The intellect, Sensibility, and Cultural Exchange 1/2

I am writing this essay after being inspired by the two weeks stay in Serbia. Also I am writing this paragraph because I learned that I have to write an introduction for essays. It means that unfortunately, I didn't put any single important topic at all here so it is totally fine if you skip this paragraph but you know what, this is almost the end of paragraph so it is too late for you to jump out. I hope you are not too disguised to stop reading this essay. This is not my fault but the human culture of writing. 

It is usually said that people deepen their understanding of each other's culture by coming into contact with different cultures, and I myself have felt a deepening of my understanding of the culture of a country, my own culture, and myself as a result of living abroad. The question was that I was not convinced why this was possible. Fortunately, through this camp, I obtained one answer.
 

I believe that there are two elements that make up human thought: intellect and sensitivity. Intellect refers to knowledge and understanding of things, while sensitivity refers to feelings and emotions about things.

The exchange of intellect is easily observed in an environment where people from different cultures gather. For example, the introduction of each other's language, music, religion, and culture. In language introductions, it is common to see people marveling at each other's knowledge of similar words. In my experience, when participants in study abroad programs or camps are from similar areas, the variation of cultural backgrounds of the participants are somewhat limited, so the exchange of knowledge tends to be of a similar nature, and there tends to be nothing new and interesting to be learned in the end.

While the above exchange of intellect is often the focus of attention in study abroad experience reports and presentations, the other exchange, the exchange of sensibility is often forgotten. This is because the exchange of sensibilities occurs unconsciously in the most ordinary moments and affects our thoughts and personalities in ways that we do not notice.

For example, in Serbia, when I buy a bus ticket at the ticket counter, the behavior of the people selling the ticket is clearly different from those in Japan. I felt that many of them showed their emotions more clearly, some were irritated, others were friendly, and so on. In this case, it was not only just feeling the difference, but also I start to behave in that way especially after I keep encountering such a situation. This is because in Japan, I did not have the manner of thinking to reveal such emotions, but by witnessing the opposite, which is to reveal emotions more explicitly, I can learn that manner as a new idea. Depending on which manner one uses in one's surroundings, I am subconsciously forced to make a decision as to which manner I shall use, and the decision itself is also influenced by the surroundings. If I had lived only in Japan, I would not have had such experience in choosing which manner to use because I would have only known the Japanese manner. The necessity of choice of manners happens only when one is exposed to a different culture and to the issue of which manner to use to handle emotions.

It is not only about how to handle emotions. In Serbia, for instance the system and rules are often not well organized. Usually we are supposed to buy a bus ticket from a driver, but they don't sell it to us, or we follow a sign and nothing happens, or they build a building halfway through and then stop, or we are assigned a seat on the bus but no one cares. By being exposed to this manner of not caring about the system or the rules, I could understand that for the first time I exist in a culture that cares about rules a lot and follows the manners existing there. It is also necessary to consider which manner is better for me to use, as in the case of emotions.

In addition, the sounds, smells, chaos, and other aspects of a town also reflect the manners, and thus the culture and thought of the country. By going to a foreign country, I am constantly exposed to such a variety of manners and the consequences of such manners, and it let me understand clearly which manners I am following. It also helps me to know which manners I like and dislike, and whether I feel stress or not.

In this way, the exchange of sensibilities occurs even when we are not talking to others. Rather, we are more often exposed to the exchange of sensibilities as simple time. Since the exchange of intellect is the focus of attention in study abroad experiences and introductions to other cultures, many people are less conscious of the exchange of sensibilities. For example, rather than listening to music on a cell phone while traveling, I find it more interesting to observe the behavior of the passengers, the music being played on the bus, the swaying of the bus, the scenery, the architecture, and other aspects of the environment in which I am placed, and to actively engage in the exchange of sensibilities. In my experience, many people in Serbia speak English, and even if they don't, many of them are willing to talk mostly. Therefore, by traveling without doing in-depth research, I can proactively take opportunities to ask local people what I don't understand, and I can promote the exchange of sensibilities and make my stay more interesting and fun.

Please go to the next article where the second half of essay is placed because I am more than sure that you are kind and patient enough to continue reading. I understand if you do not want to read more, and you quit here but I know that it is not going to happen because you not feeling like reading more doesn't mean you don't want. You just don't know you want, so don't worry and go to the next article!