Hello everyone, as I write this I'm sitting in my room on the 23rd floor of Keio Plaza Hotel. If you would like to check it out: http://www.keioplaza.com/index.html?gclid=CJuG8OS2q6oCFetMpgodhktrbw
Our flight was ten hours long, but we arrived at 5:00pm local time and got through immigration and customs with flying colors. More on that later- now we're going to go eat food and then fall asleep!
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Get Ready...Set...
Hello everyone! I'm writing from the floor of my parents' living room surrounded by my luggage. Alistair is packed away all safe and snug in one of my check-in boxes; I suspect I will have a more comfortable journey on the plane than he. Alas, the JET program does not have a travel allowance for alligators.
Anyway, t-minus five hours until my plane takes off, and then another ten hours until we arrive in Tokyo's Narita International Airport. I'll be sure to post another message once we've arrived. Until then,
日本に行きましょう！！！
Anyway, t-minus five hours until my plane takes off, and then another ten hours until we arrive in Tokyo's Narita International Airport. I'll be sure to post another message once we've arrived. Until then,
日本に行きましょう！！！
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Preparation
Hello from sunny Portland Oregon!
This is my first entry in this blog designed to chronicle my life in Japan in the upcoming year. Having never traveled out of the U.S. before, one might expect this to be a harrowing experience. Thankfully I am not traveling alone- I have my stuffed alligator "Alistair" who will be keeping me company and acting as my mascot while I'm abroad. We will be flying to Japan on the 30th, a little less than a week from now.
In addition to inflicting the adventures of a young man and his stuffed animal on the folks back home, I'm also intending to share tidbits about the culture that aren't generally included in textbooks or travel guides. For example you will doubtless hear about the lack of dish washers or clothes dryers in the average Japanese home, or the fact that bathrooms are often equipped with their own pair of slippers. Mundane differences that we take for granted in our own cultures. Hopefully this will be as interesting to follow as it will be to write!
Finally a bit of housekeeping: My Japanese was rudimentary at its best and I've had almost a year to lose it. If I post something in Japanese and you spot an error please email me so I can fix it!
-Andrew
This is my first entry in this blog designed to chronicle my life in Japan in the upcoming year. Having never traveled out of the U.S. before, one might expect this to be a harrowing experience. Thankfully I am not traveling alone- I have my stuffed alligator "Alistair" who will be keeping me company and acting as my mascot while I'm abroad. We will be flying to Japan on the 30th, a little less than a week from now.
In addition to inflicting the adventures of a young man and his stuffed animal on the folks back home, I'm also intending to share tidbits about the culture that aren't generally included in textbooks or travel guides. For example you will doubtless hear about the lack of dish washers or clothes dryers in the average Japanese home, or the fact that bathrooms are often equipped with their own pair of slippers. Mundane differences that we take for granted in our own cultures. Hopefully this will be as interesting to follow as it will be to write!
Finally a bit of housekeeping: My Japanese was rudimentary at its best and I've had almost a year to lose it. If I post something in Japanese and you spot an error please email me so I can fix it!
-Andrew
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