One summer day in Yukata in Tokyo

Japan, the place I had wanted to visit for years, I’ve finally gone and seen it!
This was the first time I had been in a different country alone, so it was a little daunting to begin with, but I was also very excited for it. The first few days felt like a dream. I couldn’t actually believe I was here. Lots of things were different and felt ‘out of place’ to me, but there were also a lot of similarities that made it feel like such a familiar place. After a couple of days and getting used to the train system I quickly started to feel like I had gotten the hang of things

The first place I stayed at was Okayama. From there I visited Kurashiki City and Himeji City over the next two days. Both places were amazing, and although Himeji had its beautiful and famous castle, Kurashiki was my favourite. The historical area of the city was gorgeous, packed with shops and photo ops galore, had a park and a shrine and a ridable gondola, and was picturesquely quiet. I even made a friend and we got dinner in the town together.

During my short program, I studied Japanese at Sophia University for three weeks. During that time, I met up with local and international students and we would sightsee around Tokyo, go to shops, and have fun at karaoke together. There was even a Yukata Day, where all the students were encouraged to wear yukata to the campus. There were also traditional activities being held to go with the event, such as a Japanese Tea Ceremony, which I was so happy I was able to experience.

Another of my favourite experiences was visiting Asakusa with my Japanese friends. The street-lined shops on the way to the shrine were incredibly busy, but also exciting and fun. It was so tempting to buy all the knick-knacks I saw, and I couldn’t resist a few beautiful tokens of my journey. We all went to a sushi restaurant for lunch, and it was so delicious that I swore when I returned it would be the first thing I ate! Asakusa Shrine itself was magnificent. The courtyard around it, the pagoda and the enormous roof of the shrine, the serene garden around it, it was incredibly beautiful. And it was even better with my friends there to share the experience!

Japan was an unforgettable place, and I’m so happy I was able to go there and see the country and meet the people there. I have so many wonderful memories to keep, and places I want to visit next time. I will definitely be back!

Shanti Woodend
Faculty of Science
Summer Session at Sophia University, Japan
New Colombo Plan Mobility Grant