11/6/2008 - Postcards From Abroad: Students Abroad
My life in Japan has been one great adventure.
Well, first, I can say that I’m doing great in Calligraphy. As for typing, I have already had an entry receive a prize in an
international calligraphy competition, have participated on a Grand Prix, and painted using a giant brush while wearing a hakama
in front of a large audience in Hiroshima city during an inter-school cultural festival. And I’ve only started seriously
practicing calligraphy three months ago! Whoever imagined that someone like me who is so clumsy with art materials could actually
pull off achievements like that? (I have my sensei to thank for that!) But what really fascinates me about calligraphy is the
feeling of calmness and relaxation that befalls me whenever I use my brush. I also like the Chinese characters I practice on.
While I enjoy the tranquility of my host community, every now and then I venture into somewhere else. Thanks to my host family, I
have gone to so many places, all of them with their own special charm that makes them so unique from the rest. The fine texture of
the sand of Tottori Sand Dunes, the majestic presence of the Toori Gate at Miyajima, the marvelling length of the Kintaikyo Bridge
in Iwakuni…these beautiful memories will be forever etched in my mind.
Plus, I can say that I’m doing well on my Japanese. Having only learned a few aisatsu’s plus hiragana and katakana on my arrival,
I can now recite more than 200 kanji and participate in daily conversation. It wasn’t easy though; I received lots of corrections,
I endured some “stuttering” moments, and there were times that I sort of gave up. However, I have now grown so fond of the
Japanese language that I’ve decided to continue on improving my Japanese even after I return to the Philippines.
But what has been most special of my whole stay was the Japanese people themselves. I first came to Japan with lots of worries and
doubts of how I will be treated there. Thank goodness all my fears were wrong! I easily felt at home with everybody’s warmth and
friendliness. From those first days I struggled with trying to understand everyone to these days when I usually chat with a friend
or two, I have understood so much about the Japanese people that cannot be expressed just by words alone.
As I said earlier, my life in Japan has been one great adventure…and it isn’t over yet!
I could still remember that day six months ago, when I felt the sudden urge to just return to my aisle seat right after I stepped
out of the airplane.
I’m so thankful I didn’t go back inside the plane!
- Boris, originally from the Philippines
AFSer to Japan (Hiroshima Chapter)
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