Toba

Last night, I got back from a three day trip to the ocean. Okaasan, an exchange student from New Zealand, and I traveled by train to the seaside town of Toba in the Ise Prefecture. The name, Toba,  means bird wing.

We stayed at a hotel in a tatami room and slept on futons. We went shopping in town and went swimming in the Pacific ocean. The water was a deep sea green and was really deep not far from shore. There were tons of fish swimming about. Some were large and grey, but others had beautiful yellow and black stripes. My friend and I layed out on a floating platform and watched them swimming around. There were a few pieces of garbage and some dead jellly fish floating about, but it was a wonderful beach.

On the last day, We took a bus to see Meoto-iwa or Wedded Rocks. These two rocks jutting out of the ocean are connected by a large, long rope draped between them. The larger of the two represents the husband, while the smaller one represents the wife.

We then took another bus to see the Ise Jingu Outer Shrine . It started pouring rain as soon as we got off the bus. We had to buy umbrellas, but still ended up rather wet. The Shrine was located on sprawling, wooded acerage. It was a long, wet walk down a wide gravel path in the rain. There was a large river, many creeks, manacure gardens and lots ferns. The cedar trees had impressive girths that would take at least five men with linked arms to match their circumferences. We made our way to the shrine, but could not go in because only monks can enter. I managed to slip in my flip flops on the rock stairs. I only fell a short ways, but my camera was in my hand. I`m afraid the poor device ended up in the water logged gravel with me sprawled on top of it. Somehow the camera managed to survive and still works perfectly. And if your wondering how I faired through the ordeal, I ended up with a slightly muddy leg, but that`s it.

We ate Curry and Rice before we took a taxi to the train station. I love riding the trains, but it was hard to stay awake during the two hour trip due to exhaustion.  

Toilets

The toilets here never fail to confuse me. They are so complicated and high tech that they belong in a futuristic sci-fi movie.

When you sit down, it powers on automatically. Off to the right side, there is a control panel that looks almost like an arm rest. This panel contains brightly colored buttons that controls the bidets, the water pressure, seat temperature, water temperature, ect.  Japanese toilets can do almost everything imaginable. I found a toilet in a department store that made running water sounds when it detected use.

In public bathrooms, there is a long intricate poster/manual describing each toilet function and its button location on the control panel. Thankfully, there is a small portion of the manual written in English for Gaijins like me.  Without that English portion, I would be even more confused that I already am.

I still have not figured out how to use the Eastern style squat potty. I have stood there staring at one for quite some time, but I still don`t know which end is the front and which is the back.


 

I`m in Japan!!!!

I am in Japan!!!! I`ve been here for six days already, but it feels like a month. I`ve been very busy registering my address with the government, applying for health insurance, and ordering my school uniform.

Last weekend, I had my first orientation. I met all the other inbounds from all of the world, the Japanese outbounds, and Rotex. Together, we traveled to a town called Inuyama. We went to an onsen (public bath house), an Inuyama Rotary Club meeting, hiked up to Inuyama castle, tried hawaiian dancing, set off fireworks, and went to Little World (a park dedicated to exhibits of houses and cultures from all around the world).

I have alread given my first speech to my host Rotary Club, Nagoya Osu RC. It seemed to go well. I have to do another speech on September 6th.

I am going to start school around September 3rd. I am supposed to give a short speech to the teachers and students. I have the cutest sailor uniform. It has a navy blue, pleated skirt that goes down to my knees and a light blue blouse. The necktie is sea green.

I am having abit of trouble sleeping due to jetlag. I can`t sleep past 3 or 4 AM. I walk around in a daze and have trouble remember things. Hopefully this will pass soon.

I have not been able to get my computer to connect my host parent`s internet. I am currently borrowing their computer. I will upload pictures as soon as I can get my computer online.

Guarantee Forms!

My Guarantee Forms finally came!!!!
Here's what I found out:
I am going to be living in Nagoya, Japan, Rotary District, 2760. It is a large city in the Aichi prefecture and it is sandwiched between the capitol city, Tokyo, and the large sea port of Osaka. In Nagoya, I will be living in the city limits. It will be very different from the American Midwestern countryside that I live in now. It will be interesting to be a city girl for a while.  

