aWa life

April 2023

Farewell Messages

Letter fromSUKETO NAKAYOSHI

A Visit to the Government ofLower Saxony

Gairaigo Galore:
リハビリ

# 389

1

Awa Life is a Monthly Publication of the Tokushima
Prefectural International Exchange Association

Has everyone had the chance to enjoy the sakura (cherry blossoms) yet? I’m sure most everyone hasheard of sakura, but have you heard of sakura mochi? If you haven’t then you should definitely checkout our Japanese Corner this month! You’ll learn all about the different kinds of sakura mochi available
in the Kanto and Kansai areas of Japan. (Though maybe you should read it after lunch as it may makeyou a bit hungry for some sweets!)
For all of those who like writing, please feel free to submit an article to us at any point in time aboutbasically anything. There are a few limitations though, such as you can’t write about religion, politics,
commercial activities or businesses or anything that we deem inappropriate. But, other than that, we
would be more than happy to receive articles about anything and everything including but not limited
to concerts, lectures, other events, culture, sports, community group information or anything cool that’s
happening in your local community.
We highly appreciate all of your articles and we love reading them. So if that writing bug of yours isbuzzing about, grab a pen or a computer and write and send away! Please send all submissions to ouremail:Your editors,
Sydney and Nicoawalife@gmail.com
Tokushima Prefectural International Exchange Association (TOPIA)
1-61 Terashima Honcho Nishi, Tokushima City 770-0831 JAPAN, Clement Plaza 6F
Tel: 088-656-3303 Fax: 088-652-0616
http://www.topia.ne.jp/
Download a PDF file of awa life or view the online version by going to TOPIA's website!

Editors:
Sydney Bartig and Nico Bohnsack
Contributors This Month:
Rieko Akamatsu, Qing Liu, Fumie Imai, Kazue Inoue, Mari Kimoto, Mayumi Nishioka and Yoko Aoki

Contents

Pg. 2-3: A Visit to the Government of Lower Saxony

2

Pg. 3-4: Farewell Messages
Pg. 4

Letter from SUKETO NAKAYOSHI

Pg. 5:

Japanese Culture and Reading Corner: 桜餅

Pg. 5:

Gairaigo Galore: リハビリ

Pg. 6:The Club for Thinking about Multicultural Coexistence "Tomoni" in Tsurugi Town

Pg. 7:

Japanese Lesson

Pg. 8-9: Events and Memoranda
Women’s Activities: Learning from Germany - A Visit to theGovernment of Lower Saxony
By: Rieko Akamatsu, Representative of Shikoku Manabi Mirai Network Research InstituteIn September of 2022, as a part of one ofthe projects for the 15th anniversary of thefriendship relations between Tokushima andLower Saxony, Germany, myself and 10 othermembers visited the city of Celle for a “Women’s
Business Leadership Tour”.
We had a tour of andlearned at the German
Management Academy
Lower Saxony (DMAN).

Germany ranks 10th in the world in regards to theGender Gap Index, being in a completely different
league than Japan which ranks 116. One of thereasons for this is the rapid progress it has madein the political field. However, the reality is notas simple for many women’s daily lives. In spiteof their abilities, there is areluctance for women to
take on management roles,
and the traditional thoughtsof “men working and women
staying at home” still havestrong roots.

On the 5th and last
day of our training, wetraveled to Hannover,
The principle of equal pay
the capital of Lowerfor equal work has yet to be
Saxony, and visited
established, and there are
the State Ministry ofmany women who work for
September - Lower Saxony, Germany
Social Welfare, Health,
low-wage, part-time jobs
and Equality. Up until now, due to the COVID-19 while also engaging in caregiving, child rearing,
pandemic, there were restrictions on entering house work, etc. This can then lead to poverty, athe conference rooms, but I was told that for the similar trend that can be seen in Japan. On thefirst time in a while the rooms were nearly filled. other hand, the lack of skilled personnel is being
No matter where you go, you can feel signs of taken seriously, and companies are putting their
the scars left by COVID-19, as well as signs of efforts into human resource training. Moving
revival. The ministry we visited provides support forward, women are expected to take an active
for women, with its main objectives being to role in a diverse array of fields.
promote a balance between work and family life,
support entrepreneurs, and to assist immigrants.
In Germany, education also plays an important

