Young Kiwis To Fulfil Lifelong Dreams in Japan

Young Kiwis To Fulfil Lifelong Dreams in Japan

Media Release from the Embassy of Japan, Wellington, New Zealand

Six young Kiwis will be fulfilling lifelong dreams next month when they travel to Japan for a cultural exchange to explore what the country has to offer.

Erica Brooke, 19 of Masterton, and Ryan McIntyre, 18 of Palmerston North, are two members of the Kiwi contingent. They were among 62 students selected from Austral-Asian universities to spend six weeks deepening their knowledge of Japanese language, culture and society.

Erica has hosted five Japanese exchange students since the age of ten – and dreams of one day becoming a translator.

“I enjoy learning Japanese because it helps me connect with people from a different culture,” she says. “This exchange will help me hone my Japanese skills which I will need to become a translator in the future. The best thing about studying Japanese is being able to speak directly with people from another country.”

Ryan says his love affair with Japan began early. “I have been captivated by all things Japanese since I first heard romanticised stories about the near-mythical abilities of the ninja!” he says.

He is now interested in the similarities between how Japanese and English are spoken. “What is it that allows English and Japanese, traditionally such polar opposites, to have so many similarities in modern society?”

The Kiwi contingent arrives in Osaka on 9 June and begins with an intensive course at the Japan Foundation Japanese Language Institute. They will experience Japanese culture first hand by trying tea ceremony, kimono-wearing and traditional taiko drums. They will also undertake a week-long study trip to Tokyo, Kyoto and Hiroshima during which they will complete a home-stay with a Japanese family.

The all-expenses-paid cultural exchange programme is funded by the Japanese Government and is part of the Japan-East Asia Network of Exchange of Students and Youth (JENESYS) Programme. It is offered three times a year and is aimed at university students majoring in Japanese language. Interested candidates can apply through the Embassy of Japan in Wellington.

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