上野公園とムンク展 (キャロル先生)

                        Ueno Park and Munch Exhibition

Last Sunday I visited Ueno Park so I could see the last of the autumn leaves. The park was so colorful and full of people eating dango and yakitori. I had a nice stroll around it and watched the couples paddling in the swan boats across the lake with the tall buildings framing them. It was a chilly, cloudy afternoon and I had my big, wooly scarf on to keep me warm. I was so busy taking pictures that I was late meeting up with my friends at Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum. We were viewing the Munch exhibition, which runs in the museum until January 2019. It’s a very large exhibition and displays his major works such as The Scream and Between the Clock and the Bed. We spent over an hour walking around viewing his art and luckily, it wasn’t too busy so we weren’t queuing up to see The Scream for too long. Seeing it in person was amazing and I was surprised at how well it looked considering it’s so old, it was created around 1910. It was inspiring to see his artwork and a lovely way to spend a Sunday evening. I have my own exhibition coming up with some other teachers based in Tokyo but I will tell you more about that next time.

歌舞伎観劇 （ミーシャ先生)

I went to Ginza to watch a Kabuki performance and I must say it was intriguing. I never knew about Kabuki so when I heard about the performance taking place, I did some research to better understand what it is about and I just had to go see it. I love any art form so I was beyond thrilled to watch the performances. There were two shows and the theatrical elements were awesome. It is amazing to know that only men were acting and playing so many roles. Both stories had a valuable message about life and people. While I was at the theatre I also tried Taiyaki for the first time. This one had red bean paste and it was ‘oishi’. I was hoping to get a second one after the show but they were all sold out. I am just happy I got to enjoy the Kabuki performance and try Taiyaki.

鳩ノ巣渓谷 （キャロル先生)

 Hatonosu Valley

 

Last weekend I had no work on Friday, as it was a public holiday. I decided I needed to get out of the big city and head for the hills! I researched the best places to visit in West Tokyo to see the autumn leaves. Hatonosu Valley popped up on my phone as a very popular spot due to its colorful mountains. It took one hour and a half to get there from Musashi Sakai and I was so impressed when I got there. The Tama River flows through the valley and it is surrounded by high mountains lacing the sky. It really was a sight to see and I took so many photos to send to my friends and family. The colors of the leaves were so pretty and they were the brightest I have seen so far in Tokyo. I sat on the large rocks beside the river and relaxed for a while, watching couples and friends eat their lunch and crossing the large bridge that drapes over the valley. After I relaxed, I went for a walk alongside the river and then had some soba noodles in a small café beside the train station. It was cold and the noodles heated me up along with some tasty green tea. The sun was setting as I stepped onto the train for my journey home.

By the time I arrived home, I was tired and ready to relax in front of a good movie. I will definitely be bringing guests to Hatonosu Valley when they visit me, as I am sure they will not be disappointed. Maybe next summer I will paddle in the river and sun bathe on the rocks.

冬の花火 （ミーシャ先生)

Winter　Fireworks

 

As the time gets even colder, I have become even more interested in exploring the wonders of Japan during this time. Lake Okutama and Mitake are on my itinerary for December. I was told that these are the places to explore and see the autumn colored leaves. I definitely hope to experience this. The cold time is the best time to go hiking and site seeing. I tend to stay home once I do not have work because I am really trying to avoid the cold. However, I went to Tachikawa over the weekend to see the Fireworks at the Showa kinen park. It was so crowded; I didn’t know so many people would want to see the fireworks. It was an hour of amazing lighting and art form. As I am an art enthusiast, I took a lot of pictures of the different colors and shapes of the fireworks. It was worth enduring the cold.

芸術鑑賞会 （ミーシャ先生)

The cold has intensified and this has caused me to be worried about what it will be like when it gets really cold in December. I have to now be shopping more for winter clothes because of the cold.  Despite the cold, I continue to explore Tokyo and enjoy the culture. I recently went to watch the musical Marie Antoinette at the Imperial Theatre and it was amazing! The costumes, the lighting, the special effects and the sophistication of the theatre were features that I found very appealing. I was not sure what the actors were saying since I do not understand Japanese but I certainly enjoyed the acting, the scenery and the singing.  I still understood what was happening in the plot of the story though. The school went to the theatre in recognition of “Art Appreciation Day” and I can say I truly appreciate Art. I hope to go there again and even tour the Imperial Palace. I am beyond grateful for the experience.

