aWa life
Letter from SUKETO
NAKAYOSHI

Ambassador’s Tour toTokushima

December 2023

Fate Took us to
Tokushima (Part 1)

Gairaigo Galore:
ランドセル

# 397

1

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

In a blink of an eye the year is almost over! Does everyone have any plans for the end of year/
New Year? Maybe you can curl up under the kotatsu and enjoy a good book, or catch up on somemuch-needed rest. Visiting a shrine for the first time of the year is also always a fun experience for New
Year! You can make sure to get a new omamori charm for the upcoming year.
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 Rasmus

awalife@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 Rasmus Burgmer
Contributors This Month:
Philippe Ievy, Kazue Inoue, Akira Harada, and Michi Mori

Contents

Pg. 2-4: Ambassador’s Tour to Tokushima2

Pg. 4-5: Fate Took us to Tokushima (Part 1)
Pg. 5:

Letter from SUKETO NAKAYOSHI

Pg. 6:

Tokushima Culture and Reading Corner: 大晦日

Pg. 6:

Gairaigo Galore: ランドセル

Pg. 7:

Japanese Lesson

Pg. 8-9: Events and Memoranda
Ambassador’s Tour to Tokushima
By: Sydney Bartig

On October 30th and 31st, a total of 16
ambassadors and their spouses visited
To k u s h i m a P r e f e c t u r e . T h e a m b a s s a d o r s
represented 12 different countries, including
Finland, Singapore, Ghana, Romania, Venezuela,
and Norway. The group visited Tokushima withthe purpose to learn more about the prefecture
under the theme of “Tokushima’s history and its
advanced initiatives toward the achievement of
the SDGs.” Held in cooperation with the Ministryof Foreign Affairs, this project was the first of its
kind in Tokushima.
On the morning of the 30th, the group arrived
at the Awaodori Airport. After some short
introductions, it was immediately off to the firstlocation – Otsuka Holdings. As one of Tokushima’s
largest companies, Otsuka introduced its history,
products, and philosophy to the ambassadors.
The presentation took place at one of Otsuka’sbuildings known as “The ENCOUNTER”, built tocelebrate the 100th anniversary of the company.
After a delicious lunch with the vice governor ofTokushima, the group set out to the small townof Kamikatsu. With a population of approximately
1,300, of which almost half are 65 years or older,
the town has been grappling with the issues oflow birth rates and an aging population. The
ambassadors were introduced to 2 of the major
initiatives that Kamikatsu has been working
on: the Zero Waste Center and the Irodori Leaf
Business.

Yokoishi-san, the founder and president of Irodori,began with a presentation about his uniquecompany. He explained about how the idea forthe company came about, the myriad of troubles
that he faced at the beginning, and his hopes
for the future. For those who don’t know, Irodori
farmers sell leaves known as ‘tsumamono’ thatare used to enhance Japanese dishes and add afeeling of the seasons. The majority of the farmers
are elderly grandmas who put their heart into thebusiness. Yokoishi-san’s presentation was filledwith laughs, entertaining everyone.
After listening to Yokoishi-san’s presentation, thegroup was given a tour of the Zero Waste Center.
Everyone listened with great interest as the guide,
Otsuka-san, explained about Kamikatsu’s sole
trash separating center, complete with 45 different
categories that waste must be separated into.
She spoke about the town’s efforts to eliminate
waste all together, and the importance of reusing
items. At the Kuru Kuru Shop, a shop consistingof items that were no longer needed by the
town’s people, one of the ambassadors evenpicked up some small glasses for himself. In aninterview afterwards, the Singapore and Finland

3

ambassadors both remarked on how impressed
they were with the town’s efforts to involve andeducate the community about zero waste andenvironmental issues.
It was next time for the final event of the day– a welcome party hosted by the governor ofTokushima at the AoAwo Naruto Resort. Everyone
enjoyed talks with Governor Gotoda and some ofthe department heads from the prefectural office.
Partway through, a performance of Awa Ningyo
Joruri Puppet Theater, Sanbaso, was performed,
with everyone happily taking photos and videos of
the puppets.
After a busy day prior, the second day beganwith a trip to the Otsuka Museum of Art. Althoughtime was limited, the group was guided to someof the main attractions of the museum’s replica
paintings, including the Mona Lisa, the Last
Supper, the Scream, and Van Goh’s Sunflowers.

