Exhibition of letters from Japanese students

City of Kranj has opened an exhibition in the municipal gallery featuring works by students from the Japanese city of Fukui, with which Kranj has been connected since 2022. In the past school year, seven schools in Kranj started corresponding with students there at the initiative of the Fukui Municipality. Two Japanese schools also addressed a shipment to Mayor Matjaž Rakovec. Its contents are displayed at the exhibition.

The exhibition "Kranj Connects with Japan" showcases letters from students of Fukui. These include haikus by students, their school schedules, favorite school lunches, recipes of popular dishes, hobbies, and characteristics of the city where they reside. "International cooperation introduces young people to other cultures and customs, creates new acquaintances, and broadens their view of the world," wrote City of Kranj in the description of the exhibition.

Correspondence between youth from Kranj and Fukui began last school year and continues this year, with six primary schools participating: OŠ Franceta Prešerna, OŠ Janeza Puharja – center, OŠ Matije Čopa, OŠ Orehek, OŠ Predoslje, and OŠ Simona Jenka. They are joined by the France Prešeren High school which is starting cooperation with high school students from Fukui. This year, connections are mostly made through video messages in which students tackle various topics. An example video prepared by students of OŠ Matije Čopa with teacher Klavdija Prosenc is available at this link.

City of Kranj invited teachers coordinating the correspondence, as well as principals, to the opening of the exhibition "Kranj Connects with Japan" at the municipality. At the constructive meeting, attended by Mayor Matjaž Rakovec and Deputy Mayor Manja Zorko, they expressed their opinions and ideas for further cooperation among young people from both cities.

The exhibition is open until March 15, 2024.

At the end of January, the Fukui Municipality organized an exhibition about Kranj. Students from a commercial high school, as part of their research-based learning, focused on Slovenia. They presented the gathered data to the Ambassador of the Republic of Slovenia in Tokyo, Jurij Rifelj, and the Mayor of Fukui, Saigyo Shigeru.