Refreshing Portland Trip

That was our last trip of EXT program. We went to Oregon and made good memories. I really enjoyed this trip. We visited two colleges and one university, learned more about Lewis and Clark and enjoyed Oregon.

First, I visited Columbia Basin College, Reed College and Portland State University. At CBC, we could communicate with students who studies Japanese. I talked with two students and I talked about my presentation topic. It was a good opportunity to introduce my topic. I could talk a lot of things with them. And, Reed College has a unique system. It has one teacher for 10 students, a lot of discussion and no grading system. Also, students are very intelligent. The buildings were beautiful and close to nature. We visited to Portland State University to watch volleyball game. It was so fun. When it was match point, almost of all audience stood up and clapped their hands to cheer up the players. I had never seen that style in Japan. I was surprised at that happening. It was interesting for me. Then, at half time, audience could hit balls so I enjoyed hitting balls because I was a volleyball player when I was a junior high school student. Finally, PSU got three set and won. It was so excited! Visiting these colleges and university was exciting for me and I learned more about American students.

Second, we learned about Lewis and Clark’s expedition which is called The Corps of Discovery. It is one of the most important histories for America. They explored to America to make a map, to find plants and animals, to find Indian’s tribe etc… We visited the Columbia Gorge Discovery Center. There were many exhibits about their expedition. The guide told us how hard the expedition was. There was no doctor so they did surgery by themselves. Also they hunted so many animals to eat. The guide showed to shoot a rifle. The sound was very loud so everyone was surprised very much. Another guide showed us an owl. It was also their purpose to find owls. It was very cute and it had big wings. In the museum, I could learn about Lewis and Clark’s expedition more deeply and I really enjoyed this museum. I want to learn more about them.

Third, I enjoyed sightseeing and shopping. At Japanese American memorial, I was moved so much. There were many poems and they recalled a book ‘Weedflower’ which I read in Reading class. I think that Japanese have to learn about Japanese American. In downtown, Portland, I enjoyed shopping. Oregon State has no tax, so I was crazy about shopping. I bought many things in downtown. Also, there was a very big bookstore. I enjoyed at the book store. I found many books which I wanted to read. The last day, we went to Multonomah Falls. There was a big waterfall and it was dynamic. I was surprised at how powerful it was and it was beautiful. There were many awesome places in Oregon. I had a good time in there.

Finally, I enjoyed this trip. I learned many things and felt be refreshed by this trip. I made good memories with my friends. Visiting universities, learning about Lewis and Clark and Oregon cities, all of them were fabulous. I want to visit Oregon again someday.