Greetings, travelors! And welcome to Japisney: The Adventure of a Lifetime!
Hahahaha! I really have been working at Star Tours for too long (and it's only been two months!) With every day that goes by, I'm falling more in love with my job and my coworkers.
I had a WONDERFUL week last week! I really got to connect with my two friends, Lily and Suzy, when we went to Typhoon Lagoon together on our last day off. Wow! It was SOOO much fun! I had never been before and it was my goal to hit every single park at Disney World. Typhoon Lagoon is a water park and it was scheduled to close for a while in the next week or so so I'm really glad we went ahead and went ^_^ I really had a blast! I even got to meet Suzy's awesome roommate who's into anime and Japan and stuff! Hahaha! I need to hang out with her more often...
My favorite part of the day, however, was when we just sat down after lunch together and had some well deserved girl time. Lily and Suzy are sooooo easy to open up to! I was able to get a lot off my chest so it felt good to have some one to just vent to <3
Suzy and I even got to go to Magic Kingdom together after the water park and we had a magical time together ^_^ The lines for rides were long but we sat and chatted the entire time so time flew by! It was so much fun! We definitely need to do that again sometime <3
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So I've decided that Star Tours is my favorite place to work in this entire world. Sure, sometimes the hours and long and my feet start hurting....but there really are some amazing people that work there.
In all honesty, I adore everyone at Star Tours, for the exception of two people. Don't get me wrong....I don't necessarily dislike them but there are two girls at Star Tours that have been nothing but rude and snobby to me :( I try to not let their attitudes ruin my day but it's hard not to when one girl is getting in my face, going, "Look, sweetie, you're doing your job wrong and you keep messing up!Just get out of the way!"
Yeah....Kill em with kindness, Hannah. I just take their abuse and move on, usually. People like that are usually just insecure in themselves and feel the need to talk down to others....They're not worth getting angry at.
Other than that, my coworkers are like...the best people in the entire world!! One of our coordinators, whose like a grandpa to me, really stuck his neck out for me yesterday <3 I had worked about a 14 hour shift and he put me in a position where I could rest my legs and sit for awhile. He didn't have to do that but he did anyways....How sweet is that? I want to bake him cookies!
And then there is the other people at work that just make my heart flutter with happiness whenever I see them. Everyone is just so nice!! I feel so included at work and everyone is always smiling and doing their best to make the guests happy!
Needless to say.....I just love Star Tours. I look forward to going to work and I never really could say that about any other job. Maybe I can see a future career at Walt Disney World after I graduate. Who knows? This is just such an amazing company....There's no way I can leave it!
I unfortunately have to end this blog short since I'm actually about to go to work now.... I just wanted to write about how much I love my job and my amazing coworkers!! I'm looking forward to working with them in an hour or so <3 Let's see what awesomeness today will bring!! <3
Monday, October 29, 2012
Sunday, October 21, 2012
~*Happy Halloween, Travelers!*~
So I titled this post, Happy Halloween but it's not exactly Halloween yet... Close enough though!
My Disney Program is continuing and things are getting better and better :) I'm making more and more memories and more and more friends! There's not a day that goes by that I don't miss Tokyo but I'm falling more and more in love with Disney <3
I'm getting better at my job at Star Tours! I'm REALLY loving it! I love all my "Disney terms" that we use on a daily basis. I find myself "Hello, travelers!" to everyone! ^_^; And I love telling people to have a "Fantasmic" day... Needless to say, Disney is REALLY rubbing off on me. I feel like a completely different person at work. I'm upbeat, peppy, and all-smiles! If I ever go to work bummed out or stressed, I have to quickly wipe the frown off myself. Star Tours is a show, after all, and we're all performers. Anytime I smile, I'm just passing it to another passenger. If I can make at least one person smile, then I'm doing my job. No matter how cheesy I am <3
Soooo.....this blogpost is a bit more chipper than my last few. I wonder why? Am I just having more fun at Disney then I was before? Or could it be the people impacting my life?
~~~~~~~
I got to do something EXTRAORDINARY this past week. I got to see the new Fantasyland preview at Magic Kingdom. Do you know what that means? I GOT TO RIDE THE NEW LITTLE MERMAID RIDE!!!!!!
If anyone of you know me, you know that The Little Mermaid is my FAVORITE movie OF ALL TIME! Ever since I was a little kid, I wondered why there wasn't an Ariel ride...I mean, come on! It would make the PERFECT ride! And who knew that they would eventually have one later on in my life?
Is it lame that I can't wait to have kids so I can take them to Disney and take them on the Little Mermaid ride? I'll be able to brag to my kids that I was a Disney cast member when the ride first opened. And that I was one of the first people to ever ride it <3 It's pretty exciting, if you ask me!
They also have a bunch of cool stuff in the new Fantasyland, too! For starters, I heard that they brought back Ariel's grotto. And now Gaston has a meet and greet! But Ohmygosh nothing compares to the Little Mermaid Ride....it was ABSOLUTE perfection! I'll definitely post up pictures later <3
Speaking of Ariel, guess who made a guest appearance at Vista Way last week? Ariel, Eric, Cinderella, and Prince Charming did a meet and greet at a little party at Vista Way!!! I was SOOOO excited! I got some adorable pics <3 You have no idea how much I freaked out! I had never met Eric before! And even though Prince Charming wasn't so charming looking, it was exciting seeing him and Cinderella, too! hahahaha!
I also roasted my finger that day....I got to meet Ariel with a ton of aloe on my finger and I tried not getting it on her dress. Lol!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Totally unrelated to anything Disney but I beat two boys at Pokemon Stadium this weekend. I beat them BADLY! Best. Day. EVER!
~~~~~~~~~~
I'm doing more and more exciting things at Disney! For example, I went to Animal Kingdom not too long ago and had a wonderful time! I got to ride the Dinosaur ride again and this time, I kept my eyes open!! I also went to Epcot again and had a lovely bowl of udon with my dear friend Jimmy and it was just fantastic!
However, something superb something happened to me that was definitely nothing short of a miracle! I got to see one of my best friends that I haven't got to seen in about 7 years! I randomly facebook'd her to see if she was dropping by Orlando since her family lives near West Palm Beach. Sure enough, she was headed to Orlando last weekend!! I was thrilled!! I actually got to see her and have breakfast with her! Omigosh it was SOOOO cool! She really hadn't changed much over the years and we clicked just like we did when we were kids :) Her family hadn't changed at all that much, either! It was really neat! I had missed Taylor so much....so it was a really nice reunion ^_^
I wonder if I'll have any other unexpected reunions??
Well, I kind of already did :) Some of my distant family members came to Hollywood Studios and it was really exciting to see them!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I've been getting a little anxious when I think about going home in a few months.... I've changed SOOOO much since I departed on my journey to Japan. I've become more independent and my personality has even altered a bit. And of course Disney has turned me into a kira-kira sparkle happy face princess genki chan (Don't ask.) What's it going to be like when I finally go home? Will things go back to the way they were or have I grown too much for that to be possible? Just so you know, not all of my changes have been good ones....
I haven't been feeling like myself lately. I haven't really been nerd-ing out all that much. I'm either at work, hanging out with friends, or going to the parks. I haven't really had time to just sit down and do my typical nerd things (watch anime, make cosplay, play video games, write fanfics, draw manga, learn japanese, etc etc) So.....I bought some curry mix and made AWESOME Japanese style curry and I even bought a bunch of sewing material to work on my Final Fantasy 13-2 Serah Farron cosplay =w= I haven't had time to work on Serah yet but I know that I'll be yearning to work on her soon enough! <3 Then I can do SeeU, Asuna Yuuki, Rise Kujikawa, and Sayaka <3 I've got an exciting list coming up!! I've missed going to cons....
~~~~~~~~~~~
Once Disney is over, will I have to quit my blog?? I mean, Japisney /will/ be over technically.... but I guess it'll live on in my heart <3 One thing is for sure! Either Japan or Disney is burning bright in my future. Who knows? Maybe Tokyo Disney is where my future will lie...
Either way, my journey isn't over yet :3 Sorry I haven't been writing much in my blog, lately....Maybe I'll come up with some interesting posts about what its like being a Disney CP at Star Tours ;)
Til then....
I wonder what tomorrow will bring? ^_^
.....work =_=
My Disney Program is continuing and things are getting better and better :) I'm making more and more memories and more and more friends! There's not a day that goes by that I don't miss Tokyo but I'm falling more and more in love with Disney <3
I'm getting better at my job at Star Tours! I'm REALLY loving it! I love all my "Disney terms" that we use on a daily basis. I find myself "Hello, travelers!" to everyone! ^_^; And I love telling people to have a "Fantasmic" day... Needless to say, Disney is REALLY rubbing off on me. I feel like a completely different person at work. I'm upbeat, peppy, and all-smiles! If I ever go to work bummed out or stressed, I have to quickly wipe the frown off myself. Star Tours is a show, after all, and we're all performers. Anytime I smile, I'm just passing it to another passenger. If I can make at least one person smile, then I'm doing my job. No matter how cheesy I am <3
Soooo.....this blogpost is a bit more chipper than my last few. I wonder why? Am I just having more fun at Disney then I was before? Or could it be the people impacting my life?
~~~~~~~
I got to do something EXTRAORDINARY this past week. I got to see the new Fantasyland preview at Magic Kingdom. Do you know what that means? I GOT TO RIDE THE NEW LITTLE MERMAID RIDE!!!!!!
If anyone of you know me, you know that The Little Mermaid is my FAVORITE movie OF ALL TIME! Ever since I was a little kid, I wondered why there wasn't an Ariel ride...I mean, come on! It would make the PERFECT ride! And who knew that they would eventually have one later on in my life?
Is it lame that I can't wait to have kids so I can take them to Disney and take them on the Little Mermaid ride? I'll be able to brag to my kids that I was a Disney cast member when the ride first opened. And that I was one of the first people to ever ride it <3 It's pretty exciting, if you ask me!
They also have a bunch of cool stuff in the new Fantasyland, too! For starters, I heard that they brought back Ariel's grotto. And now Gaston has a meet and greet! But Ohmygosh nothing compares to the Little Mermaid Ride....it was ABSOLUTE perfection! I'll definitely post up pictures later <3
Speaking of Ariel, guess who made a guest appearance at Vista Way last week? Ariel, Eric, Cinderella, and Prince Charming did a meet and greet at a little party at Vista Way!!! I was SOOOO excited! I got some adorable pics <3 You have no idea how much I freaked out! I had never met Eric before! And even though Prince Charming wasn't so charming looking, it was exciting seeing him and Cinderella, too! hahahaha!
I also roasted my finger that day....I got to meet Ariel with a ton of aloe on my finger and I tried not getting it on her dress. Lol!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Totally unrelated to anything Disney but I beat two boys at Pokemon Stadium this weekend. I beat them BADLY! Best. Day. EVER!
~~~~~~~~~~
I'm doing more and more exciting things at Disney! For example, I went to Animal Kingdom not too long ago and had a wonderful time! I got to ride the Dinosaur ride again and this time, I kept my eyes open!! I also went to Epcot again and had a lovely bowl of udon with my dear friend Jimmy and it was just fantastic!
However, something superb something happened to me that was definitely nothing short of a miracle! I got to see one of my best friends that I haven't got to seen in about 7 years! I randomly facebook'd her to see if she was dropping by Orlando since her family lives near West Palm Beach. Sure enough, she was headed to Orlando last weekend!! I was thrilled!! I actually got to see her and have breakfast with her! Omigosh it was SOOOO cool! She really hadn't changed much over the years and we clicked just like we did when we were kids :) Her family hadn't changed at all that much, either! It was really neat! I had missed Taylor so much....so it was a really nice reunion ^_^
I wonder if I'll have any other unexpected reunions??
Well, I kind of already did :) Some of my distant family members came to Hollywood Studios and it was really exciting to see them!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I've been getting a little anxious when I think about going home in a few months.... I've changed SOOOO much since I departed on my journey to Japan. I've become more independent and my personality has even altered a bit. And of course Disney has turned me into a kira-kira sparkle happy face princess genki chan (Don't ask.) What's it going to be like when I finally go home? Will things go back to the way they were or have I grown too much for that to be possible? Just so you know, not all of my changes have been good ones....
