First Day High

Atarashii Kotoba

O hisashiburi desu ne - It's been a while... Typically an expression used when you haven't seen someone, or something in a while.
Konnichiwa - good day. Generic greeting for anyone. Usually used from 10 am till there is daylight.
Hanami - sakura (cherry blossom) viewing
Zairyuu card - Residence card issued to us when we first landed in Japan as ryuugakusei.
Ryuugakusei - Foreign exchange student
Yakuba - Town hall
Kokumin Kenko Hokenshou - National Health Insurance card
obento - packed lunch
arubaito - part time job

First Day High

Konnichiwa!!! O hisashiburi desu ne!

Wow, seriously, it has been a long time. Hahaha! Sorry for not updating you guys in a long while. Life as a working student here in Japan can be quite time consuming and basically, tiring. But, all in a day's work. Now, a lot has gone down since the last entry. We've experienced snow (for a day), our first hanami, we've also taken the JLPT N4 exams back in July, we experienced the Oarai summer, and a lot more. I will probably make entries on those, hopefully once a week. (Or once in two weeks, if time permits.)


So going back to the 711 crew series.

After arriving and settling and exploring for a day in Oarai, we went to school for the first time. We had our bikes and we set out to retrace the way to school after being shown where the school was, exactly once.

Since we girls lived together and since it was our first day, we all agreed to go to school together. Using our super sharp memories, we set out in search for our school and where it was exactly. Needless to say, we nearly ended up in Hitachinaka because, well we forgot to turn left at the 711 corner.

So after a bit of struggle with the language barrier and such...Leizel was able to ask for directions and got us to school with ample time to take a picture.

Us on our first day.

I wouldn't say it was our first day of school exactly, it was more of an entrance exam of sorts. We were made to take a Japanese language aptitude test to see which student goes to what class. Thankfully enough, and since there were only 7 of us, we all ended up in the same class. After the exam, we had a quick interview to asses our speaking skills.

With all the assessments done, we were then whisked away to the Yakuba to have our zairyuu cards stamped with our addresses and for the issuance of our Kokumin Kenko Hokenshou.

We were then given the rest of the day off.

The next day, we had the opening ceremony where the officers of the school were introduced, as well as short speeches from each officer. There was also a garbage disposal orientation (Japan is very particular with garbage disposal. Schedules, sorting, etc.) picture taking for the school ID, and a quick round robin of introductions from the students. Our particular batch of students is quite small so we were all asked to make self introductions in Japanese.

With the whirlwind of events all done, we then had to fill out bank application forms to open our very first Japanese bank account. In preparation for this, our names were written one by one on the board by our Japanese teacher and we had to copy these for our bank forms.

And that's how our first day of school went.

Again, we were given the rest of the day off with the reminder to bring obento for the next day because we start with arubaito after class.

See you next time for the next episode. ^___^

A Day in the Life of the Filipino Students in Oarai

For more information on Oarai International Exchange Academy, you can contact me via Facebook or Instagram, or by commenting on this article. 

Life in a different country is never easy. You are far from family, friends, loved ones, and the comforts of home. Everything might look fun and glamorous in picture-perfect pictures but those, are but moments. A fleeting glimpse at the everyday life of a person.

We are the first Filipino student delegates of the Oarai International Exchange Academy (大洗国際交流アカデミー), a Japanese language school set in the quaint little coastal town of Oarai in the Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan. We came to Japan with minimal knowledge of the language and have been, since arriving, consistently learning and improving our grasp of the language. Life in Japan, in Oarai in particular, has been quite the adventure with all the ups and downs and everything in between. Our life here is full of discoveries, realizations, little victories, a lot of tears, and a lot of hard work. We always look like we're having fun in pictures because, to tell the truth, we are. But the fun is just the tip of the iceberg.

Our first ever group photo.

Upon arriving in Oarai, we were overwhelmed by the stark difference in cultures. Some of us have experiences in traveling abroad but nothing could have prepared us for what was in store. We are all full-blooded Filipinos and have all been raised the Filipino way. Of course, each family has its own values and traditions, but generally speaking, we are Filipinos through and through. Needless to say, our first challenge was the language and culture barrier. Unlike traveling abroad for leisure, coming to a town like Oarai was a culture shock. Virtually no one speaks English and those who do, barely speak the language.

Our home away from home, 711.

