New Landscapes

Sometimes people think the main goal of travel is to enjoy another culture or new scenery. While there's nothing wrong with that, I think the best travelers are those who view the experience to perhaps understand how their culture is viewed from the outside, and grow an empathy which is so important for keeping a peaceful world.

For a lot of our CIEE students, this past weekend had a lot of firsts. First ride on the bullet train, first interactions with Japanese student volunteers, first time seeing the Atomic Bomb Dome, first time eating "Okonomiyaki", and the first time riding a ferry or getting to Miyajima.

Historic Hiroshima certainly has a lot of solemn memorials and monuments, most visible of all being the Atomic Bomb dome. The group also had the chance to hear a survivor's first hand testimony and ask some very reflective questions about conflict, perseverance, inner and outer peace, and the importance of making the world a safer place to avoid the hardships of the past.

Of course modern Hiroshima is a lot more than just what's in the history books. Students were able to join our Japanese student volunteers for a lovely okonomiyaki dinner, a dish that is always a struggle to define in English, but if you have the chance, ask one of our adventurers to compare it to something we eat in America.

Another good opportunity to compare Japanese and American cuisine came up as students crafted some home-made Japanese sweets called "wagashi". Not as sweet as our treats, but certainly fun to make and aesthetically pleasing to the eye, as most Japanese dishes are!