It just occurred to me that some of you are leaving for the upcoming CIEE Tokyo Fall semester soon! HAVE AN AMAZING TIME! I am so excited for you! Doing the Spring 2010 semester abroad was arguably the best decision on my life, so I hope it is rewarding for you as well!
I don’t have any advice that you haven’t heard before, but I will reiterate one of my favorite cliches:

Live in the moment.

Homesickness will be there, reminding you of the past when you were home AND the future when you’ll reunite, however your time is numbered. You have a semester, or perhaps a year, so do your best to fully live out every month, every week, every day, every hour. You don’t have to be doing something epicly awesome at every moment, but be fully aware and present in each moment. Really do your best to notice all the little things, actively listen, and participate.

I have no doubt you will do fine. I won’t tell you not to worry or not to be stressed out, because that’s natural, but don’t ever let your worrying or stressing cause you to not doing something worth doing.

MOST IMPORTANTLY IF YOU HAVE A BLOG/VLOG OR SOMETHING PLEASE COMMENT AND LEAVE A LINK!!!
(if you haven’t done so already)

A final tip on Homestay family/Dorm manager gifts, since I know that’s a big worry (it was for me). Gifts unique to your home (whether it’s your town, school, or state) that can’t be found in Japan are really great ideas. Ultimately it really doesn’t matter what you get (but obviously do your best to get something you think your nameless host family will like) THOUGH WRAP IT NICELY. Presentation is often more important than the gift itself.

That said, you’re going to have a great adventure abroad so DO YOUR BEST AND HAVE FUN!!!!!!

Not that you’ll need me, but I’ll be here if you ever feel like anything. (However, if you join Aikido club you are required to tell me. :])

Okay, now it’s your turn!
Ganbatte!
-Shannon

Good days are good. ❤

Today I felt good. This hasn’t happened in a while. I’ve since come to realize reverse culture-shock is so much worse than culture-shock. Just wanted to update to say I am doing well and feeling fine, since I’ve been very down lately.

Something about this is wrong. I thought that in studying abroad, some of the problems in my life would be fixed. As it turns out, studying abroad only let me step out of my problems for a while. Though now I’m back, greeted by familiar struggles, stuck in the same atmosphere that I was when I left. I know I was stronger, happier even, when I was away. For some reason when I’m here there’s this brooding negativity that’s always over me. This sense that I am trapped. But I’m not trapped. I remember all these emotions and wanting to leave so desperately. I was able to leave. I was able to see a part of the world outside of America. But… there’s something more to this than that. Going out into the world wasn’t enough to cure me of this. Then what? What is it that makes me feel so overwhelmingly frustrated with my life here? How is living here different than when I was in Japan? Is it me? Is it my environment? Is it in the water? I don’t understand. I hate the idea of running away, but if running away works… The opposite of running away would be to face my demons, right? How do I face demons that I can’t see?

Cultural re-adjustment is a killer.
Not only that, but my whole life has been uprooted. Twice. First when I left the US for Japan, and again when I left Japan for the US. It’s a lot to deal with. I’ve only been back for two full days, but every moment is heavy. I’m always feeling tense, as if this is just a small break, and then I can take a train in to Harajuku, and come back and sleep with my host children.

People are saying “welcome home”, but as far as I’m concerned, I just left my home. Japan feels so far away. It feels so far away, but I can still taste the burn of the internet cafe’s strawberry latte. It feels so far away but I can still feel the hugs from my host kids. It feels so far away but I can still hear the rain as it hits my umbrella.

How long will it be until I will feel “in place”? Have I ever felt “in place” here? I’d always struggle with that, but it wasn’t until 3 months before I left that I realized I had a few people who made me feel at home. It wasn’t until I was in Japan, oddly, a place where I am even more outcast that I felt comfortable. Why is it that someplace so alien should make me feel so comfortable? Perhaps because of my ignorance I was living outside the normal stream of things? Was this an “ignorance is bliss” moment?
The four months weren’t without struggle, but it was a struggle worth having. In fact, every day I was learning something. Whether it was new words, or new cultural information, or new people, or new places, there was always something new.
These past days home have just been… bland. Everything is the same as when I left it four months ago. In that sense it feels like everything will be the same four months from now, and however else long. Always stagnant. Of course I want to be back in Japan. I just left for crying out loud. I want to be in the life I just left, if not simply because that’s what I’ve come to know.
But most of all I just want to be okay wherever I am. Sure I missed America when I was in Japan, but I was able to cope and not let it bother me in my day-to-day life. I was still able to experience everything fully. Now I just need to do the same.
Ultimately, “home” is wherever I make it. Though because “Home” has changed so much this year, it has been difficult; the transitionary phases have been terrible. But I asked for it. I asked for a struggle and again I get my wish. Seems like it’s payment for all that fun I’ve had.

