awa life
A monthly newsletter for international residents of Tokushima, produced
by TOPIA, the Tokushima Prefectural International Exchange Association.

an introduction to tai chimany people findit strange for ayoung American
to be interested ins o m e t h i n g a s d i ff i c u l t a n d
obscure as traditional Tai Chi
Chuan (commonly known as Tai
Chi) but for me it is a window
to the world with a connection
to every facet of life. I knowthat many other students of
the art share this feeling. I
feel extremely lucky to haveencountered Tai Chi Chuan.
I often feel it is as much a
responsibility as it is a privilege
to do my best to pass it on toothers.
Before continuing, I would
like to say that this article iswritten in dedication to myteacher, Master Yang Jun. He
and his family gave up theirlives to come to the UnitedStates to spread an art that isa treasure of Chinese culture.
In comparison to the abilitiesof the Yang family I am still a
relative beginner in this art.
What little skill I possess is due"bend bow shoot tiger"

entirely to their generosity.
I still remember the ﬁrst time
I met Master Yang. It was thespring of 2001 and I had justleft art school. It was a strange
and tumultuous time in life. I
had little idea of what to door where to go next. Looking
back, I really don't think thetiming could have been better.
Beginning the practice of sucha demanding art under the"TOPPY"
October 2009 No. 231
by trevor mearns

instruction of a traditional
teacher really brought a senseof stability to the storm thatwas my world.
But first and more to thepoint, what is Tai Chi Chuan?
A n s w e r i n g t h a t c o u l d t a ke
awhile so please bear inmind that the following is anextremely simplified overview.
Aside from being a unique
culmination of Chinese history,
culture, and philosophy, Tai Chi
Chuan is one of the three main
Internal Martial Arts of China,
the other two are Baguazhang,( 八 卦 掌 ) "Eight Trigram
Palm" and Xing Yi Chuan ( 形意 拳 ) "Form Mind Boxing".
Internal martial arts differ fromexternal martial arts namely
in their mental approach tofighting, their generation of
power from the entire body andthat they are heavily reliant on
Chi Gong( 気 功 ) - a fusion ofphysical, mental, and energetic
exercise - for the development
and application of skill.
The most common English

an introduction to traditional tai chi ... con't on page 3

inside awa life this month

an introduction to traditional tai chi - 1, 3 ... greetings from naruto - 4, 6
sand, surf, and shrines - 5 ... tv schedule for october - 6
martin's manga corner - 7 .... joruri 100 stages, letter from suketo hoikuen, errata - 8
japanese lesson - 9 ... memoranda - 10, 11, 12

awalife

Tokushima Prefectural International
Exchange Association (TOPIA)
Clement Plaza 6F
1-61 Terashima Honcho Nishi
Tokushima City 770-0831 JAPAN
Tel: 088-656-3303
Fax: 088-652-0616
topia@topia.ne.jp
www.topia.ne.jp

is a monthly publication of the Tokushima Prefectural International Exchange Association (TOPIA).
Editors:
Andrew Dahms & Mario Dammann
Contributors This Month:
Andrew Dahms, Mario Dammann, Anja Hankel,
Kazue Inoue, Kyoko Kamura, Lance Kita, Trevor
Mearns, Martin O'Brien.

Download a PDF ﬁle of awa life or view theonline version by going to TOPIA's website!
www.topia.ne.jp/e_index.htm

from the editorautumn starts. Leaves colored. Fresh wind.
Closed windows at night. Cool Biz is over.
No my friends, this is not a Japanese
rhyme (also it doesn't rhyme) this is whatcomes to mind for October.
My last summer memory for this year is the
Kazura (Iya Vine) Bridge and the massive
amount of people all going the same day as me.
I went there a few times already, but the othertimes there were rarely people with us. Even insummer. But Silver Week brings people from allover the country to the exact same place where
I wanted to go.
On the other hand, the excitement before
entering the bridge while waiting in line for
20-30 minutes grew steadily. Finally arriving,
paying the entrance fee (saved 10% withcoupons) a crowd of people standing on thebridge with myself and my guest together.
Almost everyone (except me) screaming:"Kowai! Kowai!", the bridge is shaking, the vine
strings are snapping, the crowd is ...
No, the last thing didn't happen. Everything
was good and I enjoyed it even more. Goingalone or with one friend is a romantic andsilent experience, but crossing the bridgewith hundreds of people is nerve-racking andfascinating.
What else do we have? Oh yes, rain. Let
friends come over to your house and let themcook for you. Their specility. Their favorite food.
In most cases you will like it, and in rare cases
it is exactly you favorite food as well. Take care!
Danke, Mariounder the iya vine bridge "kazura bashi" (photo by mario dammann)-2-

