Neighborhood Hirakata枚方市の近所

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After living in Hirakata-shi (枚方市)for the past 6 months I have come to realize many unique and interesting things about this small suburban type area. It is a very tranquil and peaceful place to live in. Coming here for the first time, everything looked so new and unfamilar to me but, as the months rolled by I started to appreciate and notice some things about my surroundings. If one would come to Hirakata, one would notice all of the houses and apartment buildings that are scattered around the place. Even though Japan around the world has the reputation of being one of the most modern and technologically advanced country in the world, this place still manages to keep its traditional aspects intact, such as their traditional Japanese houses. Even the apartment buildings still manages to have some kind of Japaneseness to them. Hirakata has this type of homely atmosphere when walking down the narrow streets.　You can see kids playing in the park with their familes and friends, (in which the name of the park till this day I do not know the name of. We ryuugakusei(留学生international students) call it beer park) Obaachans (おばちゃんOld ladies) carrying tons of plastic bags coming back from grocery shopping, junior high school students racing their friends on their bicycles (自転車), and even the occasional loud and fashionable daigakusei(大学生college students)rushing to class from getting off the bus. Hirakata is a modern and yet traditional community. On the other hand, sadly for me Hirakata as I know it does not celebrate festivals here unless, one might count the little fairs that randomly spring up in the beer park from time to time. Comparing this to my busy city life in N.Y.C, Hirakata is a very calm and sort of close-knit community. You can see how this might be a small problem for us excited and adventurous ryugakusei（留学生international students). One example would be respecting the community by being quite after 10:00pm on any night, especially after coming home from drinking from karaoke or coming back from partying in Osaka(大阪). However, there is a place where we ryugakusei can be more loud and ourselves. If you head down to Hirakata-shi eki (Hirakata train station枚方市駅), you can see more young adults and teenagers there. For example,　you can see young people breakdancing at all hours of the nite, shopping at saty(a mall), friends going or coming from the infamous ringu (Karaoke place), or friends laughing and talking from coming from a local izakaya(bar).This area is more popular with us ryuugakusei to talk with each other and the local residents. In all, Hirakata is a good place for one to focus on school or their daily lives and relax in. It has a certain charm and like I stated before, homelyness to it. Even with us ryuugakusei, whom have come thousands of miles away from different countries from around the world, after a few weeks I honestly think that we can genuinely call this place 'home'.

First Impressions of Japan

Since I have been here in Japan for the past 5 long and adventorous months, I came to realize that I have come to the point in which I can understand and appreciate Japanese culture a lot more than when I first arrived.

Of course the first thing to come to everyone's minds when it comes to Japan is Anime, Manga, Cosplay, Karaoke. Of course that's what I thought too but, after going to school in Kansai Gaidai University


and traveling around the Kansai Area, and experiencing Japan with my own two eyes, I have come to believe that this country holds a lot of unique and interesting traditional places and not so traditional places that would have any new comer who comes to Japan jaw drop in awe.






Sightseeing in the ancient capital of Japan, Kyoto in one of the most famous
Temples called Kyoumizu-tera. I discovered how now, even after centuries when this temple was built, the Japanese people still have a grasp of their old customs and traditins by going to see and pay respect to these temples.







After experiencing my first Fetival in Japan called the Aki-matsuri(あき祭り）located somewhere in Korea town Osaka, celebrates every year the coming of the Fall season in Japan. I witnessed how involved the Japanese comunity (young and old) were keeping their traditional customs and ways alive by participating in these kinds of events. Seeing how the men still carried their centuries old shrine on their backs and wearing traditional garbs chanting while parading down a two-way street was spectacular to me. Also seeing how the women wearing traditional clothes and dancing and cheering the men on was exciting and new to me. Every where you would look there was something new and interesting to see, smell, touch and buy (fesitval food).
Even when most of the world's perspective of Japan and myself before thought of Japan of being a highly techinical society, after witnessing this festival, it is clear to see that they are still rooted to their old ways of celebrating their ancient customs.

However, festivals, temples and shrines are not everything that has recreated my image and impression of Japan since I have been here. There is one cultural aspect of Japan that was deeply rooted in Japanese society centuries ago and still is now. It is something that everyone in the world has heard of, seen, and most likely tasted. And that is, alcohol or known as in Japanese as Osake お酒.






Osake is located pretty much anywhere. From your everyday neighboorhood 711, to the random izakayas (Bar) sprinkled around pretty much everywhere,(such as Torikizoku located in Hirakatashi) is something that I didn't realize I would see a lot. Even in vending machines people can buy beer or liquor anytime they want.(Well in between the hours of 8am to 12am) By the easy access and availabilty of Alcohol that is apparent everywhere in Japan, it is obvious to see that the cosumption of it is clearly a normal thing. When I came here I was shocked by the availibilty and how convienent all of this is to the Japanese society. But after living here for some time I learned to know that it is so common to drink in Japan, that even salarymen often go with their bosses afterwork and drink together in Izakayas on weekends and weekdays. This now to me is something not uncommon but something just normal and apart of their culture.

The above I have listed is just a peice of what my impression of Japan is to me. It is indeed a techno savvy, massive consumer of fashion, products, music and other goods and is a very modern country as a whole. However, my impression of the whole of Japan is something more. I am in awe that they can be one of the most well known modern and advanced country in the world, that can still hold on to their deep roots of heritage culture, traditions and culture that was thriving many centuries ago and is still in full throttle still today.