1
Hey everyone! 
As some of you might know already I’m currently spending a semester as an exchange student in Japan. Even though I haven’t been writing any blog entries recently, because it has been requested and I love writing I decided to start writing about my stay in this amazing country. I remember how much I loved reading about other people’s life in Japan, so I hope you can enjoy my story too
I can’t write all my impressions in one entry, so I’ll start with my week in Tokyo first!
Okay, so first of all… what is it like in Japan? Is it what I expected? Well, to make it short, it pretty much is. When I arrived in Tokyo, I noticed all those things I’ve heard about before, and I also noticed many things that I haven’t known of before. Most people know that in Japan, people eat sushi; they wear Kimono, watch Anime, pay using Yen, do Sumo and have lots of earthquakes. Most of you guys probably know more than that about the country, right? I did, too, but I was still surprised by many things. When I arrived in Japan, I saw lots of Sakura blossoms literally everywhere as it was cherry blossom season and it was really beautiful. I met many friendly people who were kind enough to help me out even though I was a stranger to them – everyone tried to help me when I asked for the way, for example. And I will never forget that one time when I stood in front of the elevator desperately and I couldn’t figure out how to open the door, when that really nice elderly man came up to me and helped me out. I had difficulties locking and unlocking the doors because you have to turn the key the other way (or at least not the way you would do it in Europe) and I felt unsafe on the street because the cars drive on the left site. I was surprised to see people sleep everywhere, in the train, on park benches, even at McDonalds, which probably is because all of them work so hard. I had a hard time using the high tech toilets that come with a special remote to use them. 
I felt overwhelmed by all the billboards, Hello Kitty merchandise and Pokémon figures everywhere. No matter where I looked, I found vending machines and plastic food. I was surprised by how all of the women’s voices are so high-pitched (I thought idols would do it on purpose!) so that even the woman making the announcements in trains sounds quite childlike. I was confused when I walked through the train station and heard bird’s singing even though there was no bird around. I felt impolite because I saw all those people bowing and speaking politely everywhere and I didn’t know how to do it right. I found it funny how next to a famous quiet shrine there can be a big and noisy amusement park just like that! And I felt worried because very soon I realized that almost no one can speak English, which actually turned out to be a good thing because I’ve had lots of opportunities to practice my Japanese. After being here for one month, I have actually gotten used to all of these things… but it’s fun to think about what surprised me when I first came here.
On my first day in Tokyo, Tuesday March 26th, I was too tired to do anything. I hadn’t slept for almost 35 hours and I didn’t even realize that I actually was in the country I wanted to go to for so long. A good friend of mine was kind enough to pick me up from the airport, we got some food together and he brought me to my hotel and helped me check in. I remember he kept asking me if I was okay, I guess I just looked really tired!
I took a shower and went straight to bed, and after 13 hours of sleep I felt like a new person. So, on my second day, Wednesday March 27th, I went to Akihabara to check it out and to get myself an adapter for my electronic devices. I went to Yodobashi-Akiba, a really big store that features everything you can imagine. After I spend 1 ½ hours there, searching for the adapter myself (impossible to find it!) and trying to explain to the staff what I want, I finally got an adapter – mission complete! I kept walking around in Akihabara and checked out some shops, until I came to a really big bookshop (don’t remember the name~). There were lots of Manga and on the top floor I found a big section of idol merchandise. I actually felt a bit strange there, being a girl and a foreigner, and the guys there kept staring at me – I guess they thought I had lost my way I found all kinds of things about H!P, like photo books and magazines they were featured in, but I didn’t buy anything since I knew I’d have enough opportunities during my stay in Japan. After I got something to eat at McDonalds in Akihabara – I know, I should have eaten Japanese food, but it was raining a lot and McDonalds was right next to me! 
