First Week in Japan!

So I haven't exactly been up to date with my writing!! I'm super sorry >_<;; I've been so busy lately that I haven't had much time! But I must say one thing....

Japan. Is. AMAZING!!!!

I cannot believe I never came here until now! It's so spectacular!! I live in Shinjuku which is located in Tokyo. I live with a host family and I couldn't have asked for a better family!! I live with a family of four--Masae (my Okaasan), Yuji (my Otousan), and the six year old, Taiga and Ririka.

Everything about my new host family, the Kato family, is amazing! Masae is so sweet and kind--and she is a GREAT cook! Yuji is an art director and he works a lot so I haven't been able to see him often. Even so, he is also very kind and he knows a lot of English! The kids? Wow...There's so much to say about the kids! They are the CUTEST things in the entire world!

They don't know any English and apparently the last girl from America that lived with them didn't know any English so Ririka and Taiga couldn't communicate with her. My Japanese isn't very good but apparently it's good enough to have small conversations so I often chit chat with the kids! It is soooo much fun!! The moment I walked into the Kato family house last Sunday, they wanted to watch Megamind with me and then Sleeping Beauty. The other day I watched The Little Mermaid and Monsters Inc. with them! Hahahahaha! They keep making me cute little origami crafts everyday so when I come home from school to eat dinner, there are origami crafts for me sitting by my food. They started calling me "Onee-san" which means "older sister" in Japanese Ｏ(≧∇≦)Ｏ JAPANESE KIDS ARE SO CUTE!


So I haven't had much free time to explore Tokyo on my own yet. I've been going to school all day (9:00-4:45) for the past few days. The school is really nice and the teachers are very friendly! I've also made a few friends who are fellow students at KCP! There's about 50-60 of us international students. They're mostly from America but I've met people from Ireland, London, China, Korea, etc etc. A lot of the students are really cool and I can't wait to hang out with them! Some of them...ehhhhhh, not so much. There are few students who are in Japan /only/ because they like anime. Hey, anime is cool--I myself love it. In fact, I'm a total nerd! If I could, I'd spend all my time reading manga, cosplaying, watching anime, and playing video games. But....there's SOOOOO much more to Japan than anime!! I think some of the people who only like Japan for anime are a bit disappointed. I guess they were expecting to see giant robots and cats with big sparkly eyes only to see crowded trains and skyscrapers. I'm trying to enjoy Japan for what it is--not just the pop culture that it has to offer ;)


As of right now, I pretty much love everything about Japan XD I love the food, the scenery, the language....But it's A LOT to take in! The only thing I don't like about Japan is the train system. Well...I don't like the trains in general. They're EXTREMELY scary!! Well, to me at least! That's because I keep getting lost in the train stations. Like....really lost. Like, and hour and a half before school on the first day kind of lost....They're REALLY complicated to understand! And sometimes they get very crowded. Has anybody seen those youtube videos where they actually have those security people near the trains to literally shove people in the trains to pack them in like sardines? Yeah. That's REAL. 


But the scariest thing about Japan to me is the doors.


Why? Because one closed on me! Hahahahaha! It was a terrifying experience! The door closed on me and it was so heavy that it made me fall. My leg got caught between the train and the platform. So, in short, if the train had started moving, I would have lost my leg. I sat on the floor screaming and flailing my arms in a panic but nobody did anything....They didn't try to help me out or even laugh at me. They just kind of stood there blankly as if stuff like that happens all the time. But for me, it was the scariest thing in the world! I finally managed to pull my leg free. On the downside, I now have this horrible bruise. But....it's kinda cool. It's like my battle scar! Hahahaha!

As you can see, it's a pretty big bruise. It's got worse after I took that picture but its starting to look a little better now. So....Trains 1, Hannah 0.

I'll eventually get the hang of it, though....Eventualllllly....

I'm actually pretty surprised at my Japanese skills O_o;; I've /never/ been good at Japanese but I spend most evenings after school hanging out and talking with my host family. I love talking with Masae!! I can understand almost everything she says!! Even though I speak in broken Japanese, she's been correcting me and helping me practice. I could spend all night just chatting with her! She is suuuuuch a great person! I hope she doesn't get annoyed with me constantly needing to be corrected...

So far, I haven't been to Akihabara but I want to sooooo badly!! The KCP students toured Shinjuku the other day and I saw a cosplay store that I want to go back to since I didn't have time to go in <3 I did have a chance to go into an arcade and do Purikura (Japanese photobooths that are adorable) with my new KCP friends!! SO MUCH FUN!! And all the arcades have so many cool anime stuff! :D

Today we went on a field trip to Naraijuku which is more of a historical town. It was soooo beautiful!! We saw shrines and cute little shops!! We also went to a castle today called Matsumoto Castle! It was about 400 years old and we got to tour inside of it! I took a lot of pictures and videos so Ill have to upload them soon!

Tomorrow I'm going to Asakusa with my host family. I'm so excited to see what adventures it will bring! <3 I'll try to keep updating my blog more frequently! <3 I'm really loving Japan!! Keep an eye out for the pics I upload to FB! :D