arrival in Omagari

I arrived in Omagari on Wednesday and I was met at the airport by my supervisor at the high school I ll be working at, his name is sensei Kan. Omagari is located in the Akita Ken prefecture of Japan, it is a very rural area with the main industry being rice farming. It is very humid and rainy in the summer which makes for good rice growing conditions. As soon as we left the airport, I noticed how rural the area is. Although I am in a city, it is a rural city with a population of 90,000. However the people are spread out and you would never know how large it is. I was expecting to be in a city, surrounded by people, resterauants, bars, etc That is defintiely not the living situation I will have. I live in a small two bedroom apt , probabally 400 sq ft. It is close to my school and the train station but not much else. I will not have a car for the next year so I ll walk and ride a bike to get around. The school I am working at is 100 yrs old and has around 700 students. It does not have ac or central heating which is true of most places here. It is a little hot in the school for me , but I can adjust, the winter will be the big challenge. The best way I can describe my situation is if someone was placed in mesa, az or windsor locks , ct but everything is in japanese. I mean everything and they use kanji which is a symbol system of writing so it makes it that much more difficult. Small things we take for granted like grocery shopping, going to resteraunts, reading lables are very difficult tasks for someone with no grasp of the language or writing. I am pretty much on my own in terms of other foreigner, there are other western teachers in the area but they are all a car ride away. So i ll be on my own until I can make some friends. It really will be the biggest challenge of my life, I almost lost it the other day because the frustration of figuring everything out, its like being born into another culture. I was able to regain control of myself and am looking forward to the challenge. The way I kept sane yesterday was to explore the immediate area, I went to a small ramen noodle restaurant by myself and had soup and green tea, it was pouring rain outside and fairly cold so the meal was both warmth and comfort. I finally got around to cleaning my apartment and making it my own which helped ease the loneliness. Although a challenge I was able to do some p90x and it felt good to be here. Since there is no tv or Internet in my apartment yet, I have to rent movies on itunes at school and watch them at home. I rented hot tub time machine and it wasnt funny but was the best movie I saw in a long time due to my circumstances.

Leaving Tokyo

Well its my last day in Tokyo, I have spent three days here and am now traveling to my host city. This means no more comforts of a nice hotel, Internet, cable, friends, English speakers. I will be on my own for awhile till I get acclimated and meet others in my area. Its quite scary... My time in Tokyo has been great , made some great friends, got to experience the city, and have eaten wonderful food. I went out Monday night and got very very drunk, we went to an all you can eat/drink for 25 $ followed by a bar called the Colorado Pub, then to my first experience with Karaoke. Karaoke here is much different then the states, you get your own karoke room with your friends and sing and drink as much as you want per hour. It was a blast, we belted out billy joel, springsteen, amongst others. Tuesday was rough, I did however get to go to a sushi place where the sushi is made fresh and then put on a conveyor belt and you can pick various dishes off the belt. I also got to see the "times square of Tokyo". I had my first experience with culture shock, ordering food and using the subway where quite the challenge, luckily I had a few friends with me to help me out , dont know what I ll do when I am on my own.....

Tokyo Day one

Arrived at 8pm to the Keio plaza hotel in Tokyo, we skipped July 25th when we crossed the international date line, so we got here a July 26th. its been a very overwhelming process, there are 600 of us here from all over the world, most of these people are going all over Japan and I wont see most of them again. I spent last night enjoying my first Japanese meal, pork and noodles, and washed it down with two Japanese beers. I went to bed no problem, but woke up extremely early at 5 30 am. Went to use the hotel gym which sucked, thank god I brought p90x! I think I m the only tool here that brought a workout system with him. Oh well, I look like hulk hogan compared to everyone so its pretty awesome. My next two days are filled with conferences and other bullshit, then i leave for my home for the next year Akita, Japan specifically in Deisen city in a town called Omagari. I think I explained before but Akita is the prefecture like a state, Deisen is the city like Phoenix, and Omagari is the town like scottsdale. I am looking forward to going up there and getting to explore the area , falling into a routine,and starting work. The kids are actually on vacation till august 30th so I will hopefully use the time to plan lessons with my teacher or drink a lot. I hope to explore Tokyo tonight and by that I mean drink sake and sing karaoke.

airport

at the airport, anxiously waiting for this flight. Its ten hours to Tokyo, then i will be there for four days for conferences. I fly to my host city, (Omagari) in the Akita prefecture of Japan. Prefectures are like regions or states and Omagari will be my city. I wont have phone or Internet for a few days, maybe longer so I wont be able to check in till then. Hope someone is reading this, check for photos on facebook.

One day to go

I leave for L.A. tomorrow then to Japan on Saturday, it still hasnt sunk in that i ll be in Japan in two days. I have started packing and cant help thinking I am forgetting things. The weight and luggage restrictions are very strict and I have left many things at home. I am only bringing the essentials and if I need anything I ll have to ship it. Left on my list of things to do before I leave, load ipods, last minute shopping, finish packing, double check important emails, get sleeping pills, go to dinner with friends, and.....I am sure I am leaving something out.

They told me that for the first few days/weeks it will be hard to communicate with friends and family, I hope I can at least email, and/or use skype. If you dont have skype get it. Its the cheapest and easiest way to communicate. Till next time

darren

One week to go

It just hit me that I am leaving for Japan in one week, this country will be my home for the next year, possibly longer. I have so much to do, buy personal items, pack, take care of matters at home, ship my winter things over, say bye to friends , family, and loved ones. I will be relieved when I am sitting on the plane in Los Angeles. I will be arriving in Tokyo July 25th and will be in my home city, Akita-Ken, July 28th. I am located a couple hours north of Tokyo where its "cold and long winters, hot and humid summers, and beautiful changing of the seasons" Akita is also known for having the largest sake breweries and most beautiful women in Japan. The official website is http://www.pref.akita.jp/e/ , I hope you check it out. Well wish me luck and keep in touch, pictures and updatd info to come!
-darren