Looking back at the goals that I wrote in the itinerary before we left for Japan, I feel like that I have partially fulfilled these goals and expectations. I have definitely been able to understand the world other than the U.S., used my knowledge of the Japanese language, and gained more cultural knowledge about Japan.
I was able to find independence in the sense that I am no longer afraid of going abroad and that I know how to navigate an airport by myself. But that deeper sense of independence and getting to know myself better is something that I think I can only gain if I go abroad for some time by myself. I would be out there making mistakes and learning how to problem solve completely on my own.
And being on this trip so far, the only thing that I wish I had done before going was to take a Japanese history course. I feel like that would have given me a better understanding of all of the sights that we have been seeing. I can appreciate things a lot more if I know the history behind it. But I have been looking online to learn more about Osaka castle, the different religions, and the cities. But when I was on the ferry ride, I came to the realization that I would love to come back and study here in Osaka for a semester. I feel this course has given me all the tools needed to go back to Japan on my own and succeed. I would just love to come here and study and learn how the universities are here in Japan. And there’s no better place to study Japanese culture than Japan itself.
The picture at the top is one that I took during our free time in Namba. The lady in the picture is a Jehovah’s Witness here in Japan. This was special to me because I’m a Jehovah’s Witness too, so it was great to see another Jehovah’s Witness from another country because our religion is international. She was so nice but she also didn’t really know English well, so I tried my best to talk to her in Japanese. And she was also able to show us where we needed to go to catch the train.
The picture at left is one that I took at Osaka Castle. It was one of my favorite places that we went to because it was absolutely beautiful and I remember looking it up before going to Japan. And it’s so weird, but in a cool way, that the castle is right there in the city next to all of these modern buildings. It was fun to imagine what the area was like back when the castle was first built. But I kind of wished that the inside was kept more original.