Kimora Lee Simmons Says Family Trip to Japan Wasn't Vacation: 'This Is a Cultural Trip' (Exclusive)

"Before we flew there, I was clear from the jumpstart: 'This is not a vacation! This is a cultural trip! It's educational,' " Simmons tells PEOPLE

Kimora Lee Simmons' family trip to Japan wasn't just for fun.

Speaking to PEOPLE exclusively, Simmons reveals that while her family had an amazing time in Japan, she was clear from the beginning that they were there to experience their culture. "It was rewarding to expose all my kids to Japan," the entrepreneur tells PEOPLE exclusively.

"I've traveled there so many times throughout my life for work or modeling. Japan is vibrant, electric and such a vibe shift! Watching them absorb their surroundings — the art, the food, the language, the fashion — was beyond rewarding."

"We're so blessed. They're already asking when we can go back!" she adds.

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Related: Kimora Lee Simmons Shares Sweet Photos from Trip to Japan with Her 5 Kids

"Before we flew there, I was clear from the jumpstart: 'This is not a vacation! This is a cultural trip! It's educational. We're not lounging and shopping. We're broadening our experiences and taking in a culture."

"But yes, Japan is fly! And it's your heritage!" Simmons says of telling her kids about the trip.

Simmons — and her family — share both Korean and Japanese heritage from her mother, who was a first-generation immigrant to America.

In photos shared to her Instagram, Simmons posed with all five of her children as they took in the sights and scenes of Japan. In the carousel of photos, the entrepreneur shared a photo of her and her son Kenzo, 14, whom she shares with ex Djimon Hounsou, where the teenager smiled at the camera as he held his arm over his mom's shoulder.

Her son Wolfe, 8, whom she shares with ex Tim Leissner, and Gary, whom she welcomed by adoption when he was 10 years old, were also on the vacation. She included a sweet photo of the trio spending quality time together inside a pet store.

Simmons' daughters Aoki, 20, and Ming, 23, who she shares with ex Russell Simmons, also joined in on the trip and were seen in a group photo. Their trip came a few months after Aoki graduated from Harvard University and Ming graduated from New York University.

As a single mom, Simmons has always strived to put her children at the forefront. She told PEOPLE in May: "I'm a single mom of five kids and I know how hard it can be and I don't want to start crying, but it's Mother's Day, I know how that feels like to raise your kids and to get up every day and only care about them."

She stressed that being a parent in any capacity was difficult, adding, "And it doesn't matter, if you're rich and famous or you're this thing or this singer, that singer, at the end of the day, you're a mom or you're a cousin, you're an auntie, you're a family member, you're a community person, a caregiver, you're just there trying to make everything come together."

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Read the original article on People.