Even though there was 6700 miles, lots of packing, and a long plane ride between me and Japan...I made it!
The plane ride actually went pretty fast, and wasn't too eventful- except for one bizarre meal choice they served. About 9 hours into the flight they walked by with the little cart, and distributed cheeseburgers and icecream to everyone. That was the meal/snack- a bagged cheeseburger and a small container of icecream. Although I'm all for getting a last taste of the US before going abroad for a while, this was pretty concentrated dose! But wait till you see the statue they have in the airport-
You're eyes don't deceive you- that is a hotdog, wearing a United states flag cape, dousing himself in ketchup. Welcome to Japan.
In all seriousness though, getting off the plane in Japan and seeing all the little "Welcome to Japan!" posters written in Japanese was an unreal experience. It didn't seem possible that I was finally in Japan! I smiled a bunch.
Going through customs was simple, all I had to do was say no when the man asked me "Do you have anything to decrare?" After that I walked past the first of many big vending machines, and I decided that it was time for some culture. So I popped in some Yen, and clicked on the japanesiest of all of the drinks.
The drink I got was called "Totemo Appuru," or roughly translated "VERY APPLE." It was delicious! Next I found the HIF counter, got on a bus, and headed to Tokyo (where I'll be sound asleep in just a few minutes. Jet laaaaaag!)
So for now, I'll leave you with High/Low/Hero, and a random warning sign that I saw when wandering around Tokyo.
High- getting out of the plane and walking around, realizing I was actually in Japan. All my fears about not being able to speak Japanese sort of melted away, and I knew that this was going to be a great experience.
Low-Waking up this morning. sooo tired!
Hero(es)- Hands down, my family. They stayed up late helping me pack and even snuck little cards and pictures into my suitcase to find while I was traveling. I miss you guys!
Beware of the dangerous green birds??
Glad you made it safely! Sorry, we missed your call...darn it. I'm so glad that you are keeping a blog. BTW that green bird looks a lot like a quaker parrot. Maybe MacArthur was a transplanted Japanese attack bird. Love you! mom
ReplyDeleteYes, please unravel for us the mystery of the killer green bird! Glad you arrived well and are taking great advantage of the journey.
ReplyDeleteOf course you're going to have an awesome time!! You totally have a great base for learning Japanese while you're there and it's going to be so cool to be able to apply what you're learning in class to life, like pretty much immediately!
ReplyDeleteAnd is the bird thing a cart for if you somehow brought animals into the country? And you can't leave the airport with it? They have a plastic container in the Taipei airport with pictures of animals on it and it's for if you brought small creatures with you because you were a complete idiot and thought, "Hey, I know, I'll bring my mouse collection to Taiwan to sell!" and then realized as you got off the train that actually, that's illegal according to at least a few countries and international organizations.
Anywho....good luck with the jet lag, enjoy the food, soak in the culture, can't wait to hear what happens!!!
PS-love your header image. Nice work.
ReplyDeleteAHHH!!!! I cant wait to hear about your host family!!!
ReplyDeleteVERY APPLE YUM YUM DELICIOUS YUM
ReplyDeletehow long was the plane ride? that's an awesome statue. bring me one back and i'll bring you a giraffe, or maybe a little kid (more likely to fit in my duffel bag)
ReplyDeletePS: That's no cape. It's a napkin.
ReplyDelete(alternatively, that's no space station...)