The new sophomores enjoyed a thrilling and unforgettable retreat from August 28th to August 30th. Retreats are a great chance to build bonds with classmates outside of the classroom and build memories that last a lifetime. The sophomores visited Yamanashi prefecture, specifically near Lake Kawaguchi. Despite the rain and the approaching typhoon ShanShan, the sophomores were lucky enough to experience all the activities out in the beautiful nature of Yamanahsi prefecture.
Day one of the retreat began in the classroom, where the classrooms were filled with excited conversations and smiles. Students enjoyed buying snacks and drinks for the remaining bus trip. After a while on the bus, students arrived at the Forest Adventure Fuji nature course, where students enjoyed a picnic out in nature. After the picnic, students enjoyed rope courses above trees, from wobbly wooden planks to swinging from rope to rope. Some students even challenged themselves to try the extremely hard course the “black course.” “I enjoyed ziplining because I was able to zipline with my friends, and I especially enjoyed the free ziplining course,” fellow classmate Ryan said. After the thrilling ropes course, students arrived at the Fujisan Garden Hotel, where students had some time to unwind and relax, visiting each other’s rooms, and playing games. As the evening came, students enjoyed a delicious buffet-style dinner. The fun isn’t still over, though! Shortly after dinner, students enjoyed activities such as trivia, mystery-solving games, and musical chairs, which the Student Council led. At around 11 pm, everyone went to bed, excited for another day of activities and fun.
Through the help of Mr Chan, the retreat successfully followed a tight schedule, doing all activities with no mistakes or errors. “Mr Chan ran a very organized trip with military precision.”, Said Mr Douglas, one of the chaperons at the retreat. Thanks to Mr Chan’s “strict punishments”, late night shenanigans were minimized, and the majority of the students got a good night of sleep on both nights.
During the retreat, the students participated in multiple exciting activities, including mountain biking through trails, canoeing at a lake, and a challenging ropes athletic course. At night, the team-building activities brought everyone together, creating memories and bonds between the students. These experiences, especially for the new students, helped create lasting memories and gave them the chance to get close with their classmates. Many students formed new friendships, as the challenges and obstacles pushed them to work together and support each other.
On day 2, students woke up at around 6:45 am. After a quick and delicious breakfast, students headed to Lake Kawaguchi and enjoyed canoeing and mountain biking. The canoeing activity was a very thrilling adventure, and some even capsized their canoes. Students had a thrilling canoeing adventure to Unoishima, which is an uninhabited island with a beautiful shrine surrounded by nature and a vast lake. Despite the rain, students were also able to go mountain biking in nature and were able to see Lake Kawaguchi from a new perspective. After the fun, students ate hoto udon, which is a type of noodle dish unique to Yamanashi.
“Overall, I enjoyed talking to friends and enjoyed retreats because it was relaxing,” Ryan said. The 10th grade retreat was filled with fun and unforgettable experiences, and it created lifetime-lasting memories with friends!
On the third final day, students took a lift up to Yamanashi Mountain to enjoy the landscape. The summit also had gift shops and various delicacies which students could freely choose from. Multiple students bought souvenirs to keep their memory of “storming” Yamanashi.
