Please read before coming to Japan

I’m going to make a full post later with ALL my advice, but I wanted to give this its own post while I’m thinking about it.

Before I came to Japan on the Japan Study program, I got a big packet of information, which included some quotes from previous students. I remember reading a warning from a student that the dress code in Japan is pretty formal compared to America. The student warned against bringing jeans, and suggested skirts, slacks (??) and dresses were better choices to bring for girls. Due to this and some other stuff I had heard, I spent a considerable amount of money before coming to Japan on nicer clothes, and even more money in Japan on buying clothes here. I spent a lot of mental energy worrying about what I was wearing and how it compared to the people around me.

Above: Me at Earlham before going to Japan. Hanging out in the dorm in a t-shirt and sweats (often went to class like this too).

Right: Me in Japan during orientation (right). Wearing a dress on a day out, trying real hard!!

 

I can say without a doubt that I developed a kind of identity crisis due to the sudden increase of awareness of my appearance and comparing myself to others. I have written about this a bit in previous posts. This was by far the biggest thing I struggled with in Japan. After a year of going through this I feel I have been mentally and emotionally worn down, and if possible I want to advise future students so they can avoid having the same problem I had.

If you look at pictures from my year in Japan, you might not be able to tell that I changed my appearance much. But the problem I’m talking about is a mental/emotional one that I believe originated from attempting to be somebody I’m not.

 

It is true that people dress nicer than the average American on a daily basis here. 

But that does not mean that YOU have to change a single thing about how you look.

 

I like to wear jeans and t-shirts and tank tops. That’s my basic go-to look. Sometimes I’ll wear a dress for a nice occasion, but generally my version of “looking nice” is basically wearing a shirt that doesn’t have anything written on it. There are some people who like to express themselves by wearing very cute or stylish clothing. I express myself by NOT. I just am not a person who cares about appearances, and I believe I express that part of my personality by wearing clothing that takes minimal thought and effort.

When I came to Japan, I thought that my choice of appearance would not be accepted.

More than actually being judged by people, my own assumption that people would judge me made me want to change to conform to what I thought would be acceptable. So regardless of the way I really wanted to dress, I made choices that fit what I thought would be more acceptable in the eyes of the people here.

What I didn’t consider was the fact that my sense of self is so closely tied to the way I express myself to others, and that in changing my self expression I lost my grasp on my sense of self. I guess in some way I thought I wouldn’t be able to make friends if I dressed the way I normally do (because who would want to be friends with someone in JEANS AND A T-SHIRT!? god forbid…) Maybe I thought I would be making things easier on myself by fitting in more with the people here. But ultimately, I didn’t get satisfaction from changing the way I look. I just started to feel less and less like myself, in a completely new world where the things that make me me are just about the ONLY things that remained the same. While faced daily with a new language, new people, and new places, I started to lose the thing that was grounding me to myself.

I don’t think there was any one moment of enlightenment where I realized what I was doing to myself. I just gradually came to realize that it wasn’t such a big deal as I was making it out to me. More of it was what I perceived, not what was actually there. Here are some important things I realized, and things I want other people like me to know before they come to Japan:

☆ It’s college. Not a job interview, not a work place, not a fancy dinner party.

Yes, I am fully aware that there are situations in which my jeans and t-shirts are unacceptable. I would not consider dressing up for these situations some kind of identity lie. However, studying abroad is not one of these situations. It’s college. You can wear whatever the hell you want.

☆ Not everyone is dressed to the nines, despite first appearances.

It’s easy to take a quick look around and decide everyone around you is dressed 1000x more formally than you are. However, if you really look at people, you see how many different styles there are. There are plenty of people wearing sweats and t-shirts, sneakers, jeans, anything you could imagine. Because, (see point above) it’s college.

☆ You are a foreigner.

It’s usually not a good idea to use the “foreigner card,” especially when it comes to things like ignoring cultural manners and etiquette. However, your clothes are a reflection of not only yourself but also the culture you come from. Nobody is going to look at you like, wtf that girl is wearing jeans, they’re just going to take it in as your image and not going to care a whole lot about it.

☆ People care a lot less than you probably think.

Kind of reflected in all of the points above, but I guess the take-away here is that you are a college student and everyone has more important, and frankly more interesting things to think about than what you’re wearing. You are probably the person who cares about it the most, and what’s fun about that?

