A LONG Departure

On September 5, I kissed my husband goodbye and at 4:15 pm I boarded my plane at Tallahassee International Airport. As excited as I was to begin this student exchange, the reality of being away from my loved ones for a year was starting to hit me. I am sure the security guard was impressed when I rolled up to pass through security with a tear-streaked face and struggling to speak. Luckily, the TSA decided to pat me down in the hopes of cheering me up! Man, those guys are always looking out for you....

My fight itinerary included a stop in Dallas, where I would catch up with my classmate, followed by a 5 hour layover in San Francisco. I welcomed the long layover because I knew we would have to pass through security again as we changed over to the international terminal. As my luck would have it, I was chosen AGAIN to be patted down. The security line was not too long but the agents were incredibly slow as they passed people through. I struggled to not panic as I watched my carry-on luggage sit on the conveyor belt, where anyone could easily grab it, as I waited to get groped and fondled. I wouldn't recommend that you have anything less than a 2 hour layover if you come through this airport.

The flight to Haneda International Airport was on Japan Airlines and I cannot praise this airline enough. The seats were roomy, the staff was exceptional, and the food was delicious. If you want advice on choosing an airline to book, I would recommend American Airlines because they are partners with Japan Airlines and both times I have flown with them, they have been wonderful. After we landed in Tokyo, our layover was 2 1/2 hours. We retrieved our luggage and were able to re-check it for customs relatively close by. This was a good thing because my classmate had two heavy checked bags to struggle with. Our next stop was immigration. The process was quick and painless. Persons with foreign passports have a separate line and there was adequate staff on hand to ensure that the correct forms were filled out and the line kept moving. Our Visas were inspected, our fingerprints and a picture were taken, and we were on our way!

The last leg of our flight journey was our arrival in Kansai International Airport! By this point, my classmate and I were starving, bone tired, and we wanted nothing more than to get to our University. Unfortunately, we had one last segment, a shuttle bus. I was so happy to get off of
airplanes that the two hour shuttle seemed like a luxury. We were escorted to a van, our luggage crammed into the back, and off we went!

The ride to Kyoto was very emotional. I was mentally exhausted but I couldn't stop thinking about the last three years. I had struggled with self-doubt but I never wavered from my goal of studying in Japan. The fact that I was in a van, almost to my destination, my life-long dream come true, moved me to tears. When my classmate and I finally arrived at the University, the driver helped us unload our baggage and we walked towards a building with Kyoto University of Foreign Studies emblazoned on the front.

My year in Kyoto had officially begun!

Pre-departure

Greetings, everyone! My name is Courtney and this blog will serve as both a reminder of my upcoming experiences and travels and a repository of everything I learn about Kyoto and Kyoto University of Foreign Studies. I was selected to participate in an international student exchange for the 2015-16 school year and will graduate upon my return to the United States.

Before we get into it, let me give you a bit more information. I am a Senior at Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida, finishing up a dual major of International Affairs/Political Science and Japanese. At the time of this student exchange, I have just finished up my fifth semester of Japanese. You would think "Oh Courtney, you are going to have so much fun in Japan! You already speak the language, you won't have any problems!"  I might agree with you if I had studied over summer break! :)

My time at Florida State University has been been both the best of times and the worst of times. My first four semesters of Japanese had been a whirlwind of frantically studying for endless quizzes, hours of homework every day, and fighting off panic attacks before the many oral exams. It is a requirement that all student exchange candidates complete at least two years of Japanese language classes before being eligible to apply for an exchange. The Japanese language department has two student exchange programs, Hiroshima University and Kwansei Gakuin University. This combined with the fact that only one or two students are chosen for each program, the pressure to excel at coursework and present oneself as an ideal candidate has been immense. I got extremely lucky in the Spring of 2015 because the history department at Florida State signed a brand new student exchange agreement with Kyoto University of Foreign Studies!

I immediately contacted the Advisor, Dr. Kurt Piehler, to begin the application process. As soon as I was formally accepted, I began to search the internet for any information about my future University. To my great disappointment, there wasn't much in English. Besides the official website, there were hardly any pictures of the campus or the surrounding area. I decided that I would change that and thus begins my blog!