In the year 628, so the legend goes, two brothers named Hamanari and Takenasri Hinokuma were fishing on the lower reaches of the Sumida River when they dragged up a small gilded statue on Kannon-an aspect of Buddha worshipped as the Goddess of Mercy. They took the statue to their master, who enshrined it in his house. Later, a temple was built for it in Asakusa, and was later enlarged and named Sensoji Temple.

Asakusa remained just a village town on a river crossing a few hour's walk from Edo until Ieyasu Tokugawa made Edo his capital, and then Asakusa blossomed. Suddenly, it was the town that never slept, the place where free-spending townspeople of the new capital came and emptied their pockets. Also, for the next 300 years it was the wellspring of almost everything we associate with Japanese popular culture.

On the day that we went, the weather was sunny and fair, perfect conditions for a trip like this. From the train station, we took a 5 minute walk to Simida River, where we boarded a boat and toured the area by water. The boat was very wide and had lots of room to sit, talk, and enjoy the scenery. This was our first field trip together, so we were just beginning to get to know each other.

From there, we split up and were told to meet at Sensoji Temple 2 hours later. Those of us brave enough ate lunch at a restaurant that served a special kind of food that Asakusa is famous for. It consists of a lot of small fish, guts and all, served together with vegetables and rice and you cook it in a open pot at your table. Despite my initial skepticism's, it was very delicious, although I have never eaten anything of the sort before.

Eventually we made our way to Sensoji Temple, and what was striking were the two fearsome guardian gods installed in the alcoves of the temple gate. The Thunder God of the Sensoji gate is on the left; he shares his duties with the Wind God on the right. Their duty is to protect the temple from evil spirits.

As we approached closer to the temple, we were constantly intrigued by peculiar goods in the small stores that lined the nearby streets. Trinkets, special foods, and almost everything else imaginable could be found there. Particularly interesting were the small statues of the Buddhist gods so intricate in detail. The atmosphere was very lively, the streets were packed with a variety of shoppers and tourists.

Once we finally reached the temple, we were able to view a ritual in the Temple being undertaken by a young family whose children were being blessed. As onlookers tried to get a glimpse of the ceremonies, the monk continued on with the interesting ritual. In the background, the Buddha's were very brightly colored and exquisite. The ringing sounds of coins falling filled the air as people through their offerings into the basket combined to add to the festive atmosphere.

After meeting up with the other AIKOM students and people, we decided to go visit the Hongo campus of Tokyo University. First we walked through the scenic and spacious Ueno park, with its giant lilies drifting about in the lake and its abundance of long branched trees that line the nearby walkways. My mind reflected back on the story of the "Wild Geese", whose main character walked this very path, perhaps he even gazed at the same sights that I was able to.

At the Hongo campus we toured the museum specially set up to commemorate the 120th year anniversary of Tokyo University. This included a science exhibition, as well as an exhibit dedicated to the great discoveries throughout the modern age. They even had an exhibit with a notebook of the founder of modern economic theory, John Maynard Keynes. Although I could barely read his writing, I still found it most interesting to read the memos of the person whose economic principles are the basis for many of the books I have read.

After a long day of serious sightseeing, we were in need of a place to unwind. We found this much needed place to relax at a nearby "izakaya", a two story, rather narrow restaurant with a vast array of small dishes, osake, and beer. By this time it was already night, we were all just getting to know each other, and everyone was extremely laid back. I had dinner with my assigned tutor for the first time and also met other Japanese students who would later turn out to become good friends. These get nomikai's are a good way to meet people and talk with people, as well as drink till ones content.

Around 11:00pm we gradually made our way back to our dormitories, some of the students opted to go to coffee afterwards while others decided to call it a night. A long but well worthwhile day.

For more than 200 years, Japan has closed its doors to virtually all foreign contact. Then, in 1853, a flotilla of American ships under Commodore Mathew Perry sailed in to the bay of Tokyo (then Edo) and forced the reluctant Tokugawa Shogunate to open Japan to the West. Initially taking up residence in Kanagawa, Harris, the first diplomatic representative to Japan and all other foreigners were required to move to a politically safer area, Yokohama. At the time, Yokohama, 20 kilometers southwest of Tokyo, was a small fishing village surrounded by mud flats. However, as soon as it became a designated international port in 1869, it started to grow rapidly. Most of the foreign traders who came to Japan set up business in Yokohama; as the port grew, so did the international community.

But the city of Yokohama has seen hard times. The Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923 that hit Yokohama and also struck Tokyo, destroying much of both. After such a devastation, Yokohama found its status as the preeminent international city change as businesses took up quarters in other cities such as Osaka and Kobe.

Nevertheless, over the next 20 years Yokohama mushroomed once more; a large industrial zone was built along its shoreline. Then, once again, everything came tumbling down again. On May 29, 1945, in a span of four hours, 700 American B-29 bombers leveled nearly half the city. As devastating as this was, Yokohama rose from the debris and, thanks to the economic recuperation, has flourished once again into an urban international center.

On our excursion to Yokohama, we were once again accompanied by Kanagawa graduate students and with Tokyo University regular students. After a briefing by Professor Boccellari, we walked from the station to Kaikoshiryo-kan Museum. There were many different exhibits to see, archaeological and natural history artifacts from the region that helped to put into perspective the history and importance of Yokohama. One could really sense the international landscape and mentality of the area. Kanagawa students also gave their perspectives and background information on the various exhibits.

Next, we journeyed down to Yamashita Park, which is next to the ocean and pier. Due to the good weather and scenery, this place was a good photo opportunity spot. Indeed, a favorite past time of the AIKOM students on these trips seems to be to see who can end up using the most roles of film.