 

I wish I had known this before coming to Japan. I know it’s a lot easier said than done, to care less about what people think of you and stay true to yourself, and all that clichéd stuff. But it’s really, really important, especially in a place where you can feel so lost in every other way. My personal story aside, I want to encourage anyone coming to study abroad in Japan to relax. Don’t run out and buy a whole new wardrobe, and don’t leave all your favorite clothes behind.

You as an individual have wonderful things to contribute to the relationships you will make here and the memories you will create. Don’t let trying to be someone you’re not get in the way of that.

 

With Love, Abby

The Home Stretch

I bought my plane ticket and I’m scheduled to fly back to America at on August 4!

I’m kind of overwhelmed by all the things I have to do before I go back, and I only have a little over a month left. I have no idea how I’m going to get everything done!! Here’s my to-do list:

1. Figure out what to do with all my extra stuff. Somehow I have just accumulated a lot of stuff I don’t need over this one year! Everything from cheap school supplies to clothes I don’t wear to random things I’ve received from people that I really don’t need. I need to figure out what I’m going to throw away, give to thrift (if there is such a thing??), and bring home with me.
2. School. Oh right, that… all my reports, finals, presentations, etc. are coming up and somehow I have to find the time to prepare for everything!
3. Logistical stuff to prepare for leaving. This is definitely going to be the most annoying… canceling my residence card, cell phone, insurance???
4. Packing. At some point I’m going to have to do a trial packing and see if I need an extra suitcase…
5. Saying goodbyes. For the people closest to me, this will be just before I leave Japan, but for some friends I don’t get to see that often the goodbyes are coming up faster than I thought. :(

In a lot of ways, I’m really excited to go home. I’ve run over and over again in my mind what it will be like to see my parents for the first time in the airport, and to see my horse when I get back home. I can’t wait to start life at Earlham again with my friends and horseback riding. On the other hand, starting a long distance relationship with no definite end in sight with my boyfriend is terrifying. I’m also going to really miss just being in Japan, using Japanese and being surrounded by the language and culture all the time.

I feel really frantic and overwhelmed right now, but hopefully by the time I actually leave I will have found some closure and come to terms with the reality of going home.

「6年間英語を勉強したけど全然喋れない」と考えている人へ

ー　6年間英語を勉強したけど全然喋れない。ー

日本人との会話でよく次のようなコメントを聞く。いつも同じように会話に出る。

相手：日本語うまいね！

私：いやいや、まだ勉強中だよー

相手：いや、本当にうまいね。どのぐらい勉強してるの？

私：３年間ぐらいかな

相手：すごいね…おれは6年間英語を勉強したけど全然喋れない。

こういう会話がよく出るので、私がこれについてどう思うかを書いてみたいと思う。この投稿は「6年間英語を勉強したけど全然喋れない」と考えている人向けだ。

まず、私の日本語の勉強法と日本人の英語の勉強法は比較できないものだと思う。国によって教育システムがそれぞれ違うので、勉強する時間と話す能力の割合を簡単に比較できないからだ。「〜のシステムより〜のほうがいい」という話ではない。また、日本人の全員が同じように勉強しているわけではない。

私の日本語教育と日本の英語教育を見てみよう。私は大学で日本語を勉強している。日本語の授業が毎日一時間ある。授業中はほとんど会話練習みたいな感じで、宿題は文法や単語、あとたまにリスニングを練習する。日本人の友達から聞いているのは、英語の授業はほとんどリーディングやライティングの勉強だ。大学や就職活動のために英語力を身につける必要があるので、試験でいい成績が取れるように勉強する。

これではどう考えても、何年間勉強しても関係なく話す能力は同じはずではない。

私が漢字を読む能力と日本人が英語を読む能力を比較すると、必ず逆な結果が出るはずだ。

私は毎日スピーキングを練習するので話す能力が高い。一方、日本人はリーディングに集中するので読む能力が高いはずだ。別にどちらも悪いことではないと思う。ただ、私が言いたいのは、自分の能力を他の人の能力と比較することには意味がないということだ。日本人は「英語ができない」というが、本当にできないわけではない。英語を話す能力が大事だと思うなら、どのような勉強方法で上達をするのかを考える必要がある。学校の授業や試験向けの勉強が足りなかったら、話す練習を増やすためにどのように勉強方法を変えられるのかを考える必要もあると思う。

築地市場・Tsukiji Fish Market!

