Japan _ EU Mutual Understanding Scholarship Programme

Short Stay Programme (Five Weeks)

My stay in Japan truly lived up to the expectation I had before going. I thoroughly enjoyed my stay in Japan; it was a valuable and rewarding experience which I shall treasure forever. Although I spent only 5 weeks in Japan I feel that I was able to delve into the rich culture of the country. However much more is left to be discovered, and over the short stay programme I gained a taste which only leads to a desire to learn more.

I stayed for three and a half weeks with a host family in Ashiya, near to the larger cities of Kobe and Osaka in the Hyogo Prefecture. I was very fortunate to be staying there because it is a green and beautiful area which is central to some key historical and cultural areas of importance in Japan. My host family I shall never forget. They were extremely kind towards me and quickly made me feel welcome and a part of the home and family. Through my family I was introduced to all sorts of Japanese foods, and learned much about Japan. I was also introduced to a wide range of different people with whom I was able to become friendly. I am very grateful to my host family for having me and for all that they did to make my stay in Japan as comfortable as possible.

I also attended Nishinomiya High School for three weeks during my stay in Japan. There I was greeted by extremely friendly and kind people of my age with whom I quickly became friendly. I loved my time at school and meeting Japanese High School students was interesting because I learnt a lot from them about many different aspects of Japanese life. The students were as keen to learn about Britain as I was to learn about Japan and I hope that during my stay I helped them not only with their knowledge of Britain but also with their English language, which I feel noticeably improved during my time there. I was most grateful to the English teacher Yamashita-sensei who was always looking out for me and became a close friend while I was at school. I attended a rugby club at school where I gained the opportunity to meet students with whom I share an interest.

I was lucky to visit areas of heritage in Japan such as Himeji Castle, Kyoto and Nara while I was staying in the Hyogo Prefecture. These places really grabbed my attention and will stay in my memory a long time; they satisfied my love of history.

On arriving in Japan, I knew almost no Japanese. This meant that communicating with people was difficult, however through a mixture of English and Japanese I managed. Similarly school lessons were often hard to follow and there were times when I thought I knew what was happening only to discover shortly afterwards that I was a long way off the track. However during my stay in Japan my vocabulary increased massively and I now have a real incentive not to let this go to waste and to continue to study Japanese.

The IFA staff were also a great support while in Japan. They were most helpful during the ten days we spent in Tokyo, and made the time more enjoyable. Without their hard work the trip would not have been so amazing, and I know that all the students from Europe and I are most grateful for this.

I am so grateful to so many people and I hope to keep in contact with my host family and the friends I made in Japan. I hope to return to Japan again someday and meet with the many people with whom I became friendly with during my time there; similarly I would be happy for my host family and friends to visit me in England.

Before going to Japan I knew of the country only through what I read in books, watched on TV and learnt through the media. However gaining a first hand experience of the country shows that these do not do the country justice.

Thomas A.M. Strachan