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 Wow....can't believe I've been back in the states for 4 whole months already~ I had a WONDERFUL time in Tokyo and Okinawa and made so many unforgettable memories it's unfathomable. I know I was able to grow a lot, both as an individual and in God, especially thanks to everyone at JLH
I've spent the past semester trying to figure out what I'm supposed to do after graduation, but there are still so many options and loose ends, it's kind of crazy. Maybe writing everything out will help me organize my thoughts...

School-wise
I'm taking classes focusing on ESL & Japanese right now, and trying to figure out what to do after I graduate in May (only one more semester left, kya!!), but not sure. I think I want to go on to grad school & study ESL more in-depth, but seeing as I'm already at the #1 ranked Education school in America...thinking it might be best to do grad school in Japan. Everything I learn in the US relates to US educational policy, not Japanese, so figuring I should know more about that to teach efficiently.

I was looking at schools in Okinawa, but none focus on ESL, only General Education or English Education taught seminar style in Japanese. Because of those limitations, been looking at schools in Tokyo as well. Applications aren't until March~May 2010 for October enrollment, so I have a bit of time to think about it, but choices so far:

1) Tokyo University
Pros: Can start in October, no JLPT requirements (lvl 1 recommended), #1 Public University in Japan, English Education Program
Cons: 100% in Japanese

2) Waseda University
Pros: #1 Private University in Japan, English Education Program, I have friends there
Cons: Matriculates only in March, 100% in Japanese, Lvl 1 JLPT required

3) International Christian University
Pros: ESL Program, starts in October, no JLPT requirements, classes in English & Japanese
Cons: not as highly ranked

I just took the JLPT earlier this month, but level 2 & I won't get the results back until March...such a long wait  Besides trying to major in ESL for grad school, I could always do Japanese Studies again at any of these universities in ENGLISH, and then just go to an ESL school and get certification, but that would just cost more money...

Job-wise
The mom I tutored for in Saitama said if I come back, she'd like to have me work at a mommy and me style English school teaching kids for $20~$100/hour, depending on the class size. I think that would be AMAZING, as I love kids and would need the funds 　However, there are plenty of other English jobs ALL over Tokyo, so I wouldn't worry too much if that didn't go through.
Also thinking of working at an ESL school in Shinokubo with a friend, since she has connections through her church. Communication with those in charge in going slow though, so seems kind of unorganized.
Outside of teaching, thinking of doing more music industry related. Helping Sweet Vacation has been a blast, and I've also recently had the chance to help A-bee and of course she. Getting to help out with such projects has been a BLAST, and I think doing more in that area when I go back would be amazing as well

Housing-wise
If I went to Tokyo, I'd have multiple housing options. I could live with the same friend who has Shinokubo connections, or with the lovely Kei~ I need to talk more with her about that this weekend, actually. Everyone I know says that Setagaya (世田谷区) is the best area to live in Tokyo, and I can see why - close to central Tokyo, where all the universities are, and safe at night - not to mention good night venues. I guess that's why the majority of inhabitants is college aged people~


Anyway, I'm also hoping going to Urbana this week will help me getting a clearer picture of my calling. I'm taking the International Students track & hopefully volunteering at the Japanese meetings (日本人集会), so wanting to make a lot of good connections!

 Right so....totally didn't realize I hadn't updated here since May, sorry all  Just been busy with life I suppose. However, that just means I have even more awesome things to talk about in one post! The question is, where to begin, haha? 

    At the end of May, I finally got to start my part time job, which is playing with 3 adorable kids to teach them English. They're 1, 3, and 4 so we have many amazing adventures X3 Well...I mean all the 1 year old can say in English is "bye bye" and he waves at me profusely, but the older two are getting a lot of listening practice. I go to their house once a week and we just play & I try to speak mostly English to them, though a lot of times they don't understand me at all, but they're LEARNING! Actually, the mom was really interested to know if I'd be moving back to Saitama next year, since she wants to start an English learning group for kids. We'll see where that leads, since I dooooo love kids  I have a ton of pictures of the kids in my facebook gallery, so do go take a look! 