Yesterday I went to the Tsukiji Fish Market with Kei!

We both took the earliest train and arrived at 6am to see the market at the most active time. To see the tuna auction, you have to get there by 4am, which was impossible due to trains not running at that hour, but we still got to see a lot. The market is divided into an indoor and outdoor section. The outdoor section is full of lots of tiny restaurants and shops, mostly selling various kinds of seafood. The indoor section, open from 9am so as to allow workers to work without tourists wandering around in the morning, includes lots of seafood being killed, butchered, and sold, right in front of you.

It’s definitely not for the faint of heart. There’s a lot of blood and other unidentifiable liquids and fish parts all around. You can see people cutting up freshly killed fish anywhere you look. It’s pretty disgusting, but also fascinating at the same time. The atmosphere is also really cool—there’s lots of people working there, running around, and little carts bringing fish and other things around the narrow aisles. You have to really keep on your toes to avoid getting in anyone’s way.

For breakfast, we ate at a donburi shop. I decided if I’m going to eat raw fish, I might as well eat it at Tsukiji where it’s sure to be fresh, so I went for the simplest maguro (tuna) bowl. In the picture, you can see there was quite a bit of it. I could only manage 3 pieces before I couldn’t stomach any more and gave the rest to Kei. But it was enough to fill me up, and I felt accomplished at having at least tried it. I took some video around the market, which I’ll attach to this post when I upload it!

これからどこへ？

日本の留学はまだ終わってないけど、私は次のやることのために準備をするのが好きな人です。次に何かするまでやることが何もないことは嫌です。例えば、学校で次の学期に何の授業が取れるか早めに知りたいです。大学を卒業したら何をするか知りたいです。（それはまだわからないけど. . . ）だから、日本語のことを考えると. . . 留学が終わったら、どうになるだろう？来年は、日本語の授業を一つしかとらない予定をしています。私の大学にはAdvanced Japaneseの授業はなかなかないです。日本語の勉強を続けるのは、ほとんど独学みたいな感じになると思います。日本に来る前に独学で勉強していたけど、それは留学向けの勉強でした。ホストファミリーとうまく交流したり、日本人の友達を作るっていう刺激で勉強しました。アメリカに帰ったら何のために日本語を勉強しますか？どのように日本語を使えますか？今はこういうことを考えています。

日本に来る前、会話練習のウエブサイトをたくさん使って、SkypeやLINEで日本語を練習しました。今の私には、日本語を練習することよりも、自分の考えやアイディアを伝えることのほうが大切だと思っています。「日本語を練習したい」という気持ちだけではなく、日本語を使って何か意味があることをやりたいと思っています。例えば、英語を勉強している日本人にいろいろなアドバイスをあげたいと思います。あとは、日本についての感想や留学して考えたことを伝えたいと思います。こういうことが日本語でできれば嬉しいです。

留学が終わったら、このブログはどうになるかわかりません。これを読んでいる人は何かアドバイスがあったら、教えてください！

大好きな日本食！☆

日本の夏は死ぬほど暑いって聞いているけど、27度だけで電車が暑くて死にそう…

この前好きな日本食について投稿を書いたけど、好きなものはちょっと変わったので新しいバージョンを書きたいと思います！２つを書きます！

まずは善哉です〜☆

善哉（ぜんざい）は英語でなんて言うんだろう…？まあ、美味しさは小豆とお餅のおかげです！甘くて食べやすいです。善哉が嫌いの人もいるは少ないと思います！こんなに美味しくて誰でも食べられます！

善哉との出会いは島根県で食べたときです。小学校に行った時に、生徒達と一緒に給食を食べました。その日は給食に善哉が出てきました！給食で善哉が出ることは珍しいと聞いてたので、私はすごくラッキーです！やったー！

次は　♥♡♥♡♥〜　！肉まん！ 　〜♥♡♥♡♥　！！！

最近、天気は暑くなってきたけど、寒い日に肉まんより美味しいものはありません。コンビニで120円で買えます！買ったらすぐ食べてしまうと、あったかくて最高です。両手で持つことだけは気持ちいです。やっぱり寒いは肉を食べるしかないです。

これで以上です！

What is life…(＊.＊)

Can you believe the last time I wrote a blog post was almost a month ago!? This is crazy!

So much has happened since the last time I wrote. Classes started up again, so things got really busy all of a sudden as I ran around trying to figure out what classes to take. Niji and my host family have also been filling up all my extra time, so when I actually do I have free time I’ve just been vegging and decompressing from all the craziness.