3

A Visit to the Government of Lower Saxonyrole. In particular, there have been efforts toprovide role models for girls and to introduce
a “Girl’s Day Program”. Girl’s Day (as well as
Boy’s Day) allows for male and female students
to try out and experience fields of study that are
not typically chosen by their gender. However, it
seems that there is a troubling issue of parents
interfering in their child’s life when it is time tochoose a career path.
I asked how many female education
superintendents there were in Germany. By theway, women only make up a mere 7% of theprincipals in Japan. Surprisingly, the ratio of
women superintendents in education is 50%.
However, it is not as if this has produced any
special outcome, and the challenges in regards toeducation still exist.
Our time at the ministry ended with a lecture
about the state of the promotion of women’s

Farewell Messages

Qing Liu, Multilingual Consultation Staff
5 years ago I came from my 996 (*1) in Shanghai
to Japan and started my life in Tokushima. Whiledrinking my morning coffee, I saw white andyellow butterflies fluttering about in the green
garden and, just like them, the rhythm of my life
suddenly changed.
Working at TOPIA allowed me to learn more
about Tokushima. My job at TOPIA is to help
travelers, study abroad students, those with a job,and other foreigners who come to the prefecture.
This all allowed me to deepen my understandingof Tokushima.
And thus, my understanding of Japan also
deepened.
Before, when I was speaking Japanese in China,
I would just translate Japanese directly from
Chinese, meaning I would use Japanese with aChinese way of thinking and Chinese way of doing
things. However, when I came to Tokushima, I feltthat the Japanese people’s way of thinking andactivities in Tokushima Prefecture and Japanby Sawako Hirata, the assistant to the division
head of the Diversity Promotion Division at theTokushima Prefectural Government.
It must have surely caused her complicatedfeelings to show just how far behind Japan iscompared to the rest of the world. However, I
feel proud that Tokushima, which has the highest
number of female company presidents in Japan,
has been taking initiatives such as this training
and is truly taking the lead within Japan.

The author receiving a certificate ofcompletion of the training.
expressions
w e r es oprofound. I stilloccasionallymake mistakes,
but I’ve learned
a lot.
I felt I had
become used toTokushima not
only when I wasable to understand Awa-ben (the local dialect),but also when I started not to wake up from large
earthquakes. (Now I typically don’t wake up
unless the earthquake is a magnitude 4 or higher.)
In my second year in Tokushima, I noticed that the
precipitation levels had decreased since spring.
Every morning when I would pass by the Akui
River, I noticed that the once clear waters that
seemed as if they would overflow the banks were
gradually decreasing. Environmental problems
are not just in Tokushima, but are a problem
that must be solved by the entire world, and that

4

Farewell Messages
made me feel that the meaning of international
exchange was even more significant.
At TOPIA, I’ve met many people from various
countries, such as study abroad students, ALTs,
technical interns, and even those who left theirown country for love. I’ve always felt so impressedat their courage and love. In order to preserve
their stories, in “ 雁 过 拔 毛 ” (*2) style, I always
ask them to write for Awa Seikatsu (the Chineseversion of Awa Life). For their contributions I am
extremely grateful.
Fumie Imai, CLAIR Tokushima Branch
It has been a lot of fun being able to work at theTokushima Prefectural International Exchange
Association. I was able to learn a lot about what
Tokushima has to offer, such as the delicious
food, beautiful scenery, Awa Odori dance, Awaben, the warmth of its people, and much more.
I’m moving outside of the prefecture, but I hope
to continue brushing up on my English and telling
people from around the world about the great

It’s time to say goodbye. To everyone I’ve met
over these 5 years, to those in Arasowaren who
I danced Awa Odori with, and to my friends at
TOPIA I am extremely grateful.
*1 “996” means working from 9 AM to 9 PM 6
days a week.
*2 “ 雁 过 拔 毛 ” translates to “wanting to pluck
the feathers of the goose that passes in front ofyou.” The meaning is to not let any chances slip
through your fingers.

parts of Tokushima.
In order to createa multi-culturalsociety where all
people can live a
comfortable life, I
want to do whatever
I can to help.
It was only a shorttime, but I want to thank everyone for everything.

