The finishing touches

I’m already finishing with the preparation, I’ve bought and done almost everything, I’ve said good bye to a lot of people and I already can’t sleep normally. These days pass very slowly. Certainly, 7 days later, on the next Tuesday afternoon, at 4.35 pm my plane takes off (supposedly with me) and at that moment the great adventure of mine starts.

By the way, flight. I have never ever flown in my life and I can’t imagine how it looks like. Now I don’t fear it, however the truth is that a 24-hour-long flight will be a good one to start. We will transfer in Qatar, around midnight, and 2 hours later we will continue our journey to the International Airport of Narita.

We. But who precisely?

With AFS 4 students go to Japan from Hungary: Vivi, Rita, Balázs and me. Unfortunately (or not? :P) they found me host families in 4 faraway parts of Japan, thus we won’t meet regularly. 

This picture was taken before the preparatory orientation. We took a Japanese-like evening, we went to eat sushi and wandered in the city.

Everyone who was about for a longer (maybe 1-year-long) journey) knows that it takes a lot of preparation. The questions of luggage, clothing, documents and taking the money have reached me as well. But it seems like everything is under my control. Last week we went to do our visa application with Rita which was surprisingly easy – while waiting we solved a sample final examination of Japanese language.

Recently I’ve made my Visa card which is my first debit card in my life. Yeay, I’m going to look after it carefully!

I've also received a video camera with which I will document the events and seesights in Japan. If I will have the time and the chance I will create a videoblog as well where I will upload these videos. Many people made me promise to take photos about the cherry blossoming, for this aim I’ll buy a better camera in Japan. So there’s no need to worry, those who stay at home will also see the things there. :)

In these weeks I’ve experienced that not only for me, but also for my environment it is a great thing that I’m going to be an exchange student. Many people wished me good luck and encouraged me which was a huge pleasure for me. I got a great amount of love this time which I’m very grateful for. This is the reason why I’ll try to use the Internet (Facebook, Youtube, Blogger) to make my friends and family also the part of my exchange year in a way.

Of course, if it is a long journey, then to farewell parties come. The first celebration was with my class where my form teacher (or home teacher in the US) gave me a cake decorated with Japanese patterns. It was absolutely beautiful! It was heartbreaking to cut it into pieces. Also she gave me a Captain Balu figure made of marzipan. It was incredible, I was so happy!

The celebration series continued with my roommates and mates on the second floor in the youth hostel. The picture of me and my 5 roommates taken during that night is seen here. This was the last night that we spent together behind the walls of the youth hostel. After two and a half year spent, I’m going to miss them. /:

At the weekend my brother and his girlfriend came home from Pécs to say goodbye for me. They also gave me a cake with the sign „Ki o tsukete ne!” meaning „Take care of yourself!”

(At this time I was with plus 5 kilo, and after came the lunch and the dinner. But truly, I have to take the chance now, in Japan there won’t be neither roasted duck, neither sausage nor stew. This is going to be a diet for me I’m sure)

And on Saturday night with the volunteers of Békécsaba we drank a glass of orange juice as the sign of my farewell. It will be strange to leave the chapter, but here is a lot of active and motivated volunteer, they’ll be fine. :)

I’m gonna miss you, guys!

The last party will be at Budapest with other AFS volunteers and officers. I can’t wait for it, I’ve seen them for a while, it will be good to see them again. :) And after I won’t come back to Békés county, I’ll spend my last days in the capital before I leave.

Many people ask what I feel, what I think and how I live through this time. „Are you excited?” – they usually ask. Of course I do! In 7 days my childhood dream will come true, since at the age of 11 I have been wishing to travel to Japan. It’s simply incredible that this is happening. But it is, because I’m going to Japan! However it is possible that I will realise that only while I’m there.

Though it will be hard to leave everything and everyone here. Rather everyone. I’ve got so much love during this period from my classmates, friends, relatives, my mom, my sister, my dad that it will be hard to leave them here. Harder than it was meant to be.

Have I ever thought that I do not want this whole? I have. Once, when I did freak out about the exchange

year. I felt this so large, so enormous and so uncompletable. But I know that it isn’t. I don’t have to finish this in one piece, but day by day, challenge by challenge. The exchange year is a umbrella term consisted of a bunch of challenges, the happiness and memories granted for them and the language and personality development during the time spent with those challenges.  At that time I felt the borders of my comfort zone which I will really reach next week. I’m so waiting for it!

