Yes, I'd been here about 3 weeks, getting very little in my post box other than "you have mail" slips, the occasional bill and the even more occasional junk mail, when one day, this genuine handwritten letter appeared! Can you imagine how thrilled I was???
Who did it come from, you ask? Well, when I flew over from Seattle in August, I had a connecting flight from Seoul here to Tokyo. For the most part I was exhausted and slept, but for the final few minutes (as in, while we're waiting for the door to open so we can get out) my seat mate and I started chatting. And she was all excited to meet a Japanese-speaking non-Japanese. Okay, she says she's excited to have met me, but I've run into this phenomenon before. It's the fact that you're a foreigner, but you can still talk with them. Anyway, we had a nice little chat, and before going separate ways, she asked to exchange addresses. She wanted to stay in touch. She also gave me her phone number, and said to call once I'd gotten settled in.
Well, three weeks went by, and I was actually looking at that little slip of paper pretty regularly, thinking, "Should I call? Is she disappointed not to hear from me? Or, has she totally forgotten me?" I was feeling a little guilty for not having called, to be honest.
And then, suddenly, last Thursday, this was in my mailbox. It's from the airplane lady, and she definitely had been thinking of me. She asks all the usual pleasantries, and says how she'd like to get together, that she's happy to show me around or help with any problems I'm having getting settled in. That definitely deserved a phone call in return.
So I called. And we had a great chat (for the second-ever time). And it looks like we'll probably get together sometime during my first official vacation in the beginning of November. Something to look forward to. And in the meantime? She says she'll keep writing me letters, since I mentioned it had cheered me up to see something friendly (and REAL) in my mailbox. :)
wow! is it rice paper?
ReplyDeleteHmmm, not rice paper, but definitely "washi," or traditional Japanese handmade-style paper. It certainly has those shiny fiber-y bits in it. They reflect well in the camera's flash, don't they? :-)
ReplyDeleteFor what it's worth, I LOVE Japanese letter sets. You wouldn't believe how many of them I've bought over the years...gorgeous traditional ones, cute funny ones (like this one with little persimmon people running around), whatever. They're all awesome. I've started using them, but still have a huge stockpile back at home in Everett... Maybe that's a good thing...I don't see nearly so many of them anymore. Thanks a lot, electronic era!
Isn't meeting nice new people and actually connecting with them at a later point one of the best things about travel? I think when people are willing to exchange contact info it really means they want to stay in touch. It can require a little effort to get past the inital awkwardness but it's usually wonderful once the risk is taken, would you agree?
ReplyDeleteLi
So glad you are settling in and doing well!
Li, you are so right! I think you hit the nail on the head when you say we need to make the effort to get beyond the initial awkwardness. Definitely worth the effort!
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