Japanese Youth Delegates Visit Island

A group of eight students from Nagano, Japan, visited Mackinac Island Tuesday, August 2. They are part of a sisters city program between Okaya City and Mt. Pleasant.

They came from halfway around the world to see the small island with horse-drawn carriages and a 19th century fort.

As part of a sisters city program between the city of Mt. Pleasant and Okaya City, in Nagano, Japan, students visit their sister cities over the summer to experience a wholly new culture. On even years, students from Mt. Pleasant travel to Japan, while on odd years, the Japanese send a youth delegation to Mt. Pleasant. Students live with host families during their trip. This year, in addition to experiencing Mt. Pleasant, the students made a day trip up to the Island.

“It’s a great experience,” said John Gerhard of Mt. Pleasant, who served as one of the drivers to Mackinac Island. “It lets these kids really take back the experience. It’s one thing to read about things in books, but until you experience it, you don’t really know.”

The youth made the trip after having heard about it in their own country. Fumie Hanazawa, an English teacher in Okaya City, served as a translator for the group and expressed the students’ excitement.

“We are here to enjoy the island,” she said. “Everybody says this is the place to visit in Michigan. This is something we cannot miss.”

According to Joseph Sowmick of the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe, who helps to coordinate the sister cities program, it was very important for the Japanese delegation to plan a trip to Mackinac while they were in Michigan.

“It just goes to show that even from an international standpoint, people know about and want to come to Mackinac Island,” he said.

Though the group only had half a day to spend on Mackinac Island, they enjoyed eating at the French Outpost, taking a carriage ride, visiting the Wings of Mackinac butterfly house, and touring Fort Mackinac.