The Home of Nintendo, Reflections on Youth

Nintendo HQ isn't far from Kyoto Station!

Kyoto is the hub of centuries of culture, but another reason I love the city is a very personal one; it houses the source of my childhood memories: Nintendo. Nintendo started off in 1889 making Hanafuda cards, Japanese playing cards. Wanting to expand, they tried their hand at many unique business ventures during the 1950s, ranging from toys to vacuum cleaners to a cab service to love hotels. Eventually they became the Nintendo we all know and love, experimenting with various electronics before releasing the hit Famicom video game console (dubbed NES in the states). They saw it's success, kept with the trend, and the rest is history!

Game Creator Shigeru Miyamoto grew up in Kyoto, in a time with little technology. He used his vivid imagination to turn the natural areas around the city into his playground, many of his childhood experiences inspiring the games he went on to create. The foxes of Fushimi Inari Shrine are personified in Star Fox and the general sense of adventure is replicated in The Legend of Zelda.

The building is kinda boring, but it's all about what happens inside!

I still recall my very first experience with Nintendo games. My dad had bought an N64 for my brother, my being probably only four years old at the time. He was playing Super Mario 64 and had gotten to the first Bowser battle. He offered me the controller, but I refused, afraid, and cowered behind him. I watched with wide eyes as my dad hastily dispatched the spiky turtle. He offered me the controller again to go talk to Bowser and claim the key; but I refused, still afraid, and continued to hide. Many potent memories like this swim to the surface of my consciousness from time to time, most of them very happy, but others melancholy, and others still completely depressing. That's the thing about video games - it isn't necessarily the games themselves that make us reflect back on our youth wistfully, longing to return to those times. Rather, it's the memories associated with playing the games: the people we played with, where we were when we played, the conversations held during, the joy or sorrow we felt at the time. Gaming, like language, has the ability to bring people together. It's a beautiful thing, and I will always be grateful to Nintendo for making my childhood the best time of my life.

日本のうち、アメリカのうち

アメリカのまちにたくさん人がいます。でも、日本のまちもにう人がいます。だから、

日本でとても小さくて、せまいうちがあります。アメリカのうちは小さくありません。アメリカでとても大きくて、ひろいのがあります。その上、トイレもちがいます。（Furthermore, the toilets differ.） そして、日本でよくフロアに人があります。たくさんアメリカのうちにはシャワーがありて、たくさん日本のうちにはおふろがあります。

 

にほんでふとんがあります。

でも、じゃっかんうちはどうようですよ。（Some houses are similar.）日本のうちとアメリカのうちの中にテレビがあります。日本のうちとアメリカのうちはきれいです。

The Historic Higashiyama District

I would like to to take this opportunity to introduce you to one of the most preserved areas of Kyoto: today we are traveling across the Kamogawa River to the historic eastern district of Higashiyama. It is perhaps the best place to experience traditional Kyoto. The narrow lanes, wooden structures, and merchant shops filling Higashiyama invoke a sensation reminiscent of the capital city of old. Though there have been renovations in recent years, their focus was to maintain the cultured atmosphere, not alter it. City workers removed telephone poles and repaved streets as part of this effort. The shops have aimed to accommodate tourists and pilgrims for decades, selling local specialties such as pottery, sweets, pickles, and other crafts.

The area enclosed in red is Higashiyama. It is right of the river and central Kyoto.

The district houses a number of notable attractions. Kodaiji Temple was built in 1605 in memory of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, an important figure in Japanese history who once unified the country. It features a main hall that burnt down and rebuilt in 1912 and a number of gardens. One might exit through the adjacent bamboo grove and find himself near Maruyama Park, a beautiful public park with a towering weeping cherry tree as the centerpiece.

The Weeping Cherry Tree

The park becomes one of Kyoto's most popular spots for cherry blossom viewing parties during the first half of April when the trees are in full bloom. Next to the park is Yasaka Shrine, famous as the host of the Gion Matsuri Festival every July (an event I'll talk all about in a future post). Founded over 1350 years ago, it is now among the most visited shrines of Kyoto. In front of it stands a dance stage with hundreds of lanterns that stay lit all night.

Yasaka Shrine in the evening

Back near the Kodaiji Temple, the Yasaka Pagoda looks over Higashiyama. Visitors are permitted to climb up the inside of the five story pagoda, a rare opportunity, as most pagoda can only be viewed from the outside. Finally, there is Kiyomizudera Temple, built in 780 along the hillside and the Otowa Waterfall. In front of the temple's main hall is a platform that reaches out 13 meters above the hillside, allowing for a great view of the natural beauty and the city in the distance.

