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STUDENT INTERVIEW: Peter Cioccarelli (SILAC)

Peter Cioccarelli

Peter Cioccarelli

Peter is currently recovering from the rigors of a ski-trip to Hakuba with Declan Murphy and students taking part in the Discovery Tour.

Jon: How is the course going so far?
Peter: At first it was hard, but I've got used to the pace of the program now.
J: When did you begin studying at Yamasa?
P: On December 14th last year, I've got a month to go.

J: And overall what have you thought of the course?
P: The exercises we do in the afternoon are good.
J: Exercises?
P: Yes, the conversation exercises where you talk about yourself, a theme, or a topic. I also the find the daily tests on vocabulary are useful and the rotation of teachers keeps a bit of variety in the classes.

J: Any aspects of the course you don't like?
P: I'm 6"4 and some of the desks are a little bit low for me because they have a shelf underneath the top part of the desk. It was a bit of a problem before, but I've found desks without the shelf so it's fine now.

J: How are the teachers?
P: They are all very knowledgable and help with any problems you might have. They always give you more homework when you ask for it.

J: Why are you studying Japanese?
P: In Australia there's around 300,000 people, I think that works out about 3% of the population, that are studying Japanese at the moment. I think the language is useful to know for world travel and working in the tourism industry. Another reason is that at my University, I'm able to complete a post graduate diploma in Japanese, which counts towards my double degree.
J: And what is your double degree in?
P: Medical science and Law.

J: Had you been to Japan before coming to Yamasa?
P: No, this is my first time.

J: Did you have any preconceptions of Japan that have been proved right or wrong?
P: One thing I was most disappointed with was the hot water and the complicated system for actually getting the hot water. It's not as simple as turning a tap in many places, you have to push one lever, turn another, hold another down and so on. In Australia, hot water is much more accessable.
J: That doesn't sound like the Student Village to me! Didn't I drop you off there after the ski trip to Hakuba on Sunday?
P: You did, but I'm in a homestay now and I was surprised at the systems they use for their hot water in Japanese houses.
J: So you've been in the homestay for just a few days?
P: That's right. It's definitely worthwhile because of the amount of conversaation practice I get. The food is great and sleeeping on a tatami floor is a nice change from the Student Village.

J: How was the ski triplast weekend? Any aching limbs?
P: Pretty good. If there's one thing I would recommend that you do, is to bring a torch to put the snow chains on the tyres because it isn't easy in the dark! My advice is that if you have any sense of balance then try snowboarding because it's a lot less tyring than skiing.
J: You only skied for two and half hours!
P: Yeh, and I did more work in one 20 minute run down the hill on skis than I did in 8 hours of snowboarding the day before!
J: Snowboarding doesn't quite take it out of you as much as skiing. Were you in Okazaki for New Year?
P: Yes I was. I did the 'Mochi' thing in the morning and then I went to Tokyo on the Moonlight Nagara train.
J: So you arrived in Tokyo at 6:00am?
P: No, 4:50am!
J: What on earth did you do in Tokyo at 4:50 in the morning?!
P: I had breakfast at Tokyo station and then went on a trip around the Yamanote Line.
J: How many times did you go round?!
P: Just once. It takes about an hour and 45 minutes to do a full circuit. After that I went on a bus tour around Tokyo which was all in Japanese. I think I understood about 10% of it.
J: So it wasn't worth doing?
P: No, one of my Japanese friends who could speak English explained things when I didn't understand.

J: Are you going back to your University course once you finish at Yamasa?
P: Yes. I'll arrive back in Australia on Sunday and start classes on Monday.
J: Taihen........and finally any hint/tips or advice for our readers?
P: Make sure you bring your Visa/Mastercard or if you don't have one then bring plenty of cash. There's a Cirrus and Maestro ATM in Nagoya.
J: You've found Japan expensive then?
P: Not really. It's actually been cheaper than I expected but the access to ATM's is much worse than I thought it would be.

J: Well, thanks for your time and good luck with the rest of your studies.
P: Thank you.

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