    Last month, we did an elementary school visit through CIEE, and I got to spend the day with a 4th grade class. They were SO freakishly cute, and I think they were just excited to meet all of us as we were them. I got to be with a group of 5 kids, and we ate lunch together, then did recess + room clean up + one period of class. Lots of photos from that on facebook too!

    Three weeks ago, we went to Hiroshima & Miyajima for our CIEE trip, and that was INTENSE! We took the 6:30 shinkansen & that took 4 hours, and since we were spazzing the entire ride there, everyone was pretty exhausted once we arrived heh. On Saturday morning, we went to the Hiroshima Peace Museum, and that was pretty moving. I found it interesting how in Japan, the focus of the bombing is on the ground - people & how it affected lives, rather than the US view of only showing from the air...makes it a lot more personal. We also got to hear from a hibakusha (survivor of the bombing), and her personal account of what happened that day. It was really hard to listen to at points, and the potential of atomic warfare in the future is hitting me closer to home now. 

    After a day of such intensity, Leen & I just wandered around our hotel area, since there was about a half mile wide section of outdoor shopping...and we spazzed XD On Sunday, we went to Miyajima, which is a small island in Hiroshima's bay. It's really famous for the floating torii gates, since it's on the beach & when the tide comes in, it looks like it's built on top of the water. The Hiroshima area is famous for a dessert called Momiji manjuu - momiji = "red leaf" (aka maple) & manjuu is dough filled with red bean paste or anything else you can think of sweet　~ so they're maple leaf shaped manjuu. I spazzed, since there were about 10 shops at the shrine we went to that had them...and in a bazillion varieties: red bean, chocolate, green tea, pumpkin, purple sweet potato, cream, custard, etc. 

    Two weeks ago, went to the amusement park Fuji-Q Highland, which was AMAAAAAAZING!!! No one ever takes me to such places, but I have realized I LOVE roller coasters and haunted houses, bwuahaha   Got there at 9am and stayed doing stuffs til 6pm-ish? Went on...4 coasters + haunted house + did purikura & just hung out~ It took about 2 hours each way, but it was 100% worth it~ Again, check facebook for pictures ;3

    Last Saturday I wanted to celebrate my birthday, but as the second half of CIEE people went to Hiroshima, just hung out with Leen and went to a Sweet Vacation concert instead XD The more I see them live, the more I enjoy them, I think~ Hoping to see them again on Tuesday actually, since they're holding a free live at the Apple store in Shibuya  After the concert, got to talk with Daichi & May again...May's always so chipper, it's cute haha. Afterwards, did more purikura and shopping keke.  On Sunday we had a greet team dinner, but at the end they had a surprise celebration for June birthdays, so we got 2 really cute cakes heehee

    Yesterday, I FINALLY got to celebrate my birthday full out, which of course started with karaoke, which rocked. Then, we went to club asia, since Nakata Yasutaka (aka my favoritest music producer) was the resident DJ, and got to dance to his stuff for 3 hours straight keke! Actually, the fliers only said he was coming, but capsule's vocalist Toshiko came as a special guest, which just made the night even BETTER, since then they did live performances  Afterward, they came upstairs to the bar lounge and just mingled with people for a long time, so got to talk with Toshiko for a while. She was adorable and tried using English on us, but we ended up reverting back to Japanese pretty quickly haha. I was also happy, since to celebrate the artists, the bar gave out 4 rounds of free shots heh heh 　That has led to me learning my tolerance for hard liquor XD I have to say...I could not have asked for a better birthday outing

    So on the 4th (Monday), had a WONDERFUL girl's day out in Ikebukuro~ It was really crowded from Golden Week visitors, but had quite a lot of fun just wandering around Sunshine City (huge inside mall + amusement parks + etc), and finally visited a Japanese Toys "R" Us, which was quite disorganized when I thought about all the ones I'd been to in America. They did have some pretty cool contrasts though, such as a ton more Pokemon items + traditional samurai sets ($600) for children's day, VERY shiny 　We went to a Korean restaurant for dinner, and I was sadly reminded I'm in Japan...aka the food wasn't spicy at all, haha. Still good, but definitely Japanese taste suited. Luckily there are a couple of Korea Towns in Tokyo, so I just need to visit them a lot~ 
    
