Time for the new

Last post of 2009; time to show the kanji of the year.

The winner was...

新

The reading is shin and it means new, fresh (atarashii, arata).

The main reasons that led this kanji to the top were:

• New government: After basically 50 years of LDP (Liberal Democratic Party) rule, the power shifted to the DPJ (Democratic Party of Japan) in a landslide election. With the new Obama government, a new age for the Japan-US relationship is also in sight.
• New sports records: Ichiro, a Japanese baseball player in the US (and very popular in both places - especially Japan - as far as I know), set new records in the MLB and in Japan. Also, new records were established in many other fields, with special mention to Usain Bolt's athletics records.
• New influenza: The H1N1/09 flu (a.k.a swine flu) is known in Japan as 新型インフルエンザ, or new-type influenza. I don't think I need to mention the flu outbreak this year that didn't spare Japan... neither Brazil.
• Introduction of new systems: Japan saw this year the implementation of many new systems this year. Among which the lay judge system, the eco-point system and a highway discount system.
• Coming of a new age: From the movement towards a more environmentally friendly society to the changes in the structure of the economic system after the global crisis, there's a feeling that a new age is coming. And people have hopes for what's to come.

So, the feeling of change last year (when the kanji of the year was 変) now changed into optimism for what's to come.

About my "new" meaning, it will probably be delayed until March. That's when I graduate and start a new life, wherever and whatever it will be. I hope for the best, but I also need to double my efforts to get there.

For that, the first step is get done with the thesis that is giving me so many headaches lately.

Back to research...

Osaka Hikari Renaissance

End of the year, and that brings light festivals with it.

The first one I've been in Japan was probably the Kobe Luminarie. Actually, that festival has a special meaning since it was first held on the same year of the Great Hanshin Earthquake.

Since then, I returned to Japan, went to the Kobe Luminarie again, to some light festivals in Kyoto...

... but there was one in Kansai I was still missing: Osaka Hikari Renaissance.

That event is a bit more recent, and it is "held in hopes that the warm lights will give the city more energy and as a chance for a newer movement toward a international metropolitan Osaka" (quoted from their website). It became more popular (at least to people in Kyoto) from 2008, when a new Keihan line made it a lot easier to go there and to move around the area.

So, on December 18th, the weather was surprisingly fine. Considering I wanted to go there and I managed to get some time off on that nice day, I decided to go there check it out and Fang joined the last-minute short trip to Osaka.

Since there were different attractions in different areas, it was not awfully crowded, especially for a Friday night. Still, I wouldn't want to go there on the 24th night.

Probably the main highlight is a 10 minutes-long show with lights projected on the facade of the Osaka Prefectural Nakanoshima Library along with music. It was the most impressive thing, and also the most crowded.


Near there, there was also the Nakanoshima Illumination Street. There were some shows there where the lights change according to the background music. Still, I think I prefer when they are still. It enhances the dream-like effect, especially because the lights are based on white and blue colors (during the shows red and green are also used).

The Osaka City Hall also had some illumination, with a cafe and some performances inside. We listened to an orchestra of mostly young people all dressed in Santa outfits. I couldn't find out the name of the group, though.

Moving on to the West Area, we could still see a sand statue from The Sand Museum Tottori City (sic) and some other illumination settings (including an interesting one made of pet bottles) before going back to Kyoto.


Check my Picasa album for more pictures.

Speech contest

As Caruso pointed out in his blog, people who are Japanese descendents or study Japanese become familiar with speech contests at some point. In part because Japanese seem to like speech contests as a way to show language proficiency.

Following his indications too, I decided to check a National Portuguese speech contest for Japanese university students at the Kyoto University of Foreign Studies. After joining some Japanese speech contests in Brazil, I wondered how it would feel to hear speeches from people who are actually making efforts to learn a language I'm well familiar with.

And also to see some Japanese who chose to study Portuguese. It is not a common choice. Most Japanese, when they choose a foreign language, opt for English. If not, Chinese, French, German, Spanish... Even Korean and Italian seems to be more popular. As an example, Kyoto University offers all those language courses at basic level at least, but there's no Portuguese.

Interestingly enough, disconsidering the Japanese accent there was a mixture of Portugal Portuguese and Brazilian Portuguese, but the latter was predominant. Also, the students I've talked to decided to study Portuguese mainly because of something related to Brazil.

The big prizes were scholarships to Portugal, though...

With stakes as high as these, just the speech wasn't enough. There was even a small interview (with a jury that included the embassadors of Portugal and Brazil) after the speeches to determine the winners.

Still, some speeches were great. The one that won the contest had as background the movie "Se Eu Fosse Voce" (If I Were You). It was clever how the plot of the movie (a couple who end up changing bodies by accident) was linked to how we should try to understand other people thinking how would it be if we were on their shoes. And from there to different cultures.

Another speech I liked a lot and with a similar message had pollen allergy as the trigger. The same way the body rejects strange bodies through reactions such as allergy, people do towards what is "different". This one I liked most because of the energy of the speaker, although the final message was also nice.

Anyway, this could go on for some time. I'll stop here.

It was an interesting experience. Now I might have an idea on how Japanese people feel when they listen to speeches from foreign students in Japanese.

And that came in handy for a speech contest in Japanese I participated.

No, not anything as big as that Portuguese speech contest. It was a speech contest organized by the Kyoto Association of Host Families (KAHF). Also, as expected, I wasn't one of the top three, although everyone who did a speech got a prize.

Nevertheless, it was a good experience giving a speech in Japanese in Japan. Probably still the language among the three I can say I am able to speak that I feel most unconfortable using.

Among speeches mentioning Japanese culture, social challenges and life with their host family, the three winners had in common the naturality while speaking. In a relaxed way, their speech was delivered smoothly with words that the jury knew (there were some with a bit of technical language).

The winner spoke about her life with her host family, remembering through a recently arrived student how most of us are when arriving, and mentioning the warmth their family had always given to their "foster children".

One that I found most interesting, including for academic reasons, was about how Japan is noisy. There is always some sound wherever you go in urban environments. And many announcements. Escalators tell you to watch your step, trucks warn people about left or right turns. The speaker himself was once tricked by an ambulance with its siren on and telling it was turning to the left, thinking it was a disaster annoucement (one car in the middle of the night with siren on and yelling something... comprehensible mistake).

There are actually some lines of research about sound directivity to prevent an annoucement to spread to undesired directions. It still has a long way to go, though.

Interview for internet radio

Other day I got a message from a friend asking if I couldn't give a short interview for an internet radio broadcast. One of the segments involves short interviews with international students from different countries, and they were looking for a Brazilian because Rio was chosen as the host for the 2016 Olympic Games.

(And they had never interviewed a Brazilian until then...)

Well, considering good part of the contents were around subjects I am not that familiar with, I may have done a good job. What were those contents? Carnival in Rio (I've never been to Rio and don't like carnival that much), soccer (no idea who are the current "top players", although I do know the groups for the next World Cup), movies like City of God (I read the book and like it, but the film is a vague memory... and I've never watched all of it)...

All that makes me wonder: am I a Brazilian without first-hand knowledge of the mainstream culture of the country?