I am officially back at my American home! I arrived around 8:30pm. Everything is familiar, and yet strange. I am so used to seeing crammed together buildings, not being able to understand signs, and standing on the left side of the escalator that being back in the US where everything is opposite, it’s just… strange.

Immediately at Chicago, my transfer airport and my first step into America again, I noticed that American people in general are far more angry than Japanese people (and honestly I noticed this before on the plane and at Narita airport too). I don’t even ever recall seeing an angry Japanese person who wasn’t making a joke about it. I mean, I probably have, but the fact that I can’t recall even once over a 4 month gap whereas I can tell you three people in one day in the US says something. Two specific ways today that people showed frustration today: 1.) Parents disciplinging their kids and 2.) People downright hating their jobs.

1.) In Japan/Tokyo, parents let their kids be kids. Rarely do they yell at their children or tell them they’re doing something wrong. The idea is that the kids will observe and learn on their own. In my experience, typically parents only intercede if there is danger. As a result, kids look happier. They are allowed to play, therefore they play. In America, parents try to dictate every bit of the child’s behavior. Stand here. Don’t scratch your head. Stop whining. It produces a very tense situation and I hate being around parents who are like that because their negativity spreads to everyone around. So while I was able to live stress-free in Japan for 4 months (omitting about 2 weeks near the end for editing a video project and finals examinations), I was already feeling tense and angry after just a few moments in America.

2.) Again at the same airport, I entered customs. There was a man seperating people into lines to various counters. He tells me “25.” (as in booth 25) in a rough voice, and I head over. Soon after, I notice the man is gone. Then his co-workers at the booths notice, and take things into their own hands. Some of them needed to close their booth, so they told the last person in line that they were the last, thereby passing the torch of line-authority onto the customer. Everyone who was passed the torch was able to tell more people lining up, “I’m the last.” The original man returns in the middle of one of the interactions, gets all snippy and says, “You should tell me, I’m right here!”. Um dude, no you weren’t. I laughed inside my mind at the ridiculousness and wondered how this man is part of airline security. That was just one of the many people not actually doing their jobs while still at their job. Job disatisfication. It’s a killer.
In Japan? That man would have been attentive. Whether he liked his job or not, he would have poured his heart into his work, greeted you and would have said, “25, お願いします” and have given a nice clear arm gesture of where that was. You may have heard about the legendary customer service in Japan, and you heard correctly. While I always appreciated it, now I realize just how fantastic they all are. Also I should note that there is also bad customer service in Japan, but it is a miniscule percentage when compared to the US.

Overall I haven’t been back long. Only about 7 hours at the time of writing. This also is not quite the end of this blog. I still have plenty of Japan stories, more CIEE tips, and more re-entry updates for sure… Today’s re-entry emotion: An extreme want to go back to Japan.

Excluding people, what will I miss most about Japan?
Arguably Karaoke.
I went twice with two different groups of people just today (CIEE friends, then Aikido club friends). Overall times I’ve went? I’ve lost count. I’ve gone more than 10 times, for sure, which is more than twice a month. Whoops~!

Karaoke in Japan is fantastic. You rent out a private room and sing in the comfort of your group members (so not that big karaoke bar that is more typical in America). Best part is, karaoke is everywhere (literally at least one per block), so whenever you get the urge to go, you can!

My favorite times have definitely been the two times I went with members from my Aikido club. Hearing their different choices of songs and hearing them sing and just being around them in a setting where language doesn’t really matter has been very special to me. As has always been said, music transcends all.

On an even more personal level, going to karaoke so often has brought me more out of my singing closet. I’ve always liked singing and have always had a decent voice, but rarely do I ever sing in public. Karaoke allows/forces me to do such.

What’s also fun is hearing people sing in languages not native to them. All karaoke places here have at least Japanese and English, and many other places include Chinese and Korean. Japanese people singing English, or English speaking people sing Korean, etc etc, it’s very cool to hear (even if us English speakers typically can’t get through our Japanese songs!)

Seriously, why doesn’t karaoke exist like this in the USA? Let’s get on that.

I love this place. Between CIEE, my host family, and Aikido club, I have a lot of connections to this school and city. Just a while ago I had great conversations with CIEE staff as well as an Aikido sempai who I ran into. Mostly this update has no point other than to say that I love these people. How lucky I am that they are in my life. ❤

I hate speaking of goodbyes, because sure enough, goodbyes are soon to follow. Though with exactly one week left with my host family, tonight I was forced to speak of such. I finally got up enough courage to tell my host family about my travel plans; I leave their home on the 1st to go stay in a hostel until the my plane on the 3rd.
悲しい, we say. It’s very sad.
Of course it’s sad. How could it not be. My heart drops at the thought of not waking up here. My stomach pains at not having a place in their house. My world ends at the thought of not being able to watch these children grow. The next time I see them, will they remember me as they do now? I will surely never forget them.

