Myfanwy Mainwaring-Smith
Remember Rachel Hetherington? Well, let’s stay in Yamagata, but go back further… Myfanwy was an ALT in Yamagata City, Yamagata Prefecture, from 2017-2021!
Although I didn’t realise it at the time, my JET experience would play a fundamental role in the trajectory of my life, both professionally and personally. Like many JET participants and ALTs, my initial intention was to stay for a year or two, but the wealth of opportunities, experiences and friends I acquired through the programme (and also, perhaps, the influence of a global pandemic!) prolonged this into four years, then an extra year in the same area (Yamagata City) working as a private English tutor. Upon returning home to Wales, I believed my teaching journey had come to an end. In the uncertainty of job-hunting and cultural re-acclimatisation in a post-Covid world, I assumed the only way I could utilise these experiences and skills would be by moving away again to somewhere big and scary like London. Once again, however, I was wrong!
During my first year of JET, I was required to attend a panel by local historians on English Victorian travel writer Isabella Bird, believed to be the first Western woman to travel through Japan’s interior, and her writings on Yamagata specifically, which she called an ‘Asian Arcadia’. This directly inspired my MA dissertation topic on Western travel writing on Japan. This influence continues, as I’m currently undertaking a PhD in History, focusing on the activities of Welsh residents and travellers in Meiji Japan. Outside of academic research, I am engaged in undergraduate teaching and public outreach, two roles in which my JET skills and experiences are proving indispensable.
My JET experience has also made a huge impact on me personally. When I first arrived in Yamagata, the mountain views and proud local culture immediately struck a chord with me, making the area feel like a home-away-from-home. Navigating life and work with people who had often never heard of Wales gave me many a chance to teach people about my country and culture, which in turn prompted me to consider and reconfigure my own national and cultural identity.
Eventually receiving that sweet, much coveted JLPT N2 certificate made me realise that there really were no more excuses to not learn Welsh! Thanks to the JET programme, I entered Japan with one language and left with three, along with the new worlds that they open up. My advice to current JETs and new alumni would therefore be to consider every opportunity, both inside and outside the classroom, as a potential signpost to a future career, hobby/skill, connection or mindset. I would also encourage you to enjoy while you can, or appreciate if they have passed, your experiences on JET, as even the less pleasant times can be really valuable lessons.
Are you a JET alum with a story to share? Get in touch to be featured in an upcoming Senpai Spotlight.
