A Little Info On Kirishima

As the day of departure grows ever so near, I find that I'm losing sleep over my excitement and bewildered over where to start with my packing.  Last minute things are starting to pull together, such as my international driver's license and ordered yen.

It may be a bit before I get Internet there and/or figure out where the nearest Internet cafe is, so I thought I'd make another post with a bit of info on where I'm going.

Kirishima, in Kagoshima prefecture, is known for it's vast volcanic range and beautiful scenery.  I read somewhere that it's an amalgamation of about five cities that combined about five years ago.  The specific town I'm going to is called Makizono.  The population of Kirishima is about 120,000, but Makizono itself is only just over 9,000 or so.  Kirishima has a fascinating history as it is believed that the gods first came down to Mt. Takachiho, marking the beginning of the country of Japan.  Therefore, there are a lot of festivals surrounding this legend.

Japan - Red area is Kagoshima Prefecture

I've been keeping up everyday with the weather forecast in Kirishima.  It was 28 degrees Celsius and raining last week, but for a couple of days, the sun poked through and it's been about 31 degrees.  Add some insane humidity to that and you get what one Canadian thinks is a natural sauna.  It'll take a little getting used to.

I've taken a look at some of my predecessor's photos and it seems like the people there are at least a few inches shorter than me.

So there's a little bit about the area.  Kagoshima Prefecture apparently gets more rain than anywhere else in Japan.  Looks like I'll have to bring my umbrella and invest in some hard core gum boots.  I might even have to construct a little boat and a rain coat made out of garbage bags in case there are a few more typhoons than usual in the area.

All in all, looks like a great place to live and I'm looking forward to meeting all my students and coworkers.

Preparation

It's about two and a half weeks until I depart.  I have to say, it hasn't really hit me yet.  Sure, I haven't been sleeping properly and I think about Japan all the time, but the whole thing is still so unreal.  Living in Japan has been my dream since I was 13 and now that it's FINALLY coming to pass, it's hard to believe that it's really happening.  I've been working out a little to-do list to prepare for leaving.  Along with clothes, personal supplies, and money ordering, there are the bigger things such as paperwork, firing emails to and fro, and getting an International Driver's License.


Oh yeah!  Did I mention?  I'm going to be driving in Japan.  I'm sure there'll be tales of screaming ordeals, near-head-on almost-existent collisions and a fair bit of verbal road rage.


All in all, I'm mostly nervous about the weather and the food.  The weather because unlike the dry hot/cold seasonal weather we have in Canada, where I'm going, there'll be hot/cold-ish-sorta rain-ridden humid weather.  The food because I happen to be one of the pickiest adult eaters in the history of picky adult eaters.  No sashimi for me, thanks!  I'll stick to dead, cooked meat and a side of ramen.


Other than those two details, I'm excited about everything else.  I might just turn nocturnal by the time I arrive in Tokyo for orientation.