Valley of the Hobbit and the Journey to Hokkaido

After four months of studying Japanese at AIU, I have finally arrived at Sapporo, Hokkaido with my Japanese relatives. I rode a ferry from Akita to Hokkaido, and it was not as bad as I expected. The boat shifted occasionally while moving across the water, but I did not feel seasick. The ferry was called the Shin Nihonkai, and for a ticket that cost 3500 yen it was well worth the admission. Here are pictures and the link for the both the English and Japanese website of the Shin Nihonkai.

This was the boat I rode from Tomakokai to Sapporo

Bicycle for Akita

Today I bought a new bicycle at the AEON mall near Akita International University (AIU). I bought it at 4pm and got lost for three hours trying to figure out how to get to AIU before returning to AEON mall. I almost did not buy it today because I do have a cell phone yet, and I did not know my apartment's address until I asked my friend who bought a smartphone.

I tried to return to AIU using the same route as the bus, but I found out that route is for cars only. In addition I tried to ask the locals how to get to Akita International University in Japanese, but I got lost or I could not understand everything they were saying. While biking I saw a wild animal, almost got ran over at a crosswalk, and rode at a road that prohibited bicyclists but I was unable to notice due to my limited Japanese.

I felt really stupid for buying a bicycle at AEON mall when I returned to the mall. I thought I had to ask one of my friends to pick up my bicycle for me tomorrow morning or beg a taxi driver to drive my bicycle and myself to AIU. Luckily I ran into couple students from the university while walking around the mall. One of the students knew how to get from AEON to AIU by bicycle so he rode my bicycle to Akita International University for me.

First Week of School

Today I just finished my first week of school. I am taking Finance, Japanese, and International Business and have classes on only Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. Although I would take at least 15 credits back home, at Japan I want to take the minimum amount of credits so I can explore Akita my first semester here. In addition, a maximum of two business classes will transfer to my home university so taking a lot of credits here may not be the wisest option.

All of my classes are in English except for Japanese. In addition, most of my classes have international students instead of Japanese students. Practicing Japanese at this school is tricky because everyone here speaks English but the Japanese students here are willing to help practice their Japanese with you if you help them with English.

Compared to America, the books are pretty cheap. The books at Akita cost about $50 each whereas an American textbook costs about $100 each.

First Week at AIU

It has been one week since I have arrived. I like AIU and life in Japan but occasionally I find myself thinking about Hawaii. I miss the people, friends, family, and my dog but I am also happy with what I have here. Staying at AIU has been a very meaningful experience so far and after talking to people from other countries, I am slowly starting to appreciate life in Hawaii. I still want to move even though it is hard to find a job anywhere.

My loyal sidekick

I do not think I am homesick yet but I think I may experience it latter. I was talking to another exchange student that has been year for almost a year and it seems like it is best to take my time when developing new relationships with people here.

First Post in Japan

I have finally made it to Japan. The last few days have been pretty busy so I was unable to post anything. The university is pretty nice, and I am happy to be here. I like how this university is smaller compared to the University of Hawaii at Manoa. In addition, both the Japanese and international students are friendly, and I have learned a lot of interesting facts about the other states in the United States, Japan, and other countries.