I haven't been feeling like myself lately. I haven't really been nerd-ing out all that much. I'm either at work, hanging out with friends, or going to the parks. I haven't really had time to just sit down and do my typical nerd things (watch anime, make cosplay, play video games, write fanfics, draw manga, learn japanese, etc etc) So.....I bought some curry mix and made AWESOME Japanese style curry and I even bought a bunch of sewing material to work on my Final Fantasy 13-2 Serah Farron cosplay =w= I haven't had time to work on Serah yet but I know that I'll be yearning to work on her soon enough! <3 Then I can do SeeU, Asuna Yuuki, Rise Kujikawa, and Sayaka <3 I've got an exciting list coming up!! I've missed going to cons....
~~~~~~~~~~~
Once Disney is over, will I have to quit my blog?? I mean, Japisney /will/ be over technically.... but I guess it'll live on in my heart <3 One thing is for sure! Either Japan or Disney is burning bright in my future. Who knows? Maybe Tokyo Disney is where my future will lie...
Either way, my journey isn't over yet :3 Sorry I haven't been writing much in my blog, lately....Maybe I'll come up with some interesting posts about what its like being a Disney CP at Star Tours ;)
Til then....
I wonder what tomorrow will bring? ^_^
.....work =_=
Saturday, September 29, 2012
~*Disney College Program Thus Far*~
Hey guys!! I'm sure you thought I had died since it's been a few weeks since I updated my blog... I've just been SUPER busy at my new job at Star Tours! But I should give you guys an update on what my Disney experience has been thus far! ^_^
~~~~~~
But hey....I'm not gonna lie or sugarcoat or anything. In the beginning, I hated my Disney College Program.
Well, hate is such a strong word....It's Disney, after all. You can't put the words "hate" and "Disney" in the same sentence. But it was really rough for me at first.... I missed a very important meeting and almost got in trouble due to being late because of a stupid bus. Not a good start.
Oh, and they weren't kidding about Vista Way--it is party central. And that's NOT a good thing when you're being kept away most nights because of crazy drunk people who are too inconsiderate to keep their voices down. Oh, and being locked out of my room didn't help much either...
And work. Work was REALLY stressful at first. I kept making SOOOO many mistakes! It wasn't even funny! Star Tours is a very complicated attraction to work at and I didn't realize all the responsibilities and tasks of cast members in the Attractions department... I just wasn't getting it at first.
But I was really fortunate--I had the BEST trainer ever!! He kept encouraging me all the time and tried to put my mind at ease. Not to mention, he kept cracking me up! Benny was such a fun trainer!! I owe it to him for breaking me out of my shell!
Speaking of shell, I think the hardest thing for me at Disney at first was my overwhelming loneliness :'( I just couldn't seem to make any friends at first....
>A girl I met at orientation that I thought could be my friend completely ignored me everyday after that. Am I that weird?
>Some of my coworkers were talking bad about me behind my back at first and I knew it..... From what I overheard, I was the new girl and I was "awkward" and "unapproachable".
>It's hard to be friends with my roommate since she's big into partying...And me? Well...that's just not my scene....and I don't like being pressured to go out and drink and get out of my comfort zone.
>Overall, I just couldn't make friends at first.
I really liked my roommate Clare but she was leaving ;__; And I hardly ever saw the other girls...
I was really pathetic at first. Because I didn't really have any friends, I took myself out to Magic Kingdom by myself :'D But....I had fun. Despite being alone, I had fun. I rode Splash Mountain three times and got to see some amazing shows!! ^^ It was a day well spent, I believe!
And then I met Tiara <3 Definitely my new best friend! She was a new trainee, too, and we instantly clicked! Oh, and her roommates are the nicest people EVER! ^____^
And then my Disney program started getting better <3
I began making friends with more of my coworkers after a while. In fact, one day during training, I had lunch with Tiara, Benny, and Steve (Tiara's trainee) and we spent the entire laughing and cutting up. It was the most relaxed I had felt since I had arrived! My sides burned from laughing and I had tears coming out of my eyes! Hahahaha! I owe it to them, really. I started being less timid and nervous at work and more outgoing to people. Disney isn't the place to be shy or insecure.... Yeah, people didn't like me at first but I think it's because I didn't get a chance to show them who I was, ya know? I'm to the point where there is not a single person at work that I dislike. Everyone is so nice to me now and everyone is even really helpful whenever I make mistakes and need assistance. Star Tours isn't a scary place like I had originally thought.
And to think I called my mom crying one day telling her that I wanted to come home.
But....I've been really homesick. TERRIBLY homesick.
I mean, I was only at home for about two weeks from Japan before I had to pack up and go to Disney. I thought it would be adventure....but you never really realize how much you love home until you've been away from it for awhile. I'm a baby at heart--I miss my momma more than anything. And of course my sissy, daddy, MawMaw, PawPaw, and all my BFF's like Ricey and Analee... Let's not even talk about how much I miss C.J.....I don't even like thinking about it T_________T
But....I guess this is part of growing up. I had a great time in Japan but Disney was a little harder since I only had a taste of home after being gone for two months, only to leave right away. I guess I'm just most scared of what will happen when I come back... So much will have changed...
BUUUUUUT! Enough of the emo stuff! Hahahaha!! Let's talk about the super great stuff about my Disney College Program. The reasons I'm still here. The reasons why I knew I wanted to do the Disney College Program in the first place.
~~~~~~
Work. At first it was unnerving, but now Star Tours is my favorite place. Why? Working there is SOOOO much fun! Now that I'm out of training and I've got the hang of things, it's been SPECTACULAR! I absolutely adore my coworkers, like I've said before! They're amazing people!! I've been invited to several events in which I'm so glad I got to go! I've hung out with people at restraunts and I even went to Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party!! ^____^ I had a great time and got to meet even more people!! (I went as Snow White, of course <3 Didn't get any real pictures at the castle but the parade and fireworks were especially magical!)
I also just really love working with guests. I'm so weird....I love making people smile. When I make a little girl smile because I call her "princess", I get so excited. I love using cheesy Star Tours lingo when loading guests in and out of their cabins. I love joking around with guests!
I had a really special moment with a person with disabilities. He was in a wheelchair by himself and I noticed he had a Star Tours shirt on. I told him I loved his shirt and how Star Tours is soooo cool and he got so excited and fist pumped me. It was great for me seeing the smile on his face!
Of course, all jobs have their drawbacks. I'm not getting enough sleep and my feet constantly hurt! I've already had guests get mad at me because I wouldn't let their baby ride because they didn't meet the height requirement. And the time it takes for me to commute due to traffic is AWFUL.
But it's all right ^_^ I can deal with all of that!
My weekends have been pretty spectacular though so far!! Like I said, I got to do Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween last weekend and this weekend was ESPECIALLY magical!
I GOT TO GO TO UNIVERSAL STUDIOS AND ISLANDS OF ADVENTURE FOR FREEEEEEEEE~~~~~<3
I have AWESOME friends!!! My friend Minh got me in for free, God love him :'D And we all went as a group and it was amazing! I had never been to Universal Studios so it was definitely an adventure!! The Mummy ride was by far my favorite, even though it was SUPER scary and I screamed the whole time.
But Islands of Adventure will always hold a special place in my heart cause I went there with my family when I was ten. I'll never forget riding the Jurassic Park River Adventure ride!
.....and I got to ride it for the first time in 11 years yesterday <3
I had forgotten just how scary it was!!! But I still rode it in awe <3 Hahahah! I love dinosaurs!! :D I only got to ride it once, unfortunately, and not like...4 times like I did when I was ten hahahaha. But I've decided that I'm going to save up and buy an annual pass to Universal. I know I'm only going to be here until January but even if I only go to Universal and Islands of Adventure a few times, it'll pay for itself. And I really love those parks....
The Harry Potter section of the park was pretty amazing, too!! The main Harry Potter ride was REALLY cool and fun but a little too scary for my tastes...I had to close my eyes when I saw the spiders and when the Dementors came out at me ;_; I was petrified....
But today? Today was REALLY cool, too! I got to hit up a little bit of Animal Kingdom for the first time and go to Blizzard Beach! ^_^ I GOT TO RIDE THE DINOSAUR RIDE THERE, TOO!!!!! But I got scared on there, too....and had to close my eyes.....Wow, I'm really lame.
But Blizzard Beach is really fun!! I love water slides but there was no way I was getting on the super huge water slide with the super huge drop....
~~~~~~~~~
Sorry if this blog post seems a little scattered and poorly thought out >_<;;; I'm a little scatter-brained, myself.
Overall, I'm having SO much fun in Disney now! I'm branching out, meeting new people, and doing things I've only been able to dream of doing. There's SOOOO much I want to do in Disney! I want to ride Dinosaur 100000000 times! I want to explore all of the parks! I want to ride Tower of Terror with out getting scared! I want to meet all the characters and get photos and autographs with all of them!! I want to hang out and get to know my coworkers better so we can make tons of memories together!
I just really want an adventure like I had in Japan! Only with less umeshuu....(But I do love the umeshuu...)
~~~~~~~~
But I won't lie. Tonight I cried my eyes out. I mean, I had the best weekend ever today! It was SOOOO much fun! But.... all my bestiest are at AWA right now. And they keep saying how much they wish I was there....and I just really miss them.
And Japan. Oh my god, I MISS japan! I went to Japan in Epcot today and I had REAL Udon for the first time since I've been in the states. Even though I was hanging out with a totally awesome friend and having a great time, I kinda almost started crying.
Why do I have such mixed feelings about everything? I wanna go home. I wanna go to Japan. I wanna stay at Disney.
I just can't have it all, can I? What's my future going to be like? Let's say I chose home. I'd be giving up dreams of working in either Japan or Disney World. But I'd have the people that matter, right? But how do I pay off student loans....? Or what if I choose Japan? How can I live being so far away from my family and friends even though Japan is perfect for me? Or if I choose Disney. I won't be living in Japan, where I felt like I really belonged, and I'd be far away from my family. But Disney is where dreams come true and it's a company that I could even interpret my Japanese language skills into.
I'm so torn right now....even though it's not like I have to make any decisions yet hahahaha. When I was in Japan, I was excited about doing Disney while missing home like crazy. When I was home, I was missing Japan like crazy and SUPER psyched about Disney. Now I'm at Disney, I miss home SUPER badly and Japan SUPER badly.
........Why am I even ranting about this in my blog? hahahaha! I'm sure you guys would rather know all the dirty little secrets of Disney and how the magic /really/ works ;) And I'm sure you're wondering one of the world's most popular questions--is there really ONLY one Mickey Mouse?
Well, I'll answer these another day ;D I'll tell you this though, Disney really is pure magic. It's a great company. The people are wonderful. The work is enjoyable. Making people smile really is the greatest feeling.
I'm really glad I'm here despite my homesickness for home and Japan. I'm glad I didn't pack up and go home that one day I was crying to mom on the phone....
And I know my adventure in Disney is only going to get better. Life is what you put into it, really. I gotta make the most out of my trip and not let homesickness get to me.
I guess it's okay if I cry tonight, though ^_^;;; Just for tonight, I promise!! I just really want to be apart of AWA with everyone. Everyone keeps telling me it's not the same with out me, hahaha! Breaks my heart but makes me feel special at the same time... I really hate being left out of memories.
~~~~~~~~~~
But anyways, I think I'll stop here :) To those of you who are actually still reading, thanks so much! Once again, I'm sorry if my blog is just not all that interesting! I'm mostly using it so I can look back on this in the future and remember it all. I want to remember everything--the good, the bad, and the ugly.
I can't wait to make more Disney memories! (And Universal ones now, too!) It's only going to get better from now on!!
So............who wants to come visit me? <3
~~~~~~
But hey....I'm not gonna lie or sugarcoat or anything. In the beginning, I hated my Disney College Program.
Well, hate is such a strong word....It's Disney, after all. You can't put the words "hate" and "Disney" in the same sentence. But it was really rough for me at first.... I missed a very important meeting and almost got in trouble due to being late because of a stupid bus. Not a good start.
Oh, and they weren't kidding about Vista Way--it is party central. And that's NOT a good thing when you're being kept away most nights because of crazy drunk people who are too inconsiderate to keep their voices down. Oh, and being locked out of my room didn't help much either...
And work. Work was REALLY stressful at first. I kept making SOOOO many mistakes! It wasn't even funny! Star Tours is a very complicated attraction to work at and I didn't realize all the responsibilities and tasks of cast members in the Attractions department... I just wasn't getting it at first.
But I was really fortunate--I had the BEST trainer ever!! He kept encouraging me all the time and tried to put my mind at ease. Not to mention, he kept cracking me up! Benny was such a fun trainer!! I owe it to him for breaking me out of my shell!
Speaking of shell, I think the hardest thing for me at Disney at first was my overwhelming loneliness :'( I just couldn't seem to make any friends at first....
