6 month review.
Hello again from Japan,
I've been doing a bit of reflecting and thinking lately about my time here so far, because...I've been in Japan for 6 months now!! Where has that time gone?
I thought I'd write a quick review of what I've done in the first 6 months, from the interesting places I've visited, to the mundane achievements you celebrate when you do it in a foreign country. I may also include a few things I have come to love about Japan, and take for granted after 6 months. So here we go...
Teaching English, and meeting a whole bunch of incredible students of all ages and with a wide range of backgrounds, interests and English abilities. This is something that seems obvious but I actually almost forgot to include, because it is my job and it doesn't seem that interesting day to day, but now that I think about it, I've met some really lovely students, and I have gained experience in teaching. I have also got to share information on New Zealand, New Zealand culture, and my perspective on living in Japan with them, and I find them so interesting to talk to. I hope they feel the same way about talking to me and hearing my thoughts. Finding out how much they already know about New Zealand is always funny too. Generally, rugby, Lord of the Rings and sheep are the three most common things they think of when they hear I'm from New Zealand, which I suppose is a fairly accurate summary. I always get asked "Is it true there are more sheep than people in New Zealand?", to which I reply yes, there are about 5 times more sheep than people, and they give me a look of disbelief and then laugh. They simply cannot fathom that the entire country has half the population of Tokyo. So I feel like I am in some way opening their eyes to a world outside of their Japan bubble, which is amazing.
Visted Yokohama. I really like Yokohama, and the vibe there is far more relaxed and chilled out than Tokyo. It's by the sea too which is such a nice change from a concrete jungle.
Visited Kamakura and Enoshima. These two places are both beautiful and I would 100% recommend visiting this area if you're in Japan. So much history and really beautiful scenery. Definitely want to come back here.
Visited Iiyama, Nagano prefecture. Iiyama is where a family friend lives, so I went to stay with him back in March, and it is hella rural! So interesting to see the Japanese countryside and the different landscapes. The snow monkeys here were a cute bonus too!
Visited Oarai, Ibaraki prefecture. Although this was only a short visit (like an hour haha), it was also very rural here, but in a different way to Iiyama. The Japanese countryside is really diverse, so I've loved experiencing that. This is also true for Mount Nokogiri, which was a great day trip into Chiba prefecture.
Tried some interesting foods! Foods I've tried include umeboshi (pickled plum), takoyaki (octopus balls), mentaiko (cod roe) and a few others. I have definitely branched out when it comes to food since moving here, and trying new cooking methods, like shabu shabu (hotpot) and yakiniku (Japanese bbq) has been exciting too. Going out to eat here is more of a shared experience, and you share many small dishes, and try everything, whereas back home everyone chooses their own meal. I think now I prefer the shared style of eating and ordering at restaurants.
Tried some amazing seafood in the world at Tsukiji fish market! A couple of weeks ago, I made it to Tsukiji fish market and had some awesome seafood for lunch. It's one of the most famous fish markets in Japan and I think even the world, so the sushi is world class!
Had Strong Zeros. These are alcoholic drinks known as chuhais you can buy in convenience stores in Japan, and as the name suggests, they are strong. 9% to be exact. They are very dangerous because they come in many flavours, so you have to sample them all, right? My favourite is peach and mango, but it can be hard to find. This leads to my next experience, which is trying Japanese sake! Nihonshu and shochu are probably the two most popular types of sake. Shochu is strong! It does not take much of that stuff to get me tipsy, let me tell you. But Nihonshu is a bit milder and a bit more enjoyable... :P
Paid my bills in a foreign country. Adult level 100 right here. Luckily it's super easy in Japan, you just take them to the convenience store, but it's still an achievement, am I right?
Gone to the doctor in a foreign country. This one is adult level 150. The doctors I've seen spoke English, but my main problem was reception staff who didn't speak any English. Kinda difficult when they're the first person you see. Anyway... moving along.