an introduction to traditional tai chi ... con't from page 1
translation of Tai Chi Chuan
is "Grand Ultimate Fist"
but I've always found thisinterpretation a bit too lofty.
Ta i C h i ( 太 極 ) , m e a n s
roughly: "great extreme". It
refers to the philosophy of Yin
and Yang; extreme opposites
which create a whole.
Basically, Yin refers to thereceptive universal force andYang to the creative Universal
force. According to Taoism,
the philosophy upon which
Tai Chi is based; all eventsin the universe physical andotherwise are manifestationsof Yin and Yang.
"Chuan" （ 拳 ）translates
directly as "fist" but is also acommon sufﬁx used in Chinese
to mean "martial art". So,
when combined together, thecharacters 太 極 拳 "Tai Chi
Chuan" can be understoodto mean "Martial art based
entirely on the philosophy of
Yin and Yang".
So how can the philosophyof Yin and Yang be applied toa martial art? The best way
to begin to understand thiswithout actually practicing is
to study the Tai Chi Tu, or Yin
Yang symbol as most call it.
You can see that the forces
are clearly separated yet still
combine and feedback upon
one another in a reciprocal
w a y. I n f i g h t i n g Y i n i s
manifested as the energy ofdefense and understanding
and Yang as the energy ofcontrol and attack.
Through correct training, theTai Chi fighter develops theability to intercept, interpret,
neutralize and control the
opponent's energy without
resisting. Because of this, Tai
Chi has also been referred"single whip low form"

to as "Cotton" or "Shadow"
boxing. This is an exceedingly
difficult skill to acquire andrequires long exposure to avery skilled teacher for real
understanding. Even in the"Golden Age" of ChineseMartial Arts real fighting skill,
known as "Tai Chi Gong Fu"( 太 極 功 夫 ) was revered as
one of the most difficult skills
to attain. The standard in thepast was absolute calm andcontrol of the mind and bodyin the most stressful situation
imaginable - defending yourlife. There are only a limited
number of people in the world
today who possess Tai Chi
Gong Fu.
The focus for mostmodern-day practitioners has
shifted toward developing
health and understanding. For
people of all ages and abilities,
Tai Chi has become a very
effective method for dissolving
the mental and physical effectsof stress in the body andmaintaining a refreshed, clear
state of mind. This is a direct
result of the practice method's-3-

original intention - thedevelopment of extraordinary
fighting skills. With regular
practice the modern Tai Chi
hand-form develops thestability, coordination, agility
and overall sensitivity of thehuman body and mind.
Tai Chi also has an amazing
way of fostering positive
emotions and bringing people
together. This, as Master Yang
has told me time and again,is the real treasure of Tai Chi
Chuan and should be the main
intention when practicing orteaching.
After my first four years
studying under MasterYang, I was asked to begin
teaching. Upon moving toJapan, I was asked again
to continue teaching and tocontribute to the community inTokushima. If anyone reading
this article is interested inl e a r n i n g Tra d i t i o n a l Ya n g
Family Tai Chi Chuan pleasecome to a free trial lesson
Sundays from 4:30 – 6:30
at 〒 770-0932, Tokushima
City, Nakano-cho 1-31, Email:Mihalis27@docomo.ne.jp

