The summer of 2019, my school is taking students to Tokyo, Japan. This is the cheapest a two-week stay in Japan will ever be-$2,500. I've managed to raise about 1/5 of the required funds on my own, but I only make $7.25 an hour. My passion for the Japanese language and culture stretches back to when I was in kindergarten. My class took a small trip to the high school down the street, where the Japanese class helped us make bookmarks, write our names in Japanese, and have fun with Japanese culture. Ever since then, my interest in the far eastern cultures has burned quietly within me, until the chance to learn the language presented itself. Now, three years later, my love for the strange and exotic culture and language of Japan is ever growing. I hope to explore this passion to it's fullest, starting with a two week stay with a host family in Tokyo, Japan. Abbegail