川越一日旅行 （キャロル先生)

Day Trip to Kawagoe

Last Sunday I went on a day trip to Kawagoe with a friend of mine. The sun was shining and the sky was blue without any clouds. It took us about one hour to get there and we arrived in the afternoon. We happened to stumble upon an Asian festival, which had some tasty food options to choose from. We ate food and then visited some shrines in the area where we had our fortunes told, luckily, our fortunes were quite good. We walked through the Edo period street called Ichibangai Shopping Street which had lots of lovely little souvenir shops and chic coffee shops. We took some photos at Kitain temple, which was so colorful and pretty, the leaves are slowly changing color and were a lovely warm red and yellow hue. We walked around for most of the day and were exhausted by evening time. After a yummy cream coffee, it was time to hit the trains again and head home. I would highly recommend Kawagoe as a good place to visit, and will be sure to tell people about it.

秋の色 （キャロル先生)

 October is such a magical month. The color of the trees changing from green to red, orange and yellow. The cooler temperature that offers relief from the hot summer months. The festivities of Halloween creeping into the month without warning. The parks are transformed into a picturesque photo opportunity, with everyone turning into a professional photographer. In the city I used to live in, Dublin, Phoenix Park is the ideal place to stroll through the leafy grass and catch a glimpse of the deer running wild. There were plenty of Saturday mornings where I used to jog around the park and take in the beauty around me. The park is one of the largest city parks in Europe. I was fortunate enough to live about 15 minutes walking distance from the park whilst living in Dublin. I have been missing it lately and I think I need to turn Inokashira Park into my Japanese Phoenix Park in order to feel a little more at home during the season of Autumn.

秋の色 （ミーシャ先生)

It is amazing how the weather has changed. When I came here in July, I was battling the heat for days. I found myself staying inside the house to get some cool air from the air conditioner or whenever I was on the road, I made sure I stopped at stores so I could get some relief. Now it is getting quite cold. This will be my first winter away from Jamaica so I am trying to make sure I prepare for it. I hope that the sweaters, gloves and hats I bought will be able to keep me warm because I hear it can get very cold during December to January. I may even be lucky to experience snow in Tokyo so I would love to see what that is like. This is when I wish I could ski but I do intend to go skiing when its snow time though. I am sure I will find somewhere to get a few lessons because I won’t miss out on such an adventure. That is something you will definitely hear about.

デジタルアートと美味しい食べ物 （キャロル先生)

 

The weekend before last was another long weekend with no school on Monday. It was the last long weekend for a while so I really wanted to make the most of it and I definitely did. My plans for Saturday involved visiting the Mori Digital Art Museum in Odaiba. My friend had booked the tickets a few weeks ago as it was due to sell out very fast. I had looked at some pictures of the exhibition online before Saturday and it looked amazing. It definitely lived up to the hype. My friend and I spent a good four hours exploring but could have easily spent more time there. There were many different rooms to explore, one room is called the Butterfly Room. This involved digital butterflies, and when you touched them, they would fall down. The museum was full of colour and was truly magical. The exhibition is suitable for both children and adults. There were so many different rooms to see and the museum was so big, that we forgot to visit two rooms advertised. This means I will have to go back another time! I can definitely think of worst ways to spend my weekend.

We finished off our day eating a lot of food from a restaurant nearby where they had an ‘All-You-Can-Eat’ offer for 2,000 yen. This was too good and resulted in me eating a whole lot more than my stomach could handle. Let’s just say I will have some jogging to do this week!

趣味 （ミーシャ先生）

Being in Japan has been a rewarding transition. The change of environment has given me a certain level of peace of mind so I can write more. Writing has always been a hobby of mine but now I feel so relaxed that it has caused me to write more. I was able to complete an English workbook I was working on so I feel proud about that. My other hobby is exercising. There is something very tranquil about Tokyo that makes me feel driven to reflect, eat well, exercise and acquire new skills. I think my power walks to catch the train or to maneuver through a large crowd have really been forms of exercise too. My first few weeks I used to wonder how people are walking so fast and why I can’t catch them up( and trust me I tried to catch them up) but you should see me now. I am a certified speed walker if there ever was one. I also just walk fast for the exercise even if I have nowhere to go. I usually do some exercise routines after my walk to make sure a get a full work out.  I took a walk, discovered ‘Yuzawaya’, and fell in love with all the fabric so now I am developing sewing as a hobby. I want to make everything but I am trying to develop the skill first. Japan is certainly good for the mind and body and I am grateful for such an impact.

