The preparations continue...

I don't really have any reason to post today, but I feel bad for those I have told to watch my blog even though I haven't been posting. I will try to keep posting occaisionally up until I leave, though I may not have much to say.

Things are slowly starting to fall into place for my internship in Yokosuka. Takahashi-san (my contact person at city hall in Yokosuka) has informed me he will pick me up at the airport when I arrive on June 6. They are going to put me up in a hotel my first night somewhere in downtown Yokosuka so I can get a feel for the city. Takahashi-san will then meet me in the morning and we will walk over together to city hall. To me, this sounds like an excellent way to relax away some of my jet lag and pre-job anxiety. I don' t really have too much of the latter, but I'm sure I'll have a bit as the time to start working approaches.

All I can really say now is that I'm really looking forward to getting overseas and getting to work! As long as this avian bird flu thing they're talking about in the news doesn't spread to Japan or Taiwan, I should be fine. (Knock on wood)

Preparations...

For those of you who don't know, I started this blog to document my seven month trip to Asia that begins in about two and a half weeks. I will be spending the summer interning at Yokosuka (Japan) City Hall. I'm not completely sure what I will be responsible for in Yokosuka, but as part of the internship I will be doing research on Japanese emergency management. I just received word the other night that, for the most part, I will be stationed in the newly created "Public Safety Division" （市民安全課） in City Hall. In September, I will leave Japan for Taiwan, where I will be spending the fall semester as a student on a study abroad program at National Sun Yat-Sen University in Kaohsiung. I will be studying Mandarin Chinese and International Affairs. I will also be doing research on Japan-Taiwan relations while in Kaohsiung.

With my departure date fast approaching, I am realizing that the three weeks between the end of classes and my trans-Pacific flight are better spent preparing to go than watching TV. I have a lot of shopping, cleaning, organizing, and packing to do in the next two weeks, so I don't expect to make too many posts until I arrive in Japan. I was also given word by my contact at Yokosuka City Hall the other day that they would like me to give a presentation on American emergency management shortly after I arrive, which I assume they want me to do in Japanese. This will be my first presentation in Japanese (aside from a few in Japanese class way back in the day), so I am a bit nervous. I also have a newfound respect for all the foreign students studying here in the U.S. that have to do this on a regular basis.

I hope to post at least two or three times a week while I'm in Asia, so keep checking back sometime after June 6 or so for those updates. I am still looking for a good name for my blog, so the offer still stands: If you help me come up with a good name for the blog, I will buy you lunch!

My Pictures...

I just added a link to my photo gallery on flickr. I will post most of my pictures there, but every once in a while, I'll throw one or two directly on the blog. Right now, there's only one big gallery - pictures Maiko and I took on our Spring Break trip to Washington, DC and NY. I probably won't add any more until I get to Japan, but keep that site bookmarked!

My future home... 

Name my blog, win a prize!

I just started this blog the other night and I'm at a loss for a good name. While I think "Pacifitrek" accurately describes the purpose of this blog (which I'll explain in a bit), I think it sounds pretty sterile - almost like the name of some lame "adventure" travel company selling tour packages to Guam. If anyone can help me come up with a better name, I will buy you lunch at the restaraunt of my choosing. If the name is really good, I might even take you out to a place a little classier than McDonald's. To win, you have to be able to meet up with me, meaning you have to be in the same town at the same time as me. I will post my travel itinerary from time to time, so be on the look out!