Next, the group headed out to experience a
different part of Tokushima – one of its traditional
cultural arts. After arriving at the Ai no Yakata,the museum head, Mori-san, explained about thehistory and importance of “ai indigo” in Tokushima
Prefecture. Of course, one of the most fun parts of
the Ai no Yakata is trying indigo dying for yourself,
and all of the ambassadors did just that. Listening
to the staff’s instructions, everyone dipped theirhandkerchiefs into the indigo vats multiple times,
lifting them up after 1 minute each time in orderto oxidize them. When the handkerchiefs were
finally dyed a beautiful indigo blue, everyone tooka group picture and explored the grounds of the Ai
no Yakata a bit further.
With their indigo handkerchiefs in hand, it was

Ambassador’s Tour to Tokushimatime to stop at the recently opened Kamiyama
Marugoto College. Located in the town of
Kamiyama, the school operates with the goal of
fostering future entrepreneurs and hosts students
from all around Japan. The students had a chance
to connect with the ambassadors online where
they spoke about their school, had the chance
to enjoy lunch made with Kamiyama ingredients,
and asked each other questions. The students
did their best to speak in English, and asked theambassadors questions such as, “What food do
you recommend from your country?”, and “Whyare people okay with paying such high taxes
in your country?” After saying goodbye, it wastime to head to the last few places on the tour’sitinerary.
When it comes to Tokushima, you can’t visit
without seeing the Awa Odori, so the group
stopped at the Awa Odori Kaikan to see one of theafternoon shows. After seeing the professionals
dance and explain the basics of the Awa Odori,
it was time for everyone to try it themselves, andeveryone danced excitedly in a circle on the mainstage. One of the ambassadors was even namedthe ‘champion’ of the dance.

As the day drew to a close, the bus finallystopped at Kuru Kuru Naruto before heading to
the Awaodori Airport. Many of the ambassadors
took this opportunity to purchase some delicious
Tokushima souvenirs, some commenting on how
tasty the Naruto Kintoki sweet potato sweets
were. A few were also amused by the large sweet
potato sculpture in front of the shop and took
photos next to it.
After a busy 2 days, it was finally time foreveryone to head home. For most this was theirfirst experience in Tokushima, but many kindly

4

Ambassador’s Tour to Tokushimacommented on how they would like to come backand explore more of the prefecture in their private
time. One ambassador was quite excited to try

crossing the Iya Kazurabashi Vine Bridge oneday. Hopefully everyone has the chance to comeback and enjoy more of Tokushima’s wonders!

Fate Took us to Tokushima (Part 1)
By: Philippe levyH

ave youe v e rbeen in asituation
where thewhole universe
seems to beganging up
against you?
That is exactly what happened to me and my
23-year-old nephew Max when we decided to
go to Japan this year. We had planned the trip
over a year ago. This would give Max the time tofinish his final year of studies, and to put somemoney aside. As I usually take my vacations in
September, I had suggested this period to him asa good time to go. We had a deal then!
We decided to go to Tokyo, or Kyoto perhaps. For
simplicity’s sake I must confess, as since 2005 I
have often been to these prefectures. I know themwell and have my habits there. At the beginning of
September, Maxence graduated with a master’s
degree, and I was on vacation, so at last, wewere both finally free to go, with something tocelebrate. (And that is when everything started togo wrong.)
First, I fell ill, confined to bed by a strange fever.
After a week, the fever had passed and I packed
my bag. (Checklist complete.) Max came to myplace to arrange plane reservations. My habit isalways to make plane reservations one day inadvance, which gives me the freedom to change
my mind. As I have never had trouble booking at
this time of year, I had not thought it worthwhilebooking in advance. Much to our despair, wefound out that all flights were fully booked,
whether to Tokyo or Osaka. All of them!
No matter, we decided to take two standby tickets and try to board the evening Tokyo

