Tokyo Orientation was July 29-31 at the Keio Plaza Hotel in Shinjuku. It was amazing to see all the JETs from all the different countries including parts of America, Ireland, the UK, Australia, Jamaica, and even France. I spoke French with the 3 French JETs (who are also fluent in English!) There were over a thousand of us, and that's only half, since the rest will come in group B this Wednesday and group C later on. Every day brought meetings, workshops, and ceremonies--general preparation for the life we're about to live and the students we're about to teach. The first night, I went out with some Gunma (my prefecture) people to Karaoke in Shinjuku. I love Karaoke and it was fun bonding with the new people :) (Only to get ripped apart from them days later as we went out to our respective cities.) The second night I was able to meet a group of my friends in Shinjuku where we went out to eat and walk around. I'm so glad I got to reunite with them and I'm surprised that I almost didn't even want it to happen because it was too much work coordinating it without a cell phone. But it ended up being fine! I love Tokyo but I think living there would be overwhelming. I love public transportation, convenience, and an abundance of things to do, but the slower pace of the suburbs suits me fine as well.
View from my hotel room
The Opening Ceremony was very formal.
Shinjuku at night
My fwends.
On Wednesday we took the 2-hour bus ride into Gunma where we all met our Contracting Organizations at the government office in the capital, Maebashi. Having been mostly indoors all day in Tokyo, the humid heat was stifling. It's hot, but I prefer it to winter's cold. After a few nervous introductions, my supervisors, along with my two neighbor-fellow-ALTs Chris and Laura, took me into my-town-that-doesn't-quite-feel-mine-yet of Shibukawa. I'm so accustomed to the first thing I see being the train station, but since we've been driving EVERYWHERE, I still haven't even see it yet. We signed some papers at city hall and at the Board of Education, where I met some more people. Then we went to my apartment so I could settle in and unpack. I tried so hard not to use the air conditioning, but the heat is so crazy intense that I broke down. I try to use it in short intervals, and not while I'm asleep, though I usually wake up in the night from the heat. I went to Daiso (my favorite store!) and the grocery store that night to get supplies, then some of the Shibukawa new & old ALTs went to dinner at a ramen place where they apparently go frequently. My first real Japanese dinner!
View from my front door area
My place.
Yeahhh, that bedspread came with the room. -__-
Thursday was another day of errands, trying-and-failing to get a cell phone because I don't have alien registration card yet, getting a bank account, signing more papers, and paying more fees. In Japan, bureaucracy is king. So much red tape to get through everything. Friday we visited my schools for the first time. They are small and some parts are a little dilapidated, but cute. I am very excited to be there, although the system is pretty foreign to me and nothing like an American elementary or middle school. This time was my crowning glory of awkward Japanese conversations and introductions. Most normal people who learn languages end up developing much higher listening than speaking skills, but because I'm weird, my speaking skills are higher than most other peoples', while my listening skills are worse. But when Japanese people hear my speaking, they assume I'm pro at listening, which I'm not. Also, I got offered a 2nd ice cream which I refused to be polite, and a split second later I remember that it's the polite thing to accept the offer, not refuse it. Whoops. But anyway, they gave me a cabbage. Gunma is famous for cabbage. Friday night I was lucky enough to go to Numata Matsuri (festival) with Helen, a departing ALT who has been here 5 years. Not only that but we went with her Japanese friends so I got to meet some real Shibukawa genuine Japanese people for the first time. :) The matsuri was really great: big dashi (...like floats?) going through the streets, dozens of people carrying wooden mikoshi, along with every type of street food you can imagine. I met some more of the gaijin (foreigner) community and watched all the different events. Summer is matsuri season!
Whee!
A dashi
A mikoshi.
Today I drove for the first time! It's not thaat scary except for you always have to be on guard to not accidentally drive on the right or turn wrong, and the roads are way narrower, and I still have to get used to the dimensions of my car. The turn signal is on the right, and I keep pawing at a phantom one on the left, as well as pawing at a phantom shift on the right (it's now on the left.) If you zone out and go on autopilot for a split second you'll end up in the wrong lane (which I almost did a couple times but caught myself.) I gotta go to know my town and the rules of the road. Also, if I want to stay two years, I've got to get a Japanese license, which means taking this crazy strict road test (most people fail at least 3 times, some people 6 or even 10 times.) Yikes!
Now I'm gonna go for a walk and try to scope out the station. I live 10min away.
I've gotten most of the housewares I need for my apartment, but still need some other things like an iron and some other storage things. But I think I am gonna wait until my paycheck...16 more days!
I'm gonna go to Takasaki Matsuri tomorrow and *hopefully* meet up with my friends who live there!
This is not like Nagasaki at all except for that people speak Japanese and the signs are in Japanese and stuff.
Enough word vomit for today. Future entries will not be like this.
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