Exchange students experience America

Traveling all the way from the land of the rising sun, 15 Japanese exchange students have come to America for new academic and cultural experiences.

Arriving on Feb. 15, the students are from the Ryukoku University in Japan. MHCC and the Ryukoku University have regularly swapped students since 2007.

Winter term is when Ryukoku students are at MHCC, while spring term is when MHCC students go to Ryukoku.

The university has a long history, being one of the oldest in Japan at nearly 400 years, according to its website.

Ryukoku has three campuses: the Fukakusa and Omiya campuses in Kyoto, and the Seta, in Shiga.

While in the states, the visiting students stay with a host family. Part-time Japanese instructor Yoko Sato sets up students with host families, which wasn’t too easy this year.

“It was hard finding homes because some of the students have pet allergies, and lots of Oregonians have pets,” she said.

Sato was born in Japan, and has lived in America for about 20 years.

The guest students stay for a three-week period and study mainly English that will count for three credits back in Japan.

Sato said three weeks is a well-rounded period for them to be here. “The students are not just here to study English, but to also experience an entirely different culture first-hand,” she said. “Their primary goal is to interact with many people.”

Two of the students, Misako Fujii and Kotoro Hama, had a few things to say about America this week.

The students feel the same way about a lot of things in America; one of them is the food. “American food is very big, too big,” said Hama. However, both students have found some of the food enjoyable. Hama’s favorite is pizza, while Fujii’s is hamburgers.

The students also shared some of their favorite music. Taylor Swift’s songs don’t just break hearts, but also language barriers. Both visitors agreed on their love of her music, having liked Swift before coming to America.

Hama has noticed that people are more polite in Japan than in America. “They are sometimes too polite (in Japan),” he said.

Leaning the language has not been much of a problem because the two have studied English for seven years in Japan. However, actually applying it every day is another matter, Hama explained, “For example, we don’t speak (English) very well.”

Overall, the students say they have been enjoying their classes and their time in America.

Sato said that many of the Japanese students who participate in this program end up doing more studying abroad, and for longer periods of time.

There are still several events planned for the rest of this visit, she said.

Last weekend, the students went to Mount Hood for a snow day. Sato said, “It was a beautiful day. We could not have asked for a better weather on Sunday. Some of the students tried snowboarding/skiing for the first time. We all had a great time, though they were all tired on Monday.”

The students also have made trips to the Nikkei Legacy Center and the Oregon History Society. They are planning to go to Newport, the Caswell Gallery, and McMenamins Edgefield before they head home on March 10.