I finally have my class schedule figured out. I’m taking 3 classes in linguistics and 4 Japanese classes. The Japanese classes this semester are actually pretty good compared to last semester, which is good because one of the classes is pretty hard and I need to stay motivated to study enough to get good grades. Of the linguistics classes, one is really good and the other two aren’t great, but I’m learning a thing or two. Also, right around the time of choosing Waseda classes was Earlham registration, so I threw together a mixed bag of classes for fall semester Senior year. Everything sounds good, so I guess in a way I’m looking forward to jumping back into Earlham life.

I only have THREE MONTHS LEFT IN JAPAN!

(whaaaaattttt???)

I didn’t realize the significance of that until I typed it just now. I mean, it feels like just yesterday I was saying I only have four months left. But three months left?? Three months is totally different from four months. I still haven’t bought my plane ticket back to America because I’m torn between staying in Japan a little longer after my program ends or going back to America. On the one hand, if I stay in Japan, because I don’t really have money to travel far or anything in particular I want to do, I might just get really home sick and regret not just going back. On the other hand, if I go back to America, I’ll have about 3 weeks of summer vacation, and that might be too long with nothing in particular to do, just sitting around and missing Japan. I’m just anxious to get back to Maggie and horseback riding…

Anyway I’ll try to update the blog more and keep writing in Japanese too :)

Sakura and Flower Viewing・桜、花見

The sakura trees (flowers?) are blooming now in Tokyo! There’s a whole culture around the sakura, which is all very interesting to me, someone from a country where we don’t really make such a big deal about natural events like this. People start getting hyped up about the sakura pretty far in advance, and on TV along with the weather report they’ll have a little display of the “sakura line,” which shows the line of sakura bloomage moving up the country from the south. I heard from my friend (haven’t looked it up myself yet so feel free to fact check me on this if you’re concerned about it), apparently there’s a specific sakura tree in the Imperial Palace, and when that tree has precisely 5 sakura flowers bloomed, it’s the official start of the sakura season (?) in Tokyo. The ideal day for “flower viewing” will be announced. This year is May 31st.

Flower viewing (hanami) is the practice of going to a place with sakura trees and, well, looking at them. Usually it involves getting there super early to get a good spot, a picnic, and alcohol, no matter how early it is. I’ve never been to one yet, but I have at least two planned for this week, one with my host family and one with Niji. Leave it to the Japanese to make looking at flowers into a drinking event!

The special thing about the sakura is that you can only see them bloom for about two weeks. It’s the ephemeral nature of them that the Japanese claim to like, although if you go to any park with sakura trees you’ll see hordes of people crowding around the trees to try to get that perfect picture that will last forever (and will probably look exactly the same as another photo they took the year before, and the year before that…). I’m guilty of taking such pictures, but I’m not Japanese.

Putting aside the humorous image of lots of people drinking and talking incessantly about the flowers, I actually think it’s a really cool thing that people acknowledge and appreciate nature by making an event out of it. I think in a lot of ways the Japanese are closer to nature than most Americans. I’ve already been out with my friend to see the flowers when they just started blooming and take pictures of them, but I’m excited to go to real flower viewing events and see what the big deal’s about.

What Shimane Taught Me

The things I have learned here in Shimane on my cultural practicum are things I think I will carry with me for the rest of my life. Having spent a month in Shimane, I feel like I am coming out of the experience a different person than I was when I went in. I feel a need to document the lessons I’ve learned here, and thus from here is my list of what Shimane taught me.

1. Japan ≠ Tokyo

I have only really experienced two parts of Japan: Tokyo and Unnan City, Shimane. After 5 months of living in Tokyo, I had pretty much decided I didn’t want to live in Japan. Of course I love it here, and I’m having to so much fun, but I thought I wouldn’t want to live here for any longer than one year at a time. Now, having lived here to Unnan City, I realize that I can’t construct an idea of “life in Japan” based on life in Tokyo. I can’t believe I’m leaving Unnan City, and all I want is to find a way to come back, not just to visit, but for a long time.