Letter from SUKETO NAKAYOSHI

By: Kazue Inoue (Center for Early Childhood Education and Care SUKETO NAKAYOSHI)I

n Japan we have a proverb “ 笑 う 門 に は 福
来 る ”. You all may have heard it before, but
it means that happiness will naturally come tohomes that are always bright and laughing. In
fact, laughter has the following effects.
① Boosts immunity and resistance to germs② Increases blood flow and brain activity③ Reduces spikes in blood sugar④ Reduces stress⑤ Reduces allergic reactions
Of course, laughter also has a large effect onchild rearing as well. It not only helps to makea child healthy, but also builds a good parent/child relationship that will increase children’s
motivation.
It’s become the perfect season to go out andenjoy the beautiful sakura flowers of Japan’s
spring. On a nice day, take your child out to apark or open space. Play a lot… laugh a lot… andhave a spring filled with happiness.
<Rice Flour Apple Cakes - For 4 People>① Add 60 g of apples cut into quarter-rounds and
12 g of raisins to a pot. Boil until the apples aresoft and then let cool.
② Sift 72 g of rice flour, 2 g of baking powder,and 24 g of sugar.
③ Add 20 g of salad oil, 72 g of soft tofu, and 48
g of soy milk to the ingredients in ② and mix.
④ Add and stir in thecooled apples andraisins to ③ .
⑤ Bake in an ovenat 175 degrees for 17- 20 minutes. Oncedone cooking you arefinished.

