My Room and Sushi!

So, it's not even the end of the first day of orientation, and already I have things to blog about!

The view from my dorm's balcony

One structural feature I’m seeing everywhere is balconies. And that’s just awesome. I love balconies. My temporary dorm room has a balcony, and it appears every other apartment has a balcony as well. I have a theory. Since the Japanese do not have dryers (for clothing), everyone needs to dry their clothing outside. People who have houses also have courtyards so they can dry their clothing there. But people in apartments need balconies to dry their clothing due to a lack of courtyards. What do you guys think?

Other people's balconies nearby

Also, in Japan, people drive on the other side of the road. And every time I see that, I get a little heart attack before I remember that Japan is different from America (that seems like a no-brainer, but I’m constantly having to remind myself of the fact).

Technology Woes: So my converter, which I thought I checked carefully enough, doesn’t work in Japan. Apparently it’s only to be used for converting lower voltage to higher voltage, and not vice versa. Today Mita and I are going on a trip to find a converter for me. I at least need to be able to use my laptop. I can wait and charge other things separately, but my laptop is most critical. Mita has generously been lending me her converter until I can get my own (I’m shopping for it today, so wish me luck!).

Me and my sushi

For lunch today I had my first "real" Japanese sushi. Despite being from a supermarket, it was delicious. Instead of having a big glob of wasabi packed along with the sushi, like in American grocery stores, the wasabi was rolled into the sushi, giving it the perfect amount of bite. I had some sort of fish and cucumber. Yum, yum, yum!

My sushi lunch