KKC News vol.70 Jan 2022

KASHIWA CROSS-CULTURAL CENTERKCCNEWSLETTERFEBRUARY, 2022

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: https://www.kcc.kira-kira.jp

Holding Food Bank KCC
Amid the spread of COVID-19, we have heard that anincreasing number of foreigners and international students arein need due to being fired from their part-time jobs or
dismissed from their workplaces. After considering variousways to help, Kashiwa Cross-cultural Center (KCC) decided tohold Food Bank KCC for foreigners.
The first Food Bank KCC was held on June 27th with donationsof items such as rice, dried noodles (such as spaghetti andinstant noodles), and other kinds of food found in kitchens at
home. Donations came from members of Kashiwa International
Relations Association (KIRA), citizens, businesses, and farmers.
The day before, the donated food was divided into small bags
and prepared for the day. More than 30 foreigners visited Food
Bank KCC to receive the food, expressing their thanks. Since
then, Food Bank KCC has been held at the end of every month,with the 7th time completed in December. We received a lot offood donations, such as a large amount of food from Tokatsu
Kusanone Food Bank, vegetables from a company that sells
vegetables wholesale, and lunch boxes from a restaurant in thecity. We appreciate the support from various organizations
and would like to take this opportunity to express ourgratitude to all of them .

Food bank

New Year’s Cuisine in the world
The popular "New Year's Party," where foreigners prepare dishes from various countries every year, could not beheld again this year due to the pandemic. Instead, here is a look at New Year's dishes in countries and regions
around the world.
China and Taiwan (Lunar New Year)・Gyoza (dumpling): Gyoza represents "wealth” because it is made in the shape of money.
Those who get a dumpling with a coin inside can be happy. Gyoza dumplings are eatenon the night of New Year's Eve.
Sakana (fish): Sakana represents "leeway." Do not turn the fish over. Be sure to leave alittle leftover, which represents abundance.
Mochi (rice cake): Mochi means that you can reach a higher level as you get older.
Daikon Mochi: It is a rice cake made by mixing grated radish and rice cake powder,which is then grilled.
Mikan (tangerine): Mikan represents “good luck” and “success.”
Ringo (apple ): Apples represent peace and safety.
Harumaki (Spring roll): Spring rolls represent ”wealth” because they look like gold bars.

・・・・・・

Philippines

・Tikoy: Rice cake eaten in the Quezon region on New Year’s Day.

・Spaghetti and Rice noodles: They are as long as Japanese soba (buckwheatnoodles), so they represent “longevity.”
・Whole roasted pig and 12 kinds of fruits (the fruits’ round shapes representmoney).
・People enjoy eating glutinous rice wrapped in banana peels or drinking hot
chocolate drinks.

Indonesia

・Nasi Kuning: Yellow rice in a small

basket woven with palm leaves.It is said
that eating Nasi Kuning gives you
energy. And people eat Nasi Kuning not
only on New Year’s Day, but also on
happy occasions such as birthdays.

Brazil・Beijinho: A cake that is often
eaten during the New Year

Korea

・Tteokguk: Soup with rice cakes that are not as sticky as Japaneserice cakes and taste a little like tteokbokki rice cake.
・Jeon: It is often called chijimi (Korean pancake) in Japan. It is adish of bite-sized vegetables, meat, and white fish grilled withbatter. (It is easier to understand if you call it Korean-style
tempura.)Japchae: A stir-fried dish of harusame, which are thick, chewy
noodles made from sweet potatoes, colorful vegetables, and meat.
Kalbichim: A dish made by steaming born-in ribs with a sweet andspicy sauce for a long time.
Namul: A dish made with five to ten kinds of vegetables and edible
wild plants, including spinach, bracken, and taro stalks.
Sujeongga: Korean traditional tea made with ginger andcinnamon.
Sikke: A non-alcoholic drink made from fermented rice, similar toJapanese amazake (sweet fermented rice drink).

・・・・・

The 6th Japanese Speech Contest in Kashiwa
People from abroad living in the Tokatsu area are sharing
about their life in Japan in Japanese.
For more information, visit the KCC homepage athttps:/www.kcc.kira-kira.jp/events
Viewing at the venue has been cancelled due to the increase
in COVID-19 infections.
Date: February 13, Sunday, 1:00 p.m.- 4:00 p.m.
Online viewers: Please register on the homepage.
Participation fee: FreePeru
People celebrate the New Year by eating
roasted turkey or chicken, potato salad,panettone (sweet bread), and chocolate milk.

Mexico・On New Year’s Eve, people have tomato-flavored soup, cheese,cake-like meat dishes made with meat, eggs, breadcrumbs, apples,nuts, bacon, and ham baked in an oven. They also enjoy sweet
pasta, raisins, pineapple, etc.
January 6th is the day when the Three Wise Men of the East
brought gifts to celebrate the birth of Christ. On January 6th,people have bread called Rosca de Reyes which has a small doll
inside, and a chocolate drink. It is said that a person who wins thedoll will be lucky for a year.On February 2nd, the person who getsthe bread with the doll is supposed to give a present to everyone.
On February 2nd, people have Tamales, a steamed dish of meat,
vegetables, cheese, etc. wrapped in corn flour dough. They also
have Atole, a hot drink made with milk, fruit, almonds,and nuts
with sugar.

