No. 434 March 2024

Niigata English Journal
Edited & Issued by the Niigata City International Exchange Foundation
Mail magazine: Email us to receive this newsletter every month★★ Subscribe to stay up to date! ★★

Taru-kinuta Drumming Experience

Learn one of Niigata’s traditional musical arts, tarukinuta! Taru-kinuta is a style of drumming that involves
hitting a wooden barrel (taru) with a thin wooden mallet(kinuta). This a great opportunity for international
students and local Japanese residents to interact!
Date: March 17th (Sun) 14:00 – 16:00
Location: CrossPal 2nd floor Gymnasium
Spots: 20 (10 international students, 10 Japanese)
Fee: ¥300
Sign up/Contact: TEL: 025-225-2727 or email:kyokai@nief.or.jp *When signing up, state yourname, phone number, and nationality

What’s Italy like?

Ms. Isabella Gallaon-Aoki, originally from Milan, will
introduce Italy – including its history, culture, popular
tourist destinations, and how Italy differs from Japan.
Date: March 14th (Thu) 13:30 – 15:00
Location: CrossPal 4th floor, Room 403 & 404
Spots: 30 people
Fee: ¥500 (¥300 for NIEF supporters)
Sign up/Contact: TEL: 025-225-2727 or email:kyokai@nief.or.jp or fill out the online form

NIEF Spring Japanese Classes
Applications for spring session Japanese classes areopen until March 11th (Mon). Morning and evening classes
are available, from beginner to intermediate level. If you
missed the deadline but would like to apply, please comein and talk with us! For more details, please see the NIEF
website.
Closed: Sundays, holidays,
and March 25th (Mon)
Location: NIEF Exchange
Salon (CrossPal 2nd floor)
Contact: TEL: 025-2252727 or email:kyokai@nief.or.jp

Salon Exhibit: Yasashii Nihongo
Have you heard of Yasashii Nihongo? It is a simplified
version of Japanese used to communicate with second
language learners, children, the elderly, and more. Comeand learn more about this useful style of communication!
Date: March 8th (Fri) – March 23rd (Sat)9:00 – 17:00
Closed: Sundays and holidays
Location: NIEF Exchange Salon (CrossPal 2nd floor)

Free Administrative Scrivener Consultation

Get free consultation on visa qualifications, applying
for permanent residency, doing business in Japan, carregistration, traffic accident compensation, and more!
Date: March 23rd (Sat) 10:00 – 16:00
Location: CrossPal 3rd floor, Room 309
Fee: Free!
Sign up/Contact: Call Niigata
Prefecture Administrative Scrivener
Society, Mr. Takano at 070-1189-8555

Japanese Class Social

Students studying Japanese in Toyosaka at Iroha
Kyoshitsu will be holding an event where they show off
their Japanese skills. Everyone is welcome to comeenjoy the presentations and socialize.
Date: March 23rd (Sat) 10:00 – 12:00
Location: Kuzutsuka Community Center, Training RoomA & B; 3197 Kuzutsuka, Kita Ward
Fee: Free!
Sign up/Contact: By March 17th (Sun), Yamagishi @TEL: 090-8617-4456
Sri Lanka New Year’s Party
Come celebrate the Sinhalese and Tamil New Year!
Special guests include Ambassador Rodney Perera (theAmbassador of Sri Lanka to Japan) and Mr. Anton Wicky,
among others. There will also be dance performances, asari fashion show, food, and more! Hosted by Rasai no Kai.
Date: April 14th (Sun) 11:00 – 15:00
Location: Crosspal 5th floor Exchange Hall
Fee: ¥2,000 (includes meal)
Sign up/Contact: By Mar. 31, text message Otaki at
TEL: 080-3140-7436 or email: ytakioh@gmail.com*When signing up, write your name and phone
number. Women should state if they are interested inwearing a sari.
Art Mix JapanArt Mix Japan will be celebrating its 10th run this year!
This event showcases Japanese traditional culture andperforming arts, with performances of Nihon-buyo,
rakugo, various traditional musical performances, a puppet
show, and more! There will also be workshops, talk shows,and kimono that you can rent for the event!
Date: April 13th (Sat) and 14th (Sun)10:30 – 20:00
Location: Ryutopia and Enkikan
Tickets: Online (scan code on theright), TEL 025-255-1332, or inperson at Ryutopia and otherlocations (see website for details ➡)Niigata English Journal

March 2024

Page 2Classes
Japanese Courses offered by the Niigata City International Exchange Foundation
Beginner throughIntermediate 2-Classes of varying difficulties are available at different times throughout the week.
-Pricing info & the schedule for the current session are available on the NIEF website:
https://www.nief.or.jp/

Ms. Kiyoko Tanaka
Tel: (025) 225-2727

Japanese Study Support Group for Children & Students: NicoPal Club (Free of charge)Day of the Week & Hours
Every Wed.