Also, if you are interested inlearning more about Tai Chi
theory and history please takea look at any material you canﬁnd on:- Traditional Chinese Medicine- Taoism- Chinese Internal Martial Arts
- Chi Gong
And/or visit the fol lowing
websites:* yangfamilytaichi.com/home* www.gstaichi.org/english/
vincentChu.php

greetings from narutohe l lo a n d g u t e n Ta g !
My name is Anja
Hankel and I am fromB e r l i n , G e r m a ny. I n
August I started to work as a
Coordinator for International
Relations in the German Housein Naruto on the trail of mypredecessor Patrick Wagner,
whom I got to know in person
shortly after my arrival in
Japan at the post departureorientation in Tokyo and whom
you might kn o w fro m h i sfarewell article in a previous
issue.
Now you might think "Ohno, not again one of thosedraggy self introductions"
you are forced to give (andread) when starting to live inJapan. But give me a chance,
give girl power a chance!
Why? Because I am not only
the first woman to work as a
CIR in the German House, Ialso came to Japan with myhusband Carsten (31) and my
two kids (Jakob and Klara).
When we were told that I waschosen to be one of the new
German JETs this year we
could already imagine what life
in Japan would be like as weboth have studied JapaneseStudies at Humboldt University
in Berlin and in this context
luckily have had the chance toexperience Japan as exchange
students at Tokai University
in Kanagawa Prefecture from2003 to 2004.
But for my kids it is thefirst time to be in Japan. So,
helping them to adjust to
a completely new country,
language and also to Japan's
hot summer climate andmaking them feel comfortable
as they did back home inGermany is one of our biggest
challenges during our firstmonths here in Tokushima.
I think moving to Japan asa family is far more complex
than doing so as a single
person, but with the great help
we got by now we realizedthat we can cope with it.
Actually we did not expect toget so much help and such awarm welcome and are really
thankful for this.
Another reason for feelingcomfortable here is because
we have the chance to live
not far from one of the editorsof this magazine, Mario
Dammann, who is -yes, we
all know it already- also fromG e r m a n y. We h a v e b e e nfriends since we started to
study in Berlin together andas luck would have it we both
got to work as CIRs in Japanand were even placed in thesame prefecture, which proves
the saying that this world isa small one, doesn't it? One
more proof for this might be
my following experience:
T h re e ye a r s a g o I wa s
writing some term paper about
the Japanese Bon festival and
Awa dance within my studies
on Japanese annual events,

by anja hankel

and as luck would have it
here too, at this time an Awa
dance group from Tokushima
was touring through Germany
and also came to Berlin to
introduce the dance. Of
course I went there to geta lively impression of it. The
group was accompanied byan interpreter I was very
impressed by. At that time I
did not know that this guy was
Mathias Hirschfeld, my prepredecessor and that I would
be doing his work one day.
However, my enthusiasm
for this dance has grown since
I came to Japan and I evenhad the chance to take partin the Tokushima Awa Dance
Festival with my family thisAugust. Sounds like fun to live
here? YES, I think it is!
I am also happy that mywork in the German Houseis very interesting and that
it offers a variety of exciting
tasks to me starting withguidances through the Bando
POW camp museum in theGerman House, translations of
all kinds, giving speeches on
various topics about Germany
and ranging to helping
organize the itinerary of theannual friendship delegations
from and to Lüneburg andvarious other exchange
activities with Germany. Living
i n t h e N a r u t o c o m m u n i ty
together with my family
also gives me the chance
to strengthen the germanjapanese friendship even on
private levels.
In order to give interesting
and competent tours throughthe German House and theBando POW camp exhibition
I concentrated on studying

greetings from naruto... con't on page 6-4-

sand, surf, and shrinesw

hat do portableshrines, rough surf
and long lengths ofrope have in common?
Seen apart, they have almost
no connection whatsoever, but
put them together and you
have one of the most exciting
and physically demanding
festivals of the entire year.
And what's more, it all takes
place here in Tokushima on the
shores of Ohama Beach. That's
right - it's time for the annual
Hiwasa Hachiman Shrine
Autumn Festival.
Autumn Festivities
It was a clear morning when
I arrived in Hiwasa to findOhama Beach a much different
place than I remembered. A
shinto altar had been set upon the south of the beach,cars lining the roads nearby,
and a smattering of onlookers
waiting with expectant looks.
Their wait wasn't a longone, either, as the festitivies
began soon after I arrived. The
first of the shrines appearedon the northern reaches of thebeach in the direction of theHachiman Shrine, a swarmof people hot on its heels,cameras in hand.
Standing atop a large set ofwooden beams that had beenlashed together, nine highand nine wide, it took a teamof more than forty to keep it
upright. Inside sat a team ofyoung children, beating away
at taiko drums as the local
residents below kept the shrine
up high, carrying the weightof it on their shoulders as theymarched down to the beach.
And they looked tired.
Re a c h i n g t h e s u r f, t h e

