Certificate 2 and 3 students, 15 September 2021

This excursion was one of the most enjoyable and appropriate I’ve ever been on and I hope future students are allowed the privilege to go. The travel time was short and I heard no complaints about it. Upon arrival at the cultural centre we were each given a very pretty obento, a Japanese lunch dish with a variety of new and interesting things to try, like a delicious slice of another culture. We got to experience the peace garden, a mixture of Japanese and Australian culture, as a guide explained the sister relationship shared between Perth and Hyogo. It was enlightening to see such a beautiful combination of the two city’s flora and Japan’s unique garden design come together to represent the peaceful intermingling of two entirely different cultures. Afterwards, we were lucky enough to try our hand at Japanese calligraphy. It was easy to tell that the whole group loved it, however difficult, and I was definitely impressed with the Year 10s who produced some really good looking work. No art work is complete without a signature though, so of course after learning about the historical significance of the hanko (a stamp used to sign one’s name on art or important documents in Japan), we made our own and used them to brighten up our best calligraphy piece. I couldn’t thank the people at the cultural centre enough for being such engaging hosts and patient teachers. Speaking of, huge kudos to Maguire-sensei for putting together such a good excursion, I’ll admit that I worried as to how possible it was to arrange an excursion that was not only subject-appropriate and informative, but entertaining for the Year 10s, as I know they can be hard to please. In the end, I’m most impressed with the organisation of this excursion and would absolutely recommend it for future classes.

Ev Price (Year 11 Certificate 3 Japanese Student)