Have you ever openly asked a question to someone outside of your own culture? Consider the lifestyle, the food, or even the overall interpretation of things their culture holds dear?
Yuki Mizumura (10), an exchange student from Japan, expresses not only her admiration for Japanese culture, but also her excitement in embracing a new one.
“I love it all” Mizumura said, when asked about life in Japan and the culture it has to offer.
Japan is notorious for its landscapes, and when asking Mizumura about significant aspects of life in Japan, she illuminates how the seasons play a big part in Japanese life.
“In each season you can see different landscapes,” Mizumura said. Which uncovers Japan’s true beauty she said.
Mizumura can also recall a trip she and her family took to Kagawa – a prefecture in Japan – expressing how it was fun to eat delicious food, go on boat rides, but also explore Japan’s landscapes even more.
When talking about Kagawa, Mizumura mentioned one of her favorite phrases in Japanese, いただきます (itadakimasu), which can generally be translated into “I humbly receive” or “let’s eat.” By using this expression in Japan, it not only shows thankfulness, but also conveys a sense of humbleness which is important to Japanese culture.
And while in America, it is common to see New Year’s Day being full of people spending the day waiting on the clock to tick to midnight, with no particular set tradition.
In Japan, it is extremely common to eat osechi. This dish is commonly eaten in the hopes of good fortune. Mizumara used an example of shrimp.
“We will typically eat shrimp on New Year’s in hopes of long life.” Mizumura said.
And, when presented with the question about notable differences of life in Japan and in America, Mizumura expressed how she didn’t know tipping was so popularized in America, while in Japan this practice is practically unknown.
Furthermore, Mizumura also expressed the differences in academic life, stating how she finds the American school system to be more active while in Japan they emphasize more on studying, and stick to a more traditional route for school.
