William D'Arcy is spending 2 months in Susono on a short term exchange. Here is his first report and pictures:
JAPAN IS CRAZY! Crazy good! I'm loving it here. Everyone I meet is amazing, the foods have been divine, even the weird stuff! I can’t understand a thing people are saying and I have no clue what's going on. It's great!
The plane ride over was maybe one of the scariest things I've done in a while. It was pretty strange to have to go through customs alone. Once on the plane it was good, but getting off the plane was quite a fright. I was a little late disembarking so by the time I got to the terminals everyone was already gone so it was empty, completely empty! But I made it out all in one piece. My first host mother Aiko was waiting for me and from there we went to my new home.
A nice little house out in the fields - I don't know exactly what they grow but it's a really nice location and the house is lovely. However, I soon came to the realisation that this particular family didn't speak English all too well, so communication is more of a guessing game, which is fine - just not what I was expecting which was a bit arrogant of me to expect English to be a prominent language here in Susono. But I don't mind - who needs to communicate anyways?!
I soon started my first week at my new Japanese high school. The school itself is huge, two 5 story buildings make up the classrooms and I find it strange to have to walk up 5 flights of stairs to get to class. At first, I was super nervous as I had no clue what to expect. On arrival I was treated like a celebrity - almost as if I was famous. My classmates were super friendly and were super easy to talk to. Some of them were even able to speak with me in English, some better than others. After a week at school here I've come to the conclusion that all my classmates and friends are crazy! They are all comedians making jokes left, right and centre, but not only are they crazy they are also some of the kindest, most thoughtful people ever! They always ensure I never go anywhere alone, I always have someone to walk and talk with on the train ride home and to and from my classes. What a lovely group of individuals.
Can't wait to see where this adventure goes next …
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| William arriving at Narita Airport, Tokyo |
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| M-I-C, K-E-Y, M-O-U-S-E!! |
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| Special castle exhibition |
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| BBQ at home with host family |
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| Christmas decorations |
