Can we truly understand the cultures of other countries without ever directly experiencing it?
Well, Malcolm Gladwell said: "we learn by direct experience because there are real limits to the adequacy of verbal instruction." We learn and become informed of the famous architectures, places, and ultimately the cultures of other countries by indirect sources such as books, newspapers, or radio. However, I believe we gain a true insight into the cultures and the human social behaviors only by directly experiencing them. By observing the various communities and the families in Europe and in Australia, I have gained a sense of freedom that would've never come if I had stayed in one country, in my small community. I have risen from the limited viewpoint, and gained freedom to view the cultures in many ways through interactions with people of all society. I am a freeman with various perspectives who has managed to get out from the circle of limited viewpoint, while everyone else is an "apprentice" who needs a help to achieve a freedom from limited perspective. I believe having a diverse cultural background is what makes me unique as an individual among other people.
I was born in Japan, and later I went to Korea. Even though Korea is my home country, I have lived majority of my life in foreign countries (Europe, Australia, and America). My entrance into the English elementary school was the stepping stone on my way to the development of my diverse cultural experience as a foreign student. Entering the elementary school in England for the first time, I was puzzled and many times unready by unfamiliar situations. However, as I took on new experience, I soon found my feet in the English background. By challenging myself to go beyond of what I disliked and feared, I was convinced that despite the hard process of overcoming the new and unfamiliar environment, "without moving on there will be no progress in my life." After I became used to the English background, I shared my perspective, shared my oriental backgrounds, and drove interesting class discussion in my elementary school. We shared our own cultures, and the classroom was soon filled with the harmony of two cultural backgrounds: European culture and Oriental culture.
In England, I have experienced many new English cultures that were completely different from my culture such as their habits, foods, and their unique sayings and the dry, yet funny humors of their speech, which many Americans find it silly and childish. I remember the day when my personal violin tutor came to our house with his shoes on. This act was not really acceptable to our culture. Our family first wondered, "how strange; do English live like this, with their shoes on, making dirt all over the place?" After getting used to their habits, however, we came to learn that wearing shoes indoors is one of the cultures that ultimately shapes the uniqueness of English Culture. English strongly prefer to eat baked beans, bacons, and eggs in the morning. Seeing and trying those foods, my parents and I came to grow fond of the English foods, and we changed our breakfast menu for the first time in England. Now I not only know the value of the English culture but also came to use their culture as part of my living.
By fighting against the unfamiliarity and confusion in the new environment, I learned that the challenges are what make life interesting; overcoming them is what makes life meaningful. Overcoming the fear and going beyond of what I disliked was my first discovery that laid the pathway to my development of my understanding of cultures.
While I was in England, I traveled a lot, which ultimately shaped my cultural experiences as a foreign student. For instance, in France, I saw the opera concert in the Church which was elegantly dressed with gold. The feeling of intensive and often peaceful and emotional sounds of Opera ran through my body. I believe it was the very first time to feel strongly about the style of European music. I believe all the things I have experienced in Europe gave me an understanding of the culture around the world. In France, I developed my sense of European arts by observing the unique styles of architectures, landscapes, and music; in Italy and Denmark, I learned the history of Christianity of Sistene Chapel, the ruins of Pompeii, and the culture of unique furnishings and the European style of buildings by visually observing the remains, and the unique European styles; In Norway, I observed the most amazing scene, the waterfall that was frozen, unchanged by the chilly breeze, showing great details of its water streams. There I first came to learn that the cold environments are what make the customs and the cultures different from other hot and humid countries' cultures. I believe my knowledge in the areas of religion, architectures, and the art is not just merely on the surface of my head, but developed by the pictures of the various interactions I have experienced.
When I turned 15, my parents suggested me to study abroad alone in Australia which gave me a perfect opportunity to learn new experiences, even though I first hesitated a lot before I reached the decision to go there. When I arrived in Australia, I felt the feeling I have never had: loneliness. I felt as though there was a big gap in my life without the presence of my parents.
On the first day in Australia, I struggled a great deal to manage my life without my parents. The image of my mom's sweet smiles and her sweet words were all gone into the thin air, and I was left alone in bitterness and in tears. My heart constantly sought for mom's presence even though I knew it was all in vain. However, this bitter experience opened the door of my life to see the true light of being left alone. As an individual foreign student, I came to "see" why it's important in our lives to be responsible for ourselves. I not only learned to be individual but also to show compassion toward others without relying on others.
In Australia I also came to grow fond of traveling alone, observing the beautiful nature as I was leafing through my book. The sky and the trees in Australia were dotted with a blend of colorful birds, and when the birds rose, the blue sky would soon be covered by the colors of wonder. Those beautiful nature is what makes up Australia. Australia is a home to hundreds of national parks and 15 World Heritage-listed wonders. Living in Australia for half a year, I came to strongly engage in nature, get up close to various native plants and animals, and interact with spectacular beauty on land, air and sea.
Overall, I had the opportunity to learn many things that I would not have known if I had lived only in Korea. My life as a foreign student was a sequence of new experiences, and it broke my frame of thinking of the world around me. Jawaharlal Nehru said: "experiencing the new culture is the widening of the mind and of the spirit." Traveling around the world was a tiresom and costly process of getting my hand on the knowledge of diverse culture, but it truly rose me into a versatile student who can help students with his or her background. I hope to contribute my cultural diversity and share my experiences of European cultures and oriental cultures with the people in your university.
first lemme say this is quite long. 1253 words :O
your first sentence is somewhat informal...well, so-and-so said...""... and what exactly do you mean by this quote? do you explain it well later? questions that pop into my mind as i read your first para. seems like your second sentence contradicts the first..it's supposed to be a counterargument right? make it seem more like one.
would've never come...would've sounds weird, its a colloquialism..
I have risen from the limited viewpoint, and gained freedom to view the cultures in many ways through interactions with people of all society. [do you really gain freedom or do you experience it?]
I am a freeman [free man] with various perspectives who has managed to get out from the circle of limited viewpoint, while everyone else is an "apprentice" who needs a help to achieve...[you sound a tad arrogant. just my opinion...i dont like this...b/c EVERYONE, including you, needs to be an apprentice to learn things about other people, even if you are a great person, you had to have learned something somewhere about the people you live with/visit/know...maybe you are saying you're a liberal? an "enlightened one" but still.]
about the rest, there's too much story, even by skimming...
