Life has been full of drama since I last wrote. When I left off before, I was staying with a host family whom I barely ever saw or spoke to. Because of this, I decided I would be happier if I moved out. This is exactly what happened, with no hard feelings.
My new host family were everything I could have hoped for. Not only was everyone extremely friendly and interesting, they also lived much closer to university, and this made the daily trip to and fro significantly easier. I did miss my bicycle for a while, but I think I was able to see more by walking.
Together, we went on various short trips around Japan ? to Kyoto to try my hand at pottery and even a town called Shirahama in Wakayama prefecture, where I clambered over rocks and cliffs to my heart’s content. These were fantastic experiences for me, and with them I had some of the most fun of my entire stay in Japan. I was thrilled to find my host family even had a piano in the house, so I was able to continue some of my more recently neglected hobbies.
Semesters for exchange students and non-exchange students sadly do not coincide. As the Japanese students filtered back to university after their spring holidays, my semester was already halfway over. Still, I watched the various clubs set up stalls for orientation, trying to attract new members, and it occurred to me that I really wanted to join one. For me, the obvious choice was something to do with music, and thus I ended up signing on to Keiongakubu, or the “Light Music Society”.
It proved to be the right move. Keiongakubu introduced me to Japanese students with shared interests, and provided me with opportunities to practice my Japanese, make new friends and play music all at once. The club is time-consuming, and as a new member I joined the even more dedicated lighting section. However, it’s something I love so much that I hardly notice the time it takes up, and I still look forward to every practice with a great deal of anticipation.
But unfortunately, not everything has necessarily gone flawlessly. For example, on many nights club practice would go on until quite late, and on one of these nights when walking home, I was followed by a strange man who wanted me to go home with him. It got to the point where he grabbed my arm and would not let go, but luckily I managed to half-talk, half-flee my way out of it. The experience was frightening, however, and taught me that even though Japan has a reputation for being very safe, it’s still better to be careful just in case. I think it’s very important to stay optimistic, though, and not become mired down by a few bad things ? the good ones far outweigh them.
And things could not go on forever being wonderful, it seems. As much as I loved my new host family, I was summoned by the university staff one day and told that I was going to be pulled out. Needless to say, this was quite the shock, because I had been very happy there. At first I was so confused and hurt, because I felt as though it must have been my fault somehow, and yet I had no idea what I could have done wrong. I like to pride myself on my personal integrity. But these are the risks every exchange student must take when studying abroad. Sometimes there is simply no way to avoid them, no matter how hard one tries. All I can do is accept it happened and not take it to heart too much.
For the last two weeks of the semester, I am staying at one of the seminar houses instead. After exams, nearly all the other exchange students will be leaving to return to their respective countries. I wish I had more time to spend with them before they leave, but everyone is busy. At the end of semester, I will move into an apartment and continue with Keiongakubu, which I am immensely looking forward to. If there is one sole decision I am especially glad of so far in my time here, it’s joining a club. Because of it, I have something I really love to look forward to every day, and I cannot be lonely.