And I'm starting to feel overwhelmed. Maybe some sleep will help.
So. As I lie here in my hopefully temporary bed (I want a host family) that I probably made wrong because there's one blanket that I'm not sure what it's for and another one I thought was a sheet but is shaped a bit oddly, I will try to recount the trip here.
For various reasons, I didn't sleep much the night before my flight. We had to leave by 7, and it was actually pretty easy to find the airport and get to where I needed to be. The staff are always helpful, anyway. So the plane was huge--a Boeing 747 if I remember it correctly. I was also able to meet a few fellow students before boarding. Somehow we kind of just stood out. Anyway, you have to check in first and they weigh and take your checked bag there. Mine was just under the limit at 49 lbs. Then you go through security at least a couple hours early, since you board about an hour early. I thought Delta did pretty well. 13 hours is a long flight and my legs were aching a bit from not moving. Also, the bathrooms on planes are...tiny, for one thing, and a bit frightening, if only because of the loud sound it makes when it flushes. It's not fun when you use it later in the trip, because they run out of water to wash your hands with.
Anyway, it was very easy going through customs. I'd read they do a short interview aside from doing a pic and getting your fingerprints, but they didn't do the interview. Which is fine by me. We were all in a big group and it wasn't even that busy, so there were no lines. The JCMU people were right outside the exit from the gates, and then we didn't even have to ship our luggage; the driver managed to fit them all in. Well, and after a 2 hour ride we arrived on campus and were greeted by he English students. I think a lot of us, if not all, are paired with a Japanese student. It appears as though I have a roommate too, but her one bag is here, and she is not. Maybe she went with the small group that went to the restaurant right beside the academic building. I would've gone, but I'm not hungry. Though it was airplane food, but we had 3 meals on the flight. Plus, I may not feel it, but I am a bit tired and probably in shock.
Did you know that it gets dark really early here? I guess in the summer it gets dark as early as 7 pm, and the sun rises at 4 am. I'm pretty sure it sets even earlier in the winter, too. So, it was dark already when we arrived, so I couldn't see much. Aside from seeing Japanese writing everywhere, I don't quite feel like I'm here. Oh, and we can't forget the whole driving in the opposite side of the road thing. It kept feeling like the cars were coming right at us because we were on the other side of the road. Even the sounds are the same, though. Maybe they're not exactly the same bugs, but they sound the same. There are still cars driving by. It'll really hit me the first time I can't communicate with someone.
So, famous is pretty small--the residence hall, academic building, and one other...No, that may have been a garden. I'll describe it more later, after I've seen it in the light.
Tomorrow is full of orientation and a city tour and getting our bikes and having a little party put on by the English students here. And then there's the placement test and a second orientation and something else I've forgotten. Then Thursday classes start. My elective doesn't even begin until October, though. Japanese classes are about 3 hours long, from 8:50 to about noon, I think.
All I know is it's going to be overwhelming at first as I try to adjust. I'm already worried about how to take my indoor shoes with me to the academic building, where we're having breakfast. Speaking if which, I need to get to bed. It's weird that it's 11:30 pm here, but back home it's earlier today, at 10:30 am. My mom was just heading to work when she messaged me, and I was gonna go to bed.
Well, I have a full week ahead of me, so ull leave a couple pics of us on the bus and of my not yet unpacked room.
So. As I lie here in my hopefully temporary bed (I want a host family) that I probably made wrong because there's one blanket that I'm not sure what it's for and another one I thought was a sheet but is shaped a bit oddly, I will try to recount the trip here.
For various reasons, I didn't sleep much the night before my flight. We had to leave by 7, and it was actually pretty easy to find the airport and get to where I needed to be. The staff are always helpful, anyway. So the plane was huge--a Boeing 747 if I remember it correctly. I was also able to meet a few fellow students before boarding. Somehow we kind of just stood out. Anyway, you have to check in first and they weigh and take your checked bag there. Mine was just under the limit at 49 lbs. Then you go through security at least a couple hours early, since you board about an hour early. I thought Delta did pretty well. 13 hours is a long flight and my legs were aching a bit from not moving. Also, the bathrooms on planes are...tiny, for one thing, and a bit frightening, if only because of the loud sound it makes when it flushes. It's not fun when you use it later in the trip, because they run out of water to wash your hands with.
Anyway, it was very easy going through customs. I'd read they do a short interview aside from doing a pic and getting your fingerprints, but they didn't do the interview. Which is fine by me. We were all in a big group and it wasn't even that busy, so there were no lines. The JCMU people were right outside the exit from the gates, and then we didn't even have to ship our luggage; the driver managed to fit them all in. Well, and after a 2 hour ride we arrived on campus and were greeted by he English students. I think a lot of us, if not all, are paired with a Japanese student. It appears as though I have a roommate too, but her one bag is here, and she is not. Maybe she went with the small group that went to the restaurant right beside the academic building. I would've gone, but I'm not hungry. Though it was airplane food, but we had 3 meals on the flight. Plus, I may not feel it, but I am a bit tired and probably in shock.
Did you know that it gets dark really early here? I guess in the summer it gets dark as early as 7 pm, and the sun rises at 4 am. I'm pretty sure it sets even earlier in the winter, too. So, it was dark already when we arrived, so I couldn't see much. Aside from seeing Japanese writing everywhere, I don't quite feel like I'm here. Oh, and we can't forget the whole driving in the opposite side of the road thing. It kept feeling like the cars were coming right at us because we were on the other side of the road. Even the sounds are the same, though. Maybe they're not exactly the same bugs, but they sound the same. There are still cars driving by. It'll really hit me the first time I can't communicate with someone.
So, famous is pretty small--the residence hall, academic building, and one other...No, that may have been a garden. I'll describe it more later, after I've seen it in the light.
Tomorrow is full of orientation and a city tour and getting our bikes and having a little party put on by the English students here. And then there's the placement test and a second orientation and something else I've forgotten. Then Thursday classes start. My elective doesn't even begin until October, though. Japanese classes are about 3 hours long, from 8:50 to about noon, I think.
All I know is it's going to be overwhelming at first as I try to adjust. I'm already worried about how to take my indoor shoes with me to the academic building, where we're having breakfast. Speaking if which, I need to get to bed. It's weird that it's 11:30 pm here, but back home it's earlier today, at 10:30 am. My mom was just heading to work when she messaged me, and I was gonna go to bed.
Well, I have a full week ahead of me, so ull leave a couple pics of us on the bus and of my not yet unpacked room.