Arrived in Japan....FINALLY!

Well, what an ordeal! I don't really want to dwell on it too much or relive the experience again through the process of writing this entry but let's just say the worst must be over now. Delayed in London 7 hours, thus missing my flight to Tokyo. Had to stay overnight in Rome. Get to Japan exactly one day late, missing orientation, scramble to catch up with everything. Oh and did I forget to mention the airline has failed to fly my suitcases over with me so not only am I anxiously awaiting the arrival of all of my prized possessions but spending more of my yen already than I planned to on replacement clothes, showergel, towels, toothpaste, adapters and you get the picture. Will let everyone know when (if?) my suitcases arrive.

Trying my best to look on the bright side (and i'm sure you all know how difficult that is for me!) Got to eat pasta in Italy at last, albeit it was just from a buffet tray, it's still pasta in Italy! Also made a lovely group of friends who were also in the same situation as me, and this is us;

My view from my balcony in Rome;

The Narita Express train - much more sophisticated and hi-tec than scot-rail could ever dream of! They actually close the train for a bit everytime it terminates to clean it, there's lots of leg room and big tv screens with news, weather, etc. And with all the trains i've been on so far in Japan, there's is literally one every couple of minutes!

And though my suitcase dilemma is frustrating, I did find a fabulous shopping centre when I was buying new things that I will be checking out when I have more time.

So, Japan is.... ABSOLUTELY ROASTING. It's between 25 and 30 degrees at this time and the humidity is pretty high. All the Japanese looked amazing today while I was huffing along with a bright red face, hair matted to my face with sweat and a grey t-shirt which didn't hide the fact that I was indeed, absolutely roasting! Not sure how the make-up is going to fare... It gets dark around 6pm though, which is a plus as the weather cools down a bit/it's dark so no one can make out my beetroot resembling face.

I didn't really do much else today apart from sort out the things I missed and buy things. Satomi helped me out alot today so I want to give a big thanks to her! I was really stressed out and the last thing I needed was language issues on top of that so she was my wonderful helper and guide today. Can't really settle in properly without my stuff. My room is alright. It's not huge but it's got everything I need really - pretty decent bedroom space with a futon, desk and shelves (which i've been advised not to put alot of things on incase of an earthquake!) I have a small kitchenette and bathroom as well as a washer/dryer and balcony. The person before me left a handful of textbooks and a rice cooker which I get to use! The room is also air conditioned, thank god.

Everything in Japan is MASSIVE. I thought we had tall buildings but boy wait until you see these! I didn't get the chance to take alot of pictures today as I'm sure you can understand under all the stress i've been through but i'll get working on that from now on. Everything is so colourful here. There are so many people. And the customer service is so CHEERFUL. So cheerful that it borders on scary...

Trying to read everything is starting to give me a headache haha. It's quite overwhelming... It's also considered quite shady to wear sunglassses and is rude to speak to someone whilst wearing them. I'm sorry for being an arrogant foreigner but I need my sunglasses otherwise i'll get headaches from squinting to much trying to see, and possibly wrinkles....:P

I came back to my room and put away the few possessions I have with me. I went to the convenience store and here is my first shop;

Not very exciting but I didn't need much. I can also hear all of you laughing at me for buying evian!! Stop laughing! :P But it's a comfort in an overwhelming world!! Indeed!

My first bowl of ramen, which in actuality is just supernoodles but yummier! I also had no idea what was in this one but it was pretty tasty so I'm guessing it wasn't anything too weird. Here it is in action;

Also thought Simon and his mum could appreciate some Japanese moo-min milk!

Views from my balcony;

I actually live in a place called Kawasaki which is in Kanagawa, and is only about 5 minutes outside Tokyo on the train. It takes about 20 minutes to walk to the station from my room so it's not bad. It's a much quieter location than if I were staying in the middle of Tokyo.

I have a few more introductory classes at Uni tomorrow, although I finish the day at 12.30 and am off until Monday morning so I will hopefully get a chance to do some more exploring. A possible visit to Kamakura, an old traditional style town with a giagantic statue of buddha. So we'll see if that happens and hopefully I'll get some time to study for my placement test too!

I found out todayy that the man who is on the 10,000 yen note is the founder of my University so it must be a good one if it's represented on the Japanese currency!!

This is the only picture I took in the University today. It is an old library building which I thought was very beautiful;

That's me out for now, sorry for the long post but alot has happened so I had alot to say. My friend from Edinburgh University is coming back soon and we're going for a stroll around the local area.

Miss you all lots, hope you're doing well.

Lots of love, Natasha x