KCC NEWS vol. 60 Apr 2021

KCCNewsletter

4Kashiwa Cross-cultural Center

2021

Kashiwa Cross-cultural Center
Palette Kashiwa
2-7-1-301 Kashiwa, Kashiwa
Chiba, Japan 277-0005
Tel: 04-7157-0281 Fax: 04-7165-7321
e-mail: kcc@kira-kira.jp
URL: http://www.kcc.kira-kira.jp“The 5th Japanese Speech Contest by Foreign Residents in Kashiwa”
Manuscript Collection
This year we couldn’t hold the 5th Japanese speech
contest due to the wide spread of COVID-19. Instead, we created a manuscript collection. Thirteen contestants submitted
their speech manuscript. We printed them without editing theoriginal manuscripts. We will display the collection in the rackin front of KCC office. Please read it when you have time.
Many foreigners from various countries study andwork in Japan. Though we have different cultures and customs, we can create a safe community
by knowing and acknowledging thedifferences. Speech contest is one of
the ways to meet foreign residents. We
plan to hold “the 6th Japanese speech
contest by foreigners in Kashiwa” on
February 13, 2022. We will make themanuscript collection and introduce thespeeches online. Please listen to what
they say.

Contestants’ Country and Speech Title
BrazilHusband and Wife with Different Cultures- Japan and Brazil -China

Japan I came to know

China

Difference of Japanese and Chinese Cultures

VietnamLife of Vietnamese in Japan

Vietnam

Unfriendly Japanese

Sudan

Seeing is Believing

Nepal

My Small Country

Vietnam

Importance of Keep Believing

China

Kendo Spirit in Japanese Culture

Philippines

What We Ought to Think

VietnamPower of Greeting

Thailand

Beauty and Benefit

China

My Life with COVID-19

Cross-cultural Tea Time (online Teams live streaming on 3/6)
“Promoting regional development in North Africa where multi-culture
societies co-exist – examples in Tunisia and Morocco”
Speaker:Mr. Yuki Maruyama, a Ph.D. candidate in Graduate School of Life andEnvironmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba.

Africa can be divided to the area called Sub-Sahara (south ofSahara Desert), and North Africa (north of Sahara Desert). Egypt, Libya,Tunisia, Morocco belong to North Africa that faces Mediterranean Sea andhas European climate, with a unique culture that is a mixture of Islam andEuropean. Since the “Arab Spring,” Tunisia has been democratized and has
become quite safe despite problems such as high unemployment rate andinflation. Now many overseas companies expand into the country. Tunisia
is known for the high-quality olive and essential oil production, and the expansion of marketing for the farmers isa current task. Securing water resources is another important task since it isin the dry area. Tunisia also has beautiful white and blue cityscape, and it wasrecently used as “Star Wars” filming site. Morocco has the Africa’s first bullet
train, and it is the only country to produce popular Argan Oil.
This Friendship Time was delivered online due to the COVID-19
emergency state. We were limiting the audience to 12 people but 33 joined thelecture.

Mr. Yuki MaruyamaKashiwa Cross-cultural Center

KCC NEWS vol. 60 Apr 2021

Friends of the World Now– Fighting Against COVID-19 - V

It has been more than a year since the COVID-19 pandemic started. In our May 2020 newsletter,
we introduced the first article of a series “Friends of the World Now – Fighting Against COVID-19.” Now,
in the 5th article of the series, we introduce the current situation of the friends of our sister cities.

