Rahul Misal
Waseda Summer Session – 2023
2019 was my freshman year at the University of Washington. I didn’t know much about what I wanted out of my college experience. I wasn’t sure what major I even wanted. But I knew I wanted to study abroad in Japan.
I always had an interest in Japanese food. I loved eating it of course, but I also tried to make it myself a few times. Sometimes I was just playing around honestly, but it was the first real dive into Japanese culture for me. So, in the back of my mind, that was a major reason I picked Japan. I even had a checklist of all the foods I would try once I got there.
My options for study abroad were quite limited, however. The first UW program I was eyeing was cancelled in advance of the planned 2020 Olympics, before the pandemic had even started. The next few programs were shuttered as well. Nevertheless, I searched until I found the Waseda University Four Week Summer Session for 2023. I actually delayed my graduation at UW by 3 months so that I could attend. I wasn’t going to allow the pandemic to take this opportunity from me.
I ended up choosing two culture classes, learning about the history of tourism within Japan in one, and about the cultural soft power of Japan in the other. At first, I didn’t really understand what the concept of a class about tourism was. Was it about how to be a good tourist? Something about tourism in general? But the class turned out to be a study on how tourism has evolved in Japan from the very beginnings of domestic travel across feudal Japan to the mass-tourism of today. The second class, on soft power, showed me how much cultural export from Japan I had consumed throughout my life, even if I never realized those products were Japanese in the first place. Several other students also had similar experiences, such as growing up thinking characters like Doraemon were from their home country, rather than Japan.
I was surprised by how large and varied the student body of the program was. There were people from all across the world thrown in with students from Waseda that had recently returned from their own study abroad. It was truly eye opening to see how all of us shared so many common interests and goals which had led us to the same programs.
During those four weeks, I really felt like a Waseda student. We were invited to so many little events on the campus, and had the opportunity to interact with the general student body. A highlight for me was definitely the class field trip to Nikko. We all got to visit Nikko Toshogu, and although I didn’t know the history at the time, I learned quickly of how culturally significant it was.
I was staying in an apartment near Takadanobaba with several other students in the program. The trip together each day to the campus felt like a little adventure. Considering Tokyo’s size, we were actually quite close to the campus, but it felt like a big commute to me at the time!
* A friend took this time-lapse of our daily commute to the train station!
I made several friends through the program, and amazingly this included some people from my home university. After class, we took so many little excursions and trips I lost count. I tried to explore a new neighborhood myself or with a friend almost every day. A friend and I even did a checklist trip of all the places featured in the game Persona 5. That took us all the way to the less visited neighborhood of Sangenjaya, which was a very interesting change from the usual scenery in the busier parts of Tokyo.
Another highlight was going together to see the Tokyo Skytree. I myself had never really been to the top of a mega-skyscraper before, and so starting with the third tallest structure in the world was certainly a great way to begin. Seeing the vast city in front of me as the sun set and the lights started to all turn on was indescribable.
My time in Japan was most definitely the most memorable part of my time in college. I really enjoyed the opportunity to explore both the country while also taking part in such a prestigious institution of Waseda. Once back in Seattle, I started taking Japanese lessons, and aspire to have a degree of fluency someday.
After some time, I was able to make my way back to Tokyo this past year, and I was able to meet with several friends from the program! In this sense, I think the Waseda Summer Session, even though it felt short, has created friendships that will last a much longer time.
