Japan Study Trip Itinerary
Day 1 & 2 : Travel Days
- Preparing for my adventure
- Flight: Knoxville, TN, USA to Nagoya, Japan
- Airport Transfer
- Navigating Nagoya
Day 3: Independent Explore Day in Nagoya
- Conversational Japanese Language Study Prep
- Japanese Capsule Hotel Experience
- Local Experiences TBD
Day 4: KBJ Anderson Japan Study Trip Begins!
- Independent Travel: Toyota Museum of Innovation and Technology
- Independent Travel: Nagoya Castle
- Optional Group Dinner
Day 5: Nagoya Area
- Likely joined by Isao Yoshino and Ritsuo Shingo for the day
- Orientation
- Isao Yoshino, lecture + discussion
- Lunch at Kura Sushi
- Visit local elementary school
- Visit Toyota Tier-3 supplier or another company + discussion
- Reflection + Discussion
- Welcome dinner!
Day 6: Nagoya Area & Toyota City
- Likely joined by Isao Yoshino and Ritsuo Shingo for the day
- Visit Toyota Tier 2 supplier (Mifune) + discussion
- Lunch at traditional Japanese guesthouse garden restaurant
- Visit Toyota Motor Corporation Plant and Kaikan Museum
- Reflection + Discussion
- Optional group dinner
Day 7: Nagano & Gunma Prefecture
- Isao Yoshino to join for the day
- Travel via private bus to Nagano Prefecture
- Visit Ina Foods Industries + discussion
Lunch at Ina Foods’ garden restaurant - Sake brewery tour
- Stay overnight at a ryokan (traditional Japanese hotel)
Group dinner and celebration
Local sightseeing and cultural experiences such as onsen, wearing yukata, and karaoke
Day 8: Ashikaga & Tokyo
- Cultural experience – visit the Daruma Temple in Takasaki
- Lunch in Ashikaga
- Visit Ogura Metal + discussion
- Travel via bullet train to Tokyo
- Observe the “7-minute miracle” Shinkansen changeover at Tokyo Station
- President of Tessei Shinkansen cleaning company, lecture + discussion
- Check-in Hotel Metropolitan, Tokyo
- Dinner on own in Tokyo
Day 9: Tokyo Area
- Visit Tokyo-area company, TBC
- Lunch in Tokyo
- Isao Yoshino, lecture + discussion
- Final discussion and wrap-up
- “Graduation” with daruma doll
- Optional group celebration dinner at one of Katie’s favorite restaurants in Tokyo
Day 10: Study Trip Concludes in Tokyo
- Check out of Tokyo-based Hotel Metropolitan
- Fly home – or extend your stay on your own
Day 11 & 12: Independent Explore Days in Tokyo
- Research in progress
Day 13: Travel Day
Flight from Tokyo, Japan to Knoxville, TN, USA
"A mind that is stretched by a new experience can never go back to its old dimensions." - Oliver Wendell Holmes