I'm writing this entry from the computer room in Seminar House 4, where I'll be staying for orientation week.
I can't believe I'm in Japan. I think I'm a lot more relaxed about it than I should be. Maybe I'm in denial? Or maybe it's because everyone here so far speaks english and most students are just as confused as I am.
The dorm is super nice. Everything is stunningly clean, and the rooms are big. The bathroom facilities are also pretty great. The shower area is really cool and, of course, there are unnecessarily high-tech toilets.
My roommates haven't arrived yet, but I suspect we'll have a major influx of students tomorrow (when the pick-up service resumes). I walked around the town today, but I have yet to be on campus. There's a campus tour tomorrow, so I'll go on that. I haven't really spoken much Japanese so far. Mostly I'm getting to know everyone at this point. Japanese will come after I have a couple contacts and friends. Speaking of friends, I've met some really nice people so far...we're trying to organize a Karaoke night.
This is my first free moment to get online. I totally forgot that Kansai Gaidai has no wireless service, so I need to buy an ethernet cable. I forgot mine at home.
Other important thing I forgot? A towel. There are no words for the foolishness I feel. I bought a little towel at the hundren yen store (think dollar store) this morning, which will make tonight's shower more bearable.
I'm also feeling a little unprepared because the weather is incredibly hot and humid. I brought mostly fall-weather clothes. I've heard that it cools down a lot mid-September, but until then, I'm going to be rotating out t-shirts with my blue jeans (ugh) and my one pair of shorts.
I feel very out of touch right now...having no personal internet and no cell phone is unnerving. The process for getting a cell phone is pretty complicated, but apparently my host family will help me with that. Unfortunately that means I have a week without a phone. But tomorrow I'm getting my ethernet cable, so I'll be able to Skype everyone then! My Skype screenname is Bluefire310 - call me!
No pictures in this post, since this is a public computer. I'll post some as soon as I get access on my laptop.
I felt so strung out, hungry, tired, and lonely last night, but things are really looking up now. Things are overwhelming, but everyone has been so helpful and friendly so far! I feel a lot better now.
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Friday, August 29, 2008
Getting Started
I can't believe I'm going to Japan tomorrow! Ahhhh!
I'm going to be studying at Kansai Gaidai, an international university in Osaka, for the fall semester of my junior year. I'll be living with a host family, but I'm not going to find out anything about them until I get through orientation week at the university. I really hope my family is cool! I had the most wonderful host family when I spent July 2004 in the town of Konosu. I'm hoping that I'll have some little host siblings this time around - I think I might feel less awkward butchering Japanese in front of a child. Or more awkward, since they'll be more fluent than me.
I'm majoring in East Asian Studies, with a concentration in Japanese, so I'm primarily doing this to work on my language skills. The course catalog has been available all summer, and the selection looks great! I can take a maximum of five courses (Japanese Reading & Writing and Speaking, plus three others). At this point, I have about 10 courses written down that look really fun. I don't think I can go wrong - it's just a matter of what fits into my schedule when I sign up during orientation. There's one studio art class I'd love to take on Japanese pottery, but I hear it's hard to get in to. A few of the classes I want to take are: Pop Culture, Art History (complete with tours of museums and temples), Body Language, The Cultural Role of Women, and Cinema History.
I finished most of my packing last night, though I still have a few more things to tackle. I need to pack up my cosmetics, toiletries, and electronics... I also need to buy a last-minute pair of blue jeans, since apparently I threw all my old ones out or hid them.
It's weird, I spent all summer thinking that the day before I left would be one drawn-out panic attack, but I feel just fine. Definitely a pleasant surprise.
Just in case I start stressing on the plane, I'm bringing Fresh Seal (on the left) along. He is incredibly soft and fun to pet, and he always makes me feel better.
At this point, I think I'm the perfect blend of excited and terrified. I'm a little worried about getting by on my Japanese (I'm way better reading and writing than I am speaking), but I am positive that I can work through it, and that the overall experience will be amazing. One thing I probably should've done...look through my Japanese textbooks. There will be placement tests which, at this point in time, will not go well. I guess I can haul Genki I & II onto the plane to brush up.
I'm waking up tomorrow at 3am to catch my flight to California. I can't decide if I want to go to bed super early or pull an all nighter.
----------------
I'm going to try to update this blog weekly. I have no idea what my internet availability will be while I'm abroad, but I'll do my best to keep everyone informed!
I'm going to be studying at Kansai Gaidai, an international university in Osaka, for the fall semester of my junior year. I'll be living with a host family, but I'm not going to find out anything about them until I get through orientation week at the university. I really hope my family is cool! I had the most wonderful host family when I spent July 2004 in the town of Konosu. I'm hoping that I'll have some little host siblings this time around - I think I might feel less awkward butchering Japanese in front of a child. Or more awkward, since they'll be more fluent than me.
I'm majoring in East Asian Studies, with a concentration in Japanese, so I'm primarily doing this to work on my language skills. The course catalog has been available all summer, and the selection looks great! I can take a maximum of five courses (Japanese Reading & Writing and Speaking, plus three others). At this point, I have about 10 courses written down that look really fun. I don't think I can go wrong - it's just a matter of what fits into my schedule when I sign up during orientation. There's one studio art class I'd love to take on Japanese pottery, but I hear it's hard to get in to. A few of the classes I want to take are: Pop Culture, Art History (complete with tours of museums and temples), Body Language, The Cultural Role of Women, and Cinema History.
I finished most of my packing last night, though I still have a few more things to tackle. I need to pack up my cosmetics, toiletries, and electronics... I also need to buy a last-minute pair of blue jeans, since apparently I threw all my old ones out or hid them.
It's weird, I spent all summer thinking that the day before I left would be one drawn-out panic attack, but I feel just fine. Definitely a pleasant surprise.Just in case I start stressing on the plane, I'm bringing Fresh Seal (on the left) along. He is incredibly soft and fun to pet, and he always makes me feel better.
At this point, I think I'm the perfect blend of excited and terrified. I'm a little worried about getting by on my Japanese (I'm way better reading and writing than I am speaking), but I am positive that I can work through it, and that the overall experience will be amazing. One thing I probably should've done...look through my Japanese textbooks. There will be placement tests which, at this point in time, will not go well. I guess I can haul Genki I & II onto the plane to brush up.
I'm waking up tomorrow at 3am to catch my flight to California. I can't decide if I want to go to bed super early or pull an all nighter.
----------------
I'm going to try to update this blog weekly. I have no idea what my internet availability will be while I'm abroad, but I'll do my best to keep everyone informed!
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