– I went off to Asakusa to see Sensouji Temple. This was my very first temple experience, so I was amazed by how beautiful it was! Everything was red and gold and I could see so many traditional things there. I saw people washing their hands and mouths, which, as I now know, is to clear their spirit, and all kinds of other things. I was also lucky to stumble across a Kabuki theatre played by children right next to the temple; I didn’t understand anything and felt bad about my Japanese skills, but my friends later told me that even Japanese people can often not understand Kabuki^^ If you click the link at the end of this entry, you can check it out yourself~
On Thursday, March 28th, I planned to go to Shibuya and Harajuku. I was really looking forward to Shibuya because I really love Japanese fashion! You might not know, but Shibuya is the fashion and shopping district in Tokyo where lots of young people like to hang out. When I arrived in Shibuya, I was overwhelmed by all the people there and also by the crazy fashion some of them were wearing. The combination of that and the amazingly high buildings, Kyari Pamyu Pamyu’s songs coming out of speakers everywhere on the street and the colorfully blinking billboards made me get lost several times, lol I eventually found my way to Shibuya 109 though, the really big shopping center featuring girl’s fashion. When I entered, it felt like heaven – I saw colorful skirts, cute hats and accessories, plateau shoes, tattoo tights, dresses with flower prints in all varieties, and wherever I went I heard Japanese pop music and cute girls shouting: “Irasshaimase~!”. I actually entered with the thought of buying something there, but in the end I just couldn’t decide at all – there were so many things I wanted! So I bought nothing. But I’m going back there in August, and I will definitely go and buy something then! After spending the morning and noon in Shibuya, I took the train to Harajuku which is nearby. I went to Meiji Jingu, a shrine dedicated to the emperor Meiji, which was the first shrine I saw. I loved it even more than the temple, maybe because it was in the middle of a big and spacious park and the weather was really warm and nice, too. While I enjoyed the beautiful nature in the quiet park I couldn’t imagine that I actually was in Tokyo in that very moment. After visiting the shrine I walked around Harajuku a bit and when I decided to walk back to Shibuya, I suddenly got addressed in English by two people. One of them was Western and one was Japanese and they had a big camera next to them. Apparently they work for some kind of coffee shop in Tokyo that is for foreigners especially. They asked me if they could hold an interview with me in English and told me that they would show it in the coffee shop in Tokyo. I was happy to help them out, so they asked me all kinds of questions about Japan, how I liked it, what surprised me, why I’m here, stuff like that. We had a nice conversation after that I went back to Shibuya and from there to my hotel. After all the walking I was just really tired.
On Friday, I went to Disneyland with the same friend who picked me up from the airport on Tuesday. We spent the whole day there and since it was the first time in Disneyland ever for me, it was really exciting! On Saturday, March 30th, I met up with another friend from Saitama and we went to Ueno Park and Tokyo Tower together. If you wonder about how I got these Japanese friends, both of them had studied at my university before and that’s how I met them. It was really nice to see them again! Ueno Park was quite full of people and the cherry blossoms were really pretty that day. People sat on blue mats under the trees and were eating, drinking and laughing. I also saw people sleeping there in sleeping bags – I asked my friend about it and he told me that they actually “reserve” the good places under the trees by staying there over night. I learned that, if you join a company, it might happen that you – as the kouhai – have to do that, but some people also do it for family. I couldn’t help but feel bad for them because it had like 10°C at night, so it must have been pretty cold! They looked comfortable though.^^ Anyway, after we walked around in Ueno and enjoyed the cherry blossoms, we went to Tokyo Tower. I actually didn’t want to get up at all because it was expensive and I hate elevators, but my friend convinced me to at least go to the middle level. I was glad that I went because the view was really nice! It was cloudy so you couldn’t see that far, but it was still really amazing to see all these buildings, streets, trains and everything. The city I come from is so small most people probably wouldn’t call it a city but a town – so seeing Tokyo like that made me realize how amazing it is that I can actually be in Japan. We also visited the Zozoji Temple right next to the Tower which was quite spacious and really beautiful as well. Cherry blossoms were blooming and the Tokyo Tower emerged behind it; that looked pretty impressive! Well, all the walking around made us hungry and we found a traditional Udon restaurant not far away. The Udon there was so great! I like Japanese food generally, but I think I like Udon the most. The only funny thing there was the slurping… next to us there was this guy and he was slurping so much! I know it’s nothing special in Japan, but as someone who has been raised to think that slurping is really gross and impolite, I just found it awkward and still do. I don’t think I can get used to that!