The only place of comfort and familiarity was the local 711 store. It became our hangout, go-to place, and lifesaver. We went to 711 mainly for the internet connection and for the clean and comfortable toilet. This may seem funny but going to the toilet also presented a challenge as the toilet seats get freezing cold and the water to wash with feels like it came from Antarctica, so a warm toilet seat and a bidet are quite the lifesaver.

The 711 nights.

Another battle to fight was the daily bout of homesickness. Especially for those with kids they left behind, it was almost debilitating. For me personally, homesickness hit me around 3 months in. The adrenaline rush of settling into a foreign place kept me occupied and when finally everything settled into a routine, that's when it hit real hard. But thankfully enough, we kept each other sane, providing support and comfort whenever one needs it.

School started soon after we arrived, and we were introduced to our part-time jobs right after. Now, we seven came from different occupations and industries. A couple of us are teachers and entrepreneurs, one is an insurance expert and hotel connoisseur, a few come from different technical industries. We were all used to office work and, so to say, professional jobs. Who would have thought that upon arriving in Japan, we would all embark on our first manual labor stint.

The Philippine Farmers, in Japan.

We worked at a sweet potato product company. They make dried sweet potato (ほしいも) of different kinds, shapes, and sizes. So everything from harvesting to packing, we were involved in. Now, this is a perfectly normal job in Japan. But for us who are not used to manual labor, the struggle is real. Some of us broke down in tears from the exhaustion and exertion. It was not a glamorous job like we imagined, but, we are proud to say, we survived it all.

Winter Wonderland!

We have only been here for a few months, and we still have a lot to encounter, a lot of challenges to overcome, and a lot of mountains to conquer, but as long as we have each other and the support of those around us, we are sure to succeed. Every day is a new day, and every day is another step closer to our goals. Years from now, we might find ourselves on different paths, but we will be eternally grateful that at one point, this is where it all started. In our hometown away from home, our Oarai.

The First Batch

The Tropical Girl's Guide for Surviving Winter in Japan Part 1

I am a tropical girl. And I love it! I love the sun, the heat, the tan you get from walking from your car to the mall entrance. I love everything about the tropics. Okay, maybe not everything, because I do hate the flies and mosquitoes and the smell of dried sweat. But still, I am happy with the muggy temperature of my homeland.

I was thrown into a whirlwind of events when I decided to go for my dream of going to study in Japan. And to add the cherry on top of my ice cream sundae, I was set to fly and arrive right smack in the middle of autumn. Not bad, cool weather, red leaves and all.

And then the temperature starts dropping.

And dropping.

And... now, daily, we get -7 degrees Celsius every morning.

Quick disclaimer...I am by no means an expert in surviving the freezer-like temperatures but this is a memoir on how I am currently surviving the sub-zero temperatures.

So, how will a girl, who loves the sun and the heat so much, survive winter in a coastal town with a sub-zero daily temperature?

Okay, this is going to be part one and we will talk about how to keep yourself (like literally your body) warm during winter. I will make another post regarding how to keep warm at home next time.

Tip#1
Layer, on top of layer, on top of layer!

Coming from a tropical country, I have never, in my entire life, needed to wear thermal underwear. Heck, I didn't even know such a thing existed. But these warm overall, long johns kinda things will save your life. Uniqlo will be your new best friend with their HeatTech apparel that you can purchase for cheap. (They tend to go on sale a lot) Also, don't be afraid to wear 3 or 4 layers of thermal underwear... believe me when I say that shivering is not a fun thing to do when you're out and about.

Also, look out for flea markets from time to time. We are blessed that Oarai holds a flea market called "Free market" in the Marine tower grounds twice a month and we were able to score winter coats and jackets for as low as 300 yen.

And, forget about fashion. Just dress warmly. Thankfully enough, people here dress weirdly that no one really notices that you're not color coordinated and all.

Tip#2
Moisturize!!!

Japanese winters can be so dry. To think that this is a coastal town. On the first week, (it wasn't even winter then) I got what was called a windburn. My skin was literally hurting like when you get a sunburn, only this was due to the cold wind blasting in your face. So the best way to make sure you don't start peeling like old paint on a plaster wall is to moisturize. My go-to products are the classic Nivea creme, Vaseline Petroleum Jelly, Nivea Extra Repair Lotion (boys, this is scentless so this will work wonders for you!), Nivea Vitamin E Moisture lip (no scent, no tint, and flavor as well) and the Nivea soft for face, hand, and body for my on-the-go moisturizing needs. Works for boys and girls. Most of the products I am showing here are scentless and gender-neutral.

