授業が始まった時 (When I Started Class)

So today we had our first Asian studies class. Japanese class doesn't start until Thursday. Right now I'm taking The Influence of Asian on Pre-modern Japanese Literature. The lecture today was kind of dry, but I think it'll be bearable for three weeks. We got the entire packet of readings for the whole class...it's about the amount we'd have to read at Swarthmore for one day of class. Go intensive learning environments! (not)

Anyway, I woke up today at 8:30 because my host mother insisted I get up, even though I didn't have to get to Kyudai until 10:45. Thus, I was very tired at breakfast. We talked about my family and the rain and Natsumi's coming of age party that will be held in July, all the while I was struggling to comprehend a single word of her Japanese and mutter enough phrases portraying interest in order to maintain the image of actually being awake. Breakfast was almost American: scrambled eggs, some sort of bacon/ham, toast, and rice tea. I think there was brown sugar or something in the eggs, because they tasted like syrup...hm.

After I made it to Kyudai, I attempted to set up the wireless internet on my mac, failed utterly, and, giving up, proceeded to go to my Japanese language interview. After the horrible placement test that I had to endure yesterday, I wanted no more to do with being judged. Luckily for me, the "interview" consisted of a 3 minute conversation about where I'm living, how I get to Kyudai, and when I arrived at Fukuoka. My interviewer told me I'd been placed into the level-4 class, and that I'd buy my book when I start. Level 4? Really? There are only 6 levels and I swear I only answered one question on the Kanji test, and none on the reading comprehension... Well, whatever the cause, I'm in 4th level Japanese, and hopefully that'll help me skip 2nd year when I get back to Swat.

Like I said, class was fine, if boring. Afterwards I went to the library to fiddle with the internet more, fail at it some more, and then talk with my friend Sabine, who is from Germany, about stuff people from different countries talk about together (the economy, schooling systems, learning foreign languages, wanting to visit Germany/U.S.). Eventually she left and I got my internet to work. I went to the International reading room and sat down and semi-dozed off for a while.

Around 6pm, I decided I should be on my way back to Higashi Tsukiguma, so I left for the Kaizuka subway station. I struggled to purchase a monthly pass from a lady who spoke no English (as if I possessed the appropriate subway-related terminology), and eventually coughed up 120,000円. (Around $120) Yeah. Expensive. Without it I'd pay basically the same thing (about $6 a day on the subway, for 20 days of the month), except I get unlimited rides now, so I can take off to Tenjin or Hakata or hang out with friends at their apartments if I want for no extra fee.

Anyway, now I'm poor and I won't be going to Tokyo by far this summer (more reason to come back?) and am running out of Yen. I have to go exchange more tomorrow, and hopefully I don't lose $100+ in the conversion like I just realized I did at LAX. Stupid money.