Leina Hutcherson

Hello, everyone! My name is Leina Hutcherosn, and I am a third-year psychology major here at UCSD in Muir College. I am originally from San Francisco, where I was born and raised. My hobbies include hiking, listening to music, and trying new foods. I would say that my favorite foods are pasta, cheeseburgers, and sushi.

This past summer, I had the most amazing experience traveling abroad to Osaka, Japan! The name of my program was "Japanese in Osaka," and I chose this program because I have a passion for languages, and it also covered my language requirement here at UCSD. Besides the fact that I got to travel to one of the top places on my travel list, I was able to add another language to my knowledge.

I grew up learning multiple languages outside of English. I was placed in a Mandarin immersion program from preschool through high school, and Samoan was the most spoken language in my house. So, doing this program in Japan helped me reconnect with my roots of learning new languages and cultures. I think my best experience in Japan was getting to travel to different cities, including Tokyo, Kobe, and Kyoto. Kyoto was by far my favorite city in Japan because the food was so delicious, and the Nishiki Market had a variety of foods to choose from. Kyoto also had a certain charm because of its traditional architecture. I had the opportunity to participate in a traditional tea ceremony and even got to wear a kimono, which was such a cool experience.

Honestly, it's hard to pick just one favorite memory because everything was so memorable. I also went to Universal Studios in Osaka, along with Disneyland and DisneySea in Tokyo, which were both amazing. The animatronics there were so much more advanced than the ones in California—definitely worth checking out!

Most importantly, I will never forget the people I met along the way, from teachers to friends and even local students I became close with. My study abroad experience is definitely one for the books and something I will remember for the rest of my life!