RIGHT before graduation, I was looking for a scholarship to study fashion abroad.

I was in luck. It was Christmas 2005, and I was granted a three-year scholarship by the Japanese government.

At that time, I thought I had everything I needed to survive. Looking back, I realize I forgot to prepare for one thing: language. To say that I was ?lost in translation? is an understatement.

But I was given the chance to study in the best fashion school in Asia, Bunka Fukusou Gakuin or Bunka Fashion College in Shinjuku, Tokyo. How could I quit?

Strict curriculum

My school specializes in fashion design and related disciplines. It is known for its strict curriculum and heavy workload. It has over 70 branches all over Japan and has exchange programs with Central Saint Martins in London and Parsons in New York. Its famous alumni include Kenzo Takada, Junya Watanabe and Yohji Yamamoto.

The College was founded in 1919 by Isaburo Namiki as a small dressmaking school for girls called Namiki Dressmaking School. This was a time when Western-style clothing for women was only available to affluent families. In 1936, the name of the school became Bunka Fashion College, and the school began publishing So-en, Japan?s first fashion magazine.

Fashion in Japan is serious business. Our curriculum not only included basic pattern-making, history and drawing; we also had subjects on textile chemistry, computer-aided design, fashion business and visual merchandising. We even had to work in an actual factory setting to experience mass production first-hand.

All books, lectures and exams were in Nihonggo. I remember one lecture where my teacher kept saying ?Oto Kochuro!? It meant ?haute couture.?

Humbling experience

During the first few days, I felt like Lindsay Lohan in ?Mean Girls,? with no friends to chat and have lunch with. The Japanese have this shield against foreigners, since they can?t speak English. After a few months, though, it got better. My classmates began helping translate my books in exchange for practicing their English with me.

My school is a dream fashion school. It has a store selling everything we need ? needles, textiles, mannequins, art materials, even leather! When I was busy in school and had no time to go shopping, I just went to the makeup section and indulged myself in Shiseido, Max Factor and even Avene.

I loved our library. Here I got all the art and fashion books from all over the world. We even had a rack devoted to all the Vogue editions from different countries.

Our textile library was also very cool. We had a collection of fabrics used in different fashion shows all over the world, dating from decades back.

Best graduation piece

On my second year, I started getting awards and I started to be noticed by my peers and teachers. This truly gave me the inspiration to work harder. Since I am the first Filipina to enter the school, I wanted to make our country proud by working hard and showing them that we Filipinos are creative, talented and, like the Japanese, also have a very interesting culture.

This is why I constantly make an effort to include little details of our culture in every project I do. I felt really proud when I received a special award for the best graduation piece. The gown I designed was my own version of our Philippine ?terno.? The Japanese were so amazed with the butterfly sleeves!

I was really happy to receive the award. I was even made part of the finale for the graduating batch?s fashion show!

Life in Japan, though very challenging, was fun and interesting. I gained a lot of Japanese friends who helped me survive the challenges in school and of being constantly homesick. They?re like family to me now.