Warm Welcome at Dundee

I started my travel to Dundee at 12am, because our bus from London got delayed. Finally, we arrived at 10am. My first impressions of Dundee: 1) It reminds me of Rostock, a small town in the north of Germany near the sea. 2) The people of Dundee are very nice :)

When I stood on the road and tried to find my way to university by map, a woman helped me without asking. After her explanation, I found the way immediately. By the way, I probably looked and smelled horrible after 2 days without washing and shaving, so thankfully she didn't run away ;)
After reaching the university with my complete luggage (2 heavy suitcases and 1 backpack) by foot, I got my keys for my flat. Everyone here was friendly too, so I already felt like home ^^

A nice woman of the Students Association explained me many things about Dundee and the way of living here. She also answered my questions with ease :) And I got much free stuff from her like a USB stick, a ball pen, hot coffee and a little jar of orange marmalade which Dundee is famous for.

Finally, I got to my apartment. Despite being a flat for 2 persons, I was alone. So I could use it all for myself ^^ After a shower and preparing my bed, I started the day by going to the next supermarket. Luckily this is a store of Lidl, a chain in which I bought frequently during my time as student in Leipzig :) Surprised me that it's even famous here :D

My first meal was fried egg and ... it got burned :(
Well, despite feeling awake, my sense of time needs to be restored the next days :D
By the way, until next Tuesday, I don't have internet oO Good I brought DVDs and games with me :)

Crossing the Sea and Stopover in London

My day started at 3am when we went on the ferry from Calais to Dover. Well, none of us was really sleeping anyway, so we used the time to get out of the bus and breath some fresh air. When we finally boarded the ship, some of us including me used their chance to get a place on the more comfortable and long seats. Finally, I was able to lay down instead of sleeping in seating position. Don't get me wrong, I am able to rest in this position, but my back hurts afterwards every time ;)

Our Ferry to Dover

After 5 - 6 hours more in the bus, we finally arrived in London. At first, I searched a place to store my heavy luggage for the rest of the day. Because it was 10am and my bus to Dundee started at 11pm, I wasn't really eager to take it with me the whole day :D

After storing it at the luggage storage, I started my day in London. To be honest, I did not bring the camera with me I used in Japan. It's just too expensive to take it with me and I won't be able to make much photos anyway, if I concentrate on my studies. So sorry for the bad picture quality of my phone oO

So what did I do today? Breakfast at McDonalds, immediately afterwards lunch at KFC and then resting at the Hyde park. Okay, I took a short walk in the area near Victoria Station too. By pure coincidence, I was even at the Embassy of Ecuador. You know, the one with Assange ^^
Lots of people made music and sang in front of it. Honestly, I don't know why because I didn't understand it.

As I told you, most of my time, I just slept in the Hyde Park. After 18 hours of traveling, this was really something that I needed. And by changing the place from time to time, I saw many people too ;) By the way, the Hyde Park is really beautiful with its fountains, flowers and statues :)

One of the Entrances to Hyde Park

Scotch, Sheeps and Games - A New Journey Starts

Woohoo! I'm finally starting my journey to Scotland! :)
The next 2 days, I will be traveling by bus. Why? Because it was the cheapest option and I'm not in a hurry. I will arrive one week before the university starts, so it should give me plenty of time to get accustomed to the daily life. I mean, I get accustomed to Japan in days, so how hard can Scotland be? :D

My bus should have picked me up by 3pm, but because the tour started from Prague (CZ), it came round about 4pm. Man, I was so nervous that I somehow missed the bus (wrong station, unknown time change, etc.) I already planned in my head how I could get the next flight the next day, when the bus finally arrived ^^

And because sitting in bus is everything else but exciting, here some information about my future plans in Scotland: I will stay for 3 semesters in Scotland to study "Games Development" in a Professional Masters course (in short: MProf). So after one and a half years, I want to work immediately in the computer games industry. In which country and what exactly, I'm not sure about yet. I could work as a programmer, but this field alone has so many branches, it's hard to specify what exactly I want to do. Or maybe I will work in a completely different discipline.

But this is also why I chose to study again and not to apply for a job. By studying the field of computer games from a professional point of view, getting first contacts in the industry by meeting current and future staff of companies with their unique backgrounds and goals, I can collect more information about how the industry really works and then make a proper decision where to go. After all, based on my research "the qualification" for the industry does not exist, it started and is still filled with many people from every other background but creating computer games.

