Let's Start at the Very Beginning, Part 3

Shopping

Lists, lists and more lists. I have never kept so many lists in all my life. In preparing for and moving to Japan I have come to rely on lists. I have always prided myself on being able to keep track of just about everything in my head. It might been the jet lag, or the overwhelming amount of new information or it might just simply be I'm getting older. (cough, cough) 

Therefore, this post is all about the long laundry list of the Must-Haves, the Want-Nows and the Somedays and how/where I was going to obtain said items.

Must-Haves (in no particular order):

• bed
• couch
• fridge
• stove
• bath towels
• dishes
• silverware

Want-Nows:

• air conditioner
• fan
• microwave/convection oven
• guest bed
• kitchen cabinet
• bedside table
• dresser

Somedays:

• coffee table
• rugs
• desk
• extra bedding

Part of the problem was I couldn't remember exactly what was in my shipment (wouldn't arrive for another few weeks) and I didn't want to end up with a bunch of duplicates. 

Where does one shop in Tokyo? There's no Target here, no Wal-Mart, no Kohl's, not a whole lot of familiar. But what they do have is everybody's favorite SUPERSTORE:

During our first couple of weeks I made at least 3 trips to this mecca. Each one left me exhausted, frustrated and confused. It gives me shivers just thinking about it now 3 months later! 

Let's just say that furnishing an entire apartment in 2 weeks is crazy, expensive and daunting! The school gives us an allowance to help with getting set up. It was like playing a really long game of Mall Madness.

If you're unfamiliar with this gem, you should stop what you're doing

and check it out! Your children and your children's children will thank you. :-)

Thus began the laboriously long process of shopping, arranging deliveries, waiting for deliveries and assembling furniture. As much as I have always loved shopping I have had to really learned to prioritize and weigh the value of each shopping trip and whether or not it is really crucial to bring an item home.

I have discovered a couple of Japanese stores that I really like. I have found the Japanese salespeople to be some of the most helpful people I've ever encountered. The fact that I don't speak their language never appeared frustrating to them. They took on each request as a new challenge. 

Shimachu sells housewares as well as furniture. 

Nitori is a less-expensive version of Shimachu.

JMart is Tokyo's version of Wal-Mart. 

They sell just about everything.

Every step of the process takes about double the time as it did back in the states due to travel, language, unfamiliar stores, language, unfamiliar products, language and many other factors such as language.

Let's Start at the Very Beginning, Part 2

House Hunting
Prior to arriving in Tokyo the Head of School's Assistant provided all of the incoming teachers a map of the surrounding area and possible areas where we may be interested in living. Not knowing anything about the area or what the map even meant in terms of reality made it very hard to do any prior planning. I decided to forgo any research and just wait until I was here and could . Maybe not the best of plans especially considering how jet-lagged I was the first few days and how busy they kept us, but oh well. The first morning after arriving we headed over to school to fill out some paperwork and then met up with the Housing Specialist, Toshi. He took a few of us around to see a couple of small, modern places and then to see some more Japanese-style places as well.

There were 4 of us looking at about the same number of apartments. So began the process of elimination. I tried to imagine myself in each of the 4 contenders. I did not bring any furniture with me so I knew whatever I bought would be bought with the intent of filling a particular space so that made it a bit easier. The first apartment was just too small. The second apartment was over-budget slightly, but had spacious storage, lots of natural light and a separate room for guests. (hint, hint) The 3rd and 4th places were traditional Japanese with tatami mat rooms, beautiful wood details and plenty of space. 

To make a long story short I went with.......

Apartment #2!

It seemed to suit me best and I feel so lucky to have as much space as I do. It is only about a 10 minute walk to a train and a 15 minute bike ride to school. I feel safe and sound and secure.

The whole process overall was very different than what I'm used to. A lot of Japanese landlords don't want to rent to Americans. (They think we're too messy.) There were some delays and setbacks because of Japanese holidays and applications but in general it was a smooth system.

My apartment is on the 3rd floor, right in the middle. 

I found out after I moved in that on a clear day I have a view of Mt. Fuji!

Plenty of natural light and lots of storage.

Bars on the window to keep me safe. ;-)

Little itty-bitty kitchen that got even itty-bittier 

when I got a fridge and dish cabinet.

Move-in day! Just me and my luggage. Shipment wouldn't arrive 

for another couple of weeks and I hadn't bought anything yet.

Next up...shopping!

Let's Start at the Very Beginning, Part 1 (of many)

Where to start? I wish I had been able to find the time (or wherewithal) to start this blog a month ago. So much has happened. The good, the bad, and the UGLY.

Let's start at the very beginning, a very good place to start.

Wait. Different country, different story.

Arriving in Japan
Entry in to this country is pretty effortless. They are super efficient and make it easy to find your way through a sea of foreigners. 

Jet lag is a beast no matter how far you fly. This time change is 13 hours from VA so you get your days and nights mixed up. Luckily the first night I was sooooo tired I slept like a baby. Each day/night got a little easier.

The school put all of the new teachers up in a hotel near a main train station.

It was convenient, small, clean, cramped, etc. I had 3 large suitcases piled on one side of the room and took up one of the single beds with all my CRAP. From this command central we attacked an overwhelming conglomerate/menagerie of shopping, searching, exploring, eating, and everything else that it takes to set up a life in a new city.

The following 2 weeks included finding an apt (more on that in a later post), learning how to navigate a Japanese grocery store (which is often in the basement of a department store), eating new and exciting foods (udon, soba, sushi, shabu-shabu, yakitori), shopping for furniture to fill an entire apt (IKEA and I are not friends right now), learning some basic Japanese (don't ask me to repeat any of it...my database consists of about 6 phrases...thank goodness for Google translate!), visiting a Japanese Costco, making new friends (feels like an instantaneous family), seeing my classroom, learning the train system (thank goodness for helpful apps), and observing this new culture and taking it all in.

Stay tuned for the next installment...In the meantime here are a few pics to tide you over.

Entrance to the Old Part of the School

A typical side street in Kichijoji

Just a little light music to entertain while visiting the children's department.

Tempura and Soba...yum!