Japan Tour

Student's Journal

Tokyo

We were so excited and there were big bright lights everywhere in Akihabara, the hustle of people and the Gachas (machines that are everywhere and contain a variety of toys) that we wish were everywhere in Melbourne, too. The next day, we visited Meiji Shrine, Harajuku, Shibuya and Shinjuku - bustling with people and so much going on. Another day we spent in Asakusa, Hama Rikyu and at Gundam Base. The scenery in Hama Rikyu was beautiful and Amy, Olivia and Elizabeth did a photoshoot in the garden. Disneyland was extremely hot but a lot of fun. We went on multiple rides even though the wait times were so long.

Kyoto

After an amazing and fun couple of days in Tokyo, we made our way to Kyoto via bullet train. We stayed in the traditional rooms of the Matsubaya Ryokan. At the Fushimi Inari shrine, we split up in groups and walked the Fushimi shrine trail. The walk itself was absolutely beautiful but very tiring. Along the way there were many big and small torii gates, vending machines and omikuji, which are fortunes. It took around 2.5 hours to walk the whole trail. We made it to the top as the sun was setting and it was really pretty! In Kyoto, we also visited the Ryoanji temple which has a famous rock garden. When sitting and looking at the rocks, you cannot see all the rocks at once, one or two rocks are always hidden, no matter what angle you look at it from. After spending around an hour at the Ryoanji temple, we walked to the Kinkakuji temple which was beautiful. In Japanese, the word “Kin” means gold 金 and the outside of the temple is covered in actual gold. The last stop on this day was the Yasaka Shrine. This shrine is a beautiful orange colour, and at night, it is especially beautiful when the lights are lit. The group had to make their own way back to the hotel without the help of Ms Melches. There were many yummy restaurants down the Shijo-Dori street outside the shrine. Kyoto was so different from Tokyo. The city is more relaxed and traditional compared to Tokyo which is much busier and more modern.

Nara

From Kyoto, we took a train for a day trip to Nara which is most famous for the plethora of deer roaming around. The experience reminded me of being in a large petting zoo; we got the opportunity to feed, pet, and take photos of the deer. The first place we visited when we arrived in Nara was Todai-ji Temple which houses the Big Buddha, a 15-metre-tall bronze statue of Buddha. We capped off the day with a calm nature walk through the sacred grounds of Kasuga-Taisha Shrine.

Hiroshima.

For one of the day trips, we took the bullet train from Kyoto to Hiroshima and spent the first half of the day looking around the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park. We looked at the Atomic Bomb Dome and the thousands of origami cranes which represent peace and are donated by different communities, even some that were sent from Australia. We then visited the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, where we saw the effects of the Hiroshima bombing and empathised with those that lost friends and family. It was a very emotional and eye-opening experience.

From Hiroshima we took a bus, a train and then a ferry to Miyajima to see the famous Itsukushima Shrine. Sadly, we couldn’t see the Torii gate properly as it was under construction. When we first arrived, we were greeted by friendly deer and a beautiful view of the island’s greenery. We went around the island, visiting the Itsukushima shrine, learning about its history and getting both good and bad fortunes. After looking at the shrine and adoring the contrast between its bright red and the island’s greenery, we continued to wander around the island, looking at stalls and stores. We took the ferry back to the mainland, had an amazing okonomiyaki dinner and then the bullet train took us back to Kyoto.

Tokoname

After travelling around Japan, we were lucky enough to have the chance to do homestay with students from Tokoname High School. We Brighton students were able to experience the culture and heritage of Japan, furthermore we got an insight into the life of a Japanese student. At the beginning of the week, we were scared and didn’t know what to really expect, but it turned out to be one of the most fun and eventful weeks of our lives! We had our laughs and created strong relationships with our host families, precious memories were made that are unforgettable! Although homestay was for only one week, we loved every single minute of it and were able to take away so much. We learnt how to persevere which helped us grow into better people!

Everyone in Tokoname High School was very welcoming and kind. They took the time to speak with us and taught us about their life in Japan! Australian and Japanese schools are very different and it was interesting to see how the teaching methods in both countries are similar yet different. We Brighton students got to participate in a variety of activities such as attending classes, going to the Toyota Automobile Museum in Nagoya, meeting the mayor of Tokoname and cleaning the school!

All in all, the Japan Tour was an amazing trip with a lot of experiences we will never forget!