On Sunday, March 31th, I spend the day with my other friend again (the one I went to Disneyland with). His family has invited me to lunch and I was quite excited about meeting them. I imagined his mother to be quite strict for some reason, but she is just really nice and genki! His younger sister who is 18 was really funny, he told me before that she is a bit “strange” but I never knew what he was talking about. Well, after meeting her I understood
she kept using words a girl wouldn’t use, I later learned that she watches lots of Anime and uses that language a lot. Also, she is really clumsy, so she kept spilling her soup and stuff like that. And in addition to that, she doesn’t really behave “properly”, so when the food arrived at the table, for example, she started eating before everyone else and before saying “Itadakimasu”, things like that. It was just so funny and I totally fell in love with her! I hope I can meet her again sometime, she’s too adorable kind of reminded me of Masaki in some ways! When we finished lunch my friend showed me a really beautiful place in Nerima with lots and lots of pretty cherry blossoms. Even though I had seen so many of them before, it was just really amazing.
Well, and on Monday 1st I got on the Shinkansen to travel to the place I’d live in for 4 months – Kobe. I was really excited and the same time scared, because I would meet the people I’d have to spend my time with, I would finally see the room I'd live in, the university I would go to everyday… So I will write my next blog entry about all of this and the life as an exchange student at university. And during the next days, you can also expect a video on my Youtube Channel about the Morning Musume concert in Osaka and the Lovendor concert in Kobe because I'm going to go to these! So exciteeeed~
And here’s the video I've made about the things I've seen in Tokyo:
I hope you enjoyed this entry if you have any questions about this or if there is anything you want to know about being or becoming and exchange student, just tell me and I'm going to try and answer everything. I’m also always happy about comments! Thank you very much for reading and I’m sorry for any grammar or spelling mistakes I’ve made.
See you soon!
As some of you might know already I’m currently spending a semester as an exchange student in Japan. Even though I haven’t been writing any blog entries recently, because it has been requested and I love writing I decided to start writing about my stay in this amazing country. I remember how much I loved reading about other people’s life in Japan, so I hope you can enjoy my story too
I can’t write all my impressions in one entry, so I’ll start with my week in Tokyo first!Okay, so first of all… what is it like in Japan? Is it what I expected? Well, to make it short, it pretty much is. When I arrived in Tokyo, I noticed all those things I’ve heard about before, and I also noticed many things that I haven’t known of before. Most people know that in Japan, people eat sushi; they wear Kimono, watch Anime, pay using Yen, do Sumo and have lots of earthquakes. Most of you guys probably know more than that about the country, right? I did, too, but I was still surprised by many things. When I arrived in Japan, I saw lots of Sakura blossoms literally everywhere as it was cherry blossom season and it was really beautiful. I met many friendly people who were kind enough to help me out even though I was a stranger to them – everyone tried to help me when I asked for the way, for example. And I will never forget that one time when I stood in front of the elevator desperately and I couldn’t figure out how to open the door, when that really nice elderly man came up to me and helped me out.
I had difficulties locking and unlocking the doors because you have to turn the key the other way (or at least not the way you would do it in Europe) and I felt unsafe on the street because the cars drive on the left site. I was surprised to see people sleep everywhere, in the train, on park benches, even at McDonalds, which probably is because all of them work so hard. I had a hard time using the high tech toilets that come with a special remote to use them. I felt overwhelmed by all the billboards, Hello Kitty merchandise and Pokémon figures everywhere. No matter where I looked, I found vending machines and plastic food. I was surprised by how all of the women’s voices are so high-pitched (I thought idols would do it on purpose!) so that even the woman making the announcements in trains sounds quite childlike. I was confused when I walked through the train station and heard bird’s singing even though there was no bird around. I felt impolite because I saw all those people bowing and speaking politely everywhere and I didn’t know how to do it right. I found it funny how next to a famous quiet shrine there can be a big and noisy amusement park just like that! And I felt worried because very soon I realized that almost no one can speak English, which actually turned out to be a good thing because I’ve had lots of opportunities to practice my Japanese. After being here for one month, I have actually gotten used to all of these things… but it’s fun to think about what surprised me when I first came here. On my first day in Tokyo, Tuesday March 26th, I was too tired to do anything. I hadn’t slept for almost 35 hours and I didn’t even realize that I actually was in the country I wanted to go to for so long. A good friend of mine was kind enough to pick me up from the airport, we got some food together and he brought me to my hotel and helped me check in. I remember he kept asking me if I was okay, I guess I just looked really tired!
