I wish I had some sort of clever way to start this post, but right now I’m at a loss for words. After what seemed to be an eternity after acceptance letters, word finally came of my placement. All my running around town paid off, I’m headed to Japan!
The coordinator sent out an email regarding placements and such, but didn’t send it until after the May 19-20 weekend. Knowing that we were on edge dying to find out where we were headed, he posted our JET IDs along with the destination. For me, my destination is Shinkamigoto-cho, Nagasaki-ken.
After using google maps, I find that Shinkamigoto is on the FAR west end of Japan. It’s not even on one of the major islands, it’s on an island west of Kyushu. I’m excited, yet this placement feels very daunting. I always thought I would at least get on the main island, but then again, I also expected to be in some rural area.
So, following the natural progression of things, “what’s next” fills my head. There are still plenty of loose ends to tie up, but only getting the information a few days ago makes it a given. What is the next step? What do I do?
Well, first things first, get my passport renewed. It’s still good until 2009, but I might just be there longer than that. I did all the passport renewal stuff today (complete with expedited service and overnight delivery). When the government says 2-3 weeks, I expect it to come around the end of July.
Next step, tell the consulate about this change. I plan to call them tomorrow to see what exactly I need to do, but I don’t know if I send the alteration reply form before or after I receive my new passport.
Next, research about the place I’m going to. I’ve already started this with the google maps. I also checked out the city website (no English translations). I visited some JET forums to see if there’re current JETs working nearby and associations to help. As of now, BigDaikon and AJET haven’t produced any desired results.
Other than that, everything’s out of my hands at the moment. I still have to wait for the official mail to come to me, as well as any contact from the contracting organization. There’s also the orientation meeting on June 23rd.
The anticipated flurry of activity will start now, so I expect this blog to be very active for the next few months.
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