>A girl I met at orientation that I thought could be my friend completely ignored me everyday after that. Am I that weird?
>Some of my coworkers were talking bad about me behind my back at first and I knew it..... From what I overheard, I was the new girl and I was "awkward" and "unapproachable".
>It's hard to be friends with my roommate since she's big into partying...And me? Well...that's just not my scene....and I don't like being pressured to go out and drink and get out of my comfort zone.
>Overall, I just couldn't make friends at first.
I really liked my roommate Clare but she was leaving ;__; And I hardly ever saw the other girls...
I was really pathetic at first. Because I didn't really have any friends, I took myself out to Magic Kingdom by myself :'D But....I had fun. Despite being alone, I had fun. I rode Splash Mountain three times and got to see some amazing shows!! ^^ It was a day well spent, I believe!
And then I met Tiara <3 Definitely my new best friend! She was a new trainee, too, and we instantly clicked! Oh, and her roommates are the nicest people EVER! ^____^
And then my Disney program started getting better <3
I began making friends with more of my coworkers after a while. In fact, one day during training, I had lunch with Tiara, Benny, and Steve (Tiara's trainee) and we spent the entire laughing and cutting up. It was the most relaxed I had felt since I had arrived! My sides burned from laughing and I had tears coming out of my eyes! Hahahaha! I owe it to them, really. I started being less timid and nervous at work and more outgoing to people. Disney isn't the place to be shy or insecure.... Yeah, people didn't like me at first but I think it's because I didn't get a chance to show them who I was, ya know? I'm to the point where there is not a single person at work that I dislike. Everyone is so nice to me now and everyone is even really helpful whenever I make mistakes and need assistance. Star Tours isn't a scary place like I had originally thought.
And to think I called my mom crying one day telling her that I wanted to come home.
But....I've been really homesick. TERRIBLY homesick.
I mean, I was only at home for about two weeks from Japan before I had to pack up and go to Disney. I thought it would be adventure....but you never really realize how much you love home until you've been away from it for awhile. I'm a baby at heart--I miss my momma more than anything. And of course my sissy, daddy, MawMaw, PawPaw, and all my BFF's like Ricey and Analee... Let's not even talk about how much I miss C.J.....I don't even like thinking about it T_________T
But....I guess this is part of growing up. I had a great time in Japan but Disney was a little harder since I only had a taste of home after being gone for two months, only to leave right away. I guess I'm just most scared of what will happen when I come back... So much will have changed...
BUUUUUUT! Enough of the emo stuff! Hahahaha!! Let's talk about the super great stuff about my Disney College Program. The reasons I'm still here. The reasons why I knew I wanted to do the Disney College Program in the first place.
~~~~~~
Work. At first it was unnerving, but now Star Tours is my favorite place. Why? Working there is SOOOO much fun! Now that I'm out of training and I've got the hang of things, it's been SPECTACULAR! I absolutely adore my coworkers, like I've said before! They're amazing people!! I've been invited to several events in which I'm so glad I got to go! I've hung out with people at restraunts and I even went to Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party!! ^____^ I had a great time and got to meet even more people!! (I went as Snow White, of course <3 Didn't get any real pictures at the castle but the parade and fireworks were especially magical!)
I also just really love working with guests. I'm so weird....I love making people smile. When I make a little girl smile because I call her "princess", I get so excited. I love using cheesy Star Tours lingo when loading guests in and out of their cabins. I love joking around with guests!
I had a really special moment with a person with disabilities. He was in a wheelchair by himself and I noticed he had a Star Tours shirt on. I told him I loved his shirt and how Star Tours is soooo cool and he got so excited and fist pumped me. It was great for me seeing the smile on his face!
Of course, all jobs have their drawbacks. I'm not getting enough sleep and my feet constantly hurt! I've already had guests get mad at me because I wouldn't let their baby ride because they didn't meet the height requirement. And the time it takes for me to commute due to traffic is AWFUL.
But it's all right ^_^ I can deal with all of that!
My weekends have been pretty spectacular though so far!! Like I said, I got to do Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween last weekend and this weekend was ESPECIALLY magical!
I GOT TO GO TO UNIVERSAL STUDIOS AND ISLANDS OF ADVENTURE FOR FREEEEEEEEE~~~~~<3
I have AWESOME friends!!! My friend Minh got me in for free, God love him :'D And we all went as a group and it was amazing! I had never been to Universal Studios so it was definitely an adventure!! The Mummy ride was by far my favorite, even though it was SUPER scary and I screamed the whole time.
But Islands of Adventure will always hold a special place in my heart cause I went there with my family when I was ten. I'll never forget riding the Jurassic Park River Adventure ride!
.....and I got to ride it for the first time in 11 years yesterday <3
I had forgotten just how scary it was!!! But I still rode it in awe <3 Hahahah! I love dinosaurs!! :D I only got to ride it once, unfortunately, and not like...4 times like I did when I was ten hahahaha. But I've decided that I'm going to save up and buy an annual pass to Universal. I know I'm only going to be here until January but even if I only go to Universal and Islands of Adventure a few times, it'll pay for itself. And I really love those parks....
The Harry Potter section of the park was pretty amazing, too!! The main Harry Potter ride was REALLY cool and fun but a little too scary for my tastes...I had to close my eyes when I saw the spiders and when the Dementors came out at me ;_; I was petrified....
But today? Today was REALLY cool, too! I got to hit up a little bit of Animal Kingdom for the first time and go to Blizzard Beach! ^_^ I GOT TO RIDE THE DINOSAUR RIDE THERE, TOO!!!!! But I got scared on there, too....and had to close my eyes.....Wow, I'm really lame.
But Blizzard Beach is really fun!! I love water slides but there was no way I was getting on the super huge water slide with the super huge drop....
~~~~~~~~~
Sorry if this blog post seems a little scattered and poorly thought out >_<;;; I'm a little scatter-brained, myself.
Overall, I'm having SO much fun in Disney now! I'm branching out, meeting new people, and doing things I've only been able to dream of doing. There's SOOOO much I want to do in Disney! I want to ride Dinosaur 100000000 times! I want to explore all of the parks! I want to ride Tower of Terror with out getting scared! I want to meet all the characters and get photos and autographs with all of them!! I want to hang out and get to know my coworkers better so we can make tons of memories together!
I just really want an adventure like I had in Japan! Only with less umeshuu....(But I do love the umeshuu...)
~~~~~~~~
But I won't lie. Tonight I cried my eyes out. I mean, I had the best weekend ever today! It was SOOOO much fun! But.... all my bestiest are at AWA right now. And they keep saying how much they wish I was there....and I just really miss them.
And Japan. Oh my god, I MISS japan! I went to Japan in Epcot today and I had REAL Udon for the first time since I've been in the states. Even though I was hanging out with a totally awesome friend and having a great time, I kinda almost started crying.
Why do I have such mixed feelings about everything? I wanna go home. I wanna go to Japan. I wanna stay at Disney.
I just can't have it all, can I? What's my future going to be like? Let's say I chose home. I'd be giving up dreams of working in either Japan or Disney World. But I'd have the people that matter, right? But how do I pay off student loans....? Or what if I choose Japan? How can I live being so far away from my family and friends even though Japan is perfect for me? Or if I choose Disney. I won't be living in Japan, where I felt like I really belonged, and I'd be far away from my family. But Disney is where dreams come true and it's a company that I could even interpret my Japanese language skills into.
I'm so torn right now....even though it's not like I have to make any decisions yet hahahaha. When I was in Japan, I was excited about doing Disney while missing home like crazy. When I was home, I was missing Japan like crazy and SUPER psyched about Disney. Now I'm at Disney, I miss home SUPER badly and Japan SUPER badly.
........Why am I even ranting about this in my blog? hahahaha! I'm sure you guys would rather know all the dirty little secrets of Disney and how the magic /really/ works ;) And I'm sure you're wondering one of the world's most popular questions--is there really ONLY one Mickey Mouse?
Well, I'll answer these another day ;D I'll tell you this though, Disney really is pure magic. It's a great company. The people are wonderful. The work is enjoyable. Making people smile really is the greatest feeling.
I'm really glad I'm here despite my homesickness for home and Japan. I'm glad I didn't pack up and go home that one day I was crying to mom on the phone....
And I know my adventure in Disney is only going to get better. Life is what you put into it, really. I gotta make the most out of my trip and not let homesickness get to me.
I guess it's okay if I cry tonight, though ^_^;;; Just for tonight, I promise!! I just really want to be apart of AWA with everyone. Everyone keeps telling me it's not the same with out me, hahaha! Breaks my heart but makes me feel special at the same time... I really hate being left out of memories.
~~~~~~~~~~
But anyways, I think I'll stop here :) To those of you who are actually still reading, thanks so much! Once again, I'm sorry if my blog is just not all that interesting! I'm mostly using it so I can look back on this in the future and remember it all. I want to remember everything--the good, the bad, and the ugly.
I can't wait to make more Disney memories! (And Universal ones now, too!) It's only going to get better from now on!!
So............who wants to come visit me? <3
Friday, September 7, 2012
~*Beginning of a New Adventure--DISNEY WORLD*~
Hey everyoneeeeee! ^_^ Well....
I'M IN DISNEY WORLD!!!!!!!!!!!!
Yep. You heard me.
I'M IN DISNEY WORLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Yep. Those pictures pretty much sum up how I've been feelings these past few days. Hahahahaha!
Wowwwwww!! What can I say?? It's been a real crazy adventure so far and I've only been here 3 days!!
My grandparents took me down on Monday but I didn't get to move in until Wednesday. It was a looooong drive down but my car made it with out any problems <3 We even stopped at Panama City along the way and I got to eat some good seafood before making my way down here ^_^
~~~~~~~~~
My first day of Disney was a little hectic but not too bad! I found out that I was living in Vista Way which is the really cool apartment complex for Disney College Program people. Vista Way is otherwise known as VEESTA WAYYYYYYYYYYYY by a lot of CP's. I wonder if I'll start calling Vista Way VEESTA WAYYYYY soon enough??
Well before I could move in, I had to undergo something they call Casting right off the bat when I got here. Basically they did things like a background check on me, told me where I was going to be working, made me fill out paperwork, bla bla bla..... They also told me that my hair wasn't the appropriate color for the "Disney Look" ;____; I had JUST gotten my hair done the week before! It was blonde with slight brown high lights.....nobody told me you couldn't have high lights like that. It said on the website that high lights were okay as long as they were natural. Well, I didn't think blonde and brown were considered unnatural =__=; But whatevs.... No big deal <3
Well, I found out where I'll be working ^_^ You ready for this?.....
Yep. Star Tours. The Star Wars ride in Hollywood Studios XD When I found out, I couldn't stop giggling. I'm a nerd, but I was never really into Star Wars. C.j. and JT (Cj's roomie and one of my best buddies) are IN LOVE with Star Wars so I'm TOTALLY psyched I get to rub it in their face--I mean, I'm totally excited I get to share my magical Star Tours adventures with them! hahahahaha!
This /would/ happen to me though. Getting the Star Tours ride, I mean.
I joined the Disney College Program because I love Disney and I've always wanted to be a Disney Princess. I wanted to live the fairy tale dream.
Instead, I get to be a nerd.
Figures, though! A nerdy girl like myself is doomed to live in the world of nerdiness. I can't escape it! It's my fate! I may not be a princess but maybe I'll get promoted to Chewbacca....or maybe I'll find the droids I'm looking for. Or who knows? Maybe the force will be with me! Either way, I'm going EWOK for this job! I'm going a little Jar Jar Binx in the head! (Okay, I'll stop with the puns....)
But yeah. I need to brush up on my Star Wars knowledge!! I'm actually SUPER excited about working on this ride! For one thing--it's not Dumbo. Or It's a Small World. For another, it's an indoor ride. For another another, the uniforms are kinda cute <3 Nerdy and dorky....but cute <3
I start work officially on Monday. I hope I do good >___<;;
~~~~~~~~~~
After I did Casting, I was able to move into my new apartment <3 It's pretty big! I love my new bedroom!
Here's my bed all decorated and stuff ^_^
Well, my roommates didn't come in until much later in the evening so I made myself some Mac n Cheese and watched some good ole' Korra before my roommates came home.
