Countdown!

Hi and welcome to my blog Adventures of Anette, which mainly concentrates upon my studentlife and tralevs throughout the world.

So.. It´s only a couple of days left till I leave my home country Norway. After a little side-trip to Jordan (which I also might be able to blog about if I have the time as well as internet connection) I am going to study for a year at the Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto to finish my bachelor degree in Japanese.
Originally my plan was to make a blog about my year in Japan, but then I realized I have so many and varied plans for the close future, so I renamed my blogpage to something that can also include other future projects.
A friend of mine made me realize how lucky I am to have so many opportunities in my life. It really made me want to reach out for any possible adventures that might be out there and just do my best to succeed with whatever I might want to do in the future. Oh well..

As previously mentioned I´ll be leaving soon, and for the occasion I´ve invested in a new suitcase which is very big and silver-coloured, to avoid the irritation of not recognizing my own suitcase between all the others on the conveyor belt at the airport and of course to be able to bring with me all the things I would need for a year in Japan.
Further, the passport with my Nihon-visa has arrived and I´ve also invested in Lonely Planets Japan guide!
I couldn´t be more ready. Haha. My suitcase still remains unpacked though. The last days has been really busy, there are a lot of things I need to do and a lot of people I want to see before I leave.

Talking about busy: This weekend has been really eventful! Sensei Masaaki Ueki (8th dan) were in Norway among other things to teach at a karate gathering in Fana, and I got the honor of being his translator for the weekend!
A great chance for me to practice a bit extra japanese, and not to mention keigo! I had a lot of fun, it´s been so long since I practiced karate and now I´m really eager to start training again in Japan!..

Anyway, a little tip to my dear readers: Did you know that Norwegian people living abroad can get tax-refund even though their nationality is Norwegian? It´s because it´s your address, and not your nationality that determines whether you are qualified for tax-free refunds or not (I´m not sure if the same rules applies for other countries as well though..).
That´s really nice..! When you buy an item you actually pay 25% taxes, no wondering why Norway is so expensive.. I´ve been collecting a few tax-free receipts the last week (on the suitcase for instance) and when I leave Norway I´ll get some money back from my purchases!
But remember that you need to be able to prove that you do in fact live abroad, if you are an exchange student you probably have some letter from your school stating that you´ll be studying there for a year. And also, the things you want tax on has to be taken out of the country with you, preferably in your hand luggage so that you can show the things when you claim the tax at the airport.

Well, that´s all for today!
Matta ne;)

About Anette
Anette came to Japan as an exchange student in 2010, met the love of her life and got stuck. From her base in Tokyo she writes about her experiences as a full-time worker in Tokyo and about her travels in Japan and abroad. She's a free-spirited adventurer who enjoys both the great outdoors and her urban lifestyle.