Study abroad testimonial | Developing the ability to live abroad | Ayami tells us about her challenges and growth in three countries: Malta, Australia and the Philippines

Hello, we are the 3D ACADEMY team. This time we present the study abroad story of Ayami, who has built up international experience in three countries—Malta, Australia and the Philippines—and who is still working hard today to reach her dream.

The start of her adventure abroad was a short language course in the Republic of Malta, which she attended two years ago. From there, while exploring her options for the future, she decided to do a working holiday in Australia. However, there work ended up taking the center of her daily life, and she realized that “to truly improve your English, you need to study.”

That is how she came to 3D ACADEMY, on Cebu Island, for a study program with one-on-one classes.

“I want to commit myself fully and learn English I can really speak. I want to work abroad with confidence.”

With that wish in her heart, Ayami began her new challenge in Cebu.

In this testimonial we will look in detail at the real life she lived in the three countries, and the discoveries, lessons and changes she gained from that experience. If you have the dream of “being able to speak English” or “working abroad,” this is a story that will give you ideas and courage.

Two years ago, when Ayami got her passport for the first time, the place she visited was the Republic of Malta, a small European island nation.

At that time she had no confidence in her English or in the idea of living abroad; according to her, the only thing driving her was the feeling of “I want to go, even if just once.”

“I always had the question in my head of what it really meant to ‘live using English.’ But as long as I stayed in Japan, nothing was going to start, so I simply wanted to take the leap.”

She says that, in her life in Malta, she received more stimulation from dealing with local people and from conversations with her classmates than from the classes at the language school themselves.

What she remembers most is the English level of the European students and their “proactive” attitude.

“If they had a question, they raised their hand without hesitation, and telling the teacher their opinion was completely normal for them. I, on the other hand, wanting to speak correct English, could barely manage to speak up... I felt that very Japanese reserved nature was deeply rooted in me.”

Although her stay was short, for her the program in Malta became a foundational experience that made her realize that “to live abroad you need both language ability and the ability to express yourself.”

When her short study stay in Malta ended, the wish to “stay abroad longer and test my own possibilities” was born in Ayami.

She wanted to improve her English. She wanted to try working in the midst of a different culture. And she wanted to give a bit more shape to that still vague dream of “doing something” in the future.

With those feelings, what she chose next was a working holiday in Sydney, Australia.

“Before going, to be honest, I wasn’t even clear about what exactly I wanted to do. The only strong thing was the wish to ‘bring my life closer to the outside world.’ Australia attracted me because it was easy to get the visa, it was warm, and I could live while working at the same time.”

Canada or Australia? The “cheerful country” she chose after hesitating

When she started thinking about the working holiday, her options were Canada and Australia. Both countries had their charm, but in the end she chose Australia for the “climate” and the “atmosphere of the people,” she says.

“Canada is very popular, but I’m not good with the cold... (laughs). Also, in Australia it’s easy to get the second visa, and I’d heard that lots of people came from Europe, so the international atmosphere appealed to me too.”

In Sydney, she first attended a language school for two months, and then began a life in which she worked as a waitress at a local Japanese restaurant.

The “real life abroad” that work gave her, and the gap she felt

The waitress job was busier than she expected, and each day was a succession of tension serving customers in an environment that was still unfamiliar to her.

“Understanding in English what they said to me and acting correctly was already all I could do; at the beginning my head was working at full speed, really.”

However, although she gradually gained “the ability to live abroad” through work, she says she hardly felt that she had “learned to speak English.”

“In conversations with customers I almost only used set phrases, and among the staff we often spoke in our own language. It seemed like I was using English, but I feel that in reality I wasn’t using it that much.”

In addition, the fact that there were fewer Australian customers than she had imagined was a bit disappointing in terms of learning English.

“There were a lot of Chinese customers, then Koreans and Japanese. Australians hardly ever came.”

The four months in which the wish to “improve my English level” was rekindled

The language school ended after two months, and after that her life revolved completely around work. Although her working holiday in Australia was satisfying, the wish to “learn English more deeply” grew stronger day by day.

