The End of a Journey: 道の終わり

The past fortnight has been really hectic, with tying a lot of loose ends, spending a lot of time with my girlfriend, and... returning to Australia. By the way, I've been back home since the 21st of this month in case you were wondering.

Looking back on the past year, I am really glad that I decided to undertake on such a great opportunity to study in Japan - more specifically at Ryukoku University in Kyoto. Not only did I gain greater proficiency in Japanese compared to when I first arrived in Kyoto, but I have experienced many things and places, made many new friends - and met a very special someone. Admittedly, the last few days before I left were really difficult for the both of us, though we did spend everyday together doing things, whether it be cooking and eating together at my dorm, watching movies, eating out at more well known cafes and restaurants, to even just helping me send my parcels back to Australia. We also went to Arashiyama, which was a really fun experience, even if it wasn't quite spring at that time. Despite all this, we have decided to continue being together (albeit in a long distance relationship), and we have continued to stay in regular contact. However, I am planning to return to Kyoto in August for a little over a week to be with my girlfriend, and once again in January. 

Ultimately, my goal is to work in Japan, and I am hoping to accomplish this by next year (pending on my results of last semester at Ryukoku University). In the meantime, I want to pass N2 for the Japanese Language Proficiency Test, keep up to scratch with my Japanese conversation skills by finding a club if possible (and regularly talking with my girlfriend), and to continue researching on possible companies that I want to work for in Japan. I have already begun asking around, though the JET Programme seems to be the most recommended option, despite my hesitation that I will most likely not get my preference of working at a school in Kyoto. At the very least, I would like to work at a school that is near Kyoto, just so it will be easier to stay in contact with my girlfriend while she is still studying .
Oh, and the other thing I want to do is find some work, though one of my old bosses has offered me some temporary work in the meantime - hopefully that will expand to at least next year, though I have been assured six weeks to fill in for someone who will be on leave during that time. I'll most certainly know more about the situation when I speak to my old boss later this week.

So as it is, I'll leave this blog up for people who are interested in wanting to know a little bit more about living in Japan (as a student).

Never really got used to the new guys...

Well the semester has started at Ryukoku University yesterday, and I received my results from last semester. The good news is that I passed all of my units last semester. Even that JLPT prep unit that I... disliked greatly, which surprised me, given that I didn't think I did that well - with exception to the exam, where I prepped for that like crazy. Somehow I managed to score above the minimum 60% (I scored 65%). Even more surprising was my speaking class was my best one, in which I got 86% for it. I thought I did ok, but I didn't think I did that well, especially in the exam. Fortunately, the teacher is really nice (though a little bit scary at first).

This semester, I was able to get in to the required core grammar class again (4B). I still need to take placement tests for kanji and listening, but for my unit coordinator back home, the core grammar class is the most important one. Aside from my other Japanese units, I'm planning on taking 3 electives this semester, instead of 2. I'm thinking of taking the advanced JLPT n2 preparation class, as I've heard that it's significantly better than the basic preparation class that I took last semester. Also, I intend to take the Japanese society in english class again this semester, as I found the issues covered particularly interesting, though some were certainly hit and miss. However, this semester, I am also thinking of taking Go (a strategy game) - I sat in on the starting class last semester, but ended up dropping it because I was frustrated with how I wasn't able to calculate the scores correctly, no matter what I did. But, since my Japanese has improved since the beginning of last semester, I think I'll give it one more try. By taking three electives this semester, I'm doing more than the minimum required number of units to accrue 12 credit points for my home uni. That way, if I do fail one unit yet pass the rest, it won't screw up  my chances of graduating next year.

Three Weeks in to my Stay in Japan...

It's been over a week since I had the placement test. The result? After taking a second test, and a surprise second interview (that only I had to to do for some reason), I got in to the class I needed.
Perhaps I should explain. In order to receive credits from my home university, my main requirement is that I need to be placed in a certain level in order to be eligible. If I didn't get in to the corresponding class, then I would have been in trouble, as there's no way to switch up to a more advanced level once placements have been made. Fortunately, after two weeks of stressing and some last minute studying after two and a bit months of study before leaving for Japan, it all paid off.

However, while the semester has started, this week has been more about sitting in on classes and figuring out which subjects I want to take this semester(aside from my compulsory Japanese language units). Yesterday, I attended a class about Igo. The lecturer is apparently pretty good at the game. However, there was only 6 of  us in the class - and it looks like it might be a lot less from next week onwards, as some of the people don't seem to be interested. As I've never heard of the game before, I was intrigued and have been going through the handout he had given us. However, despite my best attempts so far, I still cannot figure out how he calculated scoring for both players.

I also attended a lecture on Japanese Society - probably one of the only lectures that is taught in English. Aside from that reason, the syllabus covers a number of topics that I am actually interested in, including issues on foreign labor force, and consumption in Japan. Not surprisingly, a number of international students also attended this lecture, including one of my friends. Furthermore, one of the tutors from my dorm also attended the class.

In terms of assignment and workloads, I'm not sure what to expect. Speaking with friends yesterday who had been speaking with other people, the workload is supposedly a lot easier compared to our uni back home. Apparently, some students think that a 800 word essay is hard. Really? For us back home, 1500 words is normally the minimum for essay writing - for a standard essay, it's about 2000-2500 words that we have to do. So it looks like this could possibly be a lot easier than what I am used to.

I've been trying to relax in between studying, with limited results. On the up side, I bought some cool figures and models, and just today I bought a Lily Nendoroid figure. At some point, I'll be sending a box full of my goodies back to my parents, to hold on to until I return from Japan. I promised a friend to get a Revoltech Woody figure for him, which I managed to do on my second day here (albeit it is a sepia colours version), so I hope he'll be happy with it.

That is all for the moment. Hopefully I'll have something a little more exciting to write about. Ja ne.