THESE ARE THE VOYAGES OF

THE STARSHIP...

Psych! Just my trip to Japan :)

Sadly, this trip was not for pleasure. It was to obtain my work visa so I could work (legally anyway) as an ESL teacher in Korea. I'll have to go back one day so I can actually explore (and hopefully I'll be taking someone with me too).

Okay, so first things first, I had to book my flight and hotel. I had a korean friend book the flight for me because she could find cheaper flights on a korean website, but I booked my hotel. My supervisor (I have no idea if that's his official title or not) was going to book my hotel for me, but the cheapest he could find was 100,000 won per night (equivalent to roughly $100). Uggghhh! I was not going to spend close to $400 on a hotel (with taxes and whatnot it would have ended up being around that much). So I took it upon myself to find a hotel, one that was cheaper and closer to the Korean consulate. Success! I found a hotel within walking distance of the consulate and I ended up paying just under $250 total (still more than I would have liked to spend, but much better than the other option). For those wondering (probably not many), I booked my hotel through hotels.com. I was able to look at the hotel reviews and I got the room for a slightly cheaper price. I've heard there are what are termed capsule hotels (facilities like bathroom and kitchen are shared with other guests) that are much cheaper, but being there for a grand total of three nights I felt more comfortable and safe in a traditional hotel (plus the staff would be more likely to speak at least a little English.

Step two: make it to the airport. Now, Koreans are all about work. That being said, it may or may not come as a shock to you that they expected me to come into work the morning of my flight even though I wasn't teaching yet and I would have to leave by noon. I can't say I was entirely pleased, but I also can't say it was entirely unexpected either. So anyway, I left work around noon and took the subway to the Gimpo airport (a different airport than I had initially flown into Korea from). Thankfully one of my Korean coworkers was quite familiar with the route and was able to give me directions and even showed me an app with all the subway lines (very helpful, I must say). It actually wasnt difficult at all to get to the airport—just follow the signs! Once arriving at the airport, I exchanged my korean won for Japanese yen.

 

Exchanging the money was a very simple process. You merely walk up to the counter labeled "currency exchange" or something similar, hand the attendant how much money you want to exchange, and she gives you the amount in the currency you requested (in this case, yen).

The flight was short and soon I had landed in Japan (I'm becoming a world traveler, guys O.o). 

Here's a picture of one of the infamous squat toilets (they had them at the airport). I can't say I used it, though. I opted for the more traditional western toilets on the other side of the restroom. Speaking of which, they were actually quite high tech.

 

I don't think I've ever seen so many buttons on a toilet before...

And apparently you have the option of playing a "flowing soud" to cover up the sound of you using the bathroom...

Okay, back to normal topics again. It was time to try and figure out the Japanese subway. Oh my goodness, all this public transportation!!! At least I wouldn't have to switch lines or anything. It was a straight shot to the Namba station (which was where the consulate and my hotel were located). First I had to buy my ticket, which wasn't at all difficult. There were two options of how to get your ticket: use a machine or talk to someone at the ticket counter. I opted for the second. The subway was right down the stairs (not difficult at all), and all I had to do was sit down and wait for my stop (it took a little less than an hour to get there). Now the more difficult part: finding my hotel. I went to an information desk and showed them a picture I'd taken of my hotel location on google maps and they pulled out a couple maps and drew a route to get me there. I finally made it to the hotel about 9pm or so and decided to crash for the night.

The first thing I did the next morning was head to the consulate. I had all the paperwork in hand, walked past the guards (can you say intimidating?!), filled out the visa application form, and turned it all in. I was expecting to pick it up the next day because everything I'd researched and what everyone including my recruiter and employer had told me, it would only take 24 hours to process. Wrong! I wouldn't be getting it until Monday (the day I was scheduled to officially start teaching). Somehow stuff like this always seems to happen to me. No matter how much I plan and prepare something always goes wrong (see previous posts for confirmation). So I called my boss (not quite yet in a panic, but working my way up to it). He rebooked a flight for Tuesday morning, and I booked my hotel for a few more days (expensive!!!). 

Well, after that fiasco there wasn't a whole lot I could do other than enjoy the  rest of my time in Japan whilst trying not to spend too much money (haven't been paid yet and won't be for another month or so). I spent a good couple hours after that exploring the immediate area.

I did a tad bit of shopping (mostly for food), and then went back to my hotel to rest and take a nice bath :) The next couple days were spent mostly walking around and looking at the sights, exploring different shops, and trying different kinds of food (most of which I can't remember the names to and/or can't pronounce). I also had a lovely Skype session with my momma and the siblings still at home. It's a little strange because sometimes it doesn't feel like I'm halfway around the world, especially when I'm taking to my family. I think the worst of the culture shock is still to come.

Anyway, I went back to the consulate on Monday to pick up my visa. I was a little freaked out at first because when the guy went to look for my passport, it wasn't there. He told me to take a seat and disappeared into the back room for a few minutes (all the while I was praying really hard that nothing was wrong). But he returned with my passport in hand with the visa inside, and all was well. Sigh of relief, let me tell you. I wandered around a while after that, then returned to my hotel and made sure everything was packed and ready for my departure the next day. I planned to wake up at 5:00 so I could check out of the hotel by 5:40 and be on the subway at around 6:00. That would get me to the airport at around 7:00 snd to my gate by 7:30. My flight didn't leave until 9:40, but I wanted to leave a little wiggle room in case of emergencies (which there were none, thank goodness).

So now, here I am at Kansai International Airport waiting for my flight back to Korea. And I'll go straight to work from the airport—at least it'll only be a half day of work...and I get to move into my apartment!!!

So that, my dear readers, was my awesome, yet troublesome trip to Japan. Not the most exciting, but still fun. Next time I travel, I'm definitely taking a friend. Everything's more fun with friends :)

 

 

If your dreams don't scare you...

they're not big enough.