By Dylan Jestin

I’m currently halfway through my semester abroad at Kansai Gaidai University in Osaka, Japan. While here I’ve had the opportunity to explore many of Japan’s cultural and historical sites and cities. 

The first notable site I was able to travel to was Arashiyama temple outside Kyoto a small mountainside temple founded in the year 1596 built at the base of the mountain with a large bamboo forest nearby and a reserve at the top of one of the nearby mountains where you can see and feed the native Japanese macaque’s. That same day I travelled into the heart of old Kyoto and discovered more temples, ancient buildings and roads and was able to see a number of people in historical dress. Finally being able to see things such as the Kyoto Pagoda in person after having seen it so many times through various media surrounding Kyoto.

Another site I am privileged to have been able to travel to is Todaiji Temple in Nara. I first learned about it in my elective Japanese Cultural History: Ancient and Medieval. So getting to see the Giant statue of Buddha, the enormous gates and the temple grounds I had been learning about in class prior to this trip made the experience far more fulfilling. And then there’s the Deer… Todaiji temple is surrounded by Nara Park, which has a large number of wild deer that are historically sacred to the site, as a result, they are not scared of people and you can walk amongst them, interact with and feed them. It was honestly the most surreal experience. On a side note be careful if you go during autumn as it is mating season and the males can be a little aggressive. Todaiji also hosted a Museum where we were unfortunately not allowed to take pictures but I was able to see some of the oldest and most amazing collection of historical artifacts I have ever seen.

In the end, finally being able to see things such as the Kyoto Pagoda in person after having seen it so many times through various media surrounding Kyoto, or getting to step foot inside the temples and see original documents that I was studying in my history classes and experiencing Japan’s relationship to nature through these interactions with wild animals has already made my time travelling so far worth every moment. I feel so lucky to be able to utilise Osaka’s central position to explore the surrounding area of Kyoto, Nara and Kobe as this was one of the main factors in choosing Kansai Gaidai as my first choice when planning this exchange I feel incredibly privileged and grateful to have been able to experience these place’s and cannot wait to see what the second half of the semester will bring.