You can listen to the interview here. Click in "世界の留学生 (Foreign Students)", then in "ゲストー覧表" in the box below. Last, look for your "victim" and enjoy.

I'm "falling"...

Yes, it is autumn - or fall - season again. And, as usual, I've had my share of momiji-hunting this year.

Unlike my previous picture-huntings (check autumn and spring posts of years past. Too many links to put here), this time most of the time I wasn't alone. Guess that, with my thesis pending, I might not have gone to all those places without an "external pressure".

Where could I go after two years in Kyoto? Well, the question is better said as "which of the many places I've never been I may be able to go this year?" That's one of the wonderful things of living in Kyoto, although beautiful places exist throughout the whole country.

The first place was the Kyoto Imperial Palace. Not that I've never been there before. Actually, it was just last spring. Nevertheless, at the time, the place was open to the general public instead of the usual reservations required to enter as part of the commemorations of the 20th anniversary of the current emperor's reign. It actually caught me a little off-guard for this year being "21st year of the Heisei era" on the Japanese calendar.

Japanese calendars counts years according to the year each emperor started its reign. So, when Emperor Akihito came, the Heisei era started; Emperor Showa reigned during the Showa era; Emperor Taisho during the Taisho era; and so on. (The era name and the posthumous name of the emperor have been the same since the Meiji era.)


Also, for being a special occasion, there were special exibitions and events. One more reason to get in and see.

Ohara is a place some people were recommending me to go to take pictures during autumn. So, I tried to gather the Brazilian group in Kyoto and go straight to the main highlight: the Sanzen-in (三千院).


Unfortunately, by a series of misunderstandings and sudden cancellations not many people gathered; and those who did ended up separated in two groups who basically didn't meet each other. Still, it was possible to taste a bit of the traditional Ohara atmosphere and appreciate the autumn leaves on the moss garden at the temple.

The next place wasn't exatcly new for me. After going there in 2007, I went again to Shugakuin Imperial Villa. That time I was with friends from Himeji who came to see the autumn in Kyoto.


Shugakuin Imperial Villa is still one of my favorite places in autumn. It's not too hard to figure out why. Even with some rainy weather by the end of the visit, it was still beautiful. Or should I say, raining while it was still possible to see the sun gave an even more special feeling to the scenario.

Talking about imperial places, the next one is the only one of the four in Kyoto I have never been to (the other ones are Shugakuin Imperial Villa, Katsura Imperial Villa and Kyoto Imperial Palace)... until now. Using a open place in a reservation Fang made, I went to Sento Imperial Palace, or the "retired emperor's palace". And I would like to live in a place like that after I retire... as long as some modern facilities were provided, of course.

It was during the peak of autumn, so the red leaves were at its maximum beauty (the guide himself said that). The garden, although it can't beat Shugakuin Imperial Villa, is really beautiful. Too bad that this time I was experimenting my polarizing filter and the results were often not close to what I expected. The cloudy weather during most of the visit also played a role in depreciating the pictures, too.

The last one was part of a part-time job activity: go to some touristic places in Kyoto with junior high school students. There we went to Toji and Nishi Honganji. The former was already withnot so many red leaves left; the latter had two full yellow beautiful trees. I will skip pictures of those two places to avoid showing the students (maybe there's no problem, but I'll play safe this time).

Well, not so many places this year. This happens when you are under pressure because your research is not going so well as it is supposed to. I would like to have gone to more places, but that was all I got.

To see more pictures, check my Picasa album.

Noh theater and evacuation training

Just because I said I wouldn't be joining many other events as an exchange student there were two more... on the same day. Never say never, I guess...

On November 14th, an "international friendship group" called Kamogawa-kai organized a "mini-Noh workshop". Although there was no actual performance scheduled, there would be a short lecture and some "experiencing".

I've never seen noh myself, and at times I thought that I could understand the explanations better if I had. Nevertheless, the explanations were easy to understand; especially considering its a performing art about 800 years old that even most Japanese can't understand completely.

On the "experiencing part" we could try walking like Noh performers on stage and someone was chosed to wear one of the clothes (the whole set is heavy!) and testify that peripheral vision goes away when one wears a Noh mask. For those reasons, some characteristics of Noh aim at avoiding that performers fall from the stage.

Still, I was more surprised at the stage itself. From the outside it looks like an ordinary Japanese house, but there is a relatively large Noh stage inside. As the lecturer said herself, people usually don't expect to see that stage when they first enter the building.

As one event wasn't enough, on the very same day there was another.

This time it was an event organized by the Kyoto City International Foundation. And with a relatively more serious aim, too. It was a Overnight Evacuation Shelter Training Program focused on explaining procedures in case of natural disaster.

Among the items on the program there was experiencing famous earthquakes in Japan on a truck that simulates those tremors, use of a defibrilator and eating emergency food. It was also a training exercise for volunteers who offer support to foreign residents.

It is nice that they go all that way to explain to foreigners those evacuation procedures. Most people don't know or don't care, and many (like me) come from regions where there are no earthquakes. That sort of drill makes people remember better than just a lecture on safety, but it is also expensive for those who organize it (it was free of charge for foreign residents).

It seems that those drills explaining procedures to foreigners started after the Great Hanshin Earthquake. That quake hit Kobe - a city with many foreign residents - and many foreigners didn't know what to do in those situations.

What I didn't like much to hear was that I'm basically living on a fault line. There are basically three in Kyoto, and if the worst happens (a 7-magnitude earthquake on one of those lines) I'd have an earthquake at home with intensities 7, 5-strong and 6-strong respectively.

Taiken Festival

Once you stay too long in Japan, you tend to participate less in events for foreign students. There are a variety of reasons that change according to each person, but in my case I am now busier than before and a little tired of the routine those events usually take.

Still, even after two years in Japan, there was one that got my attention. It was a "experience festival" (literal translation) from the local Rotary Club: 「留学生のための体験フェスティバル」 on October 24th.

The main reason was because the girls could dress the jyuunihitoe (十二単), a traditional clothing that was worn by the court-ladies during the Heian Period. As the name suggests, it is composed of twelve layers of silk kimono, being extremely elegant and complex to wear (not to mention heavy. In some cases up to 20kg!). Nowadays it is mostly used by the Imperial family in special occasions and in few weddings. It is expensive, and, in part for that reason, almost unseen outside of museums.


The boys would wear an equivalent traditional clothing for court nobles from the Heian Period. I forgot the right name, and searching on the net I found names like sokutai and kariginu, but although they look like, they're not the same.


There was a buddhist monk outfit as well...

And, of course, there were other events. One of them was the game based on Hyakunin Isshu (百人一首), the Uta garuta (歌ガルタ). It is one of the traditional card games in Japan, still played often during the New Year. Each card has a part of poetry, and the objective is to pick the sequence of the waka that is being read. For people who want to know further, I reccomend looking for sites like this one. I am not very familiar with the rules myself to try to explain them here.


At the end, while being treated to dinner (a very good one), we watched on TV the local news reporting the event. They are fast...

And one thing that came to me, this could be one of my last events as a international student in Japan. Ironic that it was with the Rotary Club... because my first dance presentation (when I used to practice ballroom dance back in Brazil) was also at the local Rotary Club.

