Yesterday, I received a notice from a travel agency about obtaining an ESTA.
Due to the recent hectic work schedule, general chores, and hobbies, there have been many things to do, so this time I left it to the travel agency. (We had obtained it ourselves the last time...)
From next year, it is planned to introduce ETIAS in Europe, so I guess it will spread globally.
I have had many experiences, such as living in Texas (Houston, Dallas), staying short-term in the UK (London), accompanying my family to international conferences, and spending several weeks on farm stays in Australia and New Zealand.
Of course, I have also gone on simple sightseeing trips.
During these travels, I've had unpleasant and dangerous experiences, and I have dealt with unreasonable complaints with a firm attitude. (In other words, I've stood up for myself and even gotten into what could be called arguments.)
This usually happens when I am treated unfairly because I am Japanese (Asian). At such times, a fighting spirit wells up within me, saying, "I am Japanese! I won't be discriminated against because of my skin color." I even stood up to six tall British men with my broken English.
Conversely, in the United States, I have also been treated very kindly by a black man. He called himself Eminem and worked at a Mexican restaurant in San Diego.
He took extra care of the table where my daughter and I were sitting. He said he loved Japan and Japanese people, and that's why he was learning Japanese with his friends.
Later, thanks to Eminem's arrangement, I was invited to their "Japanese Language Meeting" as a special Japanese language instructor. A person whose mother tongue is Japanese teaching Japanese is a Japanese language teacher. Fortunately, I am certified as a "Japanese language teacher," and at that "Japanese Language Meeting," although it was a short time, we had many conversations in Japanese.
The members of the group were eager to hear real Japanese. My playful spirit came out, and they were surprised by my and my daughter's "rapid-fire Japanese conversation" (I had arranged beforehand with my daughter not to speak at a speed that even Japanese people would find hard to follow).
There were white people, black people, and Hispanics, and it was a pretty fun gathering.
From the next day, Eminem, who had a day off from work, showed me around San Diego. I had been to San Diego before, but the places Eminem took me had a different charm.
We visited restaurants that seemed exclusive to black people (places that a single Japanese woman might find difficult to enter) and rarely visited places. An evening walk along the beach also remains in my memory as a pleasant time.
I believe that people can interact disregarding the color of their skin, but I also feel that there are certain limitations to that.
A few months later, Eminem came to Japan. We met in front of Kaminarimon.
Afterwards, he stayed at my house and I showed him Nikko. He was thrilled at Kegon Falls.
Eminem, who said he wanted to claw his way up in American society towards his dreams, I believe he is still living energetically and tenaciously...