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Reflections
on our trip
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| What I will treasure most about my trip to Hanno is… | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| What I will treasure most about my trip to Hanno is…the kindness and understanding of all the people I've been lucky to meet during my stay in Japan. Everyone I met in Japan was very kind, they all tried to help me with my Japanese, or to help me with my purchases or anything I was doing during my trip. I was able to meet lots of people who were all very interesting, and who enjoyed the little Japanese I spoke. I was able to communicate properly because people would step in to help me. I will always appreciate these kind people and appreciate what they taught me. ~A.J. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| What I will treasure most about my trip to Hanno is…all of the beautiful and interesting trips I took. I think that the trip to the canoe shop was a very fine experience. I never rode on a canoe until that very day. Also after the canoe trip, we went to the tea shop, and enjoyed making some tea. After that I guess we went to a museum. The day I went to Asakusa was also a very fine experience. I loved every shop we went in, and all the temples there were. And the trip to Edo Tokyo museum was very interesting, because they had very old things from the late 1800s. I want to come back to Japan. It's like a home to me. ~Diana | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| While in Japan I fell in love with their culture and the way they treat one another! They are so polite and make the best food. Who couldn't love it? It's an amazing place and if you're reading this, buy tickets to go to Japan now - you won't regret it. ~Anne | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| What I will treasure most about my trip to Hanno is…my home stay life. The family I was with was so generous. They always paid for my things and helped me carry things here and there. They made sure I was well fed (perhaps a little too much) and constantly asked if there was anywhere I wanted to go. The kids always wanted to play with me and the parents always made sure I knew what was going on around me. I learned so much from them I could never learn in Brea. My host mother was even willing to be scared to death for me so I could get a picture. So, I valued the family and the home stay life the most. ~ Patrick L. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| The impact of the places I went and the people that I met had on me. As I look back on what I did, I see that I look upon life differently. To see how kind and easygoing people are at home and how nice and accepting they are made me see that I shouldn't worry about everything and be concerned about what could happen. However, to see such a sense of duty and obligation to get things done also made me act less selfishly and to try and do things for others. The whole culture of Japan changed my perspective on life and how I could better myself. The environment of Japan is serene and calm, which made me seem at peace wherever I went and also made me see outside the California lifestyle most of us live by. It made me care more about obligations to friends and to responsibilities, and less about being cool or acting tough and trying to impress people. Maybe it wasn't this trip that taught me something, maybe I just finally saw something inside myself that made me wake up from my idealistic dream world that I saw myself in and couldn't see out. Going back on topic now, I will treasure my memories most. Meeting new people and being reunited with new-found friends is something unforgettable to me. I hope that I can learn from it and not just say that I did and change nothing after all. You can't be sure though, but one thing is sure is that I will be back… ~Nick | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Ikebukuro, it's the place to be." ~James | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| What I will treasure most about my trip to Hanno is…the relationship I had with my host family, and the fun times we had, and how close we became by the end of the week. I hope that I will be able to talk to them for years to come, and hopefully reunite with them in the future and have my family and my host family meet. I had a really awesome time and I wish I could do it all again and for longer. ~David | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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... the people, the memories I have of the people of Hanno. The trip was fun and the sightseeing was enjoyable, but meeting the people was the highlight. The friendships and memories I made will hopefully stay with me the rest of my life. ~Genevieve | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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What I will treasure most about my trip to Hanno is…the new friends and family I've gained through it all. I can't even express how important I feel now that I know I got to be a crucial part of someone's life, besides my mother. I think the most memorable part for me, although it's hard to say, is probably when I reached through the window of the bus for my host mother's hand. It had a very "Dumbo-ish" effect, like when Dumbo and Mrs. Jumbo meet when she is locked up in the cage. I'm going to miss them more than anything. ~Alex |  |
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| Namja town, the trippy-est place on earth. ~Nathan | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| What I will treasure most about my trip to Hanno is… is everything. This trip was so amazing. I will never ever forget it. Being able to live a life different from mine not only in cultural aspects but in getting to be with new people was wonderful. It really made me see what life outside of the "Brea bubble" could be like. I really loved experiencing the Japanese culture, from trying new foods to looking at Japan through the ages in a museum. I never stopped having fun. The best part, though, was the new people we got to meet and befriend. Through this trip, we made new friends every day and by the day's end, we were very close friends, even best friends. This was the best experience that I have ever had. I loved being able to stop my life for one week and live another life in Japan. I feel very fortunate that I got to come. ~Erika | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| I will definitely remember my host family the most, and how much fun we had together. Hanno was such a wonderful city, everything that we saw or did was amazing. My favorite day was the road trip to Mt. Fuji because I got to hang out with my family all DAY and I got to see a beautiful mountain. ~Carrie | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| I was supposed to start this by saying "what I will treasure most about my trip to Hanno is…" and then finish the sentence and continue writing from there. However, the sentence does not do justice toward what I gained from my trip. This trip to Hanno, Japan, was perhaps the best thing to happen to me. It gave me the chance to experience an entirely different culture and way of thinking. I learned that even though I