26/5/25 - 8/6/25 Weeks 11 & 12 in Japan

Another two weeks have passed and it’s crazy to think that I’ve been in Japan for 12 weeks now!! The time has absolutely flown by and just seems to be getting quicker and quicker The fact that I’ve nearly been here 3 months is absurd. Work is still going smoothly and I’m still enjoying every day, but as the weather gets warmer, the days are becoming much more of a sweaty mess!

As I walked into the staff locker room one day to grab some cooling body wipes, I switched on the light and immediately jumped out of my skin as I saw a Japanese Huntsman spider on the wall!!! It was MASSIVE and absolutely terrifying. It was probably about the size of my palm and I definitely didn’t go back into the locker room for about 5 days after that.

The last two weeks have seen most of my school head out on various school trips and one of my JTEs brought my back a little cat purse as a souvenir from Ueno in Tokyo! It was so lovely of her and made me very happy, it’ll definitely be something I treasure. I also got given a bag of treats from the Vice Principal too, so it’s been a week of gifts!!

The Saturday of week 11 was very rainy and wet, so Chloe, Joey, Luke, Jesus, and I headed to a local 24 hour internet cafe and spent the afternoon playing Darts! The place was really awesome and you can get unlimited coffee, soda, and ice cream so we were basically in heaven. The internet cafe had darts, karaoke, poole, a manga library, and loads of massage chairs: you can basically stay there forever and that’s pretty much what they’re made for! Playing darts was great fun and we ended the day at Saizeriya, a super cheap Italian restaurant where food is about 300¥!!

On Sunday, we went to a BBQ at a local American School for English run by an American man called Case and his wife. It was a chance to meet some other ALTs in the area and it was a lot of fun! Their house was gorgeous and the other ALTs were lovely and friendly. It was great to meet some more people in the local area, share teaching stories, and also play with Case’s two young daughters!! It was a lovely afternoon and evening.

Everyday is an adventure here in Japan and even on a short walk around Mobara, Chloe and I find new things every time. This week we found a temple in the hills surrounding Mobara Park and it was a wonderful experience. My camera roll is getting way too full as I take photos of everything I see!! Everyday is full of magic.

I had a funny but amazing experience on Friday when I went for a run around the area. I was about a mile away from home when I passed an old Japanese lady and after I said hello, she started running with me! In her flip flops and socks, while holding a TV remote, she jogged with me for about half a mile while talking to me the whole way! I couldn’t really understand what she was saying but I think she was telling me about her son and an injury she had had recently but it was amazing that she could jog at all! Eventually I had to leave her behind but she was so thankful that I spent time with her and it is definitely a funny experience that I won’t ever forget!!

It’s been a busy weekend (week 12)! Chloe and I headed into Tokyo for Pride weekend on Saturday with some friends and had such a fun time wandering around Yoyogi Park visiting all of the Pride stalls. It was really busy and such a hot day but it felt amazing to be in area so full of pride! Japan isn’t the best for LGBTQ+ diversity so it felt really special to be part of the Pride scene for that day.

After Pride, Chloe and I wandered around Harajuku and explored a local Temple “Meiji Jingu”. We came across it by accident but beautiful building nestled in a dense, green forest meant for a lovely experience. We also saw a small display of some extremely old Bonsai trees and saw another Japanese Huntsman spider!!

Exploring Harajuku was also a lot of fun and we ended up down a little side road full of quirky, vintage shops and various animal cafes: micro pig ones, meerkat ones, dog ones, AND otters!!! It was a great glimpse into the quirky side of Tokyo.

June is Hydrangea blooming season in Japan and so Chloe and I headed to a local Hydrangea farm (Hattori House) in Mobara and it was breathtaking. The flowers were vibrant and beautiful. We wandered up through a forest and back down into a sea of blues, pinks, and purples. Hydrangea season is very popular in Japan and so Chloe and I are very happy we got to see a glimpse of the beautiful flowers in such a lovely place.

It’s been a busy two weeks: now onto the next.