Melissa West, AP World History teacher is chaperoning a trip to take students across the ocean to the country of Japan from June 11-19, 2018. It is a 9 day tour that explores the different aspects of Japan. This includes visiting the Great Buddha, riding a cable car up to Mount Komagatake and taking a cruise on Lake Hakone.

The trip will start at Tokyo and journey through Hakone to go to the national park. Then Kyoto will be the next major stop where the students will be able to see shrines, and Japanese women who are traditional entertainers, such as geisha. The students will also get to visit Kamakura, Hiroshima and Osaka.

“There is something for everyone because there is shopping, there is history, there is culture and environmentalism,” said West.

Their is no specific deadline until April of next year to sign up for the trip, but it is advised to sign up as early as possible because there are monthly payments that can become cheaper if a person decides to go on the trip early.

“The total cost includes everything [such as] airfare, transportation in the country, hotels, traveling insurance while you’re there, breakfast and dinner everyday, admissions to everything we do and a tour director who is bilingual, ” West said. “You can’t find a trip like this.”

There are also fundraising opportunities available like spirit nights during the school year and car washes and garages sales during the summer. In the fall of the next year the trip participants plan to sell candy in order to help students pay for the trip.

If their are any more questions, contact West at her email Melissa.West@kellerisd.net or stop by her room before or after school at S217.