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2015 JET-MIP ESSAY: NINA MEIFEBRUARY, 2016: BREEZE ISSUE #100
A FREE MONTHLY E-NEWSLETTER FOR FRIENDS OF JAPAN & TEACHERS OF
JAPANESE

NINA MEI
Garfield High School
Seattle, WA
Already, three weeks have passed since I was in Japan.
Coming back to normal summer break after an intense 2weeks is something that‘s difficult to get accustomed to,moreover, to write about. The mix of nostalgia for theliveliness of each day with the bore of summer homework
now is a feeling I keep while trying to revive my memories inJapan.
I remember initially, I aimed to have a calm mindset
throughout the trip to Japan. That didn’t mean I lacked
expectations, though: my favorite anime, a high degree ofcleanliness, modernization everywhere, and all thoseconvenience stores I’ve been hearing about in Japaneseclass. Starting on July 5th, 2015, the moment I stepped outof the airplane from Seattle to Los Angeles, the calmness I
hoped for was quickly replaced with excited anticipation.
The JET-MIP days began with long orientations. But what I saw and heard during the orientation
made up for all of the sitting; the lifelong friendships I would make, legacy of Taylor Andersonand Montgomery Dickson I would take part in, and effects of the disaster I would learn about.
After that, I was pretty pumped that I could take part in this amazing opportunity and to finallysee Japan. Pretty soon, I was getting off the plane that took me to Tokyo and hustling onto abus that took the 32 of us to the Kansai Institute, a place that became my comfy second home.
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Usually, I’m not much of a morning person. While I was in Japan, that somehow changed to meactually waking up to the alarm at 6AM and not feeling sleepy at all. The only motivationneeded was remembering that I was in Japan, and the anticipation would do the trick.
Sometimes, I would need a knock on the door from a friend, but that only added to my delightin knowing that I had made friends that cared to start the day with me.
I can’t talk about my trip to Japan without talking about biking. Aside from being one of myhobbies, it was biking that gave me access to Rinku mall, 7 eleven, Familymart, Book Off, andmost importantly, allowed me to solidify friendships while embarking on adventures. It’s soconvenient and easy to bike with already established lanes on the wide sidewalk that thedangers of cars are eliminated. Since the only place we could have bikes was at the Kansai
Institute, I missed them when I had to go through Sendai’s Sun Mall on foot. It was in Japan
where I got the impression that biking is really a good source of transportation and saw thatthe U.S. should establish one on a similar scale. Another time, I went to Rinku mall with somefriends, though it was by shuttle bus since it was raining a lot, and we decided to ride the ferris
wheel despite worries about the rain blocking the view and such. Really, when family andfriends asked me, “What did you do in Japan?” I responded: I rode a ferris wheel during arainstorm. You don’t get that anywhere, you know. As for the question, “What did you learn inJapan?” To family, my experiences have told them that going abroad alone can be scary, but
the fruitful outcome-- becoming more mature, aware of the world, interactive-- is worth it. Tofriends, my stories wowed them and motivated them to seek abroad opportunities when they
heard about my desire to do so.
Meeting my buddy at East Sendai High School is another of my cherished memories. I thoughtthat it was cool to start off our meet with origami, where the Japanese student taught me how
to make a samurai hat, crane, and ninja star and I followed his directions. This simple event
allowed us to collaborate together to produce a final product, fulfilling the goal of JET-MIP toconnect the U.S. and Japan together through interaction. Although conversation in thebeginning was a bit shaky, we quickly established common ground and found ourselves talking
like good friends. Even though I’m not naturally a very social person, the fact that I could findthe familiarity of a good friend in a complete stranger across the world is something I still can’t
believe I had done. This serves as an assurance for myself and only boosts the worthwhilenessof this experience.
With my host family, I also felt at ease because they were welcoming and willing to interact withme even though I had trouble understanding sometimes. What made the homestay better was I
not only had mama , but I also had niban mama. My host mom happened to be close with one ofmy JET-MIP friend’s host mom, so my homestay was basically spent with them as well. I guess I
could say that I had a two-in-one sort of homestay experience, and I look forward to another inthe future.
Prior to this program, I wasn’t sure how and if I would continue studying Japanese, since had I
finished the last level in school the previous year. When I heard that others had plans to eitherkeep studying in school or even pursue a degree in college, I was shocked and also

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questioned myself of what I might do to further my Japanese studies. I know that JET is an outthere option, though I’m still scratching my head with this part. But, I do know that I really enjoy
living in Japan. From the little things-- biking, being able to find manga easily, having rain that
didn’t make me cold all the time (Seattle)-- to really applying my Japanese in conversations andincreasing my knowledge just like that. I didn’t truly take into account how much I liked learningand interacting with Japanese language until I went to Japan myself. Maybe I can’t directly
apply Japanese to my goal of pursuing nursing in the future, but perhaps I could work abroad
one day, or encounter a Japanese speaking patient, where I could brush dust off the “Japaneselanguage” box and open it to find knowledge that somewhat preserved itself over the years. I’ll
look back to the days in Japan and find my interest unbottled again.
Dear Montgomery Dickson and Taylor Anderson,
Although I haven’t had the opportunity to meet you both, I want to say that your stories andcontributions have reached all across the United States to bond 32 high school students
together. From the beginning, your spirits and love for Japan and teaching have inspired us tomake this trip to Japan truly a once in a lifetime experience. The friendships formed on this trip
would never have been possible without your commitments to teaching in Japan. Thank you forsharing the work you have done with us and allowing students from the United States to follow
your footsteps for the past five years. Although JET-MIP has officially come to an end after halfa decade, I am sure that your passions will continue onwards. However, I sincerely hope thatyour legacies will spread in another form of JET-MIP in the near future.

NIPPON THROUGH MY EYES PHOTOSUBMISSION“Biking In Kansai”
There was not a day where I went without
biking whenever we were at the Kansai
Institute. Via bike, I embarked on adventures to
7 Eleven or Family Mart, Rinku mall, Book Off,and other places. Each bike ride deepened myfriendship with those I went with and mypassion for biking.

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