For two weeks late last year – from Dec. 8-21 – I had my first trip abroad and my first taste of winter. The trip took me to various parts of Japan through a grant extended by the American Field Servie Inter-Cultural programs Philippines : Japan-JENESYS, or the Japan-East Asia network of Exchange for Studnets and Youths, Scholarship program.

I was blessed with the rare opportunity to be part of the delegation of 60 high school students and six teachers from all over the country who got the grant from the Japanese government for Asian and Oceanic countries which gave us the opportunity to experience Japanese culture through school exchange and homestay programs and study tours that AFS-Japan hosted. With me in the delegation were two Bacolod students – Alyssa Camille Salvio from my school, Negros Occidental High School (please see her account below), and Anthony Bayawa of the University of St. La Salle .

After a two-day pre-departure orientation at the Oblate Missionary Center in Quezon City , we departed for Japan . We arrived on a sunny day but the temperature was, indeed, cold, at 5 degrees Centigrade. We then met with other AFS participants from Malaysia , Indonesia , New Zealand and Thailand at Narita Hotel Nikko. The Australians stayed in another hotel.

Our second day took us to our first study tour in Tokyo – at Yume-no-sima Park , located on the coastal side of the city. It is one of the most popular parks in Tokyo and is known as a park floating on the ocean with spectacular fields. We proceeded to Nihon Kagaru Mirai-Kan, the National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation – a type fo repository that connects visitors directly with the new wisdom of the 21st century. Two of its attractions are Asimo, the Honday robot, and the model high-speed MagLev train, which can reach about 350 kms. in two minutes as it has a maximum speed of more than 400 kms. per minute.

On the third day, we visited the Hiroshima Peace Memorial in Hiroshima Prefecture which is a 90-minute plane ride from Haneda Airport in Tokyo . The huge park is located in the heart of Hiroshima and is dedicated to the legacy of Hiroshima , the first city in the world to suffer a nuclear attack. Various monuments and buildings in the park are dedicated to the various aspects of the catastrophic bombing.

The most interesting structure there is the Genbakudomu ( a bomb dome). It ahs been declared a UNESCO World Heritage site being the closest structure to withstand the Aug. 6, 1945 explosion. The Heiwa-no-Tomoshibi (Peace flame) set me to deep thinking as the memorial flame is supposed to be ablaze until all nuclear bombs in the planet are destroyed and the Earth is free from nuclear threat. That afternoon, we went to the island of Itsukushima (Miyajima) in the city of Hatsukaichi , also in Hiroshima where another UNESCO World Heritage site – the Itsukushima shire – is located. It is a Shinto shrine with a dramatic toril, or Shrine gate, which existed since 1168.

After the Hiroshima tour, it was time to meet and stay with our host families. I belong to the Tokyo-tama chapter. In the get-together activity, I met Shizuo Tsuiki, the vice chapter president of JENESYS AFS Tokyo-tama Chapter. I and an Indian student, Sagar Pahwa, stayed with our host, the Tanaka family of Inagi City , for a week to have a first-hand experience on the Japanese way of life. My hosts provided us a fruitful experience.

The homestay program and the school the visits to my hsot school, Toritsu Fuji High, gave me an opportunity not only to learn about the Japanese way of life but also to share with them our Filipino culture. At Toritsu Fuji High, I observed and taught Oral English and Mathematics for three days. I attended the school with Sagar, Olive Soraeda and teacher Tri Kartatik from Indonesia and Laura Shelly from Australia .

During my Tokyo-tama stay, I had the opportunity to visit Tokyo Disneyland and participate in an inter-cultural event of our chapter.

After a week with my host family, we then visited the Kiyomizu-dera via the Shinkansen, the bullet train of Japan . Kiyomizu-dera is a waterfall and is one of the most famous sight-seeing sports in Kyoto , the earliest capital of Japan . It is visited by tourists from all over the world year-round. We also passed by a spsot well known for its cherry blossoms and tinted autumn leaves, the Arashiyama, then proceeded to the Kinkaku-ji, where the Golden Pavilion Temple is located.

