Japan | Bye Tokyo

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By Deran Chan

This quarter studying abroad was hands down one of the best quarters of my college career. As cliché as it sounds, I never imagined myself studying abroad because I didn’t want to miss out at UCLA, but I’m so thankful I did. After 3 months, I finally felt that I was getting into the groove of Japanese life and could successfully navigate myself around the city without taking the wrong train. However, right when I started to feel comfortable – it was time to leave! Leaving and moving were tabooed topics in our dorm since we never wanted to talk about the inevitable. Alas, we had to face reality and decided to make a calendar in our dorm study lounge with everyone’s name, along with specific dates with when each person was heading home so we could say our final goodbyes.

Moving out was rough. Packing all of my belongings into my suitcases and seeing nothing but a bare room was surreal. Before leaving, I had to get signatures from my supervisors and resident directors to make sure that they had record of me leaving both the university and the dormitory. On top of all of the school procedures, I was required to go to Mitaka City Hall to officially change my address and declare that I was no longer a Japanese resident, SO SAD.

On November 22 the dreaded day had arrived – I was leaving Japan. My flight was at 7 P.M. so I left ICU at around afternoon and said goodbye to all my fellow exchange students. I took the 91 bus from the school to Musashi-Sakai Station for the last time. Above are photos from my university – the left photo is the main entrance to our school and the ones are the right are from my EXTREMELY spacious dorm room.

This next photo is from the main courtyard of the university. Since I went to a Christian school, there was a church in the center of campus, and this is where our matriculation ceremony was held.

Members from Footloose were so nice and went with me to Haneda airport and I’m so grateful to have made friends so genuine and caring. Since we left the university so early, I had a bunch of time before my flight, so we had the opportunity to take photos and explore Haneda. The airport is really cool, there’s an observatory overlooking the entire airport where you can see planes taking off and landing. Saying goodbye was hard, but I am so appreciative of all the people I met and experiences I had. I also want to thank you (the reader) for taking the time to read through my blog posts, and I hope you have the chance to visit Japan one day.

Deran Chan studied in Tokyo, Japan in 2018:http://eap.ucop.edu/OurPrograms/japan/Pages/international_christian_univ.aspx

Japan | TeamLab

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BY DERAN CHAN

I have been to many art museums around the world but teamLab Borderless is unlike anything I have ever seen before. The light museum is located in the Mori Building Digital Art Museum in Odaiba, Tokyo, one of my favorite cities in Japan. The museum has five distinct zones, Borderless World, Athletics Forest, Future Park, Forest of Lamps, and EN Tea House. While I don’t want to give away too much about the many exhibits, I have a few tips so you can make the most out of your trip.

First, I would advise visiting teamLab after 4pm. Since the museum has had so much success, lots of people come right when it opens. Our group made the mistake of coming 2 hours before it closed (which you would think is enough time), but we could’ve certainly been there for another 2. In addition, the art around the museum is interactive, so I highly recommend wearing white/light colored clothing to make your experience more immersive. Light colored clothing will allow the light to float across your body, while dark colors will absorb most of the light. Trust me, if you’re an Instagram snob like me, your pictures will be that much better. However, when it comes to shoes make sure the ones you are wearing are extremely comfortable – some exhibits include trampolines, climbing through a jungle of swings, hills, and even slides!

Most museums are notorious for their “Do Not Touch” signs but not teamLab. Touch ANYTHING you want. Lots of the installations will change and react to your movements, making each visit unique it its own way. The museum definitely has a futuristic tone enhanced by Japanese music and effects, which adds to the “borderless” component of the whole experience. My favorite space was the endless rice field that was filled with lotus leaf pods, floating dandelions, and fireflies. For all of the high-tech equipment and modern décor, I appreciate how the artwork remained true to Japanese culture and aesthetics (cherry blossoms, rice fields, and calligraphic strokes).

The exhibits are set in real-time which you can imagine leads to a pretty pricey electricity bill, which is evident in the ticket prices. That being said, the entire museum is mind blowing to see the least, and without question worth the visit. There really are no words to describe what I saw, you just have to experience it for yourself.

Deran Chan studied abroad in Tokyo, Japan in 2018: http://eap.ucop.edu/OurPrograms/japan/Pages/international_christian_univ.aspx