For those that wish to visit me....
Today, I got my placement for GEOS. I will be staying in Niihama, Japan in the Ehime prefecture. The town is a small town of approximately 50,000 on the north side of Shikoku island, and on a clear day, I've been told that you can see the main island of Honshu actross the Seto Sea. As mentioned before, I am right on the Seto Sea, and directly to the south is are mountains. To the west a bit is the capital of Ehime, Matsuyama. I don't know what lies to the east yet... As for how far I am from other things, I am 5 hours by bus from Osaka and 2.5 hours by train. Turns out this is a relatively easy place for a foreigner to live because they have a website designed for us gaijin. It explains all the events going on in Niihama.
As for when I'll be leaving, it will be sooner than later. The previous teacher's contract ends on July 17. Ideally, I'd need to be in Japan before that so there's no lag in the teaching schedule. But, I'd need to first go to a training seminar in Vancouver. This will take 4 days. I can either go on July 5 or July 12. I'd prefer that I go on July 12 just so that I can be sure that I can spend the 4th with my family, but if not, GEOS will put me up in hotels. I may be staying in Vancouver for the extra days, or I may be put up in Japan. I'd prefer a few free days in Japan, but we'll see.
It's crazy. Now, my dream is even more real that it was before. I know when and where I'll be living for the next year of my life. Everyone that reads this is more than welcome to come visit. We'll hit up Japan and have lunch. But in all seriousness, if anyone is looking for a good vacation, I'd love to see some of my friends from the other side of the world. I doubt that I'll be too lonely, but I'm going to miss a lot of people. So, come see me.
Sayonara
As for when I'll be leaving, it will be sooner than later. The previous teacher's contract ends on July 17. Ideally, I'd need to be in Japan before that so there's no lag in the teaching schedule. But, I'd need to first go to a training seminar in Vancouver. This will take 4 days. I can either go on July 5 or July 12. I'd prefer that I go on July 12 just so that I can be sure that I can spend the 4th with my family, but if not, GEOS will put me up in hotels. I may be staying in Vancouver for the extra days, or I may be put up in Japan. I'd prefer a few free days in Japan, but we'll see.
It's crazy. Now, my dream is even more real that it was before. I know when and where I'll be living for the next year of my life. Everyone that reads this is more than welcome to come visit. We'll hit up Japan and have lunch. But in all seriousness, if anyone is looking for a good vacation, I'd love to see some of my friends from the other side of the world. I doubt that I'll be too lonely, but I'm going to miss a lot of people. So, come see me.
Sayonara