今まで長い間泊まっているところは東京と島根県の雲南市しかないです。日本に来てから東京で5ヶ月間ホームステイをしています。雲南市に来る前には日本に住みたくないと思っていました。東京での生活は楽しくて、本当に大好きなんですが、1年間以外東京に住むのは辛いなーって思ったんです。しかし、雲南市に来てから一ヶ月が経ちました。もうすぐ広島や京都、大阪で観光して、それから東京に帰ってしまいます。この一ヶ月間は早いと感じます。東京であと6ヶ月間ぐらいにいますが、今はどうやって雲南市に帰ることができるかなーっていうのように考えています。泊まるだけではなくて、本当に雲南市に住みたくなってしまいました。

2. Maybe my dream is possible.

Since I became interested in Japan, I’ve constantly been going back and forth in my mind between Japan and horses. Which do I make my career, which do I make my hobby. I didn’t think Japan and horses could be combined. However, after visiting a horse therapy place in Kisuki, I came to think, maybe I can combine the two things that make me happiest. The idea came to me—doing horses… in Japan. The more I think about this prospect the more appealing it is to me as a next step in my life, and I’m thinking about how I can make my dream a reality.

一番好きなことは馬と日本です。まあ、「好き」というのは…馬や日本は私にとって、なくてはならないもの…ということですね。馬がいない人生は人生じゃないっというように感じています。それから、日本語を勉強することが好きです。何時間勉強しても「つまらない」と思ったことはないです。日本での生活は楽しくて、人が優しくて、自分の人生に日本の考え方や文化のいいところを入れたいと思っています。でも、日本では乗馬が高いし、馬が飼える場所が少ないから、どのように馬と日本の両方をすればいいのか、をずっと考えていました。それから、雲南市にいる間に木次にあるホースセラピーの場所に行ってきました。その場所を管理する人と話し合う機会があって、日本で馬を飼うことや、乗馬をすることは、無理じゃないと思うようになってきました。今は日本で馬に関する仕事をするのはいいなーって思っています。

3. Japanese is my second language.

I never thought of myself as having two languages. I thought, English is my language, and Japanese is the language I’m learning. This, I think, led me to a way of thinking that maybe was at one point natural, but now threatens to impede my ability to acquire fluency in Japanese. Namely, the way of thinking that English = the stuff I understand, and Japanese = the stuff I don’t understand. The way of thinking that I must choose only one: understanding, or practicing/learning Japanese. And thereby also the way of thinking that Japanese is something to be practiced, rather than a means of doing other things. Here in Unnan City where most people cannot or will not speak English, I have been forced to get by with the Japanese I know, to handle any situation in Japanese, and to be OK with not getting everything right all the time.

今までは、「私の言語は英語です。私は日本語を勉強しています」っというように考えています。でも、日本語はどんどん私のsecond languageになっています。私は「英語＝理解」、「日本語＝わからないもの」と考えています。そういった考え方で、理解か日本語、一つしか選べません。考え方を変えたら、日本語を理解できるようになれると思います。

4. Some people just aren’t going to get it.

…and it’s not my job to make them. There will be people who don’t get why you’ve come to Japan in the first place. There will be people who don’t get why you are studying Japanese. There will be people who don’t get how a foreigner could possibly be able to speak Japanese, or how a foreigner could possibly be able to use chopsticks, or how a foreigner could possibly be able to appreciate Japanese culture. There will be people who laugh or stare at you, people who don’t know how to act around you. But the thing is, I’ve realized it’s not my job to make these people understand why I’m here. I don’t have to justify my interest in Japan or reason for learning Japanese. It’s not my job to teach people how to act around foreigners. It’s my responsibility to understand that some people aren’t going to get it, and to be okay with that, and let it go.

なぜ私が日本に来たのかわからない人はいます。なぜ私が日本語を勉強しているのかわからない人もいます。そして、外国人には日本語を話すことや、お箸を使うことや、日本の文化をわかることは、無理だと思っている人もいます。どのように外国人と話しかけるのかわからない人もいます。しかし、私が気づいたのは、そういう人に、私自身(?)を説明しなくていいです。わからない人がいても大丈夫です。

Japan Study Cultural Practicum in Unnan City, Shimane: My Advice

A lot of people in Japan Study will consider the cultural practicum in Unnan City, Shimane. Having done this practicum, I would like to compile a list of advice for people considering the practicum and those who have already chosen. People interested can also check out my other blog posts about and during the practicum to get an idea about what it’s like.

