During spring vacation, I visited the Institute for Mythological Studies (Shinwa Gaku Kenkyujo), which is directed by Professor Mizuho Okita. While there, we read some books about mythology. The first book was the Bible, and the second book was How to Read World Mythology (Sekai no Shinwa wo Dou Yomu ka). During our breaks, we enjoyed chatting with each other while munching on snacks. Thank you for listening.

During spring break, I went on a trip to Hokkaido.

On the first day, I ate a caramel soft-serve ice cream from Hanabatake Farm and a butter soft-serve made with Tokachi-grown “Inka no Mezame” potatoes at 新千歳空港 (New Chitose Airport). After that, I visited the Snow Miku shop and bought many Snow Miku goods. At night, I went to the さっぽろ雪まつり (Sapporo Snow Festival), where I saw impressive snow and ice sculptures and enjoyed eating squid rice and buttered potatoes from the food stalls.

On the second day, I visited 旭山動物園 (Asahiyama Zoo) and saw bears and wolves. I also enjoyed interacting with rabbits, goats, and sheep. For dinner, I ate miso butter ramen. After that, I went to the Asahiyama Snow Festival and saw beautiful ice sculptures, which left a strong impression on me.

On the third day, I visited 博物館 網走監獄 (Abashiri Prison Museum) and learned about the history of the old prison and what life was like there in the past. I also tried “prison food,” which recreates the meals actually served at Abashiri Prison today. The meal included saury, miso soup, and dried daikon radish. It was delicious and felt luxurious, almost like a school lunch.

On the fourth day, I experienced a drift ice walk in 知床 (Shiretoko) and actually walked on the drift ice. I also ate a delicious hamburger at a newly opened hamburger restaurant and had an aburi yellowtail rice bowl at a seafood restaurant. At the guesthouse, I enjoyed healthy and delicious meals. The owner of the guesthouse was very kind to me and even took me on a drive, which became a wonderful memory.

I was able to experience Hokkaido’s unique history and nature and enjoy a lot of delicious food, making it a very fun and memorable trip.

I went to Kyoto with my family during spring break. In Kyoto, I visited Kinkaku-ji Temple and Kiyomizu-ji Temple. At both of them, I was able to experience Japanese culture, and the scenery was beautiful. The dumplings I ate on the way were delicious. I was able to spend time with my family for the first time in a while, and it was a very fun trip.

I went to my hometown during spring vacation.

My hometown is Azumino City in Nagano. Azumino is famous for its wasabi and clean water. Both were very delicious.

While I was there, I met my friend. We went to a cafe in Matsumoto City, which is next to Azumino. There are many cafes, bakeries, and soba restaurants in Matsumoto. However, I am allergic to soba, so I cannot eat it.

Azumino and Matsumoto were very cold, so I needed a scarf. Despite the cold, I still recommend traveling there.

During spring break, I went to the movie theater to watch The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants.

In the story, SpongeBob embarks on a grand adventure through the Land of the Dead with a pirate to find his courage and grow into a mature adult. The heartwarming friendship between SpongeBob and his best friend, Patrick, was a particular highlight.

My Trip to Hakkeijima Sea Paradise

My favorite place is Hakkeijima Sea Paradise in Yokohama. It has four aquariums, a zoo, an amusement park, and many restaurants. It is located near Hakkeijima Station on the Seaside Line.

I went there on November 4th. First, I bought a Rinze Morino acrylic stand and a medal plate. She is a character from The Idolmaster: Shiny Colors. I paid 6,050 yen for them.

Next, I went to the aquariums and saw penguins, sharks, crabs, jellyfish, dolphins, and more. They were wonderful! My favorites were the dolphins because they are so cute.

For lunch, I ate omelette rice and a salad, and I drank iced tea and apple juice at a restaurant. They were delicious!

I want to go there again. Have you ever been there? You should go! You’ll be very happy. Thank you for reading.

My Trip to Ueno

I visited many museums during my spring vacation. The most interesting museum was the National Museum of Nature and Science in Ueno. They display exhibits on natural history and the history of science and technology. Since I like nature and animals, I had a lot of fun.

The museum houses the most famous dog in Japan, Hachiko. The real Hachiko is a little large and very cute. There are also many dinosaur fossils. Actually, I don’t like dinosaurs, but they were so big and looked cool.

Additionally, they held a special exhibition called “The Dangerous Creatures.” It displayed a massive bear and a huge whale. I was very interested in the dangerous creatures.

The National Museum of Nature and Science is nearby the Ueno Zoo, so I went to the Ueno Zoo as well. Unfortunately, there were no pandas. I only saw the panda house. It was really sad, but I was able to see my favorite animal, the flamingo. So, I was satisfied.

