Well, I made it! I got to Japan yesterday afternoon (Japan time) and my Japanese friend, Yumi, met me at Narita airport. From there, we took a bus to Tokyo, which is about 40 minutes away. However, with the crazy Tokyo traffic, it took us almost 3 hours to get to our final destination. The traffic here reminds me a little bit of traffic of Rio, except that the drivers drive on the other side of the car and the road.
Its hot and very humid here, so the AC is always on. Ive been trying to get used to the Japanese ways, but I figured it will take me a while until I do. On the first day, right before I got into the house, I was reminded to take off my shoes and clean the bottom of my luggage before I enter the house. Also, I learned that there are certain things that everyone shares, and others that everyone has to have their own, like a bathroom rug, for example. My room is old Japanese style, with the rice mats on the floor, and sort of a paper window and my matress is on the floor, as well. Loved it!
The hardest thing so far is not communicating, but trying to stay awake. There is a 13-hour difference between the U.S. and here, so naps are always welcome. :) However, communication is also an `issue`. Yumis family is very nice and they try to make an effort to communicate with me. Ive been learning some Japanese words and phrases, but it is still not the greatest.
We went out to Yumis cousins house this afternoon where I met part of her moms side of the family. Her grandpa used to be an English teacher in high school, but he taught mostly phrases, so he isnt able to carry a conversation for very long. He kept trying to tell me that the English grammar is very structural, with the subject and verb and then something else, and that the japanese grammar is not always like that. He tried to explain that to me three times, even though I had understood it the first time. ha! He became my buddy after that. :) During this visit, I also had the opportunity to eat the REAL Japanese sushi (Jason, please dont get jealous!) and it was really good! Ive been getting some practice with the hashi (chopsticks) by eating rice, noodles and fried chicken with it. ha!
Sorry I havent had a lot of time to take some pictures (since Ive been sleeping so much...) but I will take some more soon. This one I took today during lunch. Yum! Now its almost time for bed, so Ill post some more tomorrow!
Cheguei! eu cheguei aqui no Japao ontem a tarde (aqui) e a minha amiga japonesa, Yumi, estava me esperando no aeroporto de Narita. La, nos pegamos um onibus para Toquio, que normalmente toma so 40 minutos. Mas, com o transito daqui, demorou quase 3 horas. O transito aqui me lembra do Rio, mas aqui os motoristas dirigem no lado direito, e do outro lado da rua. Aqui e quente e muito umido, entao o ar-condicionado esta sempre ligado. Eu estou tentando me acostumar aos costumes japoneses, mas eu sei que vai levar um tempo ate que eu me acostume mesmo. No primeiro dia aqui, antes de entrar na casa, eles me lembraram de tirar meus sapatos e limpar as rodas da minha mala antes de eu pisar em casa. Tambem estou aprendendo que tem certas coisas que todo mundo usa, e outras que voce tem que ter um somente pra voce, como um tapete de banho, por exemplo. Todo mundo usa o mesmo chuveiro para tomar banho, mas cada um tem o seu tapete.. Meu quarto e no estilo antigo japones, com as `esteiras` de arroz no chao, e a janela tipo de papel de seda, e com meu colchao o chao. Adorei!
A coisa mais dificil ate agora nao tem sido me comunicar, mas sim tentar ficar acordada. Sao 13 horas de diferenca dos Estados Unidos pra ca, entao sempre tenho que tirar um cochilo. Mas tambem, tentar me comunicar e um `problema`. Eu aprendi algumas palavras e frases em portugues, mas meu japones ainda ta fraco.
Nos fomos a casa dos primos da Yumi essa tarde e eu conheci uma parte da familia dela. O avo dela ensinou ingles para estudantes do ensino medio, mas ele ensinava frases, entao ele nao consegue ter uma conversa longa em ingles. Ele estava me explicando 3 vezes que a gramatica do ingles e uma so, e que o japones e uma mistura, mesmo sendo que eu tinha entendido da primeira vez que ele falou. ha! Ele era aquele japones velhinho e engracadinho, sabe? aiai. Durante a visita, eu tambem comi o VERDADEIRO sushi japones and estava muito bom. Eu tenho praticado minhas abilidades com o hashi.. ja tive que comer arroz, macarrao e frango com eles.
Eu nao tenho tido muito tempo de tirar fotos (ja que eu tenho dormido tanto...) mas eu vou tirar mais quando eu puder. Essa foto eu tirei hoje durante o almoco. Hum! Agora e quase a hora de ir dormir, entao eu vou postar mais amanha!
0 comments:
Post a Comment