Month 48 Roundup: FOUR YEARS!

If you would have told me four years ago as I got on a plane to Roatan that this roundup would be coming to you from Japan, I probably would have laughed in your face, got a little wistful, and gone back to filling out my dive log.

I never thought I would be on Roatan for four years, and I certainly never thought I’d be in Japan now. But I’m so, so happy for both of those things. I’m here in Naruto and slowly trying to settle into my apartment, my job, and my new time zone. I’m a little sick and I’m not sure if it’s mold in the old A/C at my place (my Board of Education kindly replaced it with a brand new A/C unit this morning, since the last tenant got sick too and better safe than sorry) or rice plant “hay” fever, which is apparently a thing here from July-Sept. I don’t know but it’s wiped me out for a few days now and I forget what breathing out of my nose feels like. I’ve spent a lot of time in bed binge-watching my new Japanese Netflix obsession, Terrace House.

I had a few days in Tokyo after arriving and orientation there passed in a hazy, tired blur. I got to Naruto on Tuesday and we got straight into things – registering at city hall, signing contracts at the Board of Education, getting cell phones set up, utilities changed over, even a meeting with the mayor of the city, who was so, so kind to us. We did our self-intros (in Japanese! ahhhhHHH!) and he gave us gift bags full of Naruto goodies. Also, all that happened with us in full suits in tropical, humid weather…not sure how I survived.

We still have bank accounts to set up, and car insurance to register. I’ve been cleaning my apartment, organizing, purging the old tenants stuff and buying new furniture and household stuff to get things set up just the way I like it. I have air conditioning and I can finally afford to use it (screw you Roatan) so even though it’s eight million degrees outside (= 92F) I am cool as a cucumber in my house. I’ve been grocery shopping and cooking my favorite Japanese foods. I’ve gone out for sushi, udon, ramen, gyudon and loads of conbini food. Everyone has been really nice to me and I like my apartment, my town, and my supervisor + Board of Education. So far, so good.

So… here is my month 48 roundup, FROM JAPAN!

1. My most popular Instagram photo:

This month, my most popular photo on my Instagram was this one! Actually, all my Japan photos have been killin’ it on Insta, but you guys liked this one of me eating chips in Tokyo the best:

Is it because I have a dress on? (Weird, I know.) Is it because I eat chips in every corner of the world I reach? (True.) Is it because you wanted to know what kind of chips they were? (Grilled steak + black pepper.) Or is it because I WAS IN MF-ING TOKYO!?!?! (Note the cars driving on the left!)

2. In case you missed it:

Back on track with posting more than once a month! I killed it this month with my posting schedule, though to be fair I was unemployed so I had no excuses. Here’s a list of my posts since my last roundup, in case you missed any. Some of these are the longest, most detailed posts I have ever written, and I really hope they’re helpful for people who might be in my shoes.

• Should You Do a Cubicle Throwdown Like I Did?
• {GIVEAWAY} Power to the Pen and Paper People [CLOSED]
• The JET Programme: From Application to Acceptance
• The JET Programme: From Pre-departure to Departure
• A Weekend in Portland 
• Konnichiwa Bitches: Hello from Japan!

3. My favorite thing on the internet right now:

I can’t get over how funny/awesome this is – a re-created Peggy’s Cove in Thailand! I used to live in the Maritimes so I’ve been to the real Peggy’s Cove and while it’s beautiful it certainly didn’t inspire me to build one in another country. Anyway, props to this guy – he’s actually done a nice job of making this resort and he’s 100% right when he talks about how friendly the people are at the real one. I’m totally gonna go to this when I go to Thailand! You can see more about Peggy’s Cove Resort here.