July 21
Monday of this week was Gion Matsuri, the annual biggest festival celebration in Kyoto. There were many big floats in the road, with local kids playing traditional instruments on them- It was a very good atmosphere. I bought some of the Ringoame (apple candy) as I remembered seeing in Animes and movies for Natsumatsuri vibes.
I have been more comfortable and settled in Kyoto- I have started cooking by myself and going on night runs along Horikawa. I visited Nijojo and Arashiyama, and felt that gradually I have gotten to know a lot about Kyoto.
In class, we read Heike monogatari for three days: it was a drastic comparison to Genji in terms of subject matter and writing style. On Friday, we had a guest calligrapher in class giving us a lecture about Kuzushiji, which we have been practicing to read since last week. As a Chinese who practiced calligraphy for several years, I find it interesting to see the similarities and differences between Chinese and Japanese calligraphy.