My Experience with Obu Sister City By Lourdes Brent

My first trip to Japan was in May 1997 as a member of the Port Phillip Sister City tour group. This trip is still a very vivid memory. We were briefed on Japanese language and customs by representatives from Nippon Travel before the tour. However nothing could have prepared us for the overwhelming warm welcome by the citizens of Obu.

Our stay with our host family was a highlight of our trip. The Shimamura family were very generous and hospitable and showed us many aspects of Japanese culture and cuisine. This greatly enhanced our experience in Japan.

We were fortunate to be able to play host to Yoshiko Shimamura and her daughter, Yuki, when they came to visit us in Melbourne and maintain regular contact with the family.

One of the most enjoyable activities was the "Obu Clam & Bake Exchange Party" at the Kitayama Community Centre where citizens from both sister cities prepared and consumed our lunch together, like one big family.

In November 2003, we attended the Civic Reception for the Obu Citizens Group which came to Port Phillip to commemorate the 10 th anniversary of our Sister City relationship. There I met Kyouko Nomura from Obushi. We found that we shared mutual interests in travel and performing arts; we have been writing to each other to exchange news and views ever since.

When City of Port Phillip announced a reciprocal visit to Obu in April 2004, I jumped at the opportunity to see my friends in Obu again. This time round, I felt it was like a home coming visit.

Obu Sister City experience. By Graham Brent

My wife and I are residents of the city of Port Phillip. We joined the City of Port Phillip sister city tour to OBU because we thought it would be an interesting experience for us as we had never been to Japan.

This trip had a significant impact on our lives. We formed some lasting friendships, particularly with our host family and gained some insight into Japanese culture and traditions.

The most interesting thing to me was the mix between modern living and hanging on to old traditions and community spirit.

The most memorable experience was eating with at a very small yaki tori restaurant . We were on our own and no one in the restaurant spoke English. There was no menu so we were drawing pictures of fish and chicken to order our meal. Soon the local patrons of the restaurant were helping us order and sharing Sake with us. We had a great time.

When a second trip to Obu was organized in April 2004 I got my daughter to come along as I thought it would be a great experience for her. She stayed with a different host family and had a fabulous time. I will never forget the tears at the railway station when it became time to part.