First Full Day in Japan

Japan Diaries

26 November 2015

First Full Day in Japan

            Ohayoo Goziamusu Tokyo! It is my first full day in Japan. Breakfast was at & o’clock am. My room mates and I woke up very early due to jet lag. I first woke up at 1 o’clock and then went back to sleep and woke up at 5 o’clock. We went down to the 5^th floor to eat breakfast. As we entered, we see students from other states in the dinning area. Breakfast was like a buffet. There were many food options to choose from. There were American and Japanese style breakfast. The American breakfast included eggs, bacon, sausages and cereal. For the Japanese breakfast it included miso soup, seaweed, and some Japanese vegetables. After breakfast we headed out because we had many things to do today.

            The first agenda in the itinerary was to visit Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA). We had the chance to meet the people behind Japan International Corporation Center (JICE), who made the Japan Study Tour possible. If it was not for them then I do not think it was even possible for me to travel to them. They gave a presentation about the the Kakehashi project. Kakehashi means bridge. It is a bridge to link American and Japanese together, to build a better friendship and understanding between these countries and tis people.

            After talking about the Kakehashi program. Another lecture was given, but this time its was about Japan’s Foreign Policy. From this presentation, I got to learn more about Japan in terms of their diplomacy. There are four key policy areas of Japan diplomacy and these are strengthening the Japan-US alliance, deepening cooperative relations with neighboring countries, strengthening economic diplomacy as a means to promoting the revitalization of the Japanese’s economy, and further contributing to address global issues.

Next was to move to Meiji University. There is one or more building dedicated to this college. In the university, one of the professors gave us a lecture. One interesting I learned was Japan’s low birth rate. I was surprise to learned about this because I did not realize it at first. Japanese life is build on Kaishaism. It is where Japanese people dedicate their life to work rather than family. Most people who works under the big companies work from 7am to 11pm, thus, not having time for their family since they work long hours. In addition, most Japanese women rather have a career than have families. Japanese government is promoting different ways to increase the birth rate.

Next destination was Akibahara. Akihabara is famous among teenagers for its Anime games and products. Akihabara somewhat reminded me of New York City because of the tall buildings and colorful lights. The darker the night gets, the brighter the lights get. I have never experienced this kind of setting before but I was excited. We had about two hours to explore and shop. What I noticed about the stores was that it was small, yet they utilized the space well to fit all their products in it. My friends and I acted like tourists, we took many pictures and bought souvenirs for our family back home. I finally got to experience what city life is like.