By now, I have had about one week of classes. Since I am taking none of the Japanese language courses, I had to sign up for seven classes to keep my visa as NUFS requires me to have 14 credit hours and each class is 2 credit hours. Monday is my heaviest day with three classes, but I have them all with Buckie so that was a nice surprise. So far, my classes have been shockingly easy, which is the complete opposite of what I expected. I had been very worried based on my own preconceived notions that Japan’s classes and teachers were very hard. I had been terrified that my classes would be so hard that I would fail them and see a terrible drop in my GPA, so I was very thankful when they seemed easy.
Another Godsend I have had is my dormmates. We spent one night playing video games until midnight, and we have been inseparable since. One of them is actually Alex, the other Tech student! But we are the only Americans in this little group we have. We have two people from the U.K, one from Wales, one from Ireland, one from Australia, one from Indonesia, and one from France! We spend pretty much every day together in the dorm common room playing video games, talking, or just chilling in the same area together. I have felt a lot less lonely now that I have made these friends.
I haven’t been in this country for long, but I can already tell I am changing. I am usually introverted, and I was like that for a few weeks- I talked about this last blog. However, I was sick of being lonely, so I actively made myself hang out in the dorm. I am so glad I did, because these people are so good, and have made this trip so much better! Anyone who knows me knows this is very out of my character to go out of my way to make friends. Even Buckie mentioned she had been worried I wouldn’t make friends. I am very proud of myself, and I do hope I bring this confidence with me back home.