(contact for info)

Every Sat.
10:00 – 11:30*except 3/9*Please register beforehandContentRoomNo.

202

Please contact Ms. Tanaka for more information.

201

This Japanese study circle offers support to children in the international
community who are struggling with Japanese and other school studies.

Ms. Kiyoko Tanaka
Tel: (025) 225-2727

International Cooking Class

VolunteerJapaneseClasses

When: March 23rd (Sat), March 24th (Sun), March 25th (Mon)
11:00-14:00
Fee: Foreign residents: ¥2,000Japanese citizens: ¥3,800
Menu: Hanami Party Bento and Fermented Foods – Seabream and bamboo shoot rice, tofu soup, seasonal
side dishes. and more!

https://www.nief.or.jp/en/jcvg

Where: Ms. Ueno’s residence (3-4-16 Ogijima, Akiha Ward)
For more info/sign-up: TEL: 0250-24-6859 (Ms. Ueno) – Please sign up at least three days before class

Notices

Niigata International Animation Film
Festival & Gatafes

Earthquake Information

Niigata City regularly updates its website with information
on disaster relief for the 2024 Noto Peninsula Earthquake.
Information is available in Japanese, English, and Chinese,with machine translation available for other languages.

This year, the Niigata International Animation Film
Festival (NIAFF) and Gatafes (a manga and animeevent) will be held at the same time! For more details
check out the official websites.
NIAFF
When: Mar. 15th (Fri) – 20th (Wed)Where: Varies by film, see schedule

Free Japanese ClassA free beginner level Japanese class is available for students who can readmost hiragana and katakana and some basic kanji. Class fees are free,
however, students must purchase a textbook.
When: Fridays, 15:30 – 17:00
Where: CrossPal
Sign up/Contact: Mr. Komiyama
TEL: 090-4811-1147, email: kmyma2s@gmail.com

Gatafes
When: Mar. 16th (Sat) & 17th (Sun)
Where: Furumachi Area & Ryutopia
Niigata Help AssociationFor more info.

Everyday 10:00 – 23:00
English, Spanish, Korean, Chinese, Filipino, Thai, etc.

TEL: 025-228-2212

Niigata International Association TEL: 025-241-1881
Email: nia21c@niigata-ia.or.jp URL: https://www.niigata-ia.or.jp/

Weekdays 10:00 – 17:00
English, Russian, Chinese, Filipino, Thai, Vietnamese,Spanish, Portuguese

Helpline for Foreigners

Press 2 after the Japanese guidance

TEL: 0120-279-338 (toll-free)

Niigata Medical Care Information Network

URL: http://qq.niigata-iyaku.jp/

Hello Work, Foreigner Advisory Service TEL: 025-280-8609
Niigata Misaki Godo Chosha #2 (1-2-1 Misaki-cho, Chuo Ward, Niigata City)
Immigration Bureau Consultation

2nd Tue. of the month (3/12) 13:00–17:00
Thai, Vietnamese, Russian

Gyoseishoshi Association of Niigata Consultation

4th Wed. of the month (3/27) 10:00–17:00
Chinese, Russian

Free Legal Consultation for Foreign Residents
Length of Consultation: 40 minutes per person

Houterasu Free Legal Consultation for Foreign ResidentsLength of Consultation: 40 minutes per person

Education Consultation

3rd Thur. of odd numbered months (3/21)
English, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian
3rd Mon. of even numbered months (4/15)
13:00 – 17:00
English, Filipino
Every Tue. 13:00–17:00 English, Chinese,Thai, Vietnamese, RussianEnglish, Chinese, Korean
1st – 4th Wed 13:00 – 16:00
English & Chinese

Make a reservation by phone or email in advance.
Place: Multilingual Consultation Center of Niigata(formerly Foreign Resident Consultation
Center)(2nd floor of Toki Messe)
Contact: TEL: 025-241-1881
Email: nia10@niigata-ia.or.jp

Edited and Issued by the Niigata City International Exchange Foundation
3-2086 Ishizuecho-dori, Chuo Ward, Niigata City 951-8055
Homepage: https://www.nief.or.jp/
Tel: (025) 225-2727
E-mail: kyokai@nief.or.jp(Written and edited by Alyssa Williams & Ayako Homma)

CrossPal will beclosed Mar. 25th