by andrew dahms

local townspeople ﬁght to keep a portable shrine above
water as they wade through the waves and into the surf

shrine paused for a few
s e c o n d s b e fo re d i v i n g i n ,waves pushing up against thebearers as they waded down
to shoulder height. Meanwhile,
teams of onlookers watchedon from the sand, some taking
photos and others shouting
cheers of support. Others held
on to a large rope connectedto the shrine, helping to anchor
it and pull it along the beach.
Watching the shrines pass
slowly through the roiling surf
was tiring enough, but for the
bearers, their struggles had
only just begun. After wading
the length of the beach, theshrines came back up out of
the water, the sodden carriers
taking it up the slippery sidesof the nearby sand dunes tocome to rest.
Start to finish, it was an
epic journey, but by no meansu n i q u e . Tw o m o r e o f t h eshrines were already coming
out onto the beach and afurther ﬁve stood in waiting at
the nearby Hachiman Shrine.
The procession took twohours from start to ﬁnish, and-5-by the time it was done thebeach was fully packed. A
crowd had gathered and picnic
baskets and hampers were laidout, and the shrine bearers
enjoyed a brief respite as they
returned to their families toenjoy a quick meal.
But quick is definitely
the word, as soon enough it
came time to pack everythingback into the shrine, and theprocession once more.
Good Luck!
The Hiwasa Hachiman Shrine
Autumn Festival is held topray for the success of thecoming fishing season, andearly comers will see as town
officials gather with a shinto
priest to offer a prayer to thegods before the day begins.
The sight of the shrines is very
stirring and it is a treasurechest of kodak moments forphotographers. While it iscertainly more of a spectator
event, if you're looking for agood day and a touch of local
culture, then this is the place
to be.

greetings from naruto ... con't from page 4
the history of the former POW
camp during the last weeks.
To me a particularly fascinating
feature of this camp history is
the effect, which the exchange
between the German prisoners
and the local Japanesepeople produces until today:
friendships have been madeand are still intensively
cultivated on different levels– the common interest in
the other culture is still verystrong on both sides. In 1974
a sister city contract between
Naruto and Lüneburg was
signed and it is important to
say that it does not only exist
on the paper, but is intensively
and effectively cultivated.
After having adjusted to my
new responsibilities during thepast weeks I am beginning torealize that this workplace is areally unique one for a German
CIR in Japan and I resolved toactively shape and support theJapanese-German friendship
activities here in Naruto during
the next few years.
At this point I would also
like to thank Patrick for hiskind support while we were
getting prepared for ourmoving to Japan and for thesmooth handover of the CIR
duties in the German House.

anja with husband carsten. he holds
klara (1). in front is jakob (4).

And Anja wouldn't be Anja, if
she wouldn't provide further
information about Germany.
Since September 2007 it gets
more and more important toknow, what happens in theprefecture's partner countyof Niedersachsen, so here is
the special information:
On Sunday, September
2 7, 2 0 0 9 t h e G e r m a nfederal election took place
to elect the members of
the Bundestag, the federal
p a r l i a m e n t o f G e r m a n y.
Exit polls showed that theChristian Democratic Union(CDU), its Bavarian sister

party, the Christian Social
Union (CSU), and the Free
Democratic Party (FDP) won
the election, and announced
their intention to form a newcentre-right government withAngela Merkel as Chancellor.
Their main opponent, FrankWalter Steinmeier's Social
Democratic Party (SPD),conceded defeat. Since the2005 election, Chancellor
Angela Merkel (CDU) had
governed in a grand coalition
with the SPD. However, it
was her stated goal to win
a m a j o r i ty fo r C D U / C S U
and FDP (the CDU/CSU's
traditional coalition partner)
in 2009.
The federal election was
the ﬁnal and most importantelection in what is calleda Superwahljahr (superelection year) in Germany.
In addition to the electionof a new Bundestag, alsoscheduled for 2009 werethe election to the European
Parliament and seven local
elections in June, five stateelections and an additional
local election in August and
September, and the electionof a president by the Federal
Assembly in May.

