04 Logbook Entry: March 9-15, 2020

Spring break for Waseda University started on February 5, unlike US schools, spring break for us is two months long. My first semester ran from the last week of September to the end of January and the second semester was scheduled for the first week of April until the end of July. However, with COVID-19, the second semester has been pushed back to after April 20th (perhaps later, with the possibility of my study abroad program being canceled depending on how things progress). Since I don’t know how much time I have left in Japan, I want to make the most of it. Here is a little sneak peek at what my life on spring break is like.

Location: Taito, Tokyo, Japan

March Highlights:

• Launched my blog

• Started posting YouTube videos on a weekly basis

• Completed four articles for the Waseda Public Relations Office

• Went rock climbing for the first time in Japan

• Visit from my friend Raymond during his layover in Japan (it was nice to do “touristy” things for a day)

• First time going to an arcade in Japan (and of course I played the taiko drum game)

• Visited Hama-rikyu and Kiyosumi Garden, two of the nine Edo-Tokyo Metropolitan Gardens

• Went to Enoshima and completed all three challenges of the 2020 Enoshima Treasure Quest

• Solo Hiking at Mt. Hidone

• Hiking at Mt. Oyama (It was snowing!)

Weather:

• Number of sunny days: 4

• Number of cloudy days: 3

• Number of rainy days this week: 3

• Number of snowy days this week: 2 (1 day in Taito, 1 day at Mt. Oyama)

• Number of windy days this week: 0

• What is the air temperature right now in Fahrenheit? 48

• How was the weather this week? It was mostly sunny then cloudy and rainy over the weekend. It rained all day Saturday and snowed in the afternoon. On Sunday, I was at Mt. Oyama and it was sunny but it was also snowing.

Mt. Oyama

Koi at Sensoji Temple

Other News

What animals did I see this week?

• Seagals

• 2 hawks

• 3 different types of ducks

• Turtles

• Koi

• Dogs

• A lot of fish and birds I don’t know the name of

Mt. Hidone

What was the coolest thing I saw in nature this week?

• Moss! I know, with all the beautiful ponds, flowers, trees, and mountains that I saw, why moss?? Mainly because I saw moss everywhere, in different textures and shades of brown, yellow, and green. I saw it in water, on trees, along riverbanks, rocks, bridges, and fences. Moss is pretty amazing.

Hiking trail at Mt. Hidone

What main languages are spoken here?

• Japanese, some English, but mostly Japanese

What type of money is used here?

• Japanese Yen

• Currently, 1 USD is equivalent to 107 JPY

How much does a bottle of water cost?

• You can get an 8 oz water bottle from a vending machine for ¥100 - ¥130

• You can also get a 1-liter bottle of water from a convenience store, combini, for ¥91

• Whether from a vending machine, combini, or grocery store, a bottle of water comes out to roughly 1 USD. However, tap water in Tokyo is safe to drink so I usually just fill up a reusable water bottle from the sink

• It is very hard to find drinking fountains so you will either have to bring water with you or buy

What was the best meal this week?

• Vegan tonkotsu ramen from T’s TanTan at Ueno Station (they also have another branch at Tokyo station)

What music did I listen to this week?

• Broken Fragments, Colporteur World, and Reflect Belief by Souls West

• Finally Free by Cheyna Ashe

• Beginnings and Psalms by Matt and Josie Minikus

• The River is Wide by Bronn Journey

• Majesty String II by Majesty Strings

• If you could recommend similar artists/albums, I would appreciate it. I’m looking for more albums to listen to.

What activity was the most fun this week?

• Hiking at Mt. Hidone

What did I read this week?

• From the Bible: Daniel 1-10, Matthew 6

• Patriarchs and Prophets Chapter 1

• Prophets and Kings Chapter 1-5

• The poetry of Emily Dickinson, First and Second Series

What games or sports did I play this week?

• Rock Climbing

• Enoshima Treasure Quest

How far did I travel this week?

• At least 268 km (166 miles)

How did I get around this week?

• Train

• Bus

• On foot

What was the most interesting place I visited this week?

• This is so hard! I visited so many places this week! Enoshima takes first place, with Kiyosumi Garden in second, Mt. Hidone in third, Mt. Oyama in fourth, and Hama-rikyu Garden in fifth

Time Zone:

• Japan Standard Time (+9 GMT)

Even though I am on break, I still do a lot of studying and writing. When I'm not out and about, I'm at home writing (writing for myself, this blog, and work), editing videos (which I am still learning to do), learning (I am taking a speed reading course and studying Japanese). So even though I do get

to do a lot of traveling, I still have a lot of things to do at home. The first week of March was almost completely dedicated to launching this blog and finishing a series of four articles for the Waseda Public Relations Office. Now that it's the middle of March, I have to start planning my classes for next semester and for when I return to the U.S. Wish me luck as I dive into the more mundane aspects of study abroad this coming week.

That's all for this week but before you go, here's a video on my recent adventure to Mt. Hidone.

Till Next Time,

Gabriella Jeane