I have been told that I will be attending a girl's high school. It is supposed to be one of the best girl's schools in Nagoya. I finally found the school's website and with help from "Google Translate", did some interesting research. The high school is connected to a university and has a new, modern building. They also have numerous after school clubs, which I am very excited about joining. I think I saw the back of the school uniform in a picture. I think it will be sailor suit style with the cute bandanna around the neck.

I didn't have to contact my first host family. They contacted me first via email. I was so excited to hear from them. It has been several weeks since their first email, and they seem so kind and considerate. My host mom has told me a bit about their daily life and some of their hobbies. They have asked me to call them "Otousan" and "Okaasan" which is Japanese for "Father" and "Mother".

Otousan plays golf and a Japanese board game called "Igo". He has promised to teach me how to play it, but I'm not sure how well I will do since it is all about strategy (I can't play any game that requires strategy of any kind. It just doesn't happen.). Okaasan enjoys doing SUDOKU. She said by the time I leave I will be able to solve them. I'll try, but I'm not sure that is possible considering my skill with numbers.

I think this upcoming year will be an interesting and I will definitely learn a lot. I am getting more excited and terrified everyday. I have about two and a half weeks left in the USA. I can't believe it.

A Time of Change is a Privilege

Senior year of high school always brings change. I knew it was coming and I thought I could prepare myself, but I was wrong.


At first, the changes were slow and easy to adapt to. These slow changes promised excitement and a new future. But now, it is as though these changes have met with a super charged catalyst. Large changes have come and major changes are still approaching. Thus far, I've learned there is no avoiding change. All one can try to do is endure and adapt.


I've moved my horse to a different barn, my mom retired, and I graduated from high school, all while I prepare to move to a different continent. I have one month to say goodbye to loved ones and friends, finish up projects, and begin packing.


 When life brings change, it has to pry my fingers off the past. Why give up what is comfortable now? However, one of my friend's posts on facebook brought everything into perspective. This quote will always stay with me-


""Do not regret growing older, it is a privilege denied to many". ~ Unknown


One thing is certain in life: time is a priviledge. For so many people, the future never came and their dreams and asperations were left incomplete. When I dwell upon this fact, the changes I face don't seen so difficult and overwhelming.   


But every morning, I wake up to the realization that everything I have ever known is coming to an end. I will move to another continent and when I come back, things and people will be different. I will be different. And then, shortly after, I will be moving to college.  I can't help but shutter at the changes, but at the same time I welcome them with open arms. Most people dream of traveling and studying abroad or going to college, but so many have lacked the opportunity or had these dreams brought to a sudden halt. I've been granted a rare privilege. A privilege that will affect the rest of my life.


The changes looming in the future have made me appreciate the things around me. I find myself trying to soak up the smell and taste of my mom's gourmet cooking, the fluffiness of my bed, the surrounding Indiana landscape, and the laughter my friends and I share.


I look forward to my time in Japan. I am excited to meet new people and learn a new way of life, but I am not rushing towards this change. I am taking my time, revaling in the present, absorbing every American sight, sound, and smell. As much as the future is a gift, so is the present. I will not take either for granted.

The Acceptance Journey: Part 2

About two weeks after my interview, I received a phone call from my District Chairman late one evening.  I was informed that he had loved my interview and had decided that I needed to be boarding an airplane come August. He had done some rearranging and I officially received the status of a 'primary'.


This phone call will forever live in infamy as one of the most exciting events in my life. I managed to keep from squealing in delight, but failed miserably in keeping a mature, composed mannerism. I was scattered brained and breathless from all the excitement. After thanking the chairman, I hung up and bounded upstairs. I told my mom and older brother the news. After congratulatory hugs and exclamations of how amazing the turn of events was, we burst my unsuspecting/sleeping father's room. I received more hugs from my very groggy and slightly bewildered father, before I bounded back out of his room to let him continue his beauty sleep. Such news deserved a celebration with chocolate, so my mom, brother, and I broke out our 'hidden' stash and began our cocoa feast.


