Bulgarian High School Home-stay Students in Hodogaya

　Bulgarian high school student and their teacher came to Japan to stay with ordinary Japanese families from May 22 to May 28. The students, two of who are in the 10th grade and three in the 11th grade, were learning Japanese in the 18th General Education School in Sofia, Bulgaria.

　This event was accomplished after Hodogaya ward made a Sister City contract with Sofia in March of 2008.

　The home-stay students stayed at the homes of some of the staff from the Hodogaya International Exchange Center.The students got to experience bits of Japanese culture and visited Seifu High School in Iwaicho, Hodogaya, to attend classes and interact with their Japanese peers.

　The Hodogaya International Exchange Center had events for the students to gain a greater understanding of cultural things such as playing the Koto, joining in tea ceremony and wearing kimono. A few of the students had studied tea ceremony in Sofia and were able to perform it without any assistance from the instructor here.

Meeting home-stay families.	Wear kimono very well

　At Seifu High School the Bulgarian students were introduced to the Japanese students at the morning school assembly. As the Bulgarian students greeted the Seifi students in Japanese, the Japanese students hailed them with great admiration.

　The student council then had a welcome party with fun quizzes in hopes of lessening the home-stay students' tension. The Bulgarian students took lessons such as Math, English, Chemistry, and Physical Education with their partners who were members of an interact club.

Extreme Tension! Talk with the Delegate of Students

Cooking is common in the world

　During the school day, students introduced Japanese past times such as origami, and both students cooked their countries' traditional foods and shared them with each other. As the final event of hosted by the interact club members performed the dance of Soran-bushi and the Bulgarian students joined them in the dance.

Can you imagine them doing the Soran-bushi?	A scene from the farewell party

　One of the members of the Hodogaya Bulgaria Exchange Institute demonstrated how to make soba, traditional brown noodles, and the students got to experience that first hand. As a result they seemed to get to know more about Japan and like it even more,

Bulgarian teacher and students
Teacher　Radina MLADENOVA
11th Grade student　Sandra SERGEEVA NIKOLOVA
11th Grade student　Marta GEORGIEVA ILIEVA
11th Grade student　Hristina PETROVA NIKOVA
10th Grade student　Yolina VENELINOVA VICHEVA
10th Grade student　Rafael NIKOLAEV RAFAILOV

At Narita Airport

Hodogaya　Word Bulgarian High School Home-stay Students in Hodogaya

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