Here’s a funny coincidence: when I had first applied for the JET Program, you have the option of ranking your top three placement choices. This doesn’t guarantee anything, and is more of a way for you to give them your opinion on where you may be living the next year. I would say my rankings were pretty silly in regards to increasing my chances of being chosen. I ranked Yokohama first (well, it IS near Tokyo), which only has one JET anyways. Then I ranked Hiroshima, since I loved Miyajima and oysters (again, silly reasons). As an alternate, there was really no input on where I would be placed if I got hired. However, when I looked back at my application for JET, and saw the places I ranked, I laughed and saw that I had actually selected “Sendai-shi” as my third choice… and I got it? I had never heard of Sendai until I got placed here, so it goes to show that even though technically speaking I got what I want, I wasn’t really expecting to. Now that I’m here, I feel very blessed to be placed in what I now call “home.”
I want to shed some light on this place that I will be living in for the next year, and potentially longer. Here are some facts: Sendai is the 11th largest city in Japan, and is the largest city between Tokyo and Sapporo. Sendai is located in Miyagi prefecture in the Tohoku region of Japan, so we are located north of Tokyo (I find a lot of people use Tokyo as a reference point when referring to locations in Japan). It has all the conveniences of a city- subway, trains, convenience stores, downtown area, restaurants, night life… so it reminds me of home. Sendai, nicknamed “mori no miyako- the city of trees,” lives up to its name. During the summer, it got smoking humid and hot, but lately it’s been getting cooler. Eventually it will be freezing, and I will probably blog about how I want to die in this cold (stay tuned for that!)
Sendai is home to one of Japan’s most scenic spots, and has a couple of touristy things to do. My city is known for its gyutan (牛タン), which is cow tongue (different from Korean BBQ ones!) and for having many restaurants. It is also a city that is dedicated to increasing international relationships, so there’s definitely a larger foreign population than other places. Luckily (?) for me, because I am Asian, I do not seem like a foreigner as much as others. However, I can’t help the fact that I continue to dress like a California boy (shirt, shorts, rainbows… you know how it goes). But on the weekdays, I am usually in work attire, so it doesn’t matter too much. Living in a city, I have higher expenses than say an ALT placed in a smaller town.
My apartment is located in a district called Nagamachi, which is the southern part of Sendai city (南仙台). Think of it like this: If Sendai was Los Angeles County, then I am living in Culver City… so it has its own little personality. My apartment is located in a very convenient location. I am right next to the Nagamachi subway and JR (Japan Rail) stations, making it convenient to travel around the city. Both travel directly to Sendai Station, and in Japan, these stations are the main points of travel for foreigners and natives alike. For some reason, Sendai has the most expensive subway in Japan (a ticket would cost at minimum ¥200, roughly $2.40, and that’s only for a few stops), so the JR is a nice substitute. My apartment is also located near many izakayas and grocery stores, as well as a large mall dubbed appropriately “The MALL.” Nagamachi is a nice way of getting away from downtown, while still retaining the essence of a city life. Also, most of the other JETs I know in Miyagi prefecture are south of me, so it works out perfectly when I want to take the train.
Going back to my apartment, I’m sure many of you are curious as to what kind of apartment I’m living in, and how I am surviving since I’ve never lived in an apartment before. The best way to describe my apartment is by comparing it to my room back in Rieber Vista at UCLA. It’s roughly the same size as my old RA room, and compared to other costs of living in Japan, I pay Westwood prices. My rent each month is ¥47,000, which is roughly $570. Because Sendai Board of Education hires 70 JETs a year, they can’t afford to help subsidize any costs, so every month, a good fifth of my salary goes to paying rent. But I like to think of it as paying for the convenience of living in a city, which I absolutely love. When I first got to my apartment, there wasn’t a whole lot left behind, so it has been a struggle trying to buy furniture and to get settled in (which I will take about in a future blog). Currently it’s still not ready, so I can’t show it to you all just yet… officially. Feel free to Skype me for a tour, but give me another month to settle in fully for a real tour (If you’ve ever been to any of my rooms at UCLA, you know I need to dec it out to make it feel like home).
Which goes to my final point of this entry about my living in Sendai- I need things to put on my walls. So if you’d like, feel free to send me some love. Here’s my address:
Andy Ng
982-0011 Miyagi-ken
Sendai-shi, Taihaku-ku
Nagamachi 5-2-15
Flat Yutaka 201
JAPAN
Ill share more about my experiences living in Sendai in future entries. But I hope that this gives you some insight as to my city and home in Japan. Stay tuned for more, and thank you so much for reading.
Miss you all back home!
Downtown Sendai in the daytime
My neighborhood in Nagamachi- filled with trees
On a bridge that ends Nagamachi; downtown in the distance
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