Arrival.

So, right now I'm in the Center for International Education's computer lab at Kansai Gaidai. How I got here entails a pretty uneventful story.

First off was the most stressful part: checking in at Kennedy, and even that wasn't so bad. It was just being completely flustered at how much anarchy the check-in desk seemed to be consumed in. That and almost getting denied our tickets right off the bat because United was unaware that we had our visas permitting us to stay long enough for the return trip in May. Fun.

Customs was a breeze on the U.S. end, and soon enough, we found ourselves on the Boeing 757 that just happened to be bound for San Francisco. Can't really say much there, 'cause I either was sleeping, or was in some kind of catatonic unsleep state.

(Also, this was my first time being on an aircraft larger than a Piper, but the only thing that really got me was the sheer force behind the takeoff. Dramamine saves lives.)

San Francisco was easy, too. We didn't need a second customs check, our baggage was taken care of, and we had a bus cart us over to the international terminal. The worst part of California was having to pay $5 for an Internet terminal (airports don't believe in free wifi, and I found that out the hard way -- SAD DAY).

About 20 minutes after that, our Boeing 777 started the boarding process, and we were on our way to Japan.

It only took 10(!) hours.

Sleep was hard to find, and catatonia decided to stay in Cali. So most of my flight was spent either flipping between movies, listening to the crap radio, or staring at a GPS map while listening to crap radio.

I did manage to find some opportunities to sleep, but it didn't make the notion of the flight any easier to swallow.

Then we landed on the artificial island of Kansai International. The Japanland customs check was even breezier than Kennedy's, save for the long lines. Soon enough (after negotiating the meaning of "north exit" with the customs officer), we were in the main terminal, waiting for the bus to university.

It took an hour and a half to get from Osaka Bay to Hirakata City, but the boredom of the bus ride was alleviated by fellow gaijin who were as in disbelief as we were that we were in Japan, halfway around the world from where we had started, at some point in the afternoon the day before, Japan time, where we understood 100% more of what the signs said, but were 50% as interested.

We soon landed at Seminar House 2, which is attached to our dorm, SH1. After quickly registering and getting our stuff sorted out in our rooms, we got our much needed showers and sleep.

For operating on a time zone that is completely opposite what I'm used to, I got a decent night's sleep. Tiff and I took the walk over to main campus in the incredibly humid weather the next morning (today), and here we are.

We're going through the orientation process right now, which involves us being given a stack of papers and then told "GOGOGO," so wish us the best of luck. Expect pictures soon.

-James