Job Discussion Forums

[worlddiva]

Hello to all!

well, I finally got to my city and started working....I:m finding it really difficult to adapt to life here in Japan. There is no one to show me around, I don:t know what any of the food is and my japanese consists of about 10 words!

Did anyone else experience total despair when they first got here or am I the only one?

ps* I:m dying to get connected to the internet, any suggestions??

thanks,
WD

[Mark]

Where are you? That can make a big difference, of course. If there are other foreigners around, you'll probably make some friends and they'll help you out. Is there no one at your school to help you?

Anyway, I knew a lot of people before I came here, which really made the process easy for me. I can imagine that coming here without any connections could be quite difficult. But, don't despair, I'm sure things will pick up. Keep studying Japanese, once you learn the basics, your life becomes much easier. An electronic dictionary can be a big help too. If you're shopping and you don't know what something is, just ask the clerk and type it into the dictionary. If you can't catch what the clerk is saying, just ask him to type it. Keep the food labels and use them for study practice. Learning to read hiragana and katakana will also make a huge difference in shopping.

[denise]

Hang in there!

Can the other teachers/school staff show you around? Maybe I'm too uptight about etiquette, but I would think that they'd be around to help out... I lucked out and ended up with a great group of colleagues who really helped me ease my way into life here.

If you're in a big city, is there any sort of international center? I've met a few friends that way--Japanese people looking for English-speaking conversation partners and more than willing to help me with my Japanese (more willing than I am, in fact!).

Good luck!

d

[denise]

Oh, and regarding internet connection--I've got yahoo broadband. My connection costs about 3,500 per month, and I get a great long distance rate with it to the States. (I don't recall, but I think you've got Canada listed as your location--maybe good rates there too?) There were sales representatives just hanging out by the train station signing people up, so up I signed. It's been very reliable so far.

d

[Celeste]

You will be okay. You are experiencing culture shock. It is normal. You will get a better command of the language. You will meet people. Post again and let us know where you are, and then we can let you know how to get in touch with other foriegn teachers. Hang in there!

For internet service check out:
http://www.bbapply.com/

[AndyH]

Things will get easier!!! I came to Japan a little over two years ago, from Korea, and at the time, my Japanese ability was limited to counting to ten, plus a couple of greetings. I was in a small, but friendly city in Hokkaido. Many foreigners come to Japan with the same circumstances as you, so you aren't alone. Are there other foreign English teachers at your school? I would suggest finding out if your city offers Japanese lessons: they are a good way to meet member s of the local community, as well as other gaijin. Good luck!!!

[worlddiva]

thanks for your replies....

I am in Kochi city, although this will probably give my identity away......

There aren:t very many foreign teachers here, or many foreigners.

The exiting teacher was no help at all. The people who are at my school can:t really help me with much either.

I will try to learn some basics as for the language but in the meantime I feel really isolated.

you know that sting song: i:m an englishman in new york?.....well, i feel like i:m a foreigner in japan...actually more like an alien, by the way that people stare at me. I:d like to think of myself as a pretty openminded individual but.....this is way harder than I could have ever anticipated.

ps: sorry if i sound strange but i:ve had a few chu-hi:s........

anyways, thanks celeste, and everyone for the encouraging words.

Denise,

how long did it take for you to get yahoobb to hook you up?? do they have english customer service?

i was maybe thinking of going with bflets?what do you think?


Mark, how much is an e-dictionnary and where can I get one?

...........I also find myself spending so much time working or planning lessons or worrying about work that I barely have any free time. This weekend i have 2 days off so I guess i:ll try to chill and enjoy kochi a bit.

I don:t really know what the Japanese etiquette is but, i fear talking to anyone at my school about how i feel cause i:m worried it will refelect badly on me. there is only one other foreign teacher at my school.

anyways, gotta go for now, let me know what you guys think.

and, once again, thanks, for the encouraging words, although i don:t know any of you personally it does make me feel better.

[Nismo]

I've never experienced culture shock as such, so I don't know what you are going through exactly, but I have a general feeling. You will need to associate yourself with co-workers outside of work. Whatever you do, don't limit your personal time to hanging out with foreigners. At the same time, don't completely isolate yourself from the foreign population.

Food: Just eat it. Watch how people around you eat it and mimic them. The Japanese aren't dead from eating the food, so neither will you (unless you have severe allergies to certain types of food, in which case - good luck).