My winter moisturizing arsenal

Tip#3
Buy winter gloves, winter socks, and invest in earmuffs!

Nothing hurts more than your toes and fingers freezing to bits. Like literally, it hurts!!! Not to mention your ears. Invest in a pair of gloves that are waterproof and are similar in material to winter jackets. If all else fails, a friend recommended ski gloves. A bit bulky and annoying, but they should do well in keeping your digits from freezing off.

As for socks, you can buy those from 100 yen shops available all over Japan. Just buy 5-6 pairs and you should be fine. Provided you do laundry every week.

As for earmuffs, if you can't seem to find a pair, you can make do with mufflers and winter hats that cover the ears. Believe me when I say that it hurts like a (female dog) if you leave your ears exposed. You'd do well to invest in 2 or 3 beanies and you should scrape by.

Bonus note: the same friend who recommended the ski gloves also recommends rainboots and raincoats to help fend off the cold winter. I tried it personally and it helps!!! You just look weird wearing a raincoat in sunny weather, but hell, I'm cold!

Tip#4
Kairo!

Boy, you have got to love the Japanese and their brains! Kairo packs are little iron and something-filled packs that once exposed to oxygen creates an exothermic reaction thus creating heat up to such time the chemical reaction is complete. (Okay, that sounded a little nerdy, but I'm so sorry, I just can't help myself, I love science and math!) These things can be bought literally anywhere in Japan during the winter season. They come in different shapes, sizes, stick-able and nonadhesive, special foot kairo, and so on. How to use it? Just rip open the packet and expose it to oxygen. This can be a real lifesaver when you no longer can produce your own heat fast enough. 

A word of advice, these things can literally burn you so if you are going for the adhesive-backed ones, don't stick to skin. Only on clothes. 

*時 (ji)- denotes approximately how many hours the kairo should give off heat. Try to remember this kanji.

Tip#5

Keep the Neck Warm!

Okay, I've only been here for 4 months so I can't claim to understand tv shows just yet, but I happened to see one of these shows that were conducting a comparative experiment on how to wear mufflers to keep you the warmest. So I won't go into detail regarding that but I have concluded from that short clip and my own personal experience that the more you keep your neck (and ears) warm, the less cold you'll be. So again, like the bargain hunter that I am, I recommend you visit your local 100 yen shop for boa neck warmers, scarfs, and mufflers. 

So these tips should keep you warm enough to live another day. But, as promised, I will be writing part 2 for this survival guide. That time, I will be talking about how to keep your room warm, what stuff to invest in, and a few tricks that are keeping me warm at home.

Kirei Ja Arimasen!

Atarashii Kotoba

Kirei - beautiful
~ja arimasen - negative form (this is appended to an adjective, noun, or adverb indicative of the negative version of said word)
hai - yes
iie - no
kudasai - please
arigatou gozaimasu -thank you very much
sumimasen - excuse me
gomenasai - I'm sorry
ohayou gozaimasu - Good morning
konnichiwa - Hello/good day

Kirei ja arimasen!
This is a side story of an on-going joke we have amongst the group. The next episode is still in the works. ;p

Upon landing in Japan, we were armed with our very, VERY limited vocabulary of the Japanese language. Of course we know the basics such as: hai, iie, kudasai, arigatou gozaimasu, ohayou gozaimasu, sumimasen, gomenasai and konnichiwa. We also know a few descriptors here and there, some we've heard from anime, some from friends and some from family members who have settled here in Japan.

Kirei is an adjective used to describe something beautiful, clean, and pristine. But mostly, when referring to people, it means beautiful.

Because, we are.

Now, from the very first day we have been in Japan, Jerome has this habit of asking anyone and everyone (but most of the time it's either Carol or Regine) "Are you beautiful?". He asks this usually in our native tongue, but since we are learning Japanese after all, he tends to ask this in Japanese as well.

Carol-san wa, kirei desu ka? (Carol, are you beautiful?)

With which he promptly answers his own question with:

Kirei ja arimasen!!!

"Are you beautiful?!"

I know the story seems senseless but it's funny because even with our lessons, this particular string of words keep following us around.

On our first day in the factory:

Most of the things the people we work with say, we basically and hopelessly could not understand. But one word apparently stuck, it was making sure that the packing was kirei. 