Gone to karaoke! In New Zealand, karaoke isn't a really popular thing to do on a night out, but here in Japan, it is extremely popular! There are karaoke places everywhere, and many of them offer an all you can drink option, so you just keep ordering drinks over the phone until your time is up. Belting out some ABBA, Beyonce and Backstreet Boys while the drinks keep coming? Living the dream in my books.
Been to a themed restaurant. I've been to the Kawaii moster cafe in Harajuku, and it is crazy! There are performances, weird themed food and drinks and the place looks like something out of the movie Trolls. Also, there are so many animal cafes here! I've been to a cat cafe, as I miss my two cats back home, but would love to try a dog cafe or even an owl cafe. The robot restaurant in Shinjuku is also supposed to be a surreal experience, so I'd love to go there too.
Understanding more Japanese. My reading of hiragana and katakana has gotten a lot better since I first arrived, and I can understand more of what people are saying to me. Although I still have a very long way to go, especially when it comes to practicing my speaking, and increasing my vocabulary. Working on it...
Attended a hanami! A hanami is a cherry blossom viewing party, where people gather in parks and have a picnic with some drinks and enjoy the beautiful cherry blossoms and slightly warmer temperatures. Hanami is a fun part of spring in Japan, and an important part of Japanese culture.
Fallen in love with convenience stores! In New Zealand, convenience store are not all that common. We only have one 24 hour chain of convenience store (Night and Day), and there may only be one or two in towns ,and in cities, they're kinda spread out. But here, there are 3 major chains (7 Eleven, Family Mart and Lawson) that are open 24/7 and there's literally one around every corner. They sell decent meals (pasta salads, soba, bento boxes, sushi, hot food, everything!) , interesting snacks (I just tried aloe vera yoghurt-it's delicious FYI) and you can pay your bills there too! This is definitely one thing I now take for granted about living in Japan that I will miss when I leave, whenever that may be...
Mastered public transport! There is no better feeling than arriving at the platform the minute your train arrives, seriously. Before I came to Japan, I had only used public trains and buses a handful of times, but now I use trains every day. I now know exactly what time my last train is from many places, I know my way to the major touristy spots in Tokyo and exactly how long it takes to get there from home. Going from being able to drive yourself anywhere you want to go to relying on public transport has been a change, that's for sure, but the fact that everything is always on time here really helps. I do miss driving from time to time though.
Gone on a bullet train, or shinkansen. These are high speed! I'll give an example. It takes about an hour to drive from Queenstown to Wanaka. If there was a shinkansen, it would take about 10-15 minutes! They are so good!
Been to Disney Sea. In Tokyo, not only is there Tokyo Disneyland, but there's also Tokyo Disney Sea! Tokyo Disney Sea doesn't have the likes of Splash Mountain, Space Mountain or It's a Small World, but it does have the Tower of Terror, Indiana Jones and Journey to the Centre of the Earth. Unfortunately, the day I went, Journey to the Centre of the Earth was closed, but there's also Mermaid Lagoon to explore, the Arabian Coast, where you can meet Jasmine, and unlike Disneyland, restaurants at Disney Sea serve alcohol! There are also many, many souvenir shops to purchase all the Disney paraphernalia your heart desires, as well as some weird and wonderful flavours of popcorn, including curry, strawberry and chocolate. However, these often smell better than they taste. We tried the strawberry one and it wasn't that strongly flavoured, but was still nice! In all honesty, you could spend 2 days here before you covered everything-it was huge. It was a great day, despite the heat, and I'd highly recommend checking it out! I would definitely love to check out Disneyland sometime too. New Zealand isn't exactly known for it's theme parks, so having 2 massive ones about 30-40 mins away from me is an opportunity not to be missed! Photos to come on Facebook.
Survived the Japanese winter. For me, I came from summer to winter, and it was a bit of a shock, and Japanese winters are no joke! However, I've always lived in places that are extremely cold in winter (not just talking about Wanaka, but also Dunedin student flats....), so it didn't take a lot of getting used to. The thing I'm going to struggle with is surviving the summer! I've got 2 months of 30 degrees every day plus humidity to look forward to-wish me luck...
Looking ahead...
