April 16, 2003

Well I’ve now been in Japan for a week and what a whirlwind trip it’s been. Jet lag still has a firm grip on me, and I wish it would let go. As a result, my waking and sleeping schedules are off. I awaken bright and early every morning at 5:00 AM, and pass out due to exhaustion by 10:00 PM. I’ve been told by my advisor that this type of thing usually lasts for about two or three weeks – great…

Well you’re probably wondering what I’ve been doing since I arrived, so I figured today I’d give a brief overview of my daily routine:

I begin the day with a shower, not a traditional Japanese bath, but instead I have what my host mother calls an “America shower.” You see, in Japan it is custom to bathe by sitting on a small stool and washing each body part individually, then once you are totally clean you relax in a bathtub filled with extremely hot water. I’m unable to handle the water temperature so instead I just take the typical “American shower.” After that, I change and finish getting ready. For breakfast I have fresh fruit, yogurt, and juice, and after eating I pack my backpack and hit the road.

I think I forgot to mention the name of the city I’m staying in and this is actually a fitting spot to do so; I’m staying in Yamaguchi City. This is the capital of Yamaguchi prefecture (prefectures are analogous to America’s states or Canada’s provinces) and it used to be known as the “Western Kyoto” or western capital of Japan. The meaning of yama is mountain, and the meaning of guchi is mouth, making the literal translation of Yamaguchi “mouth of the mountains.”

I can attest, there are plenty of mountains here and I get the privilege of traveling up two of them on my way to school. My main mode of transportation is my trusty three-speed Levanti bicycle, and the trip to school takes me right at 40 minutes.