I have arrived!

So much has happened since I left! The plane ride was incredibly, horribly long and on both plane rides I might have slept a total of 45 minutes. And it didn't help that I barely slept the night before.
I spent more than 15 hours on plane!!! And I could not sleep AT ALL! Sitting up and sleeping doesn't work very well for me!
When I arrived in Japan Kae and her Dad were waiting to pick me up! I went to my first genuine sushi restaurant!!!!! And I even tried raw fish and squid! Amazing right!?! Well the fact that I tried it was amazing not so much the actual taste. the squid was so chewy that I couldn't just take a nibble... I had to put the ENTIRE thing in my mouth. I was so close to *walking the dog* that I had to spit it out. There was just no possible way that I was going to swallow it.
After that we went to a Hot Spring place. It felt so good after such a long trip. I was even at all shaken at the fact that you're naked with a bunch of other people around. I was in a female only area of course!!! Before you get into the water you have to wash yourself. So I did... The warm waters were so relaxing!!!! There were different types of hot spring pools. Some had seats where water jets are and gives you kind of a massage and some are just hot.
The next day we went to Namba! Kae and I rode the train to get there. There was even a STARBUCKS!!!!!! There were actually 3 but i only went to one. Namba is where I bought my cell phone! I pretty much just sat there while Kae talked. At this point I'm doing a lot more listening than talking. After that We met up with her dad and went to an international pub where I had my first legal alcoholic beverage. I mean first alcoholic beverage... 20 is the drinking age. Then we went to karaoke!!!!!!! I was a little shy at first but it was a lot of fun after I warmed up to it! Kae's Dad was hilarious. He sang a queen song, and the Japanese version of "living the viva loca"! I sang 2 Japanese songs, "A Whole New World" with Kae, "Under the Sea", "Before He Cheats", "Friends in Low Places", and a few other songs! after that we went to a sukiyaki place and ate and then went to another sushi place and ate! I was SO full! Then we went to another hot spring place! This place had an electric bath... I did not really enjoy that. I couldn't sit down all the way it was too weird! When we got Back to Kae's house she had a few friends over. I was a little shy at first because I know little Japanese and they know even less English. But it was fun and I enjoyed myself!
Monday night I met Kae's Mom and her Mom's parents. We had dinner at their house. The food was amazing! After dinner they had plums. I bit into it and thought it tasted weird but I kept eating it. I thought "Why does this taste so sharp?" Then I realized that they were plums that had been sitting in alcohol for 5 years... I could only eat one... It was ok but not the best. Kae and her Dad took care of me while I was there and I know I will be seeing a lot of them! Especially Kae! I'm so lucky I had them around! I only paid for my cell phone! Everything else Mr. Miki paid for.
Tuesday!!!! I have finally checked into my seminar house! For orientation week I have 2 roommates but one of them has home-stay so she will be leaving. I'm not sure but I think I have to change rooms as well. When I got here Kae and I met up with our friend Chisato (She also studied abroad at Towson) and then we met up with Justin (he was in my Japanese class at Towson). We ate in the cafeteria which has good food for a cheap price! Very exciting!!! Chisato then took us on a tour around Hirakata! It started to rain after a while but I didn’t care! It was my first rain in Japan and I was happy! We ended the night at an okonomiyaki restaurant where Chisato works. The new manager was our waiter and was absolutely, amazingly cute!!! I kept drinking my water or taking someone else’s cup that had less water than mine just so he would come back with more water! I went to the bathroom a lot while I was there... I even asked if he had a girlfriend! And he didn’t so I worked up the courage to give him my number!!!!!! Well with some pushing from Kae, Justin, and Chisato. I’m kind of scared if he does call because I’m not going to understand him right away...
I pretty much love it here and maybe the only culture shock that I have experienced is that everyone is so polite! You walk into the store and EVERYONE that works there greets you bows and smiles! Everything else is not too big of a difference. I have an open enough mind where most things don’t bother me! I mean I get to walk around barefoot! We all know how much I hate shoes!!!!