    I used Tuesday for running errands, and then on Wednesday went with Leen to my church's family fun day :D We went to a local arcade, and played darts + did karaoke + pool - very enjoyable all day event heeheeee  On Friday, met Nessa & some others for dinner, which was a BLAST! We went to TGI Fridays, whose menu was about halfway different, so took me a while to pick something heh. We of COURSE did purikura after we ate, and then got crepes 　I seriously think I have an addiction to those things...but what a BEAUTIFUL addiction it is~!! 

    On Sunday, our church had baptisms, which was SO much fun!! They actually have a seperate baptism time after service, so we got to do worship + focus more on the event that way. I'm soooo excited to see what God is doing in Japan, I just wish I could stay in this community longer~ But there's a season for everything ne? And I'm trying to get ALL of what I'm supposed to for the period I'm here. After the baptisms, we all went out for Korean food, since we held the service in Korea Town. I was FINALLY satisfied with my bibimbap (soaked in hot sauce heh...) + kimchi jijimae (soup) ~ 　My stomach was happily burning afterward. I'm not sure how much everyone else enjoyed it (especially the Japanese people), since they were all sweating from the spiciness >__>

    This past Wednesday, went with Christie to go to the immigration bureau to have our VISAs updated so we can work while we're here. Unfortunately, the map we got was AWEFUL and we spent 3 hours wandering around, by which time the place was already closed >__> Sooo gotta retry next week! Speaking of work, I found someone else in Saitama with THREE amazingly cute kids who wants tutoring for them~ They're 1,2 and 4, so I'm not sure exactly how/what she wants them to be taught, but meeting her next week to discuss~ It sounds like a lot of fun, and seeing pics of her kids just made me more excited XD Went to Wednesday night church, and the current theme is relationships, so I'm enjoying that on many levels~ After that, went across the street to kaiten (rotating bar) sushi, which now that I know is so close, shall be visited much more often

    On Friday, I went with Leen, Kyle, and Jordan to E-TRiPPER 2, which was a techno/electronic concert featuring 6 artists including one of my favorites Sweet Vacation (which I also have a fansite for). I actually got to meet them afterwards, which was REALLY cool~ They're both really nice, so I hope to see more of their performances again before I leave. E-TRiPPER 3 is in late August, so I'm just barely missing seeing them again in that, bummer :/ Oh, and I forgot to mention in my last post, but I'm continually updating my facebook photo gallery, so do check it out!!!

 MAY 2009 PHOTOS: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/album.php?aid=2150897&id=4713353

 Sooo, I'm finally getting used to classes, which is helping me get back into the groove of doing homework and realizing I need to study sometimes lol. Though technically I never REALLY have homework - just 10 minutes of Japanese/day. I do reading for one class before the class...and none for the other 2 so far XD But that's because the books came in late (or haven't yet at all), not because I'm a bad student or anything yo. Very unorganized, but no complaining, since I have plenty of free time for other things!

    I haven't really been doing much besides school, since classes start at 9:15, so I'm up at 7, and then I get home around dinner time and I'm exhausted so...yeah, lol. I'm enjoying church outreach on Mondays though, since we go to local fastfood places and strike up conversations with people + invite them to church. Great way to meet people, I'm discovering :D 

    This past week, we had a 2-day concert/conference, which was AMAZING!!!! I wish we could have one every week - soo much good worship + messages. Luckily,  bought a 2-day pass, so I got a free copy of the worship done (CD), which is all Japanese translations of Hillsong praise. I'm also realllly excited that around 50 people got saved. That was like 25% of all Non-Christians who came...compare that to the fact of 99% of Japanese being Non-Christian and what would happen if such messages could get spread nationwide. Thinking like this always gets me excited

    Starting this week, it's Golden Week here in Japan, which is basically a bunch of holidays in a row, so I have Monday-Thursday off, w00t. Yesterday, went to China Town in Yokohama, which was a BLAST! Ate way too much Chinese food though, so my stomach kind of went crazy heh ^^; Also planning on going back to Kamakura later this week + trying to meet up with as many people as possible, since it's one of the few holidays where most businesses are closed too (so I can see my friends who are already out of college). So um...yeah, that's about all for now XD

 So um...I'm not quite sure if I mentioned this yet or not, but MY LIFE ROCKS!!! I'm not sure I'm ever going to understand why I'm so blessed all the time, but maybe that shouldn't have to be answered.