I met Clare first ^_^ She's from New Zealand! WOW! She is AMAZING person! We clicked right off the bat ^_^ We spent a long time chatting and getting to know eachother! She's a lifeguard so she has a pretty interesting job!! I've already had several chances to hang out with her outside of the apartment and she's a blast to be around! I'm so sad cause she's leaving in three weeks to go back to New Zealand T____T
The other girl is Arisa <3 you got it! She's from Japan! I was so excited! I probably scared her right off the bat cause I got too excited and was like "OMG YOU'RE FROM JAPAN I LOVE JAPAN I WAS IN JAPAN FOR TWO MONTHS DOUZO YOROSHIKU LETS BE FRIENDS I LOVE JAPANESE DONT YOU JUST LOVE JAPAN?!" So yeeeeeeeeeeeeah XD;; I probably scared her....Maybe I can redeem myself later and prove I'm not a weeabo? Maybe we can make Japanese food for dinner together sometime ^_^
Next up was Carolina!! Carolina is my immediate roommate and we both share the same bedroom! Wow! I can't stress how excited I am over living with this girl! She's soooooo sweet and has such a charming personality! I have a feeling we're gonna get along just great ^_^ She's from Ecuador! :D How awesome is that??
Farah is the other girl living in our apartment and I've gotten to talk to her a few times, too. She's from Chicago! I haven't gotten to meet Andrea yet but she's the other roommate (There's six of us in total divided into three bedrooms) but I hope I can meet her soon! ^_^ I lucked out incredibly by having such great roommates! This will be exciting <3
~~~~~~
Yesterday was great at first and then quickly went downhill. Vista Way was having a Welcome Pool Party so Carolina and I hit it up together yesterday <3 Got to meet some more awesome people and even got free food!! Vista Way's pool is really nice, too <3 They had games and a DJ at the party but I mostly played volley ball with a bunch of other CP's. Hahahaha! Oh, and did I mention the free food? <3 I greatly took advantage of the free hot dogs.
After the pool party, I had to get ready for the Welcome Session which was a mandatory meeting at the other apartment complex. I thought I'd be smart and take the bus! Until I took the wrong bus.....and got stuck in traffic....and got lost....and missed the meeting....
I got SOOOO worked up. I started crying on the bus because I was afraid I was going to get in trouble because I missed it....My dearest friend Destiny had to calm me down via Facebook and reassure me I was NOT going to get fired over this! hahaha! But man....it was so stressful!! Hopefully I can figure out the buses so I don't miss the SUPER DUPER IMPORTANT meeting tomorrow D:
I called the Disney people and they reassured me that missing the meeting wasn't a big deal....but that I needed to be careful and not get on the wrong bus anymore, hahaha.
Still....Yesterday really upset me. I felt really stupid and inept for already making mistakes and it was only my second day. I also tried to cheer myself up by eating chinese food but I went to a bad restraunt and the food was NASTAYYYYYYYYY. Guess I won't be going there again....
The night turned better when I hung out with Clare and Farah by playing Disney Trivia and chatting up like crazy. It was pretty fun <3
~~~~~~~~~~
Today was pretty awesome though! I went to get my hair did! XD Clare came with me to get her hair did too! Hahahaha!
The result?
Full blonde!! Kinda hard to tell in the pic...
But more importantly than hair was...
MY VERY FIRST TRIP TO HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS! <3
Clare took me XD We hit up Tower of Terror right away! It was only a 10 minute wait! hahahaha! Soooooo much freakier than the one in Tokyo Disney and even more intense!! It was so much fun though! <3 My first time riding it in Disney World!
We then hit up the Rock n Roller Coaster (also a first for me!) and it was even more intense! I had a blast, though!!
We got to do some other ride about all the famous Hollywood movies (forgot the name of the ride XD) and Star Tours before it started crazy storming and we decided to call it quits.
I'm so happy I got to see Star Tours! But....the ride itself made me kinda sick from motion sickness....Hahahahah! So it wasn't a super enjoyable ride for me because of it! But I just have to work it--not ride it <3 But TOO BAD FOR YOU, MOM! I know you get sicker than I do on rides but prepare to ride this TWENTY times whenever you come visit me!! ;-p And anyone else who comes to visit me <3
But it started raining like crazy so we decided to leave and come back another day. We hit up taco bell before heading back to the apartment...<3
~~~~~~~~~~
So far, being a Disney CP is kinda awesome! Great roomies, awesome discounts, awesome job opportunity.... I haven't started work yet and I haven't done Traditions (the very important orientation tomorrow) yet but I'm sure things will start picking up a lot more. I hope I don't have anymore mental breakdowns (getting lost REALLY got to me) and I hope it becomes more and more less stressful <3 Who knows....maybe I'll even be a Star Wars fan after this?? ;D
So I leave today's post with...
I wonder what tomorrow will bring <3
I'M IN DISNEY WORLD!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'M IN DISNEY WORLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Yep. Those pictures pretty much sum up how I've been feelings these past few days. Hahahahaha!
Wowwwwww!! What can I say?? It's been a real crazy adventure so far and I've only been here 3 days!!
My grandparents took me down on Monday but I didn't get to move in until Wednesday. It was a looooong drive down but my car made it with out any problems <3 We even stopped at Panama City along the way and I got to eat some good seafood before making my way down here ^_^
~~~~~~~~~
My first day of Disney was a little hectic but not too bad! I found out that I was living in Vista Way which is the really cool apartment complex for Disney College Program people. Vista Way is otherwise known as VEESTA WAYYYYYYYYYYYY by a lot of CP's. I wonder if I'll start calling Vista Way VEESTA WAYYYYY soon enough??
Well before I could move in, I had to undergo something they call Casting right off the bat when I got here. Basically they did things like a background check on me, told me where I was going to be working, made me fill out paperwork, bla bla bla..... They also told me that my hair wasn't the appropriate color for the "Disney Look" ;____; I had JUST gotten my hair done the week before! It was blonde with slight brown high lights.....nobody told me you couldn't have high lights like that. It said on the website that high lights were okay as long as they were natural. Well, I didn't think blonde and brown were considered unnatural =__=; But whatevs.... No big deal <3
Well, I found out where I'll be working ^_^ You ready for this?.....
This /would/ happen to me though. Getting the Star Tours ride, I mean.
I joined the Disney College Program because I love Disney and I've always wanted to be a Disney Princess. I wanted to live the fairy tale dream.
Instead, I get to be a nerd.
Figures, though! A nerdy girl like myself is doomed to live in the world of nerdiness. I can't escape it! It's my fate! I may not be a princess but maybe I'll get promoted to Chewbacca....or maybe I'll find the droids I'm looking for. Or who knows? Maybe the force will be with me! Either way, I'm going EWOK for this job! I'm going a little Jar Jar Binx in the head! (Okay, I'll stop with the puns....)
But yeah. I need to brush up on my Star Wars knowledge!! I'm actually SUPER excited about working on this ride! For one thing--it's not Dumbo. Or It's a Small World. For another, it's an indoor ride. For another another, the uniforms are kinda cute <3 Nerdy and dorky....but cute <3
I start work officially on Monday. I hope I do good >___<;;
~~~~~~~~~~
After I did Casting, I was able to move into my new apartment <3 It's pretty big! I love my new bedroom!
Well, my roommates didn't come in until much later in the evening so I made myself some Mac n Cheese and watched some good ole' Korra before my roommates came home.
I met Clare first ^_^ She's from New Zealand! WOW! She is AMAZING person! We clicked right off the bat ^_^ We spent a long time chatting and getting to know eachother! She's a lifeguard so she has a pretty interesting job!! I've already had several chances to hang out with her outside of the apartment and she's a blast to be around! I'm so sad cause she's leaving in three weeks to go back to New Zealand T____T
The other girl is Arisa <3 you got it! She's from Japan! I was so excited! I probably scared her right off the bat cause I got too excited and was like "OMG YOU'RE FROM JAPAN I LOVE JAPAN I WAS IN JAPAN FOR TWO MONTHS DOUZO YOROSHIKU LETS BE FRIENDS I LOVE JAPANESE DONT YOU JUST LOVE JAPAN?!" So yeeeeeeeeeeeeah XD;; I probably scared her....Maybe I can redeem myself later and prove I'm not a weeabo? Maybe we can make Japanese food for dinner together sometime ^_^
Next up was Carolina!! Carolina is my immediate roommate and we both share the same bedroom! Wow! I can't stress how excited I am over living with this girl! She's soooooo sweet and has such a charming personality! I have a feeling we're gonna get along just great ^_^ She's from Ecuador! :D How awesome is that??
Farah is the other girl living in our apartment and I've gotten to talk to her a few times, too. She's from Chicago! I haven't gotten to meet Andrea yet but she's the other roommate (There's six of us in total divided into three bedrooms) but I hope I can meet her soon! ^_^ I lucked out incredibly by having such great roommates! This will be exciting <3
~~~~~~
Yesterday was great at first and then quickly went downhill. Vista Way was having a Welcome Pool Party so Carolina and I hit it up together yesterday <3 Got to meet some more awesome people and even got free food!! Vista Way's pool is really nice, too <3 They had games and a DJ at the party but I mostly played volley ball with a bunch of other CP's. Hahahaha! Oh, and did I mention the free food? <3 I greatly took advantage of the free hot dogs.
After the pool party, I had to get ready for the Welcome Session which was a mandatory meeting at the other apartment complex. I thought I'd be smart and take the bus! Until I took the wrong bus.....and got stuck in traffic....and got lost....and missed the meeting....
I got SOOOO worked up. I started crying on the bus because I was afraid I was going to get in trouble because I missed it....My dearest friend Destiny had to calm me down via Facebook and reassure me I was NOT going to get fired over this! hahaha! But man....it was so stressful!! Hopefully I can figure out the buses so I don't miss the SUPER DUPER IMPORTANT meeting tomorrow D:
I called the Disney people and they reassured me that missing the meeting wasn't a big deal....but that I needed to be careful and not get on the wrong bus anymore, hahaha.
Still....Yesterday really upset me. I felt really stupid and inept for already making mistakes and it was only my second day. I also tried to cheer myself up by eating chinese food but I went to a bad restraunt and the food was NASTAYYYYYYYYY. Guess I won't be going there again....
The night turned better when I hung out with Clare and Farah by playing Disney Trivia and chatting up like crazy. It was pretty fun <3
~~~~~~~~~~
Today was pretty awesome though! I went to get my hair did! XD Clare came with me to get her hair did too! Hahahaha!
The result?
Full blonde!! Kinda hard to tell in the pic...
But more importantly than hair was...
MY VERY FIRST TRIP TO HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS! <3
Clare took me XD We hit up Tower of Terror right away! It was only a 10 minute wait! hahahaha! Soooooo much freakier than the one in Tokyo Disney and even more intense!! It was so much fun though! <3 My first time riding it in Disney World!
We then hit up the Rock n Roller Coaster (also a first for me!) and it was even more intense! I had a blast, though!!
I'm so happy I got to see Star Tours! But....the ride itself made me kinda sick from motion sickness....Hahahahah! So it wasn't a super enjoyable ride for me because of it! But I just have to work it--not ride it <3 But TOO BAD FOR YOU, MOM! I know you get sicker than I do on rides but prepare to ride this TWENTY times whenever you come visit me!! ;-p And anyone else who comes to visit me <3
~~~~~~~~~~
So far, being a Disney CP is kinda awesome! Great roomies, awesome discounts, awesome job opportunity.... I haven't started work yet and I haven't done Traditions (the very important orientation tomorrow) yet but I'm sure things will start picking up a lot more. I hope I don't have anymore mental breakdowns (getting lost REALLY got to me) and I hope it becomes more and more less stressful <3 Who knows....maybe I'll even be a Star Wars fan after this?? ;D
So I leave today's post with...
I wonder what tomorrow will bring <3
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
~*Japan Aftermath*~
I've been home for almost two weeks.... I stopped writing in my blog for a while because things got REALLY crazy!! I really wish I could have written more while I was in Japan....but I guess now is the best time to reflect on my last week or so in Japan before I write about the aftermath of Japan.
My last two posts were more of reflective posts then they were updating all that had happened.
~~~~~~~
So I was right. A lot can happen in 11 days. And a lot happened INDEED.
To start things off, I felt that I had lost some one really important to me...I was kinda tossed aside by a friend and was completely ignored for awhile. I'm not sure what I did wrong to invoke those kind of negative feelings towards me but it happened nonetheless Y_Y;; But I strengthened other friendships and even made a lot more new friends.
