T-43 Days to Japan: There better be pork pies in Japan
43 days! Holy cow dung. For some of my classmates, they've only got about 3 weeks until they leave for Japan. I didn't think the days would fly by so quickly, but look at that.I was gonna write a long sentimental post but instead I thought it might be too heavy of a reading material for this blog. Maybe next time.
So instead I will write about things I will miss when I leave for Japan. Prepare for trivial things and possibly eventually sentimental things.
Food
I don't mean English food since I don't exactly eat those in my daily consumption. But I do mean in general, food I can get and eat here in England. Like my mum's cooking, or certain pastries from Lidl that we've been regularly munching on for the past couple of weeks, mustard, pork pies, sausage rolls, custard creams, custard tarts... I told you, trivial things. Or like takeaway deliveries and food shopping deliveries. And also the treats my sisters let me tag along to as they do their restaurant hopping.
I'm sure I'll forget about these things once I'm surrounded by Japanese food, but there will be times when I'll think 'God, I've been eating so much good food lately, I wish I can just have a jelly baby now.'
Theatre
Most likely, I shall be back for the summer releases in the National Theatre, but there will be a bunch I will miss while I'm away. For the past two years or so, I've been religiously seeing as many plays as I can in the NT because tickets are only a fiver and I can only get them while I'm still young. (Literally, they're only a fiver for under 25s) I should probably find small theatres in Sapporo and catch some if they're cheap enough. Like my own personal field trip to better my Japanese, right?
Christmas
I'm not saying there isn't Christmas in Japan, but it's gonna be different, you know? I'm planning on staying in Japan for the whole time and not coming back in any of the holidays (circumstantial though) so Christmas will be one of the things I will miss. Mostly I'll be upset I won't hear the songs on the radio, the Christmas lineup in TV (holy shit, Sherlock Christmas special!), the mince pies and mulled wine freebies in uni, and the general being home for Christmas feel. Last year, we couldn't celebrate together since my parents were in England and we were in the Philippines. Guess this year might be the second time we're not spending Christmas together?
If I end up alone in Christmas, at least it won't be too weird to eat a whole strawberry shortcake and a bucket of KFC on the day. (No, seriously, apparently KFC is a Christmas thing in Japan)
Norwich + UEA
It's been my temporary home for the past 2 years in uni. I didn't wander too far around the city and even then, I didn't really spend so much time outside my room or anywhere apart from the few places I regularly visit. I'll miss the market, the library at the Forum, the university, JPC (I get a little bit sick thinking it might not be there when we come back), the square, the Broad, the parks. And yes, even the supermarkets. I think I probably spent more time in Sainsburys and Co-op than I did in clothes shops..
London + home
Obviously. While I'm always glad to be out of Croydon because let's be honest, it's quite ... not the best place, it's still where home is. My parents and my sister are here, my friends are here, my old schools where I have such fond memories (only partly sarcastic) are here... Not much else, really. Ha. But we are close enough to central London for me to have managed to travel back and forth occasionally to enjoy the city. I tend to go to the same areas though, West End or Southbank. Despite my hatred for crowded places with lots of tourists, going to the city once in a while is an experience. It's probably the amount of time I spend alone, I make up for it by going to crowded places and getting my fix of 'people'.
English
I have to live with the fact that I will never be completely fluent in any of the languages I know, but English is probably the most comfortable language I can converse in. (I make it sound like I know plenty of languages, AHAHA. Two. I know two. Should be 5, but I'm actually a bad language student so..) And soon I'll have to strip my tongue of English and get used to Japanese. Oh dear, it makes me sweat just thinking about it. *breathes deeply*
The thought of just looking for a certain thing in the shop and not being able to know the word for it or the words to describe it? Or just walking around and being able to understand what people are saying as you try your best not to eavesdrop. Or going to a bookshop and not being able to pick up the books and read the blurb on the back?
Yeah. Terrifying. I have a feeling I will have those kanji nightmares I get before our kanji tests for the first month.
Family + friends
Again, obviously. Being away in uni in another different city is so different. It's given me independence with the comfort of knowing I can always get on the bus and come home if I've ran out of food or money, or too lazy to do my own laundry. Or just in need of company or solitude. But to be a plane ride away? I've never been away from my family for more than a couple of months since we moved here in England. And now I'm planning on staying in Japan for at least 11 months. what am i thinking. I suppose I can finally use Skype and my webcam huh?
And friends. Just having friends, you know. People I know, people I can invite to do things with. And people to eat the stuff I baked or cooked. Or people to get excited over certain stuff with. There's always Facebook and other social media but I'll miss you guys.
At least some of them will be in Japan too, so we could meet up. But being the one furthest away, I feel like I'll be left out. You lovely idiots, take a hint. Come visit me in lovely snowy Hokkaido!
Material things wise, I don't think I'll miss much. I've been slowly getting rid of a lot of my things, like clothes, books, DVDs and general junk I've accumulated over the years. I have a feeling I'll actually come back after a year and think 'Why do I even have this thing until now?'
There will be a lot more things I will realise I miss a few weeks upon being in Japan. But I'm gonna try and not think too much about what I will miss and rather look forward to what I will experience there. I can't replace family and friends, but there will be other people to meet there. New places to call home and new places for me to miss when I'm back here again.
2 comments
Write commentsYou are tooooo farrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr! Im pretty much going to be broke, but if money ever allows it (1% chance) i will come to Sapporo :P I will miss so much about England i full on don't even want to think about it!
ReplyThat's what everyone says. *cries* I'm gonna post as many good things as I can about Sapporo so you guys get sick and tired and hopefully tempted enough to empty your pockets to go to Hokkaido. Haha. I can imagine how different Tokyo will be from England! Makes you think about all the good things about England now that we're leaving it, huh? Haha.
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