Pre-Departure

The time has finally come for me to leave my hometown in Champaign-Urbana and travel to Nishinomiya, Japan for nine months of study. I am a third year at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, majoring in East Asian Languages and Cultures with a focus on Japan, and in order to better learn the language and culture of the country I am studying, I decided to do a year-long study abroad at Konan University, which is located in Kobe. I will stay with a host family who live in Nishinomiya, a town that 30 minutes from Kobe and Osaka by train.

I have not yet met the host family, but I have spoken with them a bit via email. Through these interactions I have learned that they are a couple, presumably in their 60s, who have two children who are now grown up and in their late 30s/early 40s. They have had around 15 international students stay with them before, they said, which is nice to hear because while I have absolutely no experience with this sort of thing, they certainly do and will be able to help me when I inevitably encounter tribulations during my time abroad.

I am (mostly) all packed, I've printed out my ticket and other affiliated paperwork, I've cuddled my cats for a good several hours, so by all feats of the imagination I should be ready to depart on my journey, but yet I find myself immobilized by apprehension. The source of this apprehension is the level five super typhoon "Jebi" headed to Japan, scheduled to arrive the day my plane lands.

Those of you who know me well know that I tend to be very meticulous when it comes to planning, even more so when it's travel-related, and when things don't go according to plan, I become anxious. A level 5 typhoon was not in my plans. To say I am ruffled (sorry, couldn't resist a lolita pun) is an understatement. I am perturbed. Should my flight be delayed (or even cancelled!) I could miss the required orientation sessions and language testing. There's also the fearsome possibility that my baggage could be lost or damaged, which would be a downright tragedy as I have all of my favorite dresses packed (((I could also potentially die in a hurricane, but my lolita dresses getting ruined is a far more miserable fate))).

However, I do not have the power to change the weather, so there is nothing I can do except worry and finish packing. My next post will most likely be on September 5th from Incheon Airport, where I have a small layover before flying to Kansai International Airport. Until next time, dear readers.