We're here!

Hello parents, goodmorning! We have arrived and are safe and sound. The plane flight was uneventful but quite good and we arrived at the youth hostel about 15 minuites before curfew. after a few false starts (conversations about making sure we all had clothes on before opening the door and leaving keys in the lock aside) we managed to get a bit of sleep. the 6am wake up call was stressful for a few, but all managed to find breakfast OK!

Today we are off to Iga Ueno for the start of their ninja festival ... photos to follow tonight!

Updates, Updates, Updates 26/03/07

Hi again everyone, just a quick update to let you know how things are going.

Firstly, there will not be a meeting tomorrow (Tuesday) night! Basically, despite our best efforts, we are unable to get a code for the new building so there will not be a meeting this week. We will have one on Thursday at 1st lunch however.

Secondly, we have been informed that Qantas have changed their baggage allowances from when we first checked - they will only allow 20kg on the return flight (not 30kg as we were originally told). Also, they only permit 1 carry on bag. If you plan on bringing a handbag (and I seriously discourage this) then know that you will only be allowed to take your handbag and not your backpack on board with you - meaning you will have to check your backpack with your suitcase! What this means is that if you are taking a handbag on board, your backpack will count towards the 12kg limit for outbound luggage and your 20kg limit for inbound luggage (coming home).

Thirdly, if you have not yet emailed your buddy in Japan, please do it - it will make things a lot less weird when you get there! You might also find that you are able to co-ordinate things with them to ensure that you do something cool that afternoon!

P.S. I spoke to a friend in Tokyo and he tells me that the weather dept. us predicting a full bloom of cherry blossoms by Saturday - in his email he wrote: it looks like they are going out to welcome your trip".

new customs laws clarification

Sheree asked a pertinent question re: taking drinks on board the plane with the new quarantine laws. Basically, students don't need to worry about taking food, drinks or snack on the plane (and won't be allowed) as this is an international flight and food and drinks (coke, chips, peanuts, water etc.) are all free - well, you've already paid for it in your ticket.

hope this helps. Edwac0

P.S. There will be a meeting for students next Tuesday at the normal time (5-6pm) where you can ask any final questions.

On the issue of baggage

Given that some of you may be doing well just to log on to this page, I will flag a discussion happening in the comments section of my last post regarding luggage:

Two question were raised on this issue -
the first of which was: During the homestay, will we be carrying our luggage to the school and then to our homestay house and back again the next day.
The second question was: Can I take a large handbag instead of a backpack?

Answers to Questions:

Q1) Yes, during our visit to the school you will need to take all your luggage with you. We will lock it in a room at the school, but yes - you need to take it home with you that night. I will talk to them about leaving your luggage locked at the school and you taking an 'overnight bag' i.e. your backpack but at this stage, it all goes home with you.

Q2) In terms of taking a handbag instead of a backpack - the answer is no! You must have a backpack to go on day trips and a handbag is not a substitute for this. you may bring a small handbag if you absolutely must, but I think it will end up annoying you.

MEETING TIME UPDATE - VERY LATE NOTICE!

Hi again, apologies for the very short notice, but due to the fact that the school has a new security system in place that arms itself automatically, we need to be out of the school by 7:30 tomorrow night (They have not yet given us individual access codes). In deference to this, the meeting will be starting exactly at 6pm so please make sure that you are there on time. We MUST be out by 7:30 or we will set off the alarm system!

Final parent meeting date

The final parent meeting before we go on the trip Will be on the 20/03/2007 and will be held in the library starting at 6pm. Realistically, the meeting will go until about 8pm because I am certain that there will be lots of questions. All parents and students should endeavour to be there as this is the time we will be handing out the final itinerary, packing lists, duty-free and customs information, language phrase book, diary and travel documents.

Students have been given a home stay application form to fill out and this should be returned ASAP so that we can fax it back to Japan. Some students have already received email from their host buddy and we expect this to go a long way towards calming student's nerves about the home stay part of the trip.

Money Exchange and meeting cancellation

Hello again, I wanted to take this opportunity to talk about money exchange as many of you have been asking about this recently. I have spoken to a number of money exchange outlets and, to date, the best has been Cash EX (Bureau de Change) in the city centre. they are located at 63 Abbott Street (directly opposite DFS, on the same street as Woolworths in the city). Their telephone number is 0740515158.

Unfortunately, I have not been able to secure a fixed exchange rate, largely due to the instability of the hare market in China recently. Exchanges are still quite good (much higher than any time recently) but we did drop about 2-3 yen to the dollar last week. When I spoke to the manager there, she agreed to a substantially better price than their usual rate (on the day i was there, their rate was 84yen to the dollar, she was willing to give me 88.5) however, this was still less than the advertised price at suncorp and other institutions. My advice to parents - do your homework; go to several of the exchange places in the near vicinity (Suncorp, DFS etc.) and see what their price for selling notes is. then got to Cash Ex, tell them you are with Gordonvale SHS and ask what the rate of exchange for our group that day is. When she tells you, compare that to other exchanges and ask if they will match it for you. They should be willing to do this. the reason their exchange may be lower is that they do not charge a fee/commission whereas most of the major exchange places do. The other thing to remember is that you may be able to negotiate a slightly better rate if you exchange a larger amount rather than doing it over time. Of course, you will have to work out what is going to be the best for yourself and your child, so please feel free to use another service (such as your local bank).

The second part of this post is to remind all students that Tuesday's meeting is cancelled and that next Tuesday's meeting (20/3/07) will be for parents as well as students - this is our final itinerary meeting and is when you will receive your documentation for the trip!

If you still have forms outstanding, please ensure that we receive them ASAP and we (meaning you) cannot leave the country without them being in and processed!

Regards, Corey Edwards

(11/3/07)I have been thinking about money exchange some more - I recommend asking for the total amount in either 1000yen notes or 5000 yen notes (don't mix them where possible - get one or the other). All Japanese money looks quite similar and it may be easier to just have 1000yen notes bundled into lots of 5 (I will be taking my money this way, with each lot of 5 notes rubber banded together). If you are planing on making big ticket purchases (i.e. Camera, electronic goods, grad dresses etc.) then 10, 000 yen notes are quite acceptable, just keep them separate from your 1000 yen notes. possibly put them in a separate envelope or something.

Welcome note

Parents, students and friends, This is the first test of the GSHS Japan Trip '07 blog . Until we leave for Japan (21 days from today!) and while we are away, this website will be your best source of information about the '07 Japan trip. Check in here each day (when possible) and see any updates, notices or announcements we might have for you about the Japan trip and, while we are away, keep up to date with the things we are doing. Each time I, Mrs. O'Malley or one of the students post here, we will try to include a relevant summary of events, timeframes and (hopefully) lots of pictures.

You will be able to contact myself/Mrs O'Malley through the 'comments' section of the page and we will try to address your questions through the next posting. Of course, you can still contact us through the school but, where possible, try to ask your questions here so that other parents/guardians see what you have written and get access to our reples.

in addition, feel free to contact me via email - cedwa38@yahoo.com.au or on my mobile - 0438416900 (During business hours except in case of emergency). Please also note that this mobile number will be active while we are in Japan but we ask you only to call in emergencies. remember: mising your child and wanting to talk to them is not considered an emergency.

Again, welcome to the first GSHS Japan trip '07 weblog - enjoy!