）

Issued by: Matsudo International Exchange Association MIEA
Address: Matsudo Building, 4F, Matsudo 1307, Matsudo City 271-0092
Tel: 047-711-9511 Fax: 047-308-6789
Email: office@miea.or.jp https://www.miea.or.jp/

MIEA STATION （）Spring, FY 2024 English edition★ Event Report ★

32nd Japanese Speech Contest for foreigners
The 32nd Japanese Speech Contest for Foreigners was held at the Matsudo Civic Theater (Matsudo Shimin Gekijo) on
Saturday, February 17. Passing the initial screening, 14 contestants gave speeches on a variety of topics. The contestantscame from 11 countries: India, Indonesia, Uzbekistan, Sri Lanka, China, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, Vietnam,Myanmar and Mongolia. Two Matsudo cultural ambassadors served as moderators at the event. They were Ms. Quang Thi
Cuong, last year’s winner of the Mayor’s Award, and Mr. Haichenko Maksym, winner of the MIEA Chairman’s Award.
Attraction: Enju gumi playing the shamisen

Moderators
Inscription of program
cover written by MIEA
member Naomi Hizukuri
See program here.

The winners are as follows:
1. Mayor’s Award: “The Importance of Having Hope” by Ms. Sherazi Noorul Safi (Pakistan)
2. MIEA Chairman’s Award: “The Japanese Words I Love to Hate” by Mr. Tillaman James(Philippines)
3. Excellence Award: “An Irreplaceable Person” by Ms. Khin Yadanar Oo
4. Rotary Club Award: “The Most Difficult Thing When I Came to Japan” by Ms. Kadupitige Sandani Poornima (Sri Lanka)
5. Tokyo Rusk Award: “The Importance of Giving Thanks to Those Around You” by
Mr. Sergelen Anir (Mongolia)★ Notice ★

Please use MIEA’s Volunteer Interpreter and Translator Program☏✉

FreeInquiries: Matsudo International Exchange Association
047-711-9511volunteer@miea.or.jp
Eligibility: National, prefectural and municipal public institutions and public service organizations; persons whoreside, work or study in Matsudo
Fields covered: Administrative procedures, medical care, child rearing, taxes, education of students (elementary to highschool), health and welfare, matters related to activities of neighborhood associations, etc.
Languages supported: English, Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean Ukrainian, Spanish, Urdu, Hindi.
For other languages, please consult us.
We are recruiting volunteer interpreters and translators!

Language Coursesー（）ー【】

April 6 Sept. 14
Saturday
13:00 14:30
18 lessons（Excluding April 13, May 4,July 13, August 3, August 10
and August 17）ーー

April 6 Sept. 14(Saturday)
10:30 12:00
18 lessons【】（Excluding April 13, May 4,July 13, August 3, August 10
andAugust 17）ーー

April 18 June 27(Thursday)
13:00 14:30
10 lessons【】(Excluding May 2)※ Scan the QR codes for details and to apply.
Elementary Korean Course (II)～Take on the challenge of

conversing using basic grammar!

～Instructor: Ms. Choi Hyo Yeon
(From Korea, Korean language
instructor at a prefectural high school)

Intermediate
Korean Course～

Use the grammer learned in
Elementary I to enjoy conversing inKorean!

～

Instructor: Ms. Choi Hyo Yeon
(From Korea, Korean language
instructor at a prefectural highschool）

Intermediate English Course Part 2～Befriending Sherlock Holmes!～

Read the stories of “The Adventuresof Sherlock Holmes.” Unravelconspiracies and deduce criminals
through reasoning. Learn English
while having fun.

（ー： ー ：【】

Elementary Chinese Course(1st Term)
Enjoy learning Chinese used in everyday
life.
This course is a continuation of the course
offered from Sep. to Nov. 2023. Those
who have studied Chinese before andthose who want to study again arewelcome.
Instructor: Ms. Luo Guang Sui(From China, Chinese instructor at a highschool)ーー

May 14 July 9Tuesday
10:30 12:00
9 lessons【】（￥￥Text:『新装版 できる韓国語 初級I 』（ISBN：978-4872177237）※Purchase personally

Instructor: Ms. Sarah Holland
Adjunct lecturer from the U.K.)

May 10 July 26(Friday)
15 15 16 45
12 lessons

Venue: International Friendship Room
Kokusai Yuko Room) at Bunka Hall
Eligibility: Those who want to develop a solidbase in Korean.
Capacity: First 20 persons
Fee: 18,000 (MIEA member)
21,000 (Non-member)

Elementary German Course
Centering on conversation, enjoy
learning about various themes on
Germany.
Lecturer: Ms. Annette Uematsu(German language instructor fromGermany)※This course will continue in the autumn.

Venue: International Friendship Room
(Kokusai Yuko Room) at Bunka Hall
Eligibility: Those who want to study Korean once
more.
Capacity: First 20 persons
Fee: 18,000 (MIEA member)
21,000 (Non-member)￥￥
Text:『新装版 できる韓国語 初級II 』（ISBN：978-4872178869）※Purchase personally

Venue: Matsudo City Tourism Association, 2F Hall

Eligibility: Minimum level of Eiken Grade 2,
CEFR-B1 or equivalent
Capacity: First 16 persons
Fee: 10,000 (MIEA member)
13,000 Non-member
Text: ”The Adventures of Sherlock
Holmes” English edition
ISBN 978-0241952900※Purchase personally
Course starts from Story 5.

