aWa life

Farewell messagesof leaving TOPIA
staff members

April 2015
# 297

JLPT
Experiences
Studying up on
the history of the

Shikoku Pilgrimage

1

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

Every article you send us is appreciated so please consider becoming a writer! A few rules will apply
though so please look below to see what content we encourage you to write about and what kind of
stuff we cannot publish.
You can totally submit articles about concerts, lectures, and other event information, cultural,
sporting, and other community group information, etcetera.
BUT, the following will not be posted: Religious, political, or commercial activities, businesses
searching for clients or employees, things the Awa Life editors deem inappropriate.
If you have something you would like to share with the Tokushima community, email the editors at:awalife@gmail.com!
Tokushima Prefectural International
Exchange Association (TOPIA)			http://www.topia.ne.jp/
Clement Plaza 6F					topia@topia.ne.jp
1-61 Terashima Honcho Nishi				tel: 088.656.3303
Tokushima City 770-0831 JAPAN			
fax: 088.652.0616
Download a PDF file of awa life or view the online version by going to TOPIA's website!

Editors:
Jenifer Tanikawa & Till Dumke
Contributors This Month:David C. Moreton, Sachiko Muramatsu, Kazue Inoue, Jonathan Le Roux,
Fukumi Sai, Yui Fujiwara, Mio Morimoto
Cover Art:
Ken Lee (Picture), Junko Kimura (Cherry blossom photos: Cover & Page 1)

Contents

2

The Maeyama Ohenro Kōryū Salon – A Place to Learn
About the History of the Shikoku Pilgrimage
Letter from Suketo Hoikuen
Japanese Lesson
The Road to the JLPT: The History and the Changes
to the JLPT
Pg. 7-9: TOPIA Staff Goodbye Messages
Pg. 10-11: Events and Memoranda
Pg. 2-4:
		Pg. 4:
Pg. 5-6:
Pg. 6-7:

The Maeyama Ohenro Kōryū Salon – A Place to Learn About
the History of the Shikoku Pilgrimage
By David C. MoretonThroughout Japan there
are countless museums
and reference libraries where
one can see historical andcultural artefacts, but do you
know of such a place on
Shikoku that focuses entirelyon the Shikoku pilgrimage
route? At some places there
is a visitor center where one
can listen to commentaryfrom knowledgeable staff and/or view objects on display
related to that site. However,in the case of the wellknown and very popular
eighty-eight temple
Shikoku pilgrimage route,surprisingly there is nosuch facility near thestarting point Temple
1, Ryōzenji. In fact, theplace that I recommend
visiting is near the endb e t w e e n Te m p l e 8 7 ,Nagaoji and Temple 88, Okuboji
in Kagawa prefecture!
The Maeyama Ohenro Kōryū
Salon ( 前山おへんろ交流サロン ) (“a place where pilgrims
interact”) opened in November
1999 and has a very large
collection of henro (Shikoku
pilgrimage) related goods.
According to the staff more than
350 items and 150 books andother materials are on display
and/or stored here. The oldest
guidebook is from 1687, theoldest stone path marker isfrom 1781 and there are many
items from the 19th century.
Admission is free and the facility
is open from 9am to 4pm every
day, but the last entry is at
3:30pm. Kenshi KASHIHARA( 樫原憲史 ) who is the Assistantpriest of Temple 75, Zentsūji,became the Director a couple ofyears ago. He and a handful ofstaff manage the facility, answer
questions, and provide explanations about the displays.
Many pilgrims stop hereon their way to Okuboji
for some tea, to use
the washroom, and/or perhaps to chat withother visitors. Across thestreet is a michi-no-eki(road station) where you
can buy vegetables or
have a meal at the café.
Just inside the entrance