Yellow Cake

Lately I've been busy like never before. I have to prepare my thesis, an article for a congress, some other obligations in between...

Still, I can't abandon the blog. So, for the time being, watch this animation by Nick Cross. There are many interesting interpretations for this video.

Warning: the beginning may look like some fluffy-happy-fairytale. I warn you it is not.

http://vimeo.com/6898451

More common mistakes in keigo

Back with more common mistakes when using polite Japanese (keigo).


Example 4: Did I give you permission?

Wrong: 当社ではIT商品を中心に開発させていただいております。 (tousha dewa IT shouhin wo chuushin ni kaihatsusasete itadaiteorimasu)
Right: 当社ではIT商品を中心に開発しております。 (tousha dewa IT shouhin wo chuushin ni kaihatsushite orimasu)

The sentence itself means "Our company focus on developing IT products."

This example is not a mistake in all cases. Nevertheless, using the first form shows a shaky command of keigo - more especifically, of kenjyougo (謙譲語). In short, "you know something, but not enough."

Kenjyougo is used to humble oneself or parts more related to oneself than to the listener (one's own family or company, for example). Some verbs have special forms (like the 拝見する in an example in a previous keigo post), and those one can't help but remember. For most others, there's a general rule similar to the one for sonkeigo explained in the previous post (お／ご～になる).

The general rule for kenjyougo verbs consists of placing the affix (接辞) お or ご in front of the verb in the continuative form (連用形). So far, it's the same as sonkeigo. But after the verb, we add する; or いたす - the humble form of する - for some extra politeness.

But there's a catch. Not all verbs can be transformed that way. In general, verbs that deal with feelings (laugh / 笑う; cry / 泣く; be disappointed / がっかりする) and verbs that deals with actions related to the self (return / 帰る; marry / 結婚する; sit / 座る) can't be "humbled" through the form above. Actually, since they refer to one's self, there's officially no need to run those verbs through kenjyougo.

Still, many Japanese people want to show politeness even with those verbs. Others get confused with the special forms. So they resort to one different form: （さ）せていだだく.

The magic of this form is that it can be used with any verb. And there are no special forms, so they all follow the same basic structure: the verb in the causative form (使役動詞) followed by （さ）せていただく. Thus "eat" (食べる) becomes 食べさせていただきます; send (送る) becomes 送らせていただきます; sit (座る) becomes 座らせていただきます.

There's only one problem. This form is (correctly) used mostly in situations where one asks for permission or receives it. Although it may also be used to show manners towards other people present, as it has the connotation of asking for/receiving permission, those who overuse it are not only seen as having insufficient knowledgle of keigo (if using this form in cases when one of the other forms would be preferable), they also might be seen as people who "do things as if they've received permission from others when actually they didn't".

In the initial example, the listener might think: "I don't remember giving you permission to focus on IT products..."


Example 5: Half a right is not a right.

Wrong: 先生はおられますか。 (sensei wa oraremasu ka?)
Right: 先生はいらっしゃいますか。 (sensei wa irasshaimasu ka?)

This one has a good range of possible translations: "Is the teacher here?", "Is the professor present?", "Is the doctor there?"... But you probably got the idea. The same sentence in a less formal way would be 先生はいますか (sensei wa imasu ka).

Let's check the polite forms for the verb いる (to be, there is/are, to exist):
尊敬語 (sonkeigo)：いらっしゃる (irassharu)
謙譲語 (kenjyougo)：おる (oru)

Wait a second... Why is the humble form (おる) being used towards a professor/teacher/doctor? In this case, there is an attempt to turn the humble form into something that shows respect towards that person. That is the られる form.

Most known for indicating passive voice, られる may also be used to express respect toward the listener or a third person when the subject is someone who is respected. Also, if させていただく is the magic form for kenjyougo, られる is its equivalent for sonkeigo. There's little variation from the basic structure: the same for conjugating verbs in the passive voice (受身), which makes it simpler.

Nevertheless, combining a kenjyougo form with られる doesn't just fail to turn the result into sonkeigo, it is also grammar mistake.

(And even if it did, use of られる is considered less polite than the other forms of songeigo. It is looked down less often than させていただく, still one shouldn't overuse られる either.)

Reasons for that mistake in my opinion is basically a combination of two factors:
1- Some people either don't know that いらっしゃる is the sonkeigo form of いる or they may know, but not be confortable with it because of the most common use of that verb: when a customer enters a store, it is normal to hear from the employees いらっしゃいませ！ ("Welcome! May I help you?").
2- The られる form actually can't be combined with neither special kenjyougo verbs (おる, 拝見する) nor sonkeigo verbs (召し上がる, なさる), but the verb いる is not much used in its passive form (there's some discussion on whether いられる exists or not in modern Japanese. Some sources I found say it is not acceptable and others say it's only not usual. None is totally reliable, though), おる doesn't have that problem.
(The mistake of combining られる and sonkeigo verb is known as a form of redundant keigo, or 二重敬語)

Thus, おられる becomes a failed attempt to produce a new sonkeigo verb.


Example 6: What's the alternative?

Wrong: ご注文の方は以上でよろしいですか。 (go-chuumon no hou wa ijyou de yoroshii desu ka?)
Right: ご注文は以上でよろしいですか。 (go-chuumon wa ijyou de yoroshii desu ka?)

The good thing of reusing an example is that you don't have to explain it all over again, but I will anyway... by copy-and-paste.

The correct version means "Will that be all?" or "Is there anything else you'd like to order?" As the translation itself indicates, this sentence is said after a customer orders something as a mean to verify if there's nothing else he/she would like to order.

This time, the mistake is different, though. The use of の方 in this sentence just isn't correct.

Grammatically speaking, の方 has two main uses:

1- When comparing things. Example: りんごよりバナナの方が好き ("I like more bananas than apples")

2- When indicating vicinity (approximation). Example: その店は駅の方にあります ("That store is near/around the station")

So, which one is the の方 used in this example? If we assume comparison, what is the order being compared to? Is the person asking if I'd like to order or do something else? And if we assume approximation it gets even worse... I can't even make a joke for that one.

Why this happens? Again, my best bet is the frenzy for indirectiveness when speaking politely in Japanese, based on the second meaning. An "approximation" is more vague, thus might be considered more polite.

Searching for sources on this one, I found something interesting. This link leads to a pdf file with some discussion about the use of 方. And to describe uses of の方 the author uses the word ぼかし (bokashi), which can be translated as "making something vague".
(That's the "approximation" use I guess... That's why you need examples in things like dictionaries.)

Wow! A word that says on its description it makes things vague. No wonder it is used for politeness...

Thanks to Claus for remembering this one.


Aftermatch

I plan to finish my posts about polite Japanese for now. And one thing I have to say is even though the examples I've shown are regarded as mistakes nowadays, since languages are modified by people continuously, they may become standard Japanese someday.

But, for now, they should be avoided by people who want to give a good impression when using polite Japanese.

Common mistakes in keigo

Since I'm taking Business Japanese classes this semester, I will keep the "educative" contents of the blog alive with one more post about Japanese polite language, a.k.a. keigo.