cannot speak Japanese, I can communicate through friendship and kindness. Each event during the trip has inspired me to learn as much as possible about the Japanese culture and language and beyond. Even though we had a full schedule, the one week in Japan was not nearly long enough to see and to experience everything. I am going to treasure my memories of Japan and the friends I met there forever. Another reason as to why this was the best trip ever is because I have improved on myself in any ways. I was able to go to the other side of the world, into a foreign country, and still feel as if I was home. I now feel more confident as a person and more prepared for the future, whether it's in America, Japan or another country. It's hard to explain on paper how much this trip has done for me. I was told to keep my first impression and feeling of my stay in Japan in my mind, whether it was about different languages, customs, temperature or when Hanno was covered with snow when I got up one morning: such things I will always remember and will always cherish. ~Katrina | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| What I will treasure most about my trip to Hanno is…the loving care with which my host family treated me. I became a member of their family, and they mine. ~Lynn | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The most memorable thing that I will treasure from my trip to Hanno is definitely the friends that I've made. For the past ten days, I've encountered new friends, both from Brea and especially from Hanno. My host family was so kind and helpful to me and I will always have a place for them in my heart. As for friends from Brea, I got a great bond with existing friends and I've made new friends as well. I'm so glad that I went on this trip now because I would not have met them. My host brother was the best! He was really fun and I felt a bond right away when he was in Brea. I was happy and excited that I could stay with his family. I could now easily say that I have another family from Japan. My most happiest times in Hanno were twice when we were all together in one place. First, we went bowling. It was a blast. It was so much fun, all of us interacting with each other and meeting and getting to know people a lot better. I've taken so many great pictures of that day that I will never forget. The second most memorable thing was when we all got together to go to the karaoke place. It was so much fun. I normally won't sing in public, but I quickly warmed up. Just seeing everyone having so much fun made me feel very good. I had a great time in Japan overall. I made great friends and I plan and hopefully will see my family again. Thank you. ~ Patrick K. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| I know what I will treasure most about my trip to Hanno will be the friendships made on my stay. My already existing friends became so much stronger and deeper, while new friendships were made both with classmates as well as our families in Japan. Just being able to get away from the same routine everyday of working, obligations, friends and just anything that connected me to my life in America was put on pause for ten days so I could meet new family and lifelong friends. I feel that I can't have a deeper connection with my new friends and family than I do now. I will always know in my mind that I will have friends and family on the other side of the world. Not only have I created a deep connection with my own host family, but I have come to know and love everyone I have met on this trip. My friends' host families were infinitely kind and accepting to me and my friends. I still felt the warm love and care that radiates from a mother, the stern protective nature that comes from a father, and the strong connecting ties of a brother. Knowing that these connections can continue in a different country is very comforting. But this experience was not only felt by me, it was felt by every heart in our presence. And now when I am walking down the halls at school and I see one of my classmates that have also had the privilege to take this trip, they won't just get a nod to acknowledge their existence, they will receive a warm greeting that will demonstrate the connection we will always have, which grew from the amazing trip. Although certain details or memories from our trip may be forgotten, the loving care of our families in Japan and the pure and solid friendships created will always stay in our hearts, minds and souls forever. ~Chris | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| What I will treasure most about my trip to Hanno is…the friendships that were created. I truly feel like a part of the Monda family and I will never forget their kind hearts or smiling faces. I hope to continue my bond with them for a long time. I also hope that my new Hanno friends will visit soon. Also, for anyone who went on the trip: "Janai!" ~Nicole | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| What I will treasure most about my trip to Hanno is…are all the new friends I have gained. If it weren't for this program I would never met so many wonderful people. The Japanese are very polite and warmhearted. With my new connections in Japan, I will be able to return again and have a home to stay in and vice-versa with my host family. ~Jeff | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| What I will treasure most about my trip to Hanno is…the warmth and generosity of my host families and all those that made this trip possible. It was wonderful to see everyone get along so well with each other. All the Hanno people went out of their way to make sure we had a great time on our visit. ~ Laura | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| What I will treasure most about my trip to Hanno is…meeting my host family and getting to know them. Their kindness and generosity towards me blows me away even now. I will miss their happy faces and their positive attitude. I'll miss Kumiko and talking and singing with her. I miss them already. I'll treasure the fact that this is the first trip I've ever gone on that I really hated to leave. I'm so grateful for the opportunity to go, and I sincerely hope that one day I will go back and see them again. ~Jill | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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What I will treasure most about my trip to Hanno is…the openness with which our host families accepted us, and the things we share. Though thousands of miles may separate us, and our language and cultures are very different, we learned that we are not so different from one another after all. It seems people are people. We all laugh and smile, sing and dance, live and love. I will remember for the rest of my life the wonderful Akiyoshi and Ando families and my special time in Japan. ~Matt |
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| What I will treasure most about my trip to Hanno is…the opportunity to meet so many wonderful people. Everyday more people came out to help, guide and instruct us. Every night we were able to go "home" to even more wonderful people. I can still hear the laughter in my head and heart. ~Lori | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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