よこそ

June, 10th

I decided not to make a separate blog but to instead use this one since I can't think of a good name. Here's how things happened from Atlanta airport and on,

I realized as I was boarding the plane how much I hate flying and then I realized I quoted Obi-wan Kenobi... in my mind. Pretty cool. The flight however was not pretty cool and while I was checking in to the airport and having all my luggage scanned, strip searched, hosed down, etc a man came up to me and said, "she dropped your computer..." me, "oh really?!". If there's one thing you don't do it's drop a $2,000 piece of equipment, especially when it's MINE. I just noticed later today that the screen leans to the left I believe and that isn't good. I'd like to say I gave her a stern talking to but that's not really my style especially when trying to catch a plane. The flight was boring just like it was last time except there were better movies this time.


I had been pretty nervous about not being able to get through customs and all that but everything went smoothly. Tip for people, always check what they want to hear on the form you get on the plane it makes getting into a country far easier. Extra tip, don't say that you have bombs or weapons... bad idea trust me (I have a friend who proved this point...). So all-in-all getting through the airport was easy it was just the fact that not many people spoke my language that threw me for a bit of a loop. I made the mistake of assuming getting from Narita airport to Jiyugaoka in Tokyo would be simple... I was proven wrong. I felt like I was in basic training with all the stuff I was lugging around. Trying to figure out the Japanese transportation system while avoiding getting run over by people who actually knew where they were going and doing it all after a 13 hour plane ride after sleeping for 3 hours previously really sucked. The very first train I got on went from Narita to Nippori. I didn't realize it but only cars 2-7 are non-smoking cars, the one I was in I soon found out to be a smoking car. I was asked to show my tickets to a train worker and apparently I got on the wrong train or was just missing a ticket since he kept telling me I need a 2nd ticket. He let me get off at Nippori where I had to go to Shibuya which is one of the busiest stations in Japan. I was lucky because on the escalator I ran into an American (I assume) and a English speaking Japanese man and they helped me get a ticket to Shibuya. Keep in mind the whole time I was riding these trains I was wondering how in the world I would contact my hosts since my cellphone didn't work, even after I was told it would by Verizon. That created lots of stress. I finally arrived in Jiyugaoka and was walking around on the train platform wondering what I should do. I decided a bench and a drink would be good to help clear my head and think my options through thoroughly. With my cellphone out of service all I had left was my beloved macbook and skype, thank the heavens for skype. In a moment of extreme faith and no other options I flipped my pasokon (personal computer) open and got some wi-fi by some miracle. Everything is encrypted there, makes it a little harder to get internet. So anywho, I got wi-fi, checked my email to see if I got mail from my host family and I did. I then used the phone number I got from the email to call their home, using skype of course, and arranged for someone to pick me up. Within 15 minutes Kosuke, my friend from 4 years ago, found me and we went to his home in Jiyugaoka.

That's the end of the story for now. I'm tired.