Time is really going by quicker than I thought it would.  The classes, the apt, food, shopping.  Everything has been a big adjustment.  Not to mention I just had my 21st birthday in Japan :) having a birthday is an amazing thing just by itself but being able to say that I had a birthday in Japan makes it even more awesome.    I brought my birthday in on a bus coming back from Tokyo.  I spent my Golden Week (a national holiday here in Japan) exploring it with some amazing/interesting people.  Tokyo was amazing.Even in 4 days I don’t think I saw enough.  I visited Shibuya, Roppongi, Harajuku, and a few other places I can’t name off the top of my head.  

Classes in Japan are a bit different than what I”m used to in the states; they’re only once a week for about an hour and a half and if class gets cancelled for some reason you have to make it up on a Saturday.  I got the joy of experiencing going to class on a rainy Saturday.  Other than only meeting once a week I’ve gotta say classes are alot easier here.  I’m happy about that so I get more time to experience Japan instead of staying in my room studying.  The food;……still adjusting lol.  Still adjusting to the taste as well as the prices.  Shopping…hmm this deserves its on post on another day.  Without going into too much detail right now I’ll just say that if you’re not a small you’re going to have fun shopping.

So this may not apply to everyone…or any of my followers….but I’ll talk about this anyway.  The biggest issue for most African American women when they think of going abroad is always: “my hair”.  It was definitely something that worried me.  Here were a few of my thoughts:

I’m going to a country where there are no black people….what if I don’t feel like doing my hair?  I can’t go to a salon.  What about my perms?  My hair is bleached how will I manage? And the biggest question was “can i take it on the plane?”  When I say that I”m referring to my perms lol.  Lucky for me I had no problem with shampoo and things like that I use dove :) and Japan has that everywhere.  My only problem was the perm.  I’m sure people here don’t even know what a perm aka a relaxer is.  So the reason I’m talking about this right now is because I’m having a black girl problem while here in Japan.  I am currently waiting on a relaxer to be mailed to me from the states.  I’m 7 weeks post and to me thats forever lol.  Everyday I’ve been wearing buns (which isn’t good I’ve already noticed some breakage because of it) and occasionally I”ll straighten it or use curlformers.  

Counting the days until I get my creamy crack in the mail :)

So…

I am not a very happy girl right now.  So after paying my rent today I was informed that the university sent out an email saying that there’s a change in the account that we’ve all transferred our money into….Rent was due April 25 and the email was sent around 12pm….on the 26th.  WTF?  So now all I can think is where’s my $500?  I’m praying that this is something that can easily be resolved.  I am an average college student, I don’t have a money tree.  And on that note I’m off to continue to harass the international center.  

Usagi!!!

We found this adorable bunny themed store in the shopping center outside of the Ginkakuji temple

My apartment at House 50 in Kyoto, Japan

Welcome to my apartment.  Coming to Japan and living in House 50 I already knew that my apt would be smaller than what I was used to in the states but I was very surprised when I arrived and was taken to my room.  After a a few weeks I’m used to it now…it’s cozy? Lol thats the best way to put it.  I’ve made wonderful friends that live in this apt complex that love to explore.  Which I’m very lucky to have them because me and maps…hmmm lol.  I’ll post more pixs of my apt above along with pixs of Ginkakuji and more posts

I’d totally be lying if I said I wasn’t beginning to get home sick right nw.  Up until a few days ago I’d been here having fun and meeting really awesome people.  Where I went wrong was calling home and talking to my grandmother “come home I miss you” were her words.  I’m someone who loves their family dearly and I often put myself last when it comes to them but coming to Japan was something I decided that I would do purely for myself.

So to help distract myself from the homesickness I”m going to talk about more of the wonderful things that I’ve experienced since I arrived March 26th

I’m very picky with the things that I eat so…it was hard for me the first few days.  But after giving a few things a try I realize I like onigiri, tori is the only one I’ve tried so far.  It may take me a few more weeks to become more adventurous with the food but I’ll get there 

So, lately I’ve been neglecting the blog.  Some days are just really busy and other days I’m at a loss of words.  Being here in Japan has been amazing so far..but I can’t deny that I’m not enjoying it as much as I should. Before I left for Japan I lost 2 of my “best friends”.  Due to that I’ve been very cautious with everyone that I meet or I don’t act myself around them.  It’s such a painful reminder when I see them on my fb news feed or I look at old pixs or when something exciting happens and I think “I can’t wait to tell..”  and then I realize I can’t anymore.  

So why am I now posting?  Because I’ve decided to enjoy my life with no regrets or thoughts of them.  Just like how they enjoy life without me.  I dont want to shed anymore tears on someone who doesn’t think twice about me.  I don’t want to miss out on awesome friendships because I’m afraid they’ll end up like this one.  I don’t want to spend my whole trip thinking about anything other than my own happiness.  I mean I’m in Japan!! How many people can say that? :) not many