3

The Maeyama Ohenro Koryu Salon

there is a visitor guestbook,which gives a very accurate
number of how many people
have come here since it opened
fifteen years ago. The total
number of visitors is morethan 200,000 people, of whichapproximately 30,000 are those
who walked the pilgrimage. Last
year 160 foreigners left theirname, of which 128 were people
who made the pilgrimage by
foot. When a pilgrim arrives,a staff member will ask that
person if he or she has finishedor just about to finish the entire
route by foot and if the pilgrim
says, “Yes,” the staff member
will present a certificate entitled,“Shikoku 88 Temples Pilgrimage
Henro Ambassador.” Between
2004 and 2013 the numberof foreigners who received
this certificate increased tentimes with a grand total of 630
during this ten-year period. The
certificate, states in English, “Wewish that the interaction withthe people, the culture, and thenature of Shikoku enriches yourlife and that you will spread theHenro culture worldwide.”
While there is much to see here,
let me point out some items ofpossible interest:
1. As you walkin the maindoor, you will
see a map of
the route that
Kūkai took
when he went

to China in 804 (red line) andwhen he returned to Japan in
806 (blue line). In 804, a storm
blew his ship off course andthat is why he landed so muchfurther south than the point fromwhich he departed from in 806.

pilgrimage 280 times between
1845 (age 22) to 1922 (age 78).
He erected 240 stone markers
along the entire pilgrimage
route.
5. A large 1:40 model of thetemple, Seiryūji ( 青龍寺 ) where

2. In the main r o o m t h e r e
is a large topographical modelof the island with little huts
marking the places of each of
the eighty-eight temples. If youpress a button by the photo of
the temple, that place will lightup on the model. Behind themodel there is a machine fromwhich you can get some hot tea.
Visitors are free to use the sofas
and chairs.
3. Inside the exhibition rooms,
there is a display about a priest
called Gyōki Bosatsu ( 行 基 菩薩 )(668-749) who performed
various public work projects
for the local people suchas constructing roads, riverembankments, and reservoirs.
He also was the overseer ofthe building of the great Todaiji
temple in Nara. It is said that hefounded thirty of the eighty-eighttemples.
4. There is a display panel about
Mr. Mohei NAKATSUKASA, ( 中司 茂 兵 衛 ) who completed the

Kūkai studied at in China.
6. Maps of each of the 47
prefectures in Japan that havea small box attached to them
containing fuda (name-slips) ofpilgrims. There is also a world
map with the title, “International”
and in that box there are fuda
from people from such countries
as the United States, Australia,
Switzerland, Brazil, and Korea.
7 . To u c h - p a n e l c o m p u t e rscreens that list the legends
about Kōbō Daishi from around
Japan. There
are no tales
about him from
Okinawa, butthere are three
from Hokkaido
and four from
Kagoshima.
8. Pilgrimage
books (nōkyōchō)including one
which has red
pages. This isfrom someone

4

The Maeyama Ohenro Koryu Salon
who made the pilgrimage over
300 times and used the same
book over and over.
9. Wooden boxes that holdpaper fuda as well as straw
bales (tawara) thatwere stuffed full offuda and hung inpeople`s houses as aprotective amulet.
10. A display about
Emon Saburō ( 衛
門 三 郎 ) from Ehime
prefecture whoseeight children died asa punishment against
Emon when he got angry with
Kōbō Daishi and smashed his

begging bowl with a broom.
There is a lot to see and muchto learn at the Ohenro Kōryū
Salon, but it is very unfortunate

from Tokushima is by car, which
will take about 75 min from theTokushima bus/train station
area. Take the expressway to
Wakimachi and then head northon Route 193. The
closest train station
at which only the
local train stops isthe unmanned Zoda
station that is 8km
away.
(Website: http://w w w. g e o c i t i e s . j p /sanukimaeyamanet/that it is in such an inconvenient
location. The best way is to goohenro/)Letter from Suketo Hoikuen
By Kazue InoueC

