Sayonara

After 18 months, I have left Japan. It was an awesome time. For anyone considering doing what I did, I'll leave with some parting advice:

• If you can afford it, come to Japan then get a job in that order. There are plenty of job opportunities for teachers here, only a fraction of which you could know about while in another country.
• If you come with Nova, move out of Nova accommodation ASAP. It is expensive and your housemates are a lucky dip of cool people and freaks.
• Learn Japanese. Before you come, learn speaking basics by listening to tapes. Then join a Japanese class when you arrive, and find a language exchange partner (easy to do).
• Take up a hobby that you do back home. For me, it was soccer. That's the best way to expose yourself to Japanese culture.