tv schedule for octobersubmitted

DateTime Channel

NationTitle

Fri. 02

20:00 1 - Shikoku

New Zealand - USA - 2005

King Kong

Sun. 04

21:00 6 - ABC

USA - England - 1997

007: Tomorrow Never Dies

Fri. 16

21:00 1 - Shikoku

USA - 2004

Alien vs. Predator

Sat. 17

21:00 8 - Kansai

USA - 2002

Spiderman

Sun. 18

21:30 6 - ABC

USA - 1997

Air Force One

Fri. 23

21:00 1 - Shikoku

USA - 2002

Ghost Ship

-6-

martin's manga corner
Title:
Manga-ka:
Publisher:First published:
No of volumes:bBlack Jack ( ブラック・ジャック )Tezuka Osamu
Akita Shoten
1973
17lack Jack is a muchloved manga writtenby the influential
father of the genre,
Tezuka Osamu. It is probably
the second best known of
his manga after Astro Boy.
The Black Jack stories are
medical adventures staring themysterious and reclusive yetbrilliant doctor Black Jack. He
is known to be one of the mosttalented surgeons in the world
and will only (in most cases)
assist those who can pay him
vast sums of money. Althoughalmost all of the stories
involve him performing some
operation with miraculous
surgical feats, there is also
g re a t d e a l o f va r i a t i o n i n
the themes covered in thesestories. Elements of mystery,horror and science fiction
are found in the 17 original
volumes. In each volume there
are numerous stories that canbe read independently of eachother. I have reviewed some of
my favourites in volume 1.
The very first story "IsT h e re a D o c t o r " s e e s t h erich son of a corrupt fat catbusiness man in an Eastern
European country go under
the knife. The patient is on his
deathbed, and only Black Jackcan save him, but unfortunately
the patient's body parts are
so mangled and disfiguredthat a living donor will have tosacriﬁce his life to save the rich
man's son. The business man
captures someone to fulﬁll thisgruesome task, however Black
Jack instead decides to change
the face of the kidnapped
victim to look like the rich
man's son. In this opening
episode of Black Jack, we seethat despite his subversive,lone wolf outward appearance,
he is motivated by a certain
morality.
In another story "The FaceSore", Black Jack is asked tocure a bizarre supernatural
phenomenon - that of a facesore resulting from the venomof a rare toad that causes asore in the shape of a toad's
mouth to appear aroundthe body. The man who issuffering from this condition
is in a bad way with the sore
having spread all over his bodyand face. Unable to get themonstrous sore off by surgicalmeans, Black Jack tries insteada different method: by shooting
the man and then restoring
him to health. The shock of
the incident is successful andthe man is apparently cured,
however when his original
face is restored, Black Jackseems to recognise him. The
man is a wanted murderer
and he tries to kill Black Jack
after he becomes aware of thefact, however as he is about
to shoot, the face sore comesback and thwarts his attempt.
"The Face Sore" offers somebrilliant plot twists and turns
and also shows the stories onoffer aren't exactly of the ER
type medical drama.

