City Life, Our participants, Toyota City

Farewell to Spring 2009 Program 2 <(‘ . ‘)>

[inspic=794,,fullscreen,400][inspic=808,right,fullscreen,400]Toyota city was the end of the adventure for some as program two of the Spring ’09 came to an end. It will take some time to readjust back to their “real lives” and to understand their experience with the program. It might take weeks, months, or even years to fully reflect and truly appreciate the unique journey but that day will come.

Saying goodbye is difficult but World Campus – Japan always tries to limit the sadness with warm hugs, nifty thank you cards, and graduation certificates. Thank you all for sharing your whole selves with WCJ and the Japanese community. Your contribution and presence will be missed but never forgotten! <(‘ . ‘)>

City Life, City Theme Activities, Guest Speakers, Toyota City

Spring 2009 Toyota Company Visit

[inspic=771,,fullscreen,400][inspic=773,right,fullscreen,400]A stay in Toyota city would not be complete without a visit to the mega car manufacturer that the city is named after. After a tour of one of the highly efficient automobile plants, World Campus – Japan members had a rare opportunity learn about the international corporation through a question and answer session at the headquarters of Toyota.

We learned a little bit about the company philosophy of Toyota that makes it one of most successful businesses in the world. Quality checks occur throughout the production process insuring that defects do not spread beyond one machine. This practice of jidoka is really effective as some defects can be hard to detect once the machine is completed. Toyota also uses the “just-in-time” production strategy. This allows the company to limit the production parts to what is require at the moment. In addition to reducing storage cost, this strategy also allows Toyota to quickly implement any changes to the actual part without having to clear out inventory first.

It was very interesting to hear about all the social projects Toyota is involved in. Even though it is not purely altruistic, it is still remarkable to see such a large company practice “corporate social responsibility” on a global level. Toyota gives back to society by heading up or supporting programs in education, environment, and arts and culture in countries that they have a large presence in.

City Life, Host Families, Our participants, Toyota City

Random Fun on Host Family Day

[inspic=801,,fullscreen,400][inspic=783,right,fullscreen,400]Host family days are always interesting. Most of the time, the families are really excited and have extravagant plans to show you the most famous sites of the area, like a castle or amusement park. On occasion, you will just want to spend some quality time at home with the family, playing video games, watching a movie, or just hanging out. All family are different and such, all host family days are unique.

Even though I have experienced quite a few host family days in my time with World Campus – Japan, I am still surprised by the variety. In Toyota city, my host mother, Masako (Princess!), offered a rather unique experience for me on host family day. She is actually studying Mandarin, so in the morning I sat in on her class. Although I am also studying Chinese, I never expected to be in a Chinese class taught completely in Japanese in Japan. It was just so odd and unexpected but that is also what makes it so enjoyable and unforgettable. The randomness of it all continues to amaze me.

Guang Yeung (USA/China)

Abiko City, City Life, City Theme Activities, Our participants

Graceful Reflection of Abiko

Grace Dance Video


[inspic=765,right,fullscreen,400]Japan is awesome! Last week we were in Abiko, a friendly city just outside of Tokyo. Abiko is a great city composed of green parks, open spaces, and friendly people. Everyone was very welcoming and eager to share their culture as we shared ours. Kudos to Tanaka San (a.k.a. Boss) for organizing super-fun activities! A warm thank you to the volunteers and families who made our stay in Abiko most memorable. And a shout out to the Suzuki family, my host family!

Everyday in Abiko was so much fun! We played soccer with local teams, explored nature with caring citizens, and danced with traditional performers. The latter is one of my favorite Abiko memories. I got to wear a really cool mask and costume just like the three other performers. The rhythmic beat of the drum and soulful sound of the flute guided my steps; the melodic fusion energized my body to dance. As corny as it sounds, I felt ‘one with the music.’ It was so much fun!

Another treasured memory was dancing Abiko’s traditional dance (Kappa) with everyone after a successful Arigato Evento! Among us were different generations, different stories … yet the same hands, the same smiles. In a circle we were one as we danced our last dance, the dance of generations past.

Grace Cornejo (Canada)

Abiko City, City Life, Host Families

A message from the Takeshi Tsubata – Host Family in Abiko

[inspic=764,,fullscreen,400][inspic=763,,fullscreen,400][inspic=762,right,fullscreen,400]This was my third time as a host family for World Campus – Japan. Their visit here in Abiko was 10 days and the time spent with them passed by very quickly.

I learned lots of things throughout this program even though it was my third time. What the members of WCI left for us was “Kizuna”, or a meaningful bond. It is also an original song written for WCI, which is sang by all the members.

After seeing off the bus which members were on, the host families in Abiko were still there, not wanting to leave. Later on, many host families started to say to each other “let’s meet again!”, “let’s set a time to discuss our feedback of this program”, “please come and visit my house!” and so on. We had a great time with the WCI members but we also had a chance to get to know other host families. And this was a valuable as well as meaningful opportunity for me.

Because of this program, I would like to reconsider my perception of my city again. I believe I can find something new in this city, and I am so excited now.

Takeshi Tsubata (Abiko host family)

Unique Access to Japan!

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