Chin Jin Tai DCHE/FT/1A/05 1519060 CHIBA Institute of Sciences Outbound Exchange Programme 28 September 2015 to 5 October 2015 Tell me and I'll forget; show me and I may remember; involve me and I'll understand is the most appropriate quote reflected in this exchange programme for me. Weeks before the trip, I researched a lot about Japan, to be specific, the lives of the Japanese and culture of Japan. Of course, I did learn many after reading through articles and comments made but I felt that I was missing something so I kept looking. However, the more I searched and looked I just can t seem to find what was missing. Then I realized what I was missing, I was missing the first- hand experience. From then, I was really looking forward to the trip. Wake up, if not you are going to be late for the flight shouted my mom. I quickly got up, prepared and off I went to the airport. Arriving at the airport, we checked in our bags waited for the gates to be open. I decided to use this time to get to know each and everyone a little better, all of us are going to be around the same faces for a week so why not be familiar with each other? I got names and interests from everyone, that was a good enough start for me. Calling for flight number Everyone started looking at each other because we know that we are going off to Japan right now, all were excited. We board the plane and off we went. This marks the beginning of an amazing trip with 13 of us. Upon arriving at Narita airport, I manage to peek out the window in the plane and saw workers bowing down to the plane as a sign of welcoming the locals back home or welcoming visitors. I read this before, the Japanese are one of the most courteous people in the world. Today I saw it for myself and I guess seeing is believing. I nod my head back to them to give thanks, hoping they realize that someone appreciates their effort. We got our bags and head for Choshi where we began our program. The programs of the week were visiting Chiba Institute of Sciences, Nippon Steel and Sumitomo Metal Corporation (NSSMC), GeoParks, Visiting a 1,300 year old temple and as well as Home Stay. The visit to the Chiba Institute of Sciences was an eye opener for me. It was a university that was rather small in size but had many students, very different compare to the ones we had here in Singapore. However, do not be fooled by its size, when we were touring around the campus it was equipped with well advanced equipment needed for the students to learn and test experiments out, it was set up like the real- world industries. Not only that, the school still place the importance not just on concrete buildings but also gardens, ponds and parks along the pathways to various venues, in short, being green. Bear in mind that the school has an amazing view of the Pacific Ocean and the sunset just right in front of it. I felt happy for the students here because they wouldn t see just a sight here in Singapore, I pray that they cherish it.
Of course the sight of the Pacific Ocean and sunset are rather difficult to see back in Singapore but I do hope to see the improvement in the way school are built back home. We do have beautiful tall structures of building for students but is it necessary? In the totality interest place on a well- equipped school with all the advance equipment, how much weight do you place on the importance of having a green school? Where students are allow to roam the gardens, parks and pond as they make their way to their destination in school or in the campus. Of course, as Singapore pride itself as a garden city, there are small gardens, parks and ponds around school but mostly they are located at the corners. This causes only a few visits but for instance in Chiba Institute of Sciences, garden, parks and ponds are places along pathways to various venues. This forces students to enjoy nature as a form of relaxation from the hectic, fast pace moving world. Now that is something that I hope to see my children enjoying the next time. We then visited NSSMC on the third day, it was located in Ibaragi Prefecture, which is just next to Chiba prefecture. We were given a brief history, introduction and future plans of the NSSMC. I was surprised by the fact that they were the leading company of exporting steel to various parts of the world, I didn t heard about them before. Not only that, I was too surprised by the fact that making a block of steel weighing a ton (3/4 of the size of a Reynaldo s painting) required 62,000 gallons of water which is equivalent to 992,000 glasses of water! This is the amount of water needed to make a ton of steel, how much water do they even need for a large scale quality? I think I m better left not knowing the amount if not I will be blown away by it. Luckily for them, the factory is located along the coast, they have ample amount of water from the Pacific Ocean but still if they keep using such large amount of water rapidly, one fine day the Pacific Ocean will run dry. The solution was to reuse the water that had been used during the process of making the steel. They have pipes bringing used water to filtration equipment to treat them allowing them to be reused again. This way the thought of not having enough water will never reappear back in their minds. The factory was running 24/7, tall and well- structured building to keep up with the pace, well trained personnel, I expect no less from the world leading company exporting steel. Hats off to them. Back in Singapore we do not have much of any nature resources, our main resources are Singaporeans. Using the human