Japanese Placement Test. Ohgodwhy. I bombed that test so hard, I was about to rage and flip the table over. I don't understand... I answered the first 6 questions like nothing. But what they were asking for the next 16 questions was just... what. And the rest of the exam after that set stated outright "Do not answer these questions unless attempting to place into God-level Japanese classes", so I just turned in a less-than-half-filled test. And the interview with the lady was awful too. So many words I didn't remember or ever learn. She asked me what I did in Hiroshima and I told her some stuff... somehow the topic of my love for melon bread came up and laughter filled the room. Just laughing, and laughing, and laughing. That was fun, though strange. I definitely expected to get placed into bottom-tier, never-before-learned Japanese level. Sigh...
After the placement test, we had a little bit of time before heading to the Shirokane campus in Tokyo for a "Welcome Party". Very vague, according to our schedule, so we didn't really know what to expect. The trip there was long and I didn't really like that we were forced to go, and therefore forced to spend money on transportation that we didn't want to spend. The walk was long from the station and there was definitely a different air to the city. It was like America Town, where there were Outback Steakhouses and TGI Fridays. It was strange. Outback was actually comparable in price to America, surprisingly enough. We arrived at the campus and were immediately awestruck by it's beauty. The original buildings from the 1860s are still standing and being used, so in a sea of skyscrapers, there's a small patch of land with old, gorgeous squat buildings. But all the way at the back end was a 10-floor building used as the main college building. We reached the top floor and were greeted by *gasp* English-speaking people! It turns out the welcome party was a meet-and-greet with the other exchange students that take classes primarily at the Shirokane campus. Lucky ducks.
We did introductions, blah blah blah, and then came the FOOD. The spread was fantastic, with a grand variety of Japanese-styled dishes. Sushi, sushi balls, some meat pasta thing, creme brulee, orange juice, gyoza (potstickers), yakitori (beef skewers), and so much more. Some few of us mingled with the other exchange students, a group comprised of people from all sorts of countries. Germany, New Zealand, England. Texas lol, just to name a few. They were nice enough, though I think some cultural differences may have stirred a bit of a debate between some members of each group. Strange... All is good over delicious food, though!
We returned home and I got to the arcade for the second night in a row. Game City down the street from me is basically the greatest thing ever, with Project Diva Arcade, the newest PopN'Music, Beatmania IIDX, ReflecBeat JuBeat, Guitar Freaks/Drummania, pachinko slots, fighting games, UFO catcher crane games, and just... gah. Too much. I love it so much. I'm going to try my best to play PopN' almost every day, get a tiny bit of practice in constantly so I can go back to the states able to play hard stuff. Not that the PopN' machines are common in SoCal. Ever since the best arcade in California, Arcade Infinity, a year and a half ago, it's been slim pickin's for us music-rhythm game addicts. Meanwhile, JAPAN HAS EVERYTHING. I wish I could just stop raving so much, but it's just too great. Still so in love with the nation and everything related. I can't even begin to think about leaving.
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