One of the MEXT Scholarshop grantees, Ms. Aafke van Ewijk, reported to us about her new life in Osaka. Please read on to find out about her experiences so far!

It has been two months already since I set off for Japan and entered Osaka University as a research student. Let me first explain what the purpose of my studies here is. I am a PhD student of Leiden University and my research focuses on representations in art and literature of Minamoto no Yoshitsune, a Japanese general from the twelfth century about whom legends were told and retold throughout the ages. He is still a very popular hero today. During the nineteenth century, the way in which Yoshitsune legend was told underwent considerable changes under Westernizing influences. As such it forms a mirror of the changes in society. The first step in my research is to go to libraries and collect copies of popular illustrated books in which Yoshitsune made his appearance quite often.  With help of my research supervisor here in Osaka I have started to read some of the books. Even though back then these books could be read by those with a basic education, the texts consist of handwritten classical Japanese, or kuzushi-ji, so modern Japanese can’t read it without training. In the kuzushi-ji class for graduate students we were told that with constant effort we will be able to enjoy reading such a book in the train and make all Japanese faint in awe. But not yet…

Osaka University
Actually, I came ‘back’ to Osaka, as three years ago I studied here in the undergraduate Japanese Studies Program. The first days I did not only meet the professors I knew, but also several students that had come back to Osaka as well. Osaka University has three campuses: Toyonaka, Suita and Minoh. Till June I live in a dormitory on Minoh campus on the outskirts of Osaka. I am one of the first group of international students that got rooms in this dormitory, as before only Japanese students lived here. Even though this sounds like a chance to chat a lot with Japanese students, in practice most students living here are away all day. However, a solution to that is going where the Japanese students go, so I entered the student dance club ‘Roots’ after seeing their performance during the university anniversary day. (The photo shows a different dance group, but it is so colourful that I wanted to show it.) The atmosphere is quite relaxed, and not hierarchical even though I heard some stories about that. After a group discussion my nickname became Ushiwakamaru, which is the boyhood name of Yoshitsune. Considering that several people are nicknamed after some type of food, or far weirder things, I can live with that. It helps to get settled if one can speaks the language well enough to understand jokes. People from Osaka value tsukkomi very much, which is literally ‘thrust’ or ‘point out’, but here means making a pointed funny remark at the right moment.

Classes
As a research student, I am free to choose subjects but I get no credits. Most other foreign research students (that’s our formal status) that specialize in Japanese language or culture seem to be preparing for the master or doctor course entrance exam, so at first I found myself in the strange position of having to explain that I am a research student whose main purpose here is to do research. For this semester I chose to follow some classes that not only have to do with my own field (literature/visual culture) but also sociology and gender studies, which are rather fascinating because everyday issues in modern Japanese society are pointed out that didn’t even catch my attention, such as the special brand of sweets for men that they sell at the convenience store, as sweets are considered feminine. In the class on Edo (1600-1868) and Meiji (1868-1912) period maps and travel, the professor brings all kinds of interesting maps and other artefacts from his own collection. First he says the map is a very rare and valuable object and then he spreads it on the floor. That is quite shocking, even if the map already has been used to mend a shôji (sliding door). He always lets us handle the things he brings and especially the dirtiest pieces of paper from the Edo period, like paper money or a letter that served as a passport, are quite fascinating. As my room is rather small and I keep moving books from my table to the bed and back again, I often study in the library. A quarter before closing time they start to play ‘Auld Lang Syne’. In everyday life I have no difficulty with Japanese, but research related texts sometimes throw me into despair, may it be difficult kanji compounds or the slowness by which I get a ‘quick overview’. After reading a lot of English I now need to get used to the professional Japanese words in my own field.

The Kansai
The Kansai is a perfect place to enjoy both ‘modern’ and ‘traditional’ Japan. Kyoto is less than an hour by train and during Golden Week (consecutive holidays in early May) I went to see the traditional theatre Mibu kyougen at the Mibu-temple. During the Aoi festival, of which the main attraction is a traditional parade in Heian period costumes (described in The Tale of Genji), it rained very hard in the afternoon so we only got to see some ladies in colourful kimono riding on umbrellas. We decided to change plans and visit several famous stores selling wagashi, or Japanese sweets. Japanese tend to stand in lines for such famous delicacies, so we enjoyed this tradition too, apart from the sweets itself. Often used ingredients are rice cake and adzuki bean paste.
On the other side of Osaka is Kobe. To my great joy this month’s performance of the all-female Takarazuka Revue is their famous musical The Rose of Versailles, which I went to see last week. In Kobe is also a neighbourhood where several houses formerly inhabited by Europeans have been turned into museums for introducing foreign countries. I saw some Japanese girls in Dutch traditional costume and for some reason in the Holland house they sold perfumes that they mixed according to one’s personality. It must be a remnant of the way in which the Dutch used to supress bodily odours during the Edo period… or a random way of spicing the place up, because somehow there was the atmosphere of an abandoned amusement park.
What about Osaka itself? On Saturday mornings I practice Iai-jutsu in the Suita Budokan, the biggest dojo I ever entered. Iai-jutsu is a traditional martial art that consists of sword techniques. These are not to be tried out on fellow students, but executed carefully and in concentration with the imaginary opponent in mind. I was introduced to the teacher by a fellow student and he is really great. I met a lot of new people these months. Yesterday a friend invited me to come to a local radio station. Their audience consists of young people from the Kansai and in one of their programmes they have pitches in Japanese by foreigners about some aspect of their culture. I was added to the cast of foreigners and we prepared two short stories about my hometown Winterswijk, the beautiful countryside and the new Mondrian museum there (I had to explain this by referring to certain fashion designs that can be seen in Japanese stores, so probably some adventurous Osaka youngsters might come to see the fashion museum in Winterswijk – direct them to Villa Mondriaan please) and the phenomenon of the bike in the Netherlands. It was a joyful event that I could now even tell on the radio that our prime minister cycles to his work. It never fails to impress.

And in this way every day small and big interesting things happen. I could write a book. A foreign student in Japan is really lucky!

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