resources available here, we started producing products of our own and exporting it overseas. Singapore is known for its high quality wafer chips produce. Nearly 40% of the global hard disc media are manufactured here. Hopefully in the future to come, Singapore too can be a leading company of various products produce of its own like NSSMC. The trip down to the 1,300 year old temple was fascinating, I remember reading about the history of Japanese s temple where it could be thousands of years old but I can never seem to have a good feel of it, thus I was looking forward to the visit. When we arrived, you can feel the Zen atmosphere. The area is peaceful and quiet, it s filled with trees and flowers and not forgetting many of the altar, it s indeed a place to unwind and reflect upon ourselves. We were told about the history of the temple from a priest as he began to explain how the altar was found by two fishermen and how the temple slowly transforms to what it is today. The priest then proceeded on to do a prayer for us where he was chanting and beating the drums, a rare sight to see back home in temples. He ended of his session with us by giving each and everyone of us a charm, he told us that it brings good luck and always keep it with you. We thank him for his sincerity and left the temple. Singapore as we know is a multi- national society and with the small land we live on this made me feel sad for the people back home who are unable practice their religion fully without having others complaining. Take for example what we experience in the temple where then priest was chanting and beating the drums loudly, if this were to happen back home, there will tons of complains from others. There are even laws back home that state that some ritual cannot be carried out due to the
disruption it may bring. Then I began to understand why this is so, the government fear that history may repeat itself from what has happen back then in the 1950s where there were racial riots. However, we have progress to be a first world country, maybe the government should have more trust in its citizen for being able to be more understanding towards others. Hopefully in the future, with the trust, different races can conduct their religion fully without having to worry about others complaining. We had the privilege to be toured by a Geologist around the GeoPark. Professor Ando, told us about the geological area of where we were (we were at the coastline), how cliff, headlands and bay were formed by erosion and deposition of land and questioned us if protecting the nature is more important than appreciating the sight of nature. He told us that if we were to protect nature, it will be at the expense of the sight as concrete walls have to be built along the coast causing an unpleasant sight to the eye. If we choose to appreciate the sigh of nature, it will be at the expense of nature itself as sea waves will continue to erode away land. Why can t we do both? Protect nature and enjoy its sight? Professor Ando said that it will be very costly and it is not economically viable. Next he told us about the shift toward green energy. Fossil fuel for energy will run dry in the next 50 years if we were to continue using at today s rapid rate. The shift toward renewable energy was the only solution for now, mainly solar energy, hydropower, wind power and etc. He told us that only if everyone were to use it, it will be of help. That is why the government of Japan are encouraging companies and home to install windmills or solar panels by lowering down the cost of installation. This made me wonder why don t our government do the same? We are located at the equator, we have sun shine almost everyday, won t solar panels be of any use? I have seen solar panels being used in Singapore, examples are like street lamps and fans. However, I wish to see it being implemented on a larger scale like on houses or cars in the future to come. Maybe, we too can have any extra reputation of being an green energy country. To end of the journey of the trip, we were the Home Stay Program. I have heard from friends that Japanese people treat their guest like one of their own, despite being it true, I wasn t really looking forward to it. I felt afraid, I was already in foreign soil and now I am expect to live at a stranger s house for two days? Maybe that s not for me but I still had to make the best out from the program. We reached the campus where our Host family were waiting to pick us up. I dragged myself to the hall to meet my host family members, holding the fear inside me. Chin Jin Tai? My name was called and I looked up, a couple was standing there looking at me; they were my host family. I greeted them, shook their hand and they brought me home in their car. Along the way home, I was telling myself to relax and at the same time to keep my guard up. Deep down I knew that they weren t threats but still I had to prepare myself. How s your stay in Choshi? question the lady. It s beautiful out here, atmosphere is a lot peaceful, you won t be able to feel this in my country. I replied. Yes, I ve been to Singapore years back, it s very busy there! cheered the lady. We were talking a lot along the way back home, the fear I had was no longer in me anymore, the feeling was strange, I felt Home
