Tokyo: Day 1

I arrived in Tokyo last night, travel weary and numb. After being ushered through customs, the baggage claim, and onto a bus, I got to the hotel where I somehow resisted the urge to fall into bed and sleep away the night. It was only 8:30 PM in Tokyo time and past experience has taught me to stay awake as long as possible. Deny the urge to sleep! Instead, I met up with some other JETs in the hotel lobby and we meandered out of the hotel and into the balmy Tokyo night. We found a noodle house where you pay for your selection at an automated teller before eating and sat down to a dinner of chicken cutlet over rice, miso soup, and cabbage salad - the chicken cutlet didn't look, or taste, like you'd expect. Welcome to a foreign country.

Anyway, I woke up at 6:30 this morning with a desire to explore, so I roused my already-awake roommate and we wandered the streets. This morning I found: three Starbucks, a homeless village in the park, thousands of pedestrians, and some interesting vending machines.

Now it's time for snore-ientation (what an awesome play on words!). Hopefully I'm lucid enough this evening to see a little more of the city before I head out and become too cheap to spend money and too afraid to ride buses or trains.

Vancouver, BC

It's 8:00 AM on a Saturday morning and you might ask what I am doing up so early. Well, I'm going to Vancouver! Right now I'm waiting for Kelli to pick me up along with Jess, Maggie, and Denise and we are going to spend a girly weekend in BC shopping, eating, and going-out. Also (and this is the best of all) we're going to the Vancouver aquarium - I can't wait to see the beluga whales. Damn, I'm such a nerd. Anyway, I can't seem to locate my camera, so I'll have to contrive a way to steal pictures from everyone else to post here. Maybe I'll also try to get some poutine when I'm up there. French fries with cheese and gravy is hard to come by south of the border. I think Kelli's here, so I have to go. Fingers crossed for no searches at the border!

Two weeks to JET!!!

It is officially my last day of work and two weeks until I leave for Japan. Where has the time gone? I remember getting my acceptance letter three months ago and thinking that I had eons to prepare . . . I'm really excited to get to Tokyo and wake up in the morning with the realization that I am somewhere new. I love the way traffic sounds in new cities - for some reason the sirens are always different and car horns are always a little louder. Heat feels hotter and smells are more powerful. It's hard to describe, but there's something extremely vibrant and energetic about enveloping yourself in a new culture - I obviously love this feeling. I'm also scared - I don't know Japanese, I don't know much about where I'll be going, I'm leaving behind my family and friends and my boyfriend . . . Sometimes I wish I could flip to the end and find out what happens (but that would be cheating). Anyway, wish me luck. In 45 minutes, my last day of work will be over and the true countdown will begin.

My blog is growing mold

I think that I've left my blog unattended for too long. I've been so busy lately trying to get everything taken care of before the big move to Japan that I've neglected my little ego-based web project. I leave in a little less than three weeks - crazy! So far I have NOT: sold my car, packed my apartment, signed the necessary paperwork, learned Japanese, kissed my Mom goodbye, or piled anything on my bedroom floor. In fact, this might be the only list I have made on the subject. I am totally and completely underprepared and totally and completely stressed-out about it. Wish me luck! I leave for Texas in one week and only have one more week following my return to get everything taken care of.

This said, I'm told I'll have copious free time in Japan, so I'll be updating my blog hourly and checking it obsessively for comments. Let this be a warning to you.