Return Home Journal Entry

This is my returning home journal entry for OSU. It is my final journal reflection regarding your experiences and insights of the foreign culture. I won't be home until January 15 and this is due January 10 so I'll be writing it from my current location and perspective.

How you are feeling:

Haha this is such an open ended question. I feel good, really good. I had an amazing experience and I'm still out having one. I really am happy where I am and while I'm starting to really want to come home I think that I'm still able to enjoy the last 13 days of this. I am completely shocked and amazed that it's already January 2, 2018. It feels like only yesterday that I was leaving Portland and laying in my own bed thinking "wow I can't believe this is actually happening." This entire thing went so fast and I feel like I time warped to where I am now. I can't believe what a great and amazing time I had though and what amazing people. I find myself to be rather pessimistic and this study abroad blew away even my wildest expectations of what this could be. It was so much more than I thought was possible and in more ways than I even had the imagination for. It really has helped open my eyes to how much there could be out there that I don't even know about.

I can now safely crave what I don't know and know it's out there.

Reverse culture shock:

Well I'm not back in the US yet so I can't specifically talk to this but from Thailand to Japan here is what I've kind of been experiencing.

- the escalators and elevators in Thailand are crazy fast so immediately escalators felt super slow when I left but I'm now used to it so I know they'd feel so crazy fast if I went back

- God Japan is clean compared to Thailand. Thailand is beautiful in a lot of ways but Japan is absolutely pristine. The bathrooms especially have stuck out to me. Going from "I hope the door locks and maybe they have toilet paper" to heated seats on toilets that are so advanced they plug into the wall and have instructions on how to flush them. Also just in general the streets, subways, shops, everything here is clean and Thailand didn't really even have public trash cans so that's been shocking in a good way.

- Food? A bit. I love Japanese food and while I wouldn't necessarily call it a "shock" it has been a nice change of pace.

- Definitely starting to be completely unused to seeing white people. They're here, no doubt, but not nearly as much as the USA and I just know that going back I'm going to be shocked by just white people everywhere and wearing rain jackets because it's Portland and I'm going to miss the amazing style of everyone here in Japan.

Hmmm beyond that I'm a bit worried about going back to having American food all the time. I'm wondering what it will be like to understand everyone around me when they talk again. I've gotten to the point where I block out almost all public conversation and actually usually turn and look whenever I hear english. I think also it'll be a lot louder in the US and way less organized than it is here in Japan... And I'm not ready for how rude I think everyone in the US is going to seem compared to here...

Also the weather, going from Thailand to Japan I nearly froze.

Thoughts on all that happened while away:

I honestly don't have a ton of thoughts on what happened while I was away. I didn't watch that much news and the bit that I did read on my phone was almost 100% "Trump Did Something Bad AGAIN!" and I got really tired of that. I mean yeah a lot happened in 4.5 months I'm sure but I wasn't keen on most of it. The big tax change that went through seems awful, the shootings are becoming tiringly routine and while I do think things should be done they weren't a big part of my study broad experience. My dog is getting older and that has really scared me and I want to spend a lot of time with her when I'm home but I have a feeling that isn't what this question is about. Honestly I must admit to not really paying attention to the rest of the world during this exchange and perhaps that is really bad of me but I learned so much more being there than I think I would've keeping up with the US and its repetitively awful politics in the past 4 months.

What have you learned about yourself, about other cultures, about international business:

Thats a big question. About myself... I've learned that I love to travel, that I can roll with the punches, that I take care of people, that I don't freak out when things don't go right and that I can handle myself, and that I hate it when people walk slow in front of me. I find myself to be resourceful and that I enjoy being kind and lighthearted and taking life as it comes much more than getting huffy and annoyed when the train is late, or we get lost, or some other mishap. I find myself to be specifically level headed.

I have a big vocabulary. I've always known that, but I feel that it's especially shown when I'm out here with internationals because I'm constantly teaching them new words.

I found that I love to dance. More than I realized when I was at home, and that the weather significantly affects my willingness to go out. I learned that I love learning new languages and that while I love traveling that I miss home and I don't know if I could be one of those people who quits their job and travels for like 2 years, I like having a home base, regular friends, the ability to cook a home cooked meal...

I learned how much, or rather how little I could live off of. I made it through this entire trip, 4 months in Thailand and 1 month in Japan, two totally different climates and weathers in two carry on size bags. One black roller bag (Thank you Donna it has been truly wonderful on this adventure and those before it) and one Osprey Blue bag (Thank you Gwen, easily the most versatile bag for weekend trips I have ever had). I have only the bare minimum's with me. I know what I need in order to travel and survive and it's quite a small amount. I only had 2 carry on's for 5 months and half of the black bag is dedicated to gifts for when I go home.

