Narita

I am sorry for the long delay, but I have been without internet for quite some time. I am still without an internet connection for the time being, but I have figured out how to tether my phone to my computer, which should allow me to start posting again. I have many blog posts ready to go, so I will probably post one every other day, until I am caught up. I have decided that it will be fun to have a competition of sorts with my blogs. In each blog I will pose some sort of question, and see if you can answer it. Please do not post your responses in the comments section, but rather send them to me in either an email, or a Facebook message. Please do not look up any of the answers, but answer from your own knowledge or guess. Everyone who correctly answers the question will get a point, or several points. These points will add up throughout the course of my blogs in Japan. At the end of my time here your points will be redeemed for omiyage which I will bring with me when I come back. So this brings me to my first question, what are omiyage? This question will be worth two points for a complete answer and one point for a partial answer. I will probably post again in two days so please respond before then!

One other note, please feel free to ask questions about anything. I will try to respond and give you a clearer picture of what life in Japan is like! J

Here it is, the one you have all been waiting for, my first blog post in Japan, and you can’t even read it when I finish writing it, because I don’t have internet yet. Well anyways I hope that you all enjoy this when you do get to read it. I will be doing several blog posts covering my first week in Japan because so much has happened already, and the week isn’t even done yet!

I arrived at Logan International Airport at just about 10:00 on Saturday morning with my whole family (except for Andrew). We waited in line, and then finally made it up the counter where I found out that both of my bags were overweight. They needed to be 23 kilograms each, but one was 23.8, and the other was over 24. (I will try to use metric measurements from here on out. I don’t really know them that well, but it is good practice for me as that is all that they use in Japan.) After shifting some luggage from my bag to my carry on, I managed to reduce the weight slightly. It was still over the limit, but the baggage lady was nice enough to let it slide. We headed off to security, and I said goodbye to my family. :’( Now technically there is a weight limit for your carry on, but I didn’t think that they would check it, and I was right. That was a very good thing as my carry on probably weighed almost as much as my other bags. Those of you who know me well know that I can’t live without my books, and since I knew that my other bags were going to be close to the weight limit, many of my books had ended up in my backpack. (Thanks for the tip, Greg Church!)

I was flying on Japan Airlines Flight 007 (it made me want to put on my tuxedo and order a martini!) along with 40 other JETs (Japanese Exchange Teachers). We were flying direct from Logan to Narita (Tokyo). We left at 1:00 pm on Saturday, and arrived in Japan a little after 3:00 pm on Sunday. (I’ll let all of you math wizzes figure out how long we were actually in the air). The flight went very well. If any of you ever want to go to Japan (and have a little extra money) I highly recommend Japan Airlines. I didn’t have a great view out the window, (my seat was in the middle of the last row) but the little I did see mainly taking off and landing was pretty beautiful. I did have a great view of my TV screen, (I had a personal one right in front of me) and I recommend the movie 42. The in-flight meals were also very yummy, and even the bathroom was pretty nice.

When we arrived in Narita my ear was still popped, so I couldn’t hear right for a while, but we moved quickly through Customs, and also received our Foreign Residency Cards, which allow us to buy things like phones. There were lots of people there to meet us, and they helped us make a quick transition from the plane to the buses which took us to Tokyo. My first “whoa, I’m in Japan moment” came on the bus ride when I looked out the window to see a person asleep in the front left seat of a car. It took me a moment to remember that in Japan they drive from the right side!

Don’t miss the next blog post with more unforgettable titles from the same author including: The Sound of Silence, Waking up in Tokyo, To Eat or not to Eat, and an amazing new story, The Island of Shinjuku Patio.

Quiz:  1 or 2 points

What are Omiyage? Don’t look anything up, and answer via email or Facebook message!