I won't go through explaining it all. There are many sites on the internet that do it better than I probably could. I will link Wikipedia just for the sake of having a direct link from this blog.

I said in my previous post about keigo that even Japanese make mistakes with it. So, I will discuss a little about some common mistakes people make when using Japanese honorifics. Some call those mistakes famikon go (ファミコン語) because they are heard most often in family restaurants (ファミリーレストラン) and convenience stores (コンビニ) that hire many temporary staff, but can't give them all proper training in keigo. (Japanese companies usually train their staff in business manners during their first year.)


Example 1: It will become what!?

Wrong: これはサラダになります。 (Kore wa sarada ni narimasu.)
Right: これはサラダでございます。 (Kore wa sarada de gozaimasu.)

One of the mistakes I can identify when I hear, which makes it the one I hear the most. It can be heard most often when waiters bring meals or drinks.

The same sentence in a less formal way would be これはサラダです (kore wa sarada desu), which literaly means "This is (the) salad." The polite way for です is でございます (or でいらっしゃいます when the subject is another person), justifying the correct form.

The wrong form translates as "This will become (or becomes) salad." Yes, this mistake has many openings for jokes. But why this mistake happens? My best guess is that they resort to the "generic form" of sonkeigo (尊敬語), trying to be respectful towards the client.

That generic form consists basically of adding になる at the end of a verb in the continuative form (連用形) preceded by the proper affix (接辞) - the 御 (o/go) mentioned in the previous post. For example, send (送る) by that form becomes お送りになる; wait (待つ) becomes お待ちになる. Even some verbs with special forms also have になる at the end, like ご覧になる and お越しになる.

And we finally see a pattern on how something that IS a salad manages to BECOME a salad...


Example 2: A 5000 bill is giving what!?

Wrong: 5000円からお預かりします。 (5000 en kara o-azukarishimasu.)
Right: 5000円をお預かりします。 (5000 en wo o-azukarishimasu.)

This one I also hear sometimes. It is most common to hear it when paying a bill.

As you may have noticed, it is not so much a mistake in honorifics. It is a general grammar mistake; more especifically, a mistake in the use of particles (助詞).

The meaning is, in a free translation, "(You) have entrusted (me) with 5000 yen" (this verb is not a simple one to translate. I will oversimplify and use "receive" henceforth). The particle を usually indicates the direct object of the sentence and that in accord with the correct form.

On the other hand, the particle から indicates point of origin. And under this interpretation, instead of "receiving 5000 yen", that person would be "receiving from 5000 yen" (I wonder what that person is receiving).

About the reasons for this mistake, I am a bit clueless. Since that sentence is often said when there is some change involved (a bill of 4500 yen paid with a 5000 yen note, for example), I guess it is a form of saying that the bill will be paid deducting FROM that 5000 note.


Example 3: It was ok already, right?

Wrong: ご注文は以上でよろしかったですか。 (go-chuumon wa ijyou de yoroshikatta desu ka?)
Right: ご注文は以上でよろしいですか。 (go-chuumon wa ijyou de yoroshii desu ka?)

This time I have to start with the translation. The correct version means "Will that be all?" or "Is there anything else you'd like to order?" As the translation itself indicates, this sentence is said after a customer orders something as a mean to verify if there's nothing else he/she would like to order.

The different point between the two sentences is the use of the word "よろしい", which means in this case "ok" or "all right". The first sentence is in past form (よろしかった), while the second is in plain form (よろしい).

So, instead of asking, it seems like the person saying the sentence decided that the customer doesn't want anything else and is just confirming when using the past form. Something like "Oh, you didn't want anything else anyway, right?".

Why there's a verb tense mistake among the problems with keigo? For this one I am on shaky ground, but the past form may look more polite. It's probably related to how the Japanese culture favors indirectiveness in speech, especially when making or refusing requests. So the past form looks more roundabout, therefore - for many people - more appropriate.

However, in this case, it actually makes a question look almost like an imposition...

Japanese Polite Language (敬語)

After you reach a certain level of Japanese proficiency, there are two types of classes that are especially challenging.

One is old Japanese. Usually necessary for those who read old books or do research related to Japanese culture or History. Not my case. And since modern Japanese still gives me a lot of trouble, even though it helps to explain modern Japanese (for example, why there are two characters for "o"? Namely 「お」 and 「を」), I'll pass this one for now.

Another one, and this one is very hard to ignore, is polite Japanese, or keigo (敬語).

Why is this challenging? One point is that in many cases, words and even sentences are altered completely. For example, "soshite" (そして), which means "and / then", becomes "narabi ni" (ならびに); "Ashita" ("tomorrow") becomes "myounichi", even though the kanji is still the same (明日). Even the simple "sou desu ka?" (そうですか), meaning "really?" or "all right", becomes "sayou degozaimasu ka" (さようでございますか).

Another point, although this one is personal, is that from my Brazilian background, it is not so easy to always think of the relative ranking of the person I'm talking to and use the correct level of politeness. I'm used to just mirror the politeness of the person I'm talking to, and to get informal as the person is closer to me. That doesn't work here.

As I mentioned "correct level", it is important to mention there are various forms of polite language in Japanese. Sonkeigo is used to elevate other people (used towards people who are older or "socially superior" in some way); kenjyougo is used to humble oneself (towards someone "superior"); teineigo is the standard polite language (and the one I usually stick to for being the safest and simplest).

So, if a professor sees my report, "sensei wa watashi no repooto wo goran ni naru" (先生は私のレポートをご覧になる); if I see my professor somewhere, "watashi wa sensei wo haiken suru" (私は先生を拝見する); if I see a movie, "watashi wa eiga wo mimasu" (私は映画を見ます). Those were, respectively, the sonkeigo, kenjyougo and teineigo forms of the verb miru (見る), whose meaning is easy to guess from the examples.

There are some other details and variations, like placing 御 ("o" or "go") at the beginning of words to beautify them, but I won't go too deep this time.

The bottom line is that even Japanese people themselves often make mistakes when using polite language beyond the simple teineigo.

A comic book I read recently after reading about it on Muito Japão 2 is 日本人の知らない日本語 (free translation: "Japanese Language Japanese People don't Know"). It is very funny for those who had the chance of studying Japanese in Japan, for they can relate to some situations mentioned in the comics. It also has many curiosities, mostly about Japanese language. And the book also mentions Japanese polite language, how Japanese people often make mistakes on it and some situations with foreign students.

And how much keigo should foreigners know? It depends. This Japan Times article says that foreigners who use too much keigo are seen as show offs. On the other hand, Japanese raised abroad are eventually criticized for their shaky command of keigo. The only problem is since I have Asian looks I may be closer to the second case.

The article also says that "Making mistakes in keigo or using too much keigo and seeming 'ingin burei' (appearing insincere with excessive politeness) leaves a worse impression than not using it." So I guess I'll try to stick to the safe side.

But before I mentioned that keigo is hard to ignore, didn't I? Yes, and it is because even if you don't use it, be sure you will listen to it... a lot.

