I.I.A. NewsNo. 70Dec 27,2018From editor:Following the recent increase of non-Japanese speaking IIA members, we would like to make an atempt to inform thecontents of IIA News in English.

Top NewsP2New Year Greetings by Mayor Hirotami MurakoshiI highly appreciate the unwavering support of IIA in promoting international exchange activities in Ichikawa. There aremore than 16,000 non-Japanese residents living in Ichikawa and its population continues to rise. Ichikawa City is expandingexchange activities, aiming for the advancement of a multi-cultural coexistence based on mutual understanding and respectamong all citizens. Without the support of IIA, we would not be able to implement international exchanges with our sister,friendship and partner cities abroad.
I am also counting upon the various IIA activities for foreign residents such as, volunteer Japanese language classes andtranslation/interpretation assistance.
Recently, I participated in Japonismes 2018, an event celebrating the 160th anniversary of Japanese-French Friendship, heldin Paris, where Gyotoku Mikoshi was introduced. Paris citizens participated in carrying the mikoshi with great enthusiasm.
This success can be attributed to the efforts of IIA, for which I am truly grateful.
I sincerely wish for the continuous growth of IIA and would like IIA to extend cooperation in making Ichikawa aninternational city.

Greetings by Hisae Narita, IIA PresidentI would like to thank Mayor Murakoshi for supporting our activities and I hope that he would also guide us, since he isfamiliar with international affairs.
Two years have passed since our transfer to this new office, and I could feel that the independent management of IIA hasstabilized, thanks to the cooperation and support of IIA members. Also, I am glad that we have successfully accomplishedmany activities last year.
At the Japonismes 2018, I was impressed with the exchanges which was stimulated by IIA members who voluntarilypresented some cultural activities.
IIA is planning to hold the International Day in March this year. There will also be an exchange of delegations from sisterand partner cities.
I sincerely ask for your continuous cooperation, as IIA will try its best to present more vigorous activities this year too.

Reports on past eventsP3Ichikawa Citizens Visit to Issy-Les-Mouleneaux and Japonismes 2018To celebrate 160 years of friendship between France and Japan, “Japonismes 2018” was held in Paris and other cities. Atthe "Culture of Japan- Festivals and Local Culture" event, Gyotoku Mikoshi (miniature shrine) was chosen as one of theofficial performers. In collaboration with Ichikawa city, together with IIA corporate member, Nakadai Mikoshi Seisakusho, agroup of 27 IIA members joined the Goodwill Tour, visiting France from October 17 to 25. The Mikoshi Parade in Boulogneand the Workshop on assembly and dismantling of Mikoshi at the Japanese Culture Center in Paris were featured. At theMikoshi parade, a lot of French citizens who came to see it, and it turned very crowded when we started carrying the Mikoshi.
We joined the parade wearing Kimono, Hanten and festival towel and we tried our best to carry and follow the parade. Peopleof Issy-Les-Moulineaux, our partner city, also joined the parade together with Mayor André Santini. Both mayors, Santini andSupplement 1Murakoshi joined the festival celebration. We also enjoyed sightseeing in Issy city and Paris. At the welcome ceremony hostedby Issy, titled, "Japan Memorial Evening", Japanese animation and comics were featured. We made exchanges with Issypeople by making Origami together. We enjoyed delicious French foods such as galettes, crepes and a splendid French cuisineat a dinner invitation. To express our appreciation, we offered tea ceremony and Origami lesson.
We wonder if we were able to extend our courtesy enough to Issy people through these activities. Nevertheless, each one ofus worked hard to deepen our friendship and we are confident this visit would strengthen our mutual understanding andcooperation - celebrating Japonismes 2018 together, carrying Mikoshi together, and sharing French/Japanese culture together.
After visiting Issy City, the party also enjoyed visiting the beautiful towns of Mont Saint Michel, Honfleur, Rouen andGiverny in Normandy region.
P4Yawata Town (Kaiyuu) Exhibit“International Cuisines & Market” was presented at the Keiyo Gas Showroom on September 23, 2018. We introducedcuisines of three countries – Sakusaimu (Tapioca peanut cake) from Thailand, Onion rice covered by Dahl from Pakistan, andTacos from Mexico. They were so popular and were sold out by noon. At the façade of the building, accessories and bagsfrom Philippines and Peru, and honey from Pakistan were also being sold. People came to shop. Sellers and shoppers talked toeach other and initiated international exchange.

