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| Japanese students from Kumamoto Prefecture's Luther Junior and Senior High School wave as they arrive at the Incheon International Airport's Terminal 1 for a five-day field trip in Jeonju and Seoul, Tuesday. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul |
By Lee Hae-rin
Japanese students came to Korea on a field trip for the first time in three years, Tuesday, signaling a renewal of the cultural exchanges between the younger generations of the two countries.
Thirty-seven students and two teachers from Luther Junior and Senior High School in Kumamoto Prefecture arrived at Incheon International Airport for a five-day visit.
They will first participate in an exchange program with students of Shinheung High School in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province, Wednesday. The students of the two high schools will attend classes together and share meals. They also plan to visit Jeonju Hanok Village as well.
On Thursday, they will move to Seoul and visit the capital's key tourist attractions, including the shopping and fashion district Myeong-dong, Gyeongbok Palace and Lotte World amusement park.
Upon their arrival, the students were welcomed by a greeting ceremony held by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO). During the welcoming ceremony, the Japanese students were greeted by people dressed in Korean traditional uniforms and also received souvenir gift boxes from the KTO that featured a tumbler, key chain and stationery.
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| Natsume Hiraoka, left, 17, from Japan's Luther Junior and Senior High School, receives flowers from Choi Su-jie, the youth adviser to the culture minister during the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO)'s welcoming ceremony at Incheon International Airport, Tuesday. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul |
"During this trip, you will visit Seoul and Jeonju," Yang Kyung-soo, the director of the KTO's Japan team, said in Japanese. "Please make unforgettable memories in Korea and come back again."
"I am very excited to be here and thank you for the attention and greeting," Natsume Hiraoka, 17, said. "I am especially excited to meet new friends at Shinheung High School and visit the shopping area in Myeong-dong."
Hiraoka said she had chosen to visit Korea instead of going to the United States because she is a big fan of Korean culture and Korean dramas and her interest in Korean culture has led her to study the Korean language.
"We are here to encourage the new beginning of the exchange between Korea and Japan's future generations," said Choi Su-jie, the youth adviser to the culture minister. "I think we are already connected by culture … I hope the friendships with your new friends in Jeonju will become the new future of the two countries."
Japan started sending students on field trips to Korea in 1972. The tourism exchange had boomed with as many as 40,000 per year traveling to Korea in the early 2000s, according to Jung Na-ri, the deputy director at the KTO's Japan team. However, the exchanges halted in 2020 due to the pandemic.
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| Students and teachers from Japan's Luther Junior and Senior High School pose with Korean culture ministry's youth advisors during a welcoming ceremony to mark the return of Japanese field trips to Korea at Incheon International Airport, Tuesday. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul |
Starting with Luther High School, more Japanese schools are expected to send students on field trips to Korea, Jung added. Around 800 more students from 10 Japanese middle and high schools are already willing to come to Korea so far, according to the KTO Japan team's year-long survey.
In celebration of the 2023 Visit Korea Year, the tourism exchanges between the two countries will accelerate, as the K-Tourism Road Show will be held in April in five Japanese cities: Tokyo, Osaka, Fukuoka, Hiroshima and Nagoya.
"Future generations are the future of Korea and Japan. The field trip of 37 students is a small start, but a start to opening a future-oriented Korea-Japan relationship," Culture Minister Park Bo-gyun said. "To greet the new era for Korea-Japan relationships, we need to create more exchange opportunities where the future generations can play major roles."
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| Students from Luther Junior and Senior High School wave as they enter the Terminal 1 of Incheon International Airport, Tuesday. It is the first field trip to Korea by Japanese students in three years, which has been suspended since 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul |
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