Hello, it's me again~! Aaaaah it has been a month since I moved into Japan. How fast time flies?? I remember being so nervous to settle all the documents needed before my flight... And 16 days quarantine in Chuo-city, Tokyo. And then moving into my [6-months-apartment] near my campus! Honestly, it was really challenging because, in this area, my batchmates and I are the only Malaysians (we will move into a new area, same with our seniors after 6 months, which is why we'll stay here during this period only).
Oh, actually Japan's border hasn't opened yet for foreigners and also international students, but since Japan and Malaysia have a diplomatic relationship, we're allowed to enter Japan with strict control from the government. Like, we spent almost 5 hours at Narita Airport because we needed to attend all the checkpoints for people who come outside from Japan. I think there were 8 checkpoints.....? Which include document-checking, saliva tests, installing applications needed and immigration checks.
It was tiring though, but I think it is actually a great experience.
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| [The airport vibes at Narita Airport lol] |
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| This is how it looks like! My room was at floor 10 btw |
16 days quarantine! Was super lonely. I didn't get to lepak with all my friends and just stayed in the room. The food was prepared by our sponsor so we didn't have to go out to get our food; they were sent right in front of our hotel rooms' doors. (I'm grateful for this) The room was quite spacious for one person to stay in, and the facilities were tip-top. TV, bathtub, hairdryer, microwave, kitchen, washing machine and dryer―I felt like at home!
I didn't really feel homesick at that time because the food was prepared by Malaysian cooks, so they still had Malaysian vibes. Nasi goreng, nasi putih ayam kicap, roti canai.... uh. But the most shocking thing that I still can't accept until now is that Japan is only one hour ahead of Malaysia but the day and night rotation is faster. Subh prayer now is at 4.30 am, and by before 6 am, the sun already rises. The same goes for the night, Maghrib prayer here (Japan) is around 5 pm, Isha' is around 6.30 pm. There were times that I "accidentally skipped" the prayer time though.... 😐
Not to forget I did experience my very first EARTHQUAKE during quarantine OMG, yes AND IT WAS ACTUALLY QUITE STRONG; about 6.0 magnitude. 7th October 2021, it was at 10.40+ pm and I was doing my work when suddenly I felt like my table swayed a little bit. I thought it was just a small earthquake but it got stronger and at one point I felt like riding a 6D seat in a horror cinema (obviously because I sat on the chair lol) But since I came unprepared, I didn't know what to do😓 I just sat on the floor because I didn't sure if I should sit under the table or not haha. Everyone panicked at that time and messages kept coming through WhatsApp (haha). Luckily everyone in my hotel building was safe.
So, that's all for now! I'll continue later in next post, where I started living on my own!
