~ Article and Photos by Queanbeyan City Council ~
On 24 September 2014, 9 students and 3 chaperones headed to Minami Alps city for the bi-annual student exchange.
All participants were home hosted for the week of the visit.
Queanbeyan has had a sister city relationship in Japan since 1992. With Minami Alps city for 11 years and prior to that with Hatta for 11 years before that municipality was amalgamated.
Usually Japanese students come here in August (their summer holidays); and Queanbeyan has been sending students there in our spring holidays (October).
Upon their return the students gave a powerpoint presentation to council to thank them for the opportunity. They said the cultural exchange was a wonderful and enriching experience that they will never forget. The warmth and hospitality that they received in Minami Alps and the extensive schedule of activities they experienced courtesy of their hosts, was at time overwhelmingly generous.
The group visited the Maglev Exhibition centre (500km/h train), Bunkadensyokan Museum, Mt Fuji, Tokyo Disney Resort, Kousai centre where they participated in a traditional tea ceremony, local schools and local fruit farms where they enjoyed picking grapes.
Domo arigato gozaimasu, Queanbeyan City Council
