9 Days to go!

Oh my goodness. When did this happen?

So it's been a long time since I've actually updated because my life seems to have gone into complete overdrive! I finally have a destination and a school as to where I'm headed, and my whole life is in upheaval in an attempt to pack! I am headed to the sunny Kurume-shi in Fukuoka-ken, Southern Kyushu. I'll be going to a Senior High School with a University focus. It couldn't be any different from the school I have just come from - North London, rough, with children more wild than I have ever seen (although admittedly 'children' is a loose term. I was teaching sixth formers and at 5"2, they were more often than not taller than me. ) Even the idea that I won't have to fight with the children tooth and nail to get them to write their names on a paper is an intriguing prospect! I will miss them though, and the teachers there too. Some of the children might have been a pain at the best of times, but most of them had hearts of gold. One of them even cried when I told her I was leaving ;( But I know they are going to make it, get to Uni and create an amazing life for themselves. Even if they were the geeky side of Ghetto.

The last month has been more than a blur - I have been cramming in so much stuff it's insane, seeing people and doing things before I go. My work leaving do was on the day before my birthday, and we all went to dirty martini to have a few drinks which was really good fun. It ended up in a really fun bar in Oxford Circus (Gem bar, anyone know it?) with a bit of silly dancing and drunkeness - great night out. My birthday itself I was blown away by; my best friend went out of her way to make it a special evening. I was sung happy birthday by the 'Master of Mischief'

He certainly looks the part!

(seriously, he even has a card to this effect) and had a truly Hollywood-esque evening, including dancing to buskers, and riding a carousel like a five year old!  

I had a blast at Pre-Orientation in London, where it was amazing to get to meet all of the UK JETs who had been on the forums and otherwise, the Embassy reception was incredible too (although I wish I'd picked up on the Champagne Ninja's earlier! They managed to refill my glass three or four times before I even noticed what was going on!) Thanks for a great time guys, it was really reassuring to see that so many people were likeminded and in the same boat about packing, travel insurance and other bits and bobs. I went on the Language Course too which was really helpful for basic conversational Japanese, and also quite a relief - perhaps I am not as terrible as I think! Although admittedly that might be a little optimistic. The fluent Japanese volunteers were really helpful, and if my skill was terrible, it was definitely useful to know that by having the right cheerful mannerisms it was easy enough to get by, even if neither party quite understood what was being said.

I've just had dinner with another of my closest friends as well (so many goodbyes!) and we had a real laugh and an overall great time. I got a little misty eyed saying goodbye to her because I'm going to miss her terribly. I am a little worried that I'm going to miss the people I'm closest with a lot, but I guess it's just one of those things you adapt to, and besides! I'm hoping to meet as many new people as possible out there! I'm sure that all the excitement will keep me occupied.

Still, 9 days to go. The fact that I've only had one real panicky moment up until this point is probably fairly good news! :) It does feel like the amount of stuff that I have to get done before I leave is mounting up into this pile of postit notes that I can only really hack at, but never get through. Insurance, electronics, converters, phone contracts out there, all sorts of different things are plaguing me, combined with the fact my body is trying to convert to Japanese time already, meaning I'm not sleeping well-.- thanks body, you are useless.

9 days. My predecessor seems lovely, my school supervisor seems very friendly and even though I am swinging between excitement and panic, it's just a new adventure ahead!