New Place & Packing Light

As anyone who has ever seen my room or apartment knows, I tend to be a pack-rat. I like to save everything, particularly personal letters, gifts, clothes, and college papers. Moving to Japan marked the first time I've ever lived by myself, and, wanting to feel at home, I took a LOT of stuff with me. Too much stuff.

Here's a picture of the closet in my Japanese apartment:

This was probably only a fourth of all the stuff I had. Let me tell you, moving out was one of the most stressful experiences I've ever had, and I'm not exaggerating. If it hadn't been for friends who were kind enough to help me take/throw out things, I don't think I could have ever finished making the place look presentable for the next teacher.

A few more pictures of my old place:

 

I kind of miss that rug. I bought it myself but had to leave it behind when I moved out. 

 

It looks like I had a bed, but my futon is actually on top of a sofa that I flattened out to sleep on. There's a ridge running straight through the middle of it, but it never bothered me too much (and I was pretty exhausted most of the time).

As you can see, it was a small but cozy area. And a little bit cluttered. But when it got messy, it got really messy. (Bonus fact: That old-school TV was only used to hook up to my DVD player, it didn't have any channels. I never even bothered to pay the NHK guy. <-- In Japan, the NHK people, kind of like Japan's version of the BBC, go door to door collecting monthly payments for any household with a television, even if you don't use it. No one ever came to my door though. Score!)

When I knew I was coming to Taiwan, I wanted to do things differently. Actually, I had to do things differently. I knew I was going to spend a week in Japan prior to moving in (mainly to see old friends and take care of a few errands), and I knew that week was going to be spent moving among different friends' apartments. It's pretty much a death wish to get on any crowded train in Tokyo with heavy suitcases in tow and I wanted to spare myself the pain. Plus, I didn't want moving out to be the hell that it was several months prior. So, I tried to pack light for once:

This was what I took with me on my trip to Japan and subsequently on my move to Taiwan. Granted, stuff probably could have been parred down even more, but about a third of the space in the big suitcase contained gifts I knew I was going to give away. Still, moving this from Narita to my friend's apartment (located about two hours away from the airport, with three train changes) by myself was no picnic, especially when I encountered various sets of stairs without elevators. And Tokyoites aren't known for offering a helping hand to strangers, at least not in my experience. Luckily, I managed to get everything there without breaking anything (bones included).

And now, some pictures of my new place in Taipei:

Compared with my giant closet in Japan, I think this is a huge improvement. I tried to bring only clothes that went well with everything else, as well as things that would be suitable for warm weather (of course, I didn't anticipate that even dresses and shorts would be too much for this kind of humidity). Two of the dresses are ones I plan to wear to my cousin's wedding and reception in February, since I won't be flying home first before going there.

This big cabinet came with the place. I actually didn't have to buy any furniture at all, which was a huge relief.

The two separate drawers I'm using in the cabinet. One is filled with miscellaneous things, including a $3 neck pillow that I picked up in Japan for future flights. I've been meaning to get one for awhile (especially for those long flights back to the States), but I always forget and could never bring myself to shell out 20+ bucks for one at the airport. What a rip-off. Then there's just a drawer filled with random bags that I've been using for putting garbage in (except for the IKEA one).

For the record, I did not buy that duck lamp, it came with the desk. It is rather cute though.

 My compartment filled with important documents. And photos for visa renewal.

Couch that I wiped down repeatedly before sitting on it. It's a bit lumpy. But it was free. As were the fridge and TV, which - surprise! - actually has channels. A lot of them, in fact, like over 60. I can't remember the last time I watched this much TV on an actual television. The reason why the couch isn't in front of the TV as one would normally expect is because the internet cable socket is located on the opposite side of the room, where the couch was initially residing. I put the desk close to that one so the cable could reach my laptop.

Note: None of those chocolate bars will be eaten by me. I brought some for the friend who helped me find my new place, but before I could give them to her, she revealed that she wasn't a huge fan of chocolate so I'm planning to give her something else as a thank you. Not sure what I'm going to do with these, though.

I only brought one book with me because moving all my books out last time was such a chore (I ended up donating 90% of them because they were too heavy to bring back). Having brought my kindle, I certainly won't be at a loss for things to read, but I do miss the physical books.

This bed is way too big for one person, I'm still getting used to it. Even though I prefer the mattress to the futon I had in Japan, it was so uncomfortable that I had to go to IKEA (yay for identical IKEAs located all over the world) and buy a duvet to make it easier for my back.

Pillow and blanket also courtesy of IKEA. I had to buy a blanket because with the air conditioning on, I don't feel comfortable sleeping without one, but with the air conditioner off, it gets too hot for me to fall asleep. I need to buy a fan soon.

That pink container is my garbage can for now.

Desk area and shower/bathroom. I'd say this apartment (more of a room, really) is about twice as big as my place in Japan, and for half the price. There's a kitchen, washing machine, and another bathroom in the common area, but I haven't really used those yet so I didn't take any pictures. Basically there are three (?) other rooms on this floor, and I'm in one of them. All the other residents are also university students, though they don't go to the university I'll be attending. I've met only two of them so far, and they're pretty nice.

And that's it. I don't know how long I'll be staying here yet, but at least I know that I won't have nearly as much trouble moving out as I did last time. I've been pretty good about not buying things since I've arrived. No more easy night market shopping for me - I hope it stays that way.