皇居御苑と台風24号 （キャロル先生)

This week, I discovered a place that sells bento near the school. That was just great! There is a 24-hour bento place near my home in Japan so I was beyond happy when I found a place with bento near work as well.  My Japanese is not good so luckily they had pictures of the menu items so I could just point and say “kore onegaishimasu”. Even though I know what to say, I tend to sometimes go brain dead when it’s time for me to use the language so I ended up pointing at the item and saying “this please”. The meal I got had rice at the bottom then it was covered with lettuce, tomatoes, sweet pepper, minced beef and cheese . There were some other items on it that I did not really know but I have been experimenting with food here in Japan so I didn’t mind. What I do know is that it was “oishi”. I loved it! So I can add this to my list of favorite food which already has onigiri and tempura on it. I will continue to try other food items.

弁当 （ミーシャ先生)

This week, I discovered a place that sells bento near the school. That was just great! There is a 24-hour bento place near my home in Japan so I was beyond happy when I found a place with bento near work as well.  My Japanese is not good so luckily they had pictures of the menu items so I could just point and say “kore onegaishimasu”. Even though I know what to say, I tend to sometimes go brain dead when it’s time for me to use the language so I ended up pointing at the item and saying “this please”. The meal I got had rice at the bottom then it was covered with lettuce, tomatoes, sweet pepper, minced beef and cheese . There were some other items on it that I did not really know but I have been experimenting with food here in Japan so I didn’t mind. What I do know is that it was “oishi”. I loved it! So I can add this to my list of favorite food which already has onigiri and tempura on it. I will continue to try other food items.

三鷹 国際フェスティバル （キャロル先生)

Last Sunday I attended the 29^th Mitaka International Festival in Inokashira Park. This festival celebrates different cultures from around the world. There were Japanese students dancing to music from Afghanistan, a Beetles tribute band, African jewelry stalls and food stalls from around the globe. The food was delicious and I was able to meet up with the members of the Irish Network Japan where they had set up an Irish booth selling Guinness and Irish postcards and other small memorabilia. It was lovely to see everyone there and the members are mostly made up of Japanese people so it is a good way for me to brush up on my Japanese. They are all so fond and interested in Irish culture and it really is a pleasure to spend time with them all.

The festival attracted a large crowd and it was a lovely event with the sun shining all day long.

I had my picture taken with some very impressive cosplayers and listened to some bands playing. There were three music stages at the event and it was really interesting to see Japanese musicians play traditional Irish songs on one of the stages. The band members were playing the accordion, the tin whistle and the mandolin. It goes to show that we don’t have to be interested in our own culture alone but we can learn to love and envelope ourselves in any interests and cultures we wish to choose. 

高尾山ハイキング（ミーシャ先生)

The weather seems to be changing more and more and I am grateful because when I came in July I found the heat to be unbearable. It can be very hot in Jamaica during the summer but I have never experienced such heat until I came here. Luckily, the weather is cooler even though I now have to prepare for rain almost every day. It did not rain over the weekend so that was a great opportunity for me to go hiking at Mount Takao. I enjoyed it immensely although at one point in the journey I wanted to stop. When I finally reached the top I was hoping to go search of a restaurant that has shrimp tempura and nigiri( my favorite) but all they had was soba. I had to get something to drink and go back down the mountain to get food at a restaurant. The food was worth the wait so I definitely did not mind much.  My weekend was well spent.

高尾山 （キャロル先生)

This week I wanted to explore some nature outside of city life and so I decided to get the train to Takao. Takaosanguchi station is only a thirty-minute train ride from where I live so it’s very accessible on my days off. The weather was cool and fresh when I got there and the sun was shining so I decided to walk one of the smaller trails to where there is a viewing point that looks out over the whole of Tokyo. It took about one hour and a half there and back, with the climb filled with some tricky steep and slippery steps. Other hikers I encountered were sure to say “Konnichiwa!” to me as we passed each other along the way. It was amazing to see such a green, nature infused landscape so close to central Tokyo. After my trail, I enjoyed a hot matcha tea and some ice cream while admiring the old traditional style of the buildings and the nearby temple. It was lovely to see the small ornament and food stalls around the train station. The area had a relaxed atmosphere and I felt as though it would be the perfect escape come wintertime. It was a day spent well, out in the open and away from the hustle and bustle of city life.

