Thursday, January 31, 2008

Next stop...


afternoon train
Originally uploaded by anyram
and it's off to a new blog...
Click your heels together three times, then click your mouse and follow the link.

Tuesday, January 08, 2008

six months on...

First things first.

Happy new year to everyone. It's the year of the rat, so happy nibbling on things and scurrying about.


Seeing as I don't live in Japan anymore, it seems a bit strange to be posting to a blog about my Japanese life. But due to popular demand (reported by telephone via a third party -- people, this is the internets! Popular demand is supposed to come via witty comments direct to the blog! Or at least an email!), I've decided to come back to ye olde blog, end my Japanese adventures and move on to more recent developments. Like how I've forgotten all the Japanese I ever learned. It's hard to keep up on it when you're busy re-learning another language. Especially without anyone to practice with. It's a lot easier to practice French here in French-speaking Canada. There are barely any English-speakers here, let alone nihongo speakers!
It's strange to think that six months ago, I was saying goodbye to my friends in Japan and my life there. Some days, it feels a million billion light years away. Did I ever live there? Did I really do that? I must have! I have the pictures to prove it. And a surprising number of Japanese language textbooks.
Other days, it feels closer.
I guess it's all part of the great cycles of culture shock and reverse culture shock. Let me tell you, putting them both together was not the greatest idea in the world. But I'm here now, and making the best of it. Some things are great, some things suck donkey balls (hint: they start with an "un-" and end with "-employment").
I was going to wrap up this blog with some kind of great meditation on what I learned in my two years overseas, how it changed me, blah, blah, blah...
Suffice it to say that I went, I did, I lived, and life continues.