Classes have started. Dun dun dun.

Whew okay so I haven't posted in a while...

Things have generally been going well, hanging out a lot with the international students (I know, I know, need to hang out with Japanese students so I actually practice Japanese...) and finding Japanese food I like. Mmm, katsukari and katsudon and ramen.

Classes started yesterday and Japanese class is incredibly incredibly hard. D= 3 hours 3 days a week, teacher speaks no English and the textbook has absolutely no English either. (Word definitions? Grammar explanations?) I'm not understanding the majority of what the teacher says and I am very stressed. But I need the immersion and pressure to focus, I guess? I'd just prefer if my grade wasn't hanging on it.

I'm taking language in society and culture, which is a lot less interesting than I hoped it would be - mostly because the teacher, although his English is pretty clear (not a given in SILS despite it being an English language school) he is incredibly disorganized in his lectures. He jumped back and forth on his power point, lost his train of thought, and generally made himself hard to follow. I'm also taking a media studies class, with a focus on Western views of Japan in the 19th century, which looks to be quite interesting, and the professor (a guy from Manchester who has been living in Japan for 28 years) is awesome. So yay for that! Also taking a religions of East Asia with a focus on Hinduism, but I don't have that until Friday. No classes on Wednesday.

Tokyo is a very rainy place... over 3/4 of the days have been rainy. Ick!

serious stuff, and harajuku

Here is my photo album, and I'll put some at the end of the post...

Dinner tonight with friends from GW who graduated and came back to Tokyo (since they're Japanese). Had a wonderful time, it was great to see them, although we didn't always have the most uplifting of conversations - apparently Tokyo is overdue for a huge earthquake, enough to do serious damage to the city, and my old dorm probably isn't exactly earthquake proof. Color me terrified. They were also talking about how common it is for the subway to be delayed due to men jumping in front of the train and committing suicide. They said certain lines are more popular than others, and sometimes the color of the line/train or the music played when the doors open or close can drive people to it if they're already stressed... The frequency and method of suicide is so odd. Apparently, there's about one suicide every 15 minutes - almost 100 a day. It has the same number of suicides as the US, but half the population. Internet suicide pacts started in Japan. In the US, I think suicides tend to be less public. There are jumping off buildings, or occasionally in front of cars/trains, but it's most common to use a firearm. And then, I think, to overdose on pills, hang themself, or something else more private. It's just odd, to see the differences... and very sad.

Anyway. Shibuya was a lot of fun, and we also went to Harajuku earlier in the day. Got some clothes.... Japanese fashion is very, very, very bizarre. Currently there's a lot of fur vests, plaid shirts, the Ugg-type boots, and basically looking like you're wearing sacks. I can't say I have been too impressed with a lot of Japanese fashion, not exactly up my alley... Though I do like the short skirts/knee length socks or leggings and boots. So I got the first two of three! I also realized that Japanese girls do not wear tank tops. And... spagetti stap tank tops make up the majority of my summer clothes. I got a lot of Japanese men leering at me. So now I have to find something to wear over/under them, which is a pain when it's as hot as it still is, despite being almost October. Boo.

Ah! Last week the Waseda International Club organized a nomihoudai and tabehoudai (all you can drink/eat) at an izakaya - type of Japanese bar. Hoo boy. The Waseda tennis club was there, and ... I have never seen people that drunk. Apparently the tennis club drinks more than it plays tennis. It was crazy. When Japanese people let loose, they REALLY let loose it seems. I thought American students were bad... The Japanese students who organized the trip to the izakaya were chugging big bottles of Asahi to cheers as fast as they could, taking sake shots, etc. They'd go puke, and then go back and drink some more. I tried sake and quite liked it, actually - now I just wish I knew what kind it was. Dratted kanji. It was quite the experience... I felt very bad for the people who worked there. Not a job I would ever want.

Anyway. Some photos!

Engrish


Asakusa


Izakaya

First Earthquake

Woke up to an earthquake this morning around 7:15. Sat up blearily, wondering why someone was shaking my bed and why the bookshelves were making weird noises. Realized it was an earthquake, and oh, I should be doing something.

4.8 earthquake. Not that strong, but ... definitely nothing I've felt before. The feeling of the ground just moving around underneath you is very darn unsettling.

Went to Asakusa yesterday, a beautiful old shrine, and then an izakaya in the evening. All you can eat and drink. Bloody hell. There was another group there what was completely, utterly trashed. I've never seen people that drunk. They were just staggering around everywhere and falling against each other. I tried sake, which I quite liked - the Japanese kids who gave it to me were surprised I liked it. =p Very, very noisy and crowded and crazy, but quite an experience!

Typhoon!

Woo, typhoon Sinlaku. All it means for us in Tokyo is lots and lots of rain. Ick.

Spent 5 hours applying for my alien registration card and national health insurance. Fun, fun. But after that we went to Shibuya, wandered around enjoying our first sight of Tokyo off-campus, took photos of us all in a photobooth at an arcade store, and then went to a bar. My first time ever at a bar! Whee! ... It is quite expensive and makes a lot more sense just to buy alcohol and mix your own drinks with friends, but hey. 

