Headlines/December 16, 1998

Japanese Study Tour
(continued from Page 7)

One of my most treasured experiences is
living with various host families and being
accepted into those families as an
unconditional member. Never once was
anyone too impatient to answer my curious
questions or to take me places I was
interested in learning about.

Mike Dennis

The most important thing I did on the tour
was go into it with an open mind. Going to
a public bath is not something we are.
accustomed to but to not go to one in
Japan would have meant missing out on
one of the most relaxing pastimes of the
Japanese. Doing it early in the trip also
helped me get used to being a spectacle in
Japan. It is not often that some big, hairy
white guy shows up in the public bath.
Being an oddity is one of the first things a
foreigner has to get used to in Japan...but
it is understandable given Japan’s 98%
Japanese population.

Having a closed mind also narrows
your ability to understand what it is to be
Japanese. In Canada, we put a premium on
personal space and individuality, in Japan
the emphasis is on the well-being of the

Check your listing

The UCFV telephone directory i is currently .

being updated. |

If you haven’t done so already, please
take a moment to check your listing in the
Alphabetical and Departmental sections of
the current directory (September 1998).
Forward any changes or corrections to
Marilyn Fairclough, Administrator,
UCFV Voice Communications at _
faircloughm@ucfv.bc.ca that relate to
your: name, division/position, your

local(s); voice mailbox number(s); room . *

number(s); and e-mail address.

To ensure inclusion in the new
directory, please forward all changes by
December 22.

group. People put the needs and happiness

of others before their own with the

knowledge that others will do the same for

“Going toa public bath i is
not something Canadians are
accustomed to, but to not go to
onein Japan would have meant
missing out on one of the most
relaxing pastimes of the

Japanese.”

them. There is a real effort by everyone to
ask: “what if it were me?” If everyone
thought only of themselves in such a
densely populated area, the society would
be tom apart as everyone tried to protect
their personal space.

V2Ss

: The Hokkaido study tour of 1998 made me

a better person. It expanded my realm of a
possibilities and it gave me a more global

- outlook. Japan is a wonderful country and

I fully anticipate that it will always be an
important part of my life.

Masao Wakita

Since Japan is a vastly different culture
than that of Canada, the transfer from
Canadian society to Japanese society was
to say the least, challenging. Being of
Japanese descent, the food, language and _
culture were not a total shock to me. What
was a shock was how attached I got to
such a distant country in such a short

amount of time...Japan seemed to suck me

into its deep vastness of kindness,
generosity, and acceptance that the whole

~ land seemed to vibrate. The most

challenging part of Japan was leaving it. I
know I will never forget the land of the’
rising sun.

~ For more information about J apanese

. study tours or Takushoku University,

contact the International Education

department at local 4544.

7M8_

No, it’s not the license plate number of a car r that i is consistently parked illegally i inthe
staff lot. It’s the new postal code for the Abbotsford Campus, effective January 1, _
1999. This change should improve the processing and delivery time of mail and parcels

_ from Canada Post.

During the transition, Canada Post will be able | to process mail with either code, so.’
you can use up existing printed materials. Any new stock should include the new postal ©

, code in place.