15/03/2025 - 23/03/2025 Week One in Japan

To say that the first week in Japan has been a whirlwind would be a massive understatement; from twelve hour training days to communicating in broken Japanese, it has definitely been an intense week. More importantly though, it has been amazing.

The journey began on Saturday 15th March when I left my home and travelled to Heathrow airport for a teary-eyed goodbye and the first of two flights that would take me and Chloe to Tokyo Narita airport. The first flight from Heathrow to Hong Kong took a whopping 12 hours and for my first long-haul flight, I thought it went very smoothly. My plan of reading multiple books failed miserably when I saw the collection of in-flight movies and instead I spent the time watching films and attempting (but failing) to sleep. Bleary eyed, we disembarked the plane at Hong Kong and spent the hour layover time attempting to look semi-human while realising that we wouldn't be travelling back to the UK for at least a year. I think it was finally starting to hit me what a big change this was. Hong Kong airport was very clean and swanky but the best part was that their check-in system used facial recognition - after a 12 hour flight, this blew my mind.

The second flight from Hong Kong to Narita was only 4 hours but the tiredness from travelling was settling in and so I was getting pretty desperate to finally touch down on solid ground. Seeing the 'Welcome to Japan' sign and pokemon images on the wall as we entered Narita airport was extremely exciting but I would be lying if I said I wasn't delirious from tiredness; we were desperate to get through customs and get to the hotel.

Finally, after nearly 24 hours of travelling, I arrived at the hotel and met the people from interac (the company I am working with). Everyone was extremely friendly, and the hotel was full of people working for the same company: there were ALT's everywhere! Looking around, I couldn't help but wonder whether these people would soon become some of my close friends. The evening was a blur of jet lag delirium and getting lost in the hotel, but at last, Chloe and I headed to bed, preparing ourselves for the first day of training the next day.

Monday 17th consisted of ALT training for over twelve hours. It was a lot of information about the company, what teaching would entail, a drug test, and a chest x-ray. I was fighting the jet-lag. But, during training, I was able to meet lots of new people who are living in the same prefecture as us, including Joey (an American who will be down south in Tateyama) and Louise (an Australian who is in the same city as us!). It was a long day and by the time, training finished, Chloe and I had just enough energy to grab some noodles from Lawsons (a konbini) and flop into bed.

Tuesday 18th was moving day! It was an early start before travelling to Chiba city where Chloe, Louise, and I hopped in a car and headed down to Mobara to move into our new apartments. I started off the day with excitement but that shortly turned into culture shock when we had to go and register at the city hall. Being surrounded by a language I didn't understand and having to attempt to communicate through broken words and Google translate was a stressful, tiring experience and it was at that point that I decided I needed to learn Japanese quickly!! After registering at the city hall, Chloe and I headed back to our (surprisingly spacious) apartment to find our new beds: a futon. I did not know that a futon was basically a thin mat on the floor and the first night was an uncomfortable experience, but a week later and I'm now loving it.

Wednesday 19th was a day off from training/admin and so Chloe, Louise, and I headed to the shops to buy many, many things for our apartments. It was a productive, exciting day and it finished off with Joey travelling up Mobara to stay with Chloe and I for the rest of the training period. We grabbed some delicious food in the cafe next to our apartment to finish off the rest day.

Thursday 20th and Friday 21st consisted of commuting into Chiba before ALT training. This was two days of lots of information and learning how to actually teach a class; it was all very interesting but definitely a lot of new things to learn! On Friday evening, Chloe, Joey, and I took the hour and a half drive down to Tateyama so that Joey could pick up some clothes. Seeing signs for wild monkeys on the journey and coming across a wild Japanese Boar crossing the road was wild. We got back to Mobara at about midnight in fits of laughter.

It was an early start on Saturday 22nd so that Joey, Chloe, Louise, and I could head into Tokyo! The journey was about an hour and a half and it was super easy, taking us straight into Shibuya where we crossed the scramble crossing! There were so many people there but it was super cool. We spent the day shopping around Shibuya, Harajuku, and Akihabara, visiting the Nintendo shop, Snoopy Town, and gachapon machines! Tokyo is so cool but it is MASSIVE - there are people, billboards, and signs everywhere as well as quieter, more traditional streets. I'm definitely happy that I am close to Tokyo so that I can visit multiple times to make sure I see everything! All in all, it was a great day finally seeing the city I have read so much about.

Sunday 23rd brings me to today! It has been a relaxing day of unpacking, grabbing some essential bits for the apartment and walking around Mobara Park. It is a beautiful place and I can't wait for the Sakura to blossom in the next week.

So that's a very quick run down of week one in Japan! So far, I'm loving the food, the sights, but mostly the konbini. See you next week :)