When I look at those pics in the archives from July 2004, that I posted in the makeshift computer room at the Keio Plaza hotel during Tokyo Orientation, it seems so long ago. I was so un-jaded and the coming year seemed to hold so much promise and so many endless possibilities. Sigh.
Last July I made a list of JET goals in my diary. (10 diaries back. I had a lot of idle time and idle thoughts this year.) I took that diary home to NY in April, but I'll try to recall the goals here and see what I fulfilled:
1) Travel - I had a list of places I wanted to go to and managed to do most of them, which is very good, considering I only stayed for 1 year. I went to Shikoku, Thailand, Hong Kong, Kurashiki, Matsue, Vietnam, the snow festival in Hokkaido, Shanghai, Korea, Okinawa, and of course random places around Kyushu. There are still many places within Japan, and in the rest of Asia, that I want to see, but I'm sure I'll return to Asia. Maybe with friends or family to share it with. I still love solo travel, but too much of it can definitely get lonely as I learned this year, and there is something to be said for having a companion. I'm proud of myself for doing most of those places on my own this year. Sometimes I look back at things I did, like get myself around Bangkok all by myself, I think, "how did I do that?"
Thailand was my best trip overall I think. It had everything - amazing temples (in Bangkok and Ayuthaya), palaces, museums (esp. Jim Thompson's house), beautiful beaches, shopping, fabulous Thai massages and food (in particular the pad see eew at Jim Thompson's and the mango sticky rice at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel - so goood).
Shanghai is probably 2nd - incredible architecture, great chinese art museum, good food, and cheap shopping.
Hong Kong gets an honorable mention for its skyline and shopping.
And Vietnam wins for the best food. In Hanoi my mom and I ate at top restaurants every night (which in Vietnam only cost about $20). And the buffet breakfast at our hotel in Hanoi was amazing - French bread/cheese, Vietnamese pho noodle soup (mmm, cilantro..), tropical fruit that I'd never seen before in my life, etc..
Oh and Vietnam had GREAT shopping too.
And within Japan, I had a really good time in Kyoto during cherry blossom season (thanks for a great trip, Laura!) and my Shikoku/Inland Sea trip last August.
2) Improve my Japanese - HA! I pretty much gave up on the idea of ever being close to fluent in Japanese. It's just too hard. And why do I even need to be fluent in Japanese to live in NY? I don't! For so long I was obsessed with this goal of studying Japanese and I didn't even stop to think about why or what I was actually going to use it for. I know enough to get by traveling and making small talk and I'm satisfied with that.
Also, since I haven't taken a formal class in 2 years, all the grammar has fallen out of my head, so I probably sound like an idiot when I actually do try to speak.
But my listening skills have improved and I've picked up some new words. I've also practiced reading in Japanese a lot this year. I've made good use of the Takeo public library and have read (or read some of) the following books in Japanese: Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Charlotte's Web, Matilda, Bambi, A Child Called It, and Peter Pan.
3) Make Japanese friends - this one didn't really work out as I planned. I had a few casual friends who I'd e-mail with and meet up with once in a while. But it's just not the same as friendships back home. As a foreigner, it's very hard to feel accepted and treated as a real person. The Japanese tend to hold foreigners at a distance, and even though they're very polite and welcoming, they never let them in. Which is so frustrating! Not to mention language barriers, cultural differences and the fact that Japanese people work way too much and never seem to have free time. Plus there are so few young people around in my town, compared to big cities. It's a lost cause.
4) Date Japanese men - this one also didn't work out too well. For a lot of the same reasons. But I tried really hard! Which was also frustrating. I miss men who make the first move! I had a random date in November, a very brief fling with Takashi the bartender, kissed that boy Hiroki in Kyoto, dated Katsuya, who eventually disappeared on me with no warning, and lately other random encounters that don't even qualify as dates. But definitely nothing that even comes close to an ACTUAL relationship. Which is maybe a good thing, cause it means I can leave Japan with no messy breakup at the end. And I've satisfied my curiosity and have come to the conclusion that dating Japanese men is frustrating and not worth it. Oh, and this also goes hand in hand with the language thing - One major reason I had in the beginning for wanting to date Japanese men was the invaluable language practice and cultural experience. But eventually I decided that I didn't really care about improving my Japanese or delving deeper into the culture, so Japanese men were just there to pass the time and ease the loneliness until I could return home where there are REAL men, whom I can have REAL relationships with.
5) Save money - This was my first real job and it pays pretty well, so I managed to save a good amount. Traveling was my biggest expense, and I did a lot of it, (and shopped a lot on most trips) but other than that, my rent was practically nothing and when I was around town I spent almost no money. Cause there's nothing to do! haha.
I think there was also something cheesy in there about wanting to "make a difference in my students' English education". Um...yeah, I gave up on that one after about a week of working at my school where they use JETs as human tape recorders/notebook stampers.
Some things I accomplished that were not on the list were: lived alone in my own apt, swam in the Inland Sea, went to a Japanese baseball game, used a rice-cooker, owned a cat, went to Tokyo Disneyland (sort of..) did cherry-blossom viewing properly (in Kyoto), bathed in a green tea onsen, went on a shopping spree in Tokyo's Shibuya 109 building (the mecca of Japanese youth fashion), made a tea bowl on a pottery wheel, went to acupuncture, tried taiko drumming, learned to knit, took tea ceremony lessons, reread all the Harry Potter books (in English), completed about a dozen puzzles.
One major goal that I have yet to achieve is to go to a love hotel !! So my new plan is to someday return to Japan with my future boyfriend/husband and make the love hotel rounds in Tokyo and/or Osaka. woohoo!
Oh, and I never climbed Mt Fuji. But I don't think I really care about doing that. Maybe someday.
