'd email me. Fun, right? Well...I thought it was nice at least.

So that's about it for now.
On a final note, Okaasan thinks I look like the Little Mermaid and Manami agrees.
Hah hah...do you love it?
Peace!