flight on a waitlist. I was so confident! I was sure
we would soon be gone. So off we went to Paris
CDG airport, checked in our luggage, and waiteduntil the end of boarding to see if two seats would
become available for us. At around 10.00 pm, wewere notified that we would not have any seaton this flight, which was the last of the day. So,
we sadly headed back to Paris, arriving home ataround 1 am. Too tired to arrange a plan B, wewaited for the next morning after a good night’s
sleep to make further arrangements.
The next day, we checked the flights to Japanagain. All of them were still fully booked... So, wegave up on this Japan idea and decided to visit
Europe, starting with Stockholm, Rome, maybe
Edinburgh etc. But once again, all flights were
fully booked, or nearly so, and we certainly did notwant to relive the hours of waiting pointlessly at
the airport.
What to do...?? Frankly, I felt we had been
through enough bad luck already and too manysigns telling us not to go at all… I was on theverge of giving up totally. Then I thought we could
go to Korea. Max and I did not know the country,
so why not... At the same time, I could feel Max’s
bitter disappointment, as he was dreaming ofgoing back to Japan for the second time. What
could I possibly do to make him happy? That iswhen we remembered a series of tv shows we
had seen during the covid lockdown years on theJapanese TV channel « Tabi ». As we were nolonger able to travel, every day we dreamed a5little of the Land of the Rising Sun, as we watched
television.
We had been particularly impressed bydocumentaries depicting the Shikoku 88-templepilgrimage. A journalist from Tokyo had decided to
do the whole pilgrimage, and had filmed it all. Max
and I promised ourselves we would go one day,mesmerized by the wonderful images.

Fate Took us to Tokushima (Part 1)
the skies had cleared, at last. Checklist complete!
We were able to board the flight to Seoul. There,a Jeju Air flight took us to Matsuyama. And
everything else was a dream.
~Continued Next Month!~So, we started a new checklist. First: google map.
Korea was not far away from Shikoku after all.
Flights from Paris to Seoul were available, andabove all it was only an hour and a half’s flightfrom Seoul to Matsuyama City. (Not to mention
the cheap fares between the two places.) That iswhen all the obstacles suddenly disappeared andLetter from SUKETO NAKAYOSHI

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

ecently at the center, the older children havebeen helping care for the younger ones.
They return to class saying, “they were cute” after
enthusiastically helping with the lunch cleanup, other cleaning, and playing with the younger
children. The younger children are so happy andcomment that, “It was so much fun”! Of course,
they can also help the childcare providers,bringing merits for both sides. Do you have achild at home who wants to help out? I highly
encourage you to let them help, especially when
they have the desire to do so.
Helping out fosters a myriad of skills.
① Teaches the fundamentals of daily life.
② Through experience, children begin to think ofways to do tasks better and develop the strength
to challenge anything.
③ A sense of accomplishment is tied to further
desire and confidence. Making others happy
makes the child happy, and it fosters feelings andthoughts of wanting to assist others.
In early childhood it can be difficult for children
to continue this every day, so make it fun while
having them help with things that they are able
to do. The keys to success are to recognize thechild’s desire to help and not demand perfection;
don’t redo things in front of the child; and don’t
forget to say, “thank you”! As children grow, theirskills will improve and they will be able to help you
more.
Homemade Sweets: Ohagi (For 1 Person)① Mix 15 g of rice with 15 g of glutinous rice andthen cook in 150 g of water. (Adding the glutinous
rice gives it a springy texture.)② Roll approximately 10 g per person of coarse
anko red bean paste (store bought).
③ Wrap the coarse anko ② into the cookedrice ① and form into
an oval shape.
④ Mix 3 g kinako(roasted soybean flour)and 2 g sugar, thensprinkle onto ③ .
＊ Ohagi is often
eaten in Japan on theequinoctial weeks (seasonal changing point ofspring and autumn). As glutinous rice is used, it
is recommended for children 3 and older. Whenmaking for younger children, you can use justnormal rice.