Otowa waterfall is at the base of the main hall, where its waters are separated into three streams, each one attributed a different benefit when drank from. Using a cup attached to a long pole, drinking from the first stream causes longevity, the next success at school, and the last a fortunate love life. However, drinking from all three streams is considered greedy.

During March, the Higashiyama District hosts Hanatoro, a set of illumination events. For Hanatoro, the streets are illuminated by thousands of lanterns set throughout popular areas combined with flower and light displays. The aforementioned temples also participate, even extending viewing hours. Live performances are held throughout the area on streets and in parks. The lively evening atmosphere attracts many visitors during a time of day when Higashiyama is usually deserted.


I hope you have enjoyed this look into the eastern Kyoto district of Higashiyama. Its rich culture rivals that of anywhere else in Japan.

にほんのゆうめいなところのかいわ：しゅうまつはきょうとに

クラスメートのなまえ：バクさん

バクさん：おはようございますクアトロマニさん。げんきですか。

ぼく：はい、げんきです、どもありがと。バクさは。

バクさん：げんきです、ありがと。ブレークになにをしましたか。

ぼく：あの、にほんごのしゅくだいをしましたよ。ブログのしゅくだいがありました。とてもむつかしいです(It is very difficult)。

バクさん：そうですね。むつかしいですね。クアトロマニさんのブログになにがありますか。にほんになにがありますか。

ぼく：ぼくのブログにきょうとのりっぱなところがあります。そしてにほんにきょうとがあります。きょうとのきじをよみました(I read articles on Kyoto)。

バクさん：きょうとですか。あそこになにがありますか。

ぼく：おんせん(hot spring)があります。そしてかれさんすい(dry landscape garden)もありますよ。おんせんはあまり大きくありませんでもとてもきれいです。かれさんすいもきれいです。かれさんすいはしずかなところです。

 

バクさん：そうですか。すげいですね。でもかれさんすいはなんですか。

ぼく：あかるいガーデンです。くらくありません。

バクさん：ああ、いいですね。きょうとはおもしろいです。

Onsen are hot springs, usually found in mountainous regions throughout Japan, which have hot sulfur smelling water where people usually bathe sitting or lying down. Onsen are a favorite place to relax after work or on holidays. By soaking in hot water, people can leave work or materialistic issues behind and enjoy the natural scenery surrounding the onsen resort.

A karesansui is composed of sand, gravel, rocks, and occasionally grass or trees, but no pond or water. The sand instead represents the sea, and the rocks, islands. Karesansui are often raked in patterns, which suggest rippling water. Typical examples are the gardens of Ryoan-ji Temple and Daitoku-ji Temple, both in Kyoto. People often sit in front of these gardens in deep contemplation, enjoying the serenity.

トレド

オハイオしゅのトレドからきました。トレドはデエトロイトのちかくにあります。トレドはちいさくありません、でもあまりおおきくありません。きれいなばしょです、そしてゆうめいなまち。トレドにいいレストランがあります。

                                 りっぱなまちですね。

カタカナはレストランにあります。

While in Japan, I'll probably be going to a lot of different restaurants. To function properly, I should be able to reads the menus and know how to order! Fortunately, katakana is used heavily in restaurant menus! Even the word restaurant is in カタカナ: レストラン. Katakana words, often times being derived from English, can be easier to read and understand. For reference, let's look at a more western restaurant. On the マクドナルドメニュー (McDonald's menu) to the right, all the バーガー
(hamburger) names are written in katakana. For example: 

ダブルチーズバーガー       means double cheese burger

チキンフィレオ                      means chicken filet

ベーコンレタスバーガー     means bacon lettuce burger

フィレオフィツシュ                 means filet-o-fish

That wasn't too hard! Places to eat more recognized as traditional Japanese also utilize katakana. The food stall pictured right advertises 
ラーメン (ramen). The Barbecue restaurants serve カルビ, a style of grilled beef or pork. Even sushi is named with katakana at times, such as バッテラ (battered roll). The uses of katakana in restaurants in Japan are many. Having learned katakana, I feel a lot more confident in my ability to survive in Japan!