Last Monday, I had another free day, so just relaxed & went shopping lol~ On Tuesday, we had a taiko drum lesson, which was AMAZING! The instructor was still really young (24), and he + his brother & friend are all in a taiko group called Mugen (infinity), so we got a free mini concert after the lesson. I really wish Sophia had a taiko club, because I would join in a heartbeat - really fun + great cardiovascular workout. I got my Japanese placement results back afterward, and I'm in Japanese 4~ It's like 4th year Japanese, so I placed right where I am, haha. On Thursday, we had a walking tour of Yotsuya, which was pretty interesting~ Learned a lot of historical background info about the area. Our guides were cute little old Japanese people who had awesome Engrish. After that, went to Harajuku and did MORE shopping heh.

On Friday, went to Kamakura by shinkansen (bullet train), which was REALLY cool - very limited amounts of stops over long distances. Took us about an hour to get to Kamakura, since it's in Kanagawa (the prefecture SW of Tokyo), but we got to visit 2 major temples + a shrine + the Daibutsu (great Buddha) , which was AMAZING. Even went inside of it XD When I got back, went to the first English Club meeting, which was a BLAST! The club is connected to (and run) by the young adult pastor from our church, so maybe 1/3 of the members go to my church (or visit from invites through the club heh), so it's GREAT for making new connections with other college students. I was actually a bit surprised, since we not only have members from Sophia, but also from Waseda University, Meiji University, and Tokyo University - SO many new friends!!

On Sunday, had a GREAT Easter service, and wish all services could be that awesome X3 I found out I can help with the children's service during 11:30, so I'm UBER excited to start helping out with that next week  Also means I'll be at church from 10:45-6:30 every Sunday, heh...must remember to get homework earlier now. Good too for teaching me how to prioritize, I suppose~
 
I started classes on Monday, and I'm still thrown off by the fact that I have no classes on Wednesdays, since all the classes here run on a Monday/Thursday + Tuesday/Friday schedule. Always seems like it's the weekend in the middle of the week, then I'm robbed of the sensation that night when I realize I have homework due the next morning rofl. My first week of classes is officially OVER, and I'm very relieved haha. I must edit my sleep schedule even more, since I have to wake up at 7am every morning, but I need more time at night to do everything I need to do >__>

It felt nice finishing class at 12:30 today, then going to English Club lunch, then hanging out with awesome church buddies, then adding on school buddies, then hanging out, then going to English Club dinner and making even more friends XD I'm never ceased in amazement of how God can work things together so well without me even having to do anything if I just let Him be in charge. I've been blessed with SO much & with SO many friends that are actually there to support me, I'm realizing what a church is supposed to be about. Must take these notions back with me and apply them in all my relationships.

     This has been yet another fun but extremely tiring week~ On Monday, we had no events, so I just stayed home & did chores/ran errands. I officially had my first experience with Japanese washers...and I do no like them rofl. It took me 4 hours to do 2 loads of laundry, since it took me forever to figure out how to #1 turn them on, and #2 dry stuff. The washers here don't drain after a cycle, so you get a big sloppy/dripping mess to deal with + dryers cost 100 ($1) yen per 30 minutes, and it takes 2-3 hours to dry the clothes (hence I switched to line drying after 1 hour lol). I mistakenly put a pair of new jeans in, so everything else in the load turned blue, thus had to hand wash each piece for like 3 minutes...had very soar hands afterward  On the up side, I know 100% know what NOT to do for the rest of the semester, heh~ 

