HUSA Program international student interns participated in the Kurahashi Festival in Kure-city and engaged in the project to promote international exchange as the practicum of the “Glocal Internship” course (offered by Dr. Tsunematsu). HUSA interns are from Thailand, the USA, France, Korea, China, and Vietnam. Five international students from Germany, the USA, Britain, and Taiwan, also joined the festival as interns’ volunteer supporters.

Student interns set up a Hiroshima University Study Abroad Program (HUSA) booth and actively interacted with local people in the community. This was their sixth time participating in the Kurahashi Festival for their internship practicum.

The interns introduced to local people various kinds of cultural activities popular in their home countries, such as “World Cultural Tour,” Vietnam’s origami “Orihappa”, and “Coloring Game with Multilingual Naming.” We could see children enjoying these new cultural activities.

On the festival stage, the international students performed a short skit entitled “Foreigners’ Difficulty in Learning Japanese”, followed by a music and dance performance. The interns’ practicum has been progressing year by year. To close the festival, students experienced Mochimaki (rice cake throwing). As the local community warmly supports the international students, the bond between them is becoming stronger each year.