Fostering connection, transcending borders
WRITTEN BY Soleil Hernandez-Amaro
// The week of March18, 2025, Las Lomas had the pleasure of hosting the students of Asuka High School from Kita City, Japan. This unique experience has provided both Las Lomas and Asuka students the opportunity to better understand each other’s cultures, make memories, and form friendships from across the globe that may last a lifetime.
How it works:
What started in 2013 as a short term arrangement turned into more than a decade-long exchange of traditions between two cities separated by thousands of miles. Since the genesis of the exchange, Walnut Creek and Kita City have been considered “sister cities,” which are defined by The Oxford Languages as “a city that is linked to another, usually for the purposes of cultural exchange.” With mutual goals in mind, to broaden the opportunities and perspectives of their students, the exchange program’s longevity is a testament to each school’s willingness to understand each other’s cultures.
“What started in 2013 as a short term arrangement turned into more than a decade-long exchange of traditions between two cities separated by thousands of miles. “
Before the Asuka High School students even arrived, they paired up with a Japanese-learning Las Lomas student based on shared interests. The Las Lomas student they were paired with would act as a host, and for an entire school week, the Asuka High School students would shadow their American counterparts, sampling the life of an American high schooler. When the Asuka High School students first arrived on campus, they met up with the hosts in room 604 to initiate the long but influential week ahead of them. Friday morning, everyone engaged in the program would meet up in the same room for one last time before saying their goodbyes.
Reflections:
Asuka High School is well-known for its exchange programs, as the school consistently emphasizes the importance of learning from other cultures, preparing its students to succeed in a global society. Reflecting on the past week, Yuka Imaea (Asuka High School) and Emma Lathrop (Las Lomas), only one of the many pairs that resulted from the program, shared what they learned from their differing perspectives. Imaea admitted what surprised her most about America was the food portions. She said, “Everyone ate a lot, and American food is so big… Everyone says it, and it is true.”
“In Japan we always go to school by train or bus, but in America it is by car.”
Yuke Imaea (Asuka High School)
Imaea went on to say that the fact American students were able to eat in class surprised her and that both American and Japanese means of transportation to school were starkly different. Imaea said, “In Japan we always go to school by train or bus, but in America it is by car.” In a final remark about the program, Lathrop said, “I think it really made me realize how different things are in Japan because…[Imaea] will point out things that I would never think were out of normal and it puts perspective on everyday life.” For Yuka and Emma, the glue to their bond was their shared love of gymnastics, a uniting factor that transcended their differences. The trip would leave a lasting impression on not only Lathrop and Imaea but all those involved.
“I think it really made me realize how different things are in Japan because…[Imaea] will point out things that I would never think were out of normal and it puts perspective on everyday life.”
Emma Lathrop (Las Lomas)
Due to their willingness to open their hearts and minds, many grew from this experience, and that growth and curiosity was evidently contagious as Las Lomas and Asuka students walked through the halls side by side, exchanging knowledge and expanding their horizons beyond the confines of Las Lomas, the boundaries of Walnut Creek, the borders of America, and beyond.
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