First Week of Japanese High School!

Hello!

I have now successfully my first week at a Japanese high school (kind of). The reason why I say "kind of" was because it was only half-days for the first week, because it was still technically spring vacation. I just got back from my first (half) day of school as a second year, which was super exciting! But first I'll talk about my time as a first-year student.

To give more insight into the Japanese school year, it ends before spring break and you move up a grade after spring break. Thus, summer break is in the middle of the school year. My school is a rich private school, so of course the students didn't ACTUALLY get a break for spring break. They had half-days of school every weekday. Americans would not consider that break haha! Anyways, I attended the last week of those half-day classes. Every day got better and better!

The first day of school was definitely not how I thought it would be. Note: the fewer expectations you have, the better! Almost every exchange student talks about how the kids scream and shriek when you wave at them, but that was not my situation. The kids in my class were already very accustomed to foreigners, because a long-term exchange student had been in the same department the past year, as well as two short term exchange students actually being in the class. I had to start most of the interactions I had with people, which is not necessarily a bad thing!

There's actually a considerable amount of people who are half Japanese and half something else. I was pretty surprised!

The last day before the new school year was definitely the best. I guess it technically was the new school year, because it was the opening ceremony. The vibes were happy, lively, and I was cheerful as well. It made me really excited for school!

Bye-bye!

A Week in Japan!

Hello! It's been a while :) Sorry, it's been really busy!

I've been in Japan for a week now! It's now March 29th, and I arrived on the 22nd :)

As for events, I'll start with the AFS USA orientation in Los Angeles before leaving Japan. I arrived in LA on the 19th and I was the third person there. The orientation was actually incredibly fun! Even though the orientation went from the 19th to the 21st, I was never bored. The people who ran it were really into it and cared a lot about preparing us! When we were all leaving at the airport, the person who ran the orientation specifically called me out and said "I'll be looking out for you." The kids were incredibly nice, funny, amazing, EVERYTHING! I will remember some of them for a long time! I'm also excited to have the same type of experience as them, which will bring us closer together.


The plane ride was long but good! They had a really nice movie selection, and I didn't get any emergency bowel movement types of things (which could happen!). Not really a lot of talking happened on the plane ride, because everyone was sleeping or watching movies.

Then we arrived in Japan! I was amazed by everything at first. We took a bus from the airport to a fancy hotel, where we stayed one night. From there, we went to three different orientation sites. There was Tokyo, for people staying in Tokyo, near Tokyo, and above (like Hokkaido), Nagano for people around Nagano, and Osaka for people from Osaka and below. Since I'm in Miyazaki, which is on Kyushu, the southernmost island, I was in the Osaka group. Osaka group was lit!!

We took a 10 hour bus ride from Tokyo to Osaka, where I discovered the wonderful items in Japanese convenience stores. The ride was fun, long, and brought us closer together. At this point, there are people from all over the world. The Osaka crew really made me want to learn Spanish, which is actually going to be my next target language! Anyways, once we arrived in Osaka we stayed at a youth hostel for 2 nights. No wifi, 6 people per room, and group bathing! I discovered that a community bath is actually fun, and I have no problem getting naked with strangers ahaha. Of course boys and girls are separated.

After that, I took a 1 hour plane ride with the other Miyazaki and Miyazaki-Minami people and I arrived in Miyazaki! The more I see this city the more I love it. It's been a little cold the past few days, since it's winter, but the building have a nice aesthetic. I met my host family, and I love them! My host brother and mother are both lively and funny! I'm not really sure how much I can say about them because of privacy reasons. But yup! Today I went into  my school and received a tour as well as important documents. And OMG my school is so high tech. There's 3 buildings, most doors are automatic sliding doors, and the toilets are the ones that have tons of options. I'm excited to start attending!