“While working, the frustration built up of ‘having more to say and not being able to say it’ or ‘not being able to explain myself well’... In the end I thought that English ‘isn’t really acquired unless you study it seriously.’”

In particular, the growing sense of crisis about her speaking ability was what led her to look for her next study destination: 3D ACADEMY, in the Philippines.

And so, off to Cebu Island: “I want to become someone who speaks with confidence”

Precisely because she had experienced firsthand how hard it is to work using English, Ayami wanted her next study experience to focus on “being able to speak it.”

“In Australia I felt the ‘need’ for English very strongly, but I didn’t feel real ‘growth.’ That’s why, next time, I wanted to have a clear feeling that I was improving.”

When she consulted the agency and expressed her wish for “a school with lots of one-on-one classes, low costs and an international atmosphere,” the first one they recommended was 3D ACADEMY.

“Actually, a friend of mine had already been to 3D before. Since she had told me she had a great time, I thought: ‘ah, maybe this is the place.’”

Based on her working holiday experience, the wish to “study English more seriously” grew stronger in Ayami. Among several language schools, the one she chose was 3D ACADEMY, on Cebu Island in the Philippines.

“The costs are lower, the classes are mostly one-on-one, and you can learn in a concentrated way even in a short time. Also, since a friend recommended it to me, I was able to decide with peace of mind.”

The moment she stepped off the plane, the intensely blue sky and the cityscape with a somehow endearing air gave Ayami a small sense of relief, she says.

Her first life in the Philippines: “It’s hot, but somehow there’s a calm in the air”

For Ayami, who until then had study and stay experience in Europe and Oceania, the Philippines was a completely new country.

“At first I was also uneasy about whether I could live well here. But when I arrived, the people of the town turned out to be very friendly, and somehow I adapted right away.”

Coming into contact with that “calm” so typical of the Philippines and with the simplicity of the children who greeted her smiling from the street, she felt that “in an environment like this, maybe I can show more of who I really am.”

All classes at 3D are “one-on-one”: more focus and calm than embarrassment

The biggest feature of 3D ACADEMY is, without a doubt, the large number of one-on-one classes. Ayami says this format attracted her a lot.

“In a group you have to wait your turn to speak, and you worry thinking ‘what if I make a mistake’... but in one-on-one classes the time is only for you, so it was easier for me to concentrate.”

In the classes the emphasis was on speaking, and at the same time she studied vocabulary, idiomatic expressions, grammar and everyday conversation in an integrated way. By spending more than seven hours a day face to face with her teachers, the changes gradually appeared.

Sometimes, “chatting” with the teacher became the biggest lesson

What Ayami found interesting were the “natural detours” that came up during class.

“In Monday’s class, when we talked about ‘what did you do over the weekend?’, the conversation got livelier and livelier, and sometimes I realized the whole class had ended up as a free chat (laughs).”

But that “chat” was, in reality, the best opportunity to train her English. A real exchange of English that doesn’t appear in textbooks. Hearing unfamiliar words or expressions she had never used in the moment, and imitating them right away.

“I thought: learning while talking sticks so much more!”

The moment she truly felt she had “learned to speak”

A few weeks after starting her study life at 3D, even in Ayami, who was tense at first, “signs of change” began to appear little by little.

“While talking with the teacher there was a moment when I thought: ‘wait, I just said that without stumbling!’ Before, even when I had something to say, it took time to find the words, but lately they come out naturally.”

In addition, her level test result went up by 70 points. That, beyond being just a number, became a clear certainty that “what I’ve been doing is building up inside me.”

She came to feel that studying English was “fun”

For Ayami, the classes at 3D were not an “obligation,” but time connected to a “daily sense of fulfillment,” she says.

“The teachers were really cheerful, and I was happy to be able to study laughing along with them. I think an environment where you can learn so positively is hard to find in Japan.”

After finishing the morning classes, she went to the gym or watched movies, and in this way she naturally acquired the habit of continuing to learn on her own. A feeling arose in her that her whole life was connected with English.

After some time since she began her study life on Cebu Island, “English” had become part of Ayami’s lifestyle quite naturally. Besides classes, watching movies, working out at the gym, talking with the teachers, shopping, traveling: all of it was a “practice space” for improving her language level.