In school, learning about adjectives:

We were taught that kirei is a "-na" form adjective. It is used to describe people, places, and objects that are aesthetically pleasing to the eye.

And when we were learning about negatives (ja arimasen)

And recently when we were learning about the casual form of speech. (kirei janai!)

I know that this is not the end of the Kirei ja arimasen series. But I wanted to make an entry regarding this so as not to forget.

Now let me end this entry with a picture worth...well you decide! Hahaha!

The Legend of the 711 Crew

The Legend of the 711 Crew

After arriving in Oarai and initially settling down in our respective apartments, one major problem hit us like a ton of bricks. We were hopelessly and totally disconnected from the net and have no way of communicating with loved ones, friends, families, enemies, and whoever else in the world.

Now, I for one, was overly excited to share everything I'm seeing and experiencing with my family and my best friend. But since our phones don't have sim cards,don't work and were not really compatible with Japanese networks, (we haven't actually tried since prepaid sim cards are not really a thing here and they are not really big on selling just sim cards. I'll probably make a post regarding that as well...maybe soon.) we were, in a word, screwed.

We had hoped that the apartments we were to be provided will have had internet set up for us, but unfortunately, they didn't. So here we were, miles and an ocean away from home, stranded in a small coastal, a bit old fashioned and totally remote town (with the nearest McDonald's about a 15-20 minute bike-ride away) with no internet connection.

And thus came our lifesaver:

711 Oarai Ekimae Dori

On our first night, we stayed till 10 pm. It was cute since we were all seated in a row, by the light of 711, each busy with our own video calls and chats. Everyone was eager to get in touch with family back home. Here we were, 7 strangers thrown together in a strange place in a foreign land. Imagine, the first time we all met in person was in the airport, for our flight, to Japan.  711 became the central venue for us to meet and get together, whether we wanted to or not. You could say it became our "headquarters".

Since we arrived on a Sunday, the town was very quiet and not many cars were around. We spent the time eating, talking, sharing and bonding on that first night in Oarai.  The next day, Oct 10th was a national holiday so we were given the day to spend for ourselves.

We never really made plans on what we would do or where we would go. But everyone, unknowingly, got together in 711. It was like fate, like destiny, like... like... okay I'm out of descriptors. Anyway, this became our sort of habit. And that continued on for the next few weeks that we would all unknowingly meet up in 711, planned and unplanned, on and off.

Since the boys and girls have separate apartments, 711 became the avenue for us to grow closer and get to know each other more. Whenever we would go on one of our shenanigans (of course initiated by the alpha Jerome), 711 is always our go to place.

Internet connection was the biggest issue thus far that we have encountered on our first land fall in our quaint little town of Oarai. And 711 was our biggest and most generous supporter during our first few weeks. It was the place that served as our mini refuge and lifesaver.

And thus, we dubbed ourselves as the Oarai Ekimae Dori 711 Crew, the lost girls and boys of Oarai.

A special word of thanks to Japan Connected-free Wifi app by NTT Broadband Platform Inc. that gave us additional connectivity during our early days here.


Till next time!

As for the next episode... First day of School. First Day High!!!

Jiko Shoukai: Presenting the Oarai Isohamacho 711-Crew

Atarashii Kotoba (New Words)
From this post forward, I will start the post with the Atarashii Kotoba section to introduce a few basic Japanese phrases, words, and expressions to help you with learning a little bit of Japanese while being entertained with the colorful life of Silak.

Jiko shoukai - self- introduction

The 711 Crew


I arrived in Japan on the 9th of October 2016. I arrived here on an early morning plane with 6 other Filipinos for the commencement of our life as students in Japan. We were part of a program that allowed us to study and work part-time in an international language exchange school for the next year and a half.

Now, before the trip, none of these 7 people (myself included) have ever met in person. We may have chatted online via Facebook once or twice, but we were complete strangers to each other. So to make sure everybody is on the same page with the subsequent posts of the future, we will be doing a quick jiko-shoukai of the 711-crew.

Sunshine

Yours truly. I am the author and writer of this little story.

I am a blogger, a nerd, a control freak, and somewhat a shopaholic. I love Japanese food, and I hate the cold weather. I love dressing cute, and I am particularly fond of boots. I usually wander off alone and am a bit of a weirdo. I have loved Japan and its culture for a long time. I am also a bit of an explainer with a compulsion to explain everything.




