Irrrrrashaimase!

Let's see. everyone rides a cool bike. no one locks their bikes. parks galore. the city is immaculately clean, despite the sparse placement of trashcans. the trash don't stink. little doggies in little rain boots. 7/11s that aren't grimy. pasmo. elevator doors that close as soon as you press the close button. city-wide 5:00 dinner call. school children with sailor hats and square backpacks. stray cats, not stray dogs. stray cats with stubby tails. homeless people who don't ask for money. man purses. smap. punctual subway trains. shimokitazawa. men in uniforms. indian food/HUGE nan. happy hour at junkadelic. the occasional gaijin stare. mcnuggets after an all nighter in shibuya. kawaii culture. being LEGAL. my alien registration card (I really do look like an alien). oktober fest in september. the view from mori biru. deciphering engrish.

I've been in Tokyo for 1 month, 2 weeks, which means there are about 2 months left. NOT MUCH TIME AT ALL. My motherboard is fried and I'm using a makeshift tablet computer so I don't have any pictures for you at the moment &&& I am sorry that it took so long to update.

Japan has been totally good to me and I was seriously considering trying to stay the rest of the school year but I don't think this is a realistic plan. I'm really jealous of all the kids I've spoken to who have already been in Tokyo for five years. I met a bunch of people who originally only intended to stay for a semester but ended up staying for three years, so I thought it would be cool if I could be one of them but I think for now I should stick to the plan of going back in December. It's just that I really want to be here. I don't know if I can come back if I don't stay now. Not to say that I don't have my issues with Japan. For instance, race is a huge deal here. To be honest it's not really something I thought about that often in America. I feel like I have assimilated to American culture pretty well, too well in fact, and so I've lost a lot of my Chinese identity. I still identify as an ethnically Chinese person, but as a Chinese-American. The first things that most Japanese people have asked me are "Where are you from? What race are you?" I say that I'm a Chinese person from America. And every single one of them thought that meant that I'm half white. The concept of Asian-American or African-American or whatever is lost on a lot of people here, even people who go to TUJ, which was really surprising to me. Then some people started telling me that I look half white, which made me feel really weird for awhile. People either told me I looked Japanese or that I look half white; it's very strange. But apparently a lot of people, especially the younger generation, view half white/half Japanese people as very attractive and a lot of them are employed by the entertainment business. So maybe they think I'm super attractive (wishful thinking).

Well I have plenty to say about Japan but I think I will save it for another time. 3-day weekend is here and I think it'll be a good one. Another thing I love about Japan is all the holidays that give us days off from school. chyeah.. I will leave you with my favorite cell phone picture - passed out pops and passed out baby at the zoo.