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Tokyo City Tour for the Trainees of the JICA Program (Port Engineers)
　　

The first excursion in the fiscal year 2018 was held on Saturday, June 16th, 2018. The aim of the tour is to provide the JICA Participants who have recently arrived Japan an opportunity to get acquainted with the Japanese society and culture as well as to deepen international exchange with Japanese volunteer guides of the tour.

This time, 14 people from 13 countries participated in the tour. As Japanese guides, two (2) MLIT junior staff, one from Yokohama-city, two (2) from Toyo Construction Co., one (1) from Nikken Kogaku Co. and Three (3) from JOPCA Secretary volunteered to guide the tour.

At this time of the year, weather is always a concern as the rainy season is about to start in Japan. It was fortunate that there was no rain although the sky was cloudy. There was another fortune that Ramadan finished and participants from Islamic countries were able to enjoy Japanese green tea as well as tempura.

JICA participants started their day by gathering at the lobby of the JICA Yokohama Training Center (YTC) at 8 am, when each participant was provided with a PASMO card. In the first place, some of the participants had very limited experience to ride trains and they were extremely curios to use the card for train ride.

The tour went from the Bashamichi station to Simbashi via Yokohama station. At the Shimbashi SL Square, all the other Japanese volunteers came to join the tour. After short self-introduction of each member, the tour went to Hama Rikyu Gardens, where they tried Japanese green tea with sweets while seeing the beautiful scenery of the Japanese garden. The workmanship and color of the sweets were so nice that some of the participants hesitated to cut them and eat (they finally ate, of course). Sweets were very well accepted. Then the tour strolled around the garden. Some of the participants were busy to take photos to upload to their Instagram.

The tour then moved on to Asakusa, enjoying Sumida River cruise. Getting off, there were again photo chances with the Sky Tree and the very unique Asahi Brewery Co. Building in the back (every time, someone asked what that building was). The party went up to the top of the Asakusa Tourist Information Center Building where the participants were excited with the pictures of interesting composition such as picking the Sky Tree Tower by fingers or embracing it within arms. Lunch was taken at the local Tempura Restaurant next to the Kaminarimon Gate. After having demonstrated how to eat tempura (put tempura into sauce dip with smashed Japanese radish and eat), the participants were encouraged to try themselves. Some were accustomed to Japanese foods and tea and freely used chopsticks, but others were completely first time experience. After all, they unanimously agreed that the taste was good.

After lunch, the participants were free to stroll form Nakamise through Sensoji-temple. The neighborhood was so crowded because it was Saturday, and some Participants were determined to explore the vicinity by themselves, there was a question whether all of them could make it to come back by the fixed time to the fixed gathering point. After all, all participants came back safe. The tour then went to the Asakusa Station of Toei Subway where they experienced charging PASMO card, and went back to YTC.

Before departing, participants were interviewed about the tour. All the participants confessed that the tour was excited and enjoyable, and thanked the guides and JOPCA who planned and implemented the tour. It is our hope that the tour would provide the JICA participants with a good opportunity to understand and moreover like Japan, through exchange with Japanese volunteer guides.