5Japanese Culture and Reading Corner: 桜餅
By: Mari Kimoto

さくらもち

し

さくらもち

みなさんは、 桜 餅を 知っていますか？
わ

が

し

や

さくら

わ が

桜餅は、桜にちなんだかでいます。スーパーや 和菓子屋さんで

し

さくら

和菓子で

がつ

は

もち

つつ

桜の葉で、餅で 包ん

まつ

とき

た

買うことができます。３月の ひな祭りの時にも、 食べられ

ます。
さくらもち

かんとう

かんさい

しゅるい

かんとう ち ほう

さくらもち

ちょう

桜 餅には、関東と 関西で ２種類あります。 関東地方の 桜 餅は、長めい じ もちよちょうめい じこ むぎ こきじや

命寺餅と 呼ばれています。 長 命寺は、 小麦粉などの 生地を 焼いた
かわ

Kansaiもちまかんさい ち ほう

さくらもち

皮で 餅を 巻いて クレープ のようになっています。関西地方の 桜 餅

Kanto

どうみょう じ もち

あら び

よ

どうみょう じ

ごめ

む

かんそう

は、 道 明 寺餅と 呼ばれています。 道 明 寺は、もち米を 蒸して 乾燥させて 粗挽きにし
み

め

しょっかん

さくらもち

は

しお づ

たものです。見た目は、まんじゅうのようで、つぶつぶとした 食 感です。桜餅の 葉は、塩漬けにし
あま

ひ

た

もち

かんそう

ふせ

やくわり

わたし

ちょうめい じ もちたているため、甘みを 引き立てます。 餅の 乾燥を 防ぐ 役割もします。私は 長 命寺餅を 食べたこ
た

さくら

き せつ

桜の

季節に

とが ないので、食べてみたいです。 みなさんも
み かく

さくらもち

ぜひ

た

に ほん

はる

桜餅を 食べて 日本の 春のたの味覚を 楽しんでください。
Vocabulary List
さくらもち

む

Rice Cake Wrapped in a Cherry Leaf 蒸す

桜 餅

ちなんだ Connected To
わ が し

や

Steam

あま

Sweetness

甘みひた

和菓子屋 Japanese Sweets Shop

引き立てる Bring Out

こ むぎ こ

かんそう

小麦粉
き じ

Wheat Flour
Material/Dough

生地
ごめ

もち米

Glutinous Rice

乾燥
あら び

Dry

しょっかん

食感

Texture

しお づ

塩漬け Pickling in Salt
ふせ

防ぐ
やくわり

役割

粗挽き

Coarsely Ground

つぶつぶ

GrainyPrevent
Role

リハビリ (Rehabilitation)
Gairaigo Galore
By: Sydney Bartig
L ast month I introduced the word ギ プ ス , or cast in English. This month I’d like to continue thetrend and introduce another medical (bone-breaking) related word! If you’ve read the title, thenyou’ll see that this month’s world is リハビリ . The direct translation of this word is “rehabilitation”.
Both in English and in Japanese it has many meanings. However, when I started using the word
“rehabilitation” in English to explain my situation (I have to go to rehabilitation for my arm after
finally getting my cast off), I felt a bit strange using the word.

No one corrected me, but I finally realized that “physical therapy” was closer to the word I wanted
to use in English. While I know rehabilitation (or “rehab” as it is often called in English), my firstthought was alcohol or drug-related rehabilitation. Even when searching online, it seems that thetype of “rehabilitation” is often explained further in English (ie: wildlife rehabilitation, vocational
rehabilitation, etc.).
*As an American I naturally can’t speak for every English speaking country and nuances may varydepending on the country.
When I asked my Japanese friend what her first thought was when hearing
the word リハビリ , she looked online and said that there are many types(like in English), but the first thing that came to her mind was physicaltherapy type rehabilitation (for broken bones, joints, etc.). Although the sameword, it’s always important to keep nuance and how people actually use thelanguage in mind!

Introduction to The Club for Thinking about Multicultural
Coexistence "Tomoni" in Tsurugi Town
By: Mayumi Nishioka, “Tomoni” RepresentativeAbout “Tomoni”
Do you know about “Tsurugi Town”? It is atown that is surrounded by and rich in nature, withwestern Japan’s second highest mountain, Mt.
Tsurugi, situated in the south, and the Shikoku
Saburo Yoshino River flowing in the north. Thereare currently about 30 foreign residents living in
our town, with the majority of them having comefrom the Philippines or China. In the fiscal yearof 2017, the Tsurugi Town Board of Education
applied for and was accepted for the “Promotionof Erasing Areas Without Japanese Classes for
Areas with Foreign Residents/Local Japanese
Education Startup Project” by the Agency for
Cultural Affairs. “Tomoni” (Lit: Together), is agroup of volunteers that support the goal of thisproject. We have established Japanese classes
and are currently operating classes under thecommission of the prefectural government. Our 6
members are those with teaching experience, civil
servants, etc., but everyone is friends who arealways laughing together. I’d like to introduce theactivities of our “Tomoni” Japanese classes, whichhave now crossed their 7th year.
About the Japanese Classes(Classes may be online via Zoom depending on
the weather, COVID-19 situation, etc.)＊ Events, etc. may be held at different times/
locations.

Studying at the Ono
Community Center
Student Information (12 Students)
We currently have 12 students who come6

from Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, and thePhilippines. They work a variety of jobs, suchas managers of companies that dismantle andpurchase and then sell automobiles, technicalinterns, and nursing home workers. Our classes
include daily conversation practice, practice of
hiragana/katakana, studies for the JLPT N3 and 4,
etc. We value what our students want to learn anddecide from there.
Cultural Experiences(Examples from thefiscal year 2022.
Other activities areplanned to be held in
the fiscal year 2023.)
J u n e : Ta n a b a t a
Matsuri (OnoCommunity Center)
Park Golf Experience
Wishes were written
on tanzaku strips of paper and hung on bamboo
branches.
October: Park Golf - Students were taught by
local masters about park golf at locations in
Tsurugi Town.
Final Words
At the Tanabata Matsuri inJune, students used their
4 skills (reading, listening,speaking, and writing) towrite their own wishes
and create decorations.
In October, through thepark golf experience,
Tanabata Matsuri
while learning golf for the
first time, they were able
to have fun interactions with the local people.
Moving forward, under the concept of “learning
together, understanding each other, and enrichingeach other’s lives”, we hope to continue to aid
the local foreign residents through Japanese
language support.
Contact Information:
TEL: 090-7782-9694 (Ms. Nishioka)