“Without realizing it, my own life had become an ‘English exposure training.’ Every day, at some point, I had a ‘moment to use English,’ and so I kept improving naturally.”

Days when movies became the teacher: the habit of “absorbing” English in Cebu

To further improve her English listening ability and vocabulary, what Ayami actively took up was watching movies. It is a habit she also began on her teachers’ recommendation, and she says she felt its effects right away.

“I went to the movie theater near the school about three times a week. It was cheap, there were few people, and it was nice to be able to watch them with English subtitles.”

The living English used in movies is a treasure of “real expressions” that you don’t find in textbooks. In fact, she says she had the experience that, during a class, “a phrase I had heard in the movie the day before showed up again!”

“The moment I think ‘ah, I heard this expression yesterday!’, the English starts to connect. I like that you can learn not with your head, but by instinct.”

Is going to the gym also studying English? Chances to talk everywhere

Ayami also went three times a week to the gym in the JY Mall shopping center, near the school. Moving her body served, of course, to release stress and stay healthy, but it also became a new situation for using English, she says.

“A little chat with the person at the gym reception, or when they explained how to use the machines, it was all in English. I could remember the expressions I had learned and actually use them, so it was a great review.”

“Speaking English” gradually dissolved into her daily routine

The key to the success of a language study program lies in “how you spend your time outside class.”

Ayami consciously tried to “use the same day” the expressions she learned in class. Extra chats with the teachers, conversations in English with her roommates, exchanges with the staff: all of that was a practice space.

“When I decide that today I’m going to use this word and I actually use it, I’m so happy. The retention is completely different.”

A change that gradually became visible: she began to “think in English”

When about a month and a half had passed since she arrived in Cebu, Ayami noticed that “a certain change” was taking place inside her.

“When taking notes, I started writing more and more in English instead of Japanese. I thought that maybe this was what ‘thinking in English’ meant.”

Before, when she heard a word the teacher said, sometimes she couldn’t write it down right away or its meaning was ambiguous to her; now, in contrast, she says she can write it fluently.

She discovered that learning is not a synonym for enduring

Finally, the biggest discovery Ayami made at 3D was that “learning English doesn’t consist only of suffering and effort.”

“At 3D you can truly achieve that ‘learning while having fun.’ While talking and laughing with a teacher I got along well with, I felt many times: ‘wait, I’m speaking better now than a moment ago.’”

On weekdays, days devoted entirely to one-on-one classes, focused on studying English. In the midst of that, the weekends were for Ayami an important time to switch off.

The pleasures of the weekend: “shopping” and “little getaways”

In Cebu there are large shopping malls scattered around such as SM Mall and Ayala Mall, and Ayami also often went shopping with her friends.

She also says she took advantage of weekends to travel to Oslob and Boracay.

“In Oslob I was able to swim with whale sharks, an uncommon experience, and it was moving. I thought, with total sincerity, how incredible nature is!”

Off to the Philippine paradise of Boracay: an unforgettable birthday memory

What she remembers most is the birthday she spent on Boracay Island. A bright white sand beach, a clear sea and a breathtaking sunset: it was literally “a paradise out of a painting.”

“It was so beautiful that it made me think a place like that could really exist. Also, the local people wished me a happy birthday... I almost cried from the warmth I felt.”

Impact and discovery: my encounter with the street children

On the other hand, during her time in the Philippines there was also an event that shocked her. It was the presence of numerous street children that she saw in the middle of downtown Boracay.

“At first I was surprised, thinking ‘why are there so many...?’ But when I met the eyes of those children and they smiled at me, I thought: ‘ah, maybe it’s me, feeling pity for them, who is being a little arrogant.’”

“I’m thinking that, the next time I come to Cebu, maybe I’ll come back as a volunteer.”

Learning English is also finding your own “core”

The days at 3D were not limited to acquiring a language, but also influenced Ayami’s own “way of living” and “values.”

“I truly felt that English is a ‘means.’ Now that I can speak it, I feel I could finally start thinking about what comes next: ‘what is it that I want to do.’”

