Sam van Ginhoven

Year in School: Senior
Major: International Studies
Current City: Hirakata City, Japan

 

March 10, 2011 | Entry No. 5

Hello Bulls!
It has been a while since I last blogged, so I am sorry to keep you waiting! Last week, I went with a few friends to Hiroshima and Miyajima. Hiroshima and Miyajima are right next to each other, and they are only a few hours away from Osaka by bullet train or night bus.

In Hiroshima, my Pacific Rivalry teacher organized a speaker who survived the atomic blast to talk about what happens after the bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. My teacher translated from Japanese to English and English to Japanese, so non-fluent speakers would have the chance to speak with the survivor. It was a rare chance to hear from a survivor, so I was very happy to make the class trip there. Along with seeing the speaker, there is a peace memorial museum dedicated to the people who lost their lives with history and artifacts from the event. The museum and site where the Genbaku-Dome stands is a good reminder of the tragedy that took place in Hiroshima.

After Hiroshima, my friends and I went to Miyajima by train, which is beautiful place. It only takes about 20 minutes to get there by train; then it takes a few minutes on a ferry to get to the island itself. It has many temples and famous site seeing sites to visit; however, I was not able to see them all.

-Sam

Dec. 21, 2010 | Entry No. 4

For the end of the semester, our seminar houses at Kansai Gaidai competed against each other in fun relay races. There was a Swedish relay, bobbing-for-candies, three legged race, and jump rope game. Each of these challenges was really fun. At the end of the event, all the points were added up to determine the winners. My seminar house got second place. Go Seminar House 2! We won a small trophy along with lots of snacks to share.

The next picture is from the autumn leaves that fell. Florida really doesn’t have an autumn with nice really falling off, however, Japan does. It was nice to go to various temples such as famous Fushimi-Inari to see the nice fall leaves. The semester has wound down with the completion of all the exams, so there is lots of time off to enjoy.

Go Bulls!
Sam

Nov. 1, 2010 | Entry No. 3

For this blog post, I have a lot of great pictures and stories! I have been trying compile it all into a great post for USF! I hope you all enjoy this post!

This first picture is from the earthquake memorial in Kobe where I took a class trip to with my great professor from Globalization’s course. I felt pretty lucky to see such a historic site near the ocean. We also did site seeing in Chinatown in Kobe because we talked about the globalization of China to Japan. It was a great Saturday because there was no rain that day. The other picture is of my class and other Kansai Gaidai Students who also joined out trip. The other night photos of our Harbor Land in Kobe near the memorial site.

The next photos are from the Fire Festival in Kurama. This festival is local; however, very famous because the town burns torches all night, and then people hike up to a large mountain and burn a huge simple for “big.” The festival had more than 10,000 people, and it was very crowded, yet everyone enjoyed themselves with all the huge crowds of people. The two photos are of Japanese people wearing traditional clothes while they hold up huge torches in the air and take them from shrine to shrine. These torches were very hot, but I was surprised because Japanese spirit overcame the scorching heat to carry the heavy torches, which required multiple people to get them off the ground while on fire. It was so amazing that night because everyone could feel the Japanese spirit within. It is hard to describe the teamwork that the torch barriers performed.

These photos are from the Halloween festival held at Kansai Gaidai. It was a great experience because so many people dressed up to participate! My Japanese friends and I were Yankees (Japanese punk kids who like to skip school and cause trouble). We had our own group for the contest that was held Oct. 29 at school. Everyone could dress and compete as whatever costume they wore. Another USF Bull, Kristina, also participated as a maid with her friends. I also met a previous study abroad Bull as well, so it was amazing to meet previous Kansai Gaidai Students who studied at USF! At the end of the Halloween festival, everyone who dressed up got to participate in a huge gathering to show off costumes and acting skills to please the judges and crowd to win prizes! It was a splendid Halloween night that we will never forget!

I hope you enjoyed my blog post! I will keep updating everyone as the study abroad experience continues! Go Bulls!

Sam

 

Sept. 15, 2010 | Entry No. 2

My experience in Japan has been amazing so far. My flight went according to plan, and I landed safely in Narita where I took the bus service to my hostel in Yokohama. I stayed and went around Yokohama and Tokyo before departing on the bullet train to Osaka where my university, Kansai Gaidai, is located. I made a long list of directions to take, which helped me arrive at my dorm to check in. After I was checked in, I settled down into my comfy room, unpacking tons of belongings. Getting around the city was complicated at first, but it was simple after a few days along with finding classes on campus.

It has been an incredible trip so far because I have met and made so many new friends from around the world from other universities and from Kansai Gaidai. Going to Kansai Gaidai has helped me improve my Japanese so much because I am able to interact with so many friendly Japanese students. We are always talking and emailing in Japanese. I feel as though my Japanese will be fluent in a few months! Having the chance to study here is amazing feat, so I am making the most because I want to return with new skills. I will keep updating everyone as new and exciting events go on.

At the moment, I am learning Japanese sign language at the Japanese Sign Language Club. It is run by one of my professors who started it about 10 years ago. There are students and people from the deaf community who join class to help us students learn. Japanese sign language is entirely different from American Sign Language but easier and very fun. I am very excited to not only improve my speaking, reading, and writing, but signing, so I can connect with all Japanese people!

Go Bulls!
Sam

Aug. 12, 2010 | Entry No. 1

I have wanted to study abroad ever since I took Japanese in high school. I've been looking forward to studying abroad because it gives me the chance to become fluent in Japanese.

I never had the chance to study abroad because I never thought I could afford it. Receiving the Gilman Scholarship gave me this amazing opportunity to study in Japan. When I was applying for this award, I was unsure whether I would be chosen because it is a very competitive scholarship with students from all over the country applying for it. I was shocked and surprised I was chosen for this award!

I think my international studies major has prepared me quite well to handle the classes that I'll be taking at Kansai Gaidai University. I will be taking reading, writing and speech classes along with globalizations, history and political courses specific to Japan. I can't wait to learn more about the Japanese culture, arts, Buddhism, Shinto, calligraphy and ikebana, which is flower arranging.

I will be living in Hirakata City and staying in resident housing that is near campus. I can't wait to practice as much Japanese as possible, join clubs and get involved with the school.

I look forward to blogging about my adventures at www.cas.usf.edu!

Go Bulls!
Sam