• International Student
  • TWCU
  • What was the most memorable/impressive experience?
    When I made a reservation at a Japanese hotel, a staff who got my call talked down to me. At first, I thought I was being overlooked because of my inarticulate pronunciation. But soon, I realized that the staff talked down just to make it easier for me to understand. Japanese tend to think that their honorific language is difficult for foreigners to understand, so they occasionally use informal speech. At that time, she just tried to help me, but I was the one who misunderstood it.
  • What was the most crucial thing in preparation before leaving your country?
    Of course, it's essential to improve your language ability. However, it is more important to set up a specific goal before leaving your country. Why did you decide to study abroad, and what do you want to attain from it? It's never easy adapting to a completely different society from the environment you were born and raised. If you leave your country only with a plan to experience a new culture, you will definitely give up after facing various types of cultural differences. One day, you may wonder, "Why do people think like this?", "Why do they react like this?" and "Why are they different?" You can question their motives until the cows come home. And if you keep thinking like that, every single second, you will hit a roadblock. You might wonder if you're running in the entirely wrong direction. Or lose confidence and believe you are just chasing something impossible. Eventually, you may find yourself packing your stuff and returning home. Therefore, you shouldn't question the cultural difference, and go after your goal. Think it's just a natural phenomenon. Leave it as it is. Then one day, you'll find yourself more mature and confident. And that confidence will truly lead you to the goal.
  • What was the biggest hardship you faced?
    One of the biggest hardships I faced was being ashamed of making mistakes. Actually, I'm still struggling with it. I get embarrassed when I make mistakes or stumble over words while speaking Japanese. I go very red in the face, cannot speak out loud with confidence. However, this is terrible for learning a foreign language. It is essential to overcome those kinds of fear and just spit it out. Later, you will get to distinguish your mistakes and become a better Japanese speaker. Of course, it goes for other languages as well.