Among everything she experienced during her study stay at 3D ACADEMY, one of the things that left the biggest impression on Ayami was her relationship with the Filipino teachers.

An “easy-to-understand English” that builds confidence

“Their pronunciation is clear and they don’t speak too fast. That’s why even a beginner can understand them calmly, and that also builds the confidence of thinking ‘ah, maybe I really am understanding.’”

An environment where “learning while having fun” is the norm

“They didn’t just teach: they ‘laughed along with me’ and ‘slipped in a little chat so I would relax’... those small details made me so happy.”

A “dialogue skill” that understands each student’s character and adapts to it

“Even on days when I’m a little tired or discouraged, they notice right away and ask me: ‘shall we do something lighter today?’”

“Looking forward to talking with the teacher” equals “looking forward to using English”

“Just thinking ‘today I have class with such-and-such teacher!’ already cheers me up a bit. Learning English gradually stopped being an ‘obligation’ and became a ‘pleasure.’”

But there is also a worry about “getting too used to” Filipino English...

“The teachers’ English is very easy to understand, but I also have a little worry that, when I go back to Australia, I might struggle again to understand the English of native speakers.”

“Precisely for that reason, I think the order of ‘solidify the basics in the Philippines and develop the practice in Australia’ is the one that suits me best.”

The value of the “human connections” she found through English

“Maybe what I gained most was being able to feel that, even if nationality and culture are different, you can talk with just the wish to ‘want to convey something.’”

As her days at 3D ACADEMY approached their final stage, a clear “dream” had sprouted in Ayami. It was the vision of “wanting to open my own cafe in Australia.”

“At first I only had the vague feeling of ‘wanting to try something abroad,’ but now I’ve come to think that I want to create my own space, a place where I can connect with people.”

Her ideal: “a cafe where international students gather”

“I’d like there to be a place where people like me back then, who ‘don’t have confidence yet but want to work hard,’ can stop by to rest a little and talk with someone.”

She wants the cafe to be a place that connects “English and dreams”

“I want to convey to more people the real feeling that, by speaking English, the world expands so much. I would be happy if my own cafe could become that ‘gateway.’”

Precisely because “the dream is still in motion,” she is building up what she can do now

“Both English and business knowledge are things that are still to come. But now I no longer think ‘it’s impossible anyway,’ but I’ve come to be able to think ‘how can I make it happen.’”

“I want to be able to speak English, but I’m scared.” “I’m interested in the world abroad, but I can’t manage to take action.” “I want to study abroad, but I don’t know if I’ll be able to”...

To those who carry those feelings inside, Ayami speaks like this.

“It’s completely normal to be afraid. I always thought too: ‘can I really manage abroad?’ But when I dared to act, the world turned out to be kinder than I thought, and there really were opportunities.”

Studying abroad is not a place to build a “perfect me,” but to meet a “me who can give it a try”

“There were days when I couldn’t say what I wanted to say, and days when I stopped doing my homework. But even so, the important thing is to gradually feel yourself ‘doing things better than before.’”

The goal of studying abroad is not only “English”

“In the process of learning English, I started thinking about what I like and how I want to live. By coming into contact with the air abroad, I feel my world expanded all at once.”

Let studying abroad be your “starting line”

“Don’t let not knowing English be a reason not to go. If you go, you’ll get to where you can do it. The important thing is to ‘go’ just as you are now. Everything starts from there.”

Through her experience abroad in three countries, Ayami not only rethought her English, but also her own “way of being.”

The “vastness of the world” she discovered for the first time in Malta, the “English barrier and reality” she felt in Australia, the “joy of learning and the birth of confidence” she found on Cebu Island...

All of that has come together into a single line within her, and today it drives her dream of “opening a cafe in Australia.”

“I’m still on the way. But I really have been able to change. And thanks to that certainty, I want to keep taking on new challenges.”

Her study experience at 3D ACADEMY was not, for her, a “goal,” but a “beginning.”

Ayami, thank you so much for sharing this wonderful experience with us. The whole team wholeheartedly supports your future.