Food and Failure in Korea

40 Things You Probably Didn't Know About Japan

Before I jump straight into this list, I want to clarify that some of these points may be generally incorrect, or could be exclusive to Tokyo. I could also have some of my reasonings wrong. This list is simply something I compiled based off of my own experiences throughout the year that I lived and traveled throughout Japan. This list is also not, in any way, a complete one. I'm sure if you search the internet you can find many other very true facts about Japan that I have forgotten to list here. In urban areas there will, at any given time or place, be at least one コンビニ ("conbini" / convenience store) within walking distance. Japanese people don’t usually have middle names . Japanese people are very interested in each others' blood type - it's like astrology in America, except people take it very seriously. Expect to be asked what your blood type is at least once. Japanese deodorant supposedly doesn't work very well. I brought my own deodo...

Osawadai Elementary School

Just a short (15 minute) walk from campus there is an elementary school, and I was one of the people who visited it today. When we first walked in, we saw a bike rack... full of unicycles!? Two steps into their territory and Japanese children are already proving their superiority over me. We walked into the school building where we took off our shoes and were given slippers to wear. Then we met all the children (the 5th grade class) in the gym. Each of us was paired up with two children. My partners were Yuta (the boy) and Olivia (the girl... obviously). The children gave us a tour of the school. Olivia is half British and fluent in English just as much as she is in Japanese, so I received a very comprehensive tour. Her accent was very interesting, as you can imagine. Yuta was pretty good at English, too, but was a little bit shy and spacey. This elementary school was just amazing. They had classrooms for each grade...

Costs, Budgeting, and Money Matters

In this post I will summarize my budget and expenses during my year abroad. Please note that general living expenses will vary based on a number of things, including the lifestyle of the person, the current exchange rate (during this time -2011 - 2012- it was between 70 and 85 cents to the 100 yen), the costs of things in general at the time, and personal preferences and ability to budget. These amounts are listed in yen. They are approximate numbers. Living: Summer term room and board (Ginkgo House): 80,000 Autumn term room and board (Global House): 206,000 Winter term room and board (Global House): 206,000 Spring term room and board (Global House): 206,000 Bedding: 14,700 --- Required rented Noguchi Co. bedding (all bedsheets, blankets, pillows, futon, etc) for one year. NOTE: "room and board" includes the dorm living amount and extra dorm fees. One time expenses: Required insurance: 8,000 to 10,000 Bicycle: 10,000 --- I highly recommend buying a bicyc...

Alysse Abroad

Search This Blog