Japan Japanimation: Exploring Japanese Culture through Anime and Manga

Orientation in Tokyo

Spend your first few days exploring the world’s biggest city. Working with Japanese college students and your group leader, delve into the world of Japanese language and culture. Check out the latest gadgets in Akihabara, wander through seafood auctions at Tsukiji fish market, ride the escalators at Ginza’s skyscraping department stores, and learn your fortune at the ancient Sensoji temple complex in Old Tokyo.

Homestay in Hokkaido

From Tokyo, you and your group fly to the northern island of Hokkaido. Japan’s largest prefecture, Hokkaido is home to gorgeous national parks, dense forests, soaring mountains, and the fascinating Ainu culture.During your 10-day homestay, you become a member of a Japanese family. Whether it’s enjoying a meal of miso ramen with your host brother, going to a Buddhist temple with your host parents, or canoeing on picturesque lakes, you learn about Japanese culture as the newest member of a new family and community.

Sample host communities:
Muroran, Ishikari, Nanae

Language Training and Cultural Activities

Take part in small group language classes with Japanese teachers to gain confidence in your language skills and build the vocabulary you’ll need at the anime studio in Tokyo. Put your new language skills to use as you participate in fun, interesting cultural activities.

Sample activities:
Visit a local high school and spend the day with Japanese students; relax in a traditional hot springs; hike through national parks; participate in a Japanese tea ceremony; try on a colorful kimono.

Anime and Manga

Travel back to Tokyo to explore Japanese culture through the art of anime and manga. For two weeks, you work with professional artists and Japanese student animators at the Yoyogi Animation Gakuin, a famous anime school in Tokyo’s bustling Shibuya neighborhood. Learn character development, drawing skills, animation techniques, and voice-overs. You will also visit anime production companies, manga studios, and neighborhoods famous for contemporary art. By the end of your stay, you develop the vocabulary and skills to design and animate your own character and animated clip!

Sample activities:
Enjoy a day trip to see the temples and shrines of Kamakura; explore the Studio Ghibli Museum in Mikata; see the biggest fireworks festival in Japan.