Too Difficult to Choose a Favorite Memory: Mariela Caldera Quezada, Eastern Oregon University, USA

Making the most of time in Japan

Favorite Memory of AIU (So Far)

It is very difficult to choose only one favorite memory from AIU. I have been having such a great time exploring and learning new things. I have also made so many friends from all over the world! I have been having the time of my life here in Japan.

When I think of AIU, I start thinking of all the laughs I have had with my friends. I am constantly enjoying myself through the classes I have been taking as well as all the clubs and field trips I’ve attended.

Studying Japanese

My favorite class is Japanese 101. The teacher is very kind and the whole class has a good time learning new words and sentence structures. There’s lots of laughs too when we attempt to interact in Japanese. It is amazing how much Japanese we have learned In such little time! The class is taught in a manner that has everyone engaged which helps us learn the content very easily.

Extracurricular Activities

Yatose Club

Of all the clubs I have participated in I would have to say my favorite is Yatose.

I love to dance very much. I also like the fact that even though the steps are tricky, the outcome of the dance is energetic yet elegant. What I really like about the club is how often we get to perform in celebrations and festivals, because it takes me to places I’ve never been to. Everyone in the team is very kind, especially the girls who teach us. They are very patient and I appreciate the fact that they upload videos of the dance for us to practice on our own.

Trips and Travel

I have been going to as many field trips as possible. Some were company tours and others were simply just walks around parks.

Actually, traveling around has been much easier than I thought! Every trip I have taken has been amazing. My favorite trip was my trip to Tokyo in golden week. I have been wanting to go there for years so it was definitely a dream come true. All my life I have been living in small towns so I like traveling often to big cities in my home country as well as Japan.

Campus Life

The first nights in my room were very cold. Since I did not know Japanese I didn’t know how to turn the heater on, but thankfully my roommate came a week later and turned it on. It’s still funny to me to this day.

I feel that living on campus is very convenient since I can get to my classes by foot. Living on campus with my friends also gives me the chance to study late at night together knowing we all live close by.

I am in awe with how much talent there is at AIU. There are so many talented people! We have martial artists dancers, singers, musicians, etc. AIU gives students the opportunity to gain new skills and improve existing ones!