The life possibilities he discovered between a round-the-world trip and studying abroad | Much's experience at 3D ACADEMY

“I want to travel the world” — with that wish in his heart, Much quit his job, learned English from scratch and, over about four years, traveled through 40 countries. The starting point of all this was his experience studying at the language school 3D ACADEMY, on Cebu Island.

At 26 he faced the experience of studying in the Philippines for the first time, gained his English level and set off on his journey: that was his first time. And then, in the middle of his round-the-world trip, he went back to 3D again for a second period of study.

“I set out on a journey, learned English, and my life truly changed.” Told like this, Much's story is full of clues for everyone who wants to expand their own possibilities through travel and learning.

In this testimonial we present, without leaving anything out, the real experience Much had at 3D: the values that changed before and after studying abroad, the relationships and range of action that grew thanks to English, and the plan for a “guesthouse for travelers” that he imagines for after graduating. This is a testimonial we want you to read if you are interested in both travel and studying abroad, or if you want to broaden your world.

“I want to travel around the world” — that wish was born in an everyday moment at a bar in Yokohama. When he heard the owner of the place, a regular customer, tell how he had crossed the Eurasian continent over two years, Much strongly felt “I want to travel the world too”, and that is where it all began.

From that day on, Much decided to set off on a journey at 26 and spent two years preparing the funds he needed. Then he quit his job as an electrical construction supervisor, which he had held for ten years, and finally set out on the trip of his dreams. However, there was something he wanted to prepare before leaving: English.

“If I'm going out into the world anyway, I might as well be able to speak at least basic English.” With that idea he chose the language school 3D ACADEMY, on Cebu Island.

Back then the courses weren't as varied as they are now, so Much chose the ESL Course. That began an English learning experience focused on “talking nonstop”, with four one-on-one classes a day as its core.

What he remembers most are the classes with Teacher Cris. Her style, in which she easily alternated between American and British English and brought cultural differences into the conversation, completely captivated Much.

“The teacher was so friendly that you just wanted to keep talking and talking. We never stopped chatting during class, so we hardly got anywhere in the textbook (laughs).”

It was his first experience studying abroad and he started from zero English, but the confidence to express himself in English that he gained there would end up giving a huge boost to his later travels.

And so, this learning at 3D became the first step that would change Much's life.

After finishing his three months of study at 3D ACADEMY, Much set off right away on his round-the-world trip. His first destination was Southeast Asia. While traveling alone through Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia, the English level he had learned at 3D proved useful right away.

“Booking accommodation, arranging transfers, signing up for tours... everything was in English, so being used to speaking thanks to 3D helped me enormously. If I had set out to travel without being able to speak, I think it would have been quite stressful.”

After that he traveled to Australia, where he had a working holiday experience of about one year and four months. First he worked on a farm, then in customer service at a ramen restaurant in Sydney, and he also experienced the tomato festival in Spain, among other very varied days. In all those places, what he needed in common, without exception, was English.

“On the farm in Australia I worked alongside people of many different nationalities and ages, so communication in English was absolutely necessary. I learned a lot of expressions right there at the workplace, and above all the feeling of ‘being understood’ became my motivation to keep learning English.”

Much's journey continued: he crossed the United States, and went on through Latin America, Europe, Africa and, finally, Asia. Before he knew it, in three years and three months he had visited more than 40 countries.

Along the way he confirmed that English worked even outside English-speaking countries. He also discovered that English became a “foundation for language learning” that let him dare to try other languages, such as Spanish or French.

“Precisely because I had learned English, I was able to get into Spanish without resistance. There is similar grammar and words, and the pronunciation is even simpler than in English. I truly felt that English is the ‘gateway to the world’.”

During his travels he had many reunions with classmates he had met at 3D. He told us that they organized an alumni gathering in Yokohama when he temporarily returned to Japan, that they traveled together through Latin America, and that the deep bond continues even after graduating from 3D.

“Traveling tends to be lonely, but thanks to the friends I made at 3D I can feel connected wherever I am. I think that is the charm of 3D, which is not just a simple language school.”

In the middle of his round-the-world trip, Much went back to 3D ACADEMY again about three years after his first time studying there.

“Now that I had gone from ‘learning’ English to ‘using’ it, I felt I wanted to go back to a learning environment once more. It came naturally to me that if I went back to Cebu, I wanted to study at 3D again.”

On his second stay he already had an English level good enough to have no trouble with everyday conversation, so in class he ventured into deeper content, such as discussions, debates and current affairs. His goal was to “polish” his English even further.

“This time I enjoyed being able to talk with the teacher on more equal terms. Giving my opinion in English, listening to the teacher's opinion and responding again. I truly felt that I could now use English as a ‘conversation tool’.”

He also says he was surprised to see that, compared with his first visit, the facilities at 3D had been renovated and the range of the curriculum had grown.

“Compared with three years ago, it is overwhelmingly easier to learn here; I felt it had evolved a lot. Above all, I was surprised that there was now a ‘round-the-world course’ (laughs). When I was there, that course didn't exist, so I'm a little envious.”

During this second stay at 3D he was able to get to know teachers, staff, interns and new students from different countries around the world, building a new network of contacts.

“Since this time I came back as ‘a traveler’, I could enjoy Cebu from a different perspective than the first time. The city and its people were just as warm as ever, and I felt once again that 3D is, without a doubt, my starting point.”

After finishing his first period of study at 3D ACADEMY, Much set off on a real trip around the world starting in Southeast Asia. The countries he visited, across Asia, Oceania, Latin America, Europe and Africa, added up to more than 40 in total. And he says he traveled through all of them, basically, on his own.