    On Tuesday, had more orientation & then went to Shinjuku for lunch at a kaiten (rotating) sushi bar  We then went to Harajuku and shopped! Of course went to get crepes + do purikura too XD Spent the rest of the day there, and I still have yet to find a good tote bag for school :/ Wednesday was another free day, so slept in & then studied for the Japanese placement exam. That took quite enough brain power, as I'd forgotten how much effort it really takes to keep up with the more advanced kanji. On Thursday I finally got my commuter passssss~! I now have unlimited rides from my dorm to school and anywhere in-between, heh heh! Unfortunately, my route goes past NOTHING interesting >__> No Shinjuku, Shibuya, Harajuku, Akihabara, NOTHING! Those are all west of campus, and I live north of campus *sigh* It is nice that I only have to pay for 2 stops when I go to church though, since it's very close to campus & on the same line  

    Yesterday was the Japanese placement exam, and that took SO much energy, kya ! Was doing that for 2 hours straight, and REALLY hope I did well, cuz I need a high ranking class to transfer it back to my school. Most of the content (even one of the reading sections) was STRAIGHT from the book I've been using the past 2 years, so that was a semi-nice break. Also found out that the more advanced Japanese classes don't meet on Wednesday, so would love a free day X3 The course catalogue for this semester just came out on Thursday, so noticed that ALL the classes I want to take are on Monday/Tuesday, so I'd only have to come to campus for Japanese the latter half of the week~ Would spend the same amount of time in class as it takes to ride the subway there/back. After the exam, went to Shibuya for lunch at a kaiten sushi bar again & then to Akihabara. Last night, there was a welcome party for all the international students, and met some awesome people~! After that, went to karaoke in Yotsuya, which was a blast. It's nice finally having recent songs to sing

    Today went out for hanami again~! This time, we went to Ueno park, which is famous for hanami and it was PACKED!!! We got there, bought takoyaki & then bought some lunch, came back to eat & enjoy the view, went to karaoke, and THEN went back to the park, since it's lit up at night. Was soooo pretty today! The sakura have been in full bloom the past couple of days, so was perfect timing  I have officially had my FAVORITE night of washoku/okashi tonight, as I ate: takoyaki  , okonomiyaki  , and anko taiyaki  Afterwards, went to Akihabara & just wandered around for a while, and now I'm home yay!! Check facebook for new photos ;)

     And so my first full week the dorm has come to an end...so sad, yet I'm glad everything already seems so familiar ^^ I've gone multiple ways to/from the station + shopping centers every night, so I'm getting to know my way around this area of town. If you make me go on the other side of the station, however, that's a different story! 

    Woke up bright & early on Wednesday to do alien registration, and now that it's over with, just have to wait 2 weeks & I can go pick up my card. That also means I can sign up for a 6 month softbank plan, yay  After that, we went to Shibuya and did lots of shopping~ Most stuff there was overpriced, so just bought some accessories, though...boo. HOWEVER, did find a 4 story TSUTAYA shop with a Starbucks in it, so that definitely deserves some more visits in the future!

    On Thursday, we had a CIEE scavenger hunt, so we got a day pass for the JR and had to travel all over Tokyo looking for stuff >__> Was fun, but 5 hours of traveling like that can be exhausting. I did however get introduced to the BEST food in Tokyo - CREPES!! They are sooo amazing, for serious~ Got a tiramisu one filled w/ bananas, caramel, whipped cream, and tiramisu 　Afterwards, went back to Harajuku w/ Amy & Christie and we shopped for a while. When we passed by the 2 story claire's, WHAT could they be playing but capsule's album  FRUITS CLiPPER  !! I had to stand in there for a minute in amazement. Stuff in Harajuku was cheaper, but it was all eh. I see why it's always filled with jr. high & high school girls. We did however get to take PURIKURA!! I should figure out how to scan pics of the photos we took...so cute~ Got home around 8, so basically crashed after that.

