Traveling to and Arriving in Japan

The whole time I was flying here, I felt as though I were headed toward a void, a world of the absolutely unknown. I have no idea what the next 10 months will be like, what they will require of me, what I will gain from them, or whether or not I'll be happy, or find happiness here. Even now that I'm here, it seems unreal. (That could be made worse due to the dreamlike quality everything gets when you haven't slept.)

I am here in Tokyo and safe and in one piece, as is my luggage. The city I am in in Tokyo is Chofu. I have been up for just about 24 hours, because i only took two very minimal naps during my flights.

I think that it still hasn't hit me how different life is going to be, nor have I rationally realized how the same it is going to be.

I'm not even really sure how to use my toilet here (the apartment has one of the fancy ones that also has a bidae, and flushes two different ways, and may play music. . . ) I guess that's what the experience is about, though.



This is my toilet in Japan. You can see the controls for the special functions at the bottom and the sink on top that works when you flush!

I already know the kinds of things I will need help with for a long time here, paying bills and banking, and the kinds of things I should be able to pick up pretty quickly, simple grocery shopping, etc. The trains are going to intimidate me though. I think I will just have to mentally tackle them before I start going on my own--figure out where they are going, which one is which, and how to buy a ticket, before I even get to the station. And, not be afraid of making mistakes. Even mistakes that get me lost.