Himeji Castle Moon Viewing Festival

Between the heat of summer and the red leaves of autumn, there is another event in Japan. Although less celebrated, tsukimi (月見), or moon viewing, is also an important point in the Japanese calendar.

While looking for references, I found this blog that explains tsukimi in a nice way. So, instead of keeping my usual (long) explanations, I will recommend people to go there take a look.

One thing that should be noted is that the event follows the lunar calendar. Although it makes sense considering it's a moon viewing event, that also means the actual day changes every year in the usual Gregorian calendar. This year (2009), the day is October 3rd.

On that day, the moon is at its fullest. Also, skies were clear enough for clear visibility, with some occasional clouds that actually made the scene more beautiful.


Where was I? Back in Himeji for the Himeji Castle Moon Viewing Festival (姫路城観月会). At the park in front of the castle, people gather to watch performances, enjoy the moon, eat and drink. And about drinking, there is also another point that festival is famous for: buying just one cup of sake (500 yen, if I remember well), it is possible to drink all the sake you want from various makers who participate in the festival.

That also leads to very drunk people here and there. Anyway, that's a different story...


In my case, it was just a good opportunity to meet some friends in Himeji (or part of it as some people were absent) and take pictures of the moon and the castle.

(Note: this is a computer processed picture. The moon and the castle weren't that perfectly aligned.)

Those may be my last pictures of the castle, so I could not miss the chance as well. Why? Well, besides the fact I'm approaching graduation, Himeji Castle will go under restoration from this moon viewing festival to 2014.

To those who have never been there, until March it seems they will only bring materials for the restoration, so it will still be possible to see and go inside the castle. Don't miss this chance.

China - Part 2: Beijing (北京)

Continuing the trip in China...

After leaving Guilin on September 17th, we went by plane back to Beijing. Greeted once again by the Beijing Capital International Airport. And, as we were flying with Air China, we were in Terminal 3. Beijing Airport was in 2008 the 8th busiest airport in the world, 21st in aircraft movements (also the only Asian airport in the top 30), and 8th in cargo. Terminal 3 is only second to Dubai International Airport Terminal 3 in size. It is also one of the most modern, the fastest airport terminal ever built, among other notable characteristics. To make it short, a very impressive airport.

From the airport, we went to the hotel. A guest building inside Fang's former university, the Beijing Foreign Studies University. This allowed me to watch glimpses of student life in China, which was great. There was even a small group (of staff, I guess) practicing Tai Chi in the mornings. But after arriving at the hotel, we left again to meet one of Fang's close friends who studied at the same university, Q., and her fiancee for some tea and small dinner.

On the next day, after a late start Fang decided to show me one of her favourite places in Beijing that I should see: the 798 Art Zone. It is an former industrial area that after deactivation gradually turned into an special art zone. Structures from the industral times remain, some with unique architectural style. Those merge well with the galleries, cafes, sculptures and other artistic manifestations of the district.

The place is far and large. So much that it became our only spot for the day, for we already had something scheduled for the night: meeting again Q. and fiancee to eat the famous Peking Duck. At this time, I realized something about Chinese people. Chinese may be loud, noisy, and even disrespectful (for our standards) at times. But earn their friendship and they'll go to great lenghts and do many things for you... warmly. Even because sharing the bill is not part of Chinese culture.


As Fang was also going to another city for her research, before the farewell another friend, Y., and her fiancee (is it just me who is seeing a pattern here?) also joined the group to chat at a department store. The three Humanities girls who haven't met for ages, and the three Technology boys struggling to get their points across (I don't speak Chinese, but I think we did a good job with English). Anyway, it was an excellent opportunity to interact with Chinese people in an environment which is not of "international exchange" or "tourism". All four are nice people that I hope I can meet again.

September 19th. Alone in a country I don't speak the language (even though I might have a local face because I got asked directions more than once), it was time to join an English tour to some famous touristic spots.

The first one was the Ming Tombs (明朝十三陵), more especifically the Changling Tomb. During the Ming Dynasty, 13 emperors built complexes of palatial buildings in the suburbs of Beijing. Those were later called the Ming Tombs. An interesting feature of the Changling Tomb is the division between Heaven and Earth. The tomb has two areas: a square one representing Earth and a circular one representing Heaven. A gate marks the division between the two.

After that, one stop at the Long Di Superior Jade Factory (couldn't find a good link). It was nice to see they carving some sculptures in jade, as well as hearing one curiosity of two (about the 2008 Olympic Medals and the symbolism of some sculptures). Still, the lack of Chinese customers tells me something about those places...

... Well, as a broke student, I wasn't going to buy jade stuff on the first place...

The group had lunch and then we went to the real highlight of the day: the Great Wall of China (万里长城). One of the great wonders of the world and a construction that can be seen from space, the Great Wall doesn't need further introductions. The tour went to Badaling section... they just forgot to tell (until the last second at least) that the cable car was not included on the tour fee.

... Typical.

The most annoying is that there was no alternative to the cable car. Or it was, but it meant climbing from a place very far away from there. Impossible given the tour schedule.


The Great Wall was nice. It's good to say I've been there. There were just a couple of problems:
1- It was foggy (what I later guessed that could be haze)
2- It was crowded (can't be avoided, but with problem number 1 made good shots almost impossible)
3- I started to feel bad. I first thought it was because we had just eaten (No, I've exercised after eating quite a number of times and it was never like that); then that it was the altitude (only 800 meters!? Oh, C'mon!); and my final guess was it was the pollution.

For those reasons, I returned a little after reaching the highest part of the Wall. Too bad...

From the Great Wall, the tour had a last stop: Beijing Dong Wu Silk Museum (couldn't find any link either...). Again, there were interesting explanations about silk, including a special Chinese type where two insects make their coocons together into a stronger one. And again I could see no Chinese customers...

Since the silk museum was close to the Olympic Green (北京奧林匹克公園), I decided to leave the tour (instead of getting a ride to the hotel) and go see it. As I wasn't exactly well, I just wandered a little around the Olympic Park looking the the main structures: the National Stadium (also called Bird's Nest), place for the Opening and Ending ceremonies; and the National Aquatics Center with its famous architecture. As a bonus, I also saw some other structures nearby, like the National Indoor Stadium. All of them from the outside only, though.

September 20th. The last day. I was feeling better and was finally able to see a bit of the blue sky (It is said Guilin weather is such that locals call "cloudy" weather "clear" weather... In Beijing it was cloudy most of the time, but there was also the haze).

Time to storm some places until my return flight.

Without finding a place to put my bags (one backpack with luggage and another to walk around), I went around carrying them. So imagine myself carrying two backpacks to the following places.

The first place was the controversial Tian'anmen Square (天安门广场). With the Monument to the People's Heroes, Great Hall of the People, Mao Zedong Memorial Hall, among other features, it is the place that many people think about when Beijing comes to their minds. Of course, for many people it also brings the issue of the protests of 1989.

Talking about it, as October 1st 2009 is the 60th Anniversary of the Chinese Revolution, the Government (and the citizens) are preparing a HUGE celebration. As one of the consequences, there were guards at every sensible point. Tian'anmen Square had even x-ray scanners, the Chinese SWAT, and soldiers questioning all large groups who didn't look like tours.

