Toji Temple in Kyoto

Author: Ethan Peters | Majors: Biochemistry, Spanish | Semester: January Intersession 2023

I just returned from a three-week study abroad in Kyoto, Japan. In many ways, the program was completely outside my comfort zone. I don’t speak the language, the schedule was loose, and the culture foreign to me. These challenges were exactly what caused me to grow as much as I did in the end.

While in Japan, I took a course on art, anime, and manga. The academics were an interesting mixture of readings and daily quizzes which were quite high paced, as is always the case for intersession classes, and spontaneity. My instructor, as an artist and film maker himself, always encouraged us to be creative. My favorite assignments were sketching trees in the old Imperial Palace Garden in Kyoto and creating my own manga about a Westerner in Japan. Our readings and classroom discussions about art included some technical details, but were also a window into Japanese history, culture, and globalization more generally. One example that struck me was viewing an artist’s depiction of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima through an animated film. It was sobering to watch and initiated an interesting conversation about the transformation of the political relationship between the United States and Japan since the end of World War II. Through the representations of gender in manga, we were also able to investigate how gender constrains individuals in modern Japan, which by and large remains a culturally traditional society. Although the content of the class does not directly influence my future career in medicine, the program was still helpful because modern physicians must be able to interact with patients and coworkers from a wide variety of backgrounds. The best way to develop that skill is to repeatedly immerse oneself in new cultures. I certainly spent time practicing that skill, from interacting with my professor to speaking with employees at restaurants. I also was exposed to a diverse student body. My peers in the program were college students from all over the United States. I met people from California all the way to New York City with representation from many subcultures and religions. Each of my peers brought different and valuable perspectives to our classroom discussions on social issues and culture.

My academic experience was enhanced by formal co-curricular experiences and informal exploration. As part of the program, I participated in a traditional tea ceremony, saw the 10,000 tori gates at Fushimi Inari, and visited the International Manga Museum. There was a large amount of unstructured time in the program, which left plenty of room for my group to explore the country on our own. We visited the myriad of shrines and temples in Kyoto, many of which have been standing for centuries. We also got a taste of modern Japan in Tokyo for a long weekend. My favorite experience there was TeamLabs, an innovative, immersive art museum where the exhibits interact with the viewers. One huge room, called the Infinite Crystal Universe, had LED lights hanging from the ceiling and mirrors on all surfaces. The lights were coordinated to produce beautiful rippling effects at times rushed by you at others. They seemed to stretch out forever in all directions.

For any student that is interested in this program, I think it has a lot of potential to be an amazing experience. The program is well situated in Kyoto because it is a center of traditional Japanese culture, with so much beautiful nature and architecture. The program is on the unstructured side, so be prepared to fill the time with your own activities. I would also recommend going with a few friends if nervous about forming a group with the other students after arriving. I would also recommend purchasing a multiweek bullet train pass. This allows one to travel anywhere in Japan with no additional cost. I did not buy it because of the price (around $400), but I spent almost that amount on travel to Tokyo. My roommate in the program was able to see close to 15 cities with the rail pass. Happy travelling!