Studying abroad in Korea was one of the goals I wanted to achieve at all costs in my college life.
The reason for this is related to the theme of "achieving some big goal" that I set when I entered university.
In order to make the most of the precious four years I had left before I entered the workforce, I wanted to harvest at least one thing.
Among them, I have been living my life with a major goal of studying abroad in Korea, which I had been studying out of curiosity since my high school days. Although it is easy to learn about Korean culture and language from Japan, I wanted to know the real Korea, which cannot be learned only from textbooks or the Internet. To this end, I decided to study abroad because I felt that I could learn about the real Korea by living in the country, interacting with Korean people, and breathing Korean air.
There are many things I would like to learn during my study in Korea, but the most important is to understand the thoughts and humanity of the Korean people. I believe that by trying to learn these things, I will naturally learn about the language. I also want to know what Koreans actually think about Japan from various perspectives. I would like to have the courage to try to know things that I would not even think of knowing without this opportunity.
And since I will be studying at the School of Business Administration of Korea Aerospace University, I would like to learn about business administration in Korea, where the economic structure is different from that of Japan, and compare the differences between Japan and Korea from the perspective of my major field of study as well.
I also hope to break out of my shell as a person through my study abroad. I believe that living in a foreign country means facing many mistakes and failures. Even in such situations, I would like to become a person who can take action on what I want to do without worrying about what others think of me, by actively and spontaneously challenging myself with a challenging spirit without fearing mistakes or failures.
In addition, I would also like to cultivate a sense of "diversity" during my study abroad experience, which is very important in this day and age. By interacting with people from completely different backgrounds in a country different from my own, I would like to cultivate a sensitivity to accept and understand "diversity," which will surely become important in the future world.
There are many things I would like to do, but time is limited, so I would like to be bold and proactive.
I also believe that only by achieving these goals will I be able to say that I have reaped and learned from my study abroad experience, so I will give it my all during this precious time.

It has already been five months since I came to Korea to study abroad. My life as an exchange student in Korea is far more exciting and fascinating than I had imagined, and every day seems to fly by in an instant. The reason I decided to study in Korea was because I wanted to know the real Korea, which I could not find on the Internet. I think I have learned a lot from living in an environment with Korean people, even though I have only learned a small part of what Korea has to offer. I think one of the main reasons I have been able to learn so much is because of my participation in my university's baseball team.
By chance, I was able to play baseball in Korea, which I have continued to do since elementary school. The team is made up of both beginners and experienced players, and we practice and play games a couple of times a week. When I first joined the team, I was worried about whether I would be able to play with the team members, all of whom did not speak Japanese, but they were all very kind and friendly to me, and I quickly became accustomed to the team. Also, during practice, my fellow beginners would actively ask me if there was anything they did not understand about playing. I try to use my vocabulary to the best of my ability to give them advice, but sometimes I feel helpless when I have a clear idea of what I want to say but can't communicate it in the right words. However, as they say, sports transcend national borders, and I overcome the language barrier by communicating with my whole body.
In addition, I experienced many things during my study abroad that I would never have experienced if I had not played baseball. For example, playing in an official baseball game in an environment where everyone is Korean except me. Although I am sometimes bewildered by the differences from Japanese baseball, I am able to enjoy playing with all my might. I also had the valuable experience of breaking my face during a baseball game and visiting a Korean hospital. It was the first time in my life that I broke a bone in my face, and although it was a difficult experience, I am glad that I was able to experience something that I normally would not have been able to experience in Korea, which was a broken bone. I also enjoy going out to eat with my friends from the baseball team after practice. I often try my best to understand the conversation, but I think that I could not have had the opportunity to enjoy conversation while eating the same meal as everyone else if I had not joined the baseball club.
As for university lectures, I attended lectures on specialized subjects in addition to Korean language lectures during the first semester. It was often very difficult to take courses in Korean that were difficult even in Japanese, but I was able to make good grades in all the subjects. In the second semester, I would like to continue taking courses in my major and other subjects that interest me.
To be honest, my Korean language skills are still lacking, so I would like to continue participating in places where I can improve my language skills with a challenging spirit. I will do my best during the rest of my study abroad so that when I return to my home country, I will be able to say that I have achieved the goals I set before my study abroad.

　My year of study abroad in Korea has come to an end. Looking back now, everything about my life in Korea was fresh and new, and the year was truly a blink of an eye as I experienced a series of new challenges and experiences.
　Before I went to Korea, I had several goals in mind. One of those goals was "to learn about the thoughts and humanity of the Korean people. In order to achieve this goal, I have always been proactive and active during my study abroad period.
　I joined the baseball club of the university where I studied abroad and spent a lot of time playing baseball, eating, and playing with Korean students during the year. As a result, I was able to make many irreplaceable friends, and we also won the championship in the baseball competition. By participating in the baseball team, I was also able to live closely with the actual lives of local Korean university students and learned a lot about the language, games, and other trends. Another challenge I took on was to buy only an express ticket during summer vacation and travel alone to Daegu without making any plans. Daegu is not a popular tourist destination among Koreans, but I thought that even if it was not popular among Koreans, it would be fun for Japanese people to go there. I decided to go. During the trip, my friends from the baseball team and Korean friends from Daegu gave me recommendations, and I was able to explore the city on my own, but the streets of Daegu and the kindness of the people were very memorable, and it became my favorite place among the cities in Korea. If there were other places or things that I was interested in on a daily basis, I took the initiative to learn about them. What I felt through these activities was the kindness of the Korean people. I was treated with kindness and friendliness in many places, regardless of nationality. When I actually went to Korea, there was no barrier of the Japan-Korea problem as covered in the Japanese media. Rather, they were all friendly and favorable to Japan. However, the reality is that there are still many political issues between Japan and Korea, and I felt that it is the role of nonjudgmental young people like us to resolve these issues. In this way, we were able to change images that could not be reversed without going there.
　In addition, in terms of academics such as lectures at the university, there were many difficulties in the difficult environment of lectures given in Korean instead of Korean, but I learned a great deal in terms of both language and knowledge, and with the help of my friends, I managed to get good grades. I was able to achieve good grades with the help of my friends. One regret I have is that I had a goal of learning the differences between Japanese and Korean management before my study abroad, but in reality, I could not learn the differences between Japan and Korea due to my lack of language skills. However, as I attended basic lectures on business administration and economics, much of the knowledge I had learned at Japanese universities came up, and I realized that the academic foundations of management and economics are the same in both Japan and Korea.
　I was able to grow a lot in terms of language throughout the year. I think I have lowered the hurdle to speaking in Korean and have acquired the ability to communicate well with others using the vocabulary I have. However, there are still times when I cannot express what I want to say in Korean, so I will continue to work on my language learning.
　I would like to thank the HUMAP Scholarship Program for supporting my life in Korea and the many challenges I have faced. I would like to take this opportunity to thank you. It was also an opportunity for me to realize the greatness of my parents as I lived independently for the first time away from them. I would like to express my gratitude to my parents for their full support for my study abroad.
　Through this study abroad program, I was able to learn a lot about Korea that I could not have known through the Internet, or that I could not have learned even if I had traveled to Korea. In order to make the most of the experience I gained through this study abroad program, I would like to boldly take on even greater challenges in the next step of my life.
　My one year in Korea was the most memorable experience and experience of my life.