Gyotoku FestivalIt was the first time for IIA to install a booth at this annual Gyotoku festival. The international exchange area was providedto promote exchanges with non-Japanese residents in the Gyotoku Ekimae Park. Members of Foreign Residents Committeeperformed Bolivian Dance and Philippine Bamboo dance. We sold German coffee and introduced the activities of IIA.
We hope this participation would contribute to international exchange in Gyotoku.

The 43rd Ichikawa Citizens FestivalIt was held at Osu Park last November 3 on a beautiful day. The IIA booth was so crowded. They sold coffee fromRosenheim City, unique German glasses, and delicious apples and apple juice direct from Aomori. We successfully soldalmost all of them with the help of members who attracted customers with a loud voice. The proceeds were donated to IIA.

Experiencing "Hakka be tea" & Yoga (Foreign Residents Committee)On September 9 、 we experienced tasting Taiwanese tea （ Hakka be tea ） and exercising Yoga at the Japanese roomof Danjo Kyodo Sankaku Center. 20 attendees began to learn the basic Yoga lesson instructed by Ms.Yamanaka. Then theymoved to another room and experienced making "Hakka be tea", fragrant flavor tea, introduced by Ms Takamatsu.. Tasting“Beni-koji Ryugan Mochi”,a red yeast rice cake, with Hakka be tea made us very happy.

The International Day “International Village”Many interesting events, such as International music and dance performance on stage, international cuisines, exhibit booths ofmany countries, stamp rally, and others. Please come and join this event. We guarantee that it will be a good experience thatyou can enjoy.
Date: March 9th 2019Place: I & I Hall in GyotokuSupplement 2P5Bus Tour to Tojo Museum of History (Interpretation & Translation Committee: ITC)Aiming to meet and get to know better each ITC member, this bus tour was conducted on September 16th, 2018. The bus,with 24 members aboard, including four American and British, took us to the Tojo Museum of History in Matsudo. We wereguided and told about the history and other matters related to this museum in English for our language training. After awholesome lunch with our members at the Ishii Farm where local vegetables were served, we headed to the Showa no MoriMuseum that exhibited many equipment and items from the Showa era. It was very nostalgic for elderly members whoreminisced their younger years. It was a day that we consider valuable as we enjoyed exchanging ideas on how we canaccomplish our yearly goals and was also beneficial for the improvement of our translation skills.

To know more about Islam - Visiting Mosque in Japan: (Cross Cultural Exchange Committee)At first, we went to a Turkey Restaurant, “Ankala” in Shibuya by subway on October 7, and enjoyed Turkish lunch. Then,we went to Tokyo Carmii in Yoyogi-Uehara. It is a majestic and a gorgeous structure. A mosque is normally located in thecenter of the town in order to receive God’s protection. Upon reaching the mosque, we were amazed by the beautiful openspace surrounded by magnificent stained glasses. There are long lines on the floor. The visitors sit side by side along the longlines on the carpet and pray toward the direction of Mecca. This line means that we are equal before God.
We were impressed by their friendship, kindness, femininity, and more.