Jerome

Jerome is the alpha of the group. He tends to be the bossiest of them all but is also the voice of reason most of the time. He is the instigator of most of the escapades the group has. He has a powerful personality, and tends to end every sentence with "charot." Jerome can very well be the life of any party, and can definitely light up a room with his presence. This guy never goes unnoticed.



Liezel

Leizel is the little explorer of the group that tends to get lost and discover places all on her own. She is the epitome of the independent woman, able to do anything and everything on her own.  She is spunky and sweet but is a bit strict. Well, of course, she is a teacher. One more thing to love about Leizel is her friendliness and being approachable even with strangers. She has a healthy curiosity for life and culture, and basically anything under the sun.




Richard

Richard is the eldest and the father figure of the group. He is the voice of maturity and is the kindest and most caring among the crew. He is quiet most of the time and can be caught in contemplative pauses from time to time due to the struggle of missing his family back home. But, this has never stopped him from doing his job and whatever is required of him. Don't let that quiet facade fool you though, this guy is well equipped with throwing perfectly timed punchlines, enough to get everyone rolling on the floor laughing.




Regine

Regine is the second youngest of the group and tends to be a little bit headstrong at times. She is always on the go and can go for weeks without rest. She always gives her one hundred percent at work, and will always be able to live up to what needs to be done. She loves fun, can be a little rough around the edges, and a bit scaredy, but this sweetheart definitely has a lot of potentials.





Toshi

Toshi is the artistic soul of the group. As is obvious with the picture. He tends to be dramatic in his pictures and is full of artistic ideas. He is also musically inclined and has a nice set of pipes according to the alpha. He is the mysterious guy that seems to keep his activities on the down-low. He is the number one Japan lover among the crew and is the most knowledgeable regarding anything Japanese.





Carol

Carol is the youngest of the group and is our little ray of sunshine. Her laughter is one that does not go unnoticed. She is our little homebody that takes a lot of coaxing to get out of the house to explore our little hometown. She always has a lot of food to share from day one and loves going on group activities. She is the youngest but definitely not the weakest. This girl has faced many struggles and is one who can face anything the world throws at her.




And there we have it, folks. The 711 crew of Oarai study and work program. In the next episode, we will be regaling you with the story behind how these 7 people became the 711 crew.

The First Day in Oarai

 Our flight left Manila at around 12:30 in the early morning and we were provided with one hot meal prior to our arrival to Japan. We arrived at Narita airport at around 5 in the morning. We then waited for our van to pick us up and we proceeded with our 2-hour drive to the town of Oarai in Ibaraki-ken.

The first day was a flurry of events that I may have forgotten a lot of already. But let me try to reconstruct as much of what I can remember.

We arrived in Oarai at roughly around 10 in the morning. The first stop was at the school's office to pick up some provisions that we will be given. We were provided with futons, dishes, basic household items, etc. After which we were shown to our respective apartments. We were dropped off and told to be ready in an hour, we will be picked up at around 1 pm. So we hurriedly unloaded our stuff and picked rooms.

At around 1 indeed our teacher picked us up from the apartment for lunch.

This was the first encounter I had with a Japanese supermarket. Now what I love about Japanese supermarkets are the bento boxes you can buy. I'll have a separate post on supermarket food. But for that day I settled with yakisoba and sparkling water. (The sparkling water was a mistake. I thought it was plain water.) We then proceeded with a hurried tour of our new home town.

We were taken to our school and then to a household store that sells anything you might need for your homes like tools, soaps, heaters, and the occasional water and noodles. It's basically a hardware store with some items from the grocery and the pharmacy.
Our school provided us with bicycles (jitensha) for us to use to get to school and to get to various places here. Oarai is such a small town that you can use your bike to get to anywhere around town.

Our bicycles.

Here's a funny anecdote of what happened next. After the purchase of our bikes, we were told to bike our way back to the apartment. This is just for us to get used to the route going to and from home. So as we proceeded to plow our way back, we got lost that our teacher had to look for us. We agreed to meet back at 711 just in case we got lost (which we did). And this 711 in Isohamacho, became our sort of go-to place since we all didn't have internet and we were all anxious to inform our families back in the Philippines that we are okay.

And from that point forward, we became the 711 crew.
In my next post, I'll be writing about the 711 crew and its colorful cast.