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Rotary exchange students mesmerized by Saipan
Interact Club students from Tokyo Hachiko Yoshi South Christina Fukuoka and Moa Shirasa shared with Rotary Club of Saipan members their current thoughts on the island of Saipan during the weekly Rotary Club meeting at the Hyatt Regency Saipan last Tuesday. (Kimberly A. Bautista)
Two students from the Interact Club in Tokyo Hachiko Yoshi South arrived on Saipan last Sunday and have already grown immediately attached to the island’s beauty and culture.
During the Rotary Club of Saipan weekly meeting last Tuesday at the Hyatt Regency Saipan’s Giovanni’s restaurant, Japanese high school students Christina Fukuoka and Moa Shirasa from Tokyo Hachiko Yoshi South were asked to share their experience on Saipan so far. According to them, the overall aspect of Saipan amazed them.
According to Fukuoka, upon coming to Saipan, she was given the opportunity to practice and further enhance her English skills at the local schools they attended in the last two days.
Shirasa said that she also wanted to enhance her English skills, but mostly, she wanted to see the captivating island views.
Fukuoka said that after being on Saipan for the past three days, she is still left speechless by the island’s atmosphere and its culture.
“The people are very kind and sweet and I have made many friendships so far and people really accepted me even though I was really awkward,” she said.
Shirasa and Fukuoka have already been to Saipan International School and Marianas High School in the past two days and are excited for their visits to Kagman High School and Saipan Southern High School.
Fukuoka said she observed that the school system here is far different than what she is used to in Japan.
Fukuoka’s main observation was that the school system on Saipan is co-ed where girls and boys take the same classes and have the same break times where as in Japan, it is not common to see boys and girls take the same classes and the same breaks.
According to Rotary Club president-elect Greg Borja, Fukuoka and Shirasa will not only get a taste of Saipan’s public school system, but they will also be taken to many of the historical landmarks and tourist sites on Saipan.