Torrance COVID-19 Update

February 20, 2021
By Lori Chong Eurich (TSCA Member and past president)
Torrance, a city of 141,364 residents, has been impacted by Covid-19
through closures of schools and businesses like much of the country. Asof February 15, 2021, there were 6,477 cases of Covid-19 and 157 deaths.
Residents wear masks, keep 1.82m distance away, wash hands, and avoid
crowds.
The city facilities such as the Cultural Arts Plaza and Armstrong
Theater remain closed and City Council meetings are held virtually. Despite many challenges, the school district has in-person classes for students
in kindergarten to 2nd grade (age 5-7) and is planning to open for grades
3 to-5 (age 8-11) by March 4. The school district and city are required tofollow guidelines issued by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health.
Vaccinations are being given by health officials at large sites including El Camino Community College innorth Torrance and at health care facilities such as Kaiser. The large grocery store chains with a pharmacy will begiving vaccines soon and following protocols such as age 65 and older.
Some city parks closed briefly but are now open. The tennis courts and playground equipment were also
temporarily shut down but are available now. The Torrance Farmers Market on Tuesday and Saturday mornings at
Wilson Park welcomes shoppers with social distancing and masks. The Torrance Library holds book clubs, concerts,lectures, and activity groups online. Books and other materials are available by reserving online. Torrance Beach isopen and the walking path is great for biking, running, and skating.
Large, city-sponsored events were canceled last year, but officials look forward to restarting activities when
it is safe.
TSCA events were canceled last year when California Governor Newsom
placed the state in a lockdown. We canceled Bunka-Sai in April 2020 and thesummer student exchange program. This year our events will not be held due tohealth regulations and safety concerns, but we look forward to them next year.
TSCA is immensely proud of the great work our English teachers, Brandon Matsumoto and Deanna Sun are doing at Ichikashi. They filmed fun English
conversation videos for the students to view while at home. In school they organized activities for the English Conversation Club to teach students about typical
American holiday pastimes like a “Secret Santa.”
We hope everyone stays safe and well.

Farmers Market in Torrance

Guam Now

By KIRA Guam Committee		On February 17, KIRA President, Ms. Kosuge, KIRA Vice President,
Mr. Arai, along with 2 Guam committee members had an online meetingwith Mr. Hiroshi Kaneko, Japan Branch Manager of the Guam Visitors Bureau. Below is the information we received in the meeting.
Guam had its first infected person in March 2020. Since then, there
was time when the number of infected people increased, but in February of2021, it started to settle with single digit numbers, and in the second week of February, the 4-level emergency state
stage came down to 2 from level 3. Vaccination started on December 7, 2020 and by February 10, 2021, 9,499 Pfizer
and 3,624 Moderna vaccines, in total of about 13,000 people, have been vaccinated.
Since the second week of February, face-to-face classes have been permitted. However, each school district
has different guidelines, so please check with each school by viewing its HP. Also please be careful when you gather
information in different media. Sometimes they provide wrong information.

Kashiwa Cross-cultural Center

KCC NEWS vol. 60 Apr 2021

Friends of the World Now– Fighting Against COVID-19 - V
Safe and Secure Youth Exchange in 2022
By KIRA Shotoku (Chengde, China) Committee

In late 2019, COVID-19 infection terrorized the world. A year
and a few months have passed, and over 430,000 Japanese (the end ofFebruary 2021) have been infected. 83,000 Chinese were reported infected in January 2020 when the infection was first noticed in Wuhan. InJapan, vaccination for medical professions started but in China, already
5,200,000 people including government
leaders received vaccinations. (the endof February 2021)
In the COVID-19 pandemic, we couldn’t hold the Shotoku Youth Exchange
program in 2020, also in 2021 although we were hoping to hold it. We truly hope by2022, the pandemic will be over and we’ll be able to have a safe and secure exchange program.
(referral: Xinhua News Agency and official Chengde City web site)
World Cultural Heritage Mountain Resort

