My first week in Japan was full of surprises, starting with the weather. It was a lot colder in Tokyo than I had planned for, and I ended up buying several puffy jackets and warm sweatshirts. A new key piece of advice for prospective study abroad students: prepare for all types of weather!
Despite the cold, however, I was able to view some cherry blossom trees near the Tokyo Skytree during my arrival week. This was particularly cool since I have never been to Japan during cherry blossom season, and I just happened upon the park where I viewed the trees during my exploration of Asakusa.
During my exploration of various areas of Tokyo, I discovered another cool surprise in Omotesando: Island Vintage Coffee! Back on Oahu, I don't have the chance to go to Island Vintage Coffee all that often, so I was very excited to have the chance to try a drink specific to the Tokyo location and Spring season. I also observed an LGBTQ+ and Trans rights protest one night near Shibuya station. This was a very pleasant surprise to me, since I had not seen nearly as many Pride and LGBTQ+ flags around Tokyo as I am used to back on Oahu and in my hometown of Seattle.
These adventures and surprises of my arrival week in Tokyo were a mix of culture and natural environment shocks, but they have set a great tone for future adventures to come during the rest of my Spring semester.
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