In the end of this summer, I visited Australia for two weeks, which taught me how impressive it is to jump into a new world, putting away all the concerns within myself. Actually, this was my first time to plan, make every booking and get prepared for a trip by myself. Therefore, I was unbelievably nervous before I left Japan. I almost burst into tears at the airport and I was like "What am I doing here all alone?" I know how silly that was since I was already a 20-year-old girl! Having said so, however, as this trip went on, I learned how exciting it was to go on a trip by myself. Of course, it is still fun to travel with your friends. But this usually does not give you much opportunity to interact with new people in a new place, which was not my case. Fortunately, I had many chances to talk to a lot of people during my journey. Some people were friendly and spoke to me and some just came up to me to show the way to a place where I had to go without asking (especially white people in this case). At first, I was a little surprised at their attitudes towards me because some of my friends who were studying in Australia had told me that they had not felt comfortable being there because of racism. I do not know so much about their experiences, however, I suppose they might have expected too much from people there. "Reflect on yourself and try to change yourself before blaming others." This is sort of my motto. From my own experience during this trip, I really learned it is very important how we try to understand and deal with facts and people surrounding us when we try to communicate with them. I do understand that things are not always that simple. Some people would say that I was not living in Australia and was just a visitor so that is a different story, which could be true. Others would also say that I was just lucky, which could be true as well. Still, I believe that reflecting on yourself and your attitudes towards other people can definitely be one step forward connecting us each other. My experiences in Australia taught me "Don't be afraid to try something new. It will always open things for you as long as you give it a try." Finally, I would like to give a big thanks to all of the wonderful people I met during my unforgettable journey in Australia. Thank you!

by Maiko