Climbing a mountain in Japan is a whole different experience than in the Rocky Mountains.
That was one of Ayoumi Nayak鈥檚 realizations during her exchange to Jasper鈥檚 sister city, Hakone, Japan, last month.
The first surprise for the 16-year-old Jasperite was the ease of walking to the bottom of the mountain straight from town. 鈥淚t was strange because here you have to drive to a mountain if you want to climb it,鈥� she said with a laugh. 鈥淏ut they鈥檙e right up in the mountain areas.鈥�
The next surprise was finding wooden stairs all the way up the mountain. 鈥淟iving in Jasper, obviously you do a little bit of hiking, but there they had stairs going up almost the entire way to the top of the mountain, and it鈥檚 not like here where there鈥檚 nothing up there. There鈥檚 wifi and there鈥檚 cellular reception, there were two teahouses and there were tons of people and picnic benches.鈥�
Nayak, who started Grade 12 this week, was selected by the municipality for the Jasper Hakone Student Exchange program, which is organized in conjunction with the Hakone International Exchange Association. To be chosen for the three week adventure, she submitted an essay explaining why she would be the best ambassador to represent Jasper.
Before arriving in Japan, Nayak tried to learn as much Japanese as possible, so she鈥檇 at least know the pleasantries. But when she arrived, everyone wanted to practise their English, so she didn鈥檛 have many opportunities to use her knowledge.
鈥淚 expected them to speak less English, but they all had iPhones and so they just looked up on Google how to say things in English.鈥�
When she did need a Japanese phrase, Nayak would do the same thing, translating from English to Japanese on her phone.
While in Hakone, she was treated like royalty. She prayed at shrines, watched fireworks from the top of an extravagant boat and stayed in a guest house, where she had her own bathroom with a hot spring all to herself. 鈥淚t was made of stone and they had a direct line from a sulphur hot spring area up in the mountains,鈥� she said in a gushing tone.
Although that was luxurious, Nayak also had to learn how to sleep on the floor in true Japanese style.
鈥淭he Japanese rooms I stayed in were a bit of a culture shock,鈥� she said. 鈥淭here was no bed in it. They have tatami mats on the floor and they have something called a futon, which is different than what we call a futon here. It鈥檚 basically just a thin mattress on the floor and a thick, heavy comforter and a pillow.鈥�
That wasn鈥檛 the only culture shock, either.
When she travelled to Tokyo, she was surprised to find herself underdressed compared to the rest of the people scurrying around the busy streets.
鈥淭he way people dress is shocking,鈥� she said, referring to people in Harajuku. 鈥淭hey wear super outrageous, weird outfits and then they have their different hair colours and long eyelashes and shoes that are probably going to kill you.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not weird there; it鈥檚 a normal occurrence.
鈥淯sually I feel overdressed when I鈥檓 here [in Jasper], but there I was definitely underdressed.鈥�
Despite all of that, Nayak said compared to previous trips to India and the Philippines, there were far fewer surprises in Japan.
鈥淭hey were more culturally shocking than Japan, to me anyway.鈥�
Next year, an exchange student will come to Jasper to do a similar trip. Nayak said she鈥檚 excited for that, although, she noted, that trip depends on someone from Hakone applying to come.
In previous years, exchange students have been treated to horseback riding, kayaking, river rafting, boat rides on Maligne Lake, rides on the Tramway, and many other outdoor activities, including hiking and camping.