-7-

by martin o'brien

In "U-18 Knew", Black Jackis requested to come to acybernetics medical center in
the US. At this medical facility
all of the patients and thevarious medical procedures
are controlled by a single highgrade computer. Unfortunately,
there had been a malfunction
with the computer, which had
used it's AI to take over thefacility and threaten to kill all
the patients unless Black Jack
comes to fix some mysterious
illness that it (the computer)is suffering from. After heshuts it down, the medical
staff try to stop him powering
up the computer again but
he manages to prevent
them, as he had promised toperform the operation. Afterthe malfunction is fixed andthe power is restored, thecomputer thanks him and shuts
itself down for good having
decided to retire. Disaster isaverted.
In "The First Storm of
Spring" a woman that Black
Jack has performed an eye
operation keeps seeing a tallhandsome man everywhere
she goes. It is apparently
symptomatic of the operation,
but Black Jack is perplexed.
He finds out that the cornea
that was used in the transplant
operation came from a murder
victim. Black Jack believes
that the image of the man
was imprinted onto the cornea
due to some strong stimulus,
perhaps during her murder. In
the meantime, the patient ﬁnds
the real man, but it turns out
he is the murderer and he tries
to kill her to cover himself until
Black Jack intercedes and once
again saves the day.

awa puppet theatre monthfrom Saturday, October 3
to Tuesday, November 3,"The 100 Stages" event
will be held throughout
the prefecture. There are In
and Outdoor performances ofthis traditional puppet theatre.
Many performances are free forentrance. Enjoy the classicalperforming art, the living
tradition, rural village stages, alink to religion, moving screen
doors and especially of course
the puppets.

i

Here in Topia you can get the
Official English Pamphlet forthis event. With listing of theHighlights of all stages. We
don't have enough space in
Awa Life to write about every
performance so please come toTopia and get your pamphlet
here.
More information (but inJapanese only) is also available
at this internet address:

joruri100.com/schedule.html

letter from suketo hoikuen
n Japan they say "reading
in autumn". Autumn is aseason of the year which
has easy to get throughweather, the sunset is early,
there is more time to spend
with the family. Autumn is theperfect season for reading.
Especially infants love it when
they sit on their father's ormother's lap and get a story
told from a picture book. It also
helps to deepen the affection
between parent and child, andcultivates the imagination andorginality. Don't you want tofind a picture book, what you
and your child will love?

tokushima prefecture
culture promotions bureau

page is important, from thebook cover to the back cover).
- The ending should be a shortand a happy one!
- The world of picture books
is precious. (Hold back withgiving explanations or asking
questions. Without these, apicture book can be enjoyedmuch more.)This Month's Toy:
Paper Sumo Fighters - A
game which is inspired by
the famous Japanese sport of
Sumo.

Important points for reading a
picture book:- Embrace your child on yourlap and show the picture
closely (in a picture book every
Errata:In the September issueof Awa Life in our Suketo
Hoikuen Corner we had aprinting mistake. The picturefor "This Month's Toy" wasunavailable. Here it is. We
would like to apologize.

-8-

by kazue inoue
suketo hoikuen staff

Instructions:
1: Make two paper fighters likein the picture to the bottom.
Fold them in the middle.
2: Draw a big circle on an
empty box, draw two lines
in the middle and the sumo
wrestling ring is ready. On topof it you put the paper sumo
fighters and start tapping withyour fingers on the edge of thebox.
3: The fighter who first leaves
the ring or falls flat loses.

japanese lessontby kyoko kamura

his month we talk about「～てくる」and「～ていく」.
Kate and Ms. Tanaka had made an appointment. The agreed time comes, but Ms. Tanaka isn't.
Another ten minutes past, and Ms. Tanaka ﬁnally arrived.
た なか

おく

の

おく

はし

田中さん：遅れてすみません。バスに乗り遅れて、ここまで走ってきました。
Ms. Tanaka: Sorry for being late.
I missed the bus, so I ran to here. はしはしき」?
Why did Ms. Tanaka not use「ここまで走りました。」, but instead「ここまで走って来ました。
はしはし」and「ここまで走る」both the action "to run here", or do they
Are「ここまで走ってくる（いく）have a different meaning?
はしはし「走 ってくる」is, while you run ( 走 る ), you will arrive until here. But how they come/go (whatthey use) to arrive here, is expressed.
Let's try and make a sentemce:
あるTry! A: Use「歩く」to go to the train station.