Tomorrow is a tour of Tokyo (sites such as Akihabara, Harajuku, Asakusa, etc) despite continued rain. Although I may not go if it's raining too heavily, I got soaked today and I'm already sick... 

Pictures!

Some photos of Japan are posted up here: http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v282/bookwyrm1317/Japan/

I'll try to actually put some in a post when I can figure out how to do it, the post page keeps getting screwy when I try...

Orientations today. Many of them. Went from a dearth of information to them suddenly throwing an overwhelming amount of information (and pounds of papers) at us. We also had a tour of campus, which has some really gorgeous areas - like the Okubo Gardens, a beautiful park right on campus.

I am going to get so very, very lost however.

Tomorrow is the Japanese placement exam (ugh. I haven't studied all summer) and more orientations...

In Japan at last

All right, I have arrived in Japan at last. The 14-hour flight over was very, very long, but not as bad as I thought it would be - took some sleeping pills and passed out for 5 or 6 hours.

Arrived in Narita, and had to haul my two suitcases and two carry-ons through the airport, a train, a subway, and a bus. For future travelers to Japan: you can have your suitcases delivered to you in Tokyo, but it arrives the next day: if you're taking a similar route and have lots of baggage it's probably a good idea to just move what you need for the first day or two to your hand luggage or one suitcase, because maneuvering around people, especially in the subway and bus, is tricky. As you may have heard, Tokyo is rather crowded.

My room is a dingy little single with a fridge, sink, and very small closet. They provided linens, but the pillow is full of beans or something... I got a headache and stiff neck from sleeping on it. Showers and bathrooms are shared (two of each per gender on my floor) and there's a communal kitchen on my floor too. My AC apparently doesn't work, and the room is hot and sticky as hell. Need to find a fan today. There's no windows to slide open, just the entire back wall is glass, half of which is a sliding door leading out onto a huge patio thing connected to some other rooms. Not a very exciting view, sadly, but it is surrounded by trees.

Not sure how the curfew works yet, I think there's a gate that closes at 11 and after that you can't get in... not entirely sure yet though. Guest policies are very strict: I can't even have a family member stay with me in the room. We're not even supposed to let people come see the room. Damn, I miss American dorms... I think people are going to see how easy it is to sneak people in, heh. The dorm I'm in has the reception desk though, whereas the other Hoshien dorms don't have anyone at the bottom, I think. Boo.

Everyone is very friendly, though I was a little out of it yesterday due to sleep deprivation. Met several people at the airport, then there a welcome party for new students. After that, some of the Japanese students there showed us to a discount store and a little supermarket - got some food for breakfasts, mm. 

There is the most horrendous bug noise outside. It sounds like an electric saw or dental work, then a dying electric saw. Cicada perhaps?

Orientation and a campus tour this morning. Just have to find the building we have orientation in - it would probably have been helpful for them to give us a campus map...

And off I go

Leaving tomorrow to arrive in Japan Tuesday afternoon. (I have a slightly convoluted flight path - overnighting in Georgia with my aunt and uncle.) Not sure when I'll have Internet - I think it takes a while to get it. We shall see... Hopefully it won't be too long, as I am slightly addicted to the Internet.

Terrified! Suitcases are bursting at the seams and hoping the big one is not overweight! Lost important stuff (but it's not really a proper trip unless I lose something important, gah. I hate how easily I lose things)! Have I mentioned I'm a wee bit nervous?

Anyway. じゃあ、まっだ日本で！

Blank blank blank

Well... in just over a week, I will probably start actually having interesting things to post here.

In the meantime, I am just going to be panic about how terrible my Japanese is, why the hell I'm going across the world for a year to stay in a country that is notoriously xenophobic, how to stuff everything into my suitcases (oh airlines, how I love that you charge for more than one bag. Bastards.), and how long I'll survive before giving in to desperation and attempting seafood.

I am, however, looking forward to classes on subjects that actually interest me, which GW lacks. Well, supposedly - no idea what classes are being offered yet. But samples from previous years that interest me: Language, Society, and Culture; Languages of Europe and Asia; Sociolinguistics; History of Language Teaching in Japan; Law and Society in Japan; Tokyo: Anthropological Fieldwork and Documentary Filmmaking; Anthropology of Urban Japan. Yes, I am a dork. I love comparative language stuff.  Of course, from what I have heard Japanese classes are not very difficult, but still - more of what I am interested in. 

I am looking forward to learning Japanese outside of class - much more fun, if tiring/stressful and potentially embarrassing. But, I suppose that's part of the fun of learning languages - embarrassing yourself and getting to tell entertaining stories about it later...

Ah, I don't know. I'm not a particularly deep person or eloquent writer. Just going way out of my depth and panic and excitement are wearing me out with their little battles for dominance.

Pesky aspects of traveling abroad - very dependent on little pieces of paper

I believe that foreigners in Japan are supposed to carry their passport/Visa with them at all times. I generally carry a purse with me at all times, but for my passport I'd prefer something safer - anyone have tips/suggestions? I used an around the neck money pouch while visiting Italy before, but it was incredibly uncomfortable...

Edit: Nevermind! Smaller alien registration card thing, not passport. That be good news.