dorm room

After meeting all the students and getting picked up at the airport this morning/afternoon, we made it back to our dorm. The description I first got of the dorm was that it's off campus, co-ed, located in a quiet residential area of Tokyo (Okusawa), and the university provides basic furnishing (study desk/chair, futon, linens, air conditioner). I will admit to freaking out slightly at the thought of sleeping on a futon for an entire year but luckily they put the futon on a bed frame. The rest of my room is actually a lot bigger than I was expecting, I have a little genkan at the entrance for my shoes, a decent sized closet, and a lamp on my desk. Turns out I needed to bring an internet cord but the couple who run the house happily supplied me with one. There are quite a lot of rules that seem to be strictly enforced in this dorm though, the list of rules was handed out before we were assigned keys to our rooms, the same list is also taped up on the back of my door, in my student handbook, on the door to the kitchen, just about everywhere you look. Once everyone had a chance to unload their bags in their rooms, some of the 'buddy' students (every foreigner gets assigned a Japanese 'buddy' to help us get situated) took us on a walk around the dorm. We really only walked to the hyaku-yen shop and the supermarkets in the area, but I've already forgotten how to get there from here. This weekend I plan to do some exploring of my own, just to get a feel for my surroundings. At one point we passed through a little park and I'd like to find that again. I believe the nearest train station is Ookayama station, we passed that on our way to the supermarket. There were two supermarkets that we were directed towards, one had more western items and the other was mainly Japanese items. Since I wasn't entirely sure what I needed to buy I bought some orange juice, yogurt, bread, and jam for breakfast in the morning. and probably lunch. and maybe dinner. Once I get a little more unpacked and settled I'll have a better idea of what to buy. In the kitchen, which is set up kind of like a dining hall there is a cubby for each room with a basket for my pantry items, and then there is a designated spot in the refrigerator for the rest of my items. It's still all very new, doesn't feel like home yet. My walls are very empty and white, I'm hoping for some colorful cards and snail mail that I can tack up on the walls. I'm still in the process of unpacking, but here are a few pictures.

Tomorrow is another big day! At 10:30am we are supposed to meet in the common room, rip roarin and ready to go. We have 'survival orientation' by the MGU staff and buddy students. Not sure what that means exactly but I don't want to do push-ups. At 11:30 we head to Setagawa Ward Office and register as aliens! Once we're registered aliens then we are able to get all the things needed for city survival; cell phone, bank account, health insurance card, and subway pass.