Truth be told, my dream is going back to Japan and to work in the games industry :)
But one thing after another ... ^^

Continuing the Blog

Hello guys ^^

it's Sunday, the 12th of October and I'm finally continuing my blog. As usual, I want to post even past events on the exact dates on which they've happened. So don't be surprised! ;)

And sorry for making you wait. The first month in Scotland was sometimes more troublesome than I thought it would be. And in my (spare) free time I often just went outside or played Star Wars: The Old Republic. But now I've organized most of my time, so it should work out somehow ^^

A Journey's End

Well guys, it's time to say farewell. Or better: またね。
I really don't like to leave but new challenges are awaiting me to go on. As many people already stated and in what I personally believe: A journey's end is only another one's beginning.

At this point, I am also sorry that it took so much time to finally write down my memories and thoughts about my adventures in Japan. Now it's the beginning of September, so again: Sorry for the delay.
And I thank everyone who accompanied me along this road. You are the reasons I've kept going, otherwise I would've been lost. Not only in translation but also in guidance which you provided me when I lost my way. (metaphorically and literally ;) Especially thanks for sharing your insights and stories with me, I've learnt from all of them.

My special thanks goes to:

丸田さん、どうもありがとうございます。丸田さんは私に日本に来てアクシスネットワークスに働くチャンスをくれました。いつも違うタスクとチャレンジがあって私はこれを直すによってたくさんを勉強しました。丸田さんも私が日本の人生に慣れることに助けまして、必要なものをくれました。
Special thanks to Maruta-san, who gave me the opportunity to come to Japan by working at Axis Networks. No task was like the same before, there were always challenges and by simply overcoming them I learned a lot. You also helped me to get accustomed to the life in Japan and provided me with everything I needed.

 そして、丸田さんの家に招待されたありがとうございます。丸田さんの家族と一緒に時間をほんとに楽しました。私は丸田さんの家族メンバーのように感じました。これは最上な経験の中で１つです。あつこさん、どうもありがとうございます。あつこさんは私に良く助けまして私の時々に起こった問題を堪えました。そして、私があつこさんの質問をわからなかったときに「はい」だけと言ってあつこさんを混同したほんとにすみません。おふたりの親切をどうやって恩返しすることをわかりませんが、これをいつかします。
Also thanks for the many invitations into your house Maruta-san. I really enjoyed the time with your family and the trips we've made together. I've really felt like being a part of your family and this was one of the best experiences I've ever had. Atsuko-san, thanks for helping me out so often and that you beared with me and my problems I sometimes had. And I am really sorry for often just saying "yes" when I didnt understand your questions and confused you with this behaviour. I dont know how to repay this kindness of you both, but I will someday.

ゆりえさん、親切と辛抱をくれたどうもありがとうございます。私がプログラマーのように難しかったすみません。ゆりえさんは私と一緒に旅行して、ゆ りえさんの友達をたくさんに紹介してくれたありがとうございます。ゆりえさんで私はオーガナイゼーションについて勉強して日本のウイスキーにもちょっと勉 強しました。 ^^ 私はたくさん楽しみがありました。ゆりえさんの今後の道での成功を祈っています。
Yurie-san, thank you very much for your kindness and patience with me. It was probably hard with me as your programmer, sorry for that. I thank you for traveling with me and for introducing me to so many of your friends. I've learned much about organization from you and also a bit about Japanese Whisky ^^ I had much fun with you and I wish you the best for your future way.

みかさん、どうもありがとうございます。みかさんは私が日本に会った最初の人で、その時から素晴らしい友達です。みかさんは私が「はい」と「いいえ」と「ラーメン」だけを話すことができたときに日本語の先生で、言葉についてたくさんを教えました。^^ 私が良くない学生で、みかさんが私の悪い翻訳によってたくさん仕事があったすみません。一緒に旅行をして、日本のところ（富士山やスロットや箱根や回転寿司）をたくさん見せてくれた本当にありがとう。今後での成功を祈っています。そして、下記のことを覚えてください：マインドだけはストレスの感じを作ります。マインドが作ったものをマインドでチェンジすることができます。 :)
Thanks to Mika-san who was the first person I met in Japan and since then is always a wonderful friend. You were my Japanese teacher when I could say was "yes", "no" and "Ramen" and teached me so much about the language :) Sorry for being not a good student and for all the work with my translations. Thank you for the trips we've made and for showing me so many sides of Japan (Mount Fuji, Slot machines, Hakodate, Kaiten-Sushi, etc.) I wish you the best for the years to come and remember: The feeling of stress is something that is created by mind. What was created by mind, can be transformed by mind too.

