March 4, 2011

Hello.
My name is irrelevant. This is my first post of many to come this year. This BLOG is my travels in Japan, doing this both as part of my Benjamin A. Gilman Scholarship, and for those thinking of undergoing a study abroad program.
As all of you know (well, I hope you know) the earthquake/tsunami of March 11, has taken the life of many people, left more homeless. It has also caused the reactors at Fukushima’s Nuclear power plant to malfunction and leak radiation. The combination of these factors, currently, has put the Indiana University schools into a state of paranoia about sending students over to Japan. I am currently six days overdue for my flight to Tokyo. Luckily the airport understands our situation and has allowed us to postpone the flight until we find out when we can go.

Back Story:
I am a twenty-six years old man. I have been attending Indiana University, Purdue University of/at Indianapolis(IUPUI) for the last four and half to five years. I’ve moved around most of my childhood, and most of the friends I’ve ever gathered during that time, I have lost contact with. So those friends of mine that I am about to leave for a year, to go to Japan, I will miss while I am over there. I am going with one girl, who I hoped to be something more than just a friend, but won’t be anything more. So I have a tether line to my old life in America. My majors are Japanese Language and Culture, and Creative Writing (I specialize in fantasy mainly).
I am not what you would call an ‘A’ Student. Hell, I am not a ‘B’ Student. I don’t care for taking tests or studying, what I know, I don’t get from books. I live in the moment, I listen, and I watch. I can’t tell you the formula for Pie, but I can tell you how to make a story. I know I am not perfect, I am still alive and breathing, so I am always changing. I hope some things will change in my year in Japan, I’ll look over this Blog then and put it together as a Novella, so I hope it is interesting.

Current Life:
The Hakuoh exchange program is held at IUPUI twice a year, where IUPUI students go to Hakuoh, which is located in Oyama Japan, for a either a Japanese semester, or a year. I didn’t meet the requirements to apply, but a good friend of mine, Helen, talked me into applying with her. After a few months of waiting, I found out that I was accepted. This didn’t sync in until a few weeks ago when I was informed that I might not be going.
I realize that IU is concerned about the students safety, but at the same time, I know the risks involved and I am old enough to make the decision whether or not to risk it.