Winding things down

Well things are certainly a lot more quiet now – people have started leaving; Kylie left on Friday, and classes are winding down for the term break. All the Japanese students have already finished classes and exams so the university is pretty empty. All of this coincides well with my departure; I leave for Sydney on Tuesday and arrive on Wednesday morning.

I can honestly say that packing up my room is such a chore! How the heck did I managed to accumulate so much stuff? A couple months ago, I sent two massive boxes home and I just sent another three more, bringing the total weight to 45kg of things that I couldn’t carry! Sending things home by ship is by far the cheapest solution for chronic accumulators like me. It takes about two months and costs around 1,000 yen per kilo; sending by air is at least double or triple that.

Besides packing up, I also have to clean my room. List of chores include, vacuuming (even under the bed), wiping down the cupboards, cleaning the toilet and fridge, washing the curtains and emptying out the kitchen cabinets and drawers. Everything that you don’t want to keep either gets donated to charity or left in the multipurpose hall for the next batch of students to scavenge. Richard and Henry, this means you. By the way, if either of you are reading this, I left things specifically for you. Contact me and I’ll let you know who to pick it up from.

Other errands that you need to complete include closing your bank account and mobile phone, returning your NHS card to city hall, letting your advisor know that you are leaving, returning your bicycle and things like that. You hand in your alien registration card at the airport as you pass through. Otherwise, it is about enjoying the last couple days you have in Gifu with your friends, buying souvenirs for mates back home, eating the foods that you can’t get back home and in general, making some great last memories to last you a lifetime.