Thanks to their first place finish in the regional Japan Bowl competition, Nicholas '22, Bruce ' 22 and Lachlan '22 along with Breun sensei were invited to travel to Japan on a government sponsored trip called the Kakehashi Project.

With other regional winning teams and the national champions, they have the chance to spend 8 days in Japan. Starting in Tokyo, they visited the office of the Prime Minister and had a chance to be in the room where national press conferences take place. They met with the Secretary of Public Affairs, Shikata Noriyuki and had a chance to learn about Japanese government policies. Next, they went to the detached palace of the imperial family to meet Princess Takamodo.

On day two they visited the American Embassy and learned about careers in foreign service. Time was also spent touring around Tokyo with stops at the Imperial Palace gate, electronics/anime district of Akihabara, Meiji Shrine and Harajuku. They as visited Kanazawa Prefecture, known for the craft of gold leaf application, Kanazawa Castle and numerous temples and shrines.

"The talk given by secretary Shikata was memorable to me. It was fascinating to learn about the policy goals of the new PM, who has really put sustainable and green economic development at the forefront of his agenda. Despite the pretty heavy subject matter, Shikata-san kept his speech light and humorous. I got to ask a question about immigration into Japan, which I think is an issue that tends to be personally relevant to Japanese learners like us!" - Lachlan '22