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Studying Abroad! The best year of my life!

By Anthony Givhan

               Wide eyed with butterflies drifting through my intestines, I said my final good-byes and slowly walked away from my lovely mother, who had come to see me off on my last night in the states. After walking through the international departure gates of an unusually quiet LAX, I scoffed down one of the worst overpriced burritos one could ever entertain, and buckled into the longest flight, and shortest year of my life.  Thanks to the Gilman scholarship, I was afforded a priceless experience, in studying abroad in Japan for a year.  Landing first in an almost deserted Chinese Airport, I stumbled through its massive hallways, trying to kill the few hours I had in layaway, while painfully aware of my phone’s dwindling battery.  Fascinated and slightly intimidated by the stark change in environment, I wondered what lay beyond those airport walls, skies covered by beige mist, all the whilst sitting in the most of uncomfortable chairs watching Chinese television.  And there I was, a two hour flight later, in the midst of my new home, Osaka Japan.  Stepping out of the airplane, and almost immediately running into one of my friends I had taken Japanese classes with, I think I was too enamored by the thought of actually being in the place that I had watched and dreamed about for years to think about all the amazing experiences I would end up having.   

                Living in Japan was one of the most dilating experiences I could have ever had, and that’s coming from an ethnic kid growing up in the middle of the melting pot that is Southern California.  I had lived, albeit sheltered, some summers in Georgia with family growing up, but that experience, while different, couldn’t amount to the amount of culture I would be exposed to and friends I would make.  On just the second day there, I met multiple people that would become some of my closest friends and build amazing experiences with.

  Aside from the Japanese friends I made, I got to meet students and intellectuals from every corner of the world and learn from them.  Their viewpoints on the world were super interesting to hear, and as an only somewhat outward looking American, and on top of that one that had never left the country, I not only got a chance to look deeply into their cultures, but I got to look back at my culture from an external perspective.  And I feel that that was invaluable.  Coming back to the states, I realized how lucky I was, because most people don’t take advantage of, or have the chance to go to other countries and get this outlook.  As I progressed through the first semester, I learned firsthand the intricacies and nuances of Japanese society, and got to experience them firsthand.  One of the main reasons I had come to Japan was to learn about the society and culture, and it amazed me that I could literally learn about something in class, say a mannerism, place, or class of people even, and see it in the world the same day.  お正月, Japanese New Years celebration, is a perfect example of this.  Matsuri, or Japanese festivals, are a huge part of Japanese culture, and for the most part can only be experienced in Japan.  On New Years, giant festivals erupt from almost every temple, and I’ll never forget stumbling through thousands of people into NakayamaDera temple with a couple of my best friends, a huge complex just a few miles away from my dorm, and befriending a famous Japanese rock star around the giant bonfire there.  So!

I can only emphasize, if you’ve learned about Japan and want to be immersed in the culture, the best and most loving environment you can probably do it in is as a student studying abroad.

               As a prospective culture and design major, another reason for me being in Japan was to experience the underground youth and fashion scenes, and make lifelong friends that could turn into professional partners later in life.  And I did just so!  If you’re on the fence about going to Japan and meeting people being a foreigner, just know that as long as you’re dedicated and passionate about what you’re into, you’ll always be able to make friends.  The Japanese people that I met over there are just as interested in foreign culture as you may be about theirs, and that makes it easy, so don’t hesitate!  When I was out there one of the first things I made sure to do was reach out to some people in a local music scene.  A few months later, I had ended up making music with a couple Japanese friends, and upon hanging out with them, even got a chance to rock a couple shows with them, and meet lots of people in the scene, traversing a world that granted me access to invaluable connections. 

When I was preparing to go to Japan, I had no way to expect I would get this involved.  But I do know that none of it would have happened if I didn’t go.  And in the off time from your studies, there’s plenty  of time to travel, meet new people, or do whatever you’re going to japan to do!

  I spent most of my time in Osaka, but going to Tokyo, namely Harajuku and Shibuya, I was surrounded by more fashion that I could almost handle.  It was the mind blowing.  I seriously can’t wait to get back, and I hope, with all my heart, that if you are planning on going, don’t miss out on the chance of a lifetime!  Take risks, explore, learn, you won’t regret it!