・・＊The dishes listed here vary from region to region within eachcountry and region.＊

Cross-cultural Tea Time “ Indonesia– What we saw and felt in the lives of about 30 years there –“Indonesia is about five times the size of Japan, withmore than 18,000 islands and about 490 different ethnic
groups with diverse cultures. We will talk about theIndonesia we experienced and what we felt in the threemajor periods of time that occurred in our 30 years
there.
Date: March 5, Saturday, 1:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.
Mr.&Mrs. Nakagawara
Place: Palette Kashiwa, Multi-purpose Space A
Lecturer: Mr. & Mrs. Yoshihiro and Yoko NAKAGAWARA
Number of applicants: 27
Participation fee: ¥400
Application: Please come directly to the KIRA office orsend an e-mail to boshu-1@kira-kira.jp<Please be sure to include the event name, your name, and phone number when applying by email. In addition, please note that the events
may be canceled or changed depending on the COVID-19 infection status . Please contact the office for details.>

Spread Information of Fukushima’s Reconstruction
KEYS member, Shota Nagai
How did you start being involved in international exchange activities?
When I was a university student in Ibaraki, I had chances to talk with tutors who
are native English speakers. I was looking for more of those opportunities, which
is when I discovered KEYS,
Kashiwa Exchange Youth Society. Given that Kashiwa was close to my university, I
started going to their regular meetings.
At the time, Brandon and a student from Vietnam were participating and I enjoyedspeaking English a lot.

We heard you were volunteering during this pandemic.
It was when I was working part-time to save money to go on a working holiday
that the COVID-19 hit the world. I lived in the same apartment with Brandon then,and he told me that in his hometown in Torrance, young people go shopping for
those elderly who were in quarantine. That made us think we should do the samein Kashiwa. In KEYS, we made flyers and used SNS to gather information about
who needed help with shopping. As a consequence, we didn’t get many
applications because the information didn’t circulate well. However, the idea wasgood.

Shota Nagai

What did you feel by joining KEYS?
Before the pandemic, we were able to do events such as cherry blossom viewing,flowing somen, and BBQ. During the pandemic, we talked with people in foreigncountries, and discussed SDGs in English. However, the main members havealready started working or they need to prepare for their entrance exams. We
need to look for new members.
Please tell me about your current job?
I am a writer for a web magazine in my hometown, Koriyama, Fukushima. (I join
KEYS meetings online) My main task is to interview people in the 12 towns andcities in the coastal area, and write articles about them. This area was damaged by
the Great East Japan Earthquake. The residents had no choice but to leave thisarea for a long time. Currently, the number of people who have returned and new
residents have been increasing. I am writing to inform people about thereconstruction. Quite a few of the new residents are young, and they start newbusinesses such as flower shops, restaurants and community spaces. For example,
there was a person who started selling stylish canned mackerel after moving toNamie city. Development of drones and natural energy resources are one of thefactors that make this area promising in the future.
How would you like to be involved in international exchange?
Although my current job isn’t directly connected to it, I still enjoy talking withfriends who are ALTs in Koriyamacity and Fukushima prefectures. Once thispandemic ends, I want to go abroad as soon as possible. Of course, doing aworking
holiday is still one of my longest-held dreams.
(Interviewed by Noriko Fujita)

KEYS activity in December

KEYS activity in January

Participants from Indonesia and Taiwan. Delegates to Camden in 2019
also participated.
SDGs Goal 4: Equal Education

A former delegate to Torrance participated online.
SDGs Goal 4: Equal Education

Feburuary Events
Japanese Shonan Classes
Online Classes
Thurs 10:00am - 11:30am
Japanese Intermediate and up
Sun 10:00am - 11:30am
Beginner I, Intermediate I (2 classes)
In Person Classes (Shonan Community Center)※It maybe cancelled according to the pandemicsituation.
Thurs 10:00am - 12:00pm Intermediate I
Sun 10:00am-12:00pm Beginner I

Online Japanese Kashiwa Classes
Tue 7:00pm - 8:30pm
Japanese for all Beginning II (1st of the 19lessons)Wed 10:00pm - 11:30pm
Japanese Conversation for Beginners 2
Wed 7:00pm - 8:30pm
Japanese for all Beginning I (1st of the 16lessons)Thurs 10:00am - 11:30am
Beginning Conversation I (Beginner, Beginning1)
Thurs 1:00pm - 2:30pm
Beginner Conversation 2 A
Fri 7:00pm - 8:30pm
Japanese for all Beginning II (1st of the 41lessons)
Sat 9:30am - 11:20am
Intermediate Conversation

Information about COVID-19 for foreign
residents
Available in multiple languages

Free legal advice and administrative
procedure support for foreign residents
Lawyers and administrative procedure
specialists will be available to help foreign
residents with legal questions anddocuments. Any questions or problems are
acceptable, such as visa, domestic violence,divorce, or trouble at the workplace. Please
register beforehand.
Date: February 16, Wednesday, 1:00 p.m. 5:00 p.m.
Place: Palette Kashiwa Room A
Reservation: KCC office<Information from other organizations>:
Online Workshop for KIRA members
Date: February 17, Thursday, 8:00 p.m. - 9:10
p.m.
February Session: Summary of Zoom Lessonand information about what will be studied
next term
Lecturer: Ms. Kumiko Yamaguchi (Interactive
Training in Communication - Japan)
Participation fee: Free
Number of applicants: 25
Application: Please come directly to the KCC
Office or send an e-mail toboshu-1@kira-kira.jp. We will send you URL tojoin the workshop.

Consultation for Foreign Residents
Monday: Spanish
Tuesday: Korean (only the 2nd and 4thTuesday)
Wednesday: Chinese
Thursday: English
Friday: Chinese※ 1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. everyday
Consultation Counter for Foreign Residents(Main city hall 3F)
TEL: 04 - 7168 - 1033
No reservation required.

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Also, please read Kashiwa
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Questions? Please contact the office of Kashiwa 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