ute little flowers are coloring
the park in spring colors all
at once near our nursery school.
The insects have come out of
hiding and the children can see
and feel the herald of spring all
around.
Up to three years of age, thedevelopment of a child’s brain
is said to be heavily affected by
how much the sensory system(five senses) is stimulated.
The five senses include vision,
hearing, smell, touch, and taste.
With the weather warming up,
the upcoming season would be
perfect for taking your children
outdoors to train their fivesenses. So, why not go enjoy
the beautiful outdoor scenery,listen to the chirping birds,
smell the flowers, feel the sandbetween your fingers, or enjoy
the taste of different foods.
Stimulating your five senses
will lead to brain development.
And as the head and heart areconnected, developing the brain
means it will also develop yourfeelings and emotions. As well,when you spend time with yourchild and experience various
new things together, you canfoster a deeper bond and it will
help with emotional stability.
＊＊＊
This Month’s Craft
Pen Watercolor
Materials
Felt tip marker (water-based)
Paper
Styrofoam tray
SpongeWater

ScissorDirections
1) Using a water-based felt tip
marker, draw a picture on apiece of paper. (The brighter thecolor of the pen, the better the
final product will be.)2) Pour a small amount of water
into a Styrofoam tray. Cut up
sponges into sizes that fit yourchild’s hands, then wet withwater.
3) Sponge over your picture andallow the ink to bleed. You cansee your picture and the color
change before your eyes.

5Japanese Lesson

By Sachiko MuramatsuThis month we will be learning how to relay information you heard from one person to another (thirdperson narrative).

Mr. Lao calls the Awa Office. Mr. Lao works for the Awa Office.
あ わ じむしょ

ラオ：もしもし、阿波事務所ですか。
じむしょ

やす

ラオですが、きょうは事務所を休みます。
さとう

佐藤：ああ、ラオさん。どうしたんですか。
か ぜ

あたま

いた

ラオ：風邪をひいて頭が痛いんです。
すずき

つた

鈴木さんにも伝えてください。
さとう

だいじ

佐藤：わかりました。お大事に。
さとう

すずき

でんわ

佐藤：鈴木さん、いま、ラオさんから電話がありました。
じむしょ

やす

い

ラオさんはきょう事務所を休むと言っていました。
すずき

鈴木：ああ、そうですか。
い*Referring to the dialogue above, you can see that the form「ラオさんは～と言っていました。
」is used
じ む しょやす

to relay Mr. Lao’s message to the others. Mr. Lao used the polite form,「事務所を休みます」but when
you are relaying a message to someone else (third-person narrative), replace the 「～」in the sentence
い

じ

む しょ

やす

「～と言っていました」with a sentence in the plain form「事務所を休む」.
いLet’s practice changing the polite forms to the plain form with the third-person narrative「~ と言ってい
ました」.
やまだ

かいしゃ

やす

(verb)

山田さん：あした会社を休みます。
やまだ

やまだ

かいしゃ

やす

い

→ 山田さんはあした会社を休むと言っていました。
いそが(i-adjective)

山田さん：わたしはあした忙しいです。
やまだ

やまだ

いそが

い

→ 山田さんはあした忙しいと言っていました。
とくしまちゅうおうこうえん さくら

山田さん：徳島 中 央 公園の桜はきれいです。
やまだ

やまだ

とくしまちゅうおうこうえんさくらい(na-adjective)→ 山田さんは徳島 中 央公園の桜はきれいだと言っていました。
とくしま

しず

まち

山田さん：徳島は静かな町です。
とくしま

しず

まち

い

(noun)→ 山田さんは徳島は静かな町だと言っていました。
Practice Questions
Mr. Suzuki contacted Mr. Sato. Mr. Sato relayed the message to the rest of the office staff. Pleasechange the word underlined in the sentences below to the plain form and fill in the (answer.

) with your

6

Japanese Lesson
Exampleすずき

かいぎ

しょうかいぎしつさとう

かいぎ

しょうかいぎしつい鈴木：あしたの会議は小会議室であります。→ 佐藤：あしたの会議は小会議室で（ある）と言ってい
ました。
かいぎ

じ

はじ

かいぎ

じ

い

（１）あしたの会議は２時から始まります。→ あしたの会議は２時から
（
かいぎ

しりょう

おお

かいぎ

しりょう

い

（２）会議の資料は多いです。→ 会議の資料は（
かいぎ

じ

お

よてい

かいぎ

）
と言っていました。

）と言っていました。
じおい（３）会議は４時に終わる予定です。→ 会議は４時に終わる（
かいぎ）と言っていました。

しゅっせき（４）ラオさんはあしたの会議に出席できません。
かいぎい→ ラオさんはあしたの会議に（）と言っていました。

（４）出席できない（１）始まる （２）多い （３）予定だ
Reference
初級日本語文法と教え方のポイント（スリーエーネットワーク）
新日本語の基礎Ⅱ（スリーエーネットワーク）
はじ

