In the Blink of an Eye

During the summer of 2022, I was blessed with the opportunity to study abroad for the very first time in my life. I knew that studying abroad would be a life-changing experience, but I did not expect it to have such a profound effect on my life. After researching on my own and talking to my study abroad advisor countless times, I finally decided on an intensive language program located in Osaka, Japan. The two months that I spent in Osaka flew by in the blink of an eye, but during those two months, I was able to meet so many different people from so many different walks of life. I would recommend studying abroad to anyone who is considering it as well as to anyone who wants to broaden their horizons.

I first want to talk about how It was possible for me to study abroad. I am a first-generation college student with financial need. I regularly receive a financial pell-grant which made me eligible for several need-based scholarships. I also applied for and received the Foreign Area and Language Studies (FLAS) scholarship at KU. When applying for these scholarships, I always had to write a statement of purpose. Doing so allowed me to be able to think about my future career and academic goals. It was a lot of work to write these statements of purpose, but I am glad for the chance it provided me to be reflective of myself. 

Now let us talk about my time studying abroad. The journey to Japan was my very first trip abroad. I had never been on a plane before until two months prior to boarding my 12-hour flight to Japan. Due to the pandemic, when I arrived at the airport at Haneda airport in Japan I was herded towards information checks several times. I had to quickly catch another flight to get to Osaka and was rushing through this process as fast as I could. When I finally boarded my connecting flight, I was able to sigh a breath of relief while being able to view the beautiful scenery of Japan as the sun set. 

I spent two months living in Osaka, but I find it hard to try and describe what the city was like. This could be because I have never been to a bigger city like New York or California before. In any case, Osaka was a vibrant city full of interesting things to do. I would often go to Umeda station to get coffee and study Japanese. The café I visited the most had a Victorian aesthetic and I was able to study well there while listening to the classical music that played in the background of the shop.

I would often go to Umeda station with friends to eat dinner or go to shopping districts. Speaking of friends, I was able to make loads of friends during my time abroad. It is always fun getting to know someone, especially when some of them were raised in a completely different culture. One interesting thing was that two of the students participating in the program were able to play instruments extremely well. One of them played the Shakuhachi, a traditional, flute-like instrument from Japan. He gave two wonderful live performances to all the study abroad students. The other student played the violin and gave an astounding classical music performance at the closing ceremony of the program.

The program I participated in was only two months long. From the opening ceremony to the closing ceremony, it all went by in the blink of an eye. This is something that evokes mixed emotions for me. I am so happy for all the experiences I had during my time abroad, but at the same time, I wish that I would have been able to have more of them. Time is a terrifying force, but I do not have any regrets about the time I spent in Japan. Because of my time abroad, I deepened my desire to work in the country and perhaps attend graduate school there. No matter what happens, I am extremely grateful. My advice to anyone who is planning to study abroad is to enjoy every single moment of it.