Senior students studying Japanese at UHC embarked on Wellington for a day of learning and experiencing Japanese culture. Student Sasha McNeil shares their experiences.

On Friday 31st July, the senior Japanese class visited the Japanese Embassy, ate lunch at Tatsushi, and browsed through Daiso in Wellington city. We had already placed our orders for Tatsushi in class, but at the restaurant we were able to practice our Japanese by “ordering” our meals, and greeting and thanking the waitstaff.

At the embassy, we played a competitive card game where we had to identify various Japanese foods, and then learnt all about the JET programme, from Jane, who had five years experience on the programme herself. JET is a programme which provides the opportunity for thousands of people worldwide to experience and learn all about Japan and its culture, while simultaneously teaching English to students. Some people also have the unique opportunity to get placements in various organisations as translators.

This trip provided us all with an opportunity to experience some Japanese culture through trying new foods and we were provided with a useful insight into Jane’s experience while on the JET programme. We’d like to thank the Japanese Embassy, especially Jane, and Tatsushi restaurant, for hosting us.