A virtual tour of Kyoto was conducted on October 22, 2021, as part of the “Kyoto–Africa IAfP Short-Term Online Course.”The course is part of a joint program conducted by Kyoto University and the Tokyo University of Foreign Studies (Innovative Africa: Educational Networking Programs for Human Resource Development in Africa’s SDGs [IAfP]).
The course, which accepts short-term exchange students from African universities, incorporates not only online research guidance and joint lectures, but also Japanese language education and an introduction to Japanese culture. In order to promote discourse between the short-term exchange students and the students studying in Japan, a virtual sightseeing tour was conducted to introduce the culture of Kyoto.
The virtual tour was organized by JAPONISME, a travel agency that provides virtual tours to people who have difficulty traveling. Eighteen people, including short-term exchange students and students studying in Japan, participated in the tour. It started with a historical overview of Kyoto. Thereafter, videos and quizzes were used to provide explanations on how to worship at shrines and how they differ from temples. The students asked many questions and the tour ended on a high note.