→（）

There arealsoにotherways to use「～てくる」and「～ていく」.
せんげつ
ほん
かえ
① a.「先月、日本に帰ってきました」"Last month I returned to Japan."
Meaning: The speaker about coming closer to this region (here is Japan)→（
Try! B: A foreigner moved next door.
ふね

）

はな

b.「船がどんどん離れていく」"The ship moves away steadily."
Meaning: Where is the speaker right now? And the coast? That's right.
With other words, it expresses to go far off the speaker.
→（
Try! C: A thief escapes the police.
きっ て

）

か

②「ちょっと切符を買ってきます。
」"I'll go and buy a ticket."
Where is the speaker right now? At the ticket window?
Meaning: The speaker moves away from the actual postion to buy a ticket and will comeback again.
Try! D: Left the house, went to the supermarket, bought something and came back.
→（やす）④「ここで休んでいきましょう。
」"Let's rest here before going on."It expresses the going after an action.
The action before going in this sentence is even more important.
→（）
Try! E: Let's play here a little, and then do the next thing.
Answers:
Try A
Try B
Try C
Try D
Try E

駅まで歩いていきます。
がいこくじん
となり
ひ
こ
外
国人が隣
に引っ越してきました。
どろぼうに泥棒が逃げていきました。
かものいスーパーへ買い物に行ってきました。
すこ
あそ
ここで少し遊んでいきましょう。
えき

ある

-9-

memoranda
Multicultural
Festival is coming!

多文化共生フェスティ
バルを開催します！！

On Tuesday, November 3, the Multicultural Festival will

平成 21 年 11 月 3 日、フレアとくしまにて多文化共生フェbe held in Flair Tokushima. One of the guests this time is

スティバルを開催します。今回は、ゲストに海外紹介ド

Mr. Kai Shishido, famous actor from TV shows introducing

キュメンタリー番組などでも活躍中の俳優、宍戸開さん

foreign countries. Furthermore we have a Globalをお迎えしてお話を伺います。そのほかにも、世界のおDance Experience Corner, a panel exhibition (Theme:
International Exchange Associations in Tokushima

どりや県内の国際交流関係団体パネル展、外国人のど自Prefecture), a singing contest (see also page 12 for

慢（12 ページで詳細情報を GET）など、盛りだくさんの

more information), and many more events are planned.

内容です。ぜひ遊びに来てください！

Certainly drop by for a visit, the Multicultural festival isfree for everyone!

日時：10:00 ～ 16:00

When: Tuesday, November 3 (national holiday)

場所：from 10 am to 4 pm

問合せ：（財）徳島県国際交流協会（TOPIA) まで

University)
Free!

Info:

Call TOPIA at 088-656-3303

フレアとくしま（アスティとくしま内）

入場料： 無料！

Where: Flair Tokushima (in Asty Tokushima - near Bunri
Cost:

平成 21 年 11 月 3 日（火・祝日）

電話 088-656-3303

Hiwasa Hachiman
Shrine Festival

日和佐八幡神社
秋祭り

Come to Hiwasa for the Hachiman Shrine Autumn Festival,

10 日に行われる町廻りから始まり、
11 日には 8 台のチョー

in which eight large portable shrines are carried on a

サ（太鼓屋台）が大浜海岸を駆けまわり、波濤の中に飛procession down and to the surf of Ohama Beach to pray

び込む勇壮なお祭りです。

for good luck for the ﬁshing season.

日時：

When: Saturday, October 10 from 12:00-21:30

10 月 10 日（土）、12:00 ～ 21:30
10 月 11 日（日）、10:50 ～ 18:00

Sunday, October 11 from 10:50-18:00
Where: Saturday - throughout the streets of Minami-cho,

場所：

and at the Hachiman Shrine in the evening for a

（町廻り）
・八幡神社
（宵宮）
、
花火、
10 日：美波町内
11 日：八幡神社～大浜海岸

ﬁreworks display. Sunday - Hachiman Shrine to

入場料： 無料！

Ohama Beach.

問合せ： 美波町産業推進課まで

Cost:

Free!

Info:

Call the Minami-cho Industry Promotions Division

電話 0884-77-2474

at 0884-77-2474.

