Tokyo Orientation!

こんにちは 皆さん! Hello everybody!

It has finally happened! Tokyo orientation has come and gone and I am finally in Japan, a country I have loved and dreamed of for years. As I type this, I am sitting in my new apartment in Hirosaki. But that's for my next post! This one will be all about Tokyo Orientation, so let's get started!

Arrival

We arrived in Tokyo on Sunday, August 4th around 2pm. Sunday was a full free day. However, after landing, we had a 30 minute bus ride to the hotel we were staying at and we had to sit through some brief information before checking into our rooms.

My first ever view of Japan!

The inside of our hotel!

The building across from my room.

By the time we all got settled, it was getting later and most of us were tired. Now, I do know some JETs went out for a night on the town. Karaoke, bars, ramen, etc. As good of an opportunity as Tokyo is, I myself am slightly less interested in late nights and parties so I walked to the Shinjuku Central park and wandered around for a bit. 

The very next day we were off and running with orientation!

Orientation

Monday officially started our two-day post-arrival JET orientation. The purpose of this orientation is to provide a basic introduction to life on the JET Program. A basic outline is as follows:

• An introduction to the significance of the program, presented by Japanese Government officials
• An introduction to the JET Program positions and related conditions in Japan
• Workshops that introduce jobs skills participants will need to fulfill their positions, conducted by reappointed ALTs, CIRS, CLAIR, and the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology.
• A forum for meeting other JET participants from all around Japan as well as reappointed JETs representing their host prefectures/designated cities. Participants can ask specific questions about their placements and positions that will be answered by representatives that have first-hand experience in working in Japanese schools or local government offices.
• A Q & A session for the prefecture representatives in which contracting organizations can ask questions and share information about participating in the program.

As somebody that does not have a background in teaching or education, I found this orientation to be very informative and reassuring. After being accepted, I was surprised by just how many ALTs actually didn't have a teaching background but it really did make me feel much better knowing that they were coming from a similar place and were still able to be successful. If you're afraid of applying to JET or have been selected and are getting nervous, I hope this makes you feel a bit better too! My direct pred came from a similar background as me (international/East Asian studies, Japanese, etc.) with no teaching and she was still able to give a lot of good advice and had thrived in Hirosaki! Just like with any job, you learn as you go and you will have a support system to help you.

This is good because, if I am being completely honest, I got homesick the second day of orientation and it lasted through the 3rd day when we departed for our placement. I wanted to immediately get back on a plane and go home to where I was comfortable. To my family, friends, and (perhaps the hardest!) my dogs! However, because of this support system, I was able to reach out to my Prefectural Advisor, who got me in touch with my Regional Representatives. Once I got to Hirosaki though, it was like a weight was lifted!

All in all, even though orientation is only a 2-day affair, I believe JET, CLAIR, and the Japanese government did a decent job putting together an informational set of seminars. My next post will be about my apartment so stay tuned to get an idea of Japanese living!