After this phone call, the waiting game began. Little did I know that my patience would become less than of a virtue and more of a necessity. I began to check my email every day waiting for news of my country assignment. There was no specific date on which I would receive it, only a vague time frame.

My daily email checks became an hourly occurrence. Soon, hourly examinations left too much time

in between and I began checking my email account every ten to twenty minutes. Sometimes, my obsessive investigations were even more frequent. Hope would flood through me each time I logged into my account to find a new email waiting, but disappointment aways hit hard when I discovered it was not "the" email. I was driving myself insane with the process of checking, rechecking, waiting, and then checking again for "the" email. 

"The" email finally came in December. Because I was visiting one of my best friends at her university, I had decided to put my obsessive email checking habit behind me for the weekend. That night, I went to sleep on the hard dormitory floor without checking my email once. I was terribly proud of over coming my addiction. However, the next morning I had a few spare minutes in which I commandeered my friends computer and gave in to my addiction once again. "The email" from my district chairman containing my country assignment was there waiting for me. I nervously read it, squealed, and then began hopping all around the dorm room. "I'm going to Japan!", I announced to my friends who then joined me in squealing and hopping. What a sight we must have been. To bystanders, we must have seemed like a passel of pigs imitating crickets due to all the hopping and squealing.


I had received my first country assignment choice. My dream was becoming a reality. The hard work my mom and I did filling out the application and preparing for the interview had paid off.  I was could not have been more estatic. Little did I know, more work and preparation was needed before my departure to the Land of the Rising Sun.

The Acceptance Journey: Part 1

My acceptance into the Rotary Youth Exchange Program was a long and slightly unique journey. I grew up hearing exciting stories about my mom's exchange year in Japan. I had known for a long time that I wanted to be an exchange student, but never thought I'd get the chance since I didn't have a Rotary club in my county to sponsor me.

It all began in September of 2011 when I stumbled across the Rotary Ambassadorial Scholarship. This scholarship program sends college students abroad to study in their field of interest. I was so excited reading the website that didn't realize it was for only for college students. I sent emails asking if it was to late for me to apply. Three days later, I was informed that it was only for college students.

Not long after that, I received an email from the District Chairman of my local Rotary district letting me know that you did not have to be sponsored by a Rotary club in your county and that I could apply to the Rotary Youth Exchange (RYE) program - despite the fact that the application deadline had already passed. I bounded up the stairs from my room in the basement, laptop in hand, while shouting, "Mom!" "Mom!".

My mom, who continuously talks about her exchange year, was just as excited as I was. The application was daunting from the first glance. But within minutes, I was printing the application out, making doctors appointments, and writing emails to find a sponsoring Rotary club. The most exciting part of the application was the list of forty prospective countries I could be assigned to. Under each country was a list of regulations that a student was required to meet in order to receive a placement in that country. (i.e. Dietary restrictions or language requirements). I had to preference each country in order of where I wanted to be placed.

After I filled out my country preference list, I was excited. I was too old for many of the countries, but I met all the requirements for my top two choices: Japan and South Korea, respectively. My other top countries were not the most popular choices, but for me, they were perfect. I could already see myself exploring exotic countries and learning difficult languages.

Two stressful weeks later, I was driving across the state to be interviewed by the District Chairman. The interview seemed to go extremely well. In one of the questions, I was asked if there were any countries I was not willing go to. I replied, "I will go anywhere you want to send me". I meant it.

Because I was late in applying, I walked out of the District Chairman's office as an 'alternate'. In the Rotary exchange program there are two positions a student can hold: 'primary' and 'alternate'. A primary is a student who is guaranteed a placement in a foreign country. An alternate is a student who will receive a placement in a foreign country if the primary is suddenly unable to go abroad or if there there is an extra position available. Even though I desired a guarantee that I would be sent aboard, I was content with being an alternate.

To be continued....