For example, Adrian and I had a lovely adventure together <3 We did cosplay purikura together! XD I think it was AKB48 outfits we were but it was AWESOME! Our purikura booth was named "Heroine Face".....I didn't quite understand what kind of advertising they were trying to do with a name like that...but oh well! It sold Adrian and I XD
~~~~~~
I also went to a place called Jamunji 55 with Kitty on a Thursday. It was slow at first....not a lot of people were there and we got there kinda early as we waited for Brenna and her friends to get there. Then we met two of the cutest girls I have ever met <3 Yuri and Arisa ^_^ Kitty and I sat and chatted with them for a super long time just having girl-talk! They were so amazing! <3 Their English was really good, too, which made up for mine and Kitty's low-vocacbulary Japanese!
It's funny....Almost all of my American friends would say that Japanese guys are the hottest. If I could place a bet, I would say that most of my friends would rather date Japanese boys then American boys. But then I found out from Arisa and Yuri that they MUCH prefer American guys and that Japanese boys are lame. The grass is always greener on the other side, isn't it? ^_^ Kinda interesting!
The night picked up quite a bit and Brenna and her friends from the guest house showed up. And Kitty and I tried to get this Swedish guy (with blonde hair and blue eyes! Very cute!) to sit over there and talk with Yuri and Arisa since they love foreign boys so much! ^_~ I have so much Ricey Gomez in me! Trying to play matchmaker with my friends and stuff...<3
In the end, I met two other people that really impacted my life--Abe-chan and Jun-chan! The first Japanese Christians I had come across! Kitty and I sat and chatted with them for a really long time!! It was so amazing! Plus, they were also fluent in English so it was really easy to chat with them! I got to learn so much about the problems Christians face in Japan.... I really do wish them the best of luck and I hope they can find a way to practice their beliefs freely with out any problems their family and friends give them...
Oh! And Jamunji was also the place Brenna had an awesome night <3 But that's between me and her! ^_~ hee hee!
~~~~~~~~~
Rawr....I really wish I would have taken more pics of my last two weeks as well as wrote in my blog. I'm not quite sure what events happened first or what happened in chronological order! Oh well...I guess I'll just drabble....I guess its not important when things happened but just the fact that they happened.
~~~~~
Kitty and I really enjoyed hanging out with Jun and Abe so much that we wanted to meet them for karaoke one night ^_^ Sodany and Wooyong came with us!! We had an AWESOME time! Nothing is better than listening to two Japanese guys trying to sing Engrish! hahahaha!! It was such a memorable night! We ate dinner at an Izakaya first off and finished the night with Umeshuu at karaoke! I got to sing more of my favorite songs like "Hikari" and "Alones" ^_^ Ahhhhhhhhhhh definitely the best karaoke night ever ;^;
We finished the night with a round of Purikura! ;D It was great!!
And a hopskip and a memory later.....
CAMIKET!
Oh gosh.....Well....what to say about Camiket?? It was definitely....an experience.... Camiket was an alleged anime convention going on in Tokyo. It was near the Kasai dorm so I met up with Marc and we decided to check it out together.
We....were thoroughly disappointed. It wasn't like the cons we have in America. Well, it was a doujinshi con so I'm not quite sure what we're expecting. Maybe we were expecting a lot less yaoi, hentai, furries, and lolicon things everywhere.... Not to mention, cosplay there wasn't the same as it is in America. In America, people walk around in cosplays and you can go up to them ask for their picture. At Camiket, you could only really take pictures of cosplayers outside. A lot of the cosplayers inside were actual cosplay models (MY DREAM AND ASPIRATION!) and you weren't allowed to take their pictures since they're paid to advertise certain products or series...
So yeah...a tiny bit disappointed with Camiket. But Marc and I managed to still have a good time snickering at everything. We eventually gave up and went to Akiba for the last time. I needed to buy some souvenirs for people so it was a great idea!! ^_^ I got C.J. a Monster Hunter rug for his new apartment <3 yayyyyy!!
~~~~~~~~
So if Camiket was on Saturday, then that meant that Harajuku Adventures with Sodany, Adrian, and Kitty happened on Sunday.
It. Was. So. Much. Fun.
Before you ask, yes, I ended up buying another cosplay since it was my last visit to Harajuku...<3 I wanted to buy Analee a maid dress just like the black that I bought ($25) since she had given me money but they were lacking in their inventory so they didn't have any in her size T____T So I decided I would give her mine and I would make up for it by buying me a new one ^_^ So...I bought a Ryomou Shimei cosplay XD I was planning on cosplaying her back in high school but I pushed her to the side since I had so many other cosplays I wanted to do....So for about $20, I bought the dress and then I bought a wig for her for $9 ^_^ Money well spent! Plus, Analee said she would let me use her maid dress whenever I do maid Aigis/Yukari/Lucy so it all works out! hahahaha!
But anyways, we had a lovely time at Harajuku! We went back to the thrift store and I got to try on a dress that we all thought was a hot mess the first time we had adventures together XD hahahaha! It was so much fun! I also got to go by KIDDY LAND which I didn't get to go to before! This time, I didn't eat a crepe....I wish I would have....Little did I know I missed my last chance to indulge in a crepe ;_;
After Harajuku, we decided to hit up Shibuya and go to Tokyo Womb. Ehhhh....it was a bit of a let down.... I was disappoint :l I thought it was supposed to be Tokyo's hottest dance club!! Instead, it was UBER expensive and all it was was a bunch of people staring at the DJ, not really dancing. The music was AMAZING though! Why wasn't anybody dancing?? People would just bob their head to the music and occasionally fist pump in the air. There were A LOT of people, too!! I just don't understand why they wouldn't dance... I danced with my girls and swayed to the music but I didn't really feel....well, alive, if you know what I mean. I just love dancing ^_^;;
~~~~~~~~~~
After the dance club, the following week got a little.....well, strange. I might keep some of this stuff to myself... I have a feeling I won't be forgetting 'Betty' or the weird things that followed ಠ_ಠ I really need to not trust people so much.... Bad things ALWAYS happen...
Buuuuuuuuuuut <3 I had an AWESOME time with Brenna and Sodany when we went to an Izakaya with Brenna's friends from the guest house ^_^ Er...I know I said I was done with Izakayas but this was a special occasion <3 After all, we would be leaving Japan in about a week...
So I met a lot of new friends and made some wonderful memories with them! ^_^ Lois and Kennedy were awesome! And of course, it was awesome seeing Koji and Kent again! Sayuri....was a mess but it was funny!
And then bad things happened again......but that's more stuff I'll probably keep to myself. Not my story to tell or even my place to tell it.
~~~~~~~
And then cake happened. In Tokyo, there's this place called Sweets Paradise! Sweets Paradise is an all you can eat cake buffet!!! ^___^ Let's just say....I'm really glad I didn't go there before my last week in Japan....why? Because I would have gotten addicted and I would have gotten fat. Because it was FANTASTIC!! I'll be sure to post some pics up on this blog at a later date ^_^ It was DELICIOUS!!!!
And then more crazy things happened because a certain person didn't really understand what was going on.....*le sigh*
~~~~~~~
And then....before I knew it, it was time for the final exam.
And then it was the graduation ceremony for the summer short term students.
And then it was good-bye.....
Two months had never seem to go as fast as it had while I was in Japan. One minute I was having a great time with my friends, exploring the great cities of Japan! The next, I was in my room packing and sobbing because I had to say good-bye to my host family....
What happened? Where did my study abroad trip go? And now I'm back in Alabama....getting ready to embark on another journey to Disney. I leave in about 5 days. Things are starting to become a blur...
Japan was.....well, it was an adventure. It was everything I had hoped for and more. I had a wonderful host family that I grew to love VERY much. The twins were adorable, my parents were very loving and caring.... I had AMAZING American friends. I'm going to miss all those crazy times together! I even got to immerse myself in the culture and meet some amazing Japanese people. I find myself messaging everybody on Facebook because I miss them like crazy....
Saying good-bye was one of the hardest things I had to. I was okay at the graduation ceremony. I didn't cry. I took pictures with all my favorite teachers and got to thank all the awesome friends I made for....well, everything hahahaha. Enrolling in KCP was one of the greatest decisions I have ever made. Yeah, studying was a pain in the fanny and it was a lot of hard work! But I pushed myself (I MADE A 97 ON A KANJI QUIZ! THIS HAS NEVER HAPPENED BEFORE!) and I got through it <3 At least....I hope I did....I haven't received my grades yet so /hopefully/ I passed! hahahaha!
But yeah. Saying good-bye.... Saying good-bye to Kitty, Adrian, and Sodany was REALLY tough...Adrian went with Brenna and I as we did karaoke with Brenna's friends from the guest house. So I got some good time in with Adrian before I had to say good-bye to her, too....
But yeah. It was tough but it didn't exactly hit me until the day I had to leave. Brenna and I were on the same flight and we didn't have to leave until the afternoon. So I pretty much pulled an all-nighter the day night before trying to see as many people as I could to tell them good-bye. So the next morning, I was pretty exhausted....
But Ririka and Taiga had gone to stay at their grandparents for two weeks. So I had to say good-bye to them a lot sooner than I thought....But it didn't really hit me until I had to say good-bye to them on the phone. Hardest conversation I ever had to do...
I pretty much lost it.
Poor mom and dad didn't know what to do with a sobbing crazy American xD I practically tackle hugged Mom before she had to leave to work and I think she felt awkward hahahahaha! And then I sobbed to myself while eating breakfast and dad kept trying to make small-talk which I'm sure he felt super awkward doing.... hahahaha!
But it was really hard....to say bye to them ;____; Thats when it hit me that I was leaving Japan. No more doing origami with Ririka and Taiga. No more watching Ultra Hero with the kids. No more long conversations with my host mom about how I dislike America and how awesome Japan is. No more after school adventures with my American homies. No more Purikura. No more arcades. No more konbini riceballs. No more edamame. No more Izakayas. No more Betty (ha lol). No more Udon. No more meeting awesome people at clubs and stuff. No more karaoke. No more speaking Japanese on a regular basis. No more text messages on my Japanese phone. No more Sky Tree. No more riding trains. No more jamming about to SeeU and J-pop on the train. No more sweating ferociously in the classroom (it was uncomfortable but it was still a memory). No more Udon. No more going shopping in Harajuku. No more going to anime stores in Akiba. No more Udon. No more crepes. No more Udon. No more Udon. No more Udon....
Yeah. It was tough leaving.
But Brenna and I had a smooth trip coming back to America. Er....Kinda. When we got to Canada, we didn't know if it was morning or evening and almost missed our flight....BUT WE MADE IT <3
We even got to bump into Kitty and Marc before boarding our flight! And I got to buy my family some epic souvenirs <3
But when we arrived.....Wow. It was more of a culture shock coming back then it was going there! I've been craving rice non-stop!
~~~~~~
I have to admit though....I really missed my family and friends. And C.J., of course. It's strange how things go back to normal so quickly....Er....kinda.
I've been spending a lot of time in Tuscaloosa trying to get things squared away for Disney. It's been hectic as heck..... Oh, and of course, in the first week I get back to America, I'm greeted with a kidney infection and I have to go to the emergency room. Gee, thanks a lot (¬_¬)
So on top of being an emotional wreck, I had to be in heaps of pain, too.
At least I got to see my Ricey and Analee <3 Oh, and I got to hang out with C.J., JT, and Rhett this past weekend! It was SO much fun!
But yeah..... Here I am. Sitting on my couch listening to my dad fuss about who took a sip of his pepsi =__=;; So do I miss Japan? Yes. Yes I do. A lot.
Things have been so....confusing for me lately. I think this is what they meant by culture shock coming back XD I feel out of the loop with my friends and I feel so distant from people. Disney actually might be the best thing for me to do now.... I'm just not ready to have my adventures end.
Don't get me wrong though. It feels good to be home, in a way. I kinda wish I had more time in between Japan and Disney... I spent my first week trying to get rid of my kidney infection and this week stressing out with what I need to get done for Disney. I wanted to see Brenna again before I left but I'm just lacking in time to do stuff....*sigh*
But yeah. I feel like a different person after going to Japan. Will I change even more after Disney? I feel so independent now...I also feel a bit more mature (HA! Yeah right XD) and I feel more...culturally aware?? Hahaha I don't even know! Or maybe I haven't changed at all and I'm just fooling myself....
When I come back from Disney, things won't be the same. I have a feeling I'm going to grow apart from a lot of my friends which really saddens me.... If I feel apart from them from only being gone for a summer, what's a whole semester going to feel like?? Everyone's getting ready for AWA and I won't be apart of it ^_^;;; It kinda hurts a little but I'm just being childish and selfish hahaha...
