WELCOME BAZAAR in NIIGATA UNIVERSITY

At 6.40am, Saiful (one of the Malaysian students) knocked on my door to go queue for tickets for the international student bazaar. The Malaysians were so early that we got all single digit numbers. Mine was no.4. The queue is to get numbered admission tickets in order to be admitted later on at 1pm by batches of 10. The Japanese’s systematic way of doing things did bother my sleep actually but I know it is for good reasons because the crowd could get a little bit out of control when too many people go for the same stuff later on. The bazaar is organized by the Japanese volunteers and one that international students should not miss because it is where and when we could get used electronic goods, daily essentials and furniture sets at dirt cheap prices. They have television sets, microwave ovens, fans, heaters, hi-fi sets, kotatsu (Japanese heated table), bed, cupboards, cabinets, plates, kitchen utensils, and many many more.

I met this very kind South Korean, Yoo-san, who taught me the techniques of the nihon-go since his major was in that. I learnt a lot from him. We went breakfast with him after getting our numbers.

At 1pm, we were allowed into the bazaar according to our numbers. We were only given 10 minutes to get our stuff before it is opened up for the rest of the students to get theirs. I had a really good bargain. Maybe it is an understatement to just say good. It was great! You won’t believe it if I tell that I got a digital rice cooker for only ¥100 (RM3) and a heater for ¥200 (RM6) and they are only 1 year old. These are just some of the things I got. I also bought lots of other stuff for my daily use. In case you visit or need to stay in Japan, rest assured that not all things here are expensive. Fancy owning a 29-inch flat screen TV at only ¥2000 (RM35)?? If that does not excite you, what about this: Second hand Mazda 6 (the new one just launched in Malaysia) for ¥900,000 (RM30,000)???