Awards: Eight young Irish people will get to make a life- changing journey this summer. Janet Stafford reports

Eight lucky adventurers will have the opportunity to travel this summer with the EIL-Intercultural Learning Travel awards in association with The Irish Times. Eight is also the number of years since the first Irish award winner travelled to Japan.

Since then, students and teachers have travelled to Canada, Chile, China, Ecuador, Ghana, India, Japan, Mexico and Turkey to experience everyday life in these countries by staying with local host families and, in some cases, participating in voluntary work.

"The purpose of these awards is to help young people develop a profound understanding of a different culture, language and world view, as well as the capacity to see their own lives and country in a much broader perspective," says Kevin Hickey, director of EIL Ireland.

Participating during her Transition Year certainly helped Hollie Kearns from Loreto Secondary School, Clonmel, Co Tipperary, to develop an understanding of a different culture.

"My teacher, Miss Dooley, had travelled and lived in Japan for a year and she also won an EIL award herself one time. She taught us the basics of speaking and writing Japanese as part of Transition Year. That really gave me the idea that I wanted to try for an award."

Kearns spent 10 days of her six-and-a-half weeks in Tokyo, staying with a family and receiving some orientation before travelling to Matsumoto in the shadow of the Japanese Alps, where she went to school.

"The strangest thing I ate was marinated grasshoppers, closely followed in weirdness by raw octopus. I liked the food. I learnt Japanese customs like bowing when you meet someone," says Kearns. "There are three types of bows: a fairly casual one; a formal one and a very formal one." She got to practice the very formal one when she met the local mayor. She also went to local Shinto and Buddhist festivals.

What struck her most was the way young girls at the school she attended obeyed rules. "They would be quite timid or secretive about having boyfriends, they wouldn't have casual relationships. They have a very good society where nobody breaks the rules. Still, they do have a lot of fun as well."

Kearns dreams of returning to Japan some day. "The home stay was great for learning the reality of Japanese life. I learnt a new culture and it helped me feel a lot more independent and confident."

This year the first travel award to China with EIL is being offered. Trips to Japan, Mexico, Chile, Ecuador and India are also on offer.

To apply you must contact EIL for an application pack. Most scholarships involve writing an essay. A selection committee will short-list a number of entrants and they will be invited for an interview. The final winners will be announced in May. Age limits vary for different projects, but the general range is for those between 16 to 20. The closing date for applications is March 22nd.

• EIL Intercultural Learning, 1 Empress Place, Summerhill North, Cork. Tel: 021 455 1535; fax: 021 455 1587; e-mail: info@eilireland.org