Japan Week 1

The view of Tokyo from our hotel room

What a whirlwind week it has been. After a long a laborious flight we finally landed in Tokyo and were met with a solid wall of heat and humidity. Luggage successfully claimed we were guided through Tokyo airport by many existing JETs, so many in fact, that getting lost would have required some serious talent. From here we were bussed to the Keio Plaza Hotel and given keys to our luxurious double room. We had a full sized writing desk, a toilet with control panel and even a heated bathroom mirror. Alas we were jetlagged and, despite the excitement of bustling Tokyo, it was time to grab some grub and head to bed. Grub consisted of a cool little place where each table boasted its own touchscreen for you to order from. We used the English language setting and ordered ourselves a tasty selection of Ramen, Sushi and a hot beef bowl (this is a dish served in a stone bowl still sizzling). My choice of beverage was Hoppy. This is non-alcoholic beer served with a good slug of wheat liquor (a bit like vodka).

Ramen with Hoppy. . .mmmmmh

Our two day orientation consisted of many workshops on various subjects, many we were too jetlagged to remember all that clearly. We met many people from all over the world who had come to join the programme and generally had a good laugh. On the Tuesday evening we were treated to a trip to the very posh British Embassy in Tokyo, where we were welcomed to Japan and told to behave. Cucumber sandwiches and tiny pasties were served along with wine and beer. There was then a performance of Taiko drumming on the embassy lawn.

The Kobe gang all seem like a great bunch but we have mostly spent time with the other couples so far and this had been great fun. There are three main areas where jets are placed around Kobe so there are also little communities within each area as well as an overall community of about one hundred Kobe city jets.

From Tokyo it was then onto Kobe itself. The gang was gathered together for a short (50min) flight to Kobe. The city looks great, sandwiched between mountains and the sea –much like Hong Kong. Since we have arrived we have been taken on tours, met the teachers we will be working with and gone to the Kobe earthquake museum – which was very moving. A lot of time has also been spent waiting around, as alien registration and getting mobile phones is a lengthy process. Importantly, we now have shiny new iPhones which are great fun and full of useful apps, such as a kanji dictionary (the Chinese alphabet where each word is its own symbol) and a GPS system in case we get completely lost.

Our flat in Gakentoshi was very bare upon arrival and we were sad about this at first. However, we have the essential air conditioning, washing machine and fridge freezer to make life comfortable. The rest of the stuff we can buy gradually and really put our stamp on the place. Shopping here is certainly a lot of fun and we have already bought a beanbag, bath mat, two sets of shelves, many neat baskets to fill up our shelves, kettle, iron, table top ironing board, zebra print frying pan and various other essentials. Things are really starting to take shape, and we will probably buy a nice sofa and TV etc. as the pay checks start rolling in.

Dining has been great and relatively inexpensive. You can pay £2 - £8 for a meal and get something really tasty and filling. So far we have eaten Japanese, Thai and even some Italian food.  There are several restaurants in Gakentoshi itself and the first two we have tried were both lovely.  Drinking out on the other hand is extremely expensive. The beer is heavenly but costs £3-£5 a pint. We have been shown a good couple of happy hour pubs and drink all you can places which are used on nights out. We will probably have an enkai at some point soon, which is a work drinking party. This can also be expensive but it is a great chance to get to know your colleagues as their guard comes down a lot.

Highly trained and qualified engineer constructs furniture purchase

Transport is also a breeze here as most of the stations have their names in romanji (English lettering) on the maps and on the station signs. We also have IC cards to pay for fares (like oyster cards) so we don’t need to mess around with ticket machines. We are about 30mins from the main shopping area, although there are some large shops in Gakentoshi itself.  Sadly I am a good 90mins from my school so I will have to get up early and commute.

Roo in awe of our new shelving and baskets ;)

Our micro-kitchen (now with Zebra frying pan!)

The view from our balcony

Our sparse living room complete with our shiny new beanbag

Next week holds summer school, our first days at our base schools and teaching and Japanese language training. So far so good and we are both looking forward to getting fully settled in our new home.

Our first home cooked meal (great success)