Nevertheless, there was a large crowd in Tian'anmen and in my next destination: the Forbidden City (故宮), now called Palace Museum. Occupying 720,000 square meters and with 9,999 rooms (because of Chinese numerology), it was the Chinese imperial palace during the Ming and Qing dynasties and is divided in mainly two parts: the outer court, where the emperor had audiences and other activities related to his "function" as supreme ruler; and the inner court, where the emperor lived with his family. That lasted until the last emperor of China was driven out in 1924.


As I had little time, I just went straight through, without seeing other structures at the sides. At the other side of the Forbidden City, there's still Jingshan Park (景山). The main reason to check the park was that from the peak of a hill there it is possible to see the whole Forbidden City.

With still some time to spare, the next stop was Beihai Park (北海公园;), a former imperial garden. With some of its structures and scenes considered masterpieces of gardening technique, the park also hosts a white pagoda which body is made of white stone. Surprisingly, there were few foreign tourists there.

After the park, I realised I was late, so I rushed to take the Airport Express train back to PEK Airport, and from there back to Japan.

Just like it was the case with Korea, there were some points when I thought China is more similar to Brazil than Japan. Although I have the (common) impression Chinese are constantly irritated or angry, in part that's just the way the language sounds. I say in part because, unlike Japanese, they really show what they feel. So sometimes they may really be irritated (like when a taxi driver said we were taking to long to leave the taxi - he was waiting for the next customer) or angry.

Talking about people, that was the most strikingly characteristic of China in my opinion. It doesn't matter the time of the day or where you were. It was very hard to be alone. And often there was a crowd with you. People everywhere. Well, that's to be expected from a country that has about one fifth of the world's population I guess.

Traffic was a sort of organized chaos. Lots of car horns being heard, but the accident rate is relatively low. Don't expect pedestrian preference over vehicles, but as a Brazilian (not resident in Brasilia) I'm used to that.

It was again interesting noticing people's reaction after realizing I wasn't Asian, but Brazilian. After explaining, people always made references to the same thing: soccer. This time, though, I thought it was a good idea not mentioning to anyone that I was Japanese descendent and that I was studying in Japan. Some old people still don't like Japan because of WWII, and even some young Chinese, who mostly don't have these strong nationalistic problems, would like at least to hear an apology from Japan for its war atrocities. Especially because Japan apologized to the United States, but not to Asian countries, which actually suffered more than the US.

The "Great Firewall of China" and other forms of censorship were also interesting to see. Reading a Chinese newspaper in English, I could see no news saying bad things about the government. Quite unusual from the perspectives of any country I've been so far. There were also more good news than usual for a newspaper. Is that necessarily bad? Maybe some good news could cheer people up... Still, when the price is the control of information to the point of nothing bad about the government can be said, I don't think it's a worth trade.

Whoops, I just said something bad about Chinese politics! What will I do? Well, nothing. Many Google services, including blogspot, are blocked in China. That means that no mainland Chinese can read this blog through normal means (nothing that can't be solved, as some Chinese also know. It's troublesome nevertheless).

Ah, I have uploaded pictures as usual for people who want to see more. This time, though, as Picasa is also blocked in China and I would like some people there to see the pics, I uploaded them in a different place. It's here.

To end the post, two sentences I found most useful in China (my pronunciation is awful, so it wasn't much of a help actually):

我是巴西人 (wǒ shì Bāxīrén): "I am Brazilian." When people looked at me wondering what am I.

不用 (bù yòng): "Don't need." The golden words when someone tries to sell you something you're not interested in (and believe me when I say it WILL happen if you go near a touristic spot. Especially if you don't look Asian). Say two or three times in sequence with appropriate gestures for better effect.

But the big prize goes to my Beijing guide in Japanese. There were Chinese sentences for "Don't kill me!" or "I don't have money on me." Will tourists ever remember those sentences even if eventually a "proper" situation arises?

China - Part 1: Guilin (桂林)

With less than one year until graduation, it was time to go somewhere in Asia during summer vacation. Without time and money to do something crazy like a round the world trip, I decided to settle for a country that I promised myself I'd visit while in Japan.

So, from September 14th to 20th I went to China.

This time, I went alone without speaking the local language (like in Korea), but there I'd meet Fang (a.k.a. elfinjp), who was in China doing research.

That made things A LOT easier...

After meeting at the airport in Beijing (we'll return to the airport, so I'll save my comments for that time), we flew to Guilin... via Xian! I only realized later that we would go through such a famous place. Unfortunately, it was just a temporary stop and we never left the airport. Well, the terracota warriors will have to wait...

Arriving in Guilin, the hostel we booked sent someone to pick us up. After a day flying, realizing you have a room with a great view to the river is an excellent way to end the day...

Second day, and as work comes before the fun, Fang went to look for some interviews for her research. I followed and even joined one that happened to be in Japanese. Still, I don't know how much I can disclose here, so I am not giving details.

After eating some real Chinese food for dinner, we still had time to visit the Sun & Moon Pagodas (日月双塔). The 41m high Sun Pagoda is also the tallest copper pagoda in the world. The pagodas are said to be built by Jianzhen, one important character in Sino-Japanese cultural exchange, during the Tang Dynasty. Unfortunately, these are not the original structures, but rather a reconstruction. And that's why I guess these towers are not usually listed as one of the "main atractions" of Guilin.


Nevertheless, the towers are beautiful. Especially at night. We managed to join a guided tour (in Chinese) to the pagodas; and walking around Fang managed to find a place with local traditional clothes to rent. Girls dresses only. Better for me who was free to take pictures.

September 16th. Cloudy weather with occasional light rain. Perfect for a cruise on Li River (漓江). Guilin area is famous for its natural topography - especially its hills - and it's during a cruise on Li River that characteristic may reach artistic/dreamlike levels. A Chinese saying even states the scenery in Guilin is "the best under heaven" (桂林山水甲天下).

And that's not for nothing. Of course, being surrounded with boats carrying tourists takes some of the magic away, but the foggy scenario thanks to the cloudy weather made the hills look like some painting. And there's even a hill they can "the pen of God", which He used to draw the Guilin landscape.


Talking about the shape of the hills. They have figures for many of them. One of the most interesting is one that resembles a panel. And it is said that nine horses are pictured on that panel, but only smart people can see all nine.

... Well, I saw only four...

The boat arrived in Yangshuo, and from there we could join a paid tour or explore for ourselves. Guess which we chose?

We took a quick walk at West Street, the oldest street in Yangshuo and also called the "foreigners street", because the number of foreigners there sometimes outnumber the number of Chinese (and after being in China, I recognize that as a great feat), and many stores and hotels in the area have English signs. Then, we rented a bike with two seats (for the sake of experience) and cycled with a local guide to the Butterfly Spring Park.

The park got this name because of a butterfly-like stalactite found inside a grotto in the park. The grotto also has some other forms, including one that resembles a couple embracing each other. For those reasons, the place is also often associated to the story of the Butterfly Lovers. The park also has a butterfly garden, although we could see very few when we were there.


After the park, we had planned to go to some other place, but the lack of time made us return to the rendezvous point and return to Guilin.

