Hello! Laura here! ^^ Some of you guys were wondering why I want to study abroad and found out about the AFS organization. I will talk about each separately, this may be a lengthy post but bare with me. ^_^
Well as many of you know I want to study abroad in Japan. Ever since I was little I loved Asian countries and I still do. It first started with the Indian culture and clothes, than I started moving East loving china...but than I came across this tiny country off the coast of Korea, Japan. As I found out more about it I asked more question and did more research. My passion started off with anime and manga, my cousins and uncles showed me but I didn't like them as much until I was in 6th through 8th grade where there were other kids my age that liked them too. Anime and manga sparked a light in me that I wanted to draw and perfect my skills which I believe I did. After 6th I thought about the weird language in the anime I was watching, Japanese, and thought how cool it was, I started by mocking them. When I was in 8th grade I began serious Japanese studying in the summer which was very difficult. Once I was in 9th grade I was wondering why cant I go to Japan and experience everything it has. I researched in school about Japan and how I can live there for a while and came across studying abroad. I don't want to study abroad off of the information I gathered from anime but because I love the opposites I have with Japan, the culture, trends, traditions, lifestyle, history and much more, everything about japan grabs my attention.
By the end of my Freshmen year, I began looking up more information about studying abroad and one day when I was one YouTube an advertisement came up stating "Do you want to be an exchange student? AFS Exchange Program" At first I was like this is a scam....but than I clicked and checked it out, I showed my mom she told me to do my research and I did. I requested the catalog and did more research in school during my 10th grade with my counselor and my mom. I talked to many of my favorite teachers about it. My mom was hesitant but she helped me out. I drew pictures and sold my drawing for funding. I got in touch with AFS asking many questions and attended many online information sessions which really helped and at the end of my sophomore year I signed up for the program when I knew I was serious about it. I am almost done with my application meaning I am getting closer to my goal.
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