Author: Hallie Stiff | Major: Architecture | Semester: May 2024
Me being attacked by a deer in Nara, Japan
The day after finals ended, I woke up at 5 am to catch a plane. many hours later, I stepped out of the airport in Osaka, tired but curious to see what awaited us. Despite being on a plane for 14 hours, I could not fathom that I was in Japan. This changed once we loaded up on the bus for our ride to the hotel, when I realized we were driving on the wrong side of the road and I couldn’t read any of the signs outside. My excitement and disbelief grew once we got to the first place we were staying in – Nara – a view that included deer everywhere, an old Buddhist Pagoda, mountains, houses and… a Starbucks? I quickly realized I was going to love Japan.
I chose to study abroad in Japan because studying traditional Japanese architecture and its influence has always been something that I am fond of. The combination of ancient and modern that can be seen throughout Japan is so different from what we see in the United States, along with so much about Japan in general. I am pursuing a minor in the History of Architecture and Design, so any opportunity to witness old architecture in person is a must. I also really wanted to experience what a different culture looks like, based on a completely different environment with different values and history. The eastern philosophies and religions differ greatly from that of the West, and I was seeking to better understand these differences.
The trip was an intersession style study abroad experience, lasting two weeks from May 11th– May 27th. Following this I was able to extend my trip and stay an extra two weeks, returning June 10th on my own.
This was not the traditional study abroad experience where we took classes, but it was more of a hands-on experience, which I loved! This meant we were able to travel all over Japan to different sites, where each of us would give a presentation over a site of our choice which we had prepared during or before the trip. Rather than sitting in a classroom, we were able to learn about something while it was right in front of us, not only through the presentations but through seeing it in person, giving us a much broader sense of the context.
I presented at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial, where I spoke about the war in Asia, the dropping of the Atomic Bomb, and the architecture/controversy surrounding the museum. I think learning about WWII more holistically is so incredibly important because there are different versions of every story depending on where it is told and who is telling it. The way WWII is taught in different parts of the world is so intriguing and something I had never thought about enough until this trip. Japan focuses more on the war in Asia, while in the U.S.A. we focus almost solely on the European theater – the only events I vividly remember learning that involved the Pacific front are Pearl Harbor and the dropping of the atomic bombs.
Japan opened my eyes not only to a broader present-day world view, but expanded my view of how our countries and cultures relate in a historical sense. This is something that is difficult to appreciate without having the opportunity to really immerse myself in a completely different culture for as long as I did.
My advice to anyone wanting to experience more, APPLY! If you think you might be interested but are unsure if you will make it/get scholarships/regret it, APPLY ANYWAYS! You never know what might happen, and the more you try the more you get to experience.