じゃ、またね〜
Camilla Pernell

Update! Host Family and Placement

Hello!
Happy New Years! Hopefully 2017 will treat everyone well :)

I've gotten lots of information since my last blog post. Just this last Saturday, January 7th, I had a SEVEN hour orientation. And this orientation is going to be my shortest one! The orientation really made the concept of going abroad real to me. This is really happening. I am going to Japan! was a constant thought circling my head. It's actually pretty cool, because there are three people from Colorado who are going to Japan at the same time as me. That's a substantial amount, considering ~35 kids from the US go to Japan, so 3 is a large percentage for a kind-of low population state. I only got to meet one of the kids going, a girl who is a junior. She was super cool, so I'm excited to meet the other kids going to Japan as well.

Now on to the information that basically made me jump up and down in excitement: my host family and city placement. I will be in Miyazaki in the Miyazaki prefecture. It's in Kyushu (very far south) and practically a tropical paradise. At first I was a little bummed I was gonna be super far from Tokyo, but then I watched videos on Miyazaki and realized I'm going to be right next to the ocean in a tropical paradise! I've never even been to a beach before, so I'm super psyched. Here's a video about Miyazaki if you're interested, by Rachel and Jun.

Miyazaki Prefecture!

Miyazaki compared to Tokyo

My host family is going to be a mother and an eleven year old brother. Most people have gotten HUGE families, so I'm pleasantly surprised to be a part of a lil teeny family :)

My high school is going to be Miyazaki Nichidai High School, which has SUPER cute uniforms. According to my mom's Japanese boss, it's a good school.
 here's the uniforms. Cute!

I've also decided to make a YouTube channel, so if you want to check out vlogs as well feel free to check that out!

Have a nice day~

Update! 100 Days Before Departure

Ale (from Italy) and me

Norwegian cake from AFS potluck

Here's a lil short update! First of all, I was officially accepted into AFS Japan, and I know my departure date! American AFS-ers leave for Japan March 21st, and the orientation starts March 19th. My mother is thrilled, but also a little reluctant to let me go. My friends are also excited for me because they know how long I have wanted this!

And yesterday marks the checkpoint of 100 days before my departure! I am feeling so much joy and anticipation it's crazyyy.

Today, I attended a delightful AFS potluck party. I got to meet almost all of the exchange students living in Colorado and it was such a blast. Exchange students are the nicest and most welcoming people you will ever meet, I swear! I loved talking to all the teens about America vs their country, memes, you name it. I thought I might have been awkward, but that was not the case at all :)

Anyways, finals are coming up, and after that I am doing my first home schooled experience ever :O I'm only being home schooled due to credit reasons, because my normal school couldn't give me credits for the semester since I'm leaving in March for Japan. It's long and complicated, but it'll be a new (fun?) experience for me.

Hello! My Name is Camilla Pernell

I'm a 15 year old girl who loves singing, dancing, exercising, reading, and being with friends. I'm goofy, I make mistakes, and I always strive to be the best me I can be.

My friend, Dylan, and me

One particularly strong interest of mine is my love for studying Japanese. Japanese is a beautiful language that I've learned consistently since eighth grade, but have dreamed of speaking fluently since fifth. Now, thanks to the immense generosity of AFS (http://www.afsusa.org/), I am going to Japan for a year!

I know going to Japan will seem like a new life. After all, I've lived in in the same house for all my life, and I've known some of my friends since preschool. So when I think about my upcoming adventure, feelings of anticipation, anxiousness, and glee course through me. But most of all, I feel grateful for all the help I've received from AFS and my mom. 

Why Study Abroad?

Perhaps my most practical reason for studying abroad is fluency. I want to be able to read novels, watch shows, and talk to friends in Japanese. I hope to even become a translator in the future. I'm also excited to meet many new people who have grown up in completely different environments! I think people are amazing, so being able to experience such an interesting culture is the opportunity of a lifetime. I want to eat ramen straight from Japan, go to purikura, wear a uniform for the first time in my life, learn the fashion trends in Japan, watch interesting Japanese shows, and have a host family that I'll love. All of these reasons (and even more!) are why I want to go to Japan with AFS.

After the exchange, I hope to use my knowledge from Japan in assisting me with everyday life. I cannot wait for the surprises, challenges, and lessons I will learn. I don't know what to expect, which makes me even more excited.