みんなさんのこんばんは！

So about a year ago when I started this blog, I found out a girl at my school (yes, I’m in high school) went to Japan on foreign exchange.  I then found out she got a scholarship to do so through a program called YFU (Youth For Understanding).

First of all, when I was younger I used to think foreign exchanging was very odd and that I’d never want to do it.  Over the past 3 or 4 years, I have had relatives have foreign exchange students, a friend of mine host and go to Germany, and another friend of mine foreign exchange to Japan.  Every one of them said that they loved it!  Well, except for my relatives, but they had only hosted   Anyway, after discovering the girl from my school foreign exchanged to Japan, I decided that it’d be amazing if I could do the same thing, and next year would be my only opportunity to go for a long time!

Later last year, I went through all the steps of completing an application to YFU for their summer program to Japan.  This involved 5 short essays, tons of school and medical records, a teacher recommendation, and lots of other hoops to jump through.  YFU has several corporate, governmental, and regional scholarships that they offer to various countries.  Japan is one of their main destinations, and there were several scholarships available.  When applying, you can list several different scholarships you with to apply for and in the priority by which you want them.

I submitted my application by November (most scholarship deadlines were December or January) and waited 5 months to hear the results.

Well, today I got a giant envelope in the mail saying that I got a full ride scholarship to go to Japan through FCCLA/Kikkoman, my first choice!!!  I screamed when I opened the envelope, which doesn’t happen often or ever.

I do not know any host family information yet, and I don’t know many specifics.  I know I’m leaving June 17th for a 3 day orientation at UC Berkeley and then flying to Japan.  The trip ends August 1st, and school starts back up for me around August 9th, I think?  Anyway, on the trip, most people attend Japanese high school, which I’m unbelievably excited for.

So throughout this experience, I will be blogging (hopefully) very often.  I’ll post pictures and share every bit of detail that I can!

Since I found out about the program, I have been following the blogs of previous students that have gone and watched their vlogs and what not.  All of their posts have been incredibly informative, and I hope I can help anyone who’s thinking about going next year!

That’s basically it.  Let me know of any suggestions you guys have, or any experiences you’ve had in Japan that are noteworthy! Thanks for reading, -Travis

OH and next time you need soy sauce, BUY KIKKOMAN BRAND!!!

EDIT: Oh and as a side note, the girl from my school stayed in Sendai her host family is perfectly okay though! They were far enough away from the coast.

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