Keeping It Simple Upon first glance, Room 313 of Davis Hall resembles
an office more than a dorm room. No string lights line the perimeter of the space. No posters cover the walls. Furnishings include only a desk, two chairs and a small fridge. The bed is off to one side. “I like kind of a simple space,” says Kodai Yano, pointing toward his bare dorm room walls. “Usually they (other students) have some lights right here, right?” Yano, a 22-year-old exchange student from Hitotsubashi University, in Japan, does not consider himself someone very interested in decorating. The lone item adorning his walls, an old Japanese flag, is a gift from the International Office at WMU. Nonetheless, he is proud to have the national symbol on his wall. “It represents my love for Japan. That’s my Kod ai Yano background, you know?” Yano says. “You can feel your home much more if you’re out of it.” What Yano misses most about his home country is the food. Although he admits that he has tried many American dishes, he often prefers to brew Japanese-style miso soup in his room, using a kettle pot, along with some curry rice his parents sent him. “I tried everything (all types of American food), but Japanese food is much better for me. I brew lots of miso soup because I love it,” Yano says. Overall, Yano says, he does not mind living in the dorms. He has no complaints about a lack of space. “In Japan, we didn’t have a big house,” Yano says. “We lived in a kind of small house, so I got used to it. I don’t care about space.” — Greyson Steele
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In the 19 70s, the u niversity provided paint for students to use in their dorm rooms. Images co urte
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44 | Encore MAY 2017