Year: 9th gradeAge: 15School: Matthew C. Perry High School, IwakuniPlaces lived: Norfolk, Va.; Cherry Point, N.C.; Bradenton, Fla.; Spotsylania, Va.; Iwakuni, Japan.Favorite assignment: Iwakuni, JapanWhat is your favorite keepsake or souvenir?: I can’t really choose one. All of my Japanese souvenirs are awesome.Plans for the future: No matter what, I’m going to keep writing, and keep getting better at it.

I love Japan. I think it is a wonderful place to live, despite its many differences. Being here inspires me to learn and understand everything I can about the Japanese and their culture, from the food and language to the narrow streets they drive.

Of course, these differences also can have the opposite effect on other people. These people find it unnerving to go off base and would rather move back to the States. But seeing as how their parents are on military orders, they don’t have much of a choice. But that doesn’t keep them from complaining and pining away on base all day.

Not that being on the base is necessarily a bad thing, as it has its good points. It can be a great haven in case I do want to take a break from the Japanese culture. We have a bunch of cool stuff on base, including a food court, bowling alley, tons of playgrounds for the little ones, and a teen center for the older kids.

But also on base is the “fishbowl effect.” If somebody does something, everybody else knows in about within a week. Often, the not-so-brilliant things people do get around faster than the great things they do. This can be extremely irritating if people only recognize you as the kid who got pulled over by base police instead of the kid who has done hundreds of hours of volunteer work.

The base isn’t terrible, but it isn’t great either. Those people who never leave the base have no idea what they’re missing. The other day I went to a Japanese restaurant called The Viking. I’m telling you, it’s one of the best restaurants I’ve ever been to. If I hadn’t been open to Japanese culture, three things could have happened: 1) I could have not gone and missed out on great food, 2) gone but ordered steak and soda, 3) or I could have tried one thing of sushi, tasted the wasabi (a very spicy Japanese condiment), and made a big deal about it and decided I never wanted to try sushi again.

That’s not what happened. I went there, ate Japanese food, and had a good time. I got to experience another culture’s food firsthand, not from some book at the library.

Not only that, but by getting off-base it also helps you avoid the fishbowl effect. You can go get a breath of fresh mountain air, or get a taste of cities like Hiroshima and Fukuoka.

Japan is full of neat and exciting places that are impossible to find in the States. That, along with the language, food and video games, makes Japan a place to be explored, not scared of. When it’s my time to return home to the States, I’ll be ready for it. But until then, I intend to make the most out of my time here.

Return to main story