-10-

memoranda
平成 21 年度
藍住町国際交流協会

日本語ボランティア養成講座
受講者募集！
●●● 外国の方への実践的な日本語の教え方を勉強しませんか ●●●藍住町国際交流協会では、徳島県の事業として、（財）徳島県国際交流協会（トピア）との協力で「日本語指導ボランティア養成講座」を開催します。

とき 前期： 平成 21 年 10 月 24 日 ～ 12 月 20 日の間 計 8 回（合計 24 時間）① 10 月 24 日（土） 午前 9：30 ～ 12：30（以下時間は全て同じ）② 11 月 1 日（日）③ 11 月 8 日（日）④ 11 月 15 日（日）⑤ 11 月 21 日 ( 土 )⑥ 12 月 6 日（日）⑦ 12 月 13 日（日）⑧ 12 月 20 日（日）後期：

平成 22 年 1 月～ 2 月 （詳細は日程が決まり次第お知らせします）＊ 前期は「みんなの日本語Ⅰ」、後期は「みんなの日本語Ⅱ」の教え方を学びます。

ところ：①～⑥は、藍住町福祉センター 2F（088-692-9951）⑦⑧は、藍住町女性センター 1F（088-692-6266）
無料
スリーエーネットワーク「みんなの日本語Ⅰ」2,500 円をご購入ください。
20 名程度
平成 21 年 10 月 20 日（火）

受講料：
テキスト：
定員：
申込締切：

藍住町国際交流協会事務局（担当）松田藍住町奥野字矢上前 32－1 藍住町社会福祉協議会内〒771-1203

TEL 088-692-9951
E-Mail

FAX

088-692-1626

aizumi_kokusai@garnet.nmt.ne.jp

Japanese Lessons
at Suketo Hoikuen

助任保育園の日本語教室

When: Every Thursday

日時：11:00 - 12:00
Cost:

Free for nursery students!

Info:

Call TOPIA at
088-656-3303

毎週木曜日
11:00 ～ 12:00

金額：

託児付き（無料）

問合せ： トピアまで
電話 088-656-3303-11-

memoranda
Tokushima Multicultural Festival
Japanese Singing Contest
Participants Wanted!
1 Overview:

This singing contest provides a chance for foreign residents to learn about Japanese culture throughsinging songs in Japanese, and an opportunity to promote international understanding between theparticipants and the audience through the participants’ self introductions.

2 Organiser:
3 Time:Tokushima Prefectural International Exchange Association (TOPIA).
Tuesday, November 3, 2009 (15:00-16:00).
The Multicultural Festival will run from 10:00-16:00.

4 Location:

The Multicultural Festival venue - Tokiwa Hall.
The Gender Equality Exchange Centre, Flair Tokushima
770-8055 Tokushima-shi Yamashiro-cho Higashi Houji 1 (ASTY Tokushima)
Tel: 088-655-3911

5 Conditions:

Foreign residents only. If the number of applicants exceeds the number of positions, placements will bedecided by TOPIA. In principle, a maximum of only 1-2 participants from a particular country will beselected. Applicants will be contacted until the end of October 2009 as to whether or not they have been
selected.

6 Details:

Japanese Singing Contest.
10 Entries (group entries possible)* A karaoke machine will not be provided.

7 Prize:

All participants will receive an award for participation.

8 Cost:Free.

9 Deadline:

Applications must be received by Friday, October 16, 2009.

10 Applications: Tokushima Prefectural International Exchange Association
770-0831 Tokushima-shi Terashima Honcho Nishi 1-61
TEL 088-656-3303 FAX 088-652-0616
Please note that photographs of participants may appear on the TOPIA website and / or related publications.
For more information, and application form, please contact Mr. Harada at TOPIA:
E-mail: harada@topia.ne.jp FAX: 088-652-0616* Full details will be provided after application.

Counselling Service at TOPIA
トピアの相談窓口

TOPIA offers a counselling and advisory service to all foreign residents to help with issues involving accidents, working conditions, housing, visas, international marriage, and more. Counselling is available in English and Japanese.
Please note that although every effort will be made, we may not be able to deal with all cases.
Monday to Friday, 10:00 - 16:30
Tel. 088-656-3303 or 088-656-3320 (allows three-way conversations with an interpreter)

人権守って輝く明日-12-