My Reflection of Japan

Japan was pretty much what I expected it to be but with allot of little things that you couldn't experience unless you've been there.

One thing that I noticed, unlike Taiwan, allot of people in Japan do not speak English or understand it when they hear it spoken. I actually kind of liked that because it made me learn the language. And I think that's the best way to learn a language which is to live among the people. To me this wasn't too big of a problem because most of the interact I have with the Japanese people is in retail stores or in restaurants. And like Dr. Laurence said, "If they don't understand you, just use your finger and point at it." Not to many sign I saw were in English and I think that would have posed a problem for me if I were to be traveling alone.

One fun activities that I really enjoyed was attending the Sumo Wrestling tourney. That was too much fun. I just glad that Dr. Laurence was their to explain everything to us.

The corporations that we visited seemed to run their businesses just like the ones in Taiwan. This must be a normal operation for companies in the Far East. I personally like the way that they conduct business practices because it helps employees become better at their work, which in turn, helps the company grow.

I really enjoyed the museum and temple trip in Japan. And because of those, I really learned allot about the history and culture of Japan. One of my favorites was the Hiroshima Peace Park and Atomic Bomb museum. There you really learn about the power and destructive nature of atomic energy. In our culture in America, it's just so easy for people to say, "Why don't we just nuke them and get it over with?" Because it's very easy when you're not the target of that power you can remove yourself from that equation. But when you see the results first hand and the horrific images that go along with it, it will change your mind. Although I still feel that it was the right decision, the consequences were just devastating

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I also find very interesting the small "mom and pops" businesses that have been around for over 100+ years. And there are allot of them. You just don't see that in America. If a family has a business that the parent started, usually the children have no interest in continuing on with that business. The children go to college and find other profession more interesting instead of carrying on the family legacy which is their business. but in Japan, allot of people do carry on their family's business. Perfect example: Daisuti Hayashi is a sixth generation Wagashi chef and their family business has been around for over 140 years. To me, that's just incredible and they still make a great product.

The people of Japan were just like the people in Taiwan, very friendly and very courteous. Even when they were racing through the train stations, most of the people were kind. The students that we met in Japan were a little quieter than the students in Taiwan. But once we got them talking, once again, we became very good friends. I would have to say that in my lifetime, I have never been around such a group of individuals that treated a bunch of strangers like good, old friends.

Overall, Japan was a great country to visit. I really enjoyed Japan because of their urbanization and corporate life culture and kept a balance with their historical culture. Thank you Japan. It was fun and educational.