Go buy a Japanese book. Start with a guide book that has phrases listed in it. Practice.

internet: yahoo BB, but only after you have your foreigners registration card. You need an active land line in order to apply for/use the service. Best option, by far, but for me especially because calls to the U.S. are only 1.5 yen/minute.

[Gordon]

Don't worry about asking for help at work. Your school should be helping you out more and so ask. Just don't be too negative or they think you might leave. Ask them to help you get yahoo at home (took 5 wks to get set up at my house).

In another thread, you were asking about phones. You don't need an NTT phone number to get yahoo. A friend did it last month which saves her 3,000 yen/month. Brastel is a good long distance calling card number. They're good until you get yahoo hooked up. Rates to Canada are about 14 yen/min from where you live. About the same as yahoo rates. http://www.brastel.com/Pages/eng/main/

[Celeste]

This weekend, get yourself in touch with these people:

http://www.kochi-f.co.jp/kia/english/index.html

They should be able to put you in touch with some other foreign residents and help you create a local support network.

[guest of Japan]

I think the first few months in Japan is the hardest. You lack friends, language ability, are learning to do a job in a completely different culture. At every turn your logic will run counter to the ways things are done. To top it all off, you can't do anything until you get the alien registration card. After getting the card, it will still take time to get internet hooked up at home.

To top it all off you came in winter. I did too, and I am still not a lover of winter here. It taxes you motivation.

But fear not. Spring is coming soon. The cherry trees will bloom, and taking a walk will become a pleasure again. In the meantime lose yourself in a good book. I recommend escapist literature over philosophy or anything critical of Japan. You need to calm your nerves not fire them up. There is no better time to work on your Japanese. It's a long process, but it has to begin sometime. DO NOT TAKE WORK HOME WITH YOU. Stay later at work if you need to, but don't mix your free time with work at this time. You can never unwind if you are thinking stuff sitting in your bag that you have to use to plan a lesson. GET OUT OF YOUR APARTMENT OFTEN. Things will get better, but not quickly.

[Brooks]

sounds like you should be living in a bigger city.
But you have to make do with what you have.

Learning the language is important. When I started I was going to volunteer classes. I had a good teacher and she helped me learn.
You have to keep at it. The first year was a grind for me. A lot of the time I just worked, went to class, and relaxed at home.

I had culture shock my first year. Part of it had to do with my job. I changed jobs and things got better. Having a sympathetic boss helps a lot.

[Rorschach]

I think I experienced culture shock for about the first 2 weeks in Japan before I started working. Thereafter I was pretty homesick for the first 6 months but I never felt like going home. I understood zero Japanese when I first arrived (other than to say thank you, hello and where [place] is), I found I was being a lot more adventurous. If I was hungry I'd just walk into the nearest restaurant with my phrase book under my arm and give it my best shot. Sometimes the experience was uncomfortable and embarrassing but most of the time it was pretty fun and it took the edge off living here.

Knowing a lot of people can help but don't rely on them too much for your enjoyment of this place. I have met a lot of people so far and the one thing I have learned is that most are here only for themselves. If you come across too needy you will be taken advantage of. Give yourself at least 6 months before you make a final judgement about Japan. I've been here 17 months now, there have been a lot of ups and downs but it has been worth it.

[Glenski]

[worlddiva]

you guys rock!

reading your responses makes my day!

I know that it will take a while to adjust....the part I find really hard is that my boyfriend of 7 years is in Canada and I:m here. Althoug I guess I can:t complain about that as I did decide to come here, nobody forced me or anything.

My goal tomorrow is to get a bike which will make getting around town a lot easier.

Also, I do have some good news to report.... I met a really nice japanese girl at a local restaurant and she quickly offerred me her phone number and said she would give me a tour of Kochi...her english is pretty good so I:m really looking forward to it.

I guess your are right about not bringing work home...that:s a good suggesiton otherwise I will always feel like I:m working....

I will try to hunt down the international center on monday and see if I can get some help there and maybe some japanese lessons.

Nismo,

as for the food I do have sever allergies to fish, fish products and mushrooms so this is part of my prob. I do have a note in Japanese that says that I:m allergic to it, which helps. It seems that everything has fish in it!!

Gordon, thanks for the ld info.

thanks for the link Celeste.

guest of Japan,

I will try to get out of my apt more often, star5ing at the same 4 walls, is starting to drive me nuts.

Glenski,
thanks for the links


I:ll continue to check this site regularly as it is like my lifeline right now.

I wish you all a good night.

still WDD (world diva in despair...for now) hopefully this will change soon.