Hello! My name is Thien Kim and I am a 21-year-old student from the Netherlands! I just started working at Come on Up Kansai office and I will be staying at Midoribashi Share House.

I am from a very small village called Nieuw Vennep. It is a very peaceful and quiet village that is surrounded by farm land and nature. Although it was very nice to grow up in this kind of environment, I still felt like something was missing. I longed for a busy city life. I wanted to be part of a concrete jungle, as I was always amazed by the tall and modern buildings of cities that I had seen on TV. This is the reason why I decided to move out of home and started to live by myself in 2015. This was also the year that I started my freshman year at Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences. Living alone was lonely at first, but as I got to know new people from college and I was able to have a great time living in the city. 

In 2018, before starting my internship at the Osaka Come on Up office, I got the opportunity to take part in a 5 month exchange program at Toyo University in Tokyo. Therefor, I have learned a bit about the Japanese culture and language. I got to meet local Japanese people and international students from all around the globe. Learning about their different values, goals and cultures got me very inspired to learn more about the world and I was set on the decision to work in an international environment where I could create a network with different people from around the world. As an intern living in a share house and working at a share house company, I hope I will be able to meet new people from all around the world and learn more about their culture.

After spending 5 months in Tokyo, I felt it was time to change. Although I really love the city and its people, I wanted to leave and discover a new place with new people. This is why I started looking for an internship opportunity in Osaka. Before starting this internship I have never visited Osaka before, so this was a totally different experience for me. I must say, the people in Osaka are very nice and although it is also a very big city, the vibe is different from the one in Tokyo. I cannot wait to discover this beautiful city and its surrounding cities!

Although I am not a very creative person, I do like to watch and enjoy all kinds of creative things. Take for example modern and traditional art, movies, music, fashion and cosmetics. I will take my time in Osaka and discover all the creative aspects of the city and write about it in my future stories. I might even try to make videos and give you a more visually detailed journey! 

It would be fun if you, the reader, are able to follow me on this journey! Please look forward to my future stories!

Thien Kim