ねねさん、一緒のツアーとうまい料理どうもありがとうございます。ねねさん無で私は中国人街や大凧や３月の桜を見られませんでした。私はすごい時間がありました。ベーキングミックスもう使いましたか？^^ よしさん、私に秋葉原を見せてくれたどうもありがとうございます。秋葉原は私のヘブンだよ。:D ことねさん、STUDと言うバンドのCDをくれたどうもありがとうございます。その音楽は素晴らしくてCDが大好きです。でも、STUDは新しいCDが作ることが必要です。;) アクシスネットワクスのみんなさん、私にサポートしてくれたどうもありがとうございます。:)
Nene-san, thank you very much for taking me so often to tours and for all the great food :) Without you I wouldn't have seen Chinatown, the Big Kites nor the cherry blossoms in March. I had a great time with you and I hope the baking mix is already used ;) Thanks to Yoshi-san who showed me the wonders of Akihabara, my personal heaven ^^ Thanks to Kotone-san for the CDs of STUD, they are just awesome and I love their music. But they really need a new CD :) Thanks to all from Axis Networks who supported me through all this time ^^

アイセックSP、どうもありがとうございます。私を丸田さんに連絡してくれたありがとうございます。私はよりLCMに行きたくて、いつも楽しくて日本についてたくさんを勉強しました。特につばささんどうもありがとうございます。ディズニーシーに行ったことは素晴らしくて未来つばささんと一緒にあそこへまた行きたいだよ。;) ベトナムでの成功を祈っています。そして、夢が叶って祈っています。:)
Thanks to AIESEC SP who helped me to get the contact to Maruta-san. I wished I could have gone to more of your meetings, they were always fun and I learned a lot about Japan from you guys ^^ Especially thanks to Tsubasa-san who went with me to Disney Sea, it was awesome and I hope we can repeat that someday again :) I wish you the best for your time in Vietnam and hope your dreams will come true ^^

Thanks to Isa who talked with me even in the latest time due to the difference in time zones. With you I was able to overcome my anxiety and gain more confidence for my way to come. There is no way to know exactly when, but we will see us in real life again soon :)

みんなさん、どうもありがとうございます。
Thanks to everyone.

追伸：悪い翻訳があればほんとにすみません。まだまだだよ。

Fireflowers are blooming over the Sea

I think it is no secret that I love 花火 (hanabi, engl.: fireworks), especially the Japanese ones ^^
Unfortunately, this year the most fireworks in Tokyo take place in August, so I won't get the opportunity to see many. Therefore, I went out for my last one. Many co-workers recommended me this one by saying it is "unlike the usual ones". So I went together with Niko to Kamakura after work. Man, this is already the .... how many times did I already went to Kamakura? :D

With two beers each, we went to the beach to have the best viewing spot. At first it was hard to find a place because it was already very crowded when we arrived, but eventually we managed to find a spot. There we enjoyed the scene and man, this was the best 花火 I've ever seen ^^
As you see in the photographs, many of the fireworks were exploding right over the sea. And they were right in front of us, so we could practically feel the sound from the vibrations in the air :) It was indeed the best one I could hope for as my last 花火 in Japan for probably some years.

They didn't only had hearts, they also had more complex figures
like the comic face of a kitten :)

Own Thoughts: Japan and the dealing with the 2nd Sino-Japanese War

Warning: The following post contains my opinion, based on my own thoughts and talks with many different people, most of them Japanese. I don't claim to be right, I just want to express my observation and opinion about it.

Okay, let's get started: Since some time, there is one observation in particular I wanted to write about. The dealing of the Japanese people with the Sino-Japanese wars, especially the second one (1937 - 1941). When I got to know some Japanese better, I asked some of them: "What did they teach you in school about the 2nd Sino-Japanese War?". The only source I had until then were primarily movies and articles which focused on the cruelties of Japanese during that time. Every medallion has (at least) two sides, so I wanted to know their point of view to get a better understanding.

But unfortunately, Japanese don't learn much about this war. It was often said to me that they just learn that this war happened and that was basically it. For me, this was the complete opposite to the German education about the Second World War and especially the Third Reich and its cruelties. To be fair, cruelties are usually the part which is left out of historical education, although this is the one things we can learn the most out of, in my opinion.

With my previous mindset, I thought that Japanese students also get educated about the cruelties during the Sino-Japanese war, because it is one of the more recent events. Also resulted the policy of this time in so much loss and pain for Japan, I thought they would be teached to prevent such a thing from ever happening again, like Germans are teached about the Third Reich.

In this moment, I recognized that I didn't know much about how other people learn about their countries history. Every nation deals different with it, which is probably also something which leads to many conflicts. How can you understand somebody really, when you learn from the past different? Or is this really a problem after all? To be honest, I cannot even say if it's better to forget or to be constantly reminded about things in the past you didn't do.