Part of our itinerary was Toyota City in Nagoya where we had the chance to take a close-up look at the leading car manufacturer of the world. There, we saw many exhibits and models and designs of their ne concept of cars and robots filled with ideas and dreams of the future technology. The displays emphasized Toyota 's thrust on safer, more eco-friendly cars for people around the world.

In that enjoyable journey to Japan , I encountered various people, palces and things totally different from what I am used to. I took every opportunity to feel and observe the similarities and differences between Japan and the Philippines . Even if I did find some things ‘odd', I just kept in mind that ‘things are neither right nor wrong; they were just different”. Indeed, this is the essence of an itner-cultural exchange, which will always be in the core of my heart when I willmeet, in another occasion, new people from all over the world.

The writer is a Mathematics teacher at Negros Occidental High School .

MY JAPAN EXPERIENCE

We Are One

The thing better than having an all-expense paid trip abroad is having a chance to explore a new country not as a tourist but as an exchange student carrying with you a little credit as “Ambassador of Goodwill” of your country.

Aboard JAL Flight 746 to Japan on Dec. 8, I was one of the 66 AFS-JENESYS delegates in a two-week short program implemented as an answer to the invitation of former Prime Minister of Japan, Shinzo Abe during the ASEAN-Japan Summit Meeting. Armed with powerpoint presentations, scrapbooks, postcards and Filipino products, we were, indeed, ready about making a good impression. Let us say that, what we did was like purely business matter. Of course, we were similar to employees of the Department of Tourism promoting the Pearl of the Orient to the Land of the Rising Sun but we also had fun. Those were the greatest two weeks of my life.

We were tasked not only to introduce our cultures and traditions but also to build a strong relationship with other nations such as Thailand , Indonesia , India , Malaysia , New Zealand , Australia , and of course, Japan. With warm welcome, regal accommodations, great people and loads of adventure, we had an unforgettable trip – not in a five-star hotel. It was about the experiencing life the Japanese way.

The two-week program consisted of study tours and school and family life. The time I have spent with my family was, indeed, a time of my life. I was hosted by the generous Goto family and they never made me feel like a visitor; for them, I was their daughter. Even if they only know few English words, it was fun getting to know them. During my home stay, I had a great time with my Otosan (dad), Okasan (mom), Satsuki, my sister and Taichi, my little brother. I would always say, “Tanoshikatta desu!”, or “I had great time”, in English.

I also went two elementary schools, a high school and university. I was given a chance to wear a Japanese uniform which, before, I just saw on television. During my home stay. I visited a lot of museums and an aquarium as a family and local chapter activity. The local newspaper took our picture while we were wearing kimonos and I was able to experience the hot spring – not the Filipino style hot spring but the Japanese style where I was requested to take off all my clothes before entering the hot spring room. I was uncomfortable at first but I got use with it as I dipped into the relaxing water. Before I departed from my host family, they were able to say to me that they love me as their own daughter which assured me that I had made bond with them.

As of my adventures during study tours, it was uplifting seeing temples, shrines, factories, mansions, museums and a whole lot more. The tour was tightly packed with activities giving us the opportunity to go to Tokyo , Hiroshima , Nagoya and Kyoto . The tours somehow became an eye-opener for me. The different places I've been gave me the upside and downside of Japan . Japan is not just a dragon of technology or a land of grumpy people who are sticklers to time. Actually the Japanese are jolly people and they also have feelings, like us. Japan is, indeed, the land of the new and old because as they progress they never fail preserve their ancient cultures and traditions.

I had time of my life and I won't forget them even if a great communication barrier separates us, even if financial matters sets us apart; when we reach out hands to hold each other, the walls just dissolve and then, there we realize that we are one. It is like a part in the AFS song:

“We gathered as strangers from across the seas

Learning and making precious memories

We parted as friends soon as we discovered

Our dreams are the same, we are one.”

The writer is a senior student of Negros Occidental High School .