おお

よてい

しゅっせき

Answers

The Road to the JLPT: The History and the Changes to the JLPTBy Jonathan Le RouxSo, I failed the JLPT. Again.
I have lost count as to how
many times I have attempted it
but I am always drawn to it forsome reason, and now, even as
I look back on my results thatdesire to attempt it once more
has not at all diminished.
For anyone who has attempted
the JLPT (Japanese Language
P r o f i c i e n c y Te s t ) y o u m a y
nod your head in recognitionof the hard work, frustrations
and desires that come withthis mammoth task. For those
who haven't, perhaps I should
explain myself as to why I
keep with the studies and,if the editors at Awa Life arewilling, expand it into a series ofarticles, starting with the history
and purpose of the JLPT.

The JLPT is a standardised
test that began in 1984. It was
created by two organisations,
the Japan Foundation and theJapan Educational Exchange
Services, as a means tomeasure the language ability ofstudents of Japanese aroundthe world. In that year 7,000
students took the test, and 2013
saw over 650,000 attempt it. It
has certainly grown since then,with the annual tests being
written not only in Japan but inover 40 countries.
The test has also evolved withtime. Originally, there were only
four tiers of the test, from fourthlevel (beginner) through to firstlevel (advanced). But in 2010,
the new and current versionof the test was implemented.
There were three major changes
to the test. The first was theintroduction of a new tier, which

was slotted between the oldthird level and second levels.
The reasoning for this was toallow a smoother transition
between the two levels, as it
was reported that the difficulty
gap between the two was far
too wide. The second change
was an emphasis on testing
communicative competence
based on performing particulartasks while testing language
and grammar knowledge. Thisis especially true in the way thetests are laid out, with listening
questions related to work
environments or reacting to daily
life situations. The final change
was modifying the first level totest more advanced abilities
than it originally could provide.
Thus, the levels are now
referred to as N5-N1, with N
standing for both “Nihongo” and“New”. Overall, the differences
between the tests are:

7

N5: The same as the originallevel 4
N4: The same as the originallevel 3.
N3: In between the original level
3 and level 2.
N2: The same as the originallevel 2.
N1: Slightly more advanced
than level 1, but more or lessthe same passing rate.
How important is the JLPT
though? Certification in the
JLPT can open a lot of doors inJapan. Typically for foreigners,
employment with a Japanesecompany requires N2, which isquite difficult to get. However,N1 opens far more doors:having N1 contributes 15 points
to the government's Point-based
immigration treatment for highly
skilled foreigners. Essentially,
it makes immigrating to Japaneasier, especially in granting alonger period of stay as well as
making it easier to own property.
N1 is also essential to having
a career in the medical field: it

The Road to the JLPT
is needed for foreign medical
professional wishing to work inJapan. N1 can also allow foreign
students entry into academia,
particularly allowing students toenter senior high school without
needing to take the national
Japanese language exam.
Depending on the university,
N1 is also accepted in lieu of
the Examination for Japanese
University Admission for foreign
students.
Clearly, there are a lot of perks
to doing the JLPT, but to me
the greatest benefit in taking
the JLPT is twofold: firstly
for cramming in words andexpressions in daily life that I
may never encounter normally.
By studying and preparing forthe test, the constant crammingallows one to absorb all kindsof vocabulary, which not only
boosts your ability but also yourconfidence. The second reason
is that the JLPT is a greatmeans to measure my overall
ability in high stress, highly

specialized situations, whether
it be extracting vital informationfrom a business setting,or examining an article on
Japanese society. In our daily
lives here in Japan it's easy to
get stuck in a language rut, andby testing my metal against
the fires of the JLPT, I can see
where I need to improve, andtake the steps from there toachieve it.
For those of you who havenever taken the test, but areinterested in taking it, the JLPT
has a sample test you can try
to measure your current poolof knowledge. You can find it
at http://www.jlpt.jp/e/samples/
forlearners.html. The next test
date is July 5th, 2015. Will you
be ready by then?
Next month, I'd like to continue
by going into detail of thedifferent components of the test,
as well as recommending somegood textbooks to use.
Good luck with your studies!

