Hello Japan
By: Rose Seppala
As winter blew through Sioux Falls in mid-January of this year, a group of students and faculty from the Arts and Media departments from the University of Sioux Falls were enjoying a week-long trip in Japan. Where buildings with bright lights tower over you and bullet trains take you from one side of the country to the other in about five hours, USF student Danielle Hoopaugh, was also enjoying the trip.
When asked why she found this trip appealing, she said it was due to the cultural differences between the United States and Japan. “And while I watch some anime and listen to some J-Pop, it was mostly all the cool stores and tech they have around,” she said. When asked about cultural differences, she said that there is more respect amongst Japanese people than in the United States. It shocked her that those public spaces seemed to be quieter, there wasn’t much shouting or screaming, something she enjoyed. Another thing she mentioned was how well-behaved kids were in the stores that she went into. “I never saw any kids make a mess of a store or purposely cause problems, which is something I deal with almost daily in retail,” Hoopaugh said.
Something else about the cultural differences Hoopaugh found was that the public bathrooms had full length doors, bidets with music that plays, and overall cleanliness compared to the United States “western style.” The accessibility that vending machines offered in Japan also surprised Hoopaugh, from hot coffee and tea to coin purses for your convenience. Hoopaugh said, “They were EVERYWHERE, you couldn’t go very far in the city without one being around.”
Hoopaugh visited a few historic temples and palaces during her trip. Her pictures of these places are picturesque, and it almost feels like you are there. She said she had a lot of fun visiting these places and it was cool to learn about them, but the little eccentric shops are what drew her attention. When asked if there was one thing she could have brought back with her if there were no limitations, it would have been anything Studio Ghibli related. Namely a two-foot statue of Totoro that she found in one of the stores.
With only about a week to travel around Japan, Hoopaugh still got to see and experience many different things. From the culture to historic monuments, or even to the vending machines that seem to be able to provide you with whatever you need, she still has many fond memories. When talking about the trip she often finishes up by saying she’d like to go back some day and spend a little more time there, going more in depth with her next trip.
