Level Up します！

Having gone through the sequence once before, I was relatively prepared for the placement test, and I did fairly well on it all things considered. It appears that I will probably attain my goal of being placed into level four Japanese (and heaven help me then). Of course, I have to get through the review process first. The review process is a sequence of cram classes, several of which are all day long: 9am to 5pm (or so). We’re mainly going over things covered in level three Japanese, not all of which I remember to my satisfaction. (Will I ever get the particles を, に, and で straight? ...doubtful.) I’m awfully glad to have this opportunity to go over previously covered material, but I’m worried that they’re going to make us undergo another nerve-wracking placement test again before the regular session starts.

The interview portion of the placement was fun. The structure was different this time, with a preliminary interview being given to every student and an in-depth interview being given to selected students. My interview was with Moronaga sensei, whom I had not met before, and we mainly talked traditional Japanese culture, in particular classical literature.

When I mentioned that the book I had most recently read was the Genji, Moronaga sensei asked me what I thought of Genji. I had to tell her that I thought he was a fiend, as was every other man in the book. Of course, I said, this is a modern perspective not applicable to Heian values. Were I to look at the story from the perspective of Heian noblewoman: the Hikaru Genji is the Hikaru Genji. My only complaint about him would be that he never pays attention to me. [snigger] Moronaga thought this was very funny, and I thought it was cool that I could talk about modern perspective vis-à-vis period perspective in a foreign language.

But I still can’t tell the appropriate time to use ために and ように, and so it goes.

Teva’s Pittari Perfect Udon.

For those of you who enjoy recipes, and/or want to know what I’m eating over here:

Ingredients
2 cups water
65 grams medium thick udon noodles (note: you can supplement ramen or soba)
2 spears asparagus, diced
1 tablespoon yuzupon (lemon-infused soy sauce)
* or 1 tablespoon soy sauce and 1 squeeze of lemon juice
diced garlic, to taste
1 small package of miso (the instant kind that comes in ten-packs)

Directions
In a medium-sized pot, combine water, asparagus, and garlic, and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, add udon and let soften. Add in yuzupon and simmer for two minutes. Add miso and stir, let simmer for two more minutes. Serve hot, preferably in a pretty bowl. ;)

This is fast, easy, filling, and--most importantly--delicious. The water amount is more than a usual miso serving, which reduces the saltiness of the broth, and the dash of lemon really brings out the delicate flavor of asparagus.

I love cooking for myself in Tokyo.

Ueno Park.

With the weekend free to myself, I decided to take a jaunt out to Ueno Park. B. and I agreed to meet there at the park exit of the station around 10am. Unfortunately, we didn’t take into account that there are two separate park exits depending on whether you arrive by metro or JR line. He went to one exit, I went to the other, and since I had forgotten to bring his phone number with me--and since I was still without cell phone at this point--we wound up going our separate ways in the beginning.

I went straight to the Bentendo, a little temple dedicated to Benzaiten--the goddess of music and beauty. The temple sits on a tiny islet that is surrounded on three sides by the Shinobazu pond. Upon first approach, I didn’t realize I was looking at a pond. I thought, rather, that it was some kind of field. Closer inspection revealed a waterway overwhelmed with luscious lotus plants, their slender forms lilting back and forth with the breezes. Consequently, I didn’t spend much time inside the Bentendo, but instead sat down under a vine-laden loggia by the lotus pond.

I sat there for a good hour, listening to soft music and watching the movement of the in the wind. It was so beautiful and moving that I was hard pressed to leave, but eventually I stirred--after taking a photograph for a pair of passing Japanese visitors.

On my way out, I stopped at one of the food stands that line the causeway leading to Bentendo and bought a portion of grilled squid. It was so delicious! The fresh squid was grilled right on the spot, with just a dab of soy sauce for flavoring. It was tender and sumptuous, and I wolfed it down in record time. Once done with my meal, I deposited the trash and headed out again. On my way toward the park’s main drag, I walked right up to B., who was on his way to Bentendo. We spent a moment marveling at the irony of not being able to find one another at an appointed spot while apparently being able to randomly find one another in a park the size of Nebraska purely by chance. That done, we roamed on.

We revisited Bentendo and the Shinobazu pond, and then we passed through the Kannondo and began walking for the Toshogu. On the way there I bought a scoop of murasaki imo (sweet potato) ice cream, and we caught the end of a funny little puppet show that was being performed in one of the numerous squares. The ice cream was, of course, delicious. There’s nothing quite like sweet potato ice cream.

It’s funny that I bought the ice cream, however, because directly afterward we were invited to a tea ceremony at one of the temples. We had stopped to view the “pagoda” (actually a stupa), and the tea mistress came up to us and invited us in. I was hesitant to enter the temple because I was eating, and we were actually standing just outside, looking in, when she came up to us. She gave me the go-ahead to enter, however, and so I finished my ice cream in double-quick time (while B. laughed at me, I might add) so as to be able to eat the manjuu (a little soft rice bun with red bean jam inside it) and drink the tea. When we were finished, I told her the balance was perfect, and she complimented us on our tea drinking skills.

Apparently, they perform free tea ceremony at this temple every third Saturday of the month from 10 to 2. We told them that we’d try to bring more students to next month’s tea ceremony--an offer that made them very happy. Of course, I later realized that on the next third Saturday I’ll be in Nasu-Shiobara with Takako-sensei and Paul, but I will spread the word and hope for the best.

A round of sightseeing done, we parted ways and I made for Nakameguro, where I went through the process of securing a cell phone and then had my dorm mother explain how to use the washing machine so I could do a round of laundry. Each of those processes involved a good deal of concentration, and I was reminded each time both of how far I have come, and how far I still have to go.

And so it goes.