6/20
Creative Titles, no?
I'm so tired but I have so much to tell all of you! Both yesterday and today were a blast.
Yesterday me and my mom and Sister all went shopping for various things. We had to buy school supplies and my train pass. I now own a pair of those white slipper shoes that are my school inside shoes. ^^ we also went to a clothes store and we bout some things. Ironically I bought a t shirt with the American flag. XD. Haha. Omg all the bras here have pads. All of them. Even the cami's are padded. And the shoes too. All of them have at least a tiny heel. At the bookstore we went to there was a manga. It was then that I discovered that loveless volume 10 had been released. Needless to say but I totally spazzed out a bit in front of my host family. Luckly they thought it was cute. XD. But best of all we went to a used manga store. MANGA IS SO FUCKING CHEEP HERE. Is about 100¥ for one volume used. I bought 32 volumes for about 20 US dollars. That's just ridiculous. I was so happy. That store was like heaven. <3
Then for dinner we went to grandmother and grandfathers house. We ate sushi. It was delicious. They were really nice. They didn't speak any English but we could still communicate okay. I'm finding the language barrier not as big as I thought it would be. Then I played othello with my host brother. We had a lot of fun. We also played catch together. :)
Things I learned that day:
-there are only trashcans by vending machines
-the school uniform includes special inside shooes
-How to play othello
-The Cars here are small
6/20/2011
Day 3
6/19/2011
Technical Dificulties
Thank you,
P.S Japan is AWESOME
6/12/2011
And I'm off!
On the plane to CA for a three day orientation. XD I am so excited! And then- JAPAN!
Yesterday I called my host family. They seemed really nice. I talked to the mother and the daughter. It was sorta awkward but mostly just silly and happy. We had a broken conversation, talked about the weather, food, excitement and when I was to arrive. Then I tried to say "I don't want to keep you up- I know it's late there so if you need to sleep go ahead" but I had no idea. Haha it was so embarrassing and silly. I ended up saying that in English (they speak very little but I tried) as well as saying in Japanese "when you say "may I go to sleep" i say "of corse"" *facepalm* I don't think I got the message across that's okay. Haha. And then at one point I was asked I I eat something- I think eggs but I'm not sure. And I said sure. So I agreed to eat something. Haha I suppose I'll find out what! But it was cool. I can't wait to meet them in person!
While in japan I cannot text so for those readers whom this is relevant to- don't XD i love y'all but it's expensive. Facebook and email are fine tho. And if we make a plan I do have a calling card I can use. :)
:3 it's so unreal. I can't believe I'm almost in japan. It's so crazy.
6/03/2011
Japan Here I Come! 9 more days
Yesterday I received information on my host family. :D I won't mention names or specific locations or anything for privacy's sake, but I am really excited. I will be living with a man and a woman and their two kids, one boy and one girl, south of Osaka. How cool is that? And I will be attending high school with their daughter. I hope we can become friends. I'm so happy. ^^ only 9 days! Well, actually its about 14 till I meet them because of orientations and whatnot, but still! Omg this trip is going to be so cool. And Osaka is just south of Kyoto so maybe I can visit some old temples. And sensei tells me that the town I am in is right near an onsen (natural hot spring) coast so I should visit one. I'm so nervous X3 and happy. I have a pre-departure orientation this weekend. So that's gonna be good. I just can't wait to meet my host family. I hope we get along. I wonder what kind of people they are. I'm so curious. I am almost done with the photo album I am making for them. I wonder what else I should bring. I'll ask them when I call them if they want anything specific. XD omg it's so close I can taste it. I'm so excited. Nervous- yes. Scared- of course. Excited and happy as hell? OF COURSE! :)
9 Days till departure
4/29/2011
43 More Days
On June 12th I will be flying out to California for the JAFS Orientation. The orientation lasts till the 15th which is when I will be flying to Japan. I will be there for six weeks and will return to the states on July 27th.
I am so excited! I cannot wait! I wonder what it is going to be like.... :3
I dont know where in Japan I am going yet. I have concerns relating to the tsunami that recently occurred in Japan. My heart goes out to Japan and all those affected by the disaster. I am most worried by the nuclear power plant and how that has/is/will affect the country, the people and the environment. I know that I will have to be careful while there. I know that due to this natural disaster I am not going to be placed within 100 km of Fukushima Plant, nor in Ibaraki, Iwate, Miyagi or Fukushima prefectures. Of course, My thoughts are with those affected by this disaster and wish a speedy recovery.
There are 43 more days till I leave for my trip. I am so excited!
I will post again when I receive more information on my stay, host family and location.
3/23/2011
The Beginning
I am Sarah. Also known as Nameless14. This blog is dedicated to writing and sharing about my journey to Japan. This summer, 2011, I will be going to Japan through the YFU exchange program. I will be staying with a japanese family for (about) six weeks. This is about my experiences. My travels. My story.
I have been studying japanese for the past three years. 「はじめまして」(Nice to meet you!) My original reason for wanting to study Japanese was so I would not have to wait for games, manga and anime and Japanese books to be translated. And so I could understand/read/play the things that are not being translated. (Specifically a few books that are not being released in English as well as a series of video games that was never translated.) This reason has changed and evolved over the years. I learned my first Japanese words from my swim instructor, back when I was on the YMCA youth race team, the Piranhas. He taught me how to count up to forty. I must have been in 1stgrade at the time. I was a huge sailor moon fan and I didn't like waiting for the books to come out. Hahaha~ Then my mom signed me up for karate classes. As I grew older my reasons evolved from just not wanting to wait for a book to wanting to go to Japan and experience all the things there. I knew that I would not be able to really experience Japan without being able to speak the language. This summer I have the opportunity to travel to Japan. While I was being interviewed for this program, my interviewer suggested that I blog my journey. What a good idea! And here I am. . .
I am extremely excited to go to Japan. This is something I have wanted to do since childhood. I so grateful to have this opportunity. I love Japan, and Japanese culture. Now their are aspects I do not like. For example there xenophobia, fear of difference (In japanese, the word for 'different' and the word for 'wrong' are the same. What does that tell you?) and sexism. However, I love manga and anime and many other aspects of their culture. (History, Art, Folklore and more). I love manga and anime for the same reason I love books. For the story, for the character and for the message the author is sharing with the reader. Manga expresses stories in a much different way than American comics do. For one there is a lot more variety in subject matter. Manny American comics are hero-oriented, As well as being less prominent and less often made. Most American comics are of things I myself cannot relate to. Manga on the other hand, is able to express through words and art many different messages and experiences. And that is something I love. My desire to go to Japan is that of experience. I want to go to the country to see what its like. I want to attend Japanese school. How will it be different from here in America? I want to experience what its like to live in another country. How will it be different than here, from New York? How will it be similar? What about the fashions in Japan? Gothic Lolita? What about cosplay? How is the cosplay scene different in Japan, than America? How about daily life? What will be different? And what will be similar? These are all things I want to know and experience. It has always seemed so far away. But now it is happening. And I can't wait!