Australia Regaining Calm
By KIRA Camden Committee

We received the news from Camden, Australia when the season waschanging from summer to autumn. This year they didn’t have any huge
bushfires like last year, and the number of COVID-19 infections has been
in decline. It seems like they are regaining calm. According to our friends inCamden, there has been no infection in the city, thanks to the well-working
infection prevention measures by the government. At times an infected person
coming back from abroad gets caught in Customs. Travelers coming back fromabroad must stay in designated hotels for 14 days. Wearing a mask is now
mandatory only while using public transportations. Movie theaters in New
South Wales can hold maximum capacity. Vaccination started in February.
Our friends are hoping to receive one in April.
Last year we couldn’t hold our youth exchange program, but 5 flags sent
to Camden with cheering messages regarding bushfires and COVID-19 by thestudents of the elementary and middle schools in Kashiwa were a proof of theheartful friendship.
We couldn’t hold the youth exchange program this year either, but Camden/Kashiwa sister cities celebrate the 25th anniversary in 2022. We are to holdCamden Day in March 2022. For this event we are planning to invite guests
from Camden and hold lectures, exchange events as well as a photo exhibition.
We believe it will be a great opportunity for the citizens of Kashiwa to get toknow Camden.

Flag for Camden

Announcement from other organization“Online Study Meeting” for KIRA Members
Creating a new style of activities under COVID-19 pandemic,
we have decided to hold online study meetings every monthin the year 2021.
Study meetings include wide variety of subjects such as“Easy Japanese – when conversing with foreigners in Japanese,” “Zoom meeting tips,” “Online seminar participation
reports and methods to hold one.” Meetings will be held
every third Thursday from 8:00pm for about an hour. Let’s
study together.
We are looking for more ideas for this program to improve
communication between foreigners and Japanese. Give us
your idea!

Here’s the first meeting:Date and Time: Thursday, April 15
8:00pm to 9:10pm
Subject:		
“Easy Japanese” #1 (of a series of 5)
Lecturer:
Ms. Tomoe Uchida (Easy Japanese instructor)
Fee:		
FreeCapacity:
25 participants
Apply by:Send your name and phone number to			boshu-1@kira-kira.jp		
Or use this QR code.
We will send you a URL showing
how to join.		

Kashiwa Cross-cultural Center

KCC NEWS vol. 60 Apr 2021

APRIL Events
Japanese Shonan Classes

Online Japanese Kashiwa Classes

Starting 4/8

Starting 4/6

Online Classes

Online Japanese Kashiwa Classes

Thurs

10:00 - 11:30

Intermediate I
Japanese Intermediate and up

Tue

10:00 - 11:30

Japanese for all Beginning ISun

10:00 - 11:30

Beginning II, Intermediate IWed

10:00 - 11:30

Japanese Intermediate and up

Thurs

10:00 - 11:30

Beginning Conversation IThurs

13:00 - 14:30

Beginning Conversation 2Fri

19:00 - 20:30

Japanese for all Beginning IISat

13:00 - 15:00

Intermediate Conversation

In Person Classes
Thurs

10:00 - 12:00

Intermediate I
at Shonan Community Center

Information about COVID-19 for foreign residents
Available in multiple languages
https://www.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld-blog/100/441872.html?cid=wohk-doml-org_site_state_of_emergency_0107_gs-202101-001

Free legal advice and administrative procedure support for foreign residentsLawyers and administrative procedure specialists will be available to help foreign residents with legal questions and documents. Any questions or problems are all right, such as visa, domestic violence, divorce, or trouble at the workplace. Please register beforehand.		
Date and Time:		Place:					Reservation: 		Wed. April 28 13:00 - 17:00
Palette Kashiwa A
KCC (Kashiwa Cross-cultural Center) Office

Kashiwa information delivery service
Sign up to receive email announcements from the city, such as information about earthquakes, fires,crime, and infectious disease outbreaks in the language of your choice. Send a blank email to thisaddress to register.

Questions?
Please contact the office ofKashiwa Cross-cultural Center (KCC)

Tel: 04-7157-0281 Fax: 04-7165-7321
Hours: 8:30 - 17:15
Closed on Sundays and national holidays

KCC Newsletter Edited and Published by:
Kashiwa Cross-cultural Center designated administrator
Specified non-profit organization
Kashiwa International Relations Association
General Affairs Committee Public Relations Division