Well. I'll try to get in more consistent updates. No promises though. A lot's happened this week. In short: I'm loving Japan. In long(er): read on.
Grievances first. To those unaware of the ridiculous humidity in Japan: without the air conditioner, I can engage in the terribly strenuous activity of studying on my futon and work up a sweat; at 8 in the morning. Possibly because of the humidity, insects and other things with the scientific name creepy-crawly, are here in abundance. They are also quite large. On a walk to the university, I saw a spider about the size of my palm.
Besides those things, I really don't have much to complain about. In general, food is more expensive, but you just have to look for the deals as in America. The bento boxes (boxed lunches, which are sold at grocery stores, 7-11's, and quite possibly, vending machines) go on sale at the market right next to the dorm, so it's possible to get a meal for around 300 yen. And that's the lazy option. If I'm willing to cook (and I usually am) there isn't too much of a difference between the Tyler Menu in Japan or America (beef is about double the price and some fruits and vegetables like tomatoes are hard to find).
I'll try to keep this rave short. Public transit is amazing. Trains run on time, they're fast (could not get to Tokyo faster by car), and the attendants are actually helpful. Summer and I got lost in the downtown Tokyo station and we had to ask for directions. The guy I was talking to barely understood a word of English and still managed to get us on the right train. I have yet to see those situations were the station workers have to push people into the cars to get the doors to close, but I'll be commuting on Mondays to Tokyo, so I'll probably see it happen.
The classes available to the exchange students are a little disappointing. Most of the classes I want to take are held in the afternoons at the Tokyo campus. Most unfortunately, the language classes are held Tuesday to Friday also in the afternoons. And since I kinda came to Japan to learn the language and also have the unfortunate restriction of needing to fill four more classes for my major in the year before I graduate, I'm a little limited.
It's been a lot of fun this week, but I feel like I need to close by noting that I've been in this country for less than a week, and it has already been made very clear to me just how loud Americans are. Oh well, though. Just because it's annoying doesn't mean it's wrong. I guess.
