September 12th 2003
Still in California...
Things are moving along. I spoke to my bank, and they confirmed that the fax was in order and that they would fax confirmation to the school in Japan. So far, they don't seem to have done so, and all the money is still in my bank account. I'm going to have to call them again to check that that is all happening; they said that the money would leave my account within two business days, and that was on Wednesday. They've had three business days since then.
Not that I'm getting paranoid about these delays, or anything...
I have now made my reservation for my first days in Tokyo, at Sawanoya Ryokan. This ryokan was recommended by one of my friends, and has a good entry in the guidebooks I've looked at, so I expect it will be good. It does, however, have Japanese-style toilets. So I will get a major cultural experience as soon as I arrive, immediately before the experience of sleeping a twenty-four hour journey off on a futon. I've ordered the cheaper western-style breakfast for the day after I arrive, just in case I sleep though it.
Meanwhile, in California, I'm getting on with my Japanese study, so that when I have the placement test on my first day at Yamasa I will do as well as I can. I only have a year, so I want to start as high up the classes as I can, since the higher I start, the further I will get. I really want to reach ikkyuu level on the JLPT over the year. So I'll have to work hard, especially on learning kanji.