Here you go, sorry I can't be bothered to do a special blog entry right now. A little of what I got up to.

Very soon.

I won't have internet access (and don't intend to go out of my way to find it) but I'll try and update my Twitter whilst I'm away (if my phone doesn't bork). You can either go ahead and follow Maccath @ Twitter, or I used the API to shove it all up on a separate web page, in case you don't do Twitter (and because I was bored).

I've been trying to get back onto a normal schedule, after having a really good day yesterday. I woke up at 8am yesterday morning having made a packed lunch (a decent one at that - featuring leftover pasta, crisps, sausage roll, apple, biscuits and a bottle of tapwater) and left the house by nine to get to my lectures (which actually started an hour earlier than normal, though I wasn't notified of this). During four hours I needed to kill before meeting Ginzburg in the late afternoon I walked from my university to Hyde Park (approximately 3 miles).

I walked along the south bank of the river, over Waterloo Bridge, past the National Theatre and the London Eye, back over Westminster Bridge, past Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament, and then through Parliament Square, through St James' park (they were refilling the lake) and in front of Buckingham Palace. Then round the side of the Palace and through Green Park, under Wellington Arch and over Hyde Park Corner to the rose garden.

I sat on a patch of grass near some flowers there to eat my lunch, and sunbathed for an hour or so. By sunbathe I mean lie there fully clothed soaking the rays through my face. Then I walked onwards all the way through Hyde Park, under Marble Arch and down Oxford Street where I stopped in at Borders to read a couple chapters of 'Notes on a Scandal' (Zoe Heller) which was pretty funny. I may try to get hold of a copy.

I cheated and walked to Oxford Circus to catch a tube back to university, but the meeting with Ginzburg went OK. I have to work really hard on my project to get it in working order before I go to Japan (in 18 days). The preparations for which are well and truly underway.

I've sorted out all acommodation now (all reservations booked), and our itinerary goes a bit like this;

• Arrive at Narita Airport at 7am and head to central Tokyo to find hotel. Spend a few days in Tokyo.
• Head for one night to Hakone, a little hot spring resort and national park outside of Tokyo where (if you're lucky) you can see Mt Fuji - provided there's no clouds. Staying at Kappa Tengoku.
• Carry on to Kyoto. Will be split between two different ryokans for our 3 night stay. Explore temples and things, making particular effort to visit Gion and Fushimi Inari Shrine.
• Go to Osaka, staying in another ryokan. Do Osaka stuff.
• Go to Hiroshima, and stay on Miyajima Island for a night (where they have a 'floating' shrine) and look around the city for another night.
• Head back to Narita for our final night at a Holiday Inn near the airport because we'll be leaving early.

I even did a 'test pack' to see how heavy my bags would end up being. They are carryable, which is good. For 5 outfits, a week of underwear, and all toiletries and electronic accessories (chargers, plug converter, etc.) I still have loads of space left over in my hold luggage, and can almost lift the bag with one finger. My hand luggage is similarly light (which I filled with prototype documentation, money, guidebooks, a novel, camera and various other little bits). I bought a new 8gb card for my camera, so expect thousands (no joke) of photos when I get back.

I've called my phone provider and my bank and all that shaz to let them know where I'll be, and I've started cramming as much Japanese as possible to refresh my brain. It's going well. I'm going out with Vogul and Justin on the 3rd April for drinks and clubbing in Camden (hopefully) as an unofficial 'farewell for two weeks', the day before I head home before setting off to Japan early on the 6th. I will be specifically avoiding all contact with England during this time ('til 21st April), for fear of wasting the precious little time I'll have to experience another culture. :)

But tonight, I feel really down. I spent all day studying (mostly Japanese, but I did a couple of hours on my university project), though I went out to Sainsbury's in the morning and bought some fruit all I've eaten all day was half a cold cross bun, two nectarines, two packets of crisps, a whole pack of biscuits, a glass of cranberry juice and some tomato soup. The fucking toaster is broken, and that pissed me off something awful. Hence the cold cross bun, which really does taste like shit.

I got really depressed earlier about the whole unemployment situation, too. I'm so worried about my future. Not only because it's going to be hard for me to get a job when I graduate, but because Justin's having a hard time too. He's applied to a couple of jobs today, and I tried to help him look... but it's all so dire. BBC says there's 10 applicants for every vacancy at the job centre, and most of them require qualifications/previous experience - and all Justin can do is drive and print. I called my dad asking for advice and he said, "Justin is a bright and hardworking guy, he'll get a job if he keeps trying. I have faith in him, and you should too. Don't get depressed over it or you'll demotivate him. You have to stay positive."

That made me smile. My dad seems to really care about me and Justin and our relationship, and that means a lot to me. (Yes, daddy's girl speaking.)

So, I wanted a blog that could be a bit more public. Not to say that I won't be posting here, but I started writing over at A Frame of my Mind - my new personal domain.

My birthday celebrations were great. So I didn't manage to get out to do anything but attend a lecture on my actual birthday but I had a really lovely weekend with my friends and family. I got some wonderful presents which you can read all about at my new domain (Belated Birthday Celebrations and The Party) and I took lots of photos that can be viewed over on my Flickr.

I'm still sat at home for now, reading the Strawberry Panic light novel that I borrowed from a university friend. I have lots of project work to do tomorrow but I'll probably be going back to London tomorrow evening.

Please could you answer the following poll. I need to collect as much data as possible by 5th December so that I can justify the decisions I made for my final year project. Thank-you!

Poll #1307913 Do you have Japanese fonts installed on your computer?
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 15

Do you study/have you ever studied/would you ever consider studying Japanese?

Do you have Japanese fonts installed? (i.e. can you see this: 日本語です)