But I have another adventure ahead of me. I can't let myself down because I miss Japan and I'm scared of what will happen while I'm in Disney. Who knows....maybe Disney will be like a new home.
I guess I'll end this blog with how I ended most of mine while I was in Japan....
I wonder what tomorrow will bring?? 〜(￣▽￣〜)
My last two posts were more of reflective posts then they were updating all that had happened.
~~~~~~~
So I was right. A lot can happen in 11 days. And a lot happened INDEED.
To start things off, I felt that I had lost some one really important to me...I was kinda tossed aside by a friend and was completely ignored for awhile. I'm not sure what I did wrong to invoke those kind of negative feelings towards me but it happened nonetheless Y_Y;; But I strengthened other friendships and even made a lot more new friends.
For example, Adrian and I had a lovely adventure together <3 We did cosplay purikura together! XD I think it was AKB48 outfits we were but it was AWESOME! Our purikura booth was named "Heroine Face".....I didn't quite understand what kind of advertising they were trying to do with a name like that...but oh well! It sold Adrian and I XD
~~~~~~
I also went to a place called Jamunji 55 with Kitty on a Thursday. It was slow at first....not a lot of people were there and we got there kinda early as we waited for Brenna and her friends to get there. Then we met two of the cutest girls I have ever met <3 Yuri and Arisa ^_^ Kitty and I sat and chatted with them for a super long time just having girl-talk! They were so amazing! <3 Their English was really good, too, which made up for mine and Kitty's low-vocacbulary Japanese!
It's funny....Almost all of my American friends would say that Japanese guys are the hottest. If I could place a bet, I would say that most of my friends would rather date Japanese boys then American boys. But then I found out from Arisa and Yuri that they MUCH prefer American guys and that Japanese boys are lame. The grass is always greener on the other side, isn't it? ^_^ Kinda interesting!
The night picked up quite a bit and Brenna and her friends from the guest house showed up. And Kitty and I tried to get this Swedish guy (with blonde hair and blue eyes! Very cute!) to sit over there and talk with Yuri and Arisa since they love foreign boys so much! ^_~ I have so much Ricey Gomez in me! Trying to play matchmaker with my friends and stuff...<3
In the end, I met two other people that really impacted my life--Abe-chan and Jun-chan! The first Japanese Christians I had come across! Kitty and I sat and chatted with them for a really long time!! It was so amazing! Plus, they were also fluent in English so it was really easy to chat with them! I got to learn so much about the problems Christians face in Japan.... I really do wish them the best of luck and I hope they can find a way to practice their beliefs freely with out any problems their family and friends give them...
Oh! And Jamunji was also the place Brenna had an awesome night <3 But that's between me and her! ^_~ hee hee!
~~~~~~~~~
Rawr....I really wish I would have taken more pics of my last two weeks as well as wrote in my blog. I'm not quite sure what events happened first or what happened in chronological order! Oh well...I guess I'll just drabble....I guess its not important when things happened but just the fact that they happened.
~~~~~
Kitty and I really enjoyed hanging out with Jun and Abe so much that we wanted to meet them for karaoke one night ^_^ Sodany and Wooyong came with us!! We had an AWESOME time! Nothing is better than listening to two Japanese guys trying to sing Engrish! hahahaha!! It was such a memorable night! We ate dinner at an Izakaya first off and finished the night with Umeshuu at karaoke! I got to sing more of my favorite songs like "Hikari" and "Alones" ^_^ Ahhhhhhhhhhh definitely the best karaoke night ever ;^;
We finished the night with a round of Purikura! ;D It was great!!
And a hopskip and a memory later.....
CAMIKET!
Oh gosh.....Well....what to say about Camiket?? It was definitely....an experience.... Camiket was an alleged anime convention going on in Tokyo. It was near the Kasai dorm so I met up with Marc and we decided to check it out together.
We....were thoroughly disappointed. It wasn't like the cons we have in America. Well, it was a doujinshi con so I'm not quite sure what we're expecting. Maybe we were expecting a lot less yaoi, hentai, furries, and lolicon things everywhere.... Not to mention, cosplay there wasn't the same as it is in America. In America, people walk around in cosplays and you can go up to them ask for their picture. At Camiket, you could only really take pictures of cosplayers outside. A lot of the cosplayers inside were actual cosplay models (MY DREAM AND ASPIRATION!) and you weren't allowed to take their pictures since they're paid to advertise certain products or series...
So yeah...a tiny bit disappointed with Camiket. But Marc and I managed to still have a good time snickering at everything. We eventually gave up and went to Akiba for the last time. I needed to buy some souvenirs for people so it was a great idea!! ^_^ I got C.J. a Monster Hunter rug for his new apartment <3 yayyyyy!!
~~~~~~~~
So if Camiket was on Saturday, then that meant that Harajuku Adventures with Sodany, Adrian, and Kitty happened on Sunday.
It. Was. So. Much. Fun.
Before you ask, yes, I ended up buying another cosplay since it was my last visit to Harajuku...<3 I wanted to buy Analee a maid dress just like the black that I bought ($25) since she had given me money but they were lacking in their inventory so they didn't have any in her size T____T So I decided I would give her mine and I would make up for it by buying me a new one ^_^ So...I bought a Ryomou Shimei cosplay XD I was planning on cosplaying her back in high school but I pushed her to the side since I had so many other cosplays I wanted to do....So for about $20, I bought the dress and then I bought a wig for her for $9 ^_^ Money well spent! Plus, Analee said she would let me use her maid dress whenever I do maid Aigis/Yukari/Lucy so it all works out! hahahaha!
But anyways, we had a lovely time at Harajuku! We went back to the thrift store and I got to try on a dress that we all thought was a hot mess the first time we had adventures together XD hahahaha! It was so much fun! I also got to go by KIDDY LAND which I didn't get to go to before! This time, I didn't eat a crepe....I wish I would have....Little did I know I missed my last chance to indulge in a crepe ;_;
After Harajuku, we decided to hit up Shibuya and go to Tokyo Womb. Ehhhh....it was a bit of a let down.... I was disappoint :l I thought it was supposed to be Tokyo's hottest dance club!! Instead, it was UBER expensive and all it was was a bunch of people staring at the DJ, not really dancing. The music was AMAZING though! Why wasn't anybody dancing?? People would just bob their head to the music and occasionally fist pump in the air. There were A LOT of people, too!! I just don't understand why they wouldn't dance... I danced with my girls and swayed to the music but I didn't really feel....well, alive, if you know what I mean. I just love dancing ^_^;;
~~~~~~~~~~
After the dance club, the following week got a little.....well, strange. I might keep some of this stuff to myself... I have a feeling I won't be forgetting 'Betty' or the weird things that followed ಠ_ಠ I really need to not trust people so much.... Bad things ALWAYS happen...
Buuuuuuuuuuut <3 I had an AWESOME time with Brenna and Sodany when we went to an Izakaya with Brenna's friends from the guest house ^_^ Er...I know I said I was done with Izakayas but this was a special occasion <3 After all, we would be leaving Japan in about a week...
So I met a lot of new friends and made some wonderful memories with them! ^_^ Lois and Kennedy were awesome! And of course, it was awesome seeing Koji and Kent again! Sayuri....was a mess but it was funny!
And then bad things happened again......but that's more stuff I'll probably keep to myself. Not my story to tell or even my place to tell it.
~~~~~~~
And then cake happened. In Tokyo, there's this place called Sweets Paradise! Sweets Paradise is an all you can eat cake buffet!!! ^___^ Let's just say....I'm really glad I didn't go there before my last week in Japan....why? Because I would have gotten addicted and I would have gotten fat. Because it was FANTASTIC!! I'll be sure to post some pics up on this blog at a later date ^_^ It was DELICIOUS!!!!
And then more crazy things happened because a certain person didn't really understand what was going on.....*le sigh*
~~~~~~~
And then....before I knew it, it was time for the final exam.
And then it was the graduation ceremony for the summer short term students.
And then it was good-bye.....
Two months had never seem to go as fast as it had while I was in Japan. One minute I was having a great time with my friends, exploring the great cities of Japan! The next, I was in my room packing and sobbing because I had to say good-bye to my host family....
What happened? Where did my study abroad trip go? And now I'm back in Alabama....getting ready to embark on another journey to Disney. I leave in about 5 days. Things are starting to become a blur...
Japan was.....well, it was an adventure. It was everything I had hoped for and more. I had a wonderful host family that I grew to love VERY much. The twins were adorable, my parents were very loving and caring.... I had AMAZING American friends. I'm going to miss all those crazy times together! I even got to immerse myself in the culture and meet some amazing Japanese people. I find myself messaging everybody on Facebook because I miss them like crazy....
Saying good-bye was one of the hardest things I had to. I was okay at the graduation ceremony. I didn't cry. I took pictures with all my favorite teachers and got to thank all the awesome friends I made for....well, everything hahahaha. Enrolling in KCP was one of the greatest decisions I have ever made. Yeah, studying was a pain in the fanny and it was a lot of hard work! But I pushed myself (I MADE A 97 ON A KANJI QUIZ! THIS HAS NEVER HAPPENED BEFORE!) and I got through it <3 At least....I hope I did....I haven't received my grades yet so /hopefully/ I passed! hahahaha!
But yeah. Saying good-bye.... Saying good-bye to Kitty, Adrian, and Sodany was REALLY tough...Adrian went with Brenna and I as we did karaoke with Brenna's friends from the guest house. So I got some good time in with Adrian before I had to say good-bye to her, too....
But yeah. It was tough but it didn't exactly hit me until the day I had to leave. Brenna and I were on the same flight and we didn't have to leave until the afternoon. So I pretty much pulled an all-nighter the day night before trying to see as many people as I could to tell them good-bye. So the next morning, I was pretty exhausted....
But Ririka and Taiga had gone to stay at their grandparents for two weeks. So I had to say good-bye to them a lot sooner than I thought....But it didn't really hit me until I had to say good-bye to them on the phone. Hardest conversation I ever had to do...
I pretty much lost it.
Poor mom and dad didn't know what to do with a sobbing crazy American xD I practically tackle hugged Mom before she had to leave to work and I think she felt awkward hahahahaha! And then I sobbed to myself while eating breakfast and dad kept trying to make small-talk which I'm sure he felt super awkward doing.... hahahaha!
But it was really hard....to say bye to them ;____; Thats when it hit me that I was leaving Japan. No more doing origami with Ririka and Taiga. No more watching Ultra Hero with the kids. No more long conversations with my host mom about how I dislike America and how awesome Japan is. No more after school adventures with my American homies. No more Purikura. No more arcades. No more konbini riceballs. No more edamame. No more Izakayas. No more Betty (ha lol). No more Udon. No more meeting awesome people at clubs and stuff. No more karaoke. No more speaking Japanese on a regular basis. No more text messages on my Japanese phone. No more Sky Tree. No more riding trains. No more jamming about to SeeU and J-pop on the train. No more sweating ferociously in the classroom (it was uncomfortable but it was still a memory). No more Udon. No more going shopping in Harajuku. No more going to anime stores in Akiba. No more Udon. No more crepes. No more Udon. No more Udon. No more Udon....
Yeah. It was tough leaving.
But Brenna and I had a smooth trip coming back to America. Er....Kinda. When we got to Canada, we didn't know if it was morning or evening and almost missed our flight....BUT WE MADE IT <3
We even got to bump into Kitty and Marc before boarding our flight! And I got to buy my family some epic souvenirs <3
But when we arrived.....Wow. It was more of a culture shock coming back then it was going there! I've been craving rice non-stop!
~~~~~~
I have to admit though....I really missed my family and friends. And C.J., of course. It's strange how things go back to normal so quickly....Er....kinda.
I've been spending a lot of time in Tuscaloosa trying to get things squared away for Disney. It's been hectic as heck..... Oh, and of course, in the first week I get back to America, I'm greeted with a kidney infection and I have to go to the emergency room. Gee, thanks a lot (¬_¬)
So on top of being an emotional wreck, I had to be in heaps of pain, too.
At least I got to see my Ricey and Analee <3 Oh, and I got to hang out with C.J., JT, and Rhett this past weekend! It was SO much fun!
But yeah..... Here I am. Sitting on my couch listening to my dad fuss about who took a sip of his pepsi =__=;; So do I miss Japan? Yes. Yes I do. A lot.
Things have been so....confusing for me lately. I think this is what they meant by culture shock coming back XD I feel out of the loop with my friends and I feel so distant from people. Disney actually might be the best thing for me to do now.... I'm just not ready to have my adventures end.
