zekegreer-blog

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Going Home

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Learning Abroad Learning

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Update on life as an exchange student at Akita International University, Japan. Showing some highlights from trips to Sendai and Osaka.

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Beautiful Japan

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Japanese Public Transportation

Scenery on the path from school to the ATM.

We called our selves the striped sushi squad. 

Downtown Tokyo.

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Life as an Exchange Student in Japan. #UniversityofUtah #AkitaInternationalUniversity #UtahAbroad #GoSomewhere

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Settling In

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Jumping in the River

3:00am wake up call for a 20+ hour travel day.

Saying goodbye to the pup.

Getting handed this finally made this whole thing feel real.

Home for the semester.

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Social Media Submission: Ski-bum turned Surf-bum

Growing up in Salt Lake City, surrounded by the Wasatch mountains, I’ve never been a stranger to snow, and with both parents being employed at a ski resort, I was practically raised in the mountains. For as long as I can remember, snowboarding has been my top priority. Consequently, choosing which college I wanted to attend wasn’t much of a process (the U of U being less than an hour from seven different ski resorts). 

 As the mountains would undergo their annual swap of snow covered pines to dark green scrub oak, I would likewise swap out my snowboard for my skateboard. Inevitably, as I became proficient at snowboarding and skateboarding, I began to set my sights on conquering the last of the trifecta of board sports. So, when my boss informed me that he was moving to Maui to take over a recently purchased restaurant, and offered me a job, I jumped on the opportunity to try my luck at surfing. 

A typical weekend end getaway up Big Cottonwood Canyon, and the highly satisfying view of Mt. Superior after a two hour tour up Grizzly Gulch. 

Being a 20-year-old, stereotypically broke college student, my housing options were very limited. I chose the most economical option, second only to full on sleeping-on-the-beach homelessness, and bought a 93′ Ford Van, complete with a plywood bed and overhead surfboard storage. Home is where you park it!

                                         (https://www.koa156.com/)

Although I lack the luxury of a refrigerator or kitchen stove, being employed at a fine dining establishment never leaves my stomach craving the finer comforts of life. Here is the signature macadamia nut encrusted mahimahi, sister to the Riverhorse on Main(Park City, Ut) classic, macadamia nut Halibut. 

Only knowing one person on the island was an interesting experience, but social media informed me that an old friend happened to be here on vacation the week I arrived.  Thanks Mark Zuckerberg, you helped make the local surf break a little less intimidating. 

Tucked right in the middle of downtown Lahaina sits the worlds largest Banyan Tree, over 150 years old. 

Although I do miss seeing the sunset over the Great Salt Lake, the Pacific Ocean is not too bad of a replacement. I think I could get used to this place.