So, not gonna lie, I really intended to update this a lot sooner, but you know how I am. So much has happened since I last posted, and I can't wait to share it all with you! Let's just jump into it, shall we?
Soooooo the first and most important news story is that I officially scored a job in Japan! The interview wasn't easy, but I practiced a lot to be sure I made a positive impression! I still kinda screwed up the interview, but in my defense, the interviewer threw me some curveballs. Regardless, I was accepted, and allowed to go to Japan! YAY!
You can't imagine how excited I am! You know, when I first started this blog, I knew I wanted to learn Japanese, but for what reason? Well, yeah, if I remember correctly, I wanted to play a Phoenix Wright game that was exclusively in Japanese, but ended up being translated to English. The other thing, however, I'd use Japanese for is to visit Japan and be able to fully enjoy my experience as a tourist. Sure, that initially sounds a little excessive-- why would someone learn a whole language just to visit another country for like a week? I guess you can say I had an immense respect and admiration for Japan from a young age.
But everyone who wants to go to Japan says this, and probably because they're giant anime dorks. While I can say, quite remorsefully, that I was quite the "weeb" back in the day, wanting to visit Japan runs a lot deeper than just wanting to go because I watched some anime or Japanese YouTubers. There's nothing wrong with that, of course. Not trying to sound smug or superior or anything, because I grew up with anime, and have loved it, even before the days of the internet, where any anime under the sun is no more than a quick Google search away.
I guess you can say that my admiration for Japan was born from a certain elementary school teacher-- whose name I can't remember to save my life. If I ever find a yearbook, I'll let you know. This teacher wasn't MY teacher, but he was always really friendly to me, and we had good banter, he and I. This teacher had called the students for an assembly, a routine I already enjoyed immensely, as escaping the monotony of regular classtime was refreshing. He had just arrived back to school after his vacation in-- you guessed it-- Japan. He presented a slideshow with a bunch of incredible photos of the sights and adventures he'd been on in his trip. My eyes lit up when I saw the gorgeous streets of Tokyo. This teacher even brought back a souvenir, an "omiyage" if you will, for each student. He handed out little toys and the like, as well as a set of Japanese-style playing cards. They looked sorta like this:
That's what I got. I remember it like it was yesterday. I think this card was my first tangible connection to another culture-- another world so different and exciting from my own.
That's when I knew I wanted to visit Japan.
And here we are! I won't go into anymore details-- for your sake, not mine, but I've been enchanted with the beauty and culture of Japan. It just seems like the kind of place I need to experience firsthand, and I'm so very thrilled to do so!
I'll be in Fujisawa in the Kanagawa prefecture! It's really close to Tokyo (like 30 mins to an hour), so I can take plenty of day trips on the weekend! It's also near Yokohama, another large city with tons of history. I also wanted to visit Kyoto and Osaka, but those are pretty far away from where I'll be living. My plan to visit these cities is to go and see them on my off-days during training, as I'll be in the area.
I leave on the 13th of May, but I'll be sure to check in with you guys before then!
I also kinda wanna vlog. I know there are a million J-vloggers, but I think it would be cool to record my Japanese Journey (ba-dum-tss) so I can remember it, should the time come when I move back to the states. I really won't mind if nobody watches them, but I' sure my family and friends will enjoy the vlogs, as they have my blog for several years now. I also totally wanna brush up on my Japanese, too!
Getting my passport was an absolute nightmare, and, after several grueling weeks of haggling with post office and passport office employees, I finally recieved my passport last weekend. I'm sooooo excited, dudes!
Onto the next thing, I totally need a job in order to fund my Japan trip! I'm gonna need like $2,000 in spending money when I get there, on top of the $1,000 for the plane ticket. Shouldn't be too hard, right?
I went out with Carleigh for Valentine's day last night. I got her the classic teddy bear, roses, chocolate, and card combo. Women love that kinda stuff, I think! For me, she made a bunch of brownies in the shape of Pokeballs, which was literally the sweetest thing ever! She's awesome and we had a great time. We went out to La Piazza, the restaurant of nightmares, and came back to my house and had a drink. Fun times!
Finally, I purchased a MacBook Pro, which I'm using to write this very blog post on! It was a bit alien at first, but I figured I'd need a new laptop for my Japan trip anyhow. I'm loving it so far! I did, however, have to sell my graphics card from my main computer to justify buying this thing, but it's totally fine with me, as I wouldn't have been able to get my computer to Japan anyhow.
I guess that just about wraps up this post. I felt like I had more to talk about, but I pretty much hit on all of the important bits! I'm preparing for my adventure to Japan, and I hope it's as splendid as I think it's gonna be. I'll report back to you guys soon!
Best,
Jacob
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