Day 16 (2 Mitsubishi, Rejected US$10) - April 4, 2008
Day 16 - 2 Mitsubishi, Rejected US$10
Today the ALT on my apartment complex, dropped me at what I think is the central bank in Niimi...as he was on his way to renew his driver`s licence and get a Japanese one... He said you can't get another international driver`s licence from your country...unless you are there for 3 months or more....I had no clue about this...so I think I may have to do this too later on...and guess what??? It's all in JAPANESE...the driving test and everything :( :( anyway when that bridge come I cross it...Anyway went to the bank to change US $760 which I plan to make last me for the remainder of April and May (I don't know how but...)... So I waited for a while for them to change it then a lady in the bank called me and said their machine is refusing one of my $US 10...(I glad is not one of the $100 dem else mi wudda haffi start gwaan like how a Jamaican would gwaan in a bank if this happened to them). I have no idea why the thing refused my money...Now I started to get scared because I saw some Japanese guy who looked like the bank manager walking out and looking around. Our eyes made 4 then he disappeared. I started to wonder if they put up a red flag on my name or something or they think I had a counterfeit note... But I found out that all it was just that the machine rejected my $US 10 for some odd reason beyond my understanding....
After coming from the bank guess what?? I got lost... So I started walking towards a road that looked like the main road (road 180) .... however it was not the main road I was accustomed to... So I walked back to the bank which luckily was in front of the hotel I stayed in when I just came...I headed north of the hotel but again the way looked strange...so I saw 2 students walking towards me and I said:
sumimasen - excuse me
180 hi hi 180 ??? - where the hell is 180 ( it literally means 180 yes 180 yes)
And they pointed me in the opposite direction and to make a left turn... So I just went back to the hotel where I was staying at ... now this was about 11:15 and I needed to be back at my apartment by 12:00 noon the latest because my phone was going to be delivered at that time. so I went in the hotel..asked for the manager (who I had lunch with last week)... And then now...dis man don't speak English so the task is to tell him mi need fi guh a mi yard....sorry _I need to get home...So after trying to translate for about 15 minutes, he eventually understood what I meant (horaay).. and he dropped me home about 11:50...
So yes I got my phone at about 12:15 and I called a few persons in Japan to let them know that I now have a phone... I also called my mom and sis at Jamaican time 1:00 am and my sister answered the phone half asleep...of course when she heard it was me shi get up quick quick :) and mi tell har seh hey wake up di neighbours mi have phone now... lol... anyway I called the ALT who was on his way to get his licence only to find out that his transmittion in the car got messed up...so he didn't make it....Now mi start get worried...cause my car coming from the same company where dis man buy fi him own...He said they gave him a replacement one though for the time being...He eventually didn't make it for the driving test and him guh back a him yard...He then dropped me at a post office ATM so I lodged some money in my account for a rainy day...and it look like everyday is a rainy day in Japan.... And it's the first I seeing an ATM machine like this; where it actually took my book...as well as the money and updated my book automatically without me having to go inside the bank or post office... It didn't even take 5 minutes...Talk about first world...not even in the USA I see this kind of thing.
I then of course went to the slow internet cafe down the road and updated my blog....Tomorrow I should be getting my car though...which means I will sort ofish own 2 Mitsubishi cars...One in Jamiaca (that came from Japan) and the other in Japan...In Japan you have 2 types of cars you can get...the White plate which are cars over 600cc and cost 80000 yen every 2 years (car tax something) and then you have the yellow plate ones which is 600cc and below that u pay 40000 yen every 2 years...well I think is 2 years and not yearly... Of course my car is going to be a yellow plate...
I then walked back home, studied a little hiragana..took me like two days to get the first line of alphabet and I still don't know it well...I was trying for the second, third and fourth line also but them messing mi up... At least now I recognise the general difference between hiragana, katakana and Kanji writings and that is a start for now... If I can get those three...the only thing I need to concentrate on is the actual words to say for what...Kanji symbols especially are very hard to learn. After this I stayed up until about 3:00am playing Kingdom Hearts 2.
And for Islandgirl please send me an email to davay21@hotmail.com and as soon as I respond to you I will close it down instantly because I'm not supposed to put my email up of fear the students I'm going to teach get a hold of it....
