When it comes to integrating into another community via a virtual setting, there are a lot of differences that make it a challenge! But as long as you have an open mind and try your best, you can still immerse yourself in another country while still at home.
While working with my internship, I talk to my coworkers online, rather than working in an office together. Even though I like being able to work from my home, it felt difficult at first to communicate with my team and feel immersed in my work. Thankfully, my community of team members made this a lot easier by doing their best to make sure we could talk at any time using a program called Slack. They set up virtual meetings to make sure we saw each other face to face and to guide me through everything I needed.
One of my other communities is the college club that I am in charge of called the Japanese Language and Cultural Organization (J.L.C.O.). Because of COVID, it is has been a challenge to feel immersed in Japanese culture, as if I were really in Japan. But I wanted to do my best! Before COVID, we would meet in person every week, and we would have a presentation about something in Japan and sometimes hang out after the club. Now that my community is virtual, we meet online.
