Departures (Of Pre-Departure Orientation)

This was originally written for the JET Alumni Association of Toronto's Monthly Newsletter as a report on the Pre-Departure Orientation event that took place in June for the 2013-2014 crop of Toronto JETs. However, as is my way, I couldn't resist the temptation to do a little more with it, and I feel like it rather accurately captures the sometimes-sad, sometimes-amazing roll of being an active JET Alumnus.

Over the weekend of June 22-23, The Japan Foundation of Toronto opened its doors for the 2013 Pre-Departure Orientation for Toronto. More than a dozen Toronto JETAA executives and members welcomed the 60-some new ALTs, presenting detailed sessions on all aspects of the JET experience.

It was the material you would expect: the kind of thing we all encountered at our own PDO events or Tokyo orientation: how to travel, how to teach, how to save, how to survive, how to not get konchoed. Each presenter made the material his or her own, seeking to add spice to the same material we teach every year.

What I believe to be remarkable about PDOT, though, has little enough to do with the content of the session. For me, the most salient, most worth-writing-home-about thing about PDOT is the feel of the event.

If you’ve never had the opportunity to volunteer at PDOT, it is part blessing and part curse.