As a side note, we made our reservations through our hostel. But guess what... The tour in Chinese was less than half the price of the English one. We took the Chinese tour, as did two German tourists staying at the same hostel, even though they can't speak Chinese. The only problem was that the final meeting point to go back to Guilin changed, and Fang called the guide to check the new place. I guess the Germans couldn't do that, and they were left behind (we also didn't have means to contact them)... They at least knew how to get back, fortunately.

Fourth day and the last in Guilin. We had planned to see the Elephant Trunk Hill in the morning. But Fang was very tired (she had been walking around for her research for days before we met), so we thought better to stay put and rest in the hostel. For lunch, we had time to eat one typical food in Guilin. This time in a popular restaurant, meaning eating what the locals really eat. The dish was Guilin mifen (桂林米粉), or rice noodles. The noodles came with some meat and vegetables that were unexpectingly tasty... and unbeliavebly cheap.

After four days, we went to the airport and from there to Beijing.

The Chinese saga continues...

In the sea of languages...

A friend posted a link to an interesting post which is relavant in this globalized world. In matters of cost-benefit, which languages are best to learn?

I'll bring the list presented by the article with some comments of my own.

The "top tier" with the "most important" languages are

• English: the major motive is that it is the current international language. Most information available in the planet is presented in the English language (original or translation). Besides US, UK and Australia, many cities/countries choose that language as a unifying language. Even if US, the major upholder of English as the official international language, loses international influence, English will take some time to fade internationally. (French, the previous international language, is still popular)


• Spanish: more important in the Western hemisphere basically because of the large number of Spanish speaking countries in Latin America. Besides, some jokes say it will become the main language of some areas of the US as the "latino invasion" continues.


• Chinese: some say it is the "language of the future" as China grows more and more in the international scenario. Projections say it will take Japan's position as the 2nd world economy in this year (2009) or the next. The Chinese huge population makes makets salivate for all that customer potential. Besides, there's the Chinese diaspora all around the world. Basically all major cities in the world have some sort of "Chinatown". People just shouldn't forget the differences inside of what many Westeners consider "Chinese language". Even though most are able to speak Mandarin, variations like Cantonese and Taiwanese may be considered different languages.


• French: Two years ago I'd be reluctant of agreeing with French among the top languages. But after then I realized the large number of countries that speak French, even though in many cases it's not only French (like Swiss and Belgium). Also, the prestige of a former international language doesn't fade so fast...


• Russian: I'm slightly reluctant to agree with this one. I'll concede since I agree with the author of the original article when he says it remains the language of intercultural communication in most countries that were under the USSR wing during the Cold War. I also agree that it may not stay in the top for long.

Next, the second tier with languages that may not have the same range of the first, but are still useful in a handful of situations.

• Arabic: especially because of oil, Arabic is an important language. The main reasons it not reaching the top ranks is that not so many people speak the language, especially as native language. And in many important Arabic areas other languages may suffice. Doha and Abu Dhabi are good examples.


• Portuguese: yay! My mother language is here! Well, I have to admit that Brazil - with its large population and increasing economic relevance - gives most of the importance Portuguese language has. (Sorry Portugal people, but even you will have to agree here.) Lack of more important countries and even unity in grammar matters (it is not uncommon for a book to be translated from Portugal Portuguese to Brazilian Portuguese or vice-versa) prevent this language from reaching the top.


• Japanese: although it is the native language of only one country, that one country is the second largest economy in the planet (for now): Japan. Also, Japanese tourists all around the world also put incentives to develop services in Japanese. That is remarkably true for Eastern Asian countries like Korea, China or Singapore, but I saw tours in Japanese and even signs in Japanese as far as in Europe. The importance of Japanese is being shadowed by the increasing influence of China, but Japan stayed on top long enough to solidify the language in some sectors around the globe, so it's not going away so easily (even because not so many Japanese are fluent in English or other languages. Therefore, as long as Japan remains "important"...).

Then comes other tiers that are used in some cross-boarder regions. Later are probably those not much useful internationally.

The absence of German surprised me at first, but then I remembered that German is important basically because of Germany, which is not doing exceptionally fine lately. And other countries which speak German are mostly European (if not all). Still, I would have given it an importance close to Japanese... or am I being naive?

... On second though, it might just be my engineer side. After all, Germany is still attractive for engineers. Well, sort of.

Of course, the setting also varies depending on where one lives. This list is just an average. In general, languages important in a certain region are the official languages (of course) and languages spoken by neighbor countries - especially economically relevant countries. The top tiers are made by languages spoken by internationally powerful countries or spoken as a native language by a large part of the world's population.

Still, in last analysis, learning a language involves interest in that language and the culture(s) associated with it (especially to understand some nuances). So, more than cost-benefit, one's own interest should direct which languages to learn. Even though knowing languages in the "top tier" has more chances to "pay off", knowing less internationally important languages, but those who one really wishes to learn, may give unexpected opportunities as well - and with few competition.

Shirahama (白浜) revisited

Summer. Hot and humid. What that all calls for?

That's right. Beaches.

So, like two years ago, the Brazilian group in Kyoto - myself included - left to Shirahama in Wakayama Prefecture from August 14th to August 17th.


This time, though, we decided to have a little more comfort during the trip. No more Seishun 18 Kippu. We took a "highway bus" (高速バス) to Shirahama instead. It's just a couple of hundred yen more expensive, and it stops just beside the main beach, while Shirahama Station is kilometers away.

The only setback is that since we went during Obon. That meant crowded roads that delayed our bus by more than one hour and a half... And since I am such an airhead, I also forgot my "beach supplies" inside the bus as we arrived in Shirahama. Fortunately, I was able to recover it the next day thanks to the lady at the ticket shop.

Like we did two years ago, this year we also stayed at the university beach house: Shirahama Umi no Ie (白浜海の家). This time the place went through reforms (it's safe to say they rebuilt the whole thing) between 2007 and 2008 and looked brand new.

The obasan was still there, but this time the group figured out how to deal with her. Wake up early, clean your mess and pamper her a little bit and you're good to go. Ah, and don't break the rules.

That being said, the group went all days to the beach. With some other activities around. On the first day, the skies were perfectly clear; an excellent weather to watch some shooting stars.


On the second day, the group hit the main beach Shirarahama and met a group of friends who stayed at the same place, playing at Shirarahama until night, when the traditional fireworks festival was held. And this being during Obon, there were also fire lanterns along the beach giving a deep atmosphere to the event.


Third day. Day to play it slow, enjoy the beaches and getting frustrated again for not being able to take a picture of the sunset at Engetsu Island (円月島)... Damn cloudy weather! To compensate, we did the traditional barbeque, but this time with fish and it was delicious! To close the day, nostalgic music by the veranda... Does anyone remember "Mamonas Assassinas"?


For the fourth day, some people decided to do something a bit different and went some touristic spots: Sensojiki (千畳敷) and Sandanbeki (三段壁). Being to the latter for the second time, this time we decided to explore the cave, even though the entrance fee is quite expensive. It was interesting, but we should have gone during the high tide...

After those four days, I returned to Kyoto. Tired, but relaxed.