TOPIA Staff Goodbye Messages

By Fukumi Sai, Yui Fujiwara, Mio Morimoto

Farewell Message
By Fukumi Sai

Hello everyone. It feels likeit was only yesterday that I
arrived in Tokushima, but alas, ayear has already flown by. Whilethe beautiful blossoms bloom,
I will have to bid everyone
goodbye and this fills me withgreat sadness.
My experience working fort h e To k u s h i m a P r e f e c t u r a l
Government as a Coordinatorfor International Relations (CIR)
will be an experience that I willtreasure forever. Thanks to mywarm and friendly coworkers, I
was able to enjoy my work lifeand everyday was a learning

experience for me. As a CIR
I translated, interpreted andtaught Chinese, and throughwork, I was able to experiencea lot that I otherwise would nothave been able to do in China.
Also through international
exchange events, participatingin the Awa Dance and in the
88 Temple Pilgrimage walk, I

TOPIA Staff Goodbye Messages

8

was able to meet many people
and have made many fondmemories.
Though a year passed quickly,
I had a fulfilling year full ofchallenges and new lessons
learned. I will never forget thistreasure island and the kindnessof everyone. As the proverb
goes “a meeting is a beginningof a parting,” saying goodbye
is hard but I am forever gratefulfor all of the friendship that I
have formed here in Tokushima.
I would like to hold this memory
close to heart and will promote
Tokushima in China. I would

also like to continue being thebridge that connects Japan and
China, and would like to do allthat I can to help promote thefriendly relations that Hunan
P r o v i n c e a n d To k u s h i m a
Prefecture has. I would like tothank everyone from the bottomof my heart for everything
throughout this past year. I ama firm believer in the words“goodbyes are not forever”
and would like to bid you all a“let’s meet again” instead of“goodbye.” I look forward toseeing you somewhere again.
If you do have the chance,

please do come and visit Hunan
Province in China! Zai jian ( 再见 see you again)!

I Love TOPIA

to begin, and so I was full of
hesitation and worry. One thing
I did know for certain was when
I moved to Japan in my second
year of middle school, TOPIA’s
Japanese classes and all thes t a ff t h e r e h a d h e l p e d m eimmensely, and this is a fondmemory of mine to this very day.
Because of this experience, I
thought it was my turn to giveback and help, so I tried to get
in touch with many foreigners.
When I was told that I was animportant and necessary partof TOPIA, I was so happy I was
brought to tears. As part of mywork I visited schools to helptranslate for students who justmoved from China. From thisexperience, it made me wantto understand them more andI wanted to be there for them.
The children reminded me of
my young self, not knowing asingle word and pretending to
be tough. There were toughtimes or times when I was
discouraged, but more thananything, I wanted to relay asmuch information as I could
and to have them realize theimportance of living with two
cultures.
Aside from the school visits, I
also helped edit Awa Seikatsu(Chinese language newsletter),interpreted at monitor tours
and at charter flight projects
with Hunan Province, all ofwhich made the job even more
fulfilling. I no longer just want tohelp the foreign community, but I
want them to like Japan and thepeople of Japan. Going throughall these emotions and looking
back at my past five years, I willtreasure all these experiences
and it is an indispensable part of
my life.