ふじむら祭 （ミーシャ先生)

September 16, 2018 I came to Fujimura school festival and I enjoyed it thoroughly. There are so many talented students who have invested a great amount of time in preparing for this event. I loved the performances by the choir and dance club the most because I love singing and dancing. I tried a Japanese curry dish and I think I will be eating a whole more curry from now on. I was very elated to see my favourite shaved ice on sale. I usually have it with the syrup and milk. The taste was just divine or in Japanese terms simply “oishi”.  I even got some nice items that were being sold in the library that I just could not resist. I am glad I was able to experience a school festival.

ふじむら祭 （キャロル先生)

The past few days have been filled with the students’ excitement and preparation for their Bunkasai festival, which is on this weekend. I have attended their Mass Games rehearsal and was very impressed at the way the students could remember all of the different dance moves, especially when using a range of props. They are a very talented bunch.

This week was also my first time in Hazama, Hachioji. The first thing I saw when I stepped onto the platform were the green mountains in the distance. They looked so peaceful; it reminded me to start hill and mountain climbing, especially now that the weather is a lot cooler. Tokyo has so much to offer in this regard with its natural side such a contrast to its city life. It has the best of both worlds.

日本での生活 （ミーシャ先生)

Taking the trains continue to be a feat. It will take some time to adjust since I am used to driving in my home country. I also continue to get lost too often! Once I have to go somewhere different from my usual route, I end up following the directions on google, which can go really well or really bad. I am also just experimenting with food as I buy things based on how they look without having a clue what they are. I have started some Japanese classes on Saturdays though because I want to better informed.

Week two of work at a new school has been an interesting one. I have developed a greater appreciation for the level of discipline and commitment the students and teachers at Fujimura display. The Mass Games was a beautiful presentation. Watching the rehearsals, I was amazed at how cooperative the students were. I would really love to know what contributes to them being so disciplined because this is something I would like to help develop in schools in Jamaica.

アイルランド出身のキャロルです。

Hello, my name is Carol and I am from the green hills of Ireland. Ireland is famous for Irish dancing, the Celtic cross and St. Patrick’s Day. Farming is very popular in Ireland and the wet weather helps to keep the scenery green and lush. The summer temperatures rarely rise above 24 degrees and it can sometimes rain a lot. The winters are long, cold and dark. However, despite the unreliable weather, there are many festivals in Ireland throughout the year, especially in the summer time. Irish people love to celebrate and there is a big sense of community in our country.

I am looking forward to exploring Japan and all it has to offer.

ジャマイカ出身のミーシャです

Hello! My name is Measha Williams and I am from Kingston, Jamaica (The country famously known for GREAT athletes like Usain Bolt). I am not as fast as Bolt but I was a very good soccer player when I was in college. Before I came here, I was teaching English in Jamaica for 13 years. I chose to be a teacher because I love to know that I have made a positive contribution the development of young people. I hope to do the same here as well.

This is my first time in Japan and I am very excited about being here and learning about the culture. I absolutely love music, dance, poetry, Art and any form of self-expression. I hope to enjoy all of these things while I am here. I am eager to learn the language as well as I want to be able to engage in conversations as well.

 

間もなくプログラム終了

My time in Japan is nearly at its end. I had a truly amazing year here, not just in Japan, but at Fujimura too. If I think back at my time here, I feel very grateful to everyone at Fujimura for being so welcoming and kind because it really made a difference and I was able to feel very happy working here. Of course, learning new languages is important, so I hope the students have had a good experiencing learning with me. However, even more than that, I hope this has been a good experience of cultural exchange and learning more about the world and people outside of Japan. For me, it really has been because I have learned a lot about Japan and the Japanese language, and I hope to keep learning. I will keep the memories I have of living in Japan and working at Fujimura for the rest of my life and maybe one day, I hope I will have the opportunity to come back and make more memories. Thank you very much for this year!

