i miss...

My friends. There's no work next week for NSP. So today, there are in Cabilao Island, Bohol. It's a good diving place, but I'm not sure if all them them are going diving, or just snorkeling and swimming. Our group really love to go on outings to these types of places. Even though I don't know how to swim, I have fun in these outings. That's what I really miss right now... being with them, and having fun.

A few minutes ago, I heard something outside. Somebody was putting something in my mailbox. It's a card from Jay! I was so touched. I was supposed to receive it on my birthday. :) It was early. Nevertheless, I was very touched with the card and with what he wrote. I kept on asking him to send me some card ever since he went back. I guess he was just waiting for the best time to send one. When I went back to get something in the kitchen, I noticed that there's still something in the mailbox. It's another card! It's from the Friendships! I'm so touched... thanks to all of you who took the time to write me some note. I feel a bit sad that I can't celebrate it with those people close to me. But you'll definitely remember me on that day, right? Thanks for the card. Reading it today made me feel as if I'm also there with you in Cabilao.... Hope you're having fun there right now. :)

happy! happy!

Even at 5PM, I was so hungry already. And, Nga and I had planned to take the 6.15PM bus. And I made plans with Febri to go to Uniqlo to buy some shirt (long-sleeves) because I only have a few and I might not have one to wear tomorrow. When I arrived home, I immediately checked the mailbox. This is what I always do, even if I'm not expecting any mail. There was one mail (postcard) there, from the post office. They tried to deliver something at 455PM. From my experience before, I have to write there the date and time I wish the mail to be delivered again, and put it in the post. I looked at the sender of the mail they tried to deliver and compared it with the receipt the Immigration Office gave me. It seems to be the same. So I immediately turned on my computer and sent message to Jay that it might be the Certificate of Eligibility (COE). Then Febri called to say that she'll pick me up. When she arrived, I showed her the postcard, and she said we could drop by the post office before we go to Uniqlo. Since I was so hungry, I had to bring some biscuits to eat on the way. In the post office, I got the mail, and it was indeed the COE! I was very happy! :D I told Jay the good news. :D Finally! He will be able to apply for a Dependent Visa and come here. I won't be lonely anymore. So, from there, we went to Uniqlo and I was able to buy 4 long-sleeved shirts. They were not so expensive and I found some items on sale. So, thanks again to Febri and Bondry. I owe them so much already. :) And, before I forget, I'd like to mention here their lovely daughter, Caca. We may not talk much (she speaks Japanese) but I think she's already comfortable around me. :) So, even if I was able to eat dinner just a few minutes ago, it was ok because I was very happy with what happened tonight. :D

not a good night...

I went home with Nga today, because her boyfriend is in Chiba for a week. We took the 6.15 bus from Gidai. In my hurry, I forgot my keitai. I only realized it when I arrived in my apartment. I looked for it in my bag, and then I realized I must have left in the toilet. Waaah! I'm quite confident that I would find it the following morning, but my concern is that it might fall. An alarm was set for 7AM and 730AM, and it might fall if it will vibrate. I sent instant message to Febri, who in turn contacted Liska who was still in her laboratory. So, I'm very thankful to Febri and Liska. Thank you!

I thought that was all. Apparrently, I was to be shocked a little while later. I experienced an earthquake! It was my first time to really feel the earthquake since I came here. I was sitting down, watching Vietnam Rose in my laptop, when I felt it. I got scared. I just remembered that yesterday was the anniversary of the big earthquake last year in this city. I didn't know what to do. I listened to what my neighbors would do, but there was no activity outside. I surfed the internet. I turned on the TV and found it has a 3.4 magnitude. I sent messages to my friends in Tokyo. And they laughed at me because it was just a very small one, normally it is 5. I sent message to my husband, Jay, and he immediately went online. I needed someone to talk to that night. I really should not be shocked when it comes to earthquakes here in Japan, because it's common. But this time, when I felt it, I was alone. That's why I'm really hoping Jay will be here soon so that I won't be afraid during these times.....

Belated happy birthday, Aiza!

It's almost been 2 weeks since my last post. When I started this blog, I said to myself I'd write here everyday if I have internet at home. But, I can't. I'm too busy doing other things. I guessI just have to write here when I feel like it, or when I'm too bored, even if I have no idea what I should write about.

I'd like to express my gratitude (so formal?) to those who have posted their comments here. And speaking of that, I suddenly remembered my cute little sister! Sorry, aiza... for not remembering to mention your name, until now. Belated Happy Birthday to you! Aiza (realname: Rhea) just turned 21 last October 7. When I called home that day, she said they did not have any celebration since she and her classmates were so busy doing their project. It was decided that they will celebrate the week after. And, I heard there were lots of people who attended the party. My sister's pretty popular, huh? (mana sa ate?) Anyway, I do wish her happiness. She may get so sentimental at times (just read her blogs!!!) and be so irritating (she always asks me questionos at the wrong time!) ... but she's always someone I can depend on when I go home. I do hope she will pass all her remaining subjects and graduate this schoolyear. I may not be able to attend her graduation, but I'll definitely be cheering her on from out here.

Sang, I'll post your pictures here some other time. :) Hi also to Papa, Mama, and Lick-Lick.

My Apartment

I live at １０２号室　 アルカサール　すみれ　希望が丘　２－丁目　４－１４　長岡市　新潟県　Japan　940-2124. How's that? Actually, I don't know how to write Kanji, so I will just post the address in romaji so that you can send me some snail mail when you have the time. #102 Arukasa-ru Sumire, Kibougaoka 2-choume 4-14, Nagaoka Shi, Niigata Ken, Japan 940-2124. The Katakana of my apartment name is supposed to be in English, but I can't figure it out. If you know, please do tell me.

