PORT ANGELES — More than 4,390 miles across the Pacific Ocean from Port Angeles lies the small Japanese city of Mutsu.
A rural city with an ocean harbor and a backdrop of mountains stretching toward the sky, Mutsu has a lot in common with Port Angeles, Stevens Middle School teacher Rob Edwards said.
In 1995, those similarities were formally recognized when the municipalities became sister cities.
This year, as part of the sister city pact, five adults and 10 middle school students visited Port Angeles from Jan. 4 through Wednesday.
The students, who came from nine different Mutsu schools, stayed with host families and toured downtown, the Field Arts & Events Hall, Peninsula College, the Olympic National Park and more.
At Port Angeles’ city council meeting on Tuesday, Mayor Kate Dexter read a proclamation to recognize the 30th anniversary of the cities’ relationship.
“The sister city relationship commemorates the significant impact that the organizations have made in building bridges across nations,” Dexter read.
Jenny Edwards, one of the 2025 host families, said the few days her family spent with her host child were jam-packed with adventures.
“Every hour counted,” she said.
Her favorite moment, however, happened at the kitchen table while playing card games.
“It just felt like that was what bridged the gap between Japan and Port Angeles was the table, where our hearts really connected and softened and where just genuine laughter was shared,” Jenny Edwards said.
Students from Japan have been traveling to Port Angeles as part of the Junior Ambassador Program off and on since 1997.
The exchange also has gone the other way, with students from Port Angeles occasionally visiting Mutsu. During the last visit to Japan, in 2014, a softball team played with three different teams “to show sportsmanship and camaraderie,” Rob Edwards said.
While timing and fundraising haven’t worked out to send Port Angeles students back to Mutsu, Rob Edwards said they’re hoping to go again in the near future.
In 2002,
