I’m here and when will it end.

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Hannah Crace

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Hannah Crace

<i>Home Institution</i>: University of Tennessee <i>Academic Major / Minor</i>: Marketing / Japanese <i>Destination</i>: Osaka, Japan <i>"Hello" in your host country's language</i>: こんにちは <i>Program Provider</i>: CET Academic Programs <i>Demographics</i>: African American/Black, Multi-Racial, First-Generation American, First-Generation College Student, LGBTQ+, Person with a disability <i>Future Career Goals</i>: My aspirations are to work and live in Japan after I graduate, I would like to participate in the JET program and expand my fluency of Japanese, while also contributing to future children's knowledge in the English language. As a marketing major I would like make connections in Japan, understanding the differences between Japanese marketing and American Marketing. I would also love to expand my roots in the video game industry possibly working for Nintendo's marketing team or other well known Japanese companies. I am passionate about the people I meet and hope to share cultural experience about the United states, along with learning about Japanese culture. I want to connect and be connected to people, creating an environment where everyone involved can learn and grow past the person they previously were. <i>Top Three Study Abroad Goals</i>: Increase fluency of Japanese to Advanced; Increase cross-cultural exposure between Japan and the U.S.; Integrate into Japanese society

I’ve had a lot of first here ever since I arrived in Japan. first plane ride, first experience in the city, first time out of the country. Everything was overwhelming yet underwhelming at the same time. There are stages when a student travels abroad for the first time. Stages that have become clearer over time. I can’t name them all to you now, but I can be honest about what I felt when I first arrived.

The Honey-moon stage. Everything is bright and shiny. No, literally everything. Garbage on the side of the road would sparkle in my eyes, and it was all because it was Japanese garbage. You seem to forget the fact that you are in a foreign country with a language that you can barely speak, because at this point none of that matters! My world view seemed to all shift in a matter of days, with how large the outside world was. It was shocking and I couldn’t shake the idea in my head that I was in a coma waiting to be woken up any moment. When we were first introduced to our share houses, the image I had in my head could never exactly fit what I would expect in person. I didn’t really understand what a share house was until I saw one. A lot of times when people asked how I was living in Japan, or what my “apartment or dorm looked like” I never was able to give them a straight answer. I’ll be honest, what I realized when an image was finally brought too me as too what a share house was, I knew I still was going to have a hard time explaining it once I returned. Even so, I had the realization of how unique studying abroad truly was. I had to relearn how to walk. Day to day life looks different here in Japan, the day starts a lot earlier here where the night tends to begin at 6pm. It was exhausting yet exhilarating all in one. I’m so excited to share my experiences here in Japan, I know my time here is limited so in the back of my mind there will always be the fear of it ending too soon, but I hope to cope a little bit with the exciting experiences I will be sharing here on my blog.