6

Tokushima Culture and Reading Corner: 大晦日
By: Akira Harada
ねん

１年の

さい ご

ひ

最後 の

日、12 月 31 日を 「大晦日と言います。晦日とは、毎月のがつにち

おおみそ かだい（おお）

い

いちねん

さい ご

ひ

一年の

最 後の

日は「 大 」をつけて大晦日と

むかし

にっ ぽん

昔の

日本は、日暮からひ ぐれ

おおみそ か

つぎ

ひ

次の日の

一日として

よる

大晦日

でした。夜は一晩中むかいわ迎 えして、お祝 いを
しんねん

夜から

新 年に

ひと ばん じゅう

お

がつ

わたし

しょう がつ

げん ざい

よる

かく ち

皆さんは、どのように迎えますか。

みな新しい

年が、皆さんにとって、良い年によ零時行われます。

新年を

とし

くださる

れい じ

催しが

むか

かみ さま

幸せを

おこな

しんねん

あたら

しあわ

もよお

かけて、各地で、さまざまなにちいました。つまり、12 月 31 日の起きていて、私たちにする日（正 月 ） でした。現 在 は、夜 の

みなひ

最後の 日のことで、

い

いち にち

おお みそ か

さい ご

言います。

ひ ぐれ

ひ ぐれ

よる

まいつき

日暮までを

日暮までが

ひ

みそ か

しん ねん

からが

神様を

お

おお みそ か

新 年 です。大 晦 日 のとしなりますように！

Vocabulary List
おおみそ か大晦日 New Year’s Eve

起きている Awake

お

げんざい

まいつき

みそ か

かみさま

れい じ

さい ご

晦日
むかし

昔
ひ ぐ

日暮れ

Last Day of the Month 神様
むか

The Past

お迎えいわSunset

ひとばんじゅう

一晩 中 All Night Long

ランドセル (Backpack)
By: Sydney Bartig

God(s)
Welcome現在 Present Day 毎月
零時 12:00

つぎ

かく ち

おこな

お祝い

Celebration 各地 Each Area

しょうがつ

もよお

正月

New Year最後

しんねん

新年 New Year

Every Month
ひ

次の日

Last
Next Day

行われる Held (Event)

催し Event

Gairaigo Galore

If you teach at an elementary school or are up early in the morning andsee students commuting to school, you have probably noticed the uniquebackpacks that they carry. These almost square-shaped leather/artificial
leather backpacks are actually called ラ ン ド セ ル and are typically used byelementary school students starting from their first year of elementary school
to their final year of elementary school.
Since they are used until the end of elementary school, they are made to belong-lasting and can be quite pricy. In the past, boys had black ラ ン ド セ ル
and girls had red, but there are many colors to choose from now. There areeven Sudachi-kun version ランドセル covers here in Tokushima!
The word ラ ン ド セ ル actually stems from the Dutch word ‘ransel’ whichtranslates to backpack. These ransel first made their way into Japan during
the Edo period (1603 – 1868) from the Netherlands. Initially, they were notused by children, but rather by soldiers to carry their goods. Eventually they
became the norm for students to carry all of their school supplies in after thecrown prince of that era received one when beginning school.

7Japanese Lesson

By: Michi Mori～ながらLet’s study how to use 「～ながら」to express two verbs that are done at thesame time.
のIn the morning, Tanaka-san drinks coffee (コーヒーを飲みます) and reads the
しんぶんよnewspaper (新聞を読みます) at the same time.
When using「ながら」to make this one sentence, the pattern is as follows:
たなか

の

しんぶん

よ

ながら新聞を読みます。
田中さんはコーヒーを飲みな
V ます形＋ながら
Now, how about for this scenario?
しょくじ

Ａ：さあ、食事にしよう。
まおもしろ

Ｂ：ちょっと待って。このドラマが面白くて・・。
た

A：こまったなあ、いま、食べてほしいんだけど。
みしょくじ

じゃあ、テレビを見ながら食事にする？
しょくじみ

B：う・・ん、じゃあ、食事しながらテレビ見るね。
The primary action follows after「ながら」.
しょくじ

In A-san’s sentence, 「食事にする？」comes second, while for B-san it is「テレみビを見る」that appears second. This lets us know which action they think of as
the primary one.
けいたい

Additionally, you can also use 「てはいけません」, such as in the example 「携帯みうんてんを見ながら運転してはいけません。」, to express two things that must not be doneat the same time.
Practice Questions
Use「ながら」to combine the two actions into one sentence.
き

ほん

よ

② 本を読みますけいたいみ③ 携帯を見ますか④ ガムを噛みます

うんてん

運転します
ふ

ろ

はい

じてんしゃ

の

お風呂に入ります
自転車に乗ります （てはいけません）
せんせい

はなし

き

先生の 話 を聞きます（てはいけません）
Answers：①
音楽を聞きながら運転します②
本を読みながらお風呂に入ります。
③
携帯を見ながら自転車に乗ってはいけません。
④
ガムを噛みながら先生の話を聞いてはいけません。