And during the trip sometimes I remembered the events of two years ago. The group changed a lot from that time, even though the spirit was kept. Going to some places I've been back then made me finally realize that time flies and my turn is coming. Hope someone keeps the "tradition" next year as I'll graduate...

Daimonji (大文字)

This time, I'll write about one of Kyoto's symbols: Daimonji (大文字).

Daimonji is shaped as the kanji meaning "large" or "great" (大) and is one of the symbols "drawn" on the mountains that surround Kyoto. The other ones are Myou/Hou (妙・法), the characters meaning "excellent law" (referring to Buddhist teachings); Funagata (舟形), the shape of a boat; Hidari Daimonji (左大文字), with the same character as the Daimonji, but slightly smaller; and Toriigata (鳥居形), the shape of a torii.

All those symbols are lit every year on August 16th from 8h pm (local time) at the culmination of obon. The fire has the meaning to guide the ancestors' spirits who are said to return to this world in order to visit relatives during the obon. This has the general name of okuribi (送り火), thus the name of this event in Kyoto being called gozan no okuribi (五山の送り火) - literally, "five mountains' send-off fire" -, although many people call it just daimonji.

Pictures of the lit symbols as well as some more explanation can be found here.

It is also an interesting checkpoint for me during those years in Japan.

In 2005, being in Japan for the first time, I was travelling in Kyoto (also for the first time) with Silvia and a Japanese friend when daimonji was lit. I was able to see some symbols from Sanjo, but didn't take any good pictures.

Returning to Japan in 2007, the Brazilian students in Kyoto gathered for a barbecue at Tati's former house, where we could see about four of the symbols (daimonji, funagata, myou and hou) from the roof. And it was the first time I had the thought of buying a tripod after trying many times to take pictures, but only managing to take passable ones after Kazu lent his tripod for a while.

I guess I've never mentioned that story here before, so I'll upload a picture taken that time.


In August 16th, 2008 I was in Munich on my way back to Brazil, so I obviously didn't see the okuribi. But on October I joined an event from the university student lounge (a.k.a. KI-ZU-NA) where we climbed daimonji. It is not that rough, but I recommend going when insects are not active. It's worth a go, anyway. From there it is possible to see the city of Kyoto from above, and also the places where the fires are lit every August 16th.
That's another event I haven't mentioned before, so I'll upload some pictures, too.



And in 2009? Well, I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I am not in Kyoto again. At this moment I am somewhere else that will result in another post soon.

So why writing about Daimonji? Well, it is one of Kyoto's main symbols; and since I came to Kyoto, it has been basically a part of my everyday life, sice it is possible to see it easily from Kyoto University Yoshida Campus area. This will be my last year as a student in Kyoto and I forgot to write about many occasions related to it, so I thought it was worth a post.

To keep the rate of "one different thing about daimonji every year", I'll try to take a picture of it covered in snow (will have to wait for winter, of course)...

Summer Festivals - 2009 version

Summer has arrived. Very hot and very humid... And summer in Japan calls for hanabi, a.k.a. fireworks.

For those who don't know, fireworks are associated with summer in Japan. For people like me used to see lots of fireworks when the New Year comes, that can be a little disappointing. I say that because I went to Osaka for the countdown... and to my surprise, there were no fireworks nowhere nearby, even though I was in the middle of a crowd gathered for the countdown (Umeda).

(Note to self: in Japan, it may be better to go to a temple instead... at least you hear the bells)

Anyway, after seeing fireworks in Uji, Osaka, Biwako and Shirahama in 2007 and travelling around the world during that season in 2008, I was looking for places to see hanabi this year.

The chosen one was the Naniwa Yodogawa Fireworks Festival (なにわ淀川花火大会) on August 8th. This one is popular in Osaka; and it is one I have never been before. Thus, we (Fang and I) decided to go check it out.

This time, though, having a better camera and a tripod, I was really into taking decent pictures of fireworks. That's something I still hadn't been able to do. So I decided to get some information from Kazu, who's taken great pictures there before. He basically told me to get there early and find the spot right in front of the fireworks.

... I was only able to follow half the advice.

I got there early. More than three hours before the event. There was still plenty of space. But I did the stupid thing of trying to guide myself only by the picture on Kazu's blog, but I was fooled by a second similar bridge nearby and chose the wrong position: far away from the fireworks... I only realised the mistake when the fireworks started, then I was swearing all over and rushing to change the position of the camera in the middle of a sea of people.

Also, to avoid overexposure, I was told that ND filters are a good thing to use. I didn't have one, so I tried to improvise with my CPL filter. Well, the results speak for themselves...

Those are some pictures that turned out more a less all right. Better than those I took two years ago, but there's still that feeling that "I could have done better"...

Do you have a Japanese friend?

Some time ago (June), the author of a blog that I follow and personally like a lot wrote an article about a simple question, that foreigners living in Japan are asked every now and then.

"Do you have a Japanese friend?"

Such a simple question, yet so complicated to answer...

That's because, as Caruso (the author) mentioned, it depends on your referential of what's a "friend", especially when you go between diferent cultures.

His point was that, basically, if you consider a friend from a "Japanese (culture's)" point of view he has Japanese friends, but from the "Brazilian (culture's)" point of view he has not. Nevertheless, it is not a bad thing. He doesn't have the right or even the capacity to turn them into friends according to his native perspective, especially since he is in Japan. One can be good friends with Japanese people if one hold one's expectations closer to the local standard.

What are those diffrerences? For example, even with the closest Japanese friends, the senpai-kouhai system still shows up. If they started with a difference in rankings or age, that difference will probably never disappear doesn't matter how close they become. In Brazil, depending on the occasion it is possible to ask for one's boss (or professor) to go out for a drink just like a regular friend.

In general, Japanese care about politeness and manners even between friends. Brazilians care more about sincerity and loyalty; and have a tendency to get "too close, too fast". I've heard from Japanese and Chinese friends that Brazilians may often hug, kiss and have other liberties in man-woman friendships that make it hard to distinguish if they are a couple or just friends.

A last detail that was mentioned in a comment in the original post that I also noticed: Japanese who leave Japan for a while become more "relaxed" in friendships while in the foreign country, but many resume at least partially the "usual behavior" after returning to Japan.

(Note: of course, as in any country there are different kinds of people, obviously in Japan it is also possible to find someone who adheres more to the "Latin" style of friendship or any other. But those people are unusual inside the society.)

Me? I was lucky enough to have met Japanese friends in Himeji which whom I could be more like myself. In Kyoto, there are also those who are friends a little beyond the meaning in the Japanese (culture) way. That may be because they are still students, or because some are from an international exchange group. There was a time that I avoided people that wanted to be my friends because I'm a foreigner. Now at least I have to admit that, since my Brazilian background is a part of me, there's no reason to rebuff those people right away. I'll do that if our connection keeps based only on that point, though.

Nevertheless, I still have to admit that in general I feel more confortable around other foreign students and the Brazilian group in special. But that's probably because it is a group with more things in common with me, as my background is still essentially Brazilian. Maybe if I stay in a different country for years that might change. More then nationality, the common things you share with people around you define your affinity with them.