My brother asked me to write up a little post for his blog. Here it is.

This was my fourth visit to Japan. My first visit, when I was 1 year old, doesn’t count. My second visit, six years ago, was a short two-week scouting trip to prepare me for my year in Japan to come. Then, three years later, I spent a full year in Japan, training with the Tokai University women judo team and learning Japanese.

This fourth visit was a jam-packed two-week trip to visit my brother, relatives and friends. Six years ago, we only had family and my father’s friends to visit. However, now, on top of my father’s old friends, I also had many friends to see (thanks to my year in Japan) and my brother had friends of his own he wanted us to meet. That made for a long list of people to visit! But overall, although we didn’t get to see everyone we would have liked to, I’d say we did a formidable job.


My brother is doing a great job over there. We were able to see him practice with the men’s club, despite the two injuries he suffered since his arrival. Sure, the men’s team is extremely strong and they can throw my brother around easily. But my brother’s judo has definitely improved, and from the matches I was able to see (it’s hard to see when there are 150 men on the mats!), he’s able to hold his own. I know it isn’t easy for him. Dynamics in the men’s judo club are different from the women’s team, and I get the feeling that the we-have-to-prove-we’re-better-than-you attitude is much stronger among the members of the men’s team. So I give him lots of credit for making it this far. Keep it up Mamoru, you can do it!

I’m also pleased to see how much my brother’s Japanese has improved. He studies hard and does a great job of really immersing himself, talking in Japanese almost all the time, even with other international students who can speak English. Seeing how much he’s improved motivates me to keep learning the language because, come on, I can’t let my brother become a better speaker than me, right? :P

Since my last trip three years ago, Japan hasn’t changed much. The streets and trains are still extremely packed. Whenever I think there’s no more room for anyone else to board the train, five or more people step in and shove the rest towards the other side. The weather remains hot and humid. Japan is still the best place to lose something. If ever you do lose something, even a wallet or a cellphone, the chances are shockingly great that either the lost item will still be in its place or it will have been taken to the lost and found by a citizen. I was amazed when my father and I ate at his former university’s cafeteria. There, you get to order and eat your food before paying. We’re not talking about a restaurant here, but a university cafeteria!

The best part of the trip was reconnecting with family and friends. I skype with my grandmother a couple times every week, but it’s not the same as seeing her in person and being able to give her a hug before going to bed. I met a few of the judo girls I trained with. They’ve all graduated now and are working. This time, it felt like we got along so much better, conversations were much more animated, and they were really interested in what I was up to in Canada. In contrast, when I was there for a full year, the girls were much more guarded and kept to themselves most of the time. My father tells me that Japanese like to have a common history. Once you do have a common history, Japanese are much more open and welcoming. I definitely experienced that on our trip.





Sayuri France