Authur Binard Comes to ND

Arthur Binard, resident and scholar of Japan for 25 years, visited Notre Dame on September 21, 2015 to share with us some of what he has gleamed during his time in the country. His lecture was enlightening as to the true nature of the dropping of the atomic bombs.  The Fat Man bomb dropped on Nagasaki was more destructive than Little Boy, dropped on Hiroshima. This was due to the use of plutonium in Fat Man, versus uranium in Little Boy. Plutonium is a derivative of uranium, thus it takes longer to produce. While the actions of the U.S. officials might have overall saved lives, they at least partial disregarded the immediate issue, the greater good, for the extra time it took to produce the Nagasaki bomb. If they had simply made two plutonium bombs, it would have been more than enough to end the war. It is interesting how even those who are supposed to be taking world justice upon themselves can caught up in the vain science of the matter. The atomic bombings might have been justified in the end, but the half year delay and prolonging of the war was not.

ビナルダさん also read a series of thought provoking poems two days later. My favorite was the most famous poem in Japan as Binard called it, Rain Won't. The author's dedication to an austere and humble life (despite the puzzling amount of rice he consumes daily according to the original Japanese text) is inspiring. I was lucky enough to receive a translated copy of the work from ビナルダさん, signed by him.

The last page is the best page

Kyoto Station

Kyoto is primarily known for its history and beauty, but emerging from the hyper-contemporary Kyoto Station, one might wonder where to find the hundreds of years of culture and tradition that gave Kyoto its status. Being the hub of transportation in the city, Kyoto Station is an almost unavoidable stop during your visit.











It is among the largest railway stations in the world and can be considered one of the most impressive. It incorporates a shopping mall, hotel, movie theater, department store, and several local government facilities all in a single 15-story building. Lastly, find your way up to the open roof for the green terraces and enjoy a picnic with a view of Kyoto.

The Kyoto Station is big to the point that I feel that I would get lost, but that's what makes it sound like so much fun! Wandering around a foreign area, discovering places for the first time with no clue as to where I am, is my idea of a good trip! Putting everything on a schedule and planning exactly where you are going to visit is too rigid. Let yourself get lost and appreciate the moment!

"You should enjoy the little detours. To the fullest. Because that's where you'll find the things more important than what you want."

Day-to-Day

まいあさのはちじはん、おきます。あさごはんをたべません。がつこうにいきます。じゅぎょうがあります。ひる、ひるごはんをたべます。それからとしょかんにいきます。としょかんでべんきょうします。そしてしゅくだいをします。ばん、シャワーをあびます。それからねます。

Fushimi Inari Shrine

Kyoto, known as The City of Ten Thousand Shrines, has one that stands out to me in particular - Fushimi Inari. The main shrine was constructed 1499, while the earliest structures date back to 711. It is dedicated to the Shinto god of rice in hopes of plentiful harvests. Foxes were considered to be Inari's messengers, so statues of foxes scatter the central area and the trails that go up the mountain, at the base of which the shrine is located.



These trails are lined with thousands of tori gates and smaller shrines along the way, leading up to the summit. While it is a 2-3 hour round trip, the ethereal beauty and view from the top makes it worth it. When I one day make it to Kyoto, this will definitely be one of my first stops!

This video offers some great highlights!

Introductions

こんにちは。

はじめまして。クアトロマニです。ぼくはあめりかじんです。　　　　　  　　　　　　ぼくのせんこうはいがくです。いちねんせです。どうぞよろしく。

ありがとうございます。

Why I Want to Study Japanese

ようこそ

Most would probably agree that a personal interest and passion in an object of study goes a long way in improving the results of that study. While I lack that passion for many things, I have it for Japanese. The people and culture are fascinating, whether it be the past - the creation myth of Izanagi and Izanami and the shifting power of emperors and shoguns - the present - the blending of western conventions into everyday life and the current population crisis as overworked men opt out of relationships, creating a declining birth rate and aged people - or their social norms and cultural quirks - bowing, taking off footwear, not giving tips, placing the group before the individual. This is why I desire to visit Kyoto, one of the most cultured, historic cities in Japan. The uniqueness of Japan speaks to me, drawing me to learn more, hopefully through direct communication.

 Thus, I am taking Introductory Japanese. I understand that Japanese is widely considered one of the most difficult languages to learn, but it does not deter me. My brother is currently teaching himself what he can in the language and his progress is encouraging. Additionally, it's a common interest between my brother and I, something we can do together. I believe that is where the heart of my desire to learn Japanese lies: in connecting with other people. Through it I can come to understand others, new and different, both abroad and at home.

One should push his horizons out as far as they'll go. The world is as big or small as you make it. "The world ends with you."