I just booked my flight to Prague!! So exciting...I leave Japan on the 3rd of November!! WOW- this is really happening!! I have to say I'm a lot more nervous this go around than when I was getting ready to come to Japan! Maybe 'cuz I have a clue about how hard it can be living abroad or maybe 'cuz I'll really miss my friends and students here in Japan. Who knows? But I AM so happy to be started on my new journey.
So.... it's October already! Crazy! Besides getting my ticket, what else have I been up to?
Hmm....Silver Week! Yes, I'll start there. There's always been a bunch of public holidays in September/October, but this year in order to stimulate the economy/travel industry Japan moved all the holidays into one week. So just like in May with Golden Week, now in September we have almost a whole week off thus Silver Week. I had planned on going to Okinawa, but that never happened. Mainly because as my move gets closer, I'm trying to save money. So my next thought was to go to Tokyo, but that never happened. Why? Well, there's a story there....
The Saturday of Silver Week there is a huge car race at Motegi, which is close to Mito. It's an Indy race and all the big names/teams come over from the US to race in it. And every year Saturday night tends to be a big party with all the pit crew at the Drunken Duck. This year was no exception. I went with my friend Tami, who may be Japanese but she seems to know a whole lot of foreigners. She was friends with a couple of the guys on one of the crews. So anyway, we walk into the Duck, where I've been a million times, and it was like a little slice of heaven!! It was packed to the rafters with men, and not just men, but AMERICAN men!!! Hahaha!! And not just American men, but MANLY MEN! A rare treat for me.
So the night was a lot of fun...I talked to a lot of the guys and it was really interesting. I even had a few drinks bought for me, which was nice for my ego! Towards the end of the night, I headed off to karaoke with one of the guys. And as we were walking to the place, I stepped off a curb and......CRACK!!! Now you know I was wearing heels, so yes, I totally messed up my foot. I didn't really feel too bad that night (remember those drinks that were bought for me!) but I woke up on Sunday morning and my entire foot was bruised and swollen about 3 times its normal size. And it hurt!! I toddled across the street in search of a bandage to wrap it up and then wrapped it, iced it and elevated it. By Monday, it was a bit better, but (and this is the reason for this ridiculous story) there was no way I was going to be able to walk around Tokyo all day on it. Thus, the end to my Silver Week plans!!
I ended up having Tami take me to the mall to get new contacts and glasses. And that was the extent of my long week off!! *sigh*
The foot is better...I'm not sure if I broke it or sprained it or tore a ligament because I didn't go to the doctor. the swelling is almost completely gone- after standing all day at school it does tend to swell up a bit. The bruises are almost all gone, but then again with me bruises are nothing new (being the incredible klutz that I am). And I can walk on it without pain- though it's a little sore in the mornings when I first wake up. So I figure it's healing- though I've yet to wear heels again!!
And I guess that's the most exciting thing that's happened in a while.
I'm busy sorting through my things and packing stuff to ship home. My school now knows about me leaving, though we haven't told the kids yet. I can't imagine how hard that's going to be, seeing how I sobbed when the teachers found out.
Next weekend I'm going to a Halloween party, and then we have Monday off (another holiday). And I'll be going down to Tokyo for the last time (aww- that just made me a bit sad!). Thankfully my costume does not involve heels, so hopefully I can avoid any injuries prior to my trip down to Toks!!!
So...that's it! Sorry no pics this time around- I'm sure I'll have some from the Halloween party to put up next week.
Oh- any last minutes requests from Japan? Get 'em to me before next week!
Until next time...
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