I took a shower and went straight to bed, and after 13 hours of sleep I felt like a new person. So, on my second day, Wednesday March 27th, I went to Akihabara to check it out and to get myself an adapter for my electronic devices. I went to Yodobashi-Akiba, a really big store that features everything you can imagine. After I spend 1 ½ hours there, searching for the adapter myself (impossible to find it!) and trying to explain to the staff what I want, I finally got an adapter – mission complete! I kept walking around in Akihabara and checked out some shops, until I came to a really big bookshop (don’t remember the name~). There were lots of Manga and on the top floor I found a big section of idol merchandise. I actually felt a bit strange there, being a girl and a foreigner, and the guys there kept staring at me – I guess they thought I had lost my way I found all kinds of things about H!P, like photo books and magazines they were featured in, but I didn’t buy anything since I knew I’d have enough opportunities during my stay in Japan. After I got something to eat at McDonalds in Akihabara – I know, I should have eaten Japanese food, but it was raining a lot and McDonalds was right next to me! – I went off to Asakusa to see Sensouji Temple. This was my very first temple experience, so I was amazed by how beautiful it was! Everything was red and gold and I could see so many traditional things there. I saw people washing their hands and mouths, which, as I now know, is to clear their spirit, and all kinds of other things. I was also lucky to stumble across a Kabuki theatre played by children right next to the temple; I didn’t understand anything and felt bad about my Japanese skills, but my friends later told me that even Japanese people can often not understand Kabuki^^ If you click the link at the end of this entry, you can check it out yourself~ On Thursday, March 28th, I planned to go to Shibuya and Harajuku. I was really looking forward to Shibuya because I really love Japanese fashion! You might not know, but Shibuya is the fashion and shopping district in Tokyo where lots of young people like to hang out. When I arrived in Shibuya, I was overwhelmed by all the people there and also by the crazy fashion some of them were wearing. The combination of that and the amazingly high buildings, Kyari Pamyu Pamyu’s songs coming out of speakers everywhere on the street and the colorfully blinking billboards made me get lost several times, lol
I eventually found my way to Shibuya 109 though, the really big shopping center featuring girl’s fashion. When I entered, it felt like heaven – I saw colorful skirts, cute hats and accessories, plateau shoes, tattoo tights, dresses with flower prints in all varieties, and wherever I went I heard Japanese pop music and cute girls shouting: “Irasshaimase~!”. I actually entered with the thought of buying something there, but in the end I just couldn’t decide at all – there were so many things I wanted! So I bought nothing. But I’m going back there in August, and I will definitely go and buy something then! After spending the morning and noon in Shibuya, I took the train to Harajuku which is nearby. I went to Meiji Jingu, a shrine dedicated to the emperor Meiji, which was the first shrine I saw. I loved it even more than the temple, maybe because it was in the middle of a big and spacious park and the weather was really warm and nice, too. While I enjoyed the beautiful nature in the quiet park I couldn’t imagine that I actually was in Tokyo in that very moment. After visiting the shrine I walked around Harajuku a bit and when I decided to walk back to Shibuya, I suddenly got addressed in English by two people. One of them was Western and one was Japanese and they had a big camera next to them. Apparently they work for some kind of coffee shop in Tokyo that is for foreigners especially. They asked me if they could hold an interview with me in English and told me that they would show it in the coffee shop in Tokyo. I was happy to help them out, so they asked me all kinds of questions about Japan, how I liked it, what surprised me, why I’m here, stuff like that. We had a nice conversation after that I went back to Shibuya and from there to my hotel. After all the walking I was just really tired.On Friday, I went to Disneyland with the same friend who picked me up from the airport on Tuesday. We spent the whole day there and since it was the first time in Disneyland ever for me, it was really exciting! On Saturday, March 30th, I met up with another friend