I have loved history and geography since I was a child, and I have always wanted to study foreign languages. Although I studied Japanese for four years in my home country, I struggled to become conversationally fluent. Since I also wanted to gain international experience and interact with people from other countries, I decided to study abroad at CIC.
I have made friends with Japanese students at CIC who are Buddies, and we are teaching each other our languages. My friends at CIC have helped me through all kinds of everyday situations such as buying a SIM card for my cell phone and asking station staff for help when my transportation IC card stopped working. To tell the truth, before coming to Japan, my biggest fear was that I would be unable to handle the small problems one faces in daily life all by myself, so I am very grateful for my friends at CIC who help me to live worry-free.

I took part in the English Camp with children from Toshima Ward, Tokyo, and Rikuzentakata City, Iwate Prefecture, as part of the “Service Learning C” course. Fear is the biggest barrier when it comes to learning a new language. What’s more, the younger the person, the more fearful they are likely to be. At the English Camp, we tried a variety of ways to free the children from this fear. I learned a great deal from this process, and I think that I acquired some very important skills in language teaching. I also appreciated the opportunity to learn about other cultures from a Japanese person’s perspective. All the programs offered at CIC are extensive and I enjoyed the opportunities to interact with a variety of people in Japanese society.