“Why did you decide to go abroad?”
That is a question that I have heard numerous times since I first decided to do just that several years ago. After coming back from a year in Japan, I have given that very question a lot of thought, and I think it’s finally time that I share my experiences and offer people a different way to look at language.
So first off, why did I even go abroad? The reason I went is very simple, really. Before I even set foot on the UTM campus, I had always wanted to do something different with my life and figured going aboard for a year would definitely be a way to do that. I didn’t really have a plan at that point, merely a dream to do something more.
“But why Japanese, isn’t that hard?”
That is another question I have heard repeatedly. Back in high school, I had always been a casual fan of anime or other Japanese shows, and would usually watch some when I was bored and wanted to skip out on homework. But after waiting forever for the subtitles to come out and even longer for the English dub, I decided to take up Japanese.
I’ll admit, at that time it was hard. Hiragana, Katakana, the vocabulary and don’t even get me started on the Kanji/characters. But after a while I found myself drawn into the language, as if something in me was resonating with the language and the culture that I was steadily learning about.
“How was it abroad?”
Well, the first time I went to Japan I found that even though I still had a ways to go with the language, as I still was a complete novice at the time, I was truly in love with the culture. The people there were nice and helpful, and the people in the international office were always there with a smile and could talk to you if you didn’t understand something.
The second time I was there was even better as I had a slightly better mastery of Japanese and I knew my way around. Granted, I got lost once trying to take some friends back home, but that’s a different story. The truth of the matter is, it was the greatest experience of my life, both good times and bad. I truly did find my home there, and I will go back, one way or another.
I’m not here to tell you that you have to go abroad; despite my rambling, I am trying to give you an idea of what it was like abroad, but you don’t have to take my word for it.
I have a question for the readers now: why don’t you see for yourselves? Don’t be afraid to try different things and see new places. I won’t get on my soapbox; we would be here all day. But what I will tell you is try picking up a language one of these days and see where it might lead you to in life.
