For as long as I've lived here I can remember experiencing much of Japan with a somewhat jaded outlook. Sure, at times things have seemed exciting and new but for the most part I just felt weary and lately have longed for home like nobody's business. All the little lifestyle changes have niggled at me (the language barrier, my illiteracy, the excessive politeness, my role as an assistant teacher, the pay cut etc) and looking back it's pretty clear that I've spent a lot of my time in a mild cultural depression. But not anymore! Recently I have started to look at Japan with fresh eyes and in all honesty, I'm loving what I see!
It's not that all of the irritating things have disappeared or that I have better learnt to live with them. It's just that I've come to appreciate the fact that my time in this, often bewildering, country is finite - and quickly evaporating. I've started to feel like I don't have enough time for all of the adventures out there for the taking, as my social schedule booms and the diary begins to fill fast. The weeks aren't long enough and the weekends can't come fast enough to allow me to do and see and experience everything on my list. It means that downtime spent at home or even within this prefecture has begun to grate on me, especially as I look back at all the time I've spent tucked under the sheets watching films, lolling about my apartment in my underpants or idling the weekends away in Tokushima doing nothing really special at all.
And it's not just my motivation towards doing things that has been revitalised... I am also thoroughly enjoying my (albeit minor) role teaching, food has never tasted so good, the countryside seems teeming with golden photo opportunities, my creativity is piquing and I've started looking around with awe and wonder again (crazy products at the supermarket or advertisements on the train, anyone?). Not quite sure how long the upswing will last, but for as long as it does, I'll be happily chilling here in my little Stage 1 bubble.
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