I'm Moving to Japan!

This has to be the biggest announcement I've ever made on the blog. In fact, I think it's the biggest announcement I've ever had period, unless you count getting into college, but that seems small in comparison. It's actually weird to type it out because I'm still having trouble processing that it's real but:

I'm moving to Japan!

I'll be working in Japan as an English teacher. While I know the exact city I'll be living in, I can't reveal that online yet.

I first started considering teaching English abroad after graduation during my freshman year of college, and it was something I was looking at on and off over the years that followed. I've been seriously making plans, applying, etc. for months now, but I didn't say anything online. That was largely because I was convinced it would fall through and wouldn't actually happen, and I wanted as few people to know as possible if that were the case.

Even as far as people I actually know are concerned, I wasn't telling many people for a long time. My family were really the only people who knew at first. I waited a while before even bringing it up with my friends.

Then, my last semester of college (which ended in December), I needed to get recommendation letters, so just about every single education professor and some of the English professors knew by the end end of the semester. My mentor teacher during student teaching also found out and was kind enough to be one of my references. Even all of the student teachers found out at the "party" they threw for us when we finished student teaching.

As it spread throughout the people I know, I felt an increasing sense of pressure because it meant more people who would know if I "failed" because, at this point, I hadn't actually gotten a job yet. I was just applying. Hence not telling the Internet and adding to my nerves.

Now I can now say that I have a job. Actually, I got one more than a month ago, yet I'm still struggling to believe that it's reality. The contract has been signed, and my working visa is being processed as we speak. I'll be sharing more about the process of getting the job in the future. This announcement was only meant to be a "just so you know, I'm moving to Japan" post and is already longer than I expected.

I'm incredibly excited. It's going to be a huge change. So far, the company I'm working for has been really great and helpful. I haven't spoken to anyone at the specific school I'll be at yet, but I'm excited for everything to come. While there are sure to be difficult times, it will, without a doubt, be an experience.