Aliens DO Exist!

So I have to go into the main office each morning and use my inkan to stamp an attendance book. This does not seem like standard practice for teachers in the school but I guess they have a different system of denoting who is there or not. The front office secretaries are really nice but communication is delayed and often difficult because the things that I normally need to discuss with them are more complicated and use words or concepts that I haven’t come across yet. I am so glad that I have some Japanese behind me though because I honestly don’t know how I would get along without it. It would be so lonely not understanding a thing and I could imagine it would be even more frustrating.

On my bike ride home, I cross the river and on the bridge I stopped dead as I stared across to the mountains. I stood there and couldn’t believe that this was what I get to look at each day. The pure beauty of the area is breath taking and it is just all around you, you cannot escape it. Impossible to explain or show in a picture, you just have to feel it. It is everything…the smell of the air, the sound of the wind and water, visually a masterpiece, and the feeling of just being in the moment. You have to experience it yourself. I want everyone who visits me to feel this. I think if they feel this if but for a moment, they have really experienced one of the best things Japan has to offer.

P.S.- Today I received my 外国人登録証明書 (gaikokujin-touroku-shoumeisho) or my alien registration card. I am now official.