日本旅行：２日

30日６月２０１９年

旅行の2日

こんにちは皆さん、(Konnichiwa minasan,)

It’s funny waking up early, getting on a nine-hour flight at 11:30AM, and then arriving at 1:30PM the next day! It’s like I went 26 hours into the future.

The moment I stepped off the plane, Florida-like humidity slapped me in the face. I could already feel my hair complaining, threatening to puff into a black cloud of ugly, but who cares- I had made my first step in Japan. Lots of escalators later (one welcoming me to Japan with Mario characters!) I got my baggage and went through customs and immigration. Afterwards, it was a bit of a maze to find the post office and get my WiFi hotspot, but after I discovered their map kiosks it got a lot easier- they’ve got touchscreen maps that support a multitude of languages which show you the exact path to take to get to your destination, and can even print mini customized maps! Once I found those, it became a lot easier to get my hotspot and then exchange my USD for ¥. 

I met with my friend once again and we looked for our guide on the main floor for a while- and eventually found her (of course). Afterwards, we got to meet a bunch of new people from the US (there were 4 including me on my flight!) and then embark on our journey.

As a group, we boarded a bus headed to Shibuya. We went without the guide since she needed to pick up more students, which was a bit stressful- but it was a “Limousine Bus” that was comfortable which made it a bit easier. We just needed to get off at the second stop, after all.

1.5 hours later, we meet one of our teachers at the stop. Then, we meet even more students (now there are eleven in total) and board another bus bound for Yoyogi Park. This time we were with normal citizens, and I felt bad clogging up the bus with all our luggage- but I soon got distracted by the Pokémon Go oasis that Shibuya is. I also got distracted by the bustling all-walks and busy streets, of course- even though I could only read around 1/4 of the kanji I saw. We got off at the seventh stop, 代々木五丁目, one that I could actually read fully- which was super cool! I was dubbed the official tour guide for the group of students for being the most confident in Japanese ;)

Once we got off, we met with a second teacher and were guided right across the street to the campus we’re staying on. It’s like a college campus- with a convenience store, dormitories, and a central building- but it is open to the public. We had an orientation and I received a file folder filled with information about our various excursions (yay organization!) and some basic information about rules and procedures this trip. I need to wake up and be ready to meet somewhere at 6:55AM- but that’s 2:55PM in Washington, so I should [hopefully] be fine. My broken summer sleeping schedule has prepared me well for this trip!
After eating a tuna mayonnaise onigiri, chicken katsu sandwich (the way Japanese sandwiches are packed is so convenient- I’ve had it at Sandwich House TRES in Bellevue before), and a grape juice that tasted just like grape Hi-Chews (which was amazing, I love Japanese flavoring) I got to go to my room and start getting situated. It’s super small and I only have a couple hangers so it’s going to take some getting used to (my luggage takes up a lot of the open space I have in the room) but I’ve got a single bed, a desk, and a little room to spread out. I have a little time to walk around the campus and check out the convenience store, and then I’ll be going to bed and setting 20 alarms so that I don’t sleep through my first experience in Japan- even if it’s just eating breakfast at a cafeteria.
~~~
It's 9PM now! I got to check out the convenience store- there's some mint chocolate flavored pocky I definitely want to try- and walked around campus in the dark a little with a couple friends. After, I took a quick rinse in the showers, which are a little tricky for me. There's room for three people, but no one was around so I just locked the door. It's supposed to be sit-down, where you hold the showerhead and move it around to clean yourself, and it's just a bit awkward for me. Their communal bathing system is probably the thing I like least about Japanese culture, so I'm at least glad I can lock the door and be solo~
Time to sleep so I can make it to the cafeteria on time tomorrow! I've got to figure out my hair-care and morning routine, which might take a little while.

又話してね～ (Mata hanashite ne~)