￥￥（＊（：（）））

Venue: International Friendship Room (kokosai YukoRoom) at Bunka Hall
Eligibility: Those who can make basic greetings inChinese
Capacity: First 20 persons
Fee: 12,000 (MIEA member)
15,000 (Non-member)
Text:(Publisher)￥￥
ナツメ社『ネイティブが教えるマンガで身につく！中国語』（ISBN：978-4816363580）※Purchase personally※Start from page 132)

Venue: Matsudo City Tourism Association, 2F Hall

Eligibility: Beginners of German conversation
Capacity: First 15 persons
Fee:￥9,000 (MIEA member)￥12,000 (Non-member)

Text:To be decided※Purchase personally

Around the World with MIEAーApril June
(Scan QR code fordetails on dates.)※Free trial lesson available※ Scan the QR codes for details and to apply.

Open-air Tai Chi ClassExperience meditation while moving. Increase
your immunity and get more exercise. Let's get
together for tai chi chuan!

Venue: Plaza square at Kite Mite Matsudo

Eligibility: Beginners are welcome.
Capacity: First 20 persons
Fee: Book of 10 tickets￥5,000 (MIEA member￥8,000 (Non-member)

Tai chi is easy on the body, and anyone canparticipate regardless of age.
Instructor: Ms. Jin Chunhua(From China, Matsudo International Cultural
Ambassador)

May 11(Saturday)
13:30 15:00

How to Brew Tasty Coffee: The Basics

ーLecture by Rino Senlewa, barista of Indonesiancoffee shop MAHAMERU COFFEE

The lecture will be held inJapanese.

Includes special herb biscuits and presents ofa HARIO dripper set and kettle ♪

Application deadline:April 21 (Sunday)

Recruitment
Application period:
May 15 (Wed.) May 31(Fri.)

ー※Current ambasadors
who wish to continue arerequested to apply again.

Venue: Cooking classroom at Matsudo
Civic Hall (Shimin Kaikan)
Eligibility 16 years old and above
Capacity: 20 persons (By lot if many apply)Fee:￥2,500 (MIEA member)￥3,000 (Non-member)

Lecturer: Mr. Rino Senlewa(From Indonesia, coffee coordinator)※ Scan the QR codes for details and to apply.

Recruitment for the 27th Matsudo
International Cultural Ambassadors
We are seeking volunteers to serve as culturalambassadors from September 2024 to September 2025.

Commissioning
ceremony: Scheduled forSep. 1 (Sun.) in theafternoon

The Matsudo cultural ambassadors are volunteers who
introduce the cultures, lifestyles and arts of their homecountry and Japan through lectures promotinginternational understanding, international exchange
events, and other activities conducted in Matsudo.

Application deadline:June 30 (Sunday)

Recruiting Contestants for the 43rd English SpeechContest for High School Students in Matsudo

Contest date:August 17 (Saturday)
From 13:00

Topic: Your own choice (within 5 min., subject topreliminary screening of draft)
Eligibility: High school students living in Matsudo orcommuting to a school in Matsudo

Capacity: About 30 persons
Selection process:Pre-screening and interview(scheduled for late June)★ The top six winners will begiven priority to participate in
the Youth Delegation Programin March 2025, sponsored byMIEA. A portion of their travel
expenses will be subsidized.

The following students are not eligible:
1. Students who have stayed in an English-speaking country formore than six consecutive months or a total of one year (exceptfor those who were five years or younger)
2. Students who are currently studying or who have studied at aninternational school where the curriculum is taught in English
3. Students who live together with a parent or relative who is anative speaker of English or is from an English-speaking country
4. Students who were previous award winners of this contest

MIEA Station is published in Japanese, English, Chinese, Spanish and Vietnamese.
Many thanks to the translators of the spring issue!
Mr. Gary Tsuchida (English), Mr. Mian Yataco Bilal Javed (Spanish)
Ms. Lu Lüjin (Chinese), Ms. Nguyen Thi Ngoc (Vietnamese)FY 2024 Elementary Japanese Classes (1st Term)

MIEA Elementary Japanese Classes

Applications accepted from April 9 (Tue.)◆ Eligibility: MIEA members 15 years or older (born before April 1, 2009). Junior high school students are excluded.
◆ Fee: MIEA membership fee for FY 2024 of ￥1,000 and ￥1,000 per class (for the entire term)◆ Venue: International Friendship Room (Kokusai Yuko Room) at Bunka Hall
◆ Other: We will provide a partial subsidy to parents who need short-term care for their children while taking
Japanese classes. Please apply in advance at the MIEA office. (Available to the first 15 applicants.)※ Each class has a capacity. Please apply early as enrollment is first come, first served.
※ For those applying for the first time, please phone the MIEA office. (Tel. 047-711-9511）【Face-to-Face Lessons】
ClassDay

TimeWed.

ー12:30ー14:30
18:45ー20:45
10:10ー12:1010:10ー12:10
12:30ー14:30
10:10ー12:10
12:20ー14:20
10:10ー12:10(For those who can read and write hiragana andkatakana)Sun.

14:30 16:30

Conversation: Kaiwa Hiroba

Wed.

Period10.10 12:10
Tue.

Wed.

Elementary
Fri.

Sun.

Kanji
Study of N4 Level Kanji(For those who can reach and write hiragana andkatakana, and who can speak simple Japanese)Thu.

ー
13:00ー15:00
13:30ー15:30

ーMay 7 July 9ー

May 8 July 10ー

May 10 July 12ー

May 12 July 14ー

May 8 July 10ー
May 8ーJuly 10May 9ーJuly 11

May 12 July 14【 Online Lessons 】
Class (Level)

DayTimeElementary class (For those who canspeak a little Japanese)Thu.

10:00 12:00

Conversation Class (For those who can makesimple everyday conversation)

Tue.

★ We accept advertisements! ★
ADFor inquiries, please call
MIEA.
Tel: 047-711-9511

ー
13:30ー15:30

PeriodーMay 7ーJuly 9

May 9 July 11★ Latest info on Instagram, Facebook and X.★