These are pictures of my apartment, which I took yesterday. I haven't had the energy to clean it well.
<<<----- This is the view from my door. To the right is the washing machine we bought at a 2nd-hand shop. It cost us only 6,000 yen. The stove and the refrigerator were already there. The plastic bag on the left side contains empty bottles. I haven't had time to throw them yet. Trash here has to be segregated and thrown at their scheduled disposal dates and at designated areas. The door leads to the main room. Toilet and bath is on the left.
----->>>
This is what you see when you open the door from the kitchen. The aircon is also another appliance that came with the apartment. Below it is what I used as blanket/comforter/bed sheet. The sofa bed was also bought at the same store as the washing machine, and at the same price. Can you see the curtain rod? We bought it at a nearby store (25-minute walk). I still had some clothes hanging there.

<<<----- This table was also bought at the 2nd-hand shop for 1,500 yen. The laptop was bought in Akihabara (it's 2nd-hand also) when we went there one weekend. It's not obvious in the picture, but what's on the plate is my food for dinner, pork adobo. The TV set was given to me by Febri (she got it from her Indonesian friend who went home already). I don't have any other table, so my things are just on the floor.
----->>>
This is proof of how cluttered my room is. My clothes and some other stuff are in the cabinet. On top of the cabinet is a space where one can sleep, but I use it to put some of my toiletries and other things. When I clean the clutter on the floor, it usually goes on the loft. Haven't tried sleeping there for fear I might fall. On the stairs are my laundry. Don't have a laundry bag. But today, I put my laundry in a plastic bag and placed the bag inside the cabinet.

So, that's it. you've seen what's inside my apartment. I still have to take the picture from outside. To my friends, please do send me a letter, so that I won't feel so lonely here. :D

Yehey! Internet @ Home!!!

Finally... I have internet at home! I feel so happy. I can now send email anytime of the day. I had to miss a class today because of this. I thought the modem would arrive early in the afternoon. But, it did not. If I tried to ride the next bus, I would be an hour late in class. So I just decided to skip class and start setting up my connection. It went perfectly well, even if the instructions are in Japanese (I just had to keep on clicking the buttons as indicated in the manual). The difficult part is installing the wireless LAN pack. I could not make it work! I decided to give up and ask my friends in my laboratory about it. I started putting back the manuals and other papers (so many of them!) back in the box, when I came across a paper I haven't read yet. Good thing, because it was all I needed to make it work. So now, I'm wire-free.

Anyway, I still have some things to do ... So I will just end this entry by saying thanks to all those who have kept me company for the past few days, be it in person or through email. Special mention to Donna, who has managed to extend her spamming hobby to my blog. :D

My first days in Nagaoka...

I have been here in Nagaoka City, Niigata Prefecture, Japan for about 5 weeks now. I came here to get a Masters degree in Nagaoka University of Technology. I am thankful to the university, AOTS, and Monbusho for this opportunity.

My husband and I arrived last September 1 (Thursday), in Narita, Tokyo at about 130pm. We already reserved a hotel in Nagaoka, so we just sent two luggages to the hotel for a fee of about 3,400 yen. At the airport, we bought train tickets for Nagaoka. It cost us about 22,000 yen. We took the Narita Express to Tokyo (about 1 hour) then the Shinkansen to Nagaoka (almost 2 hours). We just bought some food at Tokyo station and ate them on the way to Nagaoka. We finally arrived at the hotel around 6pm. It was only a short distance from the station. We rested for a while, and went out at 8pm to have some dinner. It was surprisingly quiet at that time outside. Not many people were on the streets. That's when I realized that what some people said about Nagaoka was true. It really is a quiet place. We walked around, trying to find some restaurant, but we ended up buying some food from a convenience store and went back to the hotel. It's a good thing that the hotel has a computer with internet access, so were able to communicate with our friends that night.

The following day, we had to go to the university at 2pm. The first thing we did was eat breakfast at their restaurant, then went around the place near the station. We went back to the hotel to wait for our luggage. Then looked for the Internation Affairs Center and asked for directions on how to go to the university. We found out that the bus goes to the university only twice every hour. Worried that we won't make it in time, we just bought lunch and rode the bus for about 30 minutes. We met with Joel in Gidai (shortcut for gijutsu daigaku or university of technology) and hurriedly ate lunch at the Internation Students Exchange Room. After that, we met with the staff of the International Student Affairs Division for some paperworks and payments. Joel helped us in choosing my apartment. I met my adviser, Pavol Zavarsky, in the flesh for the first time (I already met him during the video-conference interview in January). I was also introduced to my tutor, Wada Shota, who accompanied us to file for the Alien Registration Card and insurance card. He was very kind to accompany us to buy some type of bedding and pillow. We left it in my apartment and he called the light and electric company for activation. We went back to the university and he showed us our laboratory (we have the same lab). We then agreed to meet the following Monday to apply for bank account. We rode the bus with Joel (last trip: 740pm) who got off near a drugstore, while we got off on the last stop, Nagaoka Station. We decided to go to the apartment that night. So after eating at McDonalds (on the other side of the station), we checked out of the hotel and took a taxi to the apartment (about 1600 yen). My husband and I slept slept there that night with only the pillow and bedding.

The first two days were very stressful for me since I am new to this place. I only speak basic Japanese. I cannot read Kanji. And, I think I was still trying to get used to the idea that I will be on my own from then on. Now, I'm not fully used to living here (maybe I never will be), but I have made some improvements. I have made some foreign friends (Nga-Vietnamese, Febri-Indonesian, ZawZaw-Myanmar and others) and Filipino friends (Joel - 2nd year masters course in electrical engineering, Leah - Joel's pretty wife, Nazi - research in electrical enginnering, Wella & Leonard - Nazi's lovely wife and son) here. I am really thankful to them for all the things they've helped me with.