新大久保

I went to Shin-Okubo Station on Monday, to visit Koreatown. I was really excited because I love Korean food and was looking forward to buying some presents for Camille before she left. We both like the same music and music is always something that brings people together so I was glad to have that in common and give her a goodbye present that she’d like. I ate dakgalbi which was very cheesy and very delicious and I also tried patbingsu, similar to Kakigōri, and I really loved it a lot! It’s a great summer dessert. I also got to try that really cheesy Arirang hot dog that is pretty popular in the area and that was a really interesting experience! The past few times I have been to Shin-Okubo, I’ve only gone to the Indian store so it was cool to see more of the area. Since there’s a lot of different kinds of people there, the fashion you see and the languages you hear in passing are also really interesting, I really like how different every area of Tokyo is; I think that’s why it’s very difficult to get bored if you live here!

お別れ会と初めての映画館

This week is Camille’s last full week. It’s very sad because I, like the other students and teachers at Fujimura, have gotten pretty close to her and I think we’ll miss her a lot! Last Friday, the chorus club and some teachers had a joint farewell party for me and Camille (but I think mostly for Camille because she’s leaving very soon) and I had so much fun! It was really great to eat and play games with the students and teachers, and they also did really amazing performances so I was very impressed and touched. I always like speaking with the students so it was really nice to get the opportunity to talk with them there too. It made me think about how I will leave soon too but I will really miss the people at this school a lot so I don’t want to think about it! After that, a friend wanted to see a new marvel superhero movie so we went to Shibuya. It was the first movie I have seen in Japan because usually I don’t go to the cinema so it was pretty cool, especially to see both Japanese people and foreigners reacting to the same movie. I also noticed some of the translations with the Japanese subtitles were a bit different from the English dialogue so that was interesting to try and figure out. I want to try watch more things in Japanese so I can improve!

藤村女子とニュージーランドのスポーツ大会

On Wednesday, Fujimura had its sports day! After visiting the other school and seeing theirs, I was really excited and looking forward to Fujimura’s own sports day. I think the different types of activities and games were so interesting and fun, especially with the energy and spirit of Fujimura’s students. They were a lot different to the activities and games I was used to from my own high school but I think it was a lot more exciting! Kibasen, especially, was very different to any game played in New Zealand so I enjoyed watching it a lot. In New Zealand we had four different houses (teams) that every student is assigned when they start school, kind of like Hogwarts in Harry Potter! They were named after New Zealand trees: Kowhai (yellow), Matai (blue), Rimu (red), and Totara (green), and I was in Rimu. When we had our sports day, called Tabloids, we would compete to earn points for our house; so there would be a winner for sports day but at the end of the year all points would be counted to see who the overall winner would be. I wish our school was more like Hogwarts though! This year, at Fujimura, I was part of the blue team and I was very happy and proud of the students because… blue team won! I think it was really amazing to see, once again, how talented the students are! Although it started raining, everyone kept their spirits up and had a great time so it was nice to see both the students and teachers relaxed and having a lot of fun.

他校のスポーツ大会

Last Saturday, I was invited, by another JET Programme teacher, to visit her school for their sports day. I had never been to a sports day at a Japanese school before so I was excited to see what it would be like. It was also interesting because I have gotten used to being at an all-girls school but the other school was mixed. The boys reminded me a lot of the students at Fujimura because there was so much energy! It was really cool to see all the different activities, relays, and games the students did, but it was especially amazing to see their dance performances. I had two favourite performances. One was when some girls and their homeroom teachers all wore yukatas and danced with these wide flat hats they had made and decorated themselves. The second was the boys’ (very loud!) performance with taiko. Apparently the students had practiced a lot for sports day for a week or two before so it was nice to see it go well. At my school in New Zealand, we had two different sports days; one was called Athletics Day and the other was called Tabloids Day. Athletics Day was a little more “serious sports” but on Tabloids Day, everyone dressed up as anything they wanted, in their house colours (red, blue, green, or yellow), and we played fun games and relays to try get points for our houses! I’m looking forward to seeing how Fujimura’s sports day will be!

韓国系アメリカ人の友人来日

So far, I’ve been lucky enough to have my friends visit me and experience bits of Japan with them. On Sunday, I got to meet with my friend from LA and her sister. They are Korean but they were born in the U.S., so they took a trip to Korea for the first time and then they came to Japan, which they enjoyed a lot! It was really nice seeing her because she lives so far away from me that we can usually only talk online. We went to Meiji Shrine because they had not yet visited any temples or shrines. After that, we went to the Mori Art Museum in Roppongi. I have been there once before but this time there was a different exhibition. It was about Japanese architecture and woodwork, and it was really cool to see the model buildings; they were so detailed! There was one model of a building that was short, but it was really long, kind of like a rectangular tunnel. My friend told me to bend down so my eye was level with it and look through it, so I did! However, this other guy was doing the same thing on the other side so we ended up just staring at each other through the model of the building and then we both started laughing because it was so strange! After the museum, it became quite cold and it was raining a lot by then, so we chose to eat tonkotsu ramen which made us warm and happy, and made us forget the feeling of our wet socks and shoes!

