I am a graduate student at the University of Hawaii. I specialize in Japanese religion of the Edo period. Study abroad is a good chance to learn about Japanese culture. My goal is to improve my Japanese and to experience Japanese culture for myself. I think I will understand Japanese religion better this way. Since the Kansai has lots of famous temples and shrines, there should be lots of interesting places I can easily see.

I also came to Japan for my Master's degree. My hope is to find a topic for my Master's thesis. I will also be reading books for graduate school credit while communicating with my teacher at the University of Hawaii.

Also, I originally became interested in Japan through anime and manga. I have been watching anime for fifteen years, and I had learned a little bit of Japanese before beginning to study it in school. I started learning Japanese at the University of Hawaii two years ago. I still can't understand anime very well, but I'm working on it. I I hope to meet Japanese people who like anime and manga.

The Japanese language courses are intensive. It takes time to get used to the difficulty. It is a good way to challenge yourself.

The Japanese culture classes to choose from were limited, but I was able to take courses in subjects I wouldn't normally have taken, like special education. The Japanese culture courses expanded my knowledge of Japanese culture beyond religion. Actually, the art history was very relevant to studying religion, since a lot of old Japanese art is Buddhist.

I also spent the weekends doing reading for graduate school credit, but I was able to progress in my reading the most over winter break.

There were many field trips over the fall semester. I was able to see many shrines and temples and religious artwork on the art history field trips. I have become better at recognizing important religious sites and iconography.

The Japanese classes also went to Mt. Kouya in November. It was very cold. I was happy to see such a historic place.

Thanks to the exchange program I have learned much about Japanese culture. I have learned about matsuri and Buddhist art, and my skill in Japanese has progressed.

Next fall semester I will return to University of Hawaii to continue my graduate studies. I have found a topic for my Master's thesis. I will write about religious skepticism in the Edo and Meiji periods.