Day 6: Moving into Yokohama (And My Birthday!)

After drifting the past few days between AirBnBs and Capsule Hotels I finally got to move into my dorm today! Although I will admit to missing my capsule a little, it was such a fun experience. The dorm I’m moving to however is called Meiji Gakuin International Student House (MISH) and it’s located in a town called Totsuka. It’s a short train ride from Yokohama though this morning it felt much longer since I was carrying so much again. After I regained my strength with a quick breakfast (this yummy bread with cream inside and apple slices) I got to check into the dorm. Throughout the little orientation they gave I couldn’t help but be amazed at everything they provided there. Not only was there the usual laundry and study rooms, there was also the cafeteria and a public bath! (Public baths are like really nice hot tubs in Japan). When I got to my room there was so much more room than I expected I had lots of space, a small kitchen, and my own bathroom. After I got partially settled Jordan and I headed out on a dorm supply run. I didn’t need to get much but there were a couple things every dorm needs that you just can’t bring on a plane... like toilet paper (I haven’t ventured to try the bidet yet). After shopping we went to a conveyor belt sushi restaurant. It’s there instead of having normal servers you order from a tablet and your order comes around on the little conveyor belt. They keep track of your bill by counting the number of plates you have and what color they are. I was so amazed about how smoothly the system worked, and how cheap the sushi was. I finally learned to enjoy sushi today after my terribly experience previously. Jordan was really sweet and while I was finishing up she bought me a little strawberry sherbet to eat. After lunch I went to a bakery near my dorm and bought myself a birthday cake (because why not?. After unpacking completely I went downstairs to find some people to share it with. At first I was very unsuccessful, but then I finish these two men in the lobby. One was a Japanese RA for the building and the other was from China. We all enjoyed the cake together and talked about culture and different things through our limited knowledge of each other’s languages. After a while I saw another new person come down and I offered him some cake as well. He was from Australia and had also been in Japan for a few days. I had such fun talking to them and learning about their cultures. It was a fun little birthday party. I know I will probably disappoint some of you reading when I say I did nothing else today. Even though I’m legal here I just haven’t found the right crowd to drink with yet. We will get there eventually I have four months to try it. Tomorrow not much is planned but we will see what adventures we get into. Until next time!