Sakura

I haven’t blogged in a while so I believe some updates are in order. There’s really only one update, and then you can probably assume the rest since I’m hardly the first person in the world to ever do this. So the update is: I’ve moved to Japan! Hooray! Here is a Sakura picture as proof:

Or, okay, I guess anyone can post a picture of them with sakura trees as long as they’d been to Japan. So you’ll just have to take my word that I’ve really moved here.

Anyway, my circumstances aren’t much different from most other people who’ve moved abroad. I got a job, I’ve learned how to remit money to my family in the Philippines, I’ve been super busy settling as I’ve only been here about a month or so and of course it was crazy busy back in Manila when I was preparing to leave.

So, I’m here now. I arrived just in time for sakura season so actually this is already a late post. The cherry blossoms where I’m at are all gone now and only green leaves are left. Not that that’s a bad thing. I’m looking forward to seeing Japan during all other seasons, too. The previous times I’d been here, it was always winter, so I haven’t seen Japan’s summer or fall. Most students tell me fall is the best season so I’m really looking forward to it. Also, that happens around the time of my birthday, so there are many reasons why I can’t hardly wait for it.

That’s all for now! Gusto ko lang talaga mag-share ng sakura pic 😛

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In lieu of living an interesting life

I watch TV.

So, you can just imagine how ecstatic I was when we finally got Netflix. I know, I know, we’re so late to the game. But better late than never, right? And, I did get disappointed when I found out that it doesn’t actually have all the TV shows and movies known to man, but after a few days, I learned to appreciate the value of seeing TV shows I never would’ve known about otherwise.

So. Now I’m watching Merlin AKA The Adventures of Merlin, which when my mom saw me watching, she asked who the characters were and when I told her their names, she said, “They’re so young!” and I had to tell her, “Yes, this is a show for teenage girls.”

But is it really a surprise to anyone that I like this show? Mind you, I binge-watched Reign that time that I got sick and wasn’t able to go to work for a few days. Not that I’m wishing I get sick now, but I do wish I had some consecutive days that I don’t need to go to work so I can watch Merlin nonstop. I’m only on Season 1 (No spoilers, please!) but I know that there are 5 seasons so I’ve still a long way to go.

And I know, I never got around to watching up to the latest episodes of Reign and Riverdale (and Suits and Gossip Girl and countless others) so I really don’t have any business starting a new series, but what can I say? The lure of magic is strong. (And the good-looking versions of Merlin, King Arthur and Lancelot, too.)

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Why yes, this entry is really just to tell you that I’m watching Merlin. Sorry if you thought that there was more to it. But this is really the most blog-worthy event in my life right now.

Expression

“Itte rasshai,” he said, right after we kissed.

“Itte kimasu,” I replied automatically.

A usual exercise in my Japanese for Beginners class was that the teacher would say a phrase or expression and all the students would give the response in unison.

‘Arigatou gozaimasu,’ she’d say. ‘Dou itashimashite,’ we’d respond. ‘Tadaima,’ she’d say next. ‘Okaeri nasai,’ we’d answer. These expressions were common and therefore useful to memorize, she told us. And then she told us about the situations wherein they were used. ‘Itte rasshai’ and ‘Itte kimasu‘ were said whenever someone left the house to go to school or work, she explained.

But R said it to me in front of the turnstile at the train station, just before I went past it to catch the Shinkansen to Tokyo.

I gave the expected reply without thinking, and smiled and waved goodbye before turning the corner to get to the platform and disappearing from his sight. I did notice him taking a deep breath after I said it, as though it was something more than a language nuance. But at the time I didn’t think it was important. At the time, I was mostly thinking about catching my train.

When I finally had some time free, I realized I didn’t even know what the phrases actually meant. I knew they were used together, but what did they translate to? I looked them up and somewhere on the Internet I found they were interpreted like this:

Itte rasshai – You’re leaving now, but please come back.
Itte kimasu – I have to go, but don’t worry because I’ll come back.

I’ve previously read about one’s significant other feeling like one’s home. I think that’s already romantic without context, but being in a long distance relationship now, it feels more relevant to me somehow. We have places we need to go and things we need to do, but at the end of the day, we come back to the person who feels like home.

Itte kimasu, Ryuichi. I love you.

Late 2017

Well. It seems the entire month of July has passed me by. I can’t believe it’s August now. Why am I always surprised when the latter part of the year begins? It happens every year. The latter part of the year, and also my surprise to it.

Anyway, let’s recap the events of my 2017 so far, shall we?

• I came back home from New Zealand
• I re-learned Basic Japanese
• My boyfriend came for a visit
• I got a new job

The fourth item, just happened this week so I guess that’s the latest news about me. And I suppose the next few months of my 2017 will mostly be about that. I hope I do well at this new job (and company). Wish me luck!

Happy the-rest-of-2017 to you!