    On Friday, we got to go to Ikebukuro for our earthquake simulation training. Got to practice using a fire extinguisher , getting out of a smoke filled area　, and taking cover during an earthquake, very fun if I do say so myself~ We finished around 5, so then went back to campus & got info about hanami (花見). Went to that yesterday, which was a BLAST! We went sakura viewing near the imperial palace, and the awesome people at the Japan National Theater gave us free heart shaped senbei (rice crackers) XD The festival ended around 4pm, so then we headed off to Shinjuku for the night. Went to a rotating sushi bar for dinner & the more shopping, w00t~ I think Shinjuku is my favorite area for shopping so far - they have music + affordable clothes & accessories. I still need to find the shop there that only sells socks - would be FUN, heh!

    Today, went to life group for the first time, which was majorly fun~ I need to go buy a prayer/Bible study journal now to help organize my thoughts for future discussions (and for personal use of course). After that, got to help with the welcome team for the 4:30 service, then went to the church meeting at 7:00. Met SO many awesome people today, I'd love to stay at this church the remainder of my time in Tokyo. If anyone wants to come with me in the future to check it out, DON'T HESITATE TO ASK!! I love church buddies, and I 100% guarantee you won't regret going  They're holding a conference next month, which I need to sign up for too, looks really interesting~ If you'd like to come, LET ME KNOW, can get you in free. I finally got home around 9:30, and had a late dinner (yay for SEIYU and their awesome spicy chicken katsu curry), and now I'm just plain exhausted...very hopeful though.

    Tomorrow is a free day, so planning on doing lots of errands - laundry, cleaning room, studying for placement test, buying a prayer journal, etc. if anyone wants to get together (hanging out or even study group), would love to  Check out my facebook for new photos!!

     I got to sleep in yesterday from not having orientation until 1pm, which was NICE! Though technically I still got up around 9~ At the meeting, we talked about cultural adaption and how the first 2 weeks are like a honeymoon then you drop. I suppose that means I've been on an extended honeymoon for 6 years XD Fine by me though! After orientation, everyone got their cellphones, so now I feel even more deprived >__> Luckily, going with Christie to the softbank store again tomorrow to speak with English staff~ Hope that goes well! We then went to AKIHABARA (aka AKIBA for short), which is the electronics/anime/manga section of Tokyo~ They have buildings 13 stories high filled with stuff, so we only got through one building (rushed) in 2 hours. There was a ton of cool stuff, so I must be going back...a lot.

    Today, we had more orientation & as part of it we went on a bus tour of central Tokyo~ We even got to walk around at the imperial palace + Asakusa (historial/traditional area) and visit the Senso temple. Our tour guide, Mai, was awesome...especially since she used a pikachu on a stick to help us keep track of her Can be kind of hard with 100 American college students roaming around, heh~ The Asakusa area is also famous for a sweet called agemanjuu, which is fried and filled with bean paste usually...I got 3 and loved them all, since they were made to order  Afterward, I went to the JR line and got myself a PASMO card. It's like a credit card for the train/subway system - you put money on it & instead of having to buy tickets each time, you just swipe your card over the gate and it deducts the amount from your PASMO account. Here's what mine looks like:  Also has my name printed on it.

I added some new pictures from today and of my dorm, so do check them out  http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2145379&id=4713353

    Yesterday morning, we all checked out of the hotel & went to Sophia for a quick dorm orientation. Some Sophia students helped us with filling out alien registration forms (in Japanese of course), so hopefully that'll go through with no problems! After I get one of those IDs, I can get a regular cellphone  Which reminds me, must go get some student photos made tomorrow, so I can turn those in on Wednesday when we go to submit those forms! 

    We took the subway to the dorm in Kawaguchi, and kind of got lost for about 20 minutes trying to find it (boo for bad maps, lol), so my neck really hurt from carrying around my luggage We have 2 dorm mothers - Asaokasan + Mineyamasan, both of which ROCK!! They're funny, cute, little, and old XD I'm really sad they're only temporary managers until the end of the month... My room is on the 4th (top) floor, and we have no elevator, so you can imagine all of us trying to get suitcases up to our rooms, very dangerous with all girls XD We went to the 100 yen shop + local shopping center, so my room is starting to look a bit more custom (自分らしい)~ 

    After Asaoka-sa gave us a tour of the dorm & Mineyama-san gave a tour of the town, we went out for lunch at an Indian restaurant, which I now officially LOVE, kya  Because this area is more residential, there are a TON of restaurants, shopping centers, etc & it's also got a lot of greenery for being so close to Tokyo. In fact, the view from my veranda is a garden. The dorm managers make us breakfast & dinner (that's ALL YOU CAN EAT), so I'm a very happy camper, heh~!

