It was my first trip to Japan. 

This cultural program by Kanazawa University gave me new knowledge about Japanese culture and Japanese language. It taught me to understand culture of other countries more deeply.

We attended Japanese language classes in Kanazawa University, learned new words and helpful grammar. Teachers were very outgoing and supportive. We always could ask help and they will help us. Teachers told us about Kanazawa culture: traditional gardens, temples, shrines and tea ceremony. 

After language classes we went to Higashi-chyaya-gai and to Sinrensya. We enjoyed beautiful traditional gardens and cleaned it together. Cleaning is very important part of traditional Japanese gardens. After hard work, garden owners invited us to take part in tea ceremony. Matcha tea is Japanese treasure. We drank tea with wagashi and it was very tasty. I learned many things about wagashi and tea ceremony.

After excursions in Japanese gardens, we prepared a presentation for symposium in 21th century Museum in Kanazawa. I presented Kazan Federal University and my group with speech about  differences between Russian and Japanese gardens. 

Cultural program gave me unforgettable emotions and impressions.It helped me to understand why gardens are so significant for Japanese people. I was motivated to learn more about Japanese culture and to improve Japanese language skills. 

I was very happy to be a part of this program.