I am supremely grateful for being allowed to spend time with this beauteous family. How fantastic it has been to get to know them, to witness their talents, and to be allowed to see their flaws. The eldest (11) I believe can do anything. Absolutely anything. There is no limit to her greatness in my eyes. As a conductor of a world-class orchestra, or as a pioneering scientist, or as a beloved college professor, all she has to do is choose and she could be it. Anything. The middle (7) is going to be so beautiful, she’s already the cutest thing in the world. Her dancing abilities are amazing and I will miss seeing her prance around the room. The youngest (4) is amazingly strong for her age. She almost overpowered me a few times. Her antics amuse me to no end.
Raising them all are two loving parents, both of whom I am so grateful to have known, and to be guided by them through their culture. How amazing they are to open their home to a stranger in this capacity. For sharing their love with me, I can not express my gratitude. From now, I try to squeeze out as much time together with them as possible. Though I don’t really know how to do it. I’m not good at all at goodbyes. I don’t want to think about the future, because the future does not involve them as closely to me as they have been. Though I suppose that’s the beauty of it, right? I only feel this pain because I have felt so much joy in belonging here. So forgive me, for I will cry.

This is in a sense a continuation from the last post.

CELL PHONES:
Do get them. CIEE recommends the Softbank prepaid. There are a few downsides, but overall I have been immensely pleased with my phone. If I remember correctly, the package was 10,000yen (~114 USD) upfront, plus a 3,000yen (~34 USD) recharge later in the semester for a total of 13,000yen (~148 USD). You’d be offered the newest model of prepaid phones, I believe, with a choice of two colors. My semester it was a choice between black and white. It looks like this post-decorations:

Phone charms are huge in Japan, as are stickers to decorate (there are very elegant stickers out there. The stickers on my phone were put there by my 4-year old host sister, therefore I am occasionally embarrassed by them, but I love her enough to keep them there). You should have at least one phone charm on your phone to fit into society. However if you want to go full-out Japanese, you can just pile them on. Currently my phone has five. It is excessive, but I like it. You’ll see Japanese girls with huge plushies on theirs. Also men will have pretty pink flowery charms. Going off on that tangent, men have less pressure to be masculine than they do in the USA, so you’ll notice a lot of men doing and wearing things that in US culture is considered more feminine.
On the back of my phone are four Purikura photos, all taken with four different groups of people. Purikura is really popular, and is targeted towards females. It’s basically a photobooth that you go in with friends and then you can draw on the photo and add pictures/clip art. It’s like Photoshop. There are a bunch in Harajuku as well as most arcades. Do it at least once. I used to think they were ridiculous, but now I’m very fond of them.

I honestly wouldn’t even bother looking for other phone options. I really don’t think it’s worth the effort and stress to do it (mostly because you’re on your own with it, and company staff may only speak Japanese). However, if you’re interested in that, your choices are Softbank, AU, or Docomo. If you’re a semester student, do prepaid. If you’re a year-long student or more, you can think about contract phones (but I still recommend prepaid). Contracts are for two years, so you’ll have to pay a cancellation fee after the first year when you leave (which is why it’s a horrible choice for semester students, because you’re paying more to cancel than you are to use the phone).

PROS and CONS of the Softbank Prepaid that CIEE offers:
PROS:
+Unlimited email/texting for 300 yen a month (like $3). (YOU WILL TEXT A LOT.)
+Receiving calls is free. You only pay when you make calls.
+a ton of cute emoticons (I abuse these so often)
+Infrared data sharing (as in you connect to other phones via infrared to share numbers rather than type it in)
++++There are a lot of great things about this phone (and if you’re not convinced I can go on), and they completely override the cons, though you should be aware of the cons, so here they are:

CONS:
-You HAVE to recharge your phone with either a 3000yen card or a 5000yen card (~$34 and $57 respectively). It’s a pain in the butt since no one really uses that much.
-The prepaid expires a week before the end of the CIEE program. In other words, for your last week in Japan you cannot make calls or send messages. You can, however, still receive both. (you COULD recharge it, but then you’re spending 34 USD on a week or two of use. Recharges last 2 months. If you fail to recharge by the expiration date that you get emailed, it’s no big deal. Once you charge again you are back to full service. Expiration date is set two months after the day you recharge, so if you wanted a phone for the last week or so of the program, you could delay recharging in the middle of the semester by two weeks) E.T.A. Or you can recharge an additional time within two months before you are planning on leaving Japan so that you are never without phone service!! The service expires two months after your last recharge, so plan accordingly. I’ll tell you right now it’s such a pain in the butt to not be able to send texts, and I wish I had realized earlier that I could have recharged two months ago to keep it now. (Gomen if this sounds confusing!!!)
-there is no English predictive texting (though there is Japanese predictive texting). (It was obnoxious at first, but now I don’t mind)

That’s my two cents on phones/the Softbank prepaid. Sometimes a pain, but mostly it’s fantastic. Highly recommend it.
-Shannon