Hello! It is hard to grasp that this is my last weekly essay. I’ve become so comfortable in Kyoto that it doesn’t feel like I’m about to get on a plane and fly back home. What’s crazy is that I felt that same feeling the week before leaving LA to come here, it didn’t feel real. I know that I feel ready to go home, I miss my family, I miss my friends, I miss my dogs, I miss the food, and I miss my bed. My mind is tired. The experience of navigating brand new relationships, regulating and working through the emotions of a foreign environment, and the burnout from schoolwork has drained my brain power significantly for an entire month has been a lot. Sometimes when I’m really tired and the combini employee talks to me I almost accidentally respond with “gracias” instead of “arigato gozaimasu.” I am happier and more grateful than ever though, and I accredit it mostly to the amount of alone time I give to myself during our free time. Especially this last week I’ve cherished my walks around Kyoto, just kind of looking at everything and being conscious of the fact that I’m in Japan. I notice that since I’ve been here for so long there are times where I’m walking through familiar places and I end up being on autopilot (which is so unfortunate when you’re in such an amazing place), and I have to snap myself out of it. Kyoto is just so pretty and lively that it’s impossible not to appreciate it. A lot of alone time also come with a lot of reflection though and I realized that this is the most adult I have ever felt. Certain aspects of my personality and characteristics I haven’t noticed before, or knew about but didn’t think were that significant, are amplified in a situation like this.
The academic portion of this class has enhanced my experience here so much. Having background information about the culture around food, gender, work, and overall attitudes in Japan helped me be way more aware of my surroundings. I noticed things that maybe other people wouldn’t have noticed or simply ignored. Things that were different became a source of academic exploration on this trip. Upon going into a bakery, where all the goods were individually wrapped in plastic, I remembered our first week’s lesson on food culture and etiquette and remembered that hands are seen as dirty and shouldn’t touch food, thus explaining why. Our lessons on writing and linguistics in the Japanese language helped me understand what I read around me without even speaking the Japanese language. I could make a conjecture about the attitude trying to be conveyed in an add by noticing if it was written in kanji, hiragana, or katakana. The final section which dove more into culture and society was a great use of my anthropological background. We covered a wide range of topics that gave context to each generation of modern Japan as well as the past. We discussed ideas about masculinity, language intelligibility, and the cognitive effects that language has on the way we perceive things like direction and time, all things that are heavily involved in my minor and major. We covered so much with Idemaru Sensei and I think the course content perfectly complimented and prepared us for our experiences in Japan. The material enhanced my cultural awareness which probably wouldn’t have happened if I was just traveling as a tourist.
This last week consisted of some great experiences as always. The most memorable being Gion Matsuri which felt like a really symbolic celebration of my time here. The first night back after the weekend away in Osaka was spent with hanging out with friends and eating street food. The city closed off the main street so we got to walk around and look at all the floats before they moved the next day. We woke up early and all went together to watch “the hair raising turns” being made by the different floats on the main intersection. It was so crowded, and you could tell how important of a day this was based off of the turnout. After we had met as a group I branched off and went by myself to a less crowded area and just sat for like an hour and a half watching the procession, the different floats, and even saw Ochigo san a second time. Watching something as extravagant as that and something that is so special and unique to Kyoto felt like a closing ceremony to this journey. I felt really at peace watching because it meant that I was on the back end of a period that I was really intimidated to go through. Other activities of the week included meditating at Ryoanji, a hike at Diamonji, a visit to the Takashi Murakami exhibit at Kyoto’s modern art museum, and lots of last minute shopping.
In conclusion, this trip has been full of memorable experiences, personal growth, and memories that I will hold with me for the rest of my life. I am forever grateful to my dad who encouraged me to study abroad and made it possible to travel at such a young age. My parents and family members have been so excited for me and always support to the fullest, giving me the confidence and bravery to pursue opportunities like this. I knew coming into college that I wanted to study abroad and I’m glad that Kyoto was an option for me. I have fallen in love with the city and Japan as a whole and I know that one day I’ll be back and ready to explore more. I am glad to come home with fond memories of the people like Idemaru sensei, Haruna, and Eiko who opened my world with information and exploration. The trip would not have been the same without their experience and passion. My camera roll and mind are filled with incredible views and places and I get to look back at them forever and I can’t wait to show them to everyone back home. This experience has been life changing and I still can’t believe how lucky I am to live this life.
