Keimei Gakuen High School

Today we visited a private high school in Japan called Keimei. Keimei is a school that has an international focus. They have sister cities around the world.

We observed classes and met with teachers. Several of the parents had tea and snack for us. We were able to ask the parents many questions.

For lunch, we had a discussion with several of the international students. It was interesting to hear how the international students compared Japanese schools to other schools around the world.

At the end of the day, some of the mothers put on a tea ceremony for us in their traditional Japanese-style building that is over 100 years old. All of the women wore kimonos. It took them about four hours to prepare for the ceremony.

When I got back to the hotel, I had dinner with Ichitaka, the program coordinator for International Internship Programs – the organization through which Akiko is coming to the U.S. He is a great person and is very knowledgeable about U.S. schools because he went through International Internship Programs himself. We had a good discussion and a wonderful meal. I tried squid – both the tentacles and the body as well as shark fin!!