When you visit the National Museum of Nature and Science, I highly recommend visiting the Ueno Zoo afterward.

From last year to this year, I went back to my parents’ house in Miyazaki for the New Year holidays. My grandparents always welcome me warmly whenever I come back. My mother doesn’t express her joy out loud, but she always says “Welcome home!” with a smile.

The 10 days I spent in Miyazaki were very meaningful.

My grandmother’s cooking was delicious. I also got to meet the dog and cat that my parents keep at home. I was able to talk a lot with my mother about my memories of job hunting and university life.

I was also very happy to meet my great-grandmother, who turned 102 this year. When I said, “I’m home!” to her, she smiled and replied, “Honoka-chan, welcome home.” I was glad to see that she was doing well.

We all ate dinner together as a family, watched end-of-year TV programs, and ate my grandmother’s ozoni and other simmered dishes for New Year’s.

I’m very happy that I was able to spend such a fulfilling and enjoyable New Year’s holiday.

I will be graduating from Wako University in March of this year. Even after I start working, I would like to make time to go back to Miyazaki to see my family’s smiling faces!

I had many experiences during this winter vacation. First, my bike got a flat tire while I was delivering food, so I couldn’t work my part-time job for a while. However, this allowed me to spend some quality time with my family.

A friend of mine also returned from a business trip. They told me how tough work has been lately, and they looked very tired. I am just glad they are still doing well, both mentally and physically.

After New Year’s Day, I went to Yamanashi with my friends. It was the highlight of my vacation. Yamanashi is a beautiful place where you can see Mt. Fuji from almost everywhere. We also visited a large lake called Lake Yamanaka. We ate so much delicious food and drank local sake that I ended up gaining three kilograms!

On the night of our return to Tokyo, it snowed heavily in Yamanashi. Our car didn’t have snow tires, which was a bit scary. We had to drive very slowly, but luckily, we made it home safely.

During winter vacation, I went to my hometown church on January 1st! I listened to the priest’s sermon and joined in with the singing. However, I only knew a few of the hymns because I hardly ever go there (lol), but it was still a lot of fun!

Visiting a Zoo

by Willow 黄栢然

During the winter vacation, I visited Tama Zoological Park and watched so many animals.

I thought about the differences between these animals and their wild ancestors. The zoo, as a man-made environment, affects the animals’ behavior, appearance, and way of life to some extent, and these differences left a strong impression on me.

Besides these animals, we also saw many interesting creatures in the insect house and the bird areas. The animal that impressed me the most was the koala. I had never imagined that real koalas were so large, and just like in documentaries, they like to hold onto trees while resting, which was very memorable.

In addition, we saw some visitors riding the lion bus and observed lions, known as the “king of animals,” from a very close distance. It must be a rare and amazing experience. Next to the lion area was the cheetah area, which has my favorite animals ----------cheetah. These friendly cats were just as handsome as I had imagined. The cheetahs at Tama Zoological Park were very used to people and even came closer so that we could watch them, which also left a deep impression on me.

Universal Studios Japan（USJ）

By Mai Bandō

My favorite place to visit is Universal Studios Japan, also known as USJ, in Osaka.

I love to learn about the behind-the-scenes and behind-the-scenes of movies, so the "dive into the world of movies" concept is exactly what tickles my fancy. I go about four times a year, and of course I get an annual pass.

 Favorite attraction? If you ask me...I can't pick one! To be honest, I love them all.

 The attractions are not the only thing I enjoy about USJ. Every time I go, I always have pizza at the restaurant from the movie "The Godfather". It's also delicious!

 And at USJ, for some reason, The Beatles songs are played and flowers named after The Beatles songs are planted. As a Beatles lover, I feel like I'm getting something out of this.

 Someday, I would like to visit Universal Studios outside of Japan.

My favorite place is Metropolitan Express Way. We call it Shuto-ko. It’s in central Tokyo.

Usually, I like to drive around C1 route at night and I can see Tokyo tower, Skytree, Rainbow Bridge, and Electric city of Tokyo. Also, I play cool music loudly. That route connects the same way. I can unlimitedly drive around with one toll.

Sometimes, there are cool cars. For example, sports cars, the famous cars which are Fast Furious ones, and Yankee’s cars like Shako-tan.

So, when I am bored or want to go somewhere, I am going to drive with a beautiful person in the passenger seat. Let’s say, Tokyo drifts.

by 23G005 池田聡太郎/Ikeda Sotaro

My favourite place is Hakkeijima Sea Paradise in Yokohama. There are four aquariums, a zoo, an amusement park, and restaurants. It's near Hakkeijima Station on the Seaside Line. 