We arrived at their house, when they open the door, I was greeted by their enormous size dog and my host family grandparents. We chatted for awhile then the lady and her father- in- law drove me around the sights of Choshi. We visited lighthouses and tall open areas. The view from the top was amazing, the big span of water all around you, waves pounding against the rocky coast and fishing boat at the far end trying to rear fishes, that was the sight of the Pacific Ocean I saw. Seeing it for myself make me wonder how much more nature has to offer. As we were making our way back home, I asked how long will it take to travel from Choshi to Tokyo? The lady told me it was about 2hours, I jokingly replied let s go there tomorrow! I didn t knew what I said was going to be true. At that night the lady told me during dinner that I must be awake by 6.30am, have my breakfast and be ready to leave by 7.15am. For a moment I thought I was back home where I had to wake up that early to go to school. Of course I agreed to her request. She then handed over me a ticket, I took it from her and I was shocked with what I saw. It was a ticket to Tokyo! At that moment I was on cloud nine, I was lost for words. Didn t you said you wanted to visit Tokyo? Haha here is your chance! exclaimed the lady. I never knew for one second that they will take my words seriously, I immediately got up and thank them. I was overwhelmed, happiest as I can be. That night, I couldn t sleep, I was thinking about the journey to Tokyo, I have never been there before, the only closest I got to Tokyo was viewing pictures of it and in a matter of hours I will be visiting it! I kept looking at the clock, waiting for it to strike at 6.30am. Every minute felt like a day, I just couldn t wait. Finally it was 6.30am and I jump out of bed, rush and prepare myself for the exciting journey I am going to have today, I was ready. It was 7.15am and we are ready to leave, I went with the lady and her mother- in- law. It was a 15 minutes drive from the house to the train station, we board the train and it took off at 7.40am. Tokyo station Ah! We ve arrived! I looked at the window and I was amazed. What I saw on pictures online, I m seeing it for myself right now; big banners, busy streets, cosplays and tons of people. We got off the train and headed for Tokyo tower, it was just a 15 minutes walk away from the station. I was busy taking photos and looking around me and telling myself, I AM IN TOKYO! Until this very day, I still can t believe that what was once a joke turned into reality. We finally arrived at Tokyo tower and it was huge, standing at a height of 250 meters, distinct red and white colour, it s an art to admire on its own. We bought tickets and went up to the highest floor, when I got out from the lift, what I saw had me breathless. Looking down, tons of buildings and people surround from all sides. Indeed, Tokyo is a fast pace city. Looking ahead was a tall rocky mountain and its peak was cover with a small amount of snow, that s right, what stood right in front of me was Mt. Fuji. I couldn t believe it, what I saw on photographs is standing there right in front of my eyes, one of the prides of Japan. Sadly, due to the fog, I could only have a glimpse of Mt. Fuji but still, the sight was breath- taking. All good times will come to an end, we had to take our leave. I was hoping at this moment all the fog would be gone and I can have a perfect view of everything, the horizon, but sadly it did not. I left with a smile as I count my blessing that I can have a sight view of Mt Fuji and as well as a fascinating view of Tokyo, absolutely unbelieve.
We had our lunch and headed for the Imperial Palace and it was area was massive, an area cover with cherry blossoms tress, big patches of grass that stretches throughout the area and a river in the middle of everything. Emperor should be having a good life but we couldn t enter the palace. The lady told me that the palace is open once a year and you must have permission to get in; application normally takes months for it to be processed. Her mother- in- law has been in once and told us that just the garden itself would take you one day to tour around it. Could you imagine the size of the entire palace? We rushed back to Tokyo Station to catch our train back to Choshi in order to make it in time for the farewell party which was part of our program to give thanks to the host families. We ended of the program with hearts filled with happiness and sorrow. Happy that we got a chance to experience the lives of the Japanese people; eating their food, experiencing how is it like to stay in a Japanese home, experiencing their weather. In a nut shell, experiencing how is it like being Japanese. Sad that we had to bid out goodbyes to everyone whom we met during the trip, we were bonded so well together but time wasn t in our favour, we had to leave but the memories and friendship we forged will always be with us. This trip has been a fruitful, well organised and good learning experience for all of us, I really learnt a lot. My take away from the trip is Being Simple is Enough The Japanese always amaze me about the little things they care about and how simple their lives are. As long as they can make ends meet, they are more than happy. This led me thinking, am I being too harsh on myself? Where I must be rich, I must be famous, I must be the best in order to live my life. Am I wrong to think this way? When I look at the Japanese I feel so relax, stress- free and yet they are still able to carry on living their lives and still have time to spend doing what they love and being with their loved ones. Maybe I should take a step back and learn a bit from them and maybe I too can enjoy what the Japanese has always been enjoying; a meaningful life. Now that s my take away from the trip, thanks everyone.