My introduction to IEI leads up to this: I am hosting a Japanese student through their summer host program. His name is Akira, and he is from Konan University in Kobe, Japan. Kobe is in central Honshu (the main island of Japan). The other students are from Dokkyo and Senshu Universities, respectively.
Earlier in the summer, students from the Korean Maritime University in Pusan were here. Too bad I missed them. Korea is the next country (after England) for which I plan an extended stay.
I'm very excited about the hosting opportunity, not only because it gives me a chance to learn more about Japan (I would love to travel there), but because it will allow me to reverse roles. This is a way to repay my student hosts in China.
Also, I like to stress the idea that great traveling can be done right in your hometown. If you seek out opportunities to interact with new cultures in your home country, you can learn quite a lot - and better prepare yourself to travel the world. Plus, it offers a basis for comparison - expatriate communities and diasporas are as culturally rich as nativelands.
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Travel to Kobe, using your mouse: click here
Study at Konan University:
click here