My Summer Adventures in South Korea and Japan

This summer, I left Truckee Meadows Community College and went back to my home country, Japan, and also traveled to South Korea for the first time. It felt completely different when I arrived in Japan from when I was living in Japan, as previously all my family and friends were there. While studying abroad has always been a dream of mine, I can't help but miss my country at the same time. Leaving the place where you grew up is sometimes so hard because you can't see your loved ones as often. The experience of studying abroad has been exciting, but it also makes me realize how much I cherish the familiar comfort of home.

First stop: South Korea

Let’s recap my summer vacation. First of all, I went to South Korea directly from the U.S. As someone who grew up in Japan, South Korea felt very similar to home when I arrived. One thing that I noticed was how fast their services were, including Wi-Fi, restaurants, transportation, and more! Almost all of the restaurants have digital devices, called kiosks, and I didn't feel like I was waiting for anything, not even once. The pictures below are from Busan, a large city in Korea next to the ocean, and Gangneung, which has beautiful ocean beaches on the east coast of South Korea.

Food is always unique, and I make it a point to try new dishes when I am in a different country. One of my favorite Korean foods I tried for the first time was sundaeguk, also known as Korean blood sausage soup. Don’t be scared by the name “blood.” It was so good! The texture and taste were completely new to me, unlike anything I had ever had before. I enjoyed it so much that I had it three times while I was in Korea 😄 — I really enjoyed it.

Second stop: home!

After my trip to South Korea, I finally returned to Japan! I reunited with my family and enjoyed the homemade foods my mother made. One of my nostalgic foods that she made was ginger pork (thinly sliced pork in ginger sauce). Her food relieved my stress a lot as we talked about my journey in the U.S. and more. While I was in my hometown, Sapporo, I traveled to Furano and Asahikawa with my family. One of my favorite pictures is this one.

After saying goodbye to my family, I visited Tokyo for several days to see my younger sister and my cousins. We saw each other for the first time in several years since we were all busy and living apart from Sapporo, our hometown. I had a very beautiful time with them and promised I would come back again!

With all the experiences and feelings during my summer of 2024, I’m left feeling brave and blessed to be studying abroad, as well as being loved by my people a lot. Thank you for staying connected with me. I hope to see you guys in my next blog!

Mai (Maya) Goto from Japan is studying business at Truckee Meadows Community College.