Halloween Party (Foreign Residents Committee)It was held last October 27, and we prayed hard that the weather would be fair, as we had cancelled this event last year dueto typhoon. As a result, we were blessed with a beautiful day. We changed to our favorite Halloween costumes at ZennikkeiHall. Most importantly, we were able to exchange information with other foreigners while enjoying tasty lunch boxes. We alsohad fun playing bingo games, dancing and singing together.
P6Committee Assembly (Home Stay, Visit Committee: HSV)The first committee meeting was held on October 13 at Danjo Kyodo Sankaku Center, and discussed the following:1. Experiences of host families: It is best for one family to have one guest. It is also better to stay shorter. Six-day stay is toolong.
2. Management of the committee: To state clearly the roles of HSV; To look for new host families; To share activities withsenior members; The importance of active communication among HSV members; Suggestions to launch Home Visit whichaims to offer the guests an excellent experience for a single day visit.
The heated discussion was wrapped up with stretching exercises.

High School GuidanceNew comers to Japan must take this exam, the same way as the Japanese students.
The annual "High school guidance for children and parents who do not speak Japanese as a mother tongue" was held at I &I Hall on October 21st 2018. The Boso Multicultural Network, which is mainly composed of former high school teachers,hosted more than 3,000 people in the span of 17 years. More than 10 active teachers of junior high and high school explainedhow to prepare for the entrance examination. They also explained about the school districts, examination subjects, interviews,characteristics of the school etc. Fourteen children who must take the tests seemed to be relieved to hear the experience of fivesenior students, who were able to overcome the difficulties, and now enjoying a wonderful school life. The look on their facesSupplement 3changed after hearing these experience and success stories. On this occasion, NHK came to document this activity and it wasbroadcasted for over 3 minutes within the news program from 7am on October 31. Ms. Ian Tanaka, who interpreted theirexplanation was on air.

Christmas tree made by glasses (Rosenheim City Committee)It was held at the Chuo Kominkan.
We made up our own glass-made X’mas trees, decorating them with different colors and shapes of beads and crystal partsmade of Swarovski glasses. Small rainbows appeared in the room which reflected from crystal parts. Two hours passed soquickly as we enjoyed making them.

Outing to Ueno on a beautiful day (Buddies)We gathered at Keisei Ueno station on Keisei Line or Tokyo Metro Line. We visited Shitamachi Museum in Taito-ku whichreproduced the streets of downtown Tokyo from the Taisho era. We were able to experience the life in Japan of those days.
Some Japanese member felt nostalgic with toys and daily living items which they used to have in their childhood and taughtnon-Japanese members how to use them.
Then, we dropped by a restaurant nearby and enjoyed various Japanese foods such as sashimi, tempura and eel and enjoyedchatting with each other.
P8Experiencing Arabic calligraphy (Medan City Committee)On November 18, 2018, Dr. Fatyani Tarek from Syria, the representative of Japan in World Arabic Calligraphy Association,instructed us on Arabian/Islamic calligraphy which has a history of more than 1,000 years. There were many his art workscreated with colorful beautiful lines and letters on the wall of the Chuo Kominkan.
We wrote them using the shaved bamboo tip brush on a surface-coated paper. Characters are composed of golden ratios inevery part of the letters, which became an aesthetically completed art work.
Dr. Tarek wrote each participant’s name in Arabic calligraphy. Participants brought home their names written in Arabiccalligraphy by him as treasured souvenir.

Welcome party for the goodwill delegation from the state of WinsconsinIIA hosted a welcome party for 9 delegates from the state of Wisconsin, USA on November 29 at the Ichikawa City CulturalCenter. Chiba Prefecture and Wisconsin State (hereinafter, W State) have concluded Sister Prefecture/States Agreement in1990 and are interacting with each other. With mutual visits every other year, 12 people from W State visited Kisarazu City thisyear. They visited and interacted with citizens in various places in the prefecture.
As Minami Gyotoku Hana Gumi (Yosakoi Soran Dance team) was selected as a delegate to W state next year and IIA willaccept W State delegates in the following year - an arrangement that was set up quickly.
Yosakoi Soran,Dance team and African Dance Company of W State showed up dancing to the beat of a mixture of drums.
This lively dance of West Africa excited all attendees in the venue.
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