Field trips to foreign lands undoubtedly offer unique and enriching experiences that often surpass those available within one’s own country. Reflecting on my fourth-grade excursion to Japan for an ice hockey field trip, I was confronted with a blend of anticipation, trepidation, and curiosity. Despite previous travels, the prospect of exploring Japan, a neighboring country yet unexplored, ignited a sense of adventure within me.
The journey commenced with a flurry of emotions as I bid farewell to my parents at the airport, embarking on this expedition alongside my teammates. The anticipation of encountering unfamiliar sights and sounds filled me with a mix of excitement and apprehension. As I settled into my seat on the plane, surrounded by peers of the same age, the absence of parental guidance evoked a sense of independence tinged with uncertainty. Contemplating the challenges that lay ahead, I found solace in the company of fellow travelers, forging bonds amidst the anticipation of our destination.
On the plane, I sat with my teammates who were the same age as me. Unlike me, they looked excited to travel to a different country for ice hockey games. Even though they were close friends of mine, I wasn’t able to talk to them because I kept thinking about my parents. Asking myself ‘Can I survive in a new place without my parents?’ I stared at the window wondering what they were doing right now. Gradually, after an hour, I fell asleep at my seat.
A loud thud woke me in surprise as the plane landed at the airport in Tokyo. Arriving in Tokyo marked the beginning of our immersion into Japanese culture, yet it was merely a precursor to our ultimate destination: Fukuoka. The anticipation of embracing a new environment mingled with the fatigue of travel as we boarded a second plane, our excitement tempered by the realization of the journey yet to unfold.
The place we settled was far different from my expectations before the field trip. At first, I thought we would stay at a hotel sharing a room. But it actually turned out to be a pension that barely fitted all the teammates. My friends and I used a room together with 4 beds. As we unpacked our bags, we talked about how the next day might start Anyway, the first day went away as I slept on the bed waiting for the next day to come.
To remind you, I didn’t go to Japan to have fun but more on a field trip with my hockey team. That was why I had to wake up early in the morning, almost dawn to be honest. Our first day in Japan didn’t feel like what I would feel on a nice trip. The whole team took their gear along the icy cold roads of Japan until we reached the ice rink. The weather was freezing it felt warmer inside the ice rink than outside.
The practices were harder than usual as well. During the practice, I learned I wasn’t here to play around with my teammates. Other teammates looked exhausted as the practice was over by 10 am. We went back to the pension and ate lunch. Everyone being tired, the coaches told us to get ready for practice in the afternoon.
Everyone including me was shocked by the fact that people can be so cruel. Until then, my knowledge about sports training was that once a day is enough. But I had no choice but to follow their orders. After the second practice, we returned to the pension and everyone went to sleep.
On the second day, the team hopped on the bus to move to the rink. We had to move to a different ice rink because we were about to have a match against Japanese ice hockey players. Back then I wasn’t a good ice hockey player so I didn’t actually have the chance to play the game. But as I watched my teammates, I knew we didn’t stand a chance against them. Eventually, we had two matches and our team lost both of them.
After the game, the whole team went to a snow park where you can ride a sled. The hill was not that steep compared to other places I’ve been to in Korea, but it was still fun to play with the snow. I wished the rest of the days would be similar to this and just let us play around.
When we came back from the park, we had to pack our bags to leave. I was stunned by the fact that we were going out even though the trip wasn’t over. However, it turned out that it wasn’t because the trip was over but because we had to leave the pension and go to a hotel where we were going to spend the last night in Japan.
At the hotel, I got a room without a roommate. Since there was an odd number of people I was the unlucky one to actually use a single room. But it turned out to be lucky for me. Since I got to the pension I didn’t have much time to sleep because we had to wake up very early and my roommates at the pension had a nasty sleeping habit. So as I entered my room, I went to sleep.
When I woke up on the last day to eat breakfast I still hadn’t fully recovered from the sleepiness. When I was eating breakfast I noticed that everyone in the team looked exactly like me, exhausted and eyes almost shut the whole time. It seemed like the coaches had seen us in a gloomy mood because they decided there wouldn’t be any practices for the last day. So after breakfast, I went straight to bed and slept like I never had before.
The next thing I noticed was the door banging and the coaches calling me out to go to the plane. It was almost midnight and the team went to the airport. The whole trip wasn’t full of good memories actually, but the reason why it’s still inside my mind is because that was the only time that I went to Japan.
By: Jihoon Yoon
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