New Year, New Experience: My First Japanese Calligraphy

Upon noticing that I had nothing to do at home, the mother of my partner invited me out to a calligraphy experience. The experience was free of charge, but it's only available til 3pm. Time check: 2pm.

The venue was located in an old elementary school, which had been renovated and now transformed into a commercial facility. Kito Forest Market is the new name of this place and it's not just an event space, it's also a marketplace and a restaurant. The school vibes are still there but of course, it's not functioning as a school anymore.

We went to the experience room right away found on the 2nd floor. There were big tables covered in old newspapers and calligraphy papers. My companion asked around how I could do the calligraphy. Everything happened so fast that in a breeze, I was already holding a brush in my hand.

Now what to write?

They didn't really give any lessons, and it was confusing who was running the place. They just told us to go to a free area, get the calligraphy paper and start writing anything. I was observing what the lady was writing, and yes, it's in Kanji (chinese characters). I was staring at how she was writing in strokes, and maybe because I was looking, she made a mistake on one stroke order. She told me the newspaper on the side could be used as a test, because now she's practicing the character on it.

After her turn, she gave me the brush and leftover ink. At this point, I was panicking a bit because I still hadn't decided what to write. My companion told me I could write anything and that's the problem, out of all the Kanji characters I've been learning, no word came to mind.

I wanted to write something about happiness. The Japanese word for happiness was what came to my mind in that moment. Maybe because in the car on the way here, I mentioned about the word. But really, I also want to be happy this year.

I settled on 喜びの声 (read as yorokobi no koe) which means shout of joy or cheer with joy. I decided on this phrase because I want to experience this many times this year. It doesn't have to be about passing an exam, but also in epic and unforgettable moments that will touch my heart. I also wished that my family, my partner, and my partner's family who's been so good to me will also be experiencing this 喜びの声.

I didn't want to have mistakes so I practiced writing the characters on the newspaper first before writing in the actual special paper. After seeing that I could write it properly, I started writing.

The brush wasn't difficult to hold. I think I cared more about the stroke styles, but since I haven't learned about that now, I just let my way takeover.

Perfect!

I was praised by the mom of my partner, who's my companion for today, saying it's beautifully written. She maybe said those because I'm a first timer. I also got a compliment from the lady earlier, who helped me packed what I wrote so I could take it home.

Before going home, we decided to check out the exhibit in the other rooms on the 2nd floor. There were wood carvings, some were for sale and some were displayed for art.

I think the wood they used there was from the trees in Mt. Yoshino, which is the mountain nearby. They have a lot of good wood, and some leftovers were even free for anybody to take.

On some rooms were different accessories, essential oils, small plates, cups, and some art you could display at home.

It's on the pricier side, so eventually we went to the first floor without buying anything. It was of great quality though.

On the first floor was the restaurant, a small cafe, a souvenir, and a fruit and vegetable shop. By the entrance/exit doors, there were plants for sale. My companion was almost tempted to buy a plant. It wasn't so expensive so she could have gave in but she didn't. The bonsai for sale was impressive, not just for its beauty but also for its price. 😅

We went out the main building and headed to the gym area. It's mostly for kids as there's a section for books and a maze-like corner. To enter the gym, you need to take off your shoes though, and it was really cold even when I was wearing socks.

I like that it's not crowded. Few kids were done playing when we went in, and we could have taken our time here playing if my partner's niece was with us. She'd enjoy this small maze for sure.

We went to the 2nd floor to see the entirety of the gym. The maze was really easy to solve. Can we call this a maze? I like how they kept the gym, it's giving off PE vibes.

Speaking of PE, outside the gym was this swimming pool. We couldn't access it that day as it was closed but yes, you can imagine the school life here.

Anyway, we didn't stay long because we've completed our mission which was for me to experience Japanese calligraphy. In an hour, we're back home. Everything happened so fast, and I'm still wondering if I really ever experienced that Japanese calligraphy for the first time.

What a great New Year experience! 😌

Next time, I'd like to try attending classes and learn more about Japanese calligraphy.

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Thanks for reading!
See you around! じゃあ、またね！

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With love,

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^{All photos are taken using my phone unless stated otherwise.}