Before boarding in the line, a guy asked me if I was an exchange student and I said I was, and it turned out he was too! He was sitting a few seats in front of me during the flight and we caught up after the flight to talk more about our exchange. I was still feeling sick, so I'm glad I could talk to someone rather than being by myself.
Stepping off the plane felt amazing. It was humid, bright, and not normally the weather I would want to be in when feeling like that, but I felt so much energy trying to bust through the cramps. Everything was clean and beautiful like I expected, and we took a train to get to registration. However, getting through regulations to pick up our registration cards took forever. BUT, in that line again I met another exchange student and this one was actually going to my University! He is from Belgium and we both had a little panic together because we ended up being really late for our pick up time and thought we had missed it. Thankfully, that didn't happen. We stepped out through customs which was a breeze (totally unexpectedly), and were greeted by a sign that said "Welcome to Kansai" and I knew I really felt everything start to sink in. The pink airport, the vending machines and unfamiliar signs were all just little things I tried really hard to memorise - I never want to forget today.
Once we made it to the North side of the airport, a woman holding a sign saying "Kansai University" ran up to us and yelled our countries at us to make sure it was us. We were so grateful we had made the pick up, and to our surprise there were 20 something other students also there to be picked up. Then, to my displeasure there was travelling. We had to catch a bus, then a train and then walk for '15 minutes' (but that's questionable to the very least). That's how the travel time ended up being over 30 hours in total.
The walk to our dorm was suddenly beautiful when myself, and a few others with multiple bags were struggling, decided to go at our own pace instead of trying to keep up with the group. There were many hills and lots of pebbles and escalators. I think I must have lost 4kg on that walk alone! It was so nice. An old man just came up to us and offered to help and it was so nice. When we declined, he just walked with us and showed us the way to our dorm.
I was really excited to finally arrive at the dorm - although extremely sweaty by then. All I wanted to do was get into my room and settle in. We had a short tour of our floor and I think I honestly have the best room. It's very close to the toilet, washroom and the elevator which I prefer over being close to the kitchen and showers. I'm on the 3rd floor so I also have a really nice view of the greenery. There's a little bit of roofing in the way, but I don't mind. I love my room so much (especially now that I finally have Wifi).
For me, the highlight was definitely getting dinner with other exchange students and residents of the dormitory. I was feeling somewhat better because I accidentally fell asleep for 5 hours, so I went downstairs to look for Amy. When I couldn't find her I just started wandering around and bumped into some other students and they invited me to ramen and of course I accepted. Eventually a whole bunch of us went, including Amy! Never in my life have I felt such happiness from a meal! It was cheap but also you could get as many refills of noodles as you wanted for free. I got thick noodles and a second refill because I was hungry. Everyone was smiling and talking in Japanese. I feel really encouraged to learn. But, really I just feel good. We all stayed up and talked in the common area and I'm staying up to write this because I'm excited to have some time to myself. I hope the rest of the year is as good as this first day. There's so much I need to do still!
Tomorrow: Registering at the Government office and Welcome Party!
♪(๑ᴖ◡ᴖ๑)♪
You will never forget the feeling of that first time stepping into a new country by yourself. It bought tears to my eyes reading your post, as I remembered my first time.......almost surreal......but it is real and you are living the dream.......now your reality! Congratulations!
ReplyDeleteHi, I will going to Kansai University for exchange as well. Can I ask if you got any phone line/contract/SIM card during your exchange period over there?
ReplyDeleteHello! I'm so happy for you. :) We all paid for a sim card during one of the orientation days. I recommend using the one they give you and having money prepared for it. You pay for the entire year. We only paid for data though - no calling or anything. It's a great plan I think - no one calls/messages in Japan really so you don't need it. But, up to you what you do. It's pretty straightforward :) Good luck!
DeleteDo you remember which mobile operator it was from? And approximately how much did you pay for it?? Because i was thinking of getting it at the airport instead.
DeleteFrom memory I think it was sunnet and also about 16 dollars a month for like 4 gig? You don't need more data than that cause you never run out of data. It's a special student plan. I recommend going the same as everyone else cause most people who went elsewhere ran into lots of problems. I imagine the airport would be much more expensive.
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