Ines Novacic-
Graduates’ summer plans are very important. Not only is it the last real summer holiday, but it’s a holiday that we can extend for however long we like. Especially now that there are no jobs going and everyone’s leaving grey little Ireland. Final-year students, ditch the rain for the rising sun. Summer 2011 should be all about Japan.
Pick up any recent newspaper article remotely relating to University graduates, and unemployment and emigration are persistently popping up. Highlights include an Irish Times report on how almost 100,000 Irish degree-holders are currently jobless.
Campaigning politicians aren’t helping much by declaring that unemployment is bad for a country as a whole, and an aggravated populace placing blame on Fianna Fail leadership isn’t exactly morale boosting. Yes, the recession is bad for everyone and, yes, it is someone’s fault; surely us imminent alumni have the most right to despair and name-drop? Yet we seem to be leaving it all to the grown-ups as we bury our heads in library books and laptops, and will for the summer to come. We’ve all done Thailand and New York, and we’ve all got a friend doing Australia and Argentina. Japan isn’t done enough. And it isn’t as expensive as we’re all bullied into believing.
In the final stretch of classes before exams, some of us have dissertations, most of us have essay deadlines, and all of us have ‘the fear’. Whether it manifests as a frustration from waiting to hear about a desired post-grad programme, or a spell of insomnia, or the inability to stop daydreaming about a beach in Samoa, contemplating our future in the big bad world post-summer is stressful. For those of you graduating this year, in this political and economic climate, your energy would be better spent planning a summer holiday, instead of worrying about unemployment and emigration.
And by the way, in Japan, politicians are actually addressing the problem of graduate unemployment.
For final year students, for the first time, there will be no time cap on summer fun to be had, so most students are naturally moving away from standardised interrailing trips and J1s. Current reports predict that about 200,000 graduates will test the waters in Australia. Booked-out SUAS programmes in UCD and Trinity suggest that many are looking into volunteering in places like Latin America, Africa, and Asia. Many students are voicing their wish to teach English in China, or work at orphanages in India. Of course, some still plan on tubing in Laos; but that’s so two years ago!
From what I gather after speaking to various final year students, favourites for summer 2011 range between South America, China, and Australia. Yet all these students almost invariably include Japan as a desired destination.
Japan has several tropical islands off the coast of its southern tip. For example, on Iriomote-Jima, you can snorkel on reefs and dive with mantas. From May to September, various festivals are held in a range of Japanese cities: from Kyoto and Aomori, to Tokyo and Osaka. The overwhelming majority of Japanese live in bustling urban environments, and even without festivities cities such as Tokyo and Kyoto are infamous for their culture, history, and crazy appearance. At present, there are fewer than two million foreign residents, with a quarter of these heralding from America.
Everyone knows Tokyo—whether from Lost in Translation, Akira Kurosawa, or Gwen Stefani’s Harajuku girls. Tokyo is like New York on acid, but peaceful. It has neighbourhoods like Shibuya and Shinjuku with billboards, music, lights and bars; shopping highlights like Harijuku or Omote-Sando; and temple clusters like Asakusa and Meiji-dori. There’s even a Camden-esque vibe in the streets of Kichijoji. Nightlife in Roppongi is wonderfully random, with promoters pushing you into skyscrapers with flats converted into bars of which a large portion blare reggae music. There’s no smoking ban in bars and restaurants, but you wouldn’t want to be caught smoking on the street unless you’re beside a designated smoking zone. Vending machines decorate the streets all around the city, offering cigarettes, drinks and snacks. The area around Uneo station and its surrounding park boats almost a dozen different museums, as well as a zoo. Two things you’ll experience in Tokyo that you’ll never forget are the Tsukiji fish market and Izakaya (pub/eatery) ‘bant’.
Tokyo is Japan’s most renowned attraction, and not without good reason. However, geisha-haven Kyoto and party central Osaka have almost as much to offer. Not to mention Hiroshima and Nagasaki. If you stay past the summer, definitely give skiing at Mount Fugi or the Japan Alps a try. If you don’t, a major summer experience includes onsen, Japan’s famous steam stone pools. And of course, the food (glorious food) deserves a mention – although surprisingly, sushi isn’t all that popular among the Japanese. It’s all about the udon and soba noodles.
Basically, it’s a paradise. For food lovers, theatregoers, history buffs, anime fans, party animals, skiers, fishermen… Everyone!
