After around 24 hours of travel, the 2023 Sister City Culture Exchange and its adult and student delegation members arrived in Japan. We are very excited to take part in this year’s event and share it with you!  Today’s pics are on the flight to Tokyo, the bullet train to Nagoya, and seeing our students off with their host families.

After a great night’s sleep, the adult delegation visited sites along Kanie River. At the visitor center, we enjoyed fig curry and toured the museum to learn about the 400 year old Sunari Festival, which takes place in the summer.  We then crossed the river to the Tomiyoshi-Takehaya Shrine and Hachiken Shrine. After ringing the bells as a symbol of welcome, several members of the group left wishes and blessings at the main shrine. We were very lucky to go inside the Hackiken Shrine, which is open once a month to visitors. Then we took to the water on a boat tour and passed the Miyoshi Bridge and viewed shrines, homes, and factories. Once the river was a main thoroughfare for business and industry, but no longer with the use of road and rail. We also briefly connected with the students at the visitor center!

Our next stop was at the Kanie City Hall. There we met with Mayor Yokoe and had a wonderful 30 minute conversation with him, the Vice Mayor Kati, and the Superintendent of education Hattori. We discussed the civic and educational systems in both of our areas and appreciated the similarities and learned about the differences. After visiting the Kanie Bench, a gift from Marion that was delivered in 2020 by our wonderful AISIN partners, we visited the city council chambers (where Mayor Absher will speak tomorrow) and then enjoyed a hot spring foot soak at a local community park. In the evening, we rejoined the students and members of Kanie City Hall in a welcome celebration. Guests included city council members, members of the community, Kanie Chamber of Commerce staff, and many past Sister City delegation members. Both mayors spoke and the delegation introduced themselves. After a toast to celebrate the ongoing Sister City program, we enjoyed great food and traditional Japanese musical as we made new friends!

Today started out with rain, which brought out the vivid green of the hotel garden. The adult delegation was honored to be part of the Kanie City Council meeting Thursday morning, where both Mayor Absher and Kanie Mayor Yokoe were able to speak to the 14 member council about the Sister city program and the values both communities share. Fellow sister city delegates were able to introduce themselves as well And the council was impressed by our dedication to the program. Afterwards with umbrellas in hand, we headed over to the Kanie junior high. At the junior high, we met with the principal, the vice principal, and later, the superintendent of education to learn more about the day-to-day schedules and programs at the school. We were able to see members of the student delegation participate in classes - including PE (which some members of the adult delegation couldn’t help but join in the games), English, and math.

The junior high educational system is very different from what we are used to in the American school system. Students take part in keeping the school spaces tidy (no janitors) and learn basic life skills like Home Economics as part of their normal curriculum. They can also take part in various extracurricular clubs and programs, which all end around the same time to allow students to walk or bike home together in groups (few parents do car drop off or pick up). During the final year of junior high, students and their teachers prep for entrance exams to a variety of different high schools programs. Some focus on academics/university prep and others on trades or business certifications.

After a traditional Japanese lunch, members of the delegation took part in a pickle tour, which spotlighted the wide variety of pickled products found in Japan from the traditional, pickled cucumber to other items like cheese and corn. The group enjoyed sampling different products and widening their perspective on the possibilities of pickling. Afterwards the group visited a metalworks shop where items are repaired and re-purposed. Recycling is a huge part of the Japanese culture.

We ended the evening with a celebration of the Sister City program with the Mayor, his wife, staff, and the Sister City adult delegates. We enjoyed traditional Japanese dishes, sashimi, sushi, and traditional gift exchanges. Members of the delegation were excited to try their hand at making sushi with a trained master.

We cannot say enough how gracious and kind the Kanie Sister City staff have been during our visit. 

Today we met with the Kanie Sister City team on thoughts and plans for the 2024 visit and 2025 trip. We then went to the Water/Sewer office to learn more about their water systems. (The fancy manhole cover is at the office, but all manhole covers are branded with the city logo).

Afterwards, we swung by the elementary school to pick up the student delegates and went to the Kanie Wave facility to see how school lunches are prepared. This facility preps around 3600 lunches for the elementary schools, jr high, and several day cares. Like in the school setting, the students served the guests and fellow students. After lunch, we headed to the AISIN international plant outside of Nagoya. We were able to tour the facility, learn more about the production systems, and brought back well wishes from employees who have spent time at our Marion facility.

On returning to Kanie, we visited the community center and did a formal tour of the City Hall with the Kanie Mayor Yokoe. In the evening we had a great meal with the policy and promotion department and got to know staffers who are new to the Sister City program.

At this point in the trip, the adult delegation moved its homebase to Nagoya. Nagoya is a city of 1.6 million people close by and it’s really interesting to see the hustle and bustle. After breakfast, the group returned back to Kanie for a tour of the Kankyo Mirin factory, which produces Mirin and sake. These products are derived from rice(!) and are very common in Japanese cooking and enjoyment. It was really interesting to see the year long process to create mirin and talk with the owner who is the seventh generation at that location.

After a tasting at the factory, the group headed over to the Kanie library to check out their Sister City exhibit. This permanent exhibit includes information about Marion, highlights from the program, and presentations from the students who traveled to Marion. The Library is beautiful and we interacted with the citizens and were pleased to see many books that we were familiar with translated into Japanese.

For lunch, we were taken to a restaurant that focus on sushi and other traditional Japanese food, but it is delivered to your table by a conveyor. After ordering on the touchscreen, your food would arrive within minutes.

After lunch, we were able to do some shopping in Kanie and back in Nagoya. The multi floor mall was very crowded and featured many shops - featuring familiar products with a Japanese flare. It’s interesting to see the amount of Western influence in their products and style. For dinner, we went to a pancake restaurant. But instead of pancakes like we think of pancakes, the batter included cabbage, vegetables, and meat. When mixed, it was poured onto a hot griddle in the center of the table. One of the Kanie Sister city staffers was very kind to show us how it was done and many of us took a hand at flipping the large pancakes.

Today, the adult delegation journeyed to the Nagoya Castle. This complex served the Japanese nobility system since before the 16th century. Although the complex was heavily damaged during World War II, the government, citizens, and businesses have worked to fund various reconstruction projects to return the buildings to their original state. The internal wall-hangings within the reception spaces were awe inspiring and a testament to long standing artisan traditions. We were also able to witness a samurai demonstration.

After lunch, we went to the Toyota museum, where we learned about the long history of their company and it’s surprising origins in the textile industry. From automated looms to automated automotive manufacturing it was very insightful and interesting to watch how these industries developed to meet the needs of the Japanese people.

The student delegates have had a great time with their host families, and spent their last full day in Japan at the aquarium and various other locations. We all had an early night to prepare for the long journey home. This has been a great trip and we deeply appreciate the staff at Connie for their time and effort to make us feel at home over the past week.

The last day of the Sister City experience involved tearful goodbyes for a truly memorable experience. After a long and uneventful 30 hour travel day, we returned to Marion with a greater appreciation of the Sister City experience and we look forward to working on the exchange in 2024 and 2025!