fresh off the boat

today was my third day of training. i'm still horribly terrified by the idea of leading a class of students, but i'm not sure even months of training would rid me of that feeling. i have some information and resources now, so at least i'll be going in with some ammo.

after two more days of training, i'll be leaving for my placement: shiroi city in chiba prefecture. the 21st will be my first day of work. i'll be meeting the students at the three schools i'm working at -- one junior high four days a week and two elementary schools on alternating wednesdays. the school year proper starts on the 1st, and from that point i'll be working full time until winter break.

my apartment will be quite small: one six tatami mat room (approximately 12' x 18'), a small kitchen, a toilet room, and a bath/shower room. it is located about 2 kilometers from my main school. the board of education will reimburse me for a bike; i will be riding to school, weather permitting. on rainy days i can take the train and be reimbursed for the tickets.

my city sounds nice. i've always snubbed the suburbs in america, but i'm quite excited about the prospect of living in one in japan. there is a free public gym, a pool, a library with english books, and a system of walking/bike paths. it's a half hour train ride to the nearest big city, and an hour to tokyo. it will be much quieter and less expensive than tokyo, and easier to interact with the local community.

the bon odori festival was beautiful, by the way. thousands and thousands of women (and a few men, too) lined up along sumida river in groups of matching kimonos and danced until sunset.

welcome to my blog (first post)

hi there. welcome to my brand new blog.

i just moved to japan to become an english teacher.

why?

my application essays said: a cross-cultural experience in a foreign environment is a chance to learn more about yourself, others, and how societies work. additionally, continued study of japan(ese) could act as a springboard for grad school.

what i left out: i needed a change of scenery and some space. i wanted to get out of dodge while i was young and free.

so here i am, twenty-four hours in, still a little jet-lagged, dazed, and overwhelmed.

not quite adjusted to the time change yet, i woke up at 5:30 this morning and went for a walk while the streets were still empty and the shops still closed. already it was humid and fairly warm. later in the morning at sensoji temple, a middle-aged japanese man gave me advice on what to see in the asakusa area: the fish market, the plastic food shop, the obon dori on the sumida river tonight, and the mikoshi festival on sunday. he had a notebook in which he'd seemingly written down every event in the tokyo and chiba area for the next two months.

tomorrow is my first day of training. i start working on the 21st. exciting! scary! awesome!