Go, Go Tomakomai!

That's where I'll be folks, and considering that I was afraid of being cast to the northernest regions of this most northern prefecture, I am pleasantly surprised to find myself placed not only in a city, but in a southern port city.

Tomakomai-shi is fairly large (about 171,000+ people) and only a short train ride away from the much larger Sapporo.

I have talked to several JETs living there already who rave about the place. My predecessor has also contacted me and given me some great info.

I will apparently NOT need a car and I'm glad for that, because I didn't want to worry about the costs. I'm still waiting to hear more info about what my housing might cost, but the Board of Education told me that I will definitely receive a heater, fridge, and stove in my apartment.

I've heard of people having to get all of these things installed and having to pay for them AS SOON AS THEY GOT THERE which would blow. Who knows, maybe they'll even throw in some furniture and whatnot too. At any rate, I suppose I can buy those things off of my predecessor.

So yeah, I'm psyched to be going to the big, bad Hokk.