Advice for my successor #4

As the days pass I'm becoming increasingly aware of the fact that I don't have much time left here. As of this post, about 3 months. Wasn't it just recently I was telling myself I had half a year left? I guess I'll be finding out about my successor one of these days.

• This probably isn't the first or last time you'll hear this, but value the time you have here. I don't know you yet, so I don't know if living in Japan will be comparable to anything you've experienced in the past, but chances are it'll be a very memorable part of your life and may very well affect how your life turns out after JET. Whether you're here for one, two, three, more years - it passes very quickly in retrospect.

• Always go out to lunch with your coworkers when invited. It may cost a bit more than going to the cafeteria, but it helps build a rapport and makes you "part of the team."

• Even if your Japanese isn't that great, don't be afraid to go into interesting-looking restaurants. If you hesitate, you may finally go in months or years later and realize you've been missing out all that time.

• Explore. Even small little nothing streets sometimes hide cool shops or restaurants.

• In class, only use English with your students. Outside of class talk to them in Japanese now and then.

• Try new foods. Except shirako (白子). Don't try that one.

Mmmmmm....*

*Source: Rakuten