Bloom In Japan

So in a little less than 17 days, I will be on a plane on my way to Japan. I am set to leave General Mitchell International Airport in Milwaukee on September 4th, and via Detroit, I will spend 12+ hours in the air before arriving at Narita International Airport (around 4:25 PM local time on September 5th). After meeting up with a representative from my employer, I will take a bus 50-some miles into Kawagoe. Finally I will take a train a short distance to Tsuruse Station, and proceed on foot to my new apartment in Miyoshi Town.

While I don’t know the exact location of my apartment, I have been able to find the local area within Miyoshimachi, which is called Fujikubo. You can see it here. I will have 2 flatmates, one guy from Australia who has been in Japan for over a year, and an American guy who just arrived this past week. Looking at the floorplan, it looks as though I will be getting the tiny room, which is only 4 tatami mats in size. A tatami mat is a unit of measurement in Japan, and is approximately 6′x3′, so I have about 72 square feet to look forward to. My room right now isn’t much larger actually, so I don’t think I will be that bothered by the size. After doing some Google Earth exploring, I was able to find a couple driving ranges within 2 miles of my area, so I should not have too much golf withdrawal while I’m there. I will give a much clearer description of the area once I’m there, as I don’t want to spoil myself with details yet.

At any rate, I am very pleased with my placement. If I were placed in Hokkaido or somewhere else I would have made the best of it, but being so close to downtown Tokyo is going to be quite the experience. I can’t wait to join 35 million close friends in the largest metropolitan area on the planet.