SELF - INTRODUCTION Fiechter Diane (2004)Let me introduce Taikyu High School Renee Hendriks (2003)
SELF - INTRODUCTION Fiechter Diane
SELF - INTRODUCTION Fiechter Diane (2004)Let me introduce Taikyu High School Renee Hendriks (2003)
SELF - INTRODUCTION On my first day at school, I was very surprised because about 40 students stayed in one class but in Geneva we're only about 20. To understand some classes was difficult for me because I didn't speak Japanese fluently. But now I have a special schedule, so it's all right.
In Japan, after school the students go to the club activities. I'm in the Track and Field club. It's very hard for me to follow my teammates. All the members run very fast and for a very long time. I try to follow them but I can't. I'm too bad! In Switzerland, we don't have some club activities. I always do sailing and play the violin.
Japanese school and Swiss school are very different. In Geneva, I take the tramway to go to school every day because I live in a city. Our school starts at about 8 a.m. and ends at about 5 p.m. After that, we do some activities, but not at school. During the lunch time, we can go back home if we have time. We don't wear a school uniform and don't have any school songs.
Before coming to Japan, I thought that Japan was a very flat country but it was false because in Wakayama they have really many mountains. Yuasa town in Wakayama is an area which is famous for oranges and soy sauce. I like Wakayama because I can stay near the ocean and it is easy to go swimming when it's too hot in summer. It is just like in Geneva because we have a big lake where I go often with my friends.
I think that the Japanese people are very good drivers. Though the streets in Japan are really very "Semai", they can go through them very skillfully. They also use the train a lot. In Switzerland we use the tramway but sometimes there are so many people on it, then I take my bicycle. It is a big change for me because Geneva is a very big city and very anime(busy) there being many people on the streets. But Yuasa is in countryside and very still.
I think that the people in Yuasa are very nice and very kind to me. They want me to feel always good. Sometimes it's difficult to be an exchange student because of the differences of the culture but I'm really very happy to stay in Japan for one year.
I think it is a good experience!
The classes are very hard for me to understand, because I can't
speak Japanese fluently, but I got a special schedule, so that I can understand most of
the classes. That way, I also meet a lot of new people and I have made a lot of friends
since I am at Taikyu high school. At first I could only speak in English with them, but I
studied Japanese a lot, so I can speak in Japanese with them now. Most of the teachers
are very nice as well, but I don't know all of them of course. I get Japanese classes in the
library for about three times a week. I practice kanji, words and grammar with the help
of 4 different teachers. After school I go to club. I belong to the singing club. We
practiced very hard for the school festival and I think we did very well!!! With the
members of the singing club and the teacher we sometimes go to events in Wakayama
city, or some place else. At my school in The Netherlands there are no clubs at school. I
am very busy with studying, but I do join clubs like Jazz-dance and singing classes. My school in The Netherlands is very different from Taikyu high school. For one thing, it's
much bigger, there are 1500 students at my school. In each class are about 30 students,
sometimes less. Every day I go to school there by bike. It takes about 20 minutes. I go to
school in the city, because I live in a very small village. The population is about 3500
people, but it is a very beautiful village. Near my house runs a large river and in
summer my dog can go swimming there. There are also a few restaurants, grocery shops and a hotel. Even though it is a small village, there are always people on the streets, so
if I go for a walk, I always meet people I know. That is one of the differences between my
village in The Netherlands and for example Yuasa. When I first came to Wakayama I
was very surprised, because there are mountains and orange-fields everywhere. In The
Netherlands it is too cold to grow oranges. I also think that the streets in small villages
like Yuasa are sometimes very narrow. The streets in Wakayama city are very large.
What I like about Yuasa is that the ocean is so close. You can see it from the fourth floor of the school building. If I want to go to the ocean in The Netherlands, it takes about
three hours by car so in summer I go to a pool with my friends. It takes about 45
minutes to get there by bike. I think Wakayama is very beautiful. I have also been to
Nara and Mie-ken, but I like Wakayama much better, because for one thing, there are no
orange-fields and no ocean there. People in Japan use the train a lot. In The
Netherlands we don't, because it is expensive and there are special streets for bicycles,
so everybody goes to different places by bike (or by car.) My impressions and opinion
about Wakayama and the people who live there are very positive. I will be here for about
3 months from now and I am certain that they will be as nice as the former 7 months.
An Overseas Student's Room
Let me introduce Taikyu High School
My name is Renee Hendriks and I am 16 years old. I am an exchange student in Japan
from March until January. I am in first grade in Taikyu high school (1-7) and I really
like Taikyu high school.
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