Reflecting On My Experience Studying Abroad in Japan

The six weeks I spent in Japan flew by. It’s hard to believe that I’m already back in America to my normal day to day life, away from the rushing trains, the delicious udon, and the friends I made. Though I miss Japan, I am glad to be back home with my family, friends, and the smells and sounds that are familiar to me. It is nice to be somewhere familiar, when you’ve been in an environment where everything is new and different. Life feels calmer now that I’m back home. 

I am very glad that I chose to study abroad in Japan. Knowing everything I would experience, the friends I’d make, and how amazing the teachers were, I’d do it all over again in a heartbeat. I loved every second of it. 

I remember that I was nervous my first day of class, but more excited than anything. I was finally going to learn Japanese, taught by a real teacher, and not off an app on my phone. I really enjoyed writing the Japanese characters, learning kanji, vocab, and making different sentences with my classmates. I had a great class, and the teachers were so fun and encouraging. It was a great learning environment, and I will miss it. 

I had a lot of fun exploring the area with my friends. We tried out new cafes and restaurants all the time and were surprised by how cheap the food was compared to America. And the food was so good, too. I will miss the mango tarts, the crepes, the onigiri, and the fresh ramen. I was very messy eating with chopsticks at first, but I got better at it after staining a few of my shirts (I bought a stain remover at Maruetsu, the local supermarket).  

There were a few awkward moments, of course. One time I was in an anime merch store with one of my friends, and she wanted to buy a certain bag. We saw the bag on display, but we couldn’t find any on the shelves. So, wanting to practice my Japanese, I asked one of the workers “Kankoku wa doko desuka?” which means “Where is Korea?” I had mixed up the word “kaban” (the word for “bag”) with “Kankoku,” which means Korea. Whoops. My friend corrected me, and the employee understood and was able to help her find the bag. 

Besides trying food, shopping, and going on trips, I loved simply living there. I enjoyed walking around among all the other people to get to wherever I was going. I loved just walking down the street, looking at all the different buildings, shops and restaurants. Breathing it all in, and experiencing the culture, was probably my favorite. One of my most favorite moments was small: it was when I bought a hair stick, and the lady offered to put it in my hair and show me how the hair stick worked. She said I looked pretty, and it was so sweet of her to help me put my hair up. I will always remember that kind lady. 

I miss a lot of things about Japan, but I get to carry the memories I made with me forever. I took so many pictures, bought plenty of souvenirs, and I am still in touch with my new friends. And I love talking about Japan with my friends and family, a lot! I will definitely return there one day, and I cannot wait.