It's that time of year already?!

I can't believe that on Monday I would've been in Japan for a year. How fast has the time gone?

It's only now that I'm renovating my apartment with my friends that are leaving's stuff that it's dawned on me.

It has gone fast but at the same time it does feel like I have been here for a long time. But I guess that's just normal.

Although it's safe to say that I am so not ready to say goodbye to some people. Some people I think I would do anything for them to stay here with me. Only because I'm scared of what their leaving means for our future relationships.

I always knew that one of these people would be leaving....but as for the other....that's just come as a massive blow that seems to be impossible to deal with. And there remains an air of uncertainty about how the future of that relationship is going to work out.

But one can only hope that it does.

Summer Fatigue

It is so hot right now that after work all I wanna do is sleep.

I'm also finding that this hot weather is making me extremely irritable and unreasonable. Getting angry at small things, shouting at people for things that I shouldn't be and then not even apologising....

I dunno.

Just need it to cool down!!

Load of rubbish

It's such a pain dealing with rubbish here. All I wanna do is dump a bed and a sofa. Simple right?

Hell no!! So I have to get a sticker, call a number, and then shove the stuff outside my apartment and wait for someone to come and pick it up.

How the hell am I supposed to get a bed and a sofa down the stairs by myself?! Well, that was my first thought. And then I proceeded to get pissed off at the fact that i have to BUY a damn sticker!! How ridiculous is that?!

I get so ARRRRGGGHHHH with the way this country does things sometimes!! Always making things way more complicated than they are.

Rediscovering childhood

You know what I have loved most about being a primary school teacher? Making flashcards.

And you know why? Because I love colouring in.

I loved colouring books as a child. And when I got here I got to use big waxy crayons all over again. Colouring in big pictures in block colour. I got a certain satisfaction from it because everything I made looked so good afterwards.

i still get excited when I see big waxy crayons in shops. I always want to buy some. Yesterday when I was shopping I noticed that Crayola had brought out twistable crayons. Crayons that you don't have to peel or sharpen. Unable to resist I bought some! I did manage to refrain from buying the 24 pack though and settled for the 8 pack.

Now all I need is something to colour in!

xx

Absent friends

It's a really sad thing when someone gets to that best friend status and then leaves.

You've invested so much time into that person and then out of the blue they announce they're leaving. Even when the departure date has been known for a long time, it doesn't make it any easier.

You then get to that stage where you think 'Who am I going to do so and so with now?'

And then you start mentally going through the rest of your friends for replacements.

Is that bad?

Because it means that whoever you choose to spend your time with after your Best Friend has gone is simply second best. If your best friend was still here you wouldn't be doing that thing with that person.

A part of me thinks that in a way that's kinda insulting to the replacement. But at the same time I guess it's completely inevitable...

...and i'm preparing my replacements now!

xx

Countryside lover

The more and more time I spend here, the more I'm loving the countryside.

Maybe I wouldn't feel the same if the beach wasn't 20-30mins away....

...but before when I was here, surrounded by mountains and rivers, I used to think 'God, I wish I was in Tokyo'.

But then every time I go there I only enjoy myself for a short amount of time. Mainly because I DETEST public transport there!

People say that Japanese people are perhaps the politest people on Earth. They sure as hell aren't in Tokyo! Take the rush hour train. Back home when it's blatant that you can't physically get on the train, you simply wait for the next one. Not in Tokyo. People stand in front of the door and then ram everyone backwards with their arses and elbows until they're on the train. Getting a seat is probably worse and you are inevitably going to have someone's groin rammed into your face.

Makes the tube seem so much more bearable...even if there is no air con. Even in Hong Kong people waited if it was so obvious that there was no room for more people to get on. They didn't barge their way into a full carriage. Although the whole concept of 'let the passengers off first' doesn't seem to exist in any Asian country.

I was on the beach on Saturday and it was so beautiful it made me realise it really isn't that bad living where I do.

Sometimes.......

Books

Normally I wouldn't buy a load of books back home. Just because they're so expensive.

But that doesn't seem to stop me here. It started in Hong Kong when I found this mammoth bookshop with EVERYTHING in English. I bought like 4 books.

Then yesterday I was shopping in Fukuoka and actually found a bookshop that had English books that weren't just Penguin classics and bought 3 more. At about £7 a go. Something that would never happen back home.

I drew the line at paying 7quid for a magazine in English though!

I love Hong Kong

I had an amazing weekend in Hong Kong.

And not only because everyone spoke English or the amazing shopping!

I felt so at home there. Hong Kong has only been part of China for 11 years so the British influence runs deep.

The skyline took my breath away, no matter how many times I looked at it. The food made my mouth water. We stayed away from the mainstream big restaurants and opted for the 'dirty' street food instead. And it was stunning. Japanese food is so bland in comparison.

I was so sad to leave. I'm actually finding it a bit......hard being back in Japan now after being there and having such an amazing time. I've now decided to do a stint livign there before finally coming back to England. I'm thinking a year depending on the kind of work I can get there. Which definitely WON'T be teaching - everyone speaks good enough English already! Plus I don't want to teach after I leave here......

I miss it already!

xx