There is so much travelling around Japan I want to do! I am so keen to head to Osaka, Kyoto, Nara, Kobe, Hiroshima, Tottori... The list goes on! I hope that this year I will get to Osaka, Kyoto and Nara. The temples there look amazing, and of course, there's Universal Studios in Osaka! I'm also heading to Kanazawa in August, which I'm excited about! I don't see myself getting all the way to Hiroshima this year as it is just that bit further away from Tokyo and a bit harder to get to. Hopefully next year. If that gives you any hints as to what my plans are for 2019... ;) In terms of experiencing Japanese culture, I would love to go to an onsen, and do a homestay while travelling. I also want to do more day trips to places like Hakone, Kawaguchiko, Nikko and Saitama. Korea is also on my list as it is so close to Japan, but different in terms of the culture, the food and the people, so I'd love to check out Korea while I'm living here and it's so convenient. I also need to keep studying and practicing the language.
I can't believe I've made it 6 months living and working in a foreign country, no less Japan where the culture and language are so totally different to my own. If you'd told me a year ago that I would be doing all of these things, I probably wouldn't have believed you. The time has gone so fast, and day by day I don't feel like I do a lot, but looking back I realise exactly how much I've done and what I've accomplished. I feel like I have acclimated to Japan life now, even though I'll never totally fit in, and I think if I went back to New Zealand tomorrow, there would be so much that would feel foreign to me now. Being able to understand everything being said around me on the streets and in cafes and restaurants after 6 months of understanding almost nothing would take some adjusting, as would being asked for ID when buying alcohol, among other things. When I do go back to NZ, I'm expecting reverse culture shock to hit like a tonne of bricks! My time here so far certainly hasn't all been smooth sailing, that's for sure, and I'm sure there will be more difficult times to come, but I've met some amazing people along the way and had some amazing experiences and wouldn't change anything about the past 6 months.
So that's a recap of my first 6 months here, crazy how time flies when you're having fun, or just doing day to day life. Either way, I can't wait to see where the next half of this year takes me, and thanks for following my journey so far!
I've been doing a bit of reflecting and thinking lately about my time here so far, because...I've been in Japan for 6 months now!! Where has that time gone?
I thought I'd write a quick review of what I've done in the first 6 months, from the interesting places I've visited, to the mundane achievements you celebrate when you do it in a foreign country. I may also include a few things I have come to love about Japan, and take for granted after 6 months. So here we go...
Teaching English, and meeting a whole bunch of incredible students of all ages and with a wide range of backgrounds, interests and English abilities. This is something that seems obvious but I actually almost forgot to include, because it is my job and it doesn't seem that interesting day to day, but now that I think about it, I've met some really lovely students, and I have gained experience in teaching. I have also got to share information on New Zealand, New Zealand culture, and my perspective on living in Japan with them, and I find them so interesting to talk to. I hope they feel the same way about talking to me and hearing my thoughts. Finding out how much they already know about New Zealand is always funny too. Generally, rugby, Lord of the Rings and sheep are the three most common things they think of when they hear I'm from New Zealand, which I suppose is a fairly accurate summary. I always get asked "Is it true there are more sheep than people in New Zealand?", to which I reply yes, there are about 5 times more sheep than people, and they give me a look of disbelief and then laugh. They simply cannot fathom that the entire country has half the population of Tokyo. So I feel like I am in some way opening their eyes to a world outside of their Japan bubble, which is amazing.
Visted Yokohama. I really like Yokohama, and the vibe there is far more relaxed and chilled out than Tokyo. It's by the sea too which is such a nice change from a concrete jungle.
Visited Kamakura and Enoshima. These two places are both beautiful and I would 100% recommend visiting this area if you're in Japan. So much history and really beautiful scenery. Definitely want to come back here.
Visited Iiyama, Nagano prefecture. Iiyama is where a family friend lives, so I went to stay with him back in March, and it is hella rural! So interesting to see the Japanese countryside and the different landscapes. The snow monkeys here were a cute bonus too!
