Hello everyone,
today I have some incredibly amazing, life-changing news! (I’m sure you can guess what it is from the title of this post) On Monday I received a phonecall offering me a place on the JET Programme which means that by August I will be living and working as an Assistant Language Teacher in Japan!
I feel so proud/excited/happy/terrified/nervous and about a million other things all at once and I don’t think it has registered properly how much my life will change over the next few months.
When I received the phonecall I had just stepped off the bus in Newcastle to enjoy a day out with my mam as we hadn’t been able to spend much time together. It was an amazing start to the day and we couldn’t have had a better day to celebrate. The weather was beautiful and sunny and we were in a place with countless restaurants and Bubble Tea cafés.
This is me all suited and booted for my JET interview in January. After this interview I was so sure I had completely messed up my chances of being offered a place so I still can’t believe I am really going. I don’t have my placement details yet so I’m not sure where I will be living. I know it will be an amazing experience regardless of which part of Japan I am living in and I can’t wait to get there.
While I was in Newcastle, enjoying a beautiful day with wonderful news I came across this stunning tree and couldn’t resist taking a few pictures. I’m so excited that I will finally be able to experience Hanami in Japan! There is so much to organise over the next few months so I’m glad I finish University in a couple of weeks as I don’t think I could cope with the stress.
My mam absolutely hates having photos taken but she agreed to take a couple with me since it was such a special day. I have no idea why she’s so self-conscious because she’s so beautiful, and I’m really happy I was able to capture this wonderful day in my life.
We decided to celebrate with a lot of food (most of which I ate without photographing), including some tasty sushi, mantou buns, beef bulgogi, and chocolate and cherry bubble tea which may be the most delicious thing I’ve ever tasted.
The person I was most scared of telling my news to was my boyfriend. We both applied together and unfortunately he wasn’t accepted. I didn’t expect to be moved up to the final shortlist from alternate status and even though I’m unbelievably happy and proud of myself, it’s still incredibly upsetting that we won’t be able to go together. Instead he’s going to do something amazing and buy his own plane ticket to Japan, go backpacking for a while and then come and stay with me once I’ve settled in to life in Japan! Knowing that we’re going to have ways of seeing each other and staying together has made me feel much calmer. I finally feel like I can be completely happy about doing the scariest and most amazing thing I can imagine!
I’m so excited about all the experiences that living in Japan will bring and I can’t wait to be part of a new culture. I think that once I’ve received my placement details and I will finally see where I will call home for the next year it’ll begin to sink in. For now I just need to throw myself into learning as much Japanese as possible!
Thank you for reading
♥
Oh my, congratulations on getting accepted! Japan is such a wonderful place and getting to teach sounds even more exciting! (I love kids, so yeah, ahaha!)
Hope you will have fun living there and share to us the amazing things that Japan can bring whilst living there, since holiday-ing in Japan and living in Japan are two completely different experiences! 🙂
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Thank you! I’ve never taught properly before so it’s really daunting but I’m still so excited. I think I’ll probably have so much to share when I get there that everyone will get sick of hearing about it haha, but I’m still going to post as much as I can anyway!
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There are many ways to teach! You’ll be able to find the perfect teaching method 🙂 But be mindful that not every student learns the same way so you have to think of other methods too!
Good luck and have fun!
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Congratulations!! Such exciting news! And your mum is super gorgeous, I love her hair! 🙂
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Thank you 🙂 and she really is, isn’t she? You wouldn’t think she was nearly 50 haha, she looks more like my sister!
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Oh wow, congrats hun that’s amazing! Well done you! Enjoy every minute 🙂
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Thank you, I can’t wait 😀 I’ll be sure to post lots about it
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Congrats. I’m sure you will have an amazing time. I teach in South Korea and have been for a few years. Best decision I ever made.
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Thank you, I’d also considered teaching in South Korea so it’s good to hear it’s been such a great experience for you 🙂
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Waaaaah! Well done you! I’m so happy for you after all that mess last time that upset you. SO EXCITING!
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Thank you! 😀 I can’t wait to get there but I keep stressing that there’s something I’ve forgotten to do haha, I hope nothing gets in the way this time!
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Great experience you have in front you. Enjoy your stay in Japan !
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Thank you, I’m sure I will! 🙂
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Congratulations again hun, so happy for you!! I’d really love to visit Japan but I have absolutely no one to go with 😦 Maybe one day though, hopefully I can find someone who knows some Japanese and maybe has been before as my skills are non-existent and I’m way too scared to go on my own!! It’s going to be really exciting so I can’t wait to read more of your posts! Maybe you could throw out some tips for beginners visiting Japan?? 😀
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Thank you so much! 😀 If you get there you should come and say hi to me haha, hopefully my (non-existent) Japanese language skills will have improved greatly by then! Even though it’s really daunting you should go whenever you get the opportunity 🙂 I’m a total worrier but it’s way too amazing to pass up. I’ll definitely put up as many tips for beginners as I can, I’ve researched so many blogs and videos and it really sets your mind at ease seeing how other people are doing so I’d love to be able to do the same for others while I’m there 🙂 x
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I definitely would come say hi that would be great! I’m very happy for you and really excited to read more posts on your blog! x
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Oh my gosh, congratulations!!! I am so happy for you and I hope you can still blog while you’re there. I am sure you’ll have an amazing experience. ❤
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Thank you! 😀 I most likely won’t have internet for the first couple of weeks but I’m determined to keep a blog about all of my adventures there ❤
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Awesome!!
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Congrats! I hope you can post more about your adventures 🙂
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Thank you! I definitely will 😀
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Congratulations in getting the job and moving to Japan! 😀 It’s really a dream come through. You’re gonna have a wonderful time ahead of you (or maybe you already are having a wonderful time since it’s August already?). I can’t wait to read about your experiences abroad.
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