Annabel Lai

University of Western Australia, Australia
Exchange to Kansai Gaidai University, Japan

The five-month exchange in Japan was one of the best times I’ve ever had in my life. Even now, I still look at the photos from time to time with fond memories that I’m sure I will never, ever forget.

Having lived in Perth with big, wide roads, I still remember how scary it was to simply walk on the side of the road when I first arrived in Osaka. The roads in Japan are as narrow as they can possibly be! You will be walking along with cars zooming past right next to you. When I realized that bicycles are a necessity in Japan (not having a bicycle is like losing one leg, it is very difficult to get around), I was really nervous. I wasn’t confident enough that I could stay inside the narrow pedestrian lane and was afraid that I would cause an accident. I must say Japanese people’s bicycle skills are amazing! They can ride their bike holding an umbrella with one hand on rainy days, or ride and send text messages with their mobiles at the same time, going through unbelievably narrow spaces without slowing down. Well, it wasn’t as dangerous as I thought, but you do need to be cautious. And after a while, I did master some of those bicycle skills and was going everywhere on my bike!

Kansai Gaidai is located in the middle of the Kansai region of Japan. This makes it very convenient if you want to travel. Day trips are a good way to spend your weekend with friends. It only takes about one hour by train to go to Kyoto, Osaka and Nara, three well-known, but very different cities in Japan. Travel for around three hours by train and you will reach Kobe, which is famous for its Chinatown. Each city is unique. If you have the opportunity, you should really go to as many places as possible. It will open your eyes to various aspects of Japan.

Food is definitely one of the highlights of Japan. Each place you visit will have its own specialty and I always ended up eating too much because it was so tasty. “I may not come back to this place again, so I should try all the different foods while I’m here,” was what I always said to myself when I felt guilty about eating too much. You may have heard of “nattou” (fermented soybean). It puts many people off because of the smell, but I do know some Westerners who love it and eat it everyday! The food is honestly very delicious and I encourage everyone to be bold and adventurous.

“Onsen” (hot springs) are a must if you go to Japan. It is so relaxing and your body really gets a good rest. Yes, you do have to be naked and at the beginning that can be very embarrassing. But once you overcome that, I’m sure you will love it! The trip to Kinosaki, which is a very small village with seven different hot springs, was one of the best trips I had. The hot springs range from mild temperature ones to some so hot that you can’t stay in for very long if you’re a novice. The crab feast we had was fantastic. I’ve never had so much crab in my life...crab sashimi, crab hotpot, crab steamed with wine and also one whole crab for each person! The price was really reasonable as well. When you go to Japan, make sure you pick up the leaflets from the stations or travel agents. There are many around, and you will find surprisingly good and affordable deals to make your exchange experience more memorable.

My five months in Japan was full of fun and thrilling experiences, but the most valuable thing to me is the friendships I have developed. It is so amazing to be able to meet people from all around the world. It makes me want to travel and visit them! When it came time to say goodbye, the thought that we may never see each other again was definitely heartbreaking. A friend said to me, “Don’t cry because it is over, smile because it happened”. I still keep in touch with many of them via email, and have even met up with some outside Japan. Japan is a great place, but in the end I believe it is the people you meet that makes your whole experience so precious and memorable.

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