Visited Oarai, Ibaraki prefecture. Although this was only a short visit (like an hour haha), it was also very rural here, but in a different way to Iiyama. The Japanese countryside is really diverse, so I've loved experiencing that. This is also true for Mount Nokogiri, which was a great day trip into Chiba prefecture.
Tried some interesting foods! Foods I've tried include umeboshi (pickled plum), takoyaki (octopus balls), mentaiko (cod roe) and a few others. I have definitely branched out when it comes to food since moving here, and trying new cooking methods, like shabu shabu (hotpot) and yakiniku (Japanese bbq) has been exciting too. Going out to eat here is more of a shared experience, and you share many small dishes, and try everything, whereas back home everyone chooses their own meal. I think now I prefer the shared style of eating and ordering at restaurants.
Tried some amazing seafood in the world at Tsukiji fish market! A couple of weeks ago, I made it to Tsukiji fish market and had some awesome seafood for lunch. It's one of the most famous fish markets in Japan and I think even the world, so the sushi is world class!
Had Strong Zeros. These are alcoholic drinks known as chuhais you can buy in convenience stores in Japan, and as the name suggests, they are strong. 9% to be exact. They are very dangerous because they come in many flavours, so you have to sample them all, right? My favourite is peach and mango, but it can be hard to find. This leads to my next experience, which is trying Japanese sake! Nihonshu and shochu are probably the two most popular types of sake. Shochu is strong! It does not take much of that stuff to get me tipsy, let me tell you. But Nihonshu is a bit milder and a bit more enjoyable... :P
Paid my bills in a foreign country. Adult level 100 right here. Luckily it's super easy in Japan, you just take them to the convenience store, but it's still an achievement, am I right?
Gone to the doctor in a foreign country. This one is adult level 150. The doctors I've seen spoke English, but my main problem was reception staff who didn't speak any English. Kinda difficult when they're the first person you see. Anyway... moving along.
Gone to karaoke! In New Zealand, karaoke isn't a really popular thing to do on a night out, but here in Japan, it is extremely popular! There are karaoke places everywhere, and many of them offer an all you can drink option, so you just keep ordering drinks over the phone until your time is up. Belting out some ABBA, Beyonce and Backstreet Boys while the drinks keep coming? Living the dream in my books.
Been to a themed restaurant. I've been to the Kawaii moster cafe in Harajuku, and it is crazy! There are performances, weird themed food and drinks and the place looks like something out of the movie Trolls. Also, there are so many animal cafes here! I've been to a cat cafe, as I miss my two cats back home, but would love to try a dog cafe or even an owl cafe. The robot restaurant in Shinjuku is also supposed to be a surreal experience, so I'd love to go there too.
Understanding more Japanese. My reading of hiragana and katakana has gotten a lot better since I first arrived, and I can understand more of what people are saying to me. Although I still have a very long way to go, especially when it comes to practicing my speaking, and increasing my vocabulary. Working on it...
Attended a hanami! A hanami is a cherry blossom viewing party, where people gather in parks and have a picnic with some drinks and enjoy the beautiful cherry blossoms and slightly warmer temperatures. Hanami is a fun part of spring in Japan, and an important part of Japanese culture.
Fallen in love with convenience stores! In New Zealand, convenience store are not all that common. We only have one 24 hour chain of convenience store (Night and Day), and there may only be one or two in towns ,and in cities, they're kinda spread out. But here, there are 3 major chains (7 Eleven, Family Mart and Lawson) that are open 24/7 and there's literally one around every corner. They sell decent meals (pasta salads, soba, bento boxes, sushi, hot food, everything!) , interesting snacks (I just tried aloe vera yoghurt-it's delicious FYI) and you can pay your bills there too! This is definitely one thing I now take for granted about living in Japan that I will miss when I leave, whenever that may be...
Mastered public transport! There is no better feeling than arriving at the platform the minute your train arrives, seriously. Before I came to Japan, I had only used public trains and buses a handful of times, but now I use trains every day. I now know exactly what time my last train is from many places, I know my way to the major touristy spots in Tokyo and exactly how long it takes to get there from home. Going from being able to drive yourself anywhere you want to go to relying on public transport has been a change, that's for sure, but the fact that everything is always on time here really helps. I do miss driving from time to time though.