If anyone got offended by that, please accept my apologies. I think this is a difficult topic for everyone in which many sides play a major role. Overall, I think everybody should decide how strong the past influences the own perspective and opinion.

A Day in Nature

My final day in Sapporo began, so I used my time to clean up my apartment and get ready to leave. Then I noticed that I didn't take any decent photographs of it and the surrounding area. So here they are ^^

Sleeping / Living Room

My Neigbhors ;)

Because it was such a wonderful day, I decided to spend it in the Parks of Sapporo. Or better said, I did some "Sitting in different Park" marathon (kind of) :D
I didn't went along a fixed route, I just went to the largest one, the Odori Park and then I went wherever I wanted to. I did many breaks in between just to sit down (bench or ground) and to enjoy the scene in front of me. And that was basically my last day in Sapporo :)

My "Lunch Pack" ^^

Plant Life in the Odori Park :D

Water Fountain in front of the Sapporo TV Tower

Hmmm .... I still can't figure out what type of plant the red one is...

Some kind of Priest if I remember it correct

Many artists use the Odori Park as Location

By the way, the Japanese Crow seems big in comparison to the European one :D

Yeah, just some grass while I layed down ^^

I don't like Selfies much, but here I couldn't resist :P

"Oktoberfest" in July :D

And like in Winter, the German "Maibaum" stands
in the Odori Park ^^

Sapporo: Time Travel and Classic

I started the day by visiting a place which I saw last time but I couldn't finish my visit even after 5 hours: The Historical Village of Hokkaido or in Japanese: 開拓の村.
This place has a vast amount of original and rebuilt houses from the mid of 19th to the early 20th century, also known as frontier period of Hokkaido. There you can get a really good understanding about the lifestyle at this time from nearly all stratums of society by simply being there.

This time, I went another route than last time to see all the buildings I've missed. Of course, there were some different circumstances too: Last time was the beginning of winter and snow had already fallen. Therefore, only 3 or 4 other visitors were in this whole area. So everyone could inspect the buildings without any disturbance. But to be fair, even with more people around this time, almost the whole time I was alone in those buildings ^^

I also made observations I couldn't have seeen otherwise. For example, at this day many families were there to draw the buildings on paper. All the kids and many adults sat on on a mat or chair and drew their pictures. I don't know if a special kind of event took place this day or if it was something that just usually happens there.

Again, I was impressed how deep the act of drawing is rooted in the Japanese culture. Whenever there was a sunny day and I went to a point of interest in Japan, there were at least 4 painters already working. Most of the times elderly persons, but as I saw this day, starting from a very young age, many younger people exercise in this craft too. Is this maybe one of the big reasons why Japan has so many artists? I think so :) In Germany, I've seen just a very few persons drawing outside.

I would like to tell you more about my time there, but actually it is something you have to see with your own eyes and experience with your own senses. For anyone who is interested, at the bottom you find more pictures (as usual ;). If you ever get the chance to be in Sapporo, don't miss this ^^

After spending most of the day in the village, I went back to Sapporo. Because I just walked the whole time, I just went to a park nearby and sat down in the grass along a lake. The previous day, I asked Kai-san, the owner of the apartment in which I stayed, about his favorite drink, because I like to know what locals recommend, not some guidebook ;) He recommended me a beer called "Sapporo Classic", so I bought one before I went into the park.

Sitting there, drinking a beer while watching at the water was just ... amazing :)
Interesting how such a small act can awake such emotions. I don't know how long I sat there, but I know it was one of the few moments where you are just relaxing and not thinking about anything.

And by the way, the beer tasted very good ^^ It actually reminded me more of a German beer, because it was stronger in taste than the usual Japanese beer. Don't get me wrong, I like the Japanese beer, it's just very mild in my opinion :)

After my stop in the park, I went to Susukino and the districts nearby to see and feel the nightlife of Sapporo :) I just had to stop a bit earlier this time, because my way back home took quite a while :D But thanks to Kai-sans explanation and Google Maps, I found the right bus on time ^^

Nightlife in Sapporo

Classroom from back then

Man, they just had fun, didn't they? ^^

Lightbulb

Buddhism(?) Altar

Storage Room

More people drawing their pictures :)

I really wish I could have such a painting in my room ^^

Barber Shop from the late 19th Century

How to brew Sake and the Equipment :)

Entrance Gate to a real Shrine in the area

Statue within the Park

The Lake at which I sat down

As I said, everywhere in Japan, you see hortensias at this time ^^

Silent Flute Player