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STUDY TOUR OF JAPAN FOR EUROPEAN YOUTH 2009 [Concurso
de Ensaios]
Testemunho de Ana Figueiredo, participante do
programa deste ano
The lecture hall in the
Ministry of Foregin Affairs, where we had the chance to
learn and discuss many aspects of Japan, such as it’s
politics, economy and international relations |
Urasenke tea ceremony
|
Ikebana (flower
arrangement) |
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A wonderful evening
with the Nagisa-Taiko group |
An afternoon at
Miyajima with my host family
|
Stay at the Ryokan,
using Iukatas before our wonderful Japanese-style dinner
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A wedding ceremony at
the Meiji-Jingu Shrine, Tokyo
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Trying a Iukata from
Kayo Ueki, the mother of my host family |
The extraordinarily
beautiful Kinkaju-Ji Temple
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Already
arriving in Frankfurt I could anticipate the atmosphere of the
next 10 days in Japan. A group of 30 young people, 30
“ambassadors of Japan” as they called us, heading off to one
great and amazing adventure, all excited and eager to experience
a new country: Japan!
The Study
Tour to Japan was one of the most impressive journeys I have
ever had and I cannot put into words everything I’ve learned,
felt and experienced.
From the
first day onwards everyone involved in the organization and
responsible for the Tour made their best to make us feel
comfortable and guarantee that we had a good time in Japan. All
the organization successfully managed to bestow us with a great
program and opportunities to experience Japanese culture and
life.
In many
activities I had the feeling that I was, in a way, learning and
understanding how to reach inner balance in a city as busy and
crowded as Tokyo, for example by doing Ikebana, experiencing a
tea ceremony, or going to a kabuki theater play. I was
astonished by many aspects of Japanese culture, the love for the
detail in many aspects of daily life, the waving ceremonies,
which were part of our trip at all times and, especially, the
warmth of the many people we met during the Study tour. I found
Japanese people to be very helpful, cheerful and caring and it
was very surprising how in big cities people can still have the
time to stop and help a stranger. Despite all the social
differences that I encountered, I felt very welcome and at ease
during my time in the several cities we visited.
Japan is a
remarkable country, full of history and stories to tell us if we
open ourselves to it. And there are also many lessons to be
taken from Japan: for example, by visiting the Hiroshima Atomic
Bomb Dome and Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum I was awaken to a
reality that I thought I knew but no knowledge that we acquire
in books resembles the experience of seeing and understanding
the consequences of such a tragic incident such as the Atomic
Bomb. In this sense, and professionally speaking, I will
continue to do my best to maintain this memory awaken so that we
can learn from the mistakes of the past and construct better
relations between countries in the future.
I think the
program, overall, was a success and all the activities were
interesting but I have to highlight the experience of staying at
a Ryokan, going to a Kabuki theater play, the home stay program
and the evening with the wonderful Nagisa-Taiko group as some of
the best and most enriching activities we had the possibility to
experience.
Kyoto was a
pleasant surprise, the combination of tradition and modernity,
the many beautiful temples we had the opportunity to visit and
the atmosphere of the city were inspiring.
As one of
our lecturers said “the world is a treasure box of Kaizen” and I
truly hope that I can be a Kaizen force in the improvement and
maintenance of the good relationships between Portugal and
Japan. I will continue to transmit my wonderful experience to
everyone I know, from family, to friends and co-workers and I
believe this can be one of the best ways to overcome stereotypes
and walls that prevent us from reaching out to others,
especially those who seem to be so far away from our way of
thinking and feeling but that, in the end, are just like us and
wish for better relations in this world. And in this sense, I
would be very enthusiastic, if someday in my professional
future, I could develop a research or even an intervention
program with the Japanese community living in Portugal, because
the same way that Japan welcomed us I would like their emigrants
to feel welcome in Portugal.
In
conclusion, I must say it was an overwhelming experience and I
hope the Study Tour will give the opportunity for other people
to visit and experience Japan, a country that delighted me in
its richness of history and culture and in its beautiful
subtleties.
Arigato
gosaimaso!
Ana Figueiredo
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