The San Carlos Sister City Association (SCSCA) offers a unique summer exchange program opportunity for high school students.
San Carlos is the sister city of Omura, Nagasaki, in Japan. According to Sister Cities International, a sister city is a long-term partnership between two communities in two countries.
The association’s role is to maintain this sister-city relationship and strengthen the cultural bond with the summer exchange program as one byproduct of this relationship.
The SCSCA launched its exchange program with Omura in 2007, the summer after the sister relationship was established. John Hoffman, a current SCSCA board member and previous head coordinator of the exchange program, has played a considerable role in maintaining this initiative.
“The first exchange program was about 17 years ago. The way it originally worked was that the Japanese would come to San Carlos one year, and the American students would go to Japan the next year,” Hoffman said. “However, that quickly evolved into a simultaneous exchange, the system we have in place today.”
Four high school students from San Carlos are chosen through an application process and paired with four high school students from Omura. American students live with a host family in Omura for a week in July and host the same student in San Carlos in August. Students also go on daily trips to local historic sights throughout the day.
In contrast to a vacation to Japan, this homestay program provides a cultural immersion experience with students fully surrounded by traditional daily practices. It also offers a look into the hidden aspects of Japanese culture beyond what’s seen in media or learned through casual exposure.
“Someone in their teenage years going on their own to live with a family they have never met for a brief period — in a very different culture, with different food, with different work orientations, with different family structures — is a great learning experience. I think it is a great eye-opener for them,” Hoffman said.
In addition to such an immersive experience, the exchange program allows students to interact with counterparts living more than 5,000 miles away.
Japanese high school junior Mika Inoue participated in the 2024 summer exchange program as one of Omura’s students.
“Everything was different from Japan, and it was stimulating. It was my first time abroad, so I was initially nervous, but thanks to my host family and many other people, I had a fulfilling time and met so many new people,” Inoue said.
Kathleen Lin, a Carlmont junior from the same cohort, shared a similar take on her experience visiting Japan through the exchange program.
“My stay with a host family enhanced my experience. I learned a lot more about their culture and lifestyle. My host family was also very welcoming and added to the experience,” Lin said.
According to JTB Tourism Research & Consulting Co., tourist numbers in Japan reached an all-time high in 2023, even exceeding numbers before the COVID-19 pandemic. Although Japan has always been a travel hotspot, the rise of Japanese pop culture — specifically anime and Japanese music — in the U.S. has caused an outburst of Americans seeking to visit Japan.
Leonor Urbain, the president of the SCSCA, has been a part of this association for 25 years. When mentioning the student exchange program, she emphasized the importance of this increase in tourism.
“The SCSCA would like to promote the exchange program since Japan is more touristic now, and the United States dollar to Japanese yen conversion rate is in favor of us,” Urbain said. “There are also more flights, and more people are going.”
Outside of the exchange program, the SCSCA is also involved in different functions related to their sister city’s relationship with Omura. One of these interactions is through a recently painted mural in San Carlos.
Designed by a Japanese artist from San Carlos, Yucali, and a Japanese calligrapher from Omura, Housui Sato, the mural represents the relationship between the two cities.
“There will be a delegation, including the mayor of Omura and several Omura officials, plus Omura citizens coming to the U.S., in May 2025. We hope to dovetail into the dedication of this mural and expose the Japanese visitors to a little bit of San Carlos,” Hoffman said.
As global interest in Japan continues to rise, the SCSCA and its counterparts work to deepen youth understanding of Japan and provide cultural connections. Through the exchange program, they create lasting relationships that enhance cross-cultural understanding and respect beyond the communities of both San Carlos and Omura.
“There are so many things to see in Japan. It’s such a beautiful country,” Urbain said.
To learn more about this exchange program, visit the SCSCA website or contact coordinator Ryan Tomita at [email protected].
