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Year 10 Japan immersion trip 2018

On 23 September 2018, a group of Year 10 students and two teachers, Mrs Kinne and Kumashiro Sensei, embarked on a journey to Japan for 10 days.

Eager to experience a new country, the 12 tourists had different ideas about what to expect and also to what they were looking forward.

Most were looking forward to Disneyland. Some were also looking forward to visiting many of the famous cultural sites such as Nara, well known for the deer roaming the streets and through Nara Park.

For those travelling overseas for the first time, this was an exciting opportunity to expand their knowledge of Japanese culture.

Enriched by our new educational experience, the students had many highlights and made many memories as well as new friendships within the group.

A unanimous favourite was Disneyland. From 10.00am to 10.00pm the group enjoyed rides such as Big Thunder Mountain, Pooh’s Hunny Hunt, Splash Mountain and Space Mountain.

The group’s favourite memory about Disneyland was at the end of the day when those brave enough decided to go on two more rides together: Space Mountain and Splash Mountain.

The group also thoroughly enjoyed an afternoon with our school visit to Osaki High School which included a tea ceremony and many interactive activities.

Other experiences in our tour of Japan included visiting the statue Hachiko, praying at shrines, having dinner together and even going to Japanese Karaoke.

The group was lucky enough to have achieved a strong understanding of Japan and its culture through the wide ranging experiences on the itinerary. We had many opportunities to pray and experience Shinto shrines such as at Itsukushima Shrine.

We also spent an afternoon at the Peace Park and the Peace Museum in Hiroshima and became more familiar with Japan’s history including the atomic bombs at the conclusion of WWII.

Here are some reflections shared by some members of the group who visited Japan this year:

It was a good experience. I recommend it to anyone that wants to experience a new culture. Tara Davie

I really enjoyed learning Japanese and also enjoyed the yuzu honey drinks! Lochie Bacon

It is a wonderful opportunity as an educator to travel to Japan with these students so they could experience new sights and sounds. It is a rich learning experience and this year made all the more special because we had the privilege of Ms Gilligan travelling with us for some of our journey. Mrs Kinne

After teaching students about Japanese language and culture (some for many years!), it is an honour to be able to take them to Japan and to experience it first-hand. It is the beginning of a life of exciting adventures, and communicating with people from around the world. Thank you to everyone in the group for an excellent adventure! Kumashiro Sensei

We all really enjoyed this wonderful experience. In our 10 days, we learnt so much and we will all definitely be making a trip back!

My favourite part of the trip would be the friendships I have made with the rest of the group and also with some students from the Osaki High School. Thank you so much to the wonderful staff who accompanied us. It was a memorable experience.

Courtney Doyle - Year 10 student