Fall 2004, v. 9, no. 1

Blogs from Abroad

Recently, many of the students who study abroad have kept in touch with their families and friends by creating blogs—or weblogs, that “private” online journal that has increasingly become all too public. For many of our Japanese majors, the blog of choice seems to be Xanga. Below are a few random samples of entries, presented here with permission, of course.

Wednesday, September 30, 2004

by Carolina Harper

Japan. Visiting and living seem to be two things that are different entirely. While visiting, as hard as you might try to be otherwise, you are still restricted to the tourist side of things. Where as when doing study abroad, you actually get to live in Japan. That in itself is a daunting thought but many overcome that to the point of curiosity and actual interest. I was one of those GDub Japanese Majors who did so and now finds herself studying Japanese for a year while living in Nagoya.

Nagoya seems to be neither here nor there which is good because it means people do not treat you like a tourist but rather just a foreigner. Though that may seem harsh in certain ways, Japan has its own unique ideas on foreigners much as Americans do. We all treat people who are different from us in different ways. The positive side is that there is a great deal of kindness given to foreigners as they make their way, but this is mainly an asset for tourists. As someone who is trying to live in Japan, I’d rather not be coddled the way that people try to do sometimes.

As many Japanese people have tried to explain, they see us Study Abroad Students like their own children and Japanese parents tend to be overprotective, in contrast to the majority of American parents. It is far more common to live at home or in a same sex dormitory (not even sure co-ed dorms really exist) while going to college in Japan. A curfew is common and so is calling home and letting your parents know your plans; meaning, if you live at home you are expected to eat dinner with the family unless otherwise arranged. This can be a very different experience when compared to life at GDub where you live in a dorm with no curfew and your neighbors are usually of the opposite sex. Not to mention that even remembering to eat dinner is a feat in itself. One approach to Japan could be to reject all the foreignness that it presents to a study abroad student but another one is try and find the root and reason of the things that seem strange to us and thereby gaining understanding and eliminating its 'strangeness'. This seems to be the best approach with social interaction and living situations, but business and the politics of Japan are another matter entirely.

..... hmm too much to say.

Tuesday, October 05, 2004

by Kirsten Sandquist

So it's just October, but my yearly "November Rain" listening marathon has already begun... I wonder how long it will last this time.

I ended up talking with my host mother for about 3 hours yesterday, about all kinds of things, to the point that she forgot about dinner and I forgot about my two tests today until my host sister came home around 8. I've realized that my host mother is one of the few people who doesn't dumb down her Japanese when she talks to me, and I'm very grateful for this. Apart from what good practice it was, I learned a lot of surprising things...

For example, she is a licensed pharmacist, but stopped working when she got married. She wants to work once her children are older, but her eyes are getting worse, and she might not be able to... Sad. Also, her marriage was arranged... Weird!! Anyway, I'm finding myself getting along better here.

Going to work today for the first time today, to the Italian school, but unfortunately, because of the rain and the late night to make up for the bonding time when I should have been studying, I'm not as genki as I could be. Ah, whatever...

Still missing Milan and DC, but the rain has stopped making me feel nostalgic and started making me feel comfortable/relaxed. I love rain, despite the lethargy it creates in me. Apparently, it is uncommon for Nagoya to have such a rainy autumn, but I definitely don't mind it making this one exception.

Earthquake this morning... They have been getting more frequent. Scary. My heart starts pounding like a rabbit and my hands shake for 15 minutes afterwards. This is something I have never had to deal with before. Used to solid ground being... well... solid, the idea that the Earth itself is not dependable makes me nervous...

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