At the end of my post – notwithstanding my preparation – I’d like to commemorate of those people who lost their lives 3 years ago, in March, 2011 during the natural disaster in that day, 11 March. About 20 000 people deceased and more than 250 000 residents had to move to temporary homes.  Since then 3 years have passed. They have started to repair the roads and houses, but the wounds of the Japanese society taken this day can’t be cured completely.

One of the most famous Japanese bands, the ONE OK ROCK made a song titled Be the light so as to commemorate the deceased and injured people of the catastrophy. With this song, I’d like to finish this post:

It’s getting closer…

As if it was yesterday when I was told that I can go to Japan, however, since then 3 and half month have passed. Surely this is not just for me a big deal, but the people around me are also excited that I’m going to Japan. For this reason those people who are in a daily contact with me – mainly in the school or in the youth hostel – ask every day, „oh and many days are left?”. In the beginning I couldn’t answer them, but since in the past 1-2 months at least one person ask that question, I decided to figure out something. By a dear aquaintence of mine I was told a simple but practial way of counting the days which is known and used my many people. So now I can come up with the actual number for the curious friends.

But what’s that way? I’d rather show it:

As the uploaded picture shows, 51 days are left for the big day! :) In a 7-year-long term it’s not that much, is it?

For now that’s all, next time I’ll also reveal one of the secrets of my preparation. :)

Letter from the host family

"Letter" in
Japanese

About two weeks ago I wrote that I got my host family and that I would write them a letter. Well I did. I was a bit scared of it, but it was great that I could write them. I was scared because I was determined to write in Japanese and for about half year I hadn’t even use my Japanese. Though I wanted to make them informed about that I would like to learn Japanese because I have purposes. And this was the first step to show them that I already know something.  So with my basic Japanese knowledge I wrote them the letter, throwing at them all my questions, and of course I told something about me.

Cherry trees in Japan

However, what my letter consists is not that important as what they answered. My future host family replied 2 days later. I was over the moon while reading and translating his lines. He praised my Japanese and said that they were also waiting for me. He also said that I would arrive when the cherry trees start to blossom. And he confirmed that the Sea of Japan is beautiful and that I would have the chance to see it with my eyes, when during summertime the family goes there. :)

From the letter I also got to know that the village where I will live has the population of 2700, and I’ll attend to the same school as my host sister does.

For now that’s all, later I’ll tell more about my preparation. I’ll come with newer posts soon. :) 

My host family

Basically I didn’t want to continue my blog with this, but the faith wanted so. Last week, on the 4th of December, I received the e-mail that they found me the host family.

( Note: The AFS exchange students spend their year with host families. This in fact means a new sibling or a new child. I’ll be a similar child, too. :D )

My family is the Matsumoto family. My hostfather name’s is Shouchi Matsumoto, my hostmother is Chizuko Matsumoto. I’ll have three siblings, Yuu, who is 25 years old, Tsubasa, who is 22 years old and Haruki, who is 18 years old. Possibly not all of them lives with the parents.

Of course, after I had have recieved the news, I was like a dog with two tails. I looked up my city in Google Maps. My family lives in the western part of Japan (as the picture shows) in Shimane prefecture, in a small highlands city… or village, I couldn’t decide really. The settlement is Kamihonjocho and is near to the Sea of Japan (yahooo!) and on the other side a large lake is situated. The local cuisine of this territory is extremely delicious – as I’ve heard from Masaomi, who is a Japanese exchange student in Hungary now. This is another  „yahooo!”, because if you know me, you also know that I like to eat. :)

So far I haven’t get in touch with them and I’ve started to feel remorse. But I would like to write them in Japanese in any case and I still need time for this. And I’m in the lack of that… Well, in the weekend perhabs!

By the way there are only 98 days left and spiritually I am preparing… But until that a lot of things awaits to be done here, and I’ll need to write some posts as well.

Till then, good bye! 

My life’s big chaper – The Prologue

’’… and then on 19th, March, 2014 the plane landed after a 24-hour-long journey…”

-  supposedly the chronicles will write my story that way. However, I don’t rush so much, till this day I have exactly 108 days. 

But till when? What will happen on the 19th, March?

Some of you may know it, you’ve read on Facebook, perhabs you’ve heard from me face-to-face or you’ve got to know it through gossips. The pont is that in 2014 I am going to start my Japanese academic year as an AFS exchange student. Though it is true that till that there are almost 4 months, I have already started preparing. :)

For now that’s enough. The whole’s hows and why will be explained in later posts.

If you are curious about my adventures and about how I will spend a whole year in the Far Eastern Japan as a 18-year-old Hungarian student, then it’s totally worthing visiting back. :)