Today the ALT on my apartment complex, dropped me at what I think is the central bank in Niimi...as he was on his way to renew his driver`s licence and get a Japanese one... He said you can't get another international driver`s licence from your country...unless you are there for 3 months or more....I had no clue about this...so I think I may have to do this too later on...and guess what??? It's all in JAPANESE...the driving test and everything :( :( anyway when that bridge come I cross it...Anyway went to the bank to change US $760 which I plan to make last me for the remainder of April and May (I don't know how but...)... So I waited for a while for them to change it then a lady in the bank called me and said their machine is refusing one of my $US 10...(I glad is not one of the $100 dem else mi wudda haffi start gwaan like how a Jamaican would gwaan in a bank if this happened to them). I have no idea why the thing refused my money...Now I started to get scared because I saw some Japanese guy who looked like the bank manager walking out and looking around. Our eyes made 4 then he disappeared. I started to wonder if they put up a red flag on my name or something or they think I had a counterfeit note... But I found out that all it was just that the machine rejected my $US 10 for some odd reason beyond my understanding....
After coming from the bank guess what?? I got lost... So I started walking towards a road that looked like the main road (road 180) .... however it was not the main road I was accustomed to... So I walked back to the bank which luckily was in front of the hotel I stayed in when I just came...I headed north of the hotel but again the way looked strange...so I saw 2 students walking towards me and I said:
sumimasen - excuse me
180 hi hi 180 ??? - where the hell is 180 ( it literally means 180 yes 180 yes)
And they pointed me in the opposite direction and to make a left turn... So I just went back to the hotel where I was staying at ... now this was about 11:15 and I needed to be back at my apartment by 12:00 noon the latest because my phone was going to be delivered at that time. so I went in the hotel..asked for the manager (who I had lunch with last week)... And then now...dis man don't speak English so the task is to tell him mi need fi guh a mi yard....sorry _I need to get home...So after trying to translate for about 15 minutes, he eventually understood what I meant (horaay).. and he dropped me home about 11:50...
So yes I got my phone at about 12:15 and I called a few persons in Japan to let them know that I now have a phone... I also called my mom and sis at Jamaican time 1:00 am and my sister answered the phone half asleep...of course when she heard it was me shi get up quick quick :) and mi tell har seh hey wake up di neighbours mi have phone now... lol... anyway I called the ALT who was on his way to get his licence only to find out that his transmittion in the car got messed up...so he didn't make it....Now mi start get worried...cause my car coming from the same company where dis man buy fi him own...He said they gave him a replacement one though for the time being...He eventually didn't make it for the driving test and him guh back a him yard...He then dropped me at a post office ATM so I lodged some money in my account for a rainy day...and it look like everyday is a rainy day in Japan.... And it's the first I seeing an ATM machine like this; where it actually took my book...as well as the money and updated my book automatically without me having to go inside the bank or post office... It didn't even take 5 minutes...Talk about first world...not even in the USA I see this kind of thing.
I then of course went to the slow internet cafe down the road and updated my blog....Tomorrow I should be getting my car though...which means I will sort ofish own 2 Mitsubishi cars...One in Jamiaca (that came from Japan) and the other in Japan...In Japan you have 2 types of cars you can get...the White plate which are cars over 600cc and cost 80000 yen every 2 years (car tax something) and then you have the yellow plate ones which is 600cc and below that u pay 40000 yen every 2 years...well I think is 2 years and not yearly... Of course my car is going to be a yellow plate...
I then walked back home, studied a little hiragana..took me like two days to get the first line of alphabet and I still don't know it well...I was trying for the second, third and fourth line also but them messing mi up... At least now I recognise the general difference between hiragana, katakana and Kanji writings and that is a start for now... If I can get those three...the only thing I need to concentrate on is the actual words to say for what...Kanji symbols especially are very hard to learn. After this I stayed up until about 3:00am playing Kingdom Hearts 2.
And for Islandgirl please send me an email to davay21@hotmail.com and as soon as I respond to you I will close it down instantly because I'm not supposed to put my email up of fear the students I'm going to teach get a hold of it....
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