Japanese Visitors

From Monday 17 August to Wednesday 26 August, 23 students and 1 teacher from Sagami Women’s University Junior and Senior High School in Japan visited St Ursula’s College. During their visit, the exchange students buddied up with our Year 9 and Year 10 elective Japanese classes. We also had wonderful St Ursula’s families volunteer to host some of the Japanese students. Our visitors engaged in English lessons and accompanied their St Ursula’s buddies to their standard scheduled classes. To celebrate their visit, we also hosted an Aussie BBQ. As the exchange drew to a close, heartfelt farewells were shared, leaving both schools with cherished memories and new international friendships that will last forever.

Katie Fisher
Languages-Teacher In Charge

The Japanese exchange was a memorable occasion and was exciting to exchange culture and widen our understanding of Japanese culture. The experience was a home stay program and a school exchange where the Japanese girls were able to experience all of Australian culture. Many of us eagerly met the exchange students on Monday with a sign in Japanese. For the rest of the week they were here, they experienced our classes from English to electives. It was a rewarding experience for the Japanese students to see how Australian classes work and it was also a pleasant experience for us, as we Urshie girls got to learn a lot about Japanese culture. My buddy taught a lot of my classmates about Japanese culture and how they clean their schools at the end of the day. Each day the Japanese students had a period where they enriched their knowledge, playing Australian games and doing origami with the Australian Japanese classes. On Thursday we had an after school BBQ where we danced to cultural music and had a sausage sizzle. All of the Japanese girls were just so sweet and engaged, it was easy to become friends with them and the departure ‘sayounara’ party was filled with lots of tears. Many of the girls still keep in touch with their new Japanese friends and have learnt lots from them. It was an enriching experience and we hope to continue the experience and go to Japan next year.
Thank you to Miss Awad, Ms Fisher and Miss Onodera for making the exchange truly memorable. たのしかったです！

Lucia C
Year 10

This opportunity was truly unforgettable, cherishable and heartwarming. I could not have asked for anyone more pure and wholesome than the two Japanese students I hosted; Tsugumi and An. They each contrasted each other in their ability to express themselves in English, but both of them had their own ambitions that I was able to understand, from the brief time we spent together. Being able to share my lifestyle before, during and after school, being with them and/or talking to them, I felt like I should have treasured everything more than I should of because each moment spent with each of them deepened our relationship.

Ceana T
Year 9

Meeting with my Japanese buddies was honestly such a memorable experience. I had so much fun getting to know them and I hope they will be back here soon. Tsugumi: I’m pretty glad I got to know Tsugumi after meeting her. She seemed more talkative and lively than An. I remember the time when I felt very proud of her when she made a speech during the Sayounara party because she had the confidence to try to speak.
English in front of an audience alone. How I wish I could get to see her again 🙁 An: I’m also pretty glad about meeting An too. She seemed a bit shy, so it felt a bit awkward talking to her but she also seemed sweet and polite, and also tried some small talk to get to know her. She also gave me some candy before the Sayounara party, which was really nice of her.

Maria Ysobel A
Year 9

Our experience with the Japanese exchange students was quite fun, especially with Yukino as our buddy. When we first met with Yukino, all of us were a bit shy yet excited to meet each other. It didn’t take long before we started to become good friends and could start to communicate with each other properly. When we introduced Yukino to our friends, they were all welcoming and eager to see her. Especially bringing her to classes, lots of people were happy to see her. Although it wasn’t long before Yukino had to leave Australia, so we held a party for all of the exchange students, which was really fun, especially since they got to try special Australian foods. Although a couple days before this, at the sausage sizzle party I (Trinity) was so excited to meet her friends and sit in her group and exchange contacts with them. We had so much fun and we hope to see them sometime next year.

Trinity C and Jeslyn C
Year 9

Meeting the Japanese exchange students was a great opportunity to learn about Japanese culture and language. My friend and I were lucky enough to have Rinna as our buddy, and we really enjoyed getting to know her throughout the week. It was lovely to connect with someone from a different country through language and share our different experiences. At the end of the week, we had a Sayonara Party to celebrate before the Japanese students returned home, where they got to try different Australian snacks. It was a fun way to celebrate the friendships we had made and share a part of Australian culture with them. Overall, we really enjoyed the experience and are grateful that we had the opportunity to meet Rinna and make such great memories together.

Gabriella M and Amy M
Year 9

The exchange program was a very rewarding experience and allowed me to connect with new people from different backgrounds. It also enabled me to practise my Japanese naturally and learn more about the Japanese culture that isn’t included in textbooks, such as modern slang and internet jokes. This program has also brought my Japanese class closer. One memorable moment was at the Sayounara Party, where I met many others involved, such as the other Japanese students and the other Japanese classes. I am also sure that the Japanese students would cherish the week we have had together.