Japan Trip Part 2

The second leg of my trip started from day five. After a buffet breakfast, I was one of the fortunate few to receive a maple leaf from Auntie Jude. Ironically, I lost it further along the trip. Soon, we arrived at our destination which is the 5th station of Mount Fuji. I bought a key chain and magnet of Mount Fuji as souvenirs. Alas, I was caught in a heavy downpour on the way back to the bus. We visited the famous Asakusa Kannon Temple, which worships the Goddess of Mercy. On the way back, along the Nakamise Shopping Street, my friend and I shared a bag of red bean pastries. They were heavenly when eaten warm. After that, we visited the Ghibli Museum which is a commercial museum featuring the anime works of Studio Ghibli. It was very small and did not have very many things of interest. A bit of an anti-climax really. We ate a tepanyaki dinner. And that marks the end of the 5th day.

The next day, we prepared ourselves for the next school visit at Tsukubadai Fuzoku Secondary School. Unfortunately, together with almost all of my schoolmates, I did not bring a school uniform and made the mistake of wearing cotton clothes during the visit to this esteemed school. We were split into three groups upon arrival and each group went to observe separate classes. My group observed a lesson on maths. Following that, we tried our hand at solving a secondary three maths brainteaser. Later, we visited the Tokyo University. I had a hearty lunch of chicken with shredded vegetables and curry rice. We toured red gate (Akamon), Sanshiro pond (Ikutokuen), Yasuda Auditorium and Chuo Refectory. We also saw 3 cute Lego models of the university. That afternoon, we walked the streets of Harajuku which had a large variety of goods for sale. And that marks the conclusion of the 6th day of my trip.

On the last day of our trip, we took photos of a park while waiting for lunch. We had chicken, toufu, vegetables, soup and rice for lunch. After that, prizes were given out for those who wrote the top 10 reflections. I was one of the fortunate few to receive a prize. Following that, we went to the Singapore Embassy. We toured the place and took photos of the beautiful scenery. We learnt more about the embassy such as its duty to inform Singaporeans of any natural disasters. We went to a shopping mall where I bought two boxes of chocolate mozhi and a box of green tea mozhi. Finally, we arrived at Narita International airport, cleared the customs and boarded the aeroplane for home. We arrived in Singapore at 1.40pm on 19th November 2008. I found this trip very meaningful as I have learnt many things from the history of Japan's famous monuments and how the Singapore embassy is run. I hope that I will be fortunate enough to enjoy another trip to Japan. During the trip I have learnt to be more independent as well as to value and take care of the environment. And with that, I conclude my blog on my Japan trip.