Mary Ma (China, 2015-16)

Until age twelve, I visited China every year with my family. The China of my childhood was a distinctly older and less developed country than the United States. Preparing for my departure in Spring of 2015, my base expectation was to understand new, modern China, as I knew that I was diving into a transitional time where old Chinese culture collides with explosive new growth.

No amount of hypothesizing could have prepared me for my actual experience during my year abroad there. I became fluent in Chinese, opening an entire new realm of opportunities after I complete my education. Upon arrival, I was immersed in a new China far flung from my childhood memories. The dusty old buildings of a bygone era had fallen to skyscrapers of glass and steel, tributes to an unrelenting pursuit of modernity. I found an internship at a non-profit organization, TEDxBeijing, where I was exposed to an extremely diverse and international group of colleagues. My experience at TEDxBeijing, nestled perfectly within the highly cosmopolitan Beijing ecosystem, led me to understand new China as a truly international culture.

I was very surprised at the potential for a career in China after graduation. Thanks to my year abroad and my learned proficiency in Chinese, new China’s vibrant wealth of opportunities are now only a plane flight away. The clash of new China and the 5,000-year-old culture it is enveloping was a fascinating thing to witness.

Despite this amazing experience, my year abroad was not without challenges. The people of urbanized China regularly experience prolonged periods of heavy air pollution. Experiencing this in person, rather than from the comfort of an international studies course in the US, fostered in me a great deal of understanding for the everyday struggles of the Chinese people. Through my time in new China, I came to a fundamentally new understanding of myself as both American and Chinese. My time in a completely foreign nation with its own unique culture reinforced my American self-concept. At the same time my immersion through language and experience allowed me to better understand that part of me is distinctly Chinese. Just as China as a nation is coming to realize it’s dual culture of growth and antiquity, my time there helped me see myself as both Chinese and American.

Daniel Lee (Japan, 2015-16)

During my study abroad program, I was studying at Keio University, a prestigious university located in the heart of Tokyo. I went to Japan with three goals: to raise my Japanese proficiency, to join a band to perform music, and to fully immerse in Japanese culture. I am delighted to say that by the end of my study abroad, I have reached all three of my goals and more.

At Keio, I took Japanese classes to further improve my Japanese conversational skills and writing. An interesting Japanese class I took was Honorifics, a special way of speaking in Japanese that varies depending on your listener. Since politeness is an integral part of Japanese culture, honorifics is something that one must master in order to speak good Japanese. In the class, we had to learn the different ways to talk to strangers, friends, teachers, managers, and so on. The practices of different scenarios during class not only improved my Japanese, but also showed me how Japanese, the language, is a vessel that carries the different attitudes that Japanese people carry towards other people. For me, it is mesmerizing to think how much of a culture is embedded in a language.

I also joined a band club at Keio University. Club activities are a big part of Japanese college life, something that American colleges usually lack; it is where people gather after classes to nurture their hobbies, ranging from orchestra to tennis to hiking. To my dismay, some Japanese people have this sense of exclusivity that makes it hard for a student studying abroad to join a club, but I was eventually able to find a band club that accepted me with welcoming arms. Joining a band club has always been my dream since high school and I am thrilled to finally have it fulfilled. Together with the other members of the club, we held monthly performances and occasional road trips. Band club is where most of my friends here in Japan are; through performing together, we not only improve our musicianship, but we also deepen the bonds we have between each other. As a bonus, I was able to constantly practice my Japanese and thus become fluent in it. The experience of trying and eventually succeeding in making friends in a completely strange environment using a different language was especially enriching and has certainly improved my interpersonal and communication skills.

I also went traveling around Japan during vacation with both Japanese students and also other exchange students, visiting all the famous places in Japan. I went to Hokkaido in the north during winter. There we visited Japan’s most famous zoo, Asahiyama Zoo, went skiing, ate a lot of seafood, and saw Japan’s prettiest night view at Hakodate. My friends and I also went to Kyoto and Osaka. Kyoto is a treasure trove of Japanese culture. We visited famous temples and even got dressed in kimono and walked around the ancient capital for a day. We also visited Uji, a town next to Kyoto that is famous for its tea. There, we had a lot of tea-tasting and experienced the traditional tea ceremony.

When school ended, I started interning at a software startup in Tokyo. My work is related to natural language processing, a field that is closely related to artificial intelligence. During this internship, I was able to complete a project that I am proud of. This opportunity led me to consider the possibilities of working in Japan in the future.

This year abroad went past in a flash. It was definitely an academically and personally enriching experience. On top of fulfilling my initial goals, I was able to further my programming skills via the internship and create lasting friendships in Japan. Through my contact with Japanese culture and people, I was able to open my eyes to the fact that the world does not revolve only around the United States; though the Japanese – or any other culture’s— lifestyle and values are different from those of the United States’, they are just as important. We can have a lot to learn if we step out of our comfort zone and experience, or even assimilate, parts of another culture’s lifestyle.

I never had the opportunity to meet Chris Borton, but while I was abroad I felt like we are connected through this shared experience. It is unbelievable how he is able to change and touch my life by giving me this opportunity to study abroad through the help of the Chris Borton Scholarship Fund. This eventful year is definitely one that I will not forget.

Megan Bright (Germany 2015-16)

It's hard to find just a couple of words to describe this year. I honestly don't think I had any concrete expectations before coming here and I think that's been one of the biggest blessings. It just means that every experience has been new and special. Even the difficult times like the very long and grey winter, which I've never experienced before, were a challenge and a major opportunity to learn from and grow. The weather is finally improving and spring in Berlin is absolutely beautiful. I also had no expectation for travel. I mean I planned on traveling but I had no set destination or number of places I felt I had to go. Because of this, I have traveled more than I could have imagined and to places I had never before considered. I went to Split, Dabrohvnic Amsterdam, Budapest, Vienna, Nuremberg, Dresden, Prague, Dublin, Barcelona, Valencia, Paris, Rome, and for my birthday in June I'm planning a trip to London. I have also had the amazing opportunity to travel by myself. That is an experience everyone should have.

The most difficult part about my year abroad would be that I can't think of a time when I wasn't at least a little homesick. I missed my family and California very much. And I guess I can be thankful to this experience because of how it has made me appreciate the people in my life and has actually brought us closer. I would say that this year abroad has made me proud of where I come from. I mean I've always been able to see the faults in our system but I still love it and I wouldn't choose to be an expat. But this experience has made me want to travel so much more and all over the world. That's another thing I've learned, it's not as big as we think.