As night approached, we walked over to nearby China Town, the area of Yokohama which has many Chinese shops and restaurants. We were to meet up together 30 minutes later, but for the time being we could tour the area ourselves. A newly made Japanese friend and I walked about, and came across a large Chinese temple. It was bright gold, with a plethora of shiny ornaments and articles on display.

After the 30 minutes, we set out to find a good nomikai place and soon found one. This time it was a Chinese restaurant, large enough to accompany all 30 something of us. We ordered dish after dish, drink after drink, until our stomachs were full and our heads were fuzzy. Satiated as we were, some of the die hards of the bunch met up with some other Kanagawa students and went to another place after that to drink some more. By this time, my recollection of the events are not as clear as they should be, but once again, it was a good time.

Meeting up at Takao station at 10:00 in the morning, still a bit groggy eyed. Mt Takao is a famous sightseeing mountain which is particularly nice to go to in the fall, when the leaves are in the midst of changing colors. Travelers should be warned, there are two options to get to the top of the mountain. For around 400 yen, you can take a cable tram to the top and enjoy the nice view while relaxing on a nice comfortable seat. Perhaps even sip on a ice cola leisurely. Or you can do what we decided to do, attempt to walk the entire distance and risk being passed up by little school children who are more "genki" than you. The slope is quite steep, but if your in shape it won't be much of a problem. However, if your like me and most of the AIKOM students, you might be cursing yourself half way up the mountain as kids and old ladies pass you by as you rest to catch your breath. It was quite sad.

Once at the top, we ate the bento we brought, and recuperated for the trek down the hill. Going down was a bit easier than coming up, but we opted to take the more scenic, long way down, which, despite gravity's help, was a bit tiring. Half of the AIKOM students were fine with this, they were moving right along, but the other half, myself included, was lagging towards the back. However, at the rest places, we were able to enjoy the view, especially the vast array of different colored foliage. In contrast to the hustle and bustle of concrete Shinjuku and Shibuya, this aspect of Japan was most refreshing. The weather was good, the sky clear, and beautiful nature surrounded us.

Kawagoe is a town about and hour and half away from Shinjuku known as a tourist attraction for its "Kitain Temple". The history of the Kitain is thought to have begun when the monk Ennin founded Muryoju Temple in 830 AD Muryoju is another name for the Amitabha Buddha (Buddha of Unending Life) and is the main object of worship at the temple Kitain. Though burned down during fighting in 1205, the temple was rebuilt in 1296 by the monk Sonkai, and Emperor Gofushimi made it head of the Tendai Sect temples in east Japan in 1300.

To help rebuild Kitain, Shogun Iemitsu ordered several buildings to be moved from Edo Castle (now the site of the Imperial Palace in Tokyo) to Kawagoe. These buildings today are protected as national treasures, and house Kitain's museum.They are all that remain of the buildings of Edo Castle because of the damage Tokyo suffered during the Great Earthquake of 1923 and World War II. One of the most ornate rooms, with a decorative floral ceiling, is thought to be the room where Shogun Iemitsu was born.

Next to the temple, there are 540 stone statues representing the disciples of Buddha. They were carved between 1782 and 1825 with no two statues alike. It is said that if you feel among the statues in the dark of night you will find one that is warm. Mark it, come back during the next day, and you will see the statue most resembling yourself.

We had the opportunity to view these statues for ourselves, and also tried to pick out which one we were most similar to. These statues were very expressionate, one could easily see the vast array of personalities so uniquely on display.

Before actually meeting at Kitain temple, we had some free time to break up into groups and tour the area ourselves. Our group made our way from the train station to a number of historical sites, and eventually to the "candy street". The candy street is a place that sells special candies that are often bought and used to give to people as presents. This street was very crowded with people of all ages, a lot of small children as well as older people. In one booth a man was making famous anime cartoon figures and animals out of a glob of white taffy like substance. Bears, Pocket Monsters, Dragonball, and all sorts of other neat figurines could be made on request. Some of the people in my group bought this candy to take home.

The temple itself was rather like a museum inside a large house. It had a lot of relics on display, including a rather grand Buddha worshipping room. Once again, photo opportunities were everywhere as AIKOM and Japanese students crammed together and blocked hallways in order to take their infamous group pictures. Today was a rather large group, so the bombarding of the temple by a group of foreign students may have caused a few headaches for some of the museum staff, but we had a lot of fun.

That night we had the usual nomikai, this time in Shibuya. Usually at these time our level of conversation drops down a few notches and everyone forgets about the formalities. People who don't drink are free to order whatever else they may want, such as juice or cola, and everybody seems to enjoy themselves tremendously. This is where the fellas from New Zealand and Indonesia came up with the "Chop Stick Diplomacy Ritual", which is probably better left unexplained. Hopefully, however, there will be many new such rituals to be shared in the future.

One of the purposes of an exchange program is to learn about other cultures, and one way in which this goal was accomplished was by having the AIKOM students give "culture presentations" about their own country. The students were very enthusiastic, and it showed in how well prepared the presentations were. Notably, the students from Korea, the Philippines, China, Malaysia, and Indonesia dressed up in their ethnic clothes. Mimi and Efaniel from the Philipines did a dance, Lee from China did a martial arts demonstration, whereas Sara gave a lecture on Australian slang words. There were many other interesting skits and lectures given, all were informative and fun. These presentations allowed us, AIKOM and Japanese students alike, the opportunity to get a glimpse of the cultures from which the students come from. Brought together as students studying in a foreign country, it was a good forum to be able to show and learn about each others unique background. I was most impressed with the sense of identity and pride that each of the students had for their home country, and at the same time, it was evident that they were interested in learning about other cultures as well.