By Yui Fujiwara

T

ime went by so fast, I
cannot believe it’s alreadytime to say goodbye. I would liketo begin by thanking everyone
for all their support over theyears.
When I first started working
for TOPIA, I just wanted to dowhat I could to help the foreigncommunity. But, I didn’t evenknow what to do or where

9

TOPIA Staff Goodbye Messages

In life you have many
encounters but will also have
many goodbyes, and of course
it’s sad to say goodbye, but I will
never forget all the experiencesthat I have gained. To everyone
at TOPIA and to those I met
along the way, we laughedand cried together and every
single moment is so important

to me, I honestly don’t know
how to feel. But, I would like toextend my heartfelt gratitude to
you all. Thank you so much foreverything! Let’s meet again.

Interning at TOPIA

programs aimed at juniorhigh school, high school anduniversity students, it was myduty to arrange various lectures
for the students with the staff at
TOPIA. It was a new experience
for me working with different age
groups as I normally only workwith elementary school students.
Through my involvement withthe different programs at TOPIA,
it made me realize how muchsupport TOPIA provides toeveryone and that they are truly
an unsung hero.
Thirdly, I took part in the Japan
International Cooperation
A g e n c y ( J I C A ) Te a c h e r s
Overseas Training Programin Ethiopia. Through thisexperience I learned aboutschool life in Ethiopia, visited a
coffee and honey farm, learned
about the experiences of JICA
participants and experienced
first-hand what life is like in adeveloping country. I realized
then that it is my duty to relay
what I experienced to children
and to work with thembrainstorm ways in which we
can improve the world and toeventually turn it into action.
Fourth, I took the initiativeand organized theInternational Understanding
S u p p o r t F o r u m . Ta k a o

Hasui and the International
Understanding Support
Instructors spoke on the
topic of multiculturalism.
The event finished off with a
networking event where cultural
performances such as traditional
dancing and a song from China,
were held. Overall, there wasmuch to take away from theevent and it was a lot of fun as
well.
Lastly, all of the staff I worked
with were so kind and warm.
Coming into a completely new
workplace, I tried the best I
could but there may have beenparts where I may have fallen
short. But, the staff supported
me in any way they could and
it is thanks to them that I wasable to successfully finish off
my year here. Looking back at
all of these experiences, I am
full of happy memories, ones
that I will treasure for the rest of
my life. Thank you so much foreverything.

By Mio MorimotoI

started working at TOPIA ayear ago in April and throughthe year, I was able to gain
many valuable experiences,different from those when I wasteaching in elementary school.
First of all, my day to day workat TOPIA was very different. I
was in charge of a wide varietyof duties, such as providing
tourist information, lendingout and returning books fromthe TOPIA library, providing
photocopying services,
paperwork for the Japanese
Lessons, and more, so it took
me a while to get used toeverything.
Secondly, I was in charge of
the International Understanding
Support Instructor Dispatch andWork Experience programs.
Through the International
Understanding Support
Instructor Dispatch program,foreign residents will sign up to
become an instructor and my
job was to coordinate the school
visits for the instructors. I wasable to visit the schools with the
instructors and had the chance
to see what their international
understanding classes werelike. As for the Work Experience

Events & Memoranda

10Participate in the Japanese Speech Contest 2015
TOKUSHIMA PREFECTURE
2015 JAPANESE SPEECH CONTEST

1.

PURPOSE

True internationalisation 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 can all
work and live together in harmony. This speech contest seeks to give a voice to theinternational residents of Tokushima Prefecture and engage them in a dialogue tofurther discourse on cross-cultural understanding and fostering multiculturalism.

2.

DATE & PLACE

July 20th, 2015 (Monday/Holiday), 13:30 - 16:30
Awagin Hall (Tokushima Prefecture Kyodo Bunka Kaikan)
Small Hall (5F)

3.

ELIGIBILITY

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

4.

SELECTION

Application will be open to all foreign residents of Tokushima Prefecture that fulfil theeligibility requirements. We will ask all applicants to submit an outline of their speech(between 800 words), and after reviewing all of the applications, roughly 10 or soapplicants will be chosen to proceed to the final contest.

5.

THEME

The topic is left to your discretion, but it should relate to the event's purpose of fosteringcross-cultural understanding and multiculturalism.