Don't get me wrong though. It feels good to be home, in a way. I kinda wish I had more time in between Japan and Disney... I spent my first week trying to get rid of my kidney infection and this week stressing out with what I need to get done for Disney. I wanted to see Brenna again before I left but I'm just lacking in time to do stuff....*sigh*
But yeah. I feel like a different person after going to Japan. Will I change even more after Disney? I feel so independent now...I also feel a bit more mature (HA! Yeah right XD) and I feel more...culturally aware?? Hahaha I don't even know! Or maybe I haven't changed at all and I'm just fooling myself....
When I come back from Disney, things won't be the same. I have a feeling I'm going to grow apart from a lot of my friends which really saddens me.... If I feel apart from them from only being gone for a summer, what's a whole semester going to feel like?? Everyone's getting ready for AWA and I won't be apart of it ^_^;;; It kinda hurts a little but I'm just being childish and selfish hahaha...
But I have another adventure ahead of me. I can't let myself down because I miss Japan and I'm scared of what will happen while I'm in Disney. Who knows....maybe Disney will be like a new home.
I guess I'll end this blog with how I ended most of mine while I was in Japan....
I wonder what tomorrow will bring?? 〜(￣▽￣〜)
Saturday, August 11, 2012
☆Arigatou☆
With only 6 days left, I wanted to dedicate this blog post to the people who made my trip the adventure that it was. I want to thank each and every one of you for impacting my life in some way. I made a huge list of the people that I felt that I owed a token of gratitude for! None of the names are going to be in any particular order and if I accidentally forget some one important, I'll be sure to add their name at a later date ;)
So....here we go!
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE FANTASTIC MEMORIES!!! Every single person on this list and simply awesome and I will never forget all the fun times. I only have six days left in Japan but I have memories that I can carry with me forever. Sure, not all the times were good. With every adventure comes stress, exhaustion, and even heartbreak. But this has definitely been the adventure of a lifetime and I really love all of you.... New friends, old friends--you're all amazing.
So I dedicate this blog post to all of you, thanking you for all you guys have done for me! ^_^ Japan was amazing because of YOU!!!!
So....here we go!
- To Brenna, who started this journey with me and saw it with me to the very end! For all those times we laughed together and created a special bond with each other! I'm so glad you don't live far away! For becoming my new best friend!
- To my wonderful host family, who went out of their way to make sure I had the most comfortable living experience while in Japan. For opening up your home to me and always showering me with kindness! Our time together was short but I couldn't have asked for a better host family! Okaa-san and Otou-san, I really enjoyed our conversations and thank you so much for taking me places! Ririka, you made me laugh with your fun personality and I know you're going to become a beautiful young lady one day! Taiga, you are the sweetest boy on this Earth and I loved playing with you all those times! YOU ARE THE GREATEST HOST FAMILY EVER!
- To Ko, who was always one of my closest Japanese friends. For taking me to Akihabara for the first time and for having a blast with Maiko and I at Tokyo Disney!
- To Maiko, who I already miss more than anything! For giving me one of the most magical weekends of my entire life! Disney was a blast and I'm glad I got to share those special moments with you! I can't wait to see you again!
- To Sodany, who quickly became one of my best girlfriends! For all those times we would hang out during and after school, chatting about boys and the like~~<3 For overall just being a fantastic friend!
- To Kitty, who is by far my favorite manga artist in the making! For making me laugh so hard that my sides hurt and for all those shopping dates! Your bright, cheerful personality always brought a smile to my face!
- To Adrian, whose witty remarks and quirky personality always kept me smiling! For all those times we just simply hung out and exchanged funny stories! And for doing cosplay purikura with me! Let's meet up in Chattanooga real soon!
- To Lee, who became some one really special to me since the beginning. For all those times we explored Tokyo together and made lots of great memories! I'll never forget the fun times we had together and I thank you especially for going out of your way to make sure I had the greatest birthday ever.
- To Nia, who really knew how to have a fun time. For showing me what the Tokyo nightlife was like and for showing me how to just let loose and have fun!
- To Marc, who always seemed to know how to cheer me up. For listening to me rant and rave about stupid people and for making me laugh until I had tears coming out of my eyes!
- To Rose, who loves anime more than any single person I have ever met. For watching pigeons do crazy things in the park!
- To Brandon, who was a big help to all of us KCP newbies. For all those times you put yourself out while looking out for our best interest! For helping me get a phone and even just having fun all those times we got to hang out!
- To Fausto, who had one of the most funny personalities I have ever met! For making me laugh at the funny noises you would make during class and for your witty humor!
- To Beatriz, who I recently started becoming good friends with despite us being in the same class since the beginning. For having a great time with me at Casa Blanca and of course, the Izakaya!
- To Kato-sensei, one of the most kindhearted teachers at KCP! For going out of your way to help me get better at Japanese. If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have made the high scores on my recent quizzes! Thanks for believing in me!
- To Konno-sensei, KCP's most beautiful teacher (hahaha). For being such a great teacher and making class light and fun! Don't worry too much about marriage--you're too good for all the losers who broke your heart! Don't stop being an amazing, beautiful teacher!
- To Sarah, who complimented me on days that I just felt horrible about myself. For making sweet comments about the way I was dressed which would brighten my day! You're way too kind!
- To Emi, who was the first Japanese friend I had ever met. For spending an evening with me catching up with each other since I hadn't seen you in years! It was so great hanging out with you, Ming, and Kaori!
- To Sake-Sake Guy, who insisted I drink sake with him and was very persistent. For providing me with a hilarious story and inside jokes between my friends and I!
- To Kouji and Kenshou, who were awesome friends of Brenna! For going to the Sky Tree and dancing in the elevator on the way down! For making jokes with me at the Italian restraunt and for overall being awesome!
- To Takahiro, who's real name I'll probably never know. For hanging out with me one night and dealing with a crazy RYUUGAKUSEI from Alabama.
- To Chris from Tampa, who I don't even know.....Um....No. =__=;
- To the chikan, who copped a feel one day on my way to school. For severely making things uncomfortable but for providing me with a funny story...............Please don't ever molest another girl again, you sicko.
- To Jun-chan, who I recently just met. For making me feel laugh really hard at Jamunji 55 and karaoke! You're such a funny person so I appreciate the fun and crazy memories!
- To Abe-chan, who helped keep Jun-chan in line. For having a great time with Kitty and I!
- To Miyazaki and that other guy I don't remember. For giving Kitty and I a free meal just for talking with you!
- To Mister Donut, who literally carries the best donuts I have ever had in my entire life. For making me feel not-so-forever-alone as I sat in your cafe, stuffing donuts in my face while Gotye taunted me over the radio :l
- To the awesome Koreans in my class, who are extremely kind. For asking whats on my mind and actually caring about things like that despite us hardly ever talking. I'm glad I amuse you!
- To Sumire and Rena, who I only met once at an Izakaya at. For being extremely sweet and for hanging out with Brenna and I!!
- To Ricey, who is all the way back home in Alabama but never fails to be apart of my life. For giving me advice where I needed it most and for always being there for me, even though I'm a million miles away
- To Analee, who is also all the way back in Alabama but never fails to make me smile. For sending me funny stuff and making me laugh out loud in the middle of class because I randomly thought of something that you showed me. For making me smile when no one else could!
- To Destiny and Gina, two very different friends from very different places but who also spammed me with love during my time away. For being the crazy derps that you are <3
- To the people who work at the train stations, who always helped me (even thought it was in fact your job....). For giving me directions all those millions of times I got lost!
- To Yuri and Arisa, who I just met the other night! For being the absolute cutest girls ever and for talking with Kitty and I for a very long time! You were so much fun chatting with and your English was really amazing! I hope you can come to America and meet those cute boys that you dream about ;)
- To Ean, Jack, Alex, Omar, who are all awesome people. For having a great time with me at the Izakaya those times! hahahaha! (Oh, and for Alex's story about him talking to a girl about apple juice. Makes me laugh!)
- To the other KCP students I have mingled with, who I am glad to have been at the same school with. For all those times we got to share experiences with each other
- To Colby, who told me about KCP in the first place. For always being such a great friend! If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't even know about KCP and how wonderful it really is.
- To C.J., who has always been a huge part of my life no matter where I am and no matter what happens. For putting up with me as I stepped out into the big girl world. For not giving up on me and supporting me through all my crazy decisions. I may be away from you for 6 months but I know time will fly by... For simply just supporting me through everything since we all know I'm the biggest derp the world has ever seen.
- To mom, who made this entire trip possible. For pushing me to apply to study abroad and for helping me get the money that I needed in order to do so. For encouraging to do my best and for just letting me sit and chat on Skype whenever I needed some one to talk to. Oh, and for giving me life, of course....can't forget that.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE FANTASTIC MEMORIES!!! Every single person on this list and simply awesome and I will never forget all the fun times. I only have six days left in Japan but I have memories that I can carry with me forever. Sure, not all the times were good. With every adventure comes stress, exhaustion, and even heartbreak. But this has definitely been the adventure of a lifetime and I really love all of you.... New friends, old friends--you're all amazing.
So I dedicate this blog post to all of you, thanking you for all you guys have done for me! ^_^ Japan was amazing because of YOU!!!!
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
Only 9 Days???
Where did Japan go?? Why did time seem to go by so slow at first and then now it feels like it's flown with the blink of an eye?? It feels like I just arrived in Japan only yesterday....Do I really only have a little over a week left??
I decided I wanted to dedicate this blog post to random fun memories that I've had with my friends in Japan. It's the memories that last the longest so I wanted at least one blog post filled with random happy memories that make me giggle whenever I decide to look back on it <3
A lot of these random drabbles won't be in any particular order. I'm just writing down what comes to mind first <3
~~~~~
It's getting late and my Tokyo adventures have yet to come to a close <3 I have a feeling I'm going to come back to this blog and add more memories as they cross through my mind.
Man.....I never want to forget all the special memories that I've had. And the friends I've made..... Wow, going home is going to be a lot tougher than I thought. I mean, I always knew it was going to be tough. I knew it was going to be tough the moment I stepped foot out of that air plane. But I've learned so much and I feel like I've grown a lot as a person.............No. Scratch that. Hahahaha, if anything, I've become a lot more crazier. I mean, who sits around talking about how Mister Donut is the only man for her?! hahahaha!
But still..... It's going to be hard to leave. I just feel like I'm going to regret so much.... No, not regret the things that I've done. But regret the things that I didn't do. There's so much that I wanted to do....So many things I wanted to see.....So many more memories I wanted to make with the people special to me. With only nine days, I'm feeling like that just won't happen.
I keep thinking back on a painting I saw at Disneyland. It was of Cinderella looking out dreamily at the castle and underneath it it said, "Cinderella never gave up that her dreams of happiness would come true." Well, Japan isn't over yet and I'm not giving up <3 A lot can happen in 8 days.... Maybe I can have one more REALLY good adventure. The kind that just changes your life forever. Or....maybe I'm overthinking things hahahaha. I've already had so many lifechanging adventures here....maybe I'm just being selfish asking for more.
But we shall see. Who knows what tomorrow will bring??
But I also need to keep in mind that just because Part 1 of Japisney is coming to a close, doesn't mean the adventure is over. No, it's far from it. I get a little bit of an intermission after Japan and then it's onto Part 2--Disney World! Who knows who all I will meet? Maybe I will meet more people that will change my life forever the way Brenna, Sodany, Kitty, Adrian, Lee, and the other KCP students have? I can only hope :)
Let's see what will happen tomorrow!! <3 Dreams of happiness could be right around the corner! <3
I decided I wanted to dedicate this blog post to random fun memories that I've had with my friends in Japan. It's the memories that last the longest so I wanted at least one blog post filled with random happy memories that make me giggle whenever I decide to look back on it <3
A lot of these random drabbles won't be in any particular order. I'm just writing down what comes to mind first <3
~~~~~
- When Brenna and I almost missed our first flight because we thought it didn't depart until later and they had to call us over the intercom LOL
- Getting stuck in the door of the train on my very first day and having that HUGE bruise on my knee hahahaha
- Watching Megamind and the Little Mermaid in Japanese with the kids the second I arrived at my host family house hahahaha
- drinking the Gokuri peach tea for the first time with Brenna and spazzing out over how delicious it was!
- Seeing the Red Light District for the first time and flipping out. (Wow, and now I've been there at least a hundred times! Wait....I shouldn't say that out loud....)