I went there on November 4th. First, I bought Morino Rinze's acrylic stand and medal plate. She is an Idol master of shiny colours. I paid 6050 yen. Next, I went to aquariums, and I watched penguins, sharks, crabs, jellyfish, dolphins, and more. They were so nice. I like dolphins the best there. Because they're so cute! At lunch I ate omelette rice and salad while I drank iced tea and apple juice in the restaurant. They are so delicious! I want to go there again.

Have you ever been there? You should go there!! You’ll be happy!!

Seven Pets

by Honoka Takumi

At my parents' house in Miyazaki, we keep many animals.

I have five cats and two dogs. We have seven pets.

Cats have different personalities, including energetic, quiet, and kind ones. When I get home, I sleep with the cats.

I have two dogs: a bulldog, and an Akita. The Akita is especially close to me. He is very energetic and loves going for walks, so whenever I am at my parents' house, I always go for walks with him.

My parents' house in Miyazaki is far away, so I do not get to see them often, but I want to take care of them a lot when I get back.

They are really very, very cute.

A Friendly Place

by Kota Takei

Do you have university friends? Is there a place where you can play?

When I was a first grader, I had only one friend at my university. I did not have the chance to talk much with other students; I was always alone.

In the fall of that year, I joined two university ‘circles’ (clubs) because I wanted to have friends. The first was a board game club. I enjoyed that club but I stopped being active in the summer. The second was a club for overcoming loneliness. But the activities of that club did not suit me very well and I stopped going.

So, I decided to create my own ‘circle.’ With the help of my friends, I was able to create it in April. The name is “Friendly Place.” In this club, we hold board games, karaoke, badminton, video games, and others. We also hold events online.

This ‘circle’ has made my university life more fulfilling. Now, we have a total of thirty-seven members. If you are looking for friends and a place to play, please join us!  

by 23T017 Takumi Awakura 粟倉拓実

I would like to introduce my sister.

She is sixteen years old. She has a bright personality. Her hobbies are singing and dancing. She loves dancing to K-pop music. For example, she enjoys dancing to the music of Twice, Le Serafim, and many others. She is good at dancing.

Text and Photos by 富平大成

My hobby is watching football. Especially, I like the English Premier League.

Among them, I support Tottenham Hotspur.

This team's manager is Ange Postecoglou, who managed Yokohama F-Marinos in Japan a few years ago. So, he is very familiar to me.

My most favourite player is Heung-Min Son from South Korea, who is the best Asian player and one of the best players in the world.

He became the first Asian player to be the top scorer in the Premier League three seasons ago.

At the end of July, Spurs will come to Japan for the first time in thirty years. I'm planning to go to the stadium to watch them.

I want the autographs of Son, Maddison, Werner, Brennan, Porro, Udogie, Kulusevski, and various players.

I can't wait to watch their performance in the stadium.

Every young little boy loves toys and hero movies or some exciting things. For me, I love Japanese TV programs. In these bangumis, we can know many things that we have never seen before in China, for example, my favourite hero – the Ultraman (ウルトラマン. I have watched it for over 18 years. Ultraman is just like the superman who protects Japan islands and the whole world. Their bodies are red and silver or blue. And when they stood up, it was as high as a skyscraper. Their enemy is the bad alien or kaiju who want to destroy the earth. Although Ultraman can only move on Earth for three minutes, when they cross their hands in a cross position, they will unleash an incredibly powerful deadly skill - the Specium beam (スペシウム光線） 

As mentioned earlier, Ultraman can only be active on Earth for three minutes, so they need to be possessed by humans to reside on Earth for a long time. Therefore, in television, whenever an emergency arises, the intelligent and brave protagonist always comes forward to solve the problem. When a monster appears and the situation is irreparable, they will take out props to transform into Ultraman.

In China, Ultraman is a well-known hero from Japan, and over 95% of Chinese people know his name. This is a TV series that has been airing since 1966 and continues to be aired today. And I am very proud that I have watched all of Ultraman's TV dramas and movies and know all of Ultraman's names and stories at my fingertips. In 2024, a new Ultraman TV called Ultraman Ark (pictureNo.5, and I will continue to watch them.

It was this great hero who became something I loved in my childhood. From then on, I developed a strong interest in Japan, especially in its cuisine. I love Japanese food, so much so that even when I return to China, I would want to continue trying Japanese cuisine. In high school, I chose to discuss it with my parents. Although I did not have any Japanese foundation, I eventually came to Japan to study abroad through my own efforts. This is my favorite hero, and the reason I choose to go to Japan.