Gone on a bullet train, or shinkansen. These are high speed! I'll give an example. It takes about an hour to drive from Queenstown to Wanaka. If there was a shinkansen, it would take about 10-15 minutes! They are so good!
Been to Disney Sea. In Tokyo, not only is there Tokyo Disneyland, but there's also Tokyo Disney Sea! Tokyo Disney Sea doesn't have the likes of Splash Mountain, Space Mountain or It's a Small World, but it does have the Tower of Terror, Indiana Jones and Journey to the Centre of the Earth. Unfortunately, the day I went, Journey to the Centre of the Earth was closed, but there's also Mermaid Lagoon to explore, the Arabian Coast, where you can meet Jasmine, and unlike Disneyland, restaurants at Disney Sea serve alcohol! There are also many, many souvenir shops to purchase all the Disney paraphernalia your heart desires, as well as some weird and wonderful flavours of popcorn, including curry, strawberry and chocolate. However, these often smell better than they taste. We tried the strawberry one and it wasn't that strongly flavoured, but was still nice! In all honesty, you could spend 2 days here before you covered everything-it was huge. It was a great day, despite the heat, and I'd highly recommend checking it out! I would definitely love to check out Disneyland sometime too. New Zealand isn't exactly known for it's theme parks, so having 2 massive ones about 30-40 mins away from me is an opportunity not to be missed! Photos to come on Facebook.
Survived the Japanese winter. For me, I came from summer to winter, and it was a bit of a shock, and Japanese winters are no joke! However, I've always lived in places that are extremely cold in winter (not just talking about Wanaka, but also Dunedin student flats....), so it didn't take a lot of getting used to. The thing I'm going to struggle with is surviving the summer! I've got 2 months of 30 degrees every day plus humidity to look forward to-wish me luck...
Looking ahead...
There is so much travelling around Japan I want to do! I am so keen to head to Osaka, Kyoto, Nara, Kobe, Hiroshima, Tottori... The list goes on! I hope that this year I will get to Osaka, Kyoto and Nara. The temples there look amazing, and of course, there's Universal Studios in Osaka! I'm also heading to Kanazawa in August, which I'm excited about! I don't see myself getting all the way to Hiroshima this year as it is just that bit further away from Tokyo and a bit harder to get to. Hopefully next year. If that gives you any hints as to what my plans are for 2019... ;) In terms of experiencing Japanese culture, I would love to go to an onsen, and do a homestay while travelling. I also want to do more day trips to places like Hakone, Kawaguchiko, Nikko and Saitama. Korea is also on my list as it is so close to Japan, but different in terms of the culture, the food and the people, so I'd love to check out Korea while I'm living here and it's so convenient. I also need to keep studying and practicing the language.
I can't believe I've made it 6 months living and working in a foreign country, no less Japan where the culture and language are so totally different to my own. If you'd told me a year ago that I would be doing all of these things, I probably wouldn't have believed you. The time has gone so fast, and day by day I don't feel like I do a lot, but looking back I realise exactly how much I've done and what I've accomplished. I feel like I have acclimated to Japan life now, even though I'll never totally fit in, and I think if I went back to New Zealand tomorrow, there would be so much that would feel foreign to me now. Being able to understand everything being said around me on the streets and in cafes and restaurants after 6 months of understanding almost nothing would take some adjusting, as would being asked for ID when buying alcohol, among other things. When I do go back to NZ, I'm expecting reverse culture shock to hit like a tonne of bricks! My time here so far certainly hasn't all been smooth sailing, that's for sure, and I'm sure there will be more difficult times to come, but I've met some amazing people along the way and had some amazing experiences and wouldn't change anything about the past 6 months.
So that's a recap of my first 6 months here, crazy how time flies when you're having fun, or just doing day to day life. Either way, I can't wait to see where the next half of this year takes me, and thanks for following my journey so far!
Comments
Post a Comment