    I'm not sure if this is due to jetlag still or not, but I CANNOT sleep later than 8am, even if I want to. It'll be helpful for weekdays, but for weekends it's very not nice >__> Went with Chisato & Shenitra to the local shopping center to look for a power cord adapter, but the local electronics store doesn't have any, so going to AKIHABARA tomorrow after orientation~! Had lunch at mos burger & ordered the Spicy Cheese Burger, which is the BEST thing in the world, oh my giiiish! It was topped with (Japanese) cheese, mayo, jalapenos, and salsa, and made me so happy. It also counted as the messiest things to eat.

    After that, went to the 100 yen shop & then church with Jordan :D We accidentally took the JR line instead of the subway, so that made for a transferring adventure rather than just a straight shot on the Nanboku line :9 Can't complain though, it meant we got to go through Akihabara & several other places. It was raining + really windy all day, so our train had to stop...in fact a lot of JR trains stopped or were delayed again because of the weather. Church was really good, and already got invited to a Bible study on Sunday, so hopefully I can go to that~ Service is at 4:30, so really convenient to be able to do stuff during the day then go. It is kind of buggy since it's an hour ride on the Tokyo Metro, not to mention $7 each way, but since it's on the same line as Sophia, it'll be covered by my commuter pass as of Wednesday!! Means I'll only have to pay like $1 instead.

    Got home around 7pm, so went to the local grocery & bought some dinnnner~ Now very tired, and not sure I want to wake up by 8:30am for breakfast, haha. Good thing I bought an apple + tsubuan (skinless red bean paste) roll just in case ;9

 So today we had a free day, since CIEE was busy doing the orientation for homestay students~ I was planning on using the time to sleep in until 9, but I woke up at 6:45 and then finally decided to get up at 8 XD It'd been raining since even before I woke up, so twas a pretty gloomy morning. I met Christie around 10:30 & we grabbed brunch from 7-eleven then went over to the local KDDI + Softbank offices. We got a clerk who didn't speak English, so that was fun...also spent like 20 minutes just tweaking with phones on display. We were able to get a list of local softbanks with English staff, so shall have to visit some of those~ I'm hoping to get a regular [NOT prepaid] phone, since I'll be able to use it again when I come back next year & whatnot~ CIEE got a deal for a discount on their prepaid model, but it looks very uninviting  However, the perk is I could buy one of those on Monday, whereas I have to wait a couple more weeks for my alien registration card to purchase a regular phone plan.

After that, we walked maybe 30 minutes down a road & found lots of cool shops + a bookstore and another train line XD I bought the next 2 volumes of the Shugo Kyara manga, so very happy~! After that, we walked back to the hotel for the Shibuya tour, but we were 5-10 minutes too late ;___; So we rested for an hour, then went back out again XD We went to the Korean restaurant beside our hotel for dinner, so I still smell like Korean food, heh. We then discovered the wonders of the shops above the Yotsuya train station, so I shall be visiting more a LOT! They have a gelatto shop (SUPER cheap) that we bought yumminess from, a GODIVA shop, Talbots, a bakery, accessories shop, shoe store, and more~ It's like girl shopping heaven haha.

After that, we went & got allergy medicine for Christie, since she seems to be sensitive to something in Tokyo air...I'm surprised I'm not reacting to anything. I always hear from Japanese friends that they lose many allergies when the come to Tennessee. Glad it's not working the other way for me XD Anyway, getting up early tomorrow for dorm orientation, so that's all for now :D Check facebook (same album as below), as I've added more pics from today!