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| Two people who live on my floor in Kokui Dorm. We walked to school together. My tutor had suggested I ask the the person in 50x if she wanted to go with me, but at the moment of knocking I forgot the room number and knocked on 50(x+1) instead, so after a couple awkward conversations in terrible Japanese I ended up with two people to go with~! We've become very close since then. |
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| There are horses. On campus. |
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| A sight you'd never see in America. |
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| Bought lunch from a convenience store on campus. |
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| My tutors suggested this snack to me. Chocolaty and very sweet. |
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| Spotted this through a window as I was walking across campus. |
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| Doodles from the boring ceremony the day before. |
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| Kyoto-tea-and-chocolate danish |
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| yum |
Looks great! Can't wait to see you!
ReplyDeleteHi this is really odd, but I've just started at Kobe uni as an exchange student and I'm finding it really difficult. Do you have any advice as to what i should do to improve my experience? I haven't met any other exchange students yet and I'm living in a dorm with only Japanese people (who are neve home), so I'm feeling quite lonely. Did you find it hard to meet people and make friends? Did you meet people mostly in your dorm or at uni? Did you meet other exchange students before the international orientation? I'm sorry to be bombarding you with so many questions, I'm just kind of desperate at the moment... and not really enjoying Kobe.
ReplyDeleteSorry I took so long to answer...
DeleteI hope your experience has improved since you asked. What classes are you taking? Japanese language classes at the Ryuugakusei Center or classes with Japanese students?
I recommend joining some clubs. There is TRUSS, which is intended to bring international students and Japanese students together; they'll speak mainly Japanese but that will be good for your language skills. If you don't mind speaking English, you can also go to ESS, which is for Japanese students who want to improve their English. There are also a lot of other clubs depending on your interests, so ask your Tutor about that.
As for your dorm, I would say you should take the initiative and try planning a party. Make an invitation with both English and Japanese on it, print out a ton of them (ask your tutor about printing too, if you don't know how), and put them in everyone's mailbox. Make sure to include your name, room number, and contact info on it. Your dorm probably has an area where a lot of people can gather, I assume, so have the party there. The Japanese may be busy with part-time jobs and club activities, but don't let that discourage you.
One thing I noticed in Kobe is that Japanese people won't start conversations with foreigners, even if they are clearly curious about them. If you see someone you want to talk to, go do it, even if they are strangers. Someone recently told me that a good way to get a Japanese person to talk to you is to go up to them and say, "Aaaah, aaah!" to them as if you recognize them from somewhere. Then they'll start talking to you. At the very least, if you see someone in your dorm, greet them and introduce yourself. Knock on your neighbors' doors and say hello.
It's tough, because people won't approach you, but if you talk to them, they'll be polite enough to respond. How your experience in Kobe goes will depend a lot on how willing you are to be aggressive and go out and meet people!
If you want to meet other exchange students, go to the Ryuugakusei Center and talk to the students there. They're all foreigners too. Talk to your tutor about meeting people.
Good luck