Living La Vida Loca

If you have decided on going abroad for studies, there are 3 ways of living life in that new foreign country...

1. Home stay,
2. Dormitories
3. Self rental apartments

Option 1 is for the adventurous people who love to meet new people and learn the culture & language of the people... Maximum style! It's great when you have a supplimentry family that may not be blood related, but can always be morally supportive. And home stays provides with plenty of opportunities to mix & mingle with the locals, and who knows, love might blossom... HAha.

Option 2 is actually a more recommended method if Home stay fails. In the dorm, you will always have chances to meet new people. But this is when you interpersonal skills must come in play. Don't shy away, if you need help ask and you shall receive. Not too sure in general, but some dorms (like mine) comes with a mix of local & foreigners and some are just for foreigners. If possible, I strongly recommend going to the dorm where you can mix with the locals.
Like in my case, while in this dorm, I get to observe the day to day manners that the locals do day to day. And as a friend who was once a foreign x-change student once told me, staying in a dorm is safer since you know you've got friends living together.

Option 3 is also for the adventurous type with a streak of rebelious nature. Staying in your own rented apartment is one of the options with the most freedom, but also the choice where you have to spend the most. When you rent your own place, you have to either do it in advance before you arrive, or hunt for a place while staying in a temperory hold up (e.g Hotel, friend's place etc).
I had my options pinned on this. But in the end, the odds were against me. Firstly, I hadn't looked for a place in advance and staying in a hotel even for 4days was very taxing on my wallet. And moreover in Japan, you need a guarantor who must either be local, or loaded. (in some cases, like mine, the school may also wish to be your guarantor) So be sure to check the terms & condition of rent.
Also, not that I wanna rain on your parade, but when you look for an apartment, be sure that it's furnished or you'll be finished. You wouldn't want to spend extra cash just on furnishing (unless you're dead rich) and certainly not the time & effort looking for them. Moreover, you've gotta clean and cook for yourself or spend more eating out... 1 thing I learned is that eating alone can be lonely and food gets really yucky...

Well I'll leave you guys to ponder over it. But if you should need anymore advice, feel free to comment, but I can't be certain when I'll ever get back.

Life as a 留学生 (Foreign Student) in a Foreign Country

After so long, I finally decided to come back to use my blog spot. And what better way than to use it for the better of MANKIND (my ass!)
Anyway, currently situated in Sapporo, the central of Hokkaido, Japan. For people wanting or considering the thought of furthering your studies in a foreign country, ask yourself the following:

1. What are you doing now and what do you wanna do in the next 5yrs?
2. Do you want to learn a new language? [Like in my case I'm taking Japanese]
   
3. If yes to the above, what language?
4. If not, what do you want to study?
   
5. Are you going to support yourself on this trip, or someone else is? [Feeling rich?]
6. For how long do you want to achieve this goal? [Like myself, I'm doing a 1yr langauge course]
   
7. What do you wanna do after that time frame is over? [Work, settle down, play/ tour etc...]

Maybe there are more questions to this list but I think essentially you should do these questions first then consider other questions that pop out along the way.

Now as mentioned, I'm doing a 1yr Japanese Language course in a country that is foreign and everything is different from home. Be it weather, the food eaten, sight, sound, smell... the list goes on. But understand this. It is important for you to bring your mind to a state to want to accept these changes. Especially if you are taking on a new language.
I'm not asking you to throw away years of culture and language of your native hometown, but like in the land of Japan, don't expect anyone to speak in the same tongue. Same goes for countries that have their own native languages (e,g France, Spain, Italy, China etc).
I think many times people who tend to leave after a short time and not perservere to the end are the people who can't adapt to the new environment. True, 'a leapord can't change its spot' but 'a dog can always learn new tricks'. Being human, we tend to compare one thing to the next. But I think, stop comparing for a moment, and look at the new surrounding. Find out the things that you can never find back at home and have fun. Go hike a mountain or sing Karoke... whatever it my be.

Time and time agin, we will start to get homesick, miss our beds, miss the food, miss this & that, but the thing about living away from family & friends is so as to find new families & friends. It's like playing a RPG (role playing game), being the hero, and exploring new unfound places.
And with the development of technology, you are just a phone call away from home. (Honestly I do miss home, but with Skype, sometimes it's hard to miss my family & friends... Haha)
Well anyway, if you ever decide on studying abroad, consider the things you wanna do and how you plan to do it. Do it with a bang and don't live to regret it.

Experiences are one of the hardest things to earn in life. Learn with you eyes, ears and heart, for you never know when you might need them.