Hey Yall.
I been bizay, or I would have done the whole blog thing.
Anyway, here it is now. Expect more juice later.
My first day was pretty uneventful. I got off the plane, and had to find my way to the hotel, since I flew into the other airport. It wasn't really all that muzukashi, as a friend had given me excellent directions. I kept waiting to be culture shocked, but it didn’t really happen. (The only thing I really noticed was how QUIET Japanese people are. No. Unnecessary. Talking. My friends are a fairly loud group, and I'm still having difficulty getting used to it. I keep wanting to yell at my friends when I see them up ahead of me, but I get the idea that that isn’t cool here). Anyway I didn't experience the drastic culture shock everyone said I would. I was prepped with all sorts of cautions like "people will stare at you", or "its going to be so crowded and busy", "everything is going to seem strange, and foreign" and "you're going to feel really out of place". In fact, I have heard some of these sentiments from the other exchange students. However...I think these sorts of cautions are for people who come from ethnically homogenous 'white' areas, or small cities. Honestly, so far, there hasn’t been a time when I felt like I was any more out of place than at home.[1]
I think my almost total lack of culture shock is due to two reasons; I'm from the Toronto area, and I'm not in Tokyo. Most foreigners aren't coming from such ethnically/linguistically diverse areas, and most foreigners go to Tokyo. A bunch of American students report feeling shock, but I suspect that’s because most of them aren’t used to crowded areas, public transportation, people staring at them, and being surrounded by other languages.[2]
Because of where I’m from, I'm used to crowded transportation (Toronto subways, Ottawa's 97 bus, 'Shwa buses packed to roof with students). Living in Toronto and Richmond Hill have provided me with truckloads of experience dealing with stuff like not being able to read the signs around me, not knowing what anyone is saying, difficulty making the shopkeeper understand me, and everyone staring at the white girl with blue eyes and red hair.
In fact, one of the major things Japan has made me realize is just how often I’m stared at at home. At first I thought no one was staring at me, but after I spoke to other students, I started noticing that I was being stared at as much as they were, I’m just used to it. I realized that people at home stare at me almost as much as people here, so it’s just something I’m used to, and never really think about. Maybe I should try going to Ireland sometime, to see what it’s like to look more or less normal.
Kobe is also MUCH sleepier than I imagined. Probably about the same crowds as Toronto, depending on where you go. Sannomiya (shopping district) is pretty busy, but my home in Nishinomiya, and Uni near Okamoto is very quiet. Here’s a map to explain where I am. ^_^
Here’s the other thing about public transportation. ITS SO EFFING CHEAP.
To Sannomiya I think its’ like 200 yen (like $2.50), and to Umeda station in Osaka, it’s like…maybe 400 yen (like $5.00). Take that Go train and your eight dollar tickets!! I can get to three major cities for under $10!
MORE SOON! INCLUDING MONKEY PICTURES!
[1] Okay, well I did a week later, but I’ll cover that later.
[2] There are students from four countries on my trip. From England, France, Germany, Canada, and the US. Students from the US talk more about feelings of being out of place or stared at, while students from the other countries talk more about how quiet the Japanese seem to be, or different family dynamics at home. The two stories that struck me the most, was one very tall female American student, who frequently reports her difficulty dealing with the constant stares. Another one is a French student, who talked about his homestay family, how the father is never home, and how the mother told him ‘it’s so nice to have you at home, so I’m not always alone with the baby”. I thought it was sort of telling how the two students noticed two totally different things.
we wants monkey pictures
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