First, why I became interested in long-term study in Taiwan and actually decided I wanted to study abroad.
Originally, I not only wanted to improve my English ability, but also to be able to use Chinese, so I went to my university’s Open Campus and visited the Global-Local Studies Department which specializes in English and Asian languages. There, the teacher in charge explained the Off-Campus Programs (OCP), and I became interested in the long-term exchange program in Taiwan.
In spite of there being many OCP programs, why did I choose this long-term exchange program in Taiwan? It is because originally I wanted to learn Chinese, and also I was interested in gender studies and understanding LGBT issues. This is what I wanted to study in college. Taiwan has a high gender equality index and is the only country in Asia that has legal recognition of same-sex marriage and is advanced in educating for better understanding of gender studies and LGBT issues which are my research interests. Therefore, I wanted to deepen my understanding, and while actually living there on my own, of gender studies and LGBT issues. Also, I want to be able to spread the gender studies and understanding of LGBT issues in Japan by referring to how gender education is conducted in Taiwan.

It was two weeks behind the original departure schedule, but when the outbreak of the new coronavirus began to be a concern, I safely left the airport where there were no people. I had never seen such a sight before and managed to arrive at the airport in Taiwan. Students from Providence University and staff from the International Exchange Center came to pick me up and took me to the university, which is about two hours from the airport. I remember that the schedule was very hard from the beginning, such as orientation, course registration, etc. And that evening, for the first time, I ate in the student district which is lined with many restaurants near the university. All the shops looked interesting to me. The first shop I entered was a small restaurant, run by one woman, and I had a dish like beef bowl for about 200 yen. When I left the restaurant, I said "很吃饱了" (It was very delicious), and the woman smiled and told me to come again. I remember feeling kindness from the first day. Cooking was prohibited in the dormitory, so basically I ate every meal in the student district near the university or in the cafeteria inside the university. I could eat a full meal for 300 to 400 yen at restaurants or in the cafeteria. My photo folder is full of photos of food I ate in Taiwan. Meals in Taiwan were reasonable, voluminous and delicious, but it was strange that the sweets at supermarkets and breads at the bakery near the school were surprisingly more expensive than in Japan.
Regarding classes at the university, I took 3 Chinese classes for international students every day from Monday to Friday, and there were 10 students in each class. I had taken a compulsory Chinese class twice a week as a freshman at my university. I chose to study Chinese because I wanted to learn Chinese. Most of the content I learned at Providence University I had already learned at my university in Japan. However, I discovered that Simplified Chinese and Traditional Chinese are so different. Also, I met many international students from other countries in the classes and became friends with them. The Chinese teacher always greeted me cheerfully in the morning and used PowerPoint slides and songs in the classes, which made it fun and easy to understand for me. Other classes were elective classes on Chinese culture and on multicultural issues. Both classes were for international students and were conducted in English. During the month and a half I stayed in Taiwan, I was about to start preparing for a presentation, and I wanted to take both classes to the end.
On weekends, in the morning it’s possible to get a turn to do laundry using one of the few washing machines. Then with friends, I would take a bus to go into the city, or visit the famous Feng Chia Night Market. I also went to a night market that was a little bigger than the night market near the school.
While studying in Taiwan, I was able to meet with a Taiwanese friend who attended the same school as I when I studied abroad in Brazil and a Brazilian friend who came to study abroad near Taichung. We met for the first time in 3 years and all three of us had grown up. We conversed in English. It was a fulfilling time and it didn’t feel like we hadn’t met for 3 years.
The new coronavirus countermeasures were taken thoroughly both at the university and in the city of Taichung and it was absolutely required to check our temperature and wear a mask when entering any building. At that time, Japan was still a long ways away from declaring a state of emergency and antivirus measures were not being taken so much. I always felt a sense of crisis toward antivirus measures in Taiwan and the awareness was different when I returned to Japan.

Originally, it was meant to be a long-term program of about one year from mid-February to mid-January of the following year, but due to the outbreak of COVID-19 in the world, the departure date was delayed and it was then decided we should return home early to Japan. I am surprised at how fast the days have passed in this COVID-19 outbreak and it has already been half a year since I was in Taiwan. And, often after returning to Japan, I have wondered if I really lived in a dormitory at Providence University in Taiwan and took classes there. The time studying abroad in Taiwan for a month and a half was so quick. I had many things I wanted to do in Taiwan. I had to return to Japan before collecting much information for my research. To be honest, I do have regrets. Of course, the month and a half I spent as a university student in Taiwan was intense every day, and there were many discoveries and many things that I think have helped me even for so short a period of time. When I was a freshman at my university where I studied Chinese for a year in a compulsory class, I couldn't speak at all, but somehow I could understand what people around me, my roommates and friends in Taiwan, were saying. I was so happy and I tried to speak in Chinese more and more without compromising with English, so I think I became courageous to speak whether or not I knew the correct word. And from the first day, I often had to talk with people there on my own, such as when moving into the dormitory and when I had to move to another dorm the next day, interacting with the dormitory teacher, acquiring the Alien Resident Certificate, SIM card, etc. From these experiences I feel that my own response skills against a little trouble and unexpected matters have improved.
My current goal is to try new things that I couldn’t know unless I try them to expand my potential, and connect this to my future. During my study abroad in Taiwan, I realized that there are many things I can do by myself if I try and also I realized the importance of working with others. I want to value the awareness I gained while studying in Taiwan and grow to be an adult who can be proud of and assert herself.
It may be a long time before I can go abroad again, but I still have a lot of things I want to do and many places I want to go in Taiwan. I would like to continue studying Chinese and researching about Taiwan and I would like to visit people who helped me while I was there. Because of a lot of support, I had many new experiences and new discoveries while studying in Taiwan which I really appreciate.