7Japanese Lesson

By: Yoko Aoki

こんげつ

かんたん

今月は

簡単な自己 紹 介 の日本語をじ

こ しょうかいに ほん ごべんきょう

勉 強 しましょう。

This month, let’s learn how to give a simple self introduction in Japanese.
じ

こ しょうかい自己 紹 介 Self Introductions
１）はじめまして。

じぶん

わたしは*

なまえ

です。
(Nice to meet you. My name is (your name).)（自分の名前）＊When introducing yourself,「わたしは」is often omitted. You don’t use「さん」when talking

about yourself or family members.
しゅっしんち

２）

から

きました。
(I’m from (birth place).)がつ* に きました。

（出身地）

３）ことし*(I arrived this year in (month).)● きょねん* Last Year / 20×× ねん* (in the yea r 20xx) （ Example: 2022 ねん / 2023 ねん
さい ご● ～がつ*

ひょうみは 最後の 表 を見てください。Please refer to the bottom chart for month information.

４）どうぞ

よろしく

おねがいします。

はじめまして！

(I’ll be in your care.)◎Let’s practice self introductions.

＜ Example＞

どうぞ
ほ

ん

よろしくおねがいします

はじめまして。

２）

ベトナム

から 来ました。

３）

今年 2月 ／ 去年 1 0 月 ／ ２ ０ ２ １ 年 ８月

こ とし

きょねん

べ

と

な

む

にがつ

ホン

です。

１）

４）

）

き

じゅうがつ

にせんにじゅういちねん

はちがつ

き

に

来ました。

どうぞ よろしく おねがいします。

・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・

～がつ
いちがつ

にがつ

１月 2月
◎ すこしずつ

さんがつ

し がつ

ご がつ

ろくがつ

３月

４月 ５月 ６ 月

～がつ

を

しちがつ

はちがつ

７月 ８月

く がつ

９月

じゅうがつ

1０月

おぼえましょう。

◎ Little by little, try to remember the readings for all of the months.
～ねん
20×× （＝2000 ＋ ××） ⇒「 にせん ＋ ×× 」ねん＜ Example ＞ ２０２３（にせん にじゅうさん）ねん

じゅういちがつ

1 1月

じゅうにがつ1 2月

8Events & Memoranda
TOKUSHIMA PREFECTURE 2023 JAPANESE SPEECH CONTEST
1.

PURPOSE

True internationalization cannot be achieved without first coming in touch with othercultures and ways of life, fostering a sense of international awareness and gaining
mutual understanding with people of the world to create a society in which we canall work and live together in harmony. This speech contest seeks to give a voice tothe international residents of Tokushima Prefecture and engage them in a dialogue
to further discourse on cross-cultural understanding and fostering multiculturalism.

2.

DATE & PLACE

July 23rd, 2023 (Sunday), 13:00 - 16:30
Awagin Hall (Tokushima Arts Foundation for Culture)3.

ELIGIBILITY

Only foreign residents whose native language is not Japanese are eligible to apply.
(Additionally, foreign residents who have had over three years of compulsory
education in Japan, or those who have previously won the Grand Prize or theTokushima Prefectural Assembly's Chairman of the Federation of International
Exchange Assembly Members Award, are not eligible to apply.)

4.

SELECTION

We are recruiting a wide-array of foreign residents. We will have all applicants
submit a draft of their speech. After a screening of the speech drafts, we will select10 applicants to participate in the actual contest.

5.

