Travel Afternotes

Impressive meeting with kind people

Among the high schools in the western Japan, we were the first to visit Chuncheon and the surrounding area for a school excursion, aiming to make students aware of Korean people as colleagues living in Asia together by experiencing the local traditional culture and livelihood. For this, we adopted home-stay system and students could have opportunities to communicate with local people such as city tour with the guidance of local student or eating local famous dish ‘Dakgalbi’ together. Students were touched by the generosity of the local people and their attitude of making much of their culture, and it seems that they changed their awareness on Korea. Moreover, it gave them a chance to reflect their own attitude and to realize that no national boundary exists among people. From preparation, we’ve received lots of support and cooperation from the Gangwon provincial government, Chuncheon city hall and the citizens. This excursion was a precious experience for our students as well as the teachers. Thank you very much.

Jeongseon Arirang, the reflection of Korean sentiment

We have been visiting Jeongseon, Gangwon-do since 1998, beginning from the school excursion in 1978. We aimed to give students a chance to sing ‘Jeongseon Arirang’, which is regarded as the origin of Arirang, because we want to keep close relationship as a true neighbor country through more active exchange activities by understanding the sentiment in the song that has been sung by Korean people at any time and at any circumstances. In this exchange activity, students who visited Korea say the memory is still in their mind even after coming back to Japan. We hope our exchanging relationship will last long. We would like to keep good relation with clean and beautiful Gangwon-do. This fall, it is being said to set up sisterhood relationship with Jeongseon High School.

Exchange with students in same generation and contact with the traditional and modern culture of Korea

We began to visit Korea for school excursion in 1977 and have been visiting Gangwon-do for recent years. We used to have exchange meeting with Jinbu High School, visit Yongpyeong Ski Resort, which is a representative ski resort in Korea and also the background scene of Winter Love Story, and look around historical relics of Joseon Dynasty etc. From the result of a questionnaire, most students say the exchange meeting with Jinbu High School was the most impressive and it shows that students feel Korea as a close country through the exchange with students in the same generation. And some say the masque performance, which is an intangible cultural property designated by UNESCO was the most impressive one. Students were very satisfied with the food as well. We are sure that the experience, information, and meeting with new friends will broaden the ways of our students’ lives.