- Making derpy faces in Purikura but still looking beautiful Lol
- Getting lost in Shinjuku for 2 hours trying to find KCP. FAAAAAAAAAIL XD
- the giant group of elementary school kids waving and saying "Hello" to us Americans in English at Naraijuku. They were so freaking cute!
- The random people that kept asking for Kitty's picture because she's platinum blonde! hahahaha! <3
- Making a wish on the random tree thing at Matsumoto Castle
- Buying a "book" from the conbini with Marc and then watching him buy it from the really old lady hahahaha!
- Eating sushi for the first time in Japan and having to force down the raw oyster! I was so proud of myself!
- Seeing all the crazy fish in Tsukiji! Ahhhhhhhhhhhh!
- Praying at a Buddhist temple to Jesus hahahahaha!
- Going to Akiba with Ko for the first time and freaking out over all the Persona stuff!
- My Persona 3 Art Book :'D Ahhhh I will treasure it forever!
- My first trip to Harajuku!
- Sharing an umbrella with Lee during the Harajuku trip and claiming him as my "umbrella buddy"!
- Going into the Body Line store for the first time!! And buying a maid dress and my Rise wig! AHHHHH <3
- Getting VERY annoyed at a certain some one who wouldn't quit complaining the entire time during the Shinjuku Tour trip.... (not the happiest of memories but still a memory nonetheless!)
- Finding the Fairy Tail keychain dispenser for the first time! But then never being able to find it again...
- My umbrella buddy and I writing an ema together at Harajuku (and both us failing horribly at Japanese! hahahaha!)
- Table Flipping Game. And the fact Sodany beat all of us out on it!
- Sodany and I giving Brenna terrible love advice when it came to her boy troubles hahahaha!
- Eating crepes. Just crepes in general. Crepes are AMAZING!!!
- Getting so ticked off during the Aoyama Daigaku trip because I wasn't in the "cool" group hahahahaha!!
- Karaoke for the first time with everybody!! I was so nervous singing "Shoujo S" in front of everyone cause I'm terrible at singing but I got soooo into it! hahahaha! Oh...and let's not forget the nomihodai aspect <3
- The karaoke aftermath. Trying to find KFC. Being unable to walk on my own. Randomly stumbling onto the NANA cafe (in which I never found again T___T)
- The random party at my host family's house when I got home from karaoke. Japanese people can drink A LOT
- The really heartfelt drunken conversation my host dad tried to have with me. "I love you like daughter! You like daughter to me! You happy, I'm happy!" hahahaha!
- "Sake Sake Guy" XD Omigosh that guy was priceless! "No no no, you sake sake with me!" "No...I'm sorry, I really have to go home..." "NO NO NO! You sake sake with meeeeee! :D" hahahaha! So persistent!
- Getting groped on the train..... I really hope that old man enjoyed his handful of butt because it certainly put a damper on my day! :l But I gotta admit....it makes a funny story.
- CAPCOM CAFEEEEEEEE!! Monster Hunter kitties EVERYWHERE! <3 And learning how to say "OBJECTION!" in Japanese!
- Goin shopping with my host mom in Ikebukuro and seeing Morning Musume perform!
- Realizing just how fat I am compared to tiny, adorable Japanese girls after trying on tons of clothes in Ikebukuro that just wouldn't fit me!
- My birthday. By far, the best memory I have so far. I wouldn't trade that night for the world! I got to become really close to my new friends and they went out of their way to make that the most special birthday ever!
- Receiving my Alice birthday cake at the cafe and nearly crying when I realized just how amazing of friends I really do have. Not to mention, I got to eat it to "Part of Your World"--my favorite Disney song EVER!
- Derping around at the Izakaya after the Alice cafe.
- THE GIANT ROACH AT THE IZAKAYA!!! AHHHHHHHHHHH! I freaked out and nearly trampled the poor soul sitting next to me! hahahaha!
- Watching Marc try to win a Yoko figure for the first time and everybody biting their finger nails in suspense! And then Kitty and I cheering once he won! hahaha!
- Receiving a Yoko figure for my birthday from Marc :'D THANKS MARC!
- All of those times I would sit in class with my heart beat racing because I was soooo ready to get out of class! hahahaha!
- Going to the Sky Tree for the first time! The Tokyo skyline was just so beautiful!!!
- Getting nervous going into the Sky Tree at first but then dancing with Sodany and Kouji as we went down hahahaha!
- Doing a tanabata tree with my host family!
- Teaching Ririka and Taiga the fortune telling game with origami that I learned back in elementary school.
- Finding out that Taiga wants to be a dry cleaner when he goes up and marry the girl from his class, Haruna-chan <3
- All those times Taiga and I sat down doing origami. And he was always "Nee, nee, Hana! Asobimashou!"
- Omg.... When the kids started saying "LETS TAKE A BATH TOGETHER!" and I kept having to decline! ^_^;;;
- Sushi and Akiba with Lee!!
- Mister Donut. 'Nuff said.
- Going to the country side with my host family and meeting Masae's parents!
- Okaa-san and I trying to figure out how to get me in my yukata! hahaha!
- Going to the festival with my family!!! I felt so pretty in my yukata!!
- Buying skirts from the mall in the countryside <3 I love them so much!
- Going to Nikko!! I got to pray at several shrines and wish really hard for stuff! "No regrets and good experiences <3" So far, I've had some really good experiences!! I have a few regrets but maybe that will change before I leave! <3
- Udon. Udon all the way.
- Taiiyaki for the first time ^___^
- Getting a Yukiko figure!! :'D MORE PERSONA GOODNESS!
- My long hilarious conversation with Ricey over Facebook. All of our typos turning into hilarious inside jokes! "Don't pet the gay horse if your haydar is broken!"
- Ramen shop with a bunch of KCP people <3
- Ferris Wheel in Kasai <3 That will be a moment I will never forget! I got to see the Disney Castle from above and even got to see the fireworks from it! Once again, the city of Tokyo will never cease to amaze me <3
- The derpy alligator arcade game! hahahaha!
- Bumping into Hannah Etchinson in Shibuya. And then bumping into Connor McCarthy at Shinjuku Eki.... What in the world??
- Getting to see Ming, Emi, and Kaori ^_^ It had been so long since I had seen Emi!!
- My giant can of pringles hahahaha
- Curry Cooking Class!! It was REALLY spicey but I ate it since I contributed to making it =^_^=
- Going to the Sky Tree for the second time! The second most memorable night I've had in Japan!
- THE BEER ADVERTISEMENT GUY!!! He's looking at the can smiling with a very confused look on his face. For some reason, whenever I saw it, I would start laughing!!
- Shopping day with Kitty and Adrian at Harajuku <3
- "I wanted to make a dress but I had all these T-shirts!"--laughing for hours at the one weird looking dress with all the shirts sewn to it! hahahaha!
- "Princess feeling should be able to be tasted at any times if it urges in new clothes"--random Engrish at a store that Kitty, Adrian, and I also laughed at for hours
- Witnessing two pigeons court each other in the park with Kitty and Rose. I had tears coming out of my eyes from laughing so hard...
- The store called "A55" Hahahahaha! Too funny, Japan!
- The little crafts Ririka and Taiga would leave for me on the table for me to get when I would come home from school
- The funny faces Kitty made while impersonating random people that have been on commercials hahahaha!
- The really scary experience I had in my room one night....I was dreaming and then I woke up and I swore there was this fat creature with big eyes and long fingernails sitting next to my bed....I was able to reach out and touch it before it disappeared. I think it was just a VERY lucid dream but I woke up screaming....Omg, on second thought, I think that's a memory I kind of don't want to remember hahaha....
- All those times I put a lot of effort into looking good for absolutely no reason because I would sweat all of my make up and pretty-ness off by the time I left the house hahahaha!
- The sign with the pigs from Harajuku. "YEAAAAH!"
- The inside jokes that came from said sign hahahaha
- When Adrian was singing karaoke to a song she had never heard before hahahahaha!
- Watching The Regular Show for the first time in my life.... Lol wut?
- All those times playing Taiko!
- Korean restraunt!!! YUM!
- Being afraid of staying at the house by myself when my host family was gone because I'm seriously convinced the place is haunted....
- Deciding that my room is haunted by a 500 year old homosexual hobo named Ned that sometimes interferes with my sound receiver whenever I'm skyping some one back home hahahaha
- "If my life was a shoujo manga, it would be a tragic tale about a flamingo falling in love with an aardvark. It would involve cheerios, bubblewrap, and sparkles and would be titled "The Laundry Basket." If my life was a shounen manga, it would be a detective story involving lots of explosions and partial nudity. I would call it "Jamal"."Best conversation I ever had with Gina! hahahaha!
- Udon. LOTS of udon.
- Singing the Dango Daikazoku song with Brenna!
- All those times me and my girlies would have an after school snack at the park and have girly conversations <3
- Meeting Rena and Sumire at the Izakaya with Brenna, Jack, and the others!
- Alex telling us about his experience with a drunk girl on the train. He only knew basic Japanese but she kept trying to talk to him so their only conversation was about what their favorite juice was LOL!
- My date with Mister Donut because I'm forever alone. Sad night indeed XD
- Cosplay purikura with Adriaaaaaaan!
- Hanging out with Sodany at her dorm!
- Tokyo Disney adventures <3 Definitely one of the best times I have had in my entire life!
- Getting to see Maiko in general <3
- Being able to ride 17 rides with Maiko at Tokyo Disney Land! And also getting pictures with a ton of characters!
- "The World is Mine. Oyster."--Lol Ko at Tower of Terror
- Stealing Ko's phone and taking random derpy pictures as we waited in line for Tower of Terror
- Freaking out over all the big rides at disney but then finding them to not be as scary as I thought they were <3
- The days when I used to receive text messages. Those were the daaaaaaays! <3
- Meeting Hachiko for the first time <3
- Buying a super cute top in Shibuya with Sodany!
- Having a blast with Maiko at Harajuku!! We got to shop, eat crepes, and do karaoke!!
- Singing disney songs at karaoke with Maiko! <3 And the Hare Hare Yukai!!
- Karaoke after the Speech Contest with everyone!! Sing ALLLLLL the Disney songs!
- When Taiga fell asleep on me in the car for the first time
- Going to an onsen with my host family!! (Sad bananas...)
- Studying really hard for a kanji quiz and making a 90 <3 Then making a 93 on my grammar quiz!! <3
- Tokyo Tower with the family <3 It was always a dream of mine to go!
- Hyakuen store visits <3 Gotta love em!
- Having my legs kill me during the tea ceremony! hahahaha!
- Having a much needed girl night with Brenna as we ate cake, taiiyaki, and takoyaki and complained about boys and talked about funny memories <3 "It was love at first....hair." Hahahaha! "Did you feel it?!" XD hahahahaha! Oh, the conversations we had that night <3
It's getting late and my Tokyo adventures have yet to come to a close <3 I have a feeling I'm going to come back to this blog and add more memories as they cross through my mind.
Man.....I never want to forget all the special memories that I've had. And the friends I've made..... Wow, going home is going to be a lot tougher than I thought. I mean, I always knew it was going to be tough. I knew it was going to be tough the moment I stepped foot out of that air plane. But I've learned so much and I feel like I've grown a lot as a person.............No. Scratch that. Hahahaha, if anything, I've become a lot more crazier. I mean, who sits around talking about how Mister Donut is the only man for her?! hahahaha!
But still..... It's going to be hard to leave. I just feel like I'm going to regret so much.... No, not regret the things that I've done. But regret the things that I didn't do. There's so much that I wanted to do....So many things I wanted to see.....So many more memories I wanted to make with the people special to me. With only nine days, I'm feeling like that just won't happen.
I keep thinking back on a painting I saw at Disneyland. It was of Cinderella looking out dreamily at the castle and underneath it it said, "Cinderella never gave up that her dreams of happiness would come true." Well, Japan isn't over yet and I'm not giving up <3 A lot can happen in 8 days.... Maybe I can have one more REALLY good adventure. The kind that just changes your life forever. Or....maybe I'm overthinking things hahahaha. I've already had so many lifechanging adventures here....maybe I'm just being selfish asking for more.
But we shall see. Who knows what tomorrow will bring??
But I also need to keep in mind that just because Part 1 of Japisney is coming to a close, doesn't mean the adventure is over. No, it's far from it. I get a little bit of an intermission after Japan and then it's onto Part 2--Disney World! Who knows who all I will meet? Maybe I will meet more people that will change my life forever the way Brenna, Sodany, Kitty, Adrian, Lee, and the other KCP students have? I can only hope :)
Let's see what will happen tomorrow!! <3 Dreams of happiness could be right around the corner! <3
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