おんがく① 音楽を聞きますEvents & Memoranda

8

Romantic Christmas at the Otsuka Museum of Art
大塚国際美術館 ロマンチック クリスマス
Let’s spend Christmas at the Otsuka Museum クリスマスは美術館で過ごそう♪特別イベント
of Art. ♪ The museum is holding a special event: 「ロマンチック クリスマス」を開催します。
Romantic Christmas. While perusing famous 名画鑑賞とともに、クリスマスツリーやライト
works of art, enjoy a magically romantic winter アップなど、この季節だけの、幻想的でロマンチッcomplete with a Christmas tree, decorative lights, クなひとときをお楽しみください。
and more.
When: November 21st (Tue.) – December 24th
(Sun.) 9:30 -17:00 (Closed Mondays)
Where: Otsuka Museum of Art
Fee: General Admission: 3,300 Yen
University Students: 2,200 Yen
Elementary – High School Students: 550
Inquiries: Otsuka Museum of Art
TEL: 088-687-3737
URL: https://o-museum.or.jp/publics/index/1269/

日時：11 月 21 日（火）～ 12 月 24 日（日）9：30 ～ 17：00・月曜休館
場所：大塚国際美術館
料金：一般 3,300 円
大学生 2,200 円
小中高生 550 円
お問い合わせ：大塚国際美術館
TEL: 088-687-3737
URL: https://o-museum.or.jp/publics/index/1269/

Asutamuland Tokushima Happy Xmas 2023
あすたむらんど Happy Xmas 2023
Park hours will be extended until 9:00 PM!
400,000 lights, one of the largest illumination
events in the prefecture, will be on display! The
park is welcoming all visitors with its 400,00
light display so that they can enjoy the feeling of“emocion!”.

夜 9 時まで延長開園！県内最大級規模 40 万球のイルミネーション！来園者の皆様に“emocion ！
感動”していただけるように、県内最大規模の４０万球のイルミネーションでお出迎えします。
夜間限定イベントもたくさん開催するよ♪子どもPlenty of night-limited events are planned. ♪
Facilities such as the children’s science museum
will also be open during the evening, and there
are many events waiting for you.
When: December 2nd (Sat.) – 29th (Fri.)
9:30 – 21:00
Where: Asutamuland Tokushima
Inquiries: Asutamuland Tokushima
TEL: 088-672-7111
URL: https://asutamuland.jp/events/event/7370/

科学館などの施設も夜間開館し、イベント盛り沢
山でお待ちしております。
日時：12 月 2 日（土）～ 29 日（金）9:30 ～ 21:00
場所：徳島県立あすたむらんど
お問い合わせ：徳島県立あすたむらんど
TEL：088-672-7111
URL：https://asutamuland.jp/events/event/7370/

9

Events & Memoranda

ONE WORLD
Stories from the United States & Mexico
アメリカ・メキシコについてお話を聞いてみませんか？
講師の方、お二人をお迎えして、ONE

WORLD こども支援事業を行います。

ペレズ アンゼロ トマス バウティスタさんと、オマール カマチョ ゴンサレスさんです。
みなさん、この機会にアメリカとメキシコのお話を聞いてみませんか？是非、ご参加ください。
日時： １月１４日 ( 日 ) １３：３０～１４：４５
対象： 県内に住む小学生等

TOPIA HP

参加費：無料
主催： 徳島県国際交流協会（TOPIA）
電話 :088-656-3303
申し込み : coordinator3@topia.ne.jp
締め切り : １月 11 日（木）＊申し込み：メールにて、名前、学年、メールアドレス、電話番号を書いてお申し込みください。
詳しいことは、HP を見てください。

**Event Notice**
Tokushima Marathon 2024
The Tokushima Marathon 2024 will be held on March 24th, 2024 (Sun.)!
For more information, please scan the QR code.
-------->** Important Notice! **TOPIA will be closed from December 29th (Fri.) - January 3rd (Wed.) for the endof year/New Year holidays.
We will reopen as usual on January 4th (Thur.).
Have a great holiday!

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)