🌸Hirodai Ambassador [Study Abroad News] Maika Ito, 2nd year, Department of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, No.3

Hirodai Ambassador Activity Report　

 Ms. Maika Ito, 2nd year student, Department of Health Sciences, School of Medicine

[Destination] National Taipei University of Education (Taiwan)
[Study abroad period] August 2023 to January 2.
[Type of study abroad] Long-term study abroad at a partner university

I am currently studying abroad at National Taipei University of Education in Taiwan for one year.

This time, I would like to introduce my daily routine on a school day.

First, I have Chinese classes in the morning from 9am to 12pm. There will be two 10 minute breaks. They are given handouts that look like pictures, and while studying grammar, they read conversations and long passages from the textbook to deepen their understanding. Also, during classes, international students introduce each other's culture and traditions. In my class, there were students from Vietnam, Indonesia, Guinea, and Korea, so it was very interesting to learn about many different cultures. Since I was in Japan myself and didn't have the opportunity to think about and present my own country, I realized once again how good my country is. I was also surprised that my classmates knew more about Japanese anime and traditions than I did. I also became interested in foreign cultures and wanted to know more about various countries. Classes give me so many opportunities to speak, so it was a great experience for someone like me who is not confident in my pronunciation.

Some weeks there were quizzes about three times a week, and other weeks I only had to submit assignments and work. There were basically three types of quizzes: a ``new vocabulary test from the main text of the textbook,'' a ``grammar confirmation test,'' and a ``comprehensive test given after each chapter.'' As you can see in the picture, the assignment for my class was to write a new word three times and then write a short example sentence using that word in a small notebook. The work was summarized by chapter, and I used it as a review after each chapter.

After class ends at 12 o'clock, I go out to eat with my classmates and seniors. As I mentioned before, there are many restaurants around the University of Education as there are many universities nearby, so I often go there to eat or buy food and eat it at the school cafeteria. The photo is of my favorite noodle shop. Since I came to Taiwan, I haven't had many opportunities to eat raw vegetables, so I like it because it contains a lot of tomatoes and vegetables. This is 85 yuan (about 400 yen). I also eat egg noodles, dumplings, and beef noodles. Since there are many students living here, the prices are low and the quantity is large, which is very good.

Lunch

After that, I go to class on days when there are regular classes, and on days when I don't have regular classes, I go to the library to study or sleep, and sometimes I go to a cafe with friends and seniors. The most memorable part of the regular class was Tai Chi, which was the only subject with a practical test, so I was able to successfully complete it with the support of my roommate who was taking the class with me.

The library, like the Hirosaki University library, has spaces for self-study on each floor, and there are many students during test periods. The difference is that there are objects on the first floor.

There are many cafes around the school and around the city, so I visit them little by little. Cafes are a bit expensive, so I often go there with my seniors when I want to relax and talk slowly.

Furthermore, I started working part-time at an internal medicine clinic in late April, so on days when I work part-time, I leave school at 4 o'clock and work from 2 o'clock. Since I am majoring in nursing, I was thinking that I would like to be involved in something related to medical care, and I was able to work at a clinic in Japan that handles overseas health care.The patients were mostly Japanese, but I was asked by the doctor the names of medicines and their names. I'm learning little by little by listening to the effects.

At night, I usually go out to eat or go to the night market. Classes start at 9 o'clock the next day, so I don't go out much on weekdays, so I usually have dinner around the school and study again, take TikToks with my roommate, and spend some time relaxing.

There is a night market near our school, so we go there to eat and play some small games called pachinko as you can see in the photo.

After that, I usually take a shower and run the washer/dryer. (1 yuan per wash, 20 yuan per dryer)

I was worried at first that I wouldn't be able to relax in my room because I had a roommate, but my roommate basically enjoyed spending time alone at night, so I watched YouTube, listened to music, and watched movies. I'm doing it.

This is my daily routine at school.

I've been able to enrich myself every day, and even though I've only been here for three months, I've been able to do things that I'm glad I came here for.