After 6 long months of travelling across the world, I am finally back in the states! Although I will be studying abroad in Japan again in a couple of months (which I am sure will inspire a whole other series of posts), I will be home sweet home for a while.
Now, let me fill you all in on what I've been up to. 6 months is a long time to sum up in one post, so I'll be dividing it into 3 parts.
Now, let me fill you all in on what I've been up to. 6 months is a long time to sum up in one post, so I'll be dividing it into 3 parts.
SUMMER 2015: THE INTERNSHIP
After my week working in Tokyo (see "6 MONTHS LATER... (PART 1)"), I flew to Boston for the orientation of my internship in Japan. In a couple of days, I was back in Tokyo, but in a completely different situation: an American intern in Japan. Along with the nine other interns in my group, I spent the first couple of days touring the area as a gaikokujin. Directly translated, this would mean "foreigner," but that's a word I don't really feel comfortable using. I prefer to define it as "someone from outside of Japan," although some people might question the difference.
And then, my internship began. The nature of the internship involved moving cities every week, and being a part of a new host family every week. I was so blessed in that the host families to which I was assigned were all incredibly kind people who were fun to live with, and helped me to experience parts of Japanese culture that I had always dreamed of participating in. Below are just a few of the things I was able to do:
And then, my internship began. The nature of the internship involved moving cities every week, and being a part of a new host family every week. I was so blessed in that the host families to which I was assigned were all incredibly kind people who were fun to live with, and helped me to experience parts of Japanese culture that I had always dreamed of participating in. Below are just a few of the things I was able to do:
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There were many difficult times during the internship, but one of the things that shocked me the most was the mentality with which us interns, or gaikokujin in general, were viewed and treated. During the week I was here on my own, because of my appearance I was approached as a Japanese individual. When I had studied abroad in Kyoto (see the "Wintersession in Japan" series under the category "Study Abroad"), I was mostly surrounded by my fellow American students, so it was hard to see how people saw us from the outside. During this internship, I had the pleasure of interacting with Japanese people every day. They were wonderful and inspiring to work with, without question. However, I personally observed a problematic outlook on gaikokujin that was common among many of them.
I've spoken briefly on this before, but I was taken aback at how even in this day and age, there was a serious idealism of America. Many would describe Americans like they would describe celebrities -- all beautiful, all smart, aggressive, bold, and brave, and all successful. This lead to an even more problematic way of thinking: that Americans can do things, and Japanese people cannot do things. Public speaking were a recurring example. I was told way too often that "Japanese people cannot do presentations like Americans. I hope that you can teach Japanese people to do presentations like Americans."
I am not saying that cultural tendencies do not exist. Of course they do! There are certain laws, systems, and traditions for certain areas that are bound to cause some commonalities in its residents. But to make the statement that somehow, all Japanese people are bad at presentations, and that all Americans are good at presentations? I'll say it bluntly, that is an excuse. Now, I won't say that I've never generalized in my life, nor do I think that the people who made this statement are unintelligent or bad people. I have simply seen some incredible Japanese presenters, and some substandard American presenters... and vice versa, and from people all over the world. And I think it is a mistake to not acknowledge the existence of them. Or, perhaps even worse, tell someone who could be a good presenter that they are a bad presenter in comparison to an American presenter simply because they are Japanese. I hope that this mentality will fade in time, but it is definitely a problem now that I consider worth discussing.
And, as I experienced in Kyoto, an objectification of gaikokujin. Because I did not experience this myself during the internship (most likely because of my Japanese appearance), I won't go into details, but I heard many problematic comments and horror stories from others. And later on in Prague, I would experience it myself in full force, which is another post altogether.
While the internship was a challenging experience, after it ended I felt more empowered, aware, and knowledgeable. I grew more confident in the Japanese part of my identity, and even began to consider the possibility of working in Japan. I am so glad that I was able to participate in the program.
Stay tuned for my next post about my semester in Prague!
Best,
justajae
I've spoken briefly on this before, but I was taken aback at how even in this day and age, there was a serious idealism of America. Many would describe Americans like they would describe celebrities -- all beautiful, all smart, aggressive, bold, and brave, and all successful. This lead to an even more problematic way of thinking: that Americans can do things, and Japanese people cannot do things. Public speaking were a recurring example. I was told way too often that "Japanese people cannot do presentations like Americans. I hope that you can teach Japanese people to do presentations like Americans."
I am not saying that cultural tendencies do not exist. Of course they do! There are certain laws, systems, and traditions for certain areas that are bound to cause some commonalities in its residents. But to make the statement that somehow, all Japanese people are bad at presentations, and that all Americans are good at presentations? I'll say it bluntly, that is an excuse. Now, I won't say that I've never generalized in my life, nor do I think that the people who made this statement are unintelligent or bad people. I have simply seen some incredible Japanese presenters, and some substandard American presenters... and vice versa, and from people all over the world. And I think it is a mistake to not acknowledge the existence of them. Or, perhaps even worse, tell someone who could be a good presenter that they are a bad presenter in comparison to an American presenter simply because they are Japanese. I hope that this mentality will fade in time, but it is definitely a problem now that I consider worth discussing.
And, as I experienced in Kyoto, an objectification of gaikokujin. Because I did not experience this myself during the internship (most likely because of my Japanese appearance), I won't go into details, but I heard many problematic comments and horror stories from others. And later on in Prague, I would experience it myself in full force, which is another post altogether.
While the internship was a challenging experience, after it ended I felt more empowered, aware, and knowledgeable. I grew more confident in the Japanese part of my identity, and even began to consider the possibility of working in Japan. I am so glad that I was able to participate in the program.
Stay tuned for my next post about my semester in Prague!
Best,
justajae