6.

LENGTH

Speeches should be no more than 6 minutes in length.

7.

AWARDS

Grand Prize --- one person (Prize: 50,000 yen gift certificate)
Runner Up Awards --- two people (Prize: 30,000 yen gift certificate)Special Awards --- to be decided (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

Please fill out the application form available at TOPIA and mail it to the above address
or fax it to the above number. Alternatively, you may submit your application in person.

9.

DEADLINE

June 1st, 2015 (Monday)
Applications must be turned in by 17:00.

10. SPONSORED BY

Tokushima Prefecture International Exchange Association (TOPIA)

11. CO-SPONSOR
 (TBA)

Tokushima Regional Conference for Promotion of Student Exchange

12. WITH THE
SUPPORT OF
 
(TBA)

Tokushima International Association (TIA)
Awa Bank
Tokushima Bank

13. ADDITIONALSUPPORT FROM
(TBA)
14. WHERE TO APPLY       
NHK Broadcasting, Tokushima Bureau, JRT Shikoku Broadcasting, FM Bizan,
FM Tokushima, Tokushima Newspaper
Tokushima Prefectural International Exchange Association. (TOPIA)〒770-0831 Tokushima-shi, Terashima-honcho, Nishi, 1-61,
Tokushima Clement Plaza 6F
TEL: 088-656-3303
FAX: 088-652-0616
Application forms can be found online at:
http://www.topia.ne.jp/english/docs/2015031600035/

11 Events & Memoranda
Toastmaster 15th Anniversary
徳島トーストマスターズ 15 周年

Our meetings are normally, two hours long, but for
our anniversay we will be offering various actvities
such as a one hour preview of our meetings so
you can get a taste of what our meetings are like.

通常２時間余りの例会を１時間で行うなど、米国生まれのトーストマスターズの素晴しさを地元徳島のトーストマスターたちと一緒に体験していただきます。

When: April 5 (Sun), 13:00 - 16:30
Where: TOPIA Tokushima Prefectural 			International Exchange Association 		
Clement Plaza 6F Terashima Honcho
Nishi 1-61 Tokushima City
Fee: Free
URL: http://tokushima-tmc.org
Contact Information:
Okamoto: 090-1170-9004; okyanok@mc.pikala.ne.jp
Tamura: 090-1329-5668; panshikoku2008@nmt.ne.jp

日時： 4 月 5 日（日） 13 時～ 16 時半
場所： 徳島県国際交流協会 クレメントプラザ
6階
参加費 : 無料
URL: http://tokushima-tmc.org
問い合わせ :
岡本：090-1170-9004, okyanok@mc.pikala.ne.jp
田村：090-1329-5668, panshikoku2008@nmt.ne.jp

Japanese-Language Proficiency Test (JLPT)
日本語能力試験
Test Information
Test Date: July 5 (Sun)Start Time: 12:30
Test Sites: Tests will be administered in 45
prefectures, including Tokushima

試験について試験日 : 7 月 5 日（日）試験開始時間 : 12 時 30 分
開催地：日本全国 45 都道府県で開催される予定です（徳島も含む）

Application Information
Application period: March 30 (Mon) - April 30 (Thu)
Online application: Please submit by 17:00
Mailed application: Postmarked by April 30
Test Fee: 5,500 yen

申込み手続きについて申込期間 : 3 月 30 日 ( 月 ) - 4 月 30 日 ( 木 )インターネットの場合 : 17:00 まで提出
郵便の場合 : 4 月 30 日付け消印有効
受験料 : 5,500 円*Application Guide is available for 500 yen atbookstores nationwide.
For more information visit: info.jees-jlpt.jp* 受験案内は 1 部 500 円で全国主要書店にて販売中。
詳しくは : info.jees-jlpt.jp

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 isavailable in English and Japanese. Please note that although every effort will be made, we may not beable to deal with all cases.
Everyday, 10:00 - 18:00 (closed during the New Year's holidays)
Tel: 088-656-3303 or 088-656-3320 (allows three-way conversations with an interpreter)