Wow..Japan is…Wow.
October 2, 2009
ellagoesglobal
Hello everyone! So…this is my blog. Exciting, ne? No, I didn’t think so either. I’ll make the writing a different colour…There. Far more riveting. I guess this’ll be the place you guys can all catch up on what I’m doing in Japan, or at least, what I am *trying* to do in Japan. I just hope that it won’t be too hideously boring.
So, let’s crack on shall we?
The first few days. Well, packing was a bit nightmarish, trying to work out what to take for a year’s trip to a country I’d never been to before was hard, and I ultimately ended up forgetting things – namely British to Japanese socket adaptors, handy little buggers of which I have one. And about a million appliances to use. Great one, El. But once that was done, I had the horrible task of saying goodbye to the family and friends. This involved getting hyper on a tasty meal prepared by my dear Mummy, then sticking chocolate matchmakers in our mouths to become walruses…like so.
It was fun. The trip to Heathrow was quite subdued as everyone was aware of my imminent departure. But when we arrived, it just seemed right. As though it was time for me to go. I was met by Fran, then Matt arrived, followed by Dan, and lastly by Hattie and her parents. Who so very kindly bought us all lunch! They were very kind!
The flight was….gruelling. Going over night seemed such a good idea, but in fact I was restless, and everyone else was either asleep or watching their little tellies. I couldn’t sleep for a while, I was too excited, and the telly was giving me a headache. So I was bored. Very bored. And 12 hours of boredom sucks. HOWEVER, on the plus side, we had so much legroom on the plane, it was unfathomable.
Anyway, the hours passed, and the closer to the land of the rising sun we became. We finally arrived at the local time of 11.56am, 30th September. We were very, very, jetlagged. Everyone was walking so fast, so Dan and I were skulking our way towards customs almost out of sight of the others. Customs was a breeze, had a retina scan, and had my fingerprints taken. And was checked for swine flu, not very thoroughly, thank god! When I emerged from the immigration area in Narita Airport, Satomi-chan and a gaggle of people all greeted us with screaming and cuddles, it was fantastic! The tutors are all so nice, and friendly. Also, very understanding of our tiredness, and lack of Japanese efficiency. Well, I’ll speak for myself there, MY lack of Japanese knowledge. I did try and speak Japanese though, it was very broken and slow, but they got the gist. Satomi-chan brought me such a cute present too, a little japanese phone charm, a little japanese lady bookmark and pencils 
So lovely!
Riding the trains was so fun too, it took about 2 hours to get to TUFS from Narita airport, and we were all knackered, but the views were stunning, and I was surrounded by lovely people, so it was fine. I did lose my blue hat along the way though, which made me so sad. So, so, sad. But n’rmind, eh? Worse things happen at sea. I bet they lose their hats all the time.
I fell asleep at about 9pm, and woke up at 7.30, which is not bad at all considering jet lag. Most people wake up at dawn. We were straight away out the door, we went in to Fuchu-shi, the local area of Tokyo that we live in, and sorted out our Alien Registration cards, or “Gaijin card” as Fred has informed me of local venacular. This was a tough feat, considering tiredness and japanese speaking being poor. It was all done in Japanese. We went afterward to sort out our Japanese health insurance. Again, all in Japanese. My poor brain. We then visited the local shrine, which was so beautiful. I prayed, and it felt so serene. The whole area just had a serenity about it, it’s hard to imagine. It made me feel a little giddy. Then the Leedszos, Kazuki-san (one of the tutors) and I went to grab a bite to eat at a lovely restaurant. I had such a tasty meal, it was chargrilled mackerel , with sticky rice, miso soup and all things yummy!!
Then later on, we went to Shinjuku, which was just TOTALLY awesome! Shinjuku is just like the photos of Tokyo you see with the neon lights, huge zebra crossings and millions of Japanese business men. Also, that’s something I’ve noticed, Japanese people dress so perfectly! They alway look pristine. Unlike a certain Ella I know. Haha.
Today, I woke up at 11.30am! It was soooo nice! And I scavenged some stuff from downstairs, which people from last year left, like a fan – which is necessary because the humidity is deadly here. A kettle for afternoon tea and instant noodles 
And bowls and knives etc Sooo good. ALSO, I rented a bike today, which those who know me will realise this is a huge feat, as I’m sooo bad at cycling. But it will be so fun, she’s beautiful, blue and has a basket on the front. GORGEOUS. She is called Aozora “The Destroyer” Kotsuki, the Japanese means “Little moon of the blue sky” . She’s my baby. Anyway, on that note, I’m going to head off in to the wilds of Fuchu for washing-up liquid shopping. Jyaa Mata ne!
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1.
Rachel |
October 2, 2009 at 15:06
Lovely my sweet alien, look forward to lots more,as you get started at uni don’t forget to study though!! LOVEXXXXXXXXXXX
2.
ellagoesglobal |
October 3, 2009 at 01:24
Thanks Mummy
I love the name Rachel-san hehe, but I’m afraid (sorry to be pedantic) but you don’t use san when referring to yourself Hehe 
Love you xxxx
3.
Martin |
October 2, 2009 at 09:32
Fab! You’ll be fluent before you know it at this rate!
4.
ellagoesglobal |
October 2, 2009 at 09:50
What…in English? Hehehe
5.
Lucy |
October 2, 2009 at 10:51
love it el!!, can’t beleive ur there already, i’ll enjoy reading ur updates hehe xxx
6.
Liv |
October 3, 2009 at 01:45
Wow this sounds amazing. Keep up the blog !!
xxx