The end of one chapter but the beginning of a new one.

It’s been two years since I first landed in Japan, unaware of where life would lead and even the key details of my new life. The JET program is very much a big gamble; every situation is different, and there are never any guarantees on Placement, number of schools, subsidised housing or the grades you will teach. My new chapter opened in Saga prefecture, and what followed was an emotional roller-coaster of new challenges and experiences. I was initially given two schools, but this soon crept to three; I experienced teaching at different kinds of schools, from Academic, commercial and even special needs. The experience forced me to overcome many hurdles and get to grips with day-to-day Japanese life. To date, I have explored 36 prefectures and ticked off many things on my to-do list. Whilst my mastering of the language may be slower than I had hoped, I have made some fun memories cooking for my Japanese friends and learning about Japan and Saga from the locals.

The role of ALT is an adaptive one and requires the person to be very flexible; it teaches them to prepare for the unexpected. In my two years, I slowly got to grips with teaching and lesson planning, to the point where I was the main teacher and running entire curricula of lessons for my classes. It took me a year to feel confident in my role, and for those coming for just one year, prepare for the challenge and to feel at the end that you needed more time or happily accept that this role is hard and cannot be fully mastered within a year. This role is often a lot of people’s first jobs, and I take off my hat to those who do. My first job was a challenge, but I think the addition of language culture barriers is certainly not for everyone.

I learnt a lot and discovered a lot about myself. I developed new food obsessions and got familiar with the main convenience stores and their food offering rotations. My speaking skills developed, and my vocabulary grew. I gained a small circle of Japanese friends who allowed me to share my country’s cooking and even allowed me to take trips to Costco to buy more familiar things. I became familiar with the local supermarkets and the history of Saga. I became proud of my prefecture and was always sad to hear people calling Saga a flyover prefecture. Even the locals voted the prefecture second to last for least attractive prefectures. Yet Saga has so much to offer.

The prefecture has amazing food, kind friendly people, beautiful hidden gems, floating tori gates, a beautiful Inari shrine which features often in Chinese dramas, a stunning European style palace, breath taking coastal roads, beaches in the north and Karatsu castle! There is more that would fill an entire page. Saga became my home for two years, and I grew accustomed to my students saying hello and waving whenever they saw me at the station or around town. I grew familiar with shortcuts in the city and grappled with the garbage rules. Saga was challenging, as it is often the hottest place in Kyushu and prone to being hit by the odd typhoon; if the weather was feeling especially spicy, the odd tornado warning would be issued. All very different from what I have grown up with.

The JET program is more than just teaching; it pushes people who must learn to live in a new country where the language barrier is a constant. The program teaches ALTs how to be independent, run an apartment, pay bills, follow cultural rules, overcome doctor appointments in a different language and respect boundaries. It teaches ALTs about working in an often-stricter workplace environment than they may be used to. It shapes people and forces them to reflect upon things they may have taken for granted before coming to Japan, be it support or having friends and family close by in the same time zone. It teaches hard life lessons; whilst over here, my beloved pet rabbit Shrimp had to be put to sleep, and I faced the reality of not being there for him. He was my best friend of 10 years, and I felt like I had abandoned him for the last two years of his life. Not being there for his last moments hurt and became another experience to overcome. My family also had a health scare that I had to navigate from across the globe. ALTs may experience the passing of family and friends whilst they live in Japan. ALT is more than just teaching.

The JET program has ups and downs; for two years, working for the board of education has been my life. I met many people and said goodbye to many, as the culture in schools is to swap staff every 7 years, sometimes even before the 7 years is up. Change is every day, and I at times felt very alone; you may not be spoken to in your school if those around you do not speak any English. Depending on the school, your experience can be very lonely or the best with friendly, bubbly teachers. Out of the 4 schools I taught at, 1 was amazing and I cried when I knew I was leaving, two were lonely after staff moves, and another was okay until my supervisor changed. Many people break contract within a few months of moving to Japan, and it’s understandable; it’s impossible to know how you will cope when applying.

When I first moved, I found I was struggling to breathe and that a rash spread across my body. I needed medication and had to be careful of air conditioners being on too high, which is a struggle in summer. It was something I never considered; the environment in Japan is very different to the UK, and my body reacted to new allergens. Experiences vary from prefecture to prefecture, and one ALT may have barely any work whilst another may be so overworked they fall ill. In my experience, the second year was an overwork situation. I would be so overwhelmed with work, and even finding time to look after myself, eat, and even find a chance to go to the bathroom was a challenge.

So where is this blog going? By now readers may have guessed that my time as an ALT is over. I decided that another year of overwork, uncertainty over whether my schools would change again and being told to find a new house with very little help meant that my time as an ALT was over. As the end date approached, things got very emotional for me, and I started getting upset whenever my students so eagerly said good morning, clapped whenever I walked into class and were generally very happy to see me. Over the two years, they were the ones most happy about me being there. Seeing them excited or clapping when I walked into class because they thought they had exams was uplifting. I was heartbroken when I was starting to say goodbyes, doing my final classes, receiving thank you cards and gifts and writing my goodbye speech. I was saying goodbye to the few teachers who had really made me feel welcome in Japan when things were rough.

I achieved a lot and developed a lot of new skills; I felt very confident in class, and I am proud of what I overcame. I submitted my decision to leave at the start of the year and began to weigh up my next steps. I took the opportunity to attend JETs career fair and decided that even if nothing came of it, updating my CV and getting focused on finding work was worth the expense. For those considering applying or those coming to the end of their contracts, I recommend attending the fair. You will need to pay for your own expenses, but JET gathers companies who are hiring in one place, and these companies are clued into the program and what an ALT is. Finding work in Japan can be rough if your Japanese isn’t N3 and above. But the fair includes companies who also have lower language requirements. It’s a good opportunity to sharpen up your CV and start thinking about transferable skills and what the next step for your career path is. You can directly hand out your CV to the companies hiring, and you are provided with details on how to apply if not at the event. Some companies have been known to hire on the day. It’s a great opportunity which you have earned after completing your JET contract.

I applied to a handful of companies as my Japanese was lower and decided that it was come what may. I ended up with two interviews one which was perhaps the worst I have ever sat through and resulted in a lot of crying and the other went very well and resulted in being called back for 2nd interviews. In the end, I was offered a new role, which I have accepted; for now I all I will say is I am leaving Saga nearly a whole two years to the day after I first set foot in Japan. I will be moving to Fukushima to begin a new chapter.

The stress of paperwork, visas, finding a house and sorting out all the moving-out details has probably aged me. But I can confirm I have a place to live and work for at least the next year. I intend to return to the UK, but now is not the right time, as I want to have a clearer idea of what I will do and where I will be living.

I am both anxious and excited to see what Fukushima holds and look forward to facing the challenges again of learning a whole new set of rules and places. Life is full of challenges; we can either avoid them and never progress further than our comfort zone, or we can challenge the hurdles and open doors to new opportunities or fail but grow as a person who dared. Thank you for reading the blog; it will continue for another year in a new location! I hope I can bring you new, exciting blogs uncovering Fukushima’s hidden gems. I intend to try completing my goal of visiting all 47 prefectures and continuing to review them and their hotels. I want to leave behind a blog full of memories for when I do return. I appreciate every person who has visited my page; it is nice to know that my story can be enjoyed or help others who are interested in Japan and potentially visiting or moving across.