今日は

Hi guys! My name is Eliza Talvola and I’m an upcoming junior majoring in Marketing at the University of Pittsburgh! I am pursuing minors in Studio Arts and Japanese and a certificate in Digital Media and this summer I will be studying abroad in Kobe, Japan.

I grew up just 40 minutes outside of Pittsburgh and have never left the country before but I always knew I wanted to study abroad. I never pictured that of all places, I would live and study in Japan! I love art, architecture, fashion and food and Japan is the perfect convergence of all these things. While abroad I will be taking a culture and language class as well as a class called “Doing Business in Japan”. This course involves learning about Japan’s sake industry and even includes visits to a sake distillery. Since my dream is to one day work to market up-and-coming restaurants, I knew that this was the perfect program for me.

Although I have taken a year of Japanese language courses, the language barrier is very intimidating. I will have a 45 minute commute onto campus each day so my language and culture skills will really be put to the test.

I can’t wait to visit Tokyo and check out the street fashion in Harajuku, eat fresh sushi in one of the many bustling fish markets, travel to ancient cities like Kyoto and Nara, and get to know the locals. I will be experimenting with my art and photography skills while abroad so stay tuned to see more about my stay in Japan!

ではまたあいましょう。