Usually when people ask me this question, they're asking, "Why did you move to Japan?" But lying on my bed in the Keio Plaza Hotel in total exhaustion after days of JET Program orientation, I realize that the better question is "Why did you move to Japan?" At least, that's the one I'm prepared to answer.
Basically, due to lack of experience and lack of money, I'm a lousy traveller. As a single Mom just trying to make ends meet, I've never been on a vacation in my life. Except for the occasional trip to my parents for Christmas, I haven't travelled. I think I've only stayed in a hotel once in the last 15 years.
So being thrown into the Tokyo experience is completely overwhelming for a small town girl like myself. Maybe, if I were younger and didn't have a kid, I'd go bar-hopping with other JETs. Probably not, though. JQS doesn't keep me from doing what I really want to do; he's just a living reminder of the life I prefer to lead.
I have no desire to experience a place by travelling through it. I want to get under the skin of the place. I want to let it get under my skin.
Posted by M Sinclair Stevens
August 03, 2003
Share Your Thoughts
I had to move to Japan, because I didn't just want to visit.