スミス英会話鶴橋校講師が書いた記事。日本語のメインサイトはこちら
To see a cool video of our trip please click HERE
ビデオはこちら
One of our students, Yoshio, has an incredible knowledge of both the history and geography of the Kansai region. He is forever hiking around various areas in his quest to see and experience new places and people. So when we decided to have another Smith’s School of English, Tsuruhashi big day out, we turned to Yoshio for guidance as to where we should visit.
He suggested a hiking trip throughout the township of Asuka in Nara. The students were all in favor of going to Asuka as it seemed that although they had been there before, most of them had not been there since their high school days.
We boarded the Yoshino bound train at Abenobashi station and got off at picturesque Asuka station, where we instantly noticed how quiet and peaceful it was compared to the bustle of Osaka. Even though this was a Sunday, there were not a lot of tourists. We exited the station and ventured out into the myriad of pathways, valleys, tombs, bamboo forests and viewpoints that make up the beautiful and historic township of Asuka.
We hiked for a total of 12 kilometers through breathtaking scenery and were constantly informed and educated about Asuka’s deep historical importance by Yoshio and another Nara lover, Shiro.
Our team of both coaches and students interacted superbly and we all had so much fun developing new friendships, knowledge and language skills.
We stopped off at a restaurant for a delicious lunch and the owner then proceeded to educate us further on the history of the region and the origins of the name “Asuka”. In our next blog, our student Shiro has kindly volunteered to give an account in both English and Japanese as to what the owner said.
I, for one will certainly revisit Asuka in the near future as it was such a rewarding experience to stroll through such beautiful countryside with new found friends.
At the end of the day we all went our separate ways feeling both extremely content and tired, but in anticipation of the answer to our next question which will be, “Hey Yoshio, where to next?”
Wherever it will be, it will continue to strengthen my belief in what is good about teaching and living in Japan, and being a part of the Smith School of English system.
On behalf of Mike, I would like to say thanks to our team of students for making it such an enjoyable experience.
Till next time,
Paul – Team member
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