On the way to my office (Fountain in front of the Library). Check out the rainbow. Very crowed in the after noon.
 

First Lunch alone at the cafeteria (400 yen). The black sesame is salted.  The pork cutlet is OK except the cold cheese.  Misosiru(a bean paste soup) is nice.  I put some red pepper based seasonings to spice it up. 

Cafeteria.  Noisy but  you have chance to observe how Japanese people dine.  once you are done, you are supposed to bring the tray to washing area, wash the remaining foods off your dish and leave the tray there.  You can drink water or Japanese tea (O-cha) for free.                                                                                                                                                                         

My office. I am sharing it with a Korean for now, who will finishing his training this month.  Then I can keep the office to myself alone.  Yes, I still use the triple monitors.  Also, you can borrow/use office supplies (note pad, stapler, clips etc) from the department office.  You can also drink American style, brewed coffee in the department office.

 Italian Restaurant in the cafeteria area. (Pasta, 400~500 yen).  Also try the Viking (a breakfast buffet, 400 yen) here.  Pastry is also cheap.

 Japanese style lunch menus also range from 400 yen to 500 yen. Very near to the dept of Agricultural Economics.

My favorite Japanese noodle shop. Choose what you want to eat here
 

You need to get a ticket here and submit it to the cook inside.  She will call the name of the noodle or tag number, when it is ready to be picked up.

Japanese style lunch (rice and dish). Right next to this restaurant is a Chinese noodle and Ra-men shop.

Chef's lunch special of today.  Very heavy.  But if you are thin enough, try this.  Absolutely delicious.

Like in Korea, they take an entrance exam to get into a college in Japan.  This is the day to post who passed and who didn't.

 Auditorium on the graduation day(3-24-06)
 

Female students in ceremonial Gimonos (different from the ones they wear for holidays, which have tighter bottoms) (3-24-06)

A flower on the street. (4-2-06)
 

On the street next to my dorm.  The Hanami(花見, Flower View) begins.  People will sit along on both sides of the street. They will start to drink and eat in the evening until in the morning.(4-2-06)

Yes, finally it is spring in the university.  Flower and me. (4-2-06)

 

A baseball game.  Tsukuba vs. I-don't-know Univ. Watching the game with my naked eyes is much more exciting than watching the game in TV. (4-2-06)

I think they are high school athletes.  They are competing at Tsukuba University. (4-2-06)
 

Freshmen(freshpersons, should I say?) waiting for the Commencement Ceremony.

Freshmen moving in and their boxes.
 

Recruiting freshmen for their clubs on April.

Fallen cherry flower petals.  They were falling like snows. Very poetic.

Alas, beauty doesn't last.

Traffic Jam in the morning(4-28-06).

I am taking a Japanese class, SJ1-1, at Tsukuba.  Classes are on Mon thru Wednesday and Friday mornings from 8:40 to 9:55.  Also, we have pop quiz every morning, which is killing me.  I would never do that.

My Japanese classmate from the Netherlands and me (pretending to study)

 

Other Japanese class mates from Egypt, Austria, China and Swiss.
 

 In the Japanese class. my favorite sensei (she is really nice) and I, posing for the camera.

At a charity concert.  They are amateurs but the performance was really impressive.  To save the earth and children! (6-9-06)

2006 World Cup Soccer, at an outdoor cheering ground.  Japan lost to Australia.  All 3 goals by Australia made after 39 minutes of the second half.

My take-out dinner for the Japan-Australia game.  Too sweet for me.
 

The cheering ground was located at the cafeteria of the College of Physical Education.(6-12-06)

Pot-luck party for the Japanese class.  Students and teachers brought their favorite dishes.  I brought beverage. ;)

I like the Bangladesh dish. Also I enjoyed the Mongolian dishes as well.

My Switzerland friend drinking Korean liquor, So-ju.
 

A teacher demonstrating how to prepare and eat Maki(Japanese sea-weed roll).

A seminar room for graduate students(C509). It reads as "Graduate(In: 院) Student(Sei: 生) Seminar(Zemi: short for Zeminar, originated from a German word for seminar) Room(Sitsu: 室)." What confuses me often is this.  They call a 'building' BIRU, Convenience Store CONVINI, drinking party CONPA(originated from company), etc. Yes, they also call seminar SEMINA-.

A canoe club on U of Tsukuba Lake.




 

Who says Japanese can't dance?  At U of Tsukuba Fall Festival, these amateur teams are performing.

I was told U of Tsukuba has the most active dance clubs in Japan.
 

Soliciting customers.

What is he representing?

The main road to dorms.

Snacks, mostly fried noodles, at the Foreign Student Center.

Tsukuba Orchestra participated at a corner of the campus.

Foot Massage corner.

Yes, Jazz too.

You can have an professional taste coffee break here.

Please come to our performance...

 

I am shocked by the number of the performers playing Japanese traditional guitar.  They were rotating to get everybody up on the stage.  Maybe hundreds.

Tsukuba in Fall.

A Santa with Japanese underwear. A violation of holiness or a joke?

A windy day.

Street on 1-2-07. No cars or people.  I am totally alone.

No one on campus either.