“Thanks to having learned English at 3D, I almost never had trouble during my travels. Hotel check-in, tour bookings, conversations with local people: everything could be handled in English. I thought many times that it had been really good to have acquired ‘useful English’.”

In particular, the one year and four months of working holiday in Australia contributed enormously to improving his English. Working with colleagues of many nationalities on a farm and serving customers at a ramen restaurant in Sydney, he lived an everyday life completely immersed in English.

“On the farm I communicated in English with coworkers who weren't native speakers either, so ‘English that gets understood’ was the most important thing. Starting to value being ‘understood’ by the other person over textbook English was a big change.”

In addition, while traveling through Latin America, Much began studying Spanish on his own. There too, he says, his experience of learning English was a great help.

“Once you already have the experience of having learned English as a foreign language, a second language is not so scary anymore. Spanish has simple pronunciation and there are many parts that are easier to remember than in English; it was fun.”

Precisely because English exists as a “lingua franca”, he was able to keep traveling to any country. Listening to Much tell how, during his round-the-world trip, he felt again and again how valuable English was, you can clearly perceive the enormous synergy between travel and English.

— The bonds after graduating are strong, aren't they?

Yes, I personally think that at 3D the bonds after graduating are especially strong. When I went to Taiwan, some friends from 3D guided me everywhere. That kind of thing is one of 3D's virtues.

— You have also traveled through countries outside the English-speaking world, haven't you? Do you use English there too?

At hotels and travel agencies I do use English. But in Latin America, for example, the main language is Spanish, so I studied Spanish. What I felt then was that, having studied English, other languages feel easier. English and Spanish have some similar grammar, and Spanish pronunciation is simpler than English. I thought it had been worth studying English.

In Europe, I got along perfectly well with just English. For them it's normal to speak three languages, and when I asked them “how is it that you speak so many languages?”, they answered “because we are Europeans”. It makes you a little envious (laughs).

In Africa too, English was understood very widely. Since many countries were British colonies, people spoke it fluently. You can go on a safari for about 20,000 or 30,000 yen, and the whole tour was explained to you in English. I think a good cycle forms: if you can speak even a little English, you can keep learning more English. For example, on the safari, when an animal appeared whose English name I didn't know, just by being able to say “What's that animal?” I learned that animal's name. I think that kind of enjoyment is only possible because you understand English.

Much returned to 3D ACADEMY after about three years. Unlike his first stay, this time he started again from “a state in which he could already speak English to a certain extent”.

“The first time, honestly, I was an ‘English beginner’ and it was hard for the words I wanted to say to come out. But this time, thanks to the confidence in English I had gained through my travels, conversations with the teacher flowed much better and the fun doubled.”

What impressed him most was the closeness among the students and with the teachers. The homey atmosphere of 3D was still the same, and it had even become more multinational than before, turning into an even more stimulating environment.

“Being able to have everyday conversations in English with people from so many different countries. Just that makes me feel it was ‘worth having learned English’. The teachers and staff are also very friendly; it's a place you want to come back to.”

This time he also chose classes to strengthen pronunciation and vocabulary, intensively reviewing the parts he needed most.

“In the sense of ‘carefully going back over the fundamentals’ of English, 3D was the perfect place. I wanted to make the ‘useful English’ I had developed during my travels more precise.”

And he says there was another big discovery: that “learning English itself had stopped being the goal”.

“Precisely because I had lived the experience of ‘using’ English while traveling and working, I realized that English is ‘a tool for expanding my own life’. That's why I wanted to take it on seriously once again.”

For Much, this experience of returning to 3D once more was not “simply studying a language abroad”, but also a time of “relearning” in which to think about his future life.

Much traveled the world for more than three years and visited 40 countries. After his experience studying at 3D ACADEMY, in the future he now imagines, “travel”, “English” and “connections with people” all seem to be indispensable keywords.

“I want to create a guesthouse. That is my next goal.”

What Much imagines is a “multinational guesthouse”, created by renovating an old traditional house in a rural area. With the help of friends he met during his travels, he plans to do the renovation with his own hands, cook together with guests from different countries and hold parties every night... He dreams of a place like that, where encounters and experiences cross paths.

He also says he wants to create a small farm next to the guesthouse, so that guests can experience farm work during their stay.

“The depopulation of rural areas is a serious problem, and for travelers the experience of ‘traveling as if you lived there’ is very valuable. I would love it to be a place where, using English, the charm of Japan could be shared.”

What Much has in mind is not a simple lodging, but “a place to find new life options”. In fact, he says that many of the people he met during his travels said: “I want to know more of local Japan”.

He also has the idea of using this guesthouse as preparation before studying abroad.

“Nowadays ‘double study abroad’ is trendy, but I think a ‘triple study abroad’ would be good too. If, while in Japan, you speak English with guests who come from abroad, that becomes a stage before the real study abroad.”

A place where you can move naturally from “something to learn” English to “something to use” it. That is the shape of the future that Much is trying to build.

A message from Much for those who are unsure about studying abroad

“If you have doubts, just go. Rather than thinking, you have to act!”

These are simple, forceful words that only someone like Much, who has lived two study experiences at 3D and has come to know countless countries and people, can say.

“Every friend I've recommended it to who came to 3D tells me that ‘it was worth coming’. It's true that there is also anxiety. But beyond that anxiety, a ‘new world’ opens up. It's not just English: the encounters with classmates, the confidence, the values... everything becomes a treasure for life.”

“The first thing is to jump in. That is the beginning of everything.”