FPT University (Summer)
Changes in confidence abroad
Faculty of Global Studies Arisa Yoshii
By participating in this FPT University Exchange Program, I was able to experience cultural differences in many different situations.
I felt that the difference in taste was a big difference in the way smells and spiciness were perceived. Vietnamese food is generally quite spicy, and for people who don't like spicy food, it was a bit too strong. In terms of spiciness, many dishes are as spicy as chili peppers, and when you go to a restaurant, there is always hot sauce available. This is not about Vietnamese people, but the Nigerian people who participated in the summer camp bit into whole chili peppers and ate them as they were. Several Japanese people screamed even at the smallest pieces in their food, so I was surprised at how different their tastes were. And when I gave the Vietnamese students pickled plums, which Japanese people like to eat, they said they were worse than durian. However, the Japanese students said durian was worse. The moment you put durian in your mouth, an unpleasant smell spreads in your mouth. Whether you went to a night market or a supermarket, you could often smell durian. Vietnamese people like to eat durian, but even here I felt a difference in taste.
The difference in prices made me feel like my sense of money was numb. For example, if I go shopping in Japan to buy clothes, even the cheapest tops cost around 1,500 to 2,000 yen. However, when I went to a night market in Vietnam, I was able to buy a top for about 350 to 400 yen. I was very surprised at first, but as I got used to it, I felt that 1,500 yen was expensive, which is unheard of in Japan. I was also surprised that there were discounts in Vietnam. I thought that the fact that the price can be changed depending on the negotiation from the displayed price is something that does not happen in Japan. When I had dinner at a food court in Vietnam, it cost about 400 yen per person, and the total price for three people was about the same as the price of one dinner in Japan. Therefore, when I returned to Japan, most things seemed expensive to me.
In terms of languages, I was surprised by the number of people who could speak languages other than their native language. Japanese people basically only speak Japanese, but most of the people I interacted with in Vietnam could speak English, which is the common language, for everyday conversation.
In terms of daily life, I didn't have much trouble because I was staying in a dormitory. However, on the first day, there was a power outage and I had to wait in a hot, dark room for about two hours, which was quite a challenge. During that power outage, I learned that planned power outages are common in Vietnam. In Japan, power outages don't happen unless something really bad happens, but I learned that there are differences like that in other countries.
In terms of traffic, I felt the difference in safety for pedestrians. In Japan, there are many traffic lights and it is not dangerous to cross the road, but in Vietnam, there are few traffic lights and many motorbikes, so if you are not used to it, it is scary and difficult to cross. And to my surprise, there were no people running when we crossed, and everyone crossed with confidence. A local student told me that the speed is decided by the drivers, so it is actually dangerous for pedestrians to run.
In terms of classes, I was surprised that we always had to give presentations. Presentations are not very common in Japanese classes, but in this class, out of the three hours of class, the last hour was spent each student presenting their thoughts in English. I thought this was a great idea, as it will help students improve their presentation skills in the future and also help them study English. I felt that if Japan had more classes with more presentations, we would see an increase in students with excellent appealing abilities.
In terms of clothing, I learned that different colors have different meanings in national costumes. In Vietnam, it is said that people wear red national costumes on important days. At the Intercultural Festival on the last day, Vietnamese girls wore the costumes and performed a dance with umbrellas.
In terms of sightseeing, I was concerned about the difference in prices. In Japan, prices are divided into "children, teenagers, and adults," but when I went to Ba Na Hill, a famous tourist spot in Vietnam, the prices were different for locals and tourists. It was the first time I'd seen such a division, so I was a little surprised.
This training program made me think deeply about cultural differences. This is true not only in Vietnam, but all over the world. If you approach people with the fixed idea that "people from this country are like this," you will be completely different. I felt that it is important to interact with people from various countries without such prejudices and to accept each other's cultures. When I study abroad in the future, I felt that it is important to accept the culture of the other country and make an effort to learn about it.