Thoughts on Visiting Home for the Summer Break

In August, I went home for the summer holidays to spend time with family and friends. It was great to be back home after being away for so long and missing a lot of people. I was glad to have spent my birthday with the people dear to me, to see my beloved youngest sister (and how much she’d grown while I was away), to eat food that I missed, to catch up on everyone back home, and to do things I enjoyed doing in Manila.

Yukata de Guide Tour and Jiyugaoka Yukata Event

In August, the Sumida Ward tourism office held an event called “Yukata de Guide Tour,” during which foreigners could experience typical Japanese summer activities: wearing yukata, joining a cruise, and dancing the Bon Odori at a festival. Most of the event took place at Ryogoku, which has a reputation as a sumo town.

Also known as a summer kimono, a yukata is made of cotton, and is thus thinner than a typical kimono. The organizers helped dress me up, and even provided geta (clogs) for me to wear.

Summer Exchange Program in Copenhagen

I’m sorry for the extremely delayed post, as I became quite busy.

Last July, I went to Copenhagen, Denmark for a summer program that was nearly a month long at the University of Copenhagen. The class I took was about Søren Kierkegaard’s philosophy, focusing particularly on Either/Or and The Sickness Unto Death. Now, I wouldn’t call myself as good in philosophy, but I immensely enjoyed my philosophy classes as an undergraduate student, so, wanting to relive those days, I applied for this program and, fortunately, was chosen.

Me and Kierkegaard

It was my first time to set foot in Europe, and on my own, at that, so I was excited but nervous. That nervousness soon turned to enjoyment as the days went by.