THEME

The topic is left to your discretion, but it should relate to the event's purpose of
fostering cross-cultural understanding and multiculturalism. (Speeches must notinclude political or religious content, and must not criticize a particular person orgroup.)

6.

LENGTH

Speeches should be no more than 6 minutes in length.

7.

AWARDS・Grand Prize, one person (Prize: 50,000 yen gift certificate)・The Tokushima Prefectural Assembly's Federation of International Exchange
Assembly Members Chairman’s Award, one person (Prize: 30,000 yen gift
certificate)
・Awa Bank Award, one person (Prize: 30,000 yen gift certificate)・Tokushima Taisho Bank Award, one person (Prize: 30,000 yen gift certificate)・ Tokushima Chamber of Commerce and Industry Award, one person (Prize:
30,000 yen gift certificate)・ Tokushima City International Association Special Recognition Award, threepeople (Prize: 10,000 yen gift certificate)・Special Effort Award, to be decided (Prize: 5,000 yen gift certificate)*All participants will receive a participation award.

8.

HOW TO APPLY

Submit your application form and speech draft by email, FAX, or in-person(information written below). Your speech draft may be either handwritten or typed
on a computer. You can download the application form from TOPIA’s website.

9.

DEADLINE

May 25th, 2023 (Thursday)

Small Hall (5F)

Applications must be turned in by 5:00 PM.

10. ORGANIZED BY

Tokushima Prefecture &Tokushima Prefectural International Exchange Association (TOPIA)

11. CO-ORGANIZER(Planned)

Tokushima Regional Conference for Promotion of Student Exchange

12. SPONSORS(Planned)

The Tokushima Prefectural Assembly's Federation of International Exchange
Assembly Members, Awa Bank, Tokushima Taisho Bank, Tokushima Chamber ofCommerce and Industry, Tokushima International Association (TIA),
Otsuka Pharmaceuticals, Nichia Corporation

13.

NHK Tokushima, Shikoku Broadcasting, Tokushima Shimbun,
Cable TV Tokushima, FM Tokushima, FM Bizan

WITH THESUPPORT OF(Planned)

14. WHERE TO APPLYTokushima Prefectural International Exchange Association (TOPIA)
Address :〒770-0831
Tokushima City, Terashima Honcho Nishi, 1-61, Clement Plaza 6F
Website: https://www.topia.ne.jp/
Tel: 088-656-3303
Fax: 088-652-0616
Email: coordinator1@topia.ne.jp
Person in Charge: Kimura

Speech Contest in 2022

9

Events & Memoranda
2023

TOPIA

Dates：：May 2023 - February 15th, 2024
：Once per week for 1 hour
Time：
Number of Classes：：20 - 30
：Volunteer Teachers（Not specialist teachers）
Teachers：：Those living in Tokushima
Eligibility：
Those not already studying Japanese at school, their company, a Japanese class, etc.
Necessary Items：Please download ZOOM on your computer, tablet, or phone.
It may be necessary to purchase a textbook. （Please consult with your teacher.）
Number of Spots：：About 20 People：Completely Free
Cost：
：Please see TOPIA’s website:
Application：

https://www.topia.ne.jp/english/

Enjoy talking withvolunteer teachers andstudying Japanese!
・Inquiries：：Tokushima Prefectural International Exchange Association（TOPIA）
Contact：Nomizu - coordinator2@topia.ne.jp Kobayashi - tagengo1@topa.ne.jp
TEL：088-656-3303

Counselling Service at TOPIA・トピアの相談窓口
TOPIA provides consultation on everyday life, education, labor, medical institutions, and disasterprevention; and information on sightseeing spots to overseas residents and visitors. When necessary,
we will refer you to the appropriate organization that can assist with your needs.Counselling is available
in English, Chinese, Vietnamese, and Japanese. Please note that although every effort will be made,we may not be able to deal with all cases.
Japanese, English, Chinese: Everyday, 10:00 - 18:00 (closed during the New Year's holidays)
Vietnamese: Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, 10:00 - 14:00
Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, 10:00 - 18:00 (closed during the New Year's holidays)