AIU Wandervogel Club － Shiho Yamaguchi, Sophomore

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Here’s a message from the head of AIU Wandervogel club, Shiho Yamaguchi.

At the summit of Hachimantai, located on the border between Akita and Iwate prefectures

Hello, we are AIU Wandervogel Club, which enjoys mountain-climbing and general activities in nature. Akita may not be the best offerer of convenient life, but it is of generous nature. We hold monthly meetings, decide our destinations, and go to different natural sites to take advantage of it. Outdoor activities being universally popular, we have had many members from all around the world. Our experience of and stamina for climbing varied a lot, but we resolved by diversifying the level of our destinations from strolls to tough climbings. Yet wherever may it be, we would always enjoy walking, chatting, and eating lunch together, thereby becoming even better friends. Sometimes, we would go to onsen or hot springs on the way back, which is the best relaxation ever after hiking for several hours.

Climbing Mt. Moriyoshi, located in Kita-Akita City.

Unfortunately, our activities have been prevented by the pandemic this year. The to-go list of attractive destinations only gets longer and longer. Then why not share it with other members? Thus, we created a Facebook group, where we share ideas related to mountains or nature: episodes about the mountains we have climbed, pictures of the mountains we want to climb, a piece of knowledge about natural sites in our home countries, first-hand advice about camping in a tent, etc. If you are an international student living abroad, why not tell us about your country’s beautiful nature while learning about that of Japanese through our posts? If interested, please send an email to aiuwandervogelfrom2016@gmail.com to be welcomed to the Facebook group. We’ll be waiting forward to your participation.

A mysterious blue pond in the “Shirakami Sanchi”, which is World Heritage that straddles Aomori and Akita prefectures