名実ともにGW

The past week was Golden Week and I had one of my friends come to visit me from a different city in New Zealand. It was really nice because we hadn’t seen each other in quite a while so it was ironic that we managed to meet and be together on the other side of the world! She really wanted to stay in and around the Tokyo area and she’s originally from Sri Lanka so she thought it was cool to see the similarities and differences between two Asian countries. It was really fun to show her around some places I’d already been to, as well as do some new things I hadn’t done before. For example, I visited Odaiba for the first time even though it’s not so far away! It’s so interesting that Odaiba is man-made and we couldn’t believe all the things it had, especially the indoor theme parks; how does it all fit?! We also went to DisneySea which was really amazing, and we found out it’s the only one in the world! It was cool because my friend had never been to any Disneyland before so she was pretty excited (but not about waiting in the really long lines). One of the last days, we went to Enoshima and I was so happy to see the beach and the sea again! It was a really nice ending to a really nice week because as we walked back to the station alongside the sea, the sun set next to the silhouette of Fujisan, turning the sky gold; Golden Week truly lived up to its name!

江戸東京たてもの園

Last weekend I went to Koganei Park. It’s actually not far from me but I hadn’t visited before so I finally got the chance! I also went to the Edo-Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum which is in the park. At the museum, I read about the big earthquake and fires in the Kanto region that destroyed so many buildings and homes in Tokyo and how people rebuild it again. Looking at how Tokyo is now, it’s very difficult to imagine it all being destroyed! I was really interested in the museum because it was outside in the open and I don’t think I’ve been to a museum like that before; it was a new experience! It was really cool to walk around and see the old historical buildings and architectural styles, especially because you could walk inside some of the buildings and see the insides too. Unfortunately, I didn’t have enough time to see everything before closing time and the park is so big that I couldn’t see all of it too, so I must go back sometime! Until then, I’m looking forward to having some adventures with my friend from New Zealand during Golden Week and learning more about Japan!

日本語の学習

When I get time, I have been trying to study Japanese but I still have a long way to go! I wish I could learn faster because I really enjoy learning new languages and being able to speak to more people. There are a few Indian languages I know, but I never learned how to properly write them because I left India when I was quite young. It’s really interesting studying these different languages and teaching English too because there are many similarities and differences! For example, the pronunciation for 9 in Japanese is kyuu, which is also how you say ‘why’ in Hindi. The pronunciation of New Zealand also seems similar because both Japanese and Hindi use a ‘ji’ sound instead of the ‘z’ sound when pronouncing Zealand. Actually, I like Japanese pronunciation because the ‘r/l’ sound is much easier for me than a hard ‘r’ sound. I am reading a book that has both the original Italian version and the English translation and I find it so difficult to pronounce some of the words with the ‘r’ sounds!
Since I really love reading, I’ve also been trying to read a Japanese book and translating it but it takes SO much longer than reading a book in a language I know! Luckily, it really helps with kanji because that’s always the hardest part. However, as difficult as it can be sometimes, Japanese is a beautiful language and I will definitely keep studying and learning more even after I leave!

春休み

Recently, we had spring vacation. It was nice because of how busy last year was and my friend came to visit me from New Zealand. We didn’t get much sleep during the vacation time because we travelled so much, but it was very exciting so it’s okay! We went to Nagano to see the snow monkeys which was really cool! It was interesting to learn about them and how they live too. We also travelled around Kamakura, Yamanashi prefecture, went to Ueno Park for hanami and visited Disneyland! I’ve only been to Disneyland once before in Paris because there is no Disneyland that is close to New Zealand, so it was really fun. We also visited South Korea for a few days. We went to Seoul and Busan and I was so happy because the food was great and I was able to see the sea for the first time in a long time! Korea also had many sakura trees and they were in full bloom in Busan so we felt so lucky! We saw a lot of beautiful temples too. I’m very grateful I was able to travel like this because I think experiencing different countries and cultures is very important and educational! I hope I can take these memories with me as I go into the future!