人気ブログランキング | 話題のタグを見る

Remembrance of My First Day   

My first day in Japan was not the best. When I arrived at Tokyo Narita Airport, I was feverish and dehydrated, toting around two large and incredibly heavy suitcases (one of which broke American regulations for carry-on weight). I had not eaten or drunk anything for the past 21 or so hours, due to a cruel combination of motion sickness and nerves. In Seattle, Washington, where I had a layover of approximately 8 hours before catching the next flight to Japan, I had managed to catch only a few hours of sleep in a booth at an airport café. My departure from Alaska took place around 1 AM, so I was already exhausted when my plane landed in Washington, and by the time I reached Japan, I felt as though I were on the verge of death.

It was raining when my plane landed in Tokyo, and I felt that the weather matched my mood perfectly. Somehow, despite my rapidly blurring vision and shaky limbs, I managed to figure out the bus system just in time to catch the next bus going to Tokyo Haneda Airport. It was at Tokyo Haneda Airport that I made my first Japanese friend. A very kind young man who worked at the airport noticed me standing around looking confused and frustrated, and he guided me through everything with the patience of a saint, even checking my papers himself so that I would not have to stand in line. The kindness of this stranger made me feel a lot better about being in a foreign country; his actions reflected well upon the Japanese community.

When I reached Chitose Airport in Hokkaido, I checked into my reserved hotel room and barely managed to post a notification on Facebook for my family– “I’m safe. Going to sleep now”– before crashing into bed and entering a deep and much-needed sleep. The next morning, I had my first Japanese breakfast and was met by my support student. During my second day in Japan, the weather was mostly clear, but it began to rain again later that night, and I realized with no small amount of horror that I would need to invest in an umbrella.

Nicole Wells (United States)

by chitchatcafe | 2011-03-01 15:27 | カフェ 英会話 札幌

<< Where does the ... February >>