関東 vs. 関西

I forgot that I never posted about my Kansai adventure.

If you want to see pictures, see 'em on facebook because there are just way too many pictures to weed through. Haha. And if you don't have facebook and you really really really really want to see the pictures, let me know.

Kanto (関東) is the eastern region on the main island (Honshu). That's where I lived, since Tokyo's in the east (Tokyo, 東京, literally means "Eastern Capital"). I've heard that the Kansai (関西) region is pretty different and there was even some kind of a rivalry between the two, kind of like the whole Nor Cal, So Cal thing. Of course, after living in Tokyo for a couple of months, I was ready to see just how different the Kansai region (especially Osaka) was.

Kyoto wasn't that bad. I heard a few people say, "Okini" instead of "Arigatou" and people saying "hen" instead of "nai." I giggled at it because it's so... stereotypically Kansai.

As a sidenote as to what we did, Yun and I stayed at this wonderful hostel near Kinkakuji (The Golden Temple) where yes, a building is coated in gold. It's absolutely beautiful, especially with the momiji (the autumn leaves). There's also Ginkakuji (The Silver Temple) but we decided not to go. We went around Gion, where you may be able to see some maiko (geisha in training) but they're kind of rare to come by, I think. But the coolest thing was that I got to see the Minami-za while on the bus! (The Minami-za is the Kansai equivalent of the Kabuki-za in Tokyo. They're both Kabuki theaters) There was also a statue of Okuni (the supposed founder of Kabuki) and it turned out that we were by the Kamo River (where Kabuki was first performed)!

We also went up the street to the Kiyomizudera (The Pure Water Temple) but didn't go in because we wanted to make it to the Fushimi Inari Shrine (it's the shrine that has the thousands upon thousands of orange tori, or gates) before it got dark. I really regret not going into the Kiyomizudera. Even though it was super crowded, we should've gone in. Because we got to the Fushimi Inari Shrine when it was dark anyway. D:

So yes. Fast forward. We got to Osaka and the lady who owned the hostel that we went to was Korean! It helped with communication a lot because we were having some issues talking about the reservation that I made in Japanese. -_-; She was really nice to me and when Yun and I left, she gave us these little cell phone danglys for free, saying, "It's hard to come across a Korean person like this. We have to look out for each other. Please take these." :)

Ok, so remember how I was talking about the "Okini" and "hen" thing a couple of paragraphs ago? IT WAS CRAZIER IN OSAKA. Yun and I went to the Kaikukan (I forget if that's correct or not...) which is the aquarium there. While we were there, I was trying to take a picture of this little critter that moved around really quickly, as was this girl next to me. It was really difficult to take and after a few minutes, she turned to her boyfriend and exclaimed, "Torahen!" In standard Japanese, you would say, "Toranai!" (meaning, "I can't take [a picture of] it!") so when I heard it, I literally had to choke down my laughter and then walk away 'cause I didn't want to laugh in her face.

Yun and I also went to Kobe (first we went to the Kobe station and then found out that we got off at the wrong station -_-;) to get some Kobe steak. It was incredibly... expensive. But delicious. I ate my steak with chopsticks. Hahhahaa. Mmmm... Kobe steak... I'll definitely be hitting up the next time I'm in the Kansai region. *-*...

As for other things to compare, people in Osaka really are meaner than people in Tokyo. Hahaha. Remember how in my last entry (if you read it), I said that people will always say, "Sumimasen! Gomen nasai! Sumimasen! HONTOU NI SUMIMASENNNNN!"? This usually happens in train stations and on the train and what not. Well. In Osaka, people get on the train, shove you around and don't say a word to you. Or they give you a dirty look. I actually got to take the Hankyu Line (the one that takes you to Takarazuka ^o^~) and Yun, her friend, and I were speaking in English and the people on the train just straight up stared at us. Even if we stared back. o___o じ~~~~~

And, just a note of reference for anyone who might go to Tokyo and then Osaka: in Osaka, everyone stands and walks to the right instead of the left. You know how in Asian countries, people walk to the left and stuff? Same dealio in the rest of Japan. Except Osaka. Even in Kyoto, people walk to the left. I don't know what it is about Osaka but it definitely is different. Hahaha.

Ok, that's all. I suppose that it was a very dry entry because there are no visual aids. :D

Good night.