from Saitama and we went to Ueno Park and Tokyo Tower together. If you wonder about how I got these Japanese friends, both of them had studied at my university before and that’s how I met them. It was really nice to see them again! Ueno Park was quite full of people and the cherry blossoms were really pretty that day. People sat on blue mats under the trees and were eating, drinking and laughing. I also saw people sleeping there in sleeping bags – I asked my friend about it and he told me that they actually “reserve” the good places under the trees by staying there over night. I learned that, if you join a company, it might happen that you – as the kouhai – have to do that, but some people also do it for family. I couldn’t help but feel bad for them because it had like 10°C at night, so it must have been pretty cold! They looked comfortable though.^^ Anyway, after we walked around in Ueno and enjoyed the cherry blossoms, we went to Tokyo Tower. I actually didn’t want to get up at all because it was expensive and I hate elevators, but my friend convinced me to at least go to the middle level. I was glad that I went because the view was really nice! It was cloudy so you couldn’t see that far, but it was still really amazing to see all these buildings, streets, trains and everything. The city I come from is so small most people probably wouldn’t call it a city but a town – so seeing Tokyo like that made me realize how amazing it is that I can actually be in Japan. We also visited the Zozoji Temple right next to the Tower which was quite spacious and really beautiful as well. Cherry blossoms were blooming and the Tokyo Tower emerged behind it; that looked pretty impressive! Well, all the walking around made us hungry and we found a traditional Udon restaurant not far away. The Udon there was so great! I like Japanese food generally, but I think I like Udon the most. The only funny thing there was the slurping… next to us there was this guy and he was slurping so much! I know it’s nothing special in Japan, but as someone who has been raised to think that slurping is really gross and impolite, I just found it awkward and still do. I don’t think I can get used to that!
On Sunday, March 31th, I spend the day with my other friend again (the one I went to Disneyland with). His family has invited me to lunch and I was quite excited about meeting them. I imagined his mother to be quite strict for some reason, but she is just really nice and genki! His younger sister who is 18 was really funny, he told me before that she is a bit “strange” but I never knew what he was talking about. Well, after meeting her I understood
she kept using words a girl wouldn’t use, I later learned that she watches lots of Anime and uses that language a lot. Also, she is really clumsy, so she kept spilling her soup and stuff like that. And in addition to that, she doesn’t really behave “properly”, so when the food arrived at the table, for example, she started eating before everyone else and before saying “Itadakimasu”, things like that. It was just so funny and I totally fell in love with her! I hope I can meet her again sometime, she’s too adorable kind of reminded me of Masaki in some ways! When we finished lunch my friend showed me a really beautiful place in Nerima with lots and lots of pretty cherry blossoms. Even though I had seen so many of them before, it was just really amazing.Well, and on Monday 1st I got on the Shinkansen to travel to the place I’d live in for 4 months – Kobe. I was really excited and the same time scared, because I would meet the people I’d have to spend my time with, I would finally see the room I'd live in, the university I would go to everyday… So I will write my next blog entry about all of this and the life as an exchange student at university. And during the next days, you can also expect a video on my Youtube Channel about the Morning Musume concert in Osaka and the Lovendor concert in Kobe because I'm going to go to these! So exciteeeed~
And here’s the video I've made about the things I've seen in Tokyo:
I hope you enjoyed this entry
if you have any questions about this or if there is anything you want to know about being or becoming and exchange student, just tell me and I'm going to try and answer everything. I’m also always happy about comments! Thank you very much for reading and I’m sorry for any grammar or spelling mistakes I’ve made.See you soon!
Really nice and interesting read, looking forward to hearing more about you're stay in japan and hope you have a nice time there.