So I was both terrified and excited about my new life and job in Japan. I accepted my job offer in Japan after a lot of prayer, an epiphany, and support from family and friends.
So who am I?
I am a 27 year old Jamaican-American woman living in Japan. I arrived in Japan August 11, 2009 to work for Peppy Kids. I flew from London where I was working as an intern for a year. My flight was about 11 hours to Tokyo and then 1 1/2 hours to Nagoya my destination.
I flew into Nagoya for training. I spent eight days in Nagoya discovering the prefecture and bonding with other trainees.
Living in Nagoya
So throughout Japan. There is a no shoes policy. When I arrived at my apartment building. I had to change into slippers my building provided to walk into the space. My apartment was pretty sweet. Bigger than expected. Built in air conditioning, hot plate, microwave, fridge, a washer and dryer. Everything I needed to feel at home.
No shoes were allowed on the tami mat where I would sleep and host friends. Sleeping in Japan is a different style than I was used to. Firstly, you sleep on "futons." In my apartment that meant I laid something that resembled a mattress pad on top of the tami mat, I also had a sheet, a pillow that felt like a bean bag, and a duvet cover. It was surprisingly comfortable. Ok, maybe not the pillow....
I had trouble sleeping through the night for about two weeks. I would try to sleep around midnight but I kept waking up around 1:30am and could not fall back to sleep until around 5:00am. This is problematic when I have to be at work around 8:45am. Stupid jet lag and maybe a bit of home sickness. I was so happy when I started sleeping through the night but that did not come until about 2 weeks later when I checked into a hotel to continue my training. But that comes later...
The Weather
Nagoya is affectionately known as "the arm pit of Japan." It is sooo humid there! I'm an island girl so I know heat, but the heat in Japan is different. The humidity here is very high and you are constantly sweating. And it is important to keep your body hydrated. Which was not difficult, because you are constantly buying and drinking bottled water. It was difficult for me and the other trainees to walk outside for more than 15 minutes a time. I also found it difficult to breathe in the air at times. The air was thick with humidity. It kept thinking how was I going to get used to this? It was just not comfortable.
Plus, you could see the heat at times. And as a black woman coming to Japan in the summer you have to make some serious hair decisions. I decided to go curly-bad idea in retrospect. I discovered Japanese women have straight hair for a reason! It took a lot of work to ensure that I did not look like a ball of frizz. Not sure if I accomplished that goal. You can be the judge of that. (Be gentle). I had no idea the weather would be this brutal. It's one thing to read the forecast but living in the climate is an all together different experience.
The Taste
I love Japanese food. I love rice and seafood. So I'm in food heaven. I must say that I did not love everything. My friends and I discovered a sushi place. And authentic sushi can be quite exotic. I was not a fan of the ice cold octopus. Otherwise, the food is great. I'm so happy that Japanese meals that were so expensive in the States on average are about $5.00.
Next post Living in Saitama and visiting Tokyo
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