Off On Yer Hollibobs

You were thinking that you were going to have the adventure of a lifetime, one that'll help you discover your limits and push far, far beyond them. You were thinking you were going to change your life for the better, and you will.

Drunkalilly wrote:

The enormity of what a mad thing I've done has begun to hit me. What was I thinking?

Culture shock, mate. I've been watching a load of NJPW documentaries about their gaijin stars and their first tours in Japan and they all talk about how out of sync they feel in that wonderful country. A few episodes later and they're gushing about the place.

Give it some time and you'll really settle into your journey, start to relax more and really enjoy yourself. I'm incredibly jealous and I wish I had the guts to do something similar as it's going to be something that you'll never forget, in time.

On a related note to Drunka's Japan adventure, I'm moving to Qatar in August. Wife was offered a crazy package to teach out there, which means I'll need to find some sort of work out there too! Seemed like too good an opportunity to turn down, so will be a big change, particularly for the children. I think there is a bit of a gaming scene there, as 80% of the population aren't Qatari.

Now that is a big change, like you say especially for the kids but I guess being young might be easier to adjust.

On gaming, I know the PS4 is big around those parts and is/was the first system to pass 1m.

Wow! That is an excellent thing. I hope you have a very fine time and can find something you enjoy doing, jobwise.

Ooft! Bit of a culture shock? Or not if 80% aren't Qatari? Hope it suits you well, sir, and you suit it well.

Wow, good luck! I move away from the Bristol area, and suddenly it's not worth hanging about, hey?

Hopefully with a family and some semblance of a plan, the loneliness and culture shock won't hit you as hard as it did me. We'll all be here to chat shite with, though.

We're becoming a worldwide forum rather than a UK and Australia forum! Best of luck when the time rolls around - like Drunka said, having your family there will make it a lot easier, I'm sure.

Barely a week after I get put in charge, I'm scampering away to Paris for a week. Jay, over to you! Not that it was ever not over to you, but... er, more over to you...

(Honestly I'll still probably be around, I may just not be able to change the tagline so frequently.)

Have a good one, Balla!

Enjoy France, Balla. Having not previously had much experience with the country or its people, I've become really good friends with a French girl here in Kyoto.

As for me, my obscenely long holiday is finally transforming into the "Working Holiday" it says on my Visa. I've got a few more days chilling in Kyoto, then on Friday I'm off to a farm for two weeks. As soon as I leave the farm, I'm heading to Osaka where I'm going to be working at a hostel for a couple of months; free accommodation in exchange for a few hours' cleaning four or five days a week. Bargain!

I've also been applying for various jobs teaching English all over the country, but it's very competitive so although I've had a couple of interviews, no joy just yet. Bagging one of those gigs would be ideal as that's an almost guaranteed path to visa sponsorship. On the other hand, while I'm at the hostel I'll knuckle down on learning Japanese so I have options for working a little job in a cafe or something just to keep myself ticking over while I'm here.

I will admit though, I've become kind of accustomed to not working over these last three months.

The farm stuff sounds tough, but also really rewarding. Good luck with the job interviews! I imagine you're much, much better at that stuff than I am.

Paris is a lot like London. More so than I remember it being. Similar tourist attractions, similarly cosmopolitan city, similarly inflated prices, enough people speak English that my dodgy French can get us through, and there's even similar weather. It's been unrelentingly grey thus far. It's been fun enough, don't get me wrong, but I feel a bit talking about it after Drunka's been immersing himself in an entirely new and (yes) foreign culture.

Balladeer wrote:

Paris is a lot like London.  More so than I remember it being.  Similar tourist attractions, similarly cosmopolitan city, similarly inflated prices,

I'm learning that this is pretty much true of every capital city on Earth - apart from Berlin, apparently. Thanks to the Cold War years, German culture is much more healthily spread throughout the country.

Also, have you heard of "Paris Syndrome"? Japanese people are so disappointed Paris doesn't live up to the mad media version in marketing over here they have an actual mental disorder sometimes when they get back.

Balladeer wrote:

The farm stuff sounds tough, but also really rewarding.  Good luck with the job interviews!  I imagine you're much, much better at that stuff than I am.

Interviews are actually a strong suit of mine as I'm far more confident than I have any right to be. I've pretty much bluffed my way into everything I've ever achieved.
As for the farm stuff, I don't really know what to expect. People I've met who have volunteered through the same programme have had an amazing time, though, and it's helped massively with their Japanese.

I hadn't! Wow. I guess when everything is airbrushed for foreign media, it's understandable, but still... wow.

I have found some differences since I last posted, albeit nothing major: they still have their traditional cafés/brasseries on nearly every street corner, which is nice; they have a much bigger Far Eastern influence than London, to the point where whole chunks of the city feel like Chinatowns; and the tube is less flashy and more clunky but, crucially, cooler. As in, less face-melting. Big plus.

And yep, I thought that confidence would make the difference! I have none of that, I always underplay my achievements.

How was the farm stuff, sir?

I'm planning a couple of A Luke At Japan entries, but short answer: it was lovely

And having almost no internet access for two weeks was actually great.

I can imagine that. My fingers would be itching horribly though. Constantly going to my pocket...

I spent the first few days instinctively opening twitter and reading the cached tweets. One of those was about the Satoshi Tajiri manga, which is probably what eventually made me obsessed with tracking down a copy.

Bit of an update for you fellas. I’m no longer moving to Qatar with the family. I have actually just got a flat in Newport, on my own. My wife and I are spending some time apart (Qatar was purely an idea to clear debt) – I’ve been battling depression for 5 years and have been doing counselling and have been on medication for a while. I get to see my girls at the weekend which is nice, but also have more time to spend on games/magazines which I’ll use as an escape from the rough time I’m experiencing. Thought I’d let you guys know as you’re all nice blokes and I enjoy the forum a lot.

Wow man, I hope things work out for you. I don't have anything useful or insightful to offer you, but as I always say if anyone gets serious on here: we're all here if you just need people to vent at, and we're all here if you want to chat nonsense about children's computer game to take your mind off stuff.

We enjoy having you here GJones, you're a top poster and I wish you nowt but the best. I'm sure you'll get through this, but I hope things take an up-turn sooner rather than later. In the meantime, let us know if we can help from our keyboards.

Yeah sorry to hear that, I can only echo what Drunka & Balla have already said - it's good you have a counsellor to talk to but if you want more takes on anything we are here for you.

Sorry to hear what you're going through gjones.

The forum ain't going anywhere, so you'll always have us here for erroneous chat about old games magazines or video games in general, or for just generally clearing your mind. I've always valued having a group of people that I know I can share things with if need be, and I don't think I'm alone in saying that.

What everyone else is saying and why I've posted about my sickness in the past to vent and having someone to talk to.

Sorry to hear but you'll always have a place here and we'll be happy to help however we can.

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