I have become even more interested in Japan now that I'm separated from it in my daily life.
僕は、日常的なものじゃなくなってこそ、日本への興味が逆に深まった。

Admittedly, I frittered away my first two trips to Japan because I didn't understand what "Japan" was; I was in pursuit of the postmodern urban sprawl of Tokyo, but a little unsure of how to deal with sightseeing in rural Shiga. My interests in Japan really centered around two things: the language and the pop music, which, I'll admit, don't really say much to Japanese people. Why on earth would anyone be interested in a language as unusual and difficult as Japanese, anyway?
正直にいうと、日本そのものを知らずに最初の2つの日本への旅行を無駄にしてしまったのだ。未来的な東京を求めながら、滋賀の田舎での観光はがっかりした。僕の日本への興味は、日本語とポップス音楽が中心だったが、やはり「これぞ日本！」というようなものではないけどね。だって、日本語ほど変で難しい言葉を勉強したくなるものか！

I still carried these interests with me during the first few months of my exchange. I felt as if I had been running on the hamster wheel of rural Japan, always chasing the magic of the city. However, something happened to change that along the way. The Nishikawas, who hosted me during the winter, were a rather unhospitable host family. To escape the tense atmosphere at home, I would usually head to Kyoto on the weekends alone (I had few friends). I discovered the very chic and urban Kawaramachi area, but soon saw the emptiness in it. Boredom brought me to Teramachi and Shinkyogoku, nearby shopping districts with a very traditional feel. I never bought anything; I only went to enjoy the atmosphere, but I never understood what was so appealing about it.
留学の最初の3ヶ月間も、その興味はまだ持っていた。田舎というハムスターの輪を走って、ずっと都会の魅惑を求めている感じだった。が、途中でなにかが変わったのだ。冬の時のホストファミリーの西川さんはいい感じの人じゃなくて、週末は僕は家の緊張の雰囲気から逃げようと、一人で京都に行っていた。おしゃれな川原町を発見したが、しばらくしてそこで空（くう、仏教語）しか感じなくなってきて、寺町・新京極の街並みに行くようになった。何も買わずに、ただその伝統的というか、日本的な雰囲気を味わうのが楽しみでありながらも、何で気に入ったか不思議だった。

Fast forward to late spring. I got interested in Buddhism, and more specifically Zen, and toured Zen temples in Kyoto. Again, there's nothing to "do"; just beauty, in a very raw form, unlike American "tamed" nature, to appreciate. I came home and continued reading about Zen when I found out about "wabi", or a concept central to Zen aesthetics. After studying a bit more deeply, I realized that Zen aesthetics is at the heart of everything I like about Japan (in no particular order): Kyoto's traditional streets, the tea ceremony, Zen temples and gardens, calligraphy, traditional architecture, cuisine, art, crockware & cookware...
そして春の後半。仏教（特に禅）に興味を持って、京都の禅寺を回っていた。前のように生の美を味わうのが楽しみだ。帰国してきて、禅の勉強を続けていたら、禅の美意識のイロハに入っている「侘び」という言葉が出てきた。もうちょっと勉強すると、禅の美意識は実に僕の日本の好きなところ、京都の伝統的な街並み・茶道・禅寺・庭・枯山水・書道・伝統的な建築・料理・和菓子・美術・器など、全部の共通点だとわかってきた。

Now the explosive metropolis of Tokyo is too much for me: the cultural richness of Kyoto, modest and sublime, represents all that is Japanese to me. I wish I would have learned about all of this stuff while still in Japan!
僕にとっては京都の簡素な文化的な美が日本のイメージで、爆発的な大都会の東京は耐えられなくなった。まだ日本にいる間にこんなことを知ったらよかったなぁ…

So, what are these Japanese aesthetics I'm talking about? Well, as you might guess, they are hard to define in English.

Three main aesthetic concepts.
渋い shibui
侘び wabi
寂び sabi

The seven Zen principles, applicable to not just the tea ceremony, but art, gardens, and so on.
不均斉 fukinsei
簡素 kanso
考古 kouko
自然 shizen
幽玄 yuugen
脱俗 datsuzoku
静寂 seijaku

Two more modern aesthetic ideas.
粋 iki (chic)
地味 jimi (mellow)

I'm very inspired to start trying to bring these qualities out in my music!