“ The experience…is not found in staying at home, nor yet in traveling, but in transitions from one to the other…” R.W. Emerson
I have been blessed to be able to use my beloved sport to travel. These are two of my favorite things! Rather than talk about the trips themselves, I thought I’d make a list of the things that I’ve learned through judo and travel.
1. Judo is a language in itself—you don’t need to know a native language in order to make lifelong friends. I am a Linguistics and Spanish major at SJSU, so I value language very highly. However, the beauty of sports is its ability to connect people; the judo gi is truly a great equalizer! On the mat, everyone is a judoka, but as you begin to talk to them, you realize that judo is a very beautiful and diverse community of interesting individuals.
2. Be comfortable with “winging it.” For example, my first memory from Italy this year was our 3 hour car ride, where we strategically and successfully packed 7 people and 10 sizable pieces of luggage into the tiny van that awaited us at the Venice Airport.
3. Always take a day off to sightsee! Some of my favorite memories were the days that I decided to play the rebel and skip a practice. As a result, I can say that I climbed the Eiffel Tower, walked down Las Ramblas in Barcelona, saw the Tokyo Bay at Odaiba, took a picture in front of the Daibutsu (Buddha) in Kamakura, dined in a castle in Slovenia, rode through the canals of Venezia, sledged 14 km down a mountain in Mittersill, Austria, and toured the Ancient Roman Spas in Bath, England.
4. Don’t be afraid to try new foods! Or at least make sure you have a friend to recommend foods or (better yet) warn you what to avoid. In Austria, a group of us ordered sandwiches at the first deli we could find and later on found out we were eating leberkasen, which is literally translated to “liver cheese!” (It was delicious).
5. Always bring a pillow when traveling. After a few hard practices, it is not fun to flop down on a rock hard bed. Memory foam is a MUST, plus it is a reminder that there truly is no place like home.
Being able to do Judo while traveling or living in a foreign country can bring many opportunities as an athlete, student or even a friend. I am a Mexican born Judo player and I consider myself lucky of living the experience of practicing Judo in a foreign country. Judo is a sport in which you compete by yourself and before I got into this team, I used to think that there was not such thing as “teams” in the sport. However, three years ago, when I first visited the SJSU dojo, I realized that all the competitors and coaches that attended to practice were not only a team, but they were also a family. As soon as I noticed it, I knew that I wanted to be part of it and I began to do all I could in order to get back here. Later on, when I finally became part of this family, I noticed that the lack of communication I was having was not a problem, since Judo was the only language I needed and it started the friendship I have with most of my teammates. One of the most impressive things about the team is that most of my friends and teammates are always trying to become the best they can; they are all trying to reach success, in and out of the mat as students, athletes and friends. This fact has been one source of inspiration for me and I believe that this characteristic, implemented by Sensei Uchida, is the reason why the San Jose Sate University Judo team has made and will be making successful people throughout the years.
