I have an apartment!!!

Hey guys,

Big news!  After almost four months, I have finally got all of my paperwork squared away--job, visa, everything.  And this week, the final piece of the puzzle slid in.  I have an apartment

My friend Dan put it perfectly:  "So you can finally get down to living, instead of just existing?"

That's it exactly

And not just an apartment, an apartment with which I'm really very happy.  It's not perfect, but it's a great price and I got a great deal moving in.  Also, and this is a pretty big deal--it came partially furnished.  Honestly, from my first night I felt pretty fantastic there

I'm living up in Nishikawaguchi, just North of Tokyo--technically I'm not in Tokyo at all, not even in the same prefecture.  But I'm just over the river, only about a half an hour train ride from either Shinjuku or Tokyo stations, the two main stations in the city.  It's a great location, I promise I'll be taking lots of pictures of the neighborhood

But in the mean time, here are a bunch of pictures I took of my new place!

Yes, the first thing I did was plug in my laptop and test out the internet.  Because duh.  Although check out the size of that tv!!  Even the real estate agent that showed me the place was surprised.  Gotta pick up an HDMI cable soon

I am going to spend a lot of time sitting at that desk, I imagine.  The huge amount of natural light coming in is an *awesome*, and I can keep those doors open in the summer

Small table, it's bolted to the wall which is a little annoying because I'd like some more flexibility to rearrange.  But hey, I'll take it--even ignoring the rest of the great furnishings, just having a table and two chairs is awesome

Here's the far side of the apartment, decently sized closet and a nice loft.  Also, full-length mirror, which is honestly pretty nice to have included because I will definitely use it but never would have bought one myself

The loft itself is huge, like 10-12' long.  There's a nice little alcove which has a power outlet (you use this word, alcove?), and a light.  Plus the window in the back opens, which will be amazing in the summer

The only downside is that the kitchen is tiny.  Sadly, that was true of pretty much every place I looked at.  And at least it has two burners instead of only one, which was actually pretty uncommon--according to my friends, very uncommon.  So that's nice

The fridge is small, I may buy a full-sized one and convert this small one into a drinks fridge in the living room.  Also, signs you might be a bartender:  One of the first things you do after moving into a new apartment is fill an ice tray.  Seriously, I don't even own any glasses yet.  But when I do, dammit I'm gonna have ice [edit: Wait, I do have a glass.  I brought out my favorite tumbler from America.  And really, packing your favorite whiskey glass is another sign you might be a bartender]

I know, I know.  It's amazing.  I've peaked.  It's all downhill from here  (Actually, since it's right off the kitchen, my plan is to build in a removable countertop  to augment my kitchen.  Cuz you know, I only do laundry like once a month)

Bathroom is nice as well.  Separate bath from toilet, with the traditional Japanese-syle short but deep bathtub.  And with the weather getting chilly, that is going to see a *lot* of use

Here's the birds-eye view of the apartment, I'm really happy!  The light is fantastic, and if I turn the loft into my sleeping and storage areas, I can have that whole area set up for entertaining.  I'm excited!

And one little touch, one of my prize possessions--wrapped in a dozen layers of plastic wrap, then a jacket, then kept in the middle of my suitcase surrounded by clothes.  I have moved across the ocean (no seriously, I actually did it!!), but I brought a little bit of Seattle with me

Here we are!  Thank you so much to everyone that's been supporting me, I'm really happy with this.  And as many of you are probably thinking . . . yes there is enough room for a decent-sized couch.  Meaning the Noah T Bed & Breakfast will be up and running soon . . .

Cheers!

Noah out