I also learned what I enjoy to spend my money on and splurge a little and what I can resist. I managed to go through ALL of Thailand AND Japan (so far) without buying anything for myself souvenir wise. The only things I have really bought for myself are some fun bank notes and a few pairs of socks. Most of my money has been spent on food, travel, and experiences like day trips, kayaking, locations etc. I have been SO good and not gone on ridiculous shopping spree's both here and in Thailand which believe me I could've...

How you did at achieving the 4 goals you set for yourself :

"Academically I am hoping to get the American equivalent of a 4.0 or straight A’s."

Alright well... That didn't happen. I got 3 B's and an A. If I'm being 100% honest I was just praying to pass by the end of it. The system works just a bit differently in Thailand and I got cocky by midterms. I probably didn't study as much as I should've (I studied as long as I would've and in the way I would've at OSU) and that really didn't correlate well to Chula (My Thai University) so I was in a rough spot after midterms...

I worked seriously so hard after that in my classes. Every project, quiz, and assignment I went the extra mile on. Seriously our Operations Management and Marketing group projects were out of a dream and luckily all of my friends and classmates were in the same position of having really messed up midterms so we worked as an overzealous team to make beautiful presentations. I also studied for Weeks before finals and used every avenue available to me to make up my grade. I think in many ways I obviously failed this goal of straight A's but I think given the circumstances I did well and I did pass all of my classes so I really can't complain.

"Culturally, I want to Live in Thailand. I don’t want to just visit. I want to have a breakfast place, a favorite market, a schedule, friends… I want to get to know the locals, wear local clothes, really be immersed in the culture and live it"

I think this I accomplished very well. I definitely lived in Thailand and I'm so glad for that, I made friends, I had places I liked, area's I knew well, I knew how to speak enough Thai to direct taxi drivers, I had my guilty pleasure expensive restaurants, my favorite places to study, everything. I knew the events, the area's, the bars. I think that a schedule never really came about because of all of the travel we were doing but I don't mind that, I did make friends with the Chula kids though and did go to events with them when the BBA International Department put them on for us. I did have a favorite market... I did pretty good.

I really made Thailand my home and really immersed myself in the study abroad life and my friends, goals, and journeys there.

"Professionally, I haven’t thought of a lot of goals. Perhaps to visit a company that is part of the Moss Adams world wide group and get a sense of the accounting industry? Really a goal for me that links to professionalism is that I would like to complete a significant volunteer project/program while I am abroad. Working with teaching English to children and families, working with elephants, or doing something with habitat for humanity would be amazing."

Yeah I won't even lie I kind of really messed this one up. I did get a really good look into business in Thailand especially through my classes and teachers but I didn't do anything I listed before going. A lot of my teachers were really accomplished business men both in Thailand and around the world and I learned a lot from their stories and from the content taught in class. I also found that a lot of "volunteer" programs you have to pay to be part of and that that wasn't the kind of experience that I was looking for.

"As for personal goals they range from simple – I must eat red curry shrimp – to not so simple – like living rather than visiting in Thailand. A personal goal for me is to try new things, be open to new experiences, and hopefully grow as a person. After last summer I’ve rather dismissed the idea of “life changing experiences” but who knows, maybe I’ll have one. Personally, I just want to enjoy myself, and feel free."

I think I did a really good job here as well. I did eat red curry shrimp as well as a ton of other shrimp dishes and red curries too. I tried about a million new things, was always open to new experiences, and grew at least I think quite tremendously as a person, more than I would've imagined. I did enjoy myself and I let myself be free from worries and let myself just explore, have a good time, and really live in the moment. I got scuba certified, climbed temples, rode motorscooters, swam the ocean, explored waterfalls, visited 6 new countries, made tons of new friends, and lived abroad. I can't imagine much more than that. I met elephants, got robbed by a monkey, was in the Chiang Mai lantern festival, fed pigeons at the Chiang Mai wall, swam with whale sharks and manta rays, hiked in jungles, found hidden beaches, got blessed by a monk, rode night busses from country to country, intertubed drunk down a river in Laos, almost went hot air ballooning, ate at night markets, drank at rooftop bars, danced everywhere, met the most amazing people, and had the time of my life. Personal goals check.