Global Journey Blog vol.10 Yui Ikegami

Hi! This is Yui.

It has been about a month and a half since I finished my study abroad program in Miami, and I am enjoying reconnecting with friends and family while searching for myself in my job search.

Looking back on my study abroad experience once again, I believe that it was a time for me to reflect on myself during the period. What I like, what I am interested in, what I am not good at.

There were things that I thought, "Oh, I really like this," while there were things that I thought, "I've been avoiding this, but it's surprisingly interesting.

I have also realized that there are things that I have been avoiding, but that I find surprisingly interesting.

In this issue, I would like to summarize my study abroad experience while touching on these new insights! I hope you will join me.

My fav scenery. I loved this sunset time of day.

Still love to travel!

While I was studying abroad, I met good friends and was able to visit many places.

I visited Miami, which is located in the south of the United States. Considering its location, I am satisfied that I was able to visit places that are not easily accessible from Japan.

As I wrote in a previous blog, I was able to visit Key West, the southernmost island in the U.S., New Orleans, the birthplace of jazz, and other historic cities in Florida.

Key West, the sky, the sea, and even the city were a lovely land.

Live jazz music in New Orleans. It was a heartwarming evening.

There was also a day when I rode alone to the NASA Kennedy Space Center and was fascinated by the history of space and rocket development.
It was a great experience for me because all of the places I visited were difficult to get to from Japan due to their location, and I would not have visited them unless I had a great opportunity to do so.

Influenced by my father, who’s a space enthusiast, so I went there. I was very impressed by the scale of the universe and efforts for astronouts till making it happen.

What I felt during my trip was that I like to be stimulated by meeting people. And when I learn about the history of a place, I like to imagine that something like this actually happened and feel the romance of it.

If you say that's the charm of travel, then that's all there is to it, but it was an opportunity to experience the joy of travel once again.


Interests in learning new things in new language

One of the reasons I wanted to study abroad was to learn something in English.
It all started when I was wandering around the university library during the open campus and came across a book about Japanese culture written from a foreigner's point of view.

I thought, "If I can read and write English, I can gain more knowledge, and more importantly, I can learn about a world I don't know! It sounds interesting! I remember I was very excited.

In fact, I was able to study about unknown subjects during my study abroad.
Here are two that particularly impressed me.


Food issues from an American perspective

Geography of the Global Food system
We learned about food problems occurring on a global scale, such as environmental destruction caused by agriculture and livestock farming, and health hazards caused by substances contained in food products.

I was particularly impressed by the food problems of the poor in the U.S. The obesity rate in the U.S. is high.

The obesity rate is high in the United States. It is often taken as "fat people are fat because they eat a lot," but there are many poor people who are also overweight.

In the vast land of the U.S., it is difficult for poor people to find fresh food.
This is partly because vegetables and health-conscious foods are expensive to begin with, but also because it is financially difficult to travel to a grocery store far from home.

Especially in the interior regions of the U.S., transportation routes for fresh food are limited, and only a limited number of stores have access to the foods they want. So they have more opportunities to eat processed foods and snacks that are well-stocked because they are less likely to spoil, which leads to weight gain even though they are not nutritious.

I think it was a good opportunity for me to learn by focusing on the U.S., which I had not been exposed to in depth before. In addition to the knowledge of geography, I was also exposed to many agricultural and animal husbandry terms.　

Introducing Miami's Last Supper. I was able to enjoy some ridiculously delicious South American food at the end of the trip.

Encountering and getting into psychology, which I had been avoiding.

A friend of mine was into philosophy for a while (not suspiciously), and I wanted to spend some time thinking about the psyche, so I took a psychology class.

I had avoided psychology without knowing anything about it, but when I took it, I really enjoyed it.

One of the major takeaways from the study was that I learned that people are very uncomfortable when they have two contradictory thoughts.

For example, I sometimes feel more attached to something that I have gone through some hard work to get.

Example: the bread I got in line at the bakery I had been looking at on Instagram every day for 3 months before I decided to travel to France.
When I ate the bread I had worked so hard to get, it didn't taste so good that I jumped up and down.

You can take it as, "Wow, it wasn't worth waiting in line for."
Or, "It's delicious, it was worth waiting in line for.

There are moments when you try to find even the slightest positive aspect of something you have managed to get your hands on, and it is not limited to bread. In this case, I am on the side of "It's delicious, isn't it?

If you feel that the bread is not that tasty, you will wonder why you waited in line to get it. To avoid thinking this way, why not try to view the bread in a good light?

As seen in this example, I think it is interesting to act in a way that tries to look at your actions in a positive way, saying, "It was worth it to get in line. I often think "I don't want to regret" on a daily basis, so no matter what experience I have, I view it as "it led to my growth. （I don't always reflect on my mistakes, and sometimes I repeat them, but it is necessary to look back on them from time to time.)

As you can see from this example, I found it very interesting to have my daily feelings and worries explained in an academic manner in a straightforward manner, and I began to observe myself objectively after I started taking classes.
I think this also helped me to remain more calm when I was feeling emotional, by facing those emotions in a calm manner.

Incidentally, a friend of mine who was into philosophy encountered metaphysics and asked me what is time? Do the past and future exist? He was thinking in the deepest realm.

This is the last diner at a uni cafeteria. It was a mysterious meal until the end. but want to try it again

In closing

Studying abroad itself is not a very rare thing, and I don't think I am great because I went.
But for me, it was one of the few "dream come true" moments in my life.

I had a longing to study in junior high school, failed an interview in high school, gave up the opportunity I had once more because it was during a club competition, prepared for it in my first and second years of college, and finally made my dream come true in my third year.

I guess I feel that the experience of studying abroad is very important to me from a psychological point of view because I had always been longing for it...lol I honestly think that I was given a really good opportunity to study abroad!

During my study abroad period, I spent my days taking classes at the local level with the idea of doing things that are typical of study abroad, lamenting over assignments, traveling at times, and experiencing food and culture in a fulfilling way.

However, I feel that I was able to do this because of all the things I had done in the past. When I was in high school, I really didn't have a good speaking ability, and people asked me if I was OK, having never been abroad and having grown up in a laid-back local environment. I was told by people around me, and I thought so myself.

Because of my impatience and lack of confidence, I prepared myself to try various things, and I think that I was able to do so without despairing so much during my study abroad.

On the other hand, there were many things that made me realize that I still have a long way to go.
On the other hand, there were many things that made me realize that I am not ready yet. I also took time to face myself and found many things I would like to change and challenge in the future.

I would like to visit many places in the future, including overseas, and I would like to make the most of this experience and continue to challenge myself and grow.

Thanks to the support I received both physically, mentally, and financially, I was able to stay in good health during my study abroad. I am truly grateful to my family, friends, and loved ones.

This is the end of this blog.
Thank you very much for watching over my challenge so far!

We hope to be able to resume one day with a journal of our adventures!
Thank you for reading!