"What's it like in Japan?

The question I get on a daily basis, answer, think about and write about. Japan is fantastic! Japan is very Japanese. Week one consisted of Jetlag, meeting people, forgetting everyone's name, introducing myself to one person five times and not introducing myself to five others because I thought I already did.

Week two was the culture shock, I practiced Japanese for nine months, but I don't speak a word (I think this is the 'duolingo syndrome'), going to the supermarket took forever because I couldn't find anything and had to change the recipe in my head every time because certain things just aren't available. Week two was also the week I started a blog, to give a little direction to the question of 'what's it like in Japan', both for myself and my friends and family in the Netherlands.

What's it like at the university?

The academic year started here on Wednesday, April 10, so when I had my first day on March 11, the students here were still on ‘vacation’. In Japan, it is common for master's students to work on their graduation research for two years; in addition to their graduation project, they take courses. So during that vacation between years 1 and 2, they keep working on their project, with a day off here and there. It is hard for them to grasp that I am doing a research project here in three months and that I am only starting my graduation project after this.

Students here are part of a ‘labo’, the Japanese abbreviation for laboratory (not to be confused with the afko ‘labo’ used in The Netherlands) from their last year of bachelor's. The Yamamoto (Power Electronics) labo that I am part of here is similar to the research groups at TU/e. One big difference is that the students and staff make up the labo together: we have two lab rooms,  so each student and staff member has their own desk, every Wednesday is a seminar in which a number of students or staff members present their research for everyone in the lab, there are activities such as a monthly movie night, bi-weekly sports night and on Fridays everyone speaks English at lunch. The meetings and presentations are in Japanese by default, the slides I have been given are Japanese, and for many labmates the English language is a challenge. Short sentences, slow talking, simple words.

Due to my fortunate timing, I was in Japan just in time to experience both the "farewell party" for graduates, and the "welcome party" for new members. During those nomikais (drinking parties), I quickly noticed that Electrical Engineers here, just like in Eindhoven, are a lot less shy after a few beers.

'What's your place like?'

The house I live in has 40 rooms, about half of which are occupied at the moment. There is a living room, kitchen with dining room, home theater/gym, hobby room (including piano), bathroom and (I think) 8 showers. In the Netherlands I traded in my student room for a studio last November, using my 6-year waiting time at Vestide, in Nagoya I could choose which room I wanted based on the dates I entered, then I got a credit card link to confirm the reservation (and the rent is half of what I pay in Eindhoven.  

Such a Sharehouse is incredibly diverse, there are a few Japanese, a German, a Bruneian, a Korean, but I think half the residents are French. The ages range from 20 to 40, there are those working and those studying, there are those who think washing dishes is optional and those who complain that no one properly washes the dishes. You can always find someone to eat dinner with, chat with or watch a movie with.