Tokyo Orientation - Days 0 and 1

I made the mistake of coming online once I reached the hotel on Day 0. I was so tired out by the flight and especially the subsequent 2-hours bus journey to the hotel that I was really agitated when I disembarked. It didn't help that I could not get a bit of peace and quiet throughout the bus trip as the JETs there were overly friendly and was actively engaging the newbies in conversation. I had just wanted to come online to placate my mom by using Skype to tell her I have safely reached Tokyo and I ended up with ~10 conversation windows going concurrently when I was in the worst of moods. I was bad to have showered that bad mood with those 10 - I hope they can forgive me!

As you might already know, I'm currently at Keio Plaza Hotel and right smack in the middle of Shinjuku. As I was rather tired, I stumbled out with 2 other Singaporeans on the night of Day 0 to this ramen place that has lots of MSG. This took place before I went online and made everyone's mood bad (as above). Anyway the eatery is the kind where you pay through a vending machine, get a ticket which has your order and pass it to the counter where they will prepare for you. So my very first meal in Japan is a katsu-don-cum-soba-noodles. It was comical because I am utterly horrible at kanji so I cannot understand what I was ordering. Thank goodness for the plastic display samples!

Along the way I saw a 100-yen shop and it was really as what some of you have said - I can get everything?! I grabbed a cleanser and some drinking water from there before returning to the hotel room. I just realised that tap water is not drinkable in Japan?

Then on to Day 1. Today I was very naughty. After a horrible breakfast by the hotel, we had an opening ceremony where I finally wore my suit (but avoided the pants which I felt would be better for Wednesday when I meet my supervisor). It was quite boring actually, and I was quite visible about my emotions. So un-Japanese! I felt I could get away because people all around me were like predominantly Americans and such. After that we had an opening speech which, while the speaker was humorous, confirmed the impression that the information that we get will be useful on a general level and it
will only be useful if we finally realise how they apply. As such the prefectural sessions would have been better as they will provide information that is immediately applicable. Anyway so after that was lunch (equally horrid - I have no idea what kind of vegetarian meat I was stuffing into my mouth) and I ran out to check on the price of the Canon Ixy 820is at Yodobashi. Immediately after stepping out of the hotel, the summer heat trapped by the concrete buildings hit me. Argh! Also were the sounds of the cicadas - I am finally in Japan! However I did not really anything strange... I think it might be cultural numbness. I can get simple ideas across in Japanese when I want to, and thanks to the friendly salespersons I don't have a need to express complicated sentences so far.

Meanwhile about the price of the camera - it was a little steep: Y31, 800 (S$400)! Crestfallen I went back to the hotel to attend
another talk. After the talk it was a series of workshops which I decided was not worth the while and ended up heading to the big Kinokuniya in Shinjuku with some other JETs - 6 stories! We also headed to Shiodome for this matcha ice-cream that was delicious, though it was like 6 stations away! That was also my first railway experience in Japan, though I was too tired by then to appreciate. ET, my ex-colleague who passed me a Suica card, came in good use. After returning, we dropped by Yodobashi and I was shocked - the camera was in promotion and it now retails at Y28, 000 (S$350)! I grabbed it on the spot
though I regretted getting the memory card from there rather than SLS as it was expensive (4gb Sandisk SDHC for Y4480 (S$57)). Nevertheless... wow!

By the way I am concerned I might have burnt a bridge with my prefectural JETs, people who are also teaching in the same prefecture. What happened was they asked around for attendance to dinner tonight outside and initially I said yes. However after the camera-buying episode in the afternoon, I became too tired and in the end went downstairs and told them I would like to rest instead. I don't think they will make an issue out of it, though it means I have missed a wonderful opportunity
to network and make more friends. But that makes me consider again whether are they friends or are they acquaintances I can know better so that life might be easier subsequently. I guess only time will tell if I can click with them on a more personal level.

Okay this is mightily embarrassing, but I am very tired and I didn't had dinner, so I had to rely on my mum's Milo. However the room doesn't come with teaspoons (!) and I can't get to room service! I resorted to stirring the Milo with a hotel plastic toothbrush instead. I hope the toothbrush didn't melt in the Milo!

Tomorrow's another whole series of talks which I think might actually be useful(!) Meanwhile, I am very happy I got my camera and I shall post new shots soon. Whatever shots that appear on previous days can only be those of my wonderful friends. :)