Intensity

A lot has been going on and it's hard to get a time to yourself. This is especially bad for me because I'm the kind of person that gets very cranky when around people for too long of a time. I need alone time to recharge. Now that I have moved in with my host family that's a little easier, but I'll get to that.

On Monday I met my host mother and moved in. I've got my own room with a Western style bed. Sometimes I'm not sure whether or not this is a pro or a con, for it is an extremely firm mattress. Though the Japanese style futon does not give your back and hips much support, it sure is cushy. Ah well. It has been brutally hot here except for the last three days where the temperature took a nose dive. I was feeling guilty about the fact that I had the air conditioner on all the time in my room, which you supposed to avoid especially at night, but now I'm bundled up with a sweatshirt on and thick socks. What can you say, it's typhoon season. My host mother and father are very nice. My host mother's mother also lives with us and wants me to call her Obaachan rather than Obaasan. We also have a cat, Miichan, who didn't like me at first but changed his mind once he figured out that I was a highly trained cat-petting adept.

Now that I have my own room, and out of a very small room shared with four other girls, I would really like to just hang out. But I can't. It's very important to connect with your host family early on, especially if you would like to be missing dinner because you're out partying every night later. I've actually found out that my host mom and I have a lot in common and we lot or dislike a lot of the same things. It also helps that she speaks English pretty well. We often switch off between Japanese and English. As I get more confident with my Japanese I'll probably ask her to switch to all Japanese, unless she wants to figure something out in English.

On Friday we got out Japanese cell phones! Actually I got mine Saturday morning because it was going to take a while and I wanted to be home for dinner. There are so many things in Japan that are really clever and creative and inventive that make me wonder why we don't have these things in America. One of them in infrared information sending. I think you might be able to get it on a few phones in America but in Japan it comes standard. Instead of typing out all of your new friend's information in your phone's contact section, you just put your phones next to each other and BEE BOO BOP! Your information went in his/her phone and yours went in theirs. Brilliant! Another thing I like is that there is a stand near the doors of cafes and restaurants where you put your umbrella in a little shoot and it gets put in a plastic bag. Then you pull the bag out and go on with your business. It's so that the water from the wet umbrella doesn't get everywhere. Then when you leave you just throw out the plastic bag in the handy receptacle. This is especially helpful during typhoon season, which it is now.

So I think clothes wise I did OK. I think I'm just going to get another jacket and sweater, because they weren't kidding when they said that layering was important. It goes from hot to cold to hot to cold, all the time. Also, American sweatshirts are really bulky and not at all the style here. And I need to get shoes. The shoes! It's a good thing I'm going to try and get a part time job. I've been going around in my flip flops but it doesn't really work so well. But sometimes its way too hot for sneakers. Most shoes don't fit me but I have discovered that Japanese shoes do! Fantastique! I am such a girl...

I start classes on Tuesday. I don't have any classes on Sunday and Monday, but I do have a class Saturday morning. At Waseda, classes are in hour and a half blocks. I have double Japanese Tuesday and Friday, Tale of Genji and its Readers on Tuesday and Thursday, and double International Journalism and East Asian Diplomacy on Wednesday. I've also got a Japanese elective class Friday night (Kanji Around Town) and my Saturday morning Japanese class. It should be interesting. It'll also be nice to be on a schedule again. Sometimes I don't even know what day it is, let alone what time it is - it's all a blur.

There are so many other things to do! I have to get a seal made so that I can open up a Japanese bank account, I have a Health Check on Friday so that I can use the gym, I have to figure out this whole club/circle thing, etc. Crazy life.

Never Ending Orientations

So it's day four and we have another whole week of orientations. Ahhh! Some of the information from the numerous orientation sessions I've heard at least twice. I'm glad that they want to make sure we're all OK but still. My brain is melting.

Last night we went to a nomikai, which is an all you can eat/all you can drink restaurant. It was fun but I was really tired by the end of it. I just really want my cell phone! We get Japanese cell phones, which are way cuter than American cell phones, sometime next week. Trying to coordinate dinner and activities is so much more difficult without a phone. You don't realize how much you miss it until you don't have one.

First Day - Orientation and Akibahara

All those things I was worrying about before coming turned out to be needless. I'm not really surprised but it's so nice at the same time. Everyone is so supportive and no one really knows what's going on or what people are saying most of the time, so I don't feel all alone. And I know that getting confident with the language will just take time. I've already got a bunch of friends and we're all helping each other out.

So we started the day with a Japanese continental breakfast, which consisted of toast, coffee, and this onion soup which was kinda good. We then went over to Waseda and got everyone's names, etc. We went through the handbook and talked about host families. Some people had their interviews for getting placed with the right family today, but mine is tomorrow. Instead, a bunch of us went with some Waseda students to Akibahara, Electric City. It was so intense, so many electronics! And I'm so glad I'm a city person because the crowds we crazy. I would have gotten overwhelmed way earlier than I did. Even so, eventually it just got too much. We walked around for a long time and went to a bunch of different arcades and got things out of vending machines (which are so much cooler here than in the US) and eventually ended up in this building that had like 7 floors with tons of stuff. It had 3 floors of arcades I think and then I think an escort service on one floor. The other floors we for shopping and they had everything! But there we so many people and no room to maneuver. Also, it took a little time to get used to all the incredibly awkward sexually charged items, like a back scratcher with big boobs on it. That's just the culture I guess, and it provides endless amusement.

The trains were also amazingly easy and not so worrisome as I thought. Just like everything else. The futon bed took a little getting used to. My back and hips protested the lack of support for a few minutes before I completely conked out last night. Oh yeah, five of us are sharing a traditional tatami matted room in the hotel. It's not a lot of space, since all of us have at least 2 big suitcases. I will welcome moving in with my host family so I can have my own room again. Or at least being in a double. But that's not for another 2 weeks. And we don't start classes until October. Oops, I have to go to dinner now. Digging the Japanese food!

The Day Before

I have been going through periods between calmness and absolute freak out. Packing is just generally horrible. I am the kind of person who wants to be prepared for everything and anything. And as much as they tell you about the kinds of things you will need for Japan, it's never enough because YOU haven't been there yet. It's hard for me to just let go and say "I'll figure it out when I get there." Most distressing has been dealing with the prescription medications. I was just diagnosed for having migraines last week, but then I re-read the handbook where they tell you that you need to discuss what kinds of medications you are bringing into Japan with the Japanese Consulate well in advance. Super. This trip has already stretched my boundaries and I haven't even gotten there yet. I have to let go of the perfectionism and just be. Just enjoy the experience. It's not about discovering myself or figuring out my calling in life or becoming fluent in Japanese. It's just about the experience and what I get out of it. I am going to make mistakes, I already have, and I just need to chill and get on with it. Have a little cry and then suck it up and move on. Tomorrow I am going to sit on a plane for 14 hours and arrive the next day in a foreign country halfway around the world. OK, can do. I've just got to take it one day at a time. I've got my books, my iPod, my Nintendo DS, my pillow, and my sweater. I'll get snacks in the airport. I am set for the plane ride tomorrow. Then we'll see about the next day. That's just all I can do. But it's hard to tell myself that all the time. Perfectionists always think we can do more and do it better. Oh well. Tomorrow I am going to Japan. Bring it on.