All of our students are on their summer vacation now. Many of them are taking our summer classes here during the day. It’s great to see how active they keep during the holiday. I found that most of our students are very busy throughout the vacation. Some of them are taking summer classes or club activities up to six days a week. I spoke to one student who has tennis practice 6 to 7 hours a day, seven days a week! That’s the kind of dedication you would expect from a professional player. It’s quite different from the summer vacation in Ireland. We have three months of holidays, June, July and August. The schools don’t give any homework, so it’s up to the students if they want to stay active or study. The new school year starts after the vacation, so Ireland’s school year is from September to May. I found that it was difficult to get into the school routine after such a long holiday, so I see the benefits that an active vacation has for Japanese students.

We have a week off next week to celebrate “Obon” and the new “Mountain Day” holiday on the 11th. Much of the country likes to travel at this time of year so I think the traffic will be very busy. I’ll stay home and relax during the break. Whatever you decide to do, enjoy the holiday!

Alan