Like almost everyone going to Japan, I was really hoping to be in Tokyo. On my application, I put my placement preference as urban with my top three placements being Tokyo, Osaka, and Hiroshima. I know almost everyone puts Tokyo as their top placement, but I still held out some hope despite the low likelihood of that placement. So when I found I would be living in Kitakyushu I was disappointed.
If you’ve never heard of Kitakyushu, don’t worry, neither
had I. Kitakyushu literally means North (北) Kyushu (九州).
Kyuhsu is one of the four main islands in Japan, directly under neither the
largest island, Honshu. After some quick Google searches I found that I would
be in an industrial city on the water. There is a castle to visit and a pretty extensive subway system including a monorail. A theme park called Space World
seems like something I want to check out and it’s going to be hot and humid almost all year round.
I’ve been asking around and almost no one knows anything about Kitakyushu other than that it’s industrial and near Nagasaki. Part of me is scared to go somewhere so new, but part of me is excited. It’s a new place I’ve never been before and even though I don’t know much about it, I’m excited to explore somewhere new. It’ll be a completely different experience than if I was placed in Tokyo or Osaka and that’s not a bad thing. I’m going to get an experience I couldn’t get anywhere else. My initial disappointment has changed into giddy enthusiasm to explore this new place. My placement isn’t going to be what makes my time in Japan amazing, what I make of my time there is what matters.
I totally agree. One common thing about being anywhere in Japan is that almost every single area (city or a bit wider area) has their local speciality in food and various cultures including language. Pick up local dialogue. Pick up local culture very different from Tokyo or Osaka. Japan provides amazing diversity in spite of its size partially because of mountainous terrains, and very strict limitation of people's movement up until the Meiji period. I am from Hokkaido. Living in Tokyo and Kansai (Osaka, Kyoto, etc.) was as different as between Japan and the United States. You do not have to hate Tokyo to love Kita-Kyushu. I am sure you will love it as you get to understand its locality. Look forward to listening to your lecture on Kita-Kyushu culture a year from now!
ReplyDelete