I've learned more in the past few months than I
could comprehend, explain, or sum up and I feel like the Japanese culture far
exceeds any type of living that I've ever experienced… I'll fly back home soon
in a week and do what I'm expected to do in America but it's not really going
to be the same.. As it's starting
to get cooler here with a decrease in temperature I have to understand that I'm
flying back to lots of snow, and I'm not looking forward to that. I’m also just not looking forward to
going back to my American lifestyle and facing reality. I've made Hirakata Japan my home and
wish for more than anything that I could have more time here. Some of my views
and outlooks on life have changed dramatically and I’ve started to adapt to
different perspectives. My
impressions of Japan have wondered and changed more in the last month as I feel
like I can finally stand my ground here.
When I first arrived I was fixated around the fact that I stood out and
would get noticed for having blonde hair and being a foreigner, I didn’t like
that people would point and stare. And although
standing out was intimidating and challenging in the beginning, I was able to
quickly adapt and blend in with everyone else with time. And with the more Japanese I learned
and could use throughout daily conversations, the more comfortable I felt with
my surroundings. After being
able to understand and pronounce commonly used words and expressions, the
development of the rest of the language followed naturally to me. Being able to
communicate with Japanese people was a great advantage, giving me confidence
and allowing me to experience what the country had to offer first hand.
I’m
upset that I’m leaving at the peak of my fluency and comfort. I’m sad that I’ll be leaving all of my
new friends that I’ve made from all over the world. I’m sad that I won’t be able to eat authentic Japanese food
whenever I want to, or bike to Kapa sushi at my convenience. I’m sad that I’ll be leaving behind my
Japanese roommate who has taught me so much about the culture and has influenced
me beyond her knowledge. This list
could go on and on and I could talk about all the things that I’ll miss but in
the end it’s not really the end.
I’ve learned that I’d really like to come back and live and work in Japan
at some point. I’m so thankful to
have had the opportunity of this study abroad experience and want to encourage
other students to travel and open their minds up to other cultures. When you really just emerge yourself in the culture
that you’re living in, that’s what gives the value to your abroad experience. “When one looks back over human existence,
however, it is very evident that all cultures has developed through an initial
resistance against adaptation to the reality in which man finds himself.” – Beatrice
Hinkle
