A taste of Japan in Canberra

By Japanese Language Teachers and Year 10 students

On Tuesday 13 August the Year 10 Japanese class went on a “Mall Rat” excursion to explore the new Daiso store that opened at Westfield Belconnen at the end of June. Our students went on a treasure hunt using their Hiragana, Katakana, and Kanji reading skills to decode the various products. Afterwards the students enjoyed Japanese cuisine in the food court.

Student reflection: Walking into Daiso for the first time was an overwhelming experience. There was an amazing variety of stationery, confectionary, accessories, and other unique items available for purchase, bringing an authentic experience of a Japanese dollar store to Canberra. It was easy to get lost in the experience and indulge in spending.

At lunch everyone bought their own special meal. People selected their meal to either be sushi, sashimi, noodles, boba or a combination. Everyone loved the food and the experience as we got to bond over different foods and drinks while trying to embrace Japanese culture in Canberra.

We loved the excursion and 100% recommend that we do it again. We learnt skills that will be helpful for the Japan Study Tour, such as budgeting our money wisely and finding suitable food options. Because of all of the variety, we were forced to make decisions, which is an important part of travelling.