Things to consider before you choose this practicum:

• “countryside.” (田舎）This word will mean different things to different people, but note that in Unnan City there is a very accessible grocery store, drug store, and 3 convenience stores, if you need them.
• Kids – you will be playing, talking, and hanging out with kids most of the day.
• Food – you will mostly eat lunch with the kids. There is no choice in the school lunches and you’re expected to eat everything on the tray, especially when eating with the kids. Food allergies and religious beliefs seem to be an exception. If you really can’t eat something, it’s okay to leave it.
• Host family – your host family might not have internet in the house. Also, because there’s not much to do in town with friends, you’ll probably spend most of your free time with your host family. They might expect you to participate in family activities and day trips to places.
• Weather – it’s very cold and usually cloudy. Lots of rain and snow.

Packing recommendations

• Thumb drive/USB. You will be expected to do a lot of presentations for classes and it’s easy to just bring a thumb drive around and use the same presentation for multiple classes.
• Indoor shoes. You need to switch shoes when you go into the school.
• Cold medicine. Your host family might have stuff or be able to bring you to the drug store, but it’s nice to have your own medicine ready whenever you need it.
• Warm comfy clothes. People don’t really dress up here. I messed up and brought 2 nice sweaters that aren’t very warm, and I never wear them because no one cares how you look and I just want to be warm. I wish I had used that space for other warm comfy clothes because now I have like four shirts and two sweatshirts which isn’t really enough. Clothes may take 3 days to dry, as it rains a lot and you often can’t dry them outside. Keep this in mind when deciding how much clothes to pack.
• Money. The information I received when I chose this practicum recommended having about $100 (一万円）. I actually would recommend having at least $200. There are times when you will have to buy your own lunch, events you want to go to, places you have to pay to enter, and souvenirs for your family. I also couldn’t buy my bus ticket to Hiroshima until I got there, so I used money for that too. I can only withdraw money at a 7-11 which they apparently don’t have in Shimane. To be safe, bring at least $200 in cash.

Advice for during the practicum

• Get your greetings (挨拶) down solid. You will use ありがとうございます、お世話になります、and よろしくお願いします at least once a day every day. Know when to bow, too, and maybe some etiquette for entering and exiting offices, work places, etc. This is really important and just generally a good way to smooth things over in a new situation.
• If you mention wanting to do something or go somewhere to your host family, they will probably try to make it happen for you. This can be a good thing, if you have some event you want to go to and need a ride, but you also need to be careful because you might mention something inadvertently and accidentally cause them trouble without meaning it. For example, with my host family I was talking about horses, just to make conversation, and my host dad asked me if I wished I could ride in Japan, and I said yes, and the next day he told me he’d talk to some people he knows and see if he can get me to a place to ride a horse. I felt like I had put him out without even meaning to. My host mom also asked me what kinds of snacks I liked, and the next day she had bought one of the snacks for me and left it on the table. It was really sweet, but I didn’t want her to think I was trying to ask for it… but there’s not really anything you can say. Anyway just be careful with that.
• I brought omiyage for my host family to give to them on the first night, but I don’t think they actually cared that much about it. So don’t spend any crazy money on your omiyage. I think they might like some simple thing that represents you as a person!
• Be careful with drinking parties. You will inevitably be invited to at least one welcome party at which alcohol will be present. If you aren’t careful, it’s very easy to over-drink. If you haven’t experienced much of Japanese drinking culture, please read this. It’s part of the culture to fill up other people’s glasses with alcohol. Filling someone’s glass shows politeness and respect towards that person. Nobody will expect you to fill other people’s glasses, but you will definitely get people trying to fill yours. People might even offer you alcohol when your glass is full, in which case you are expected to drink some and let them fill it and drink again. Because of this, it’s very easy to start accepting alcohol from people and continue to drink more and more as people fill your cup again and again, and it becomes impossible to gauge how much you’ve actually drank. So, my advice is don’t be afraid to politely refuse drinks. Keep your glass full and drink very slowly. Tell people you’ve already had too much. Tell them you don’t really care for the taste. Or, just say you don’t drink and skip the whole process all together.
• A lot of places only have Japanese toilets. In Tokyo, it’s easy to avoid using Japanese toilets because most places have at least one Western toilet, but here it’s pretty hard to find them. So, mentally prepare yourself for that, I guess.
• Remember that wherever you go, you are a representative of your country, your school in America, Waseda, and the Japan Study program. Whether it’s right or not, your actions will be associated with those places/programs you are associated with.