Never thought I’d do this

July 20, 2011 Thomas Greve

The first day after meeting my host family in Omura even before the program week began I got a rare opportunity from my host family. My host mother, who is a elementary school teacher, decided to introduce me to Japanese elementary school life. It sounded nice so of course I took this chance but little did I know I would end up going into the rice fields and planting rice! Something I had never expected doing in my life. Also the way they plant the rice was different from what I imagined or seen. I thought they would just randomly plant the rice siblings on places that looked well for planting. But no, they span a line across the rice field and plant the rice siblings just in front of it, then the line moves and every one moves with it. It’s a very interesting and effective strategy. Seems like I learn something new every day!

This was also a good opportunity to meet new people, older and younger. During the planting of the rice I talked to the kids, teachers and other people of whom I have no idea what they were doing there. I taught them about my country and they taught me about Japan. They learned that we don’t have any rice paddies at all and that instead of rice we mainly plant potatoes in The Netherlands. At one point a frog hopped on the girl and she was so frighten she fell into the mud, so they then taught me the Japanese word for frog (while laughing at the girl) which is: ‘kaeru” and I taught them it in Dutch: “kikker”. Everyone seemed to be enjoying the activity that day. I know I did. Except the mothers on the other hand, maybe because they probably have to wash the clothes afterwards…muwhahaha! All and all is was a great day and fun experience and I hope to be able to do it again while in Japan.

(Juir from The Netherlands)

Arao City, City Life, City Theme Activities, Kumamoto City

400 years later and still standing strong

July 17, 2011 Thomas Greve 2 Comments

This week all of us had the opportunity to visit the historical castle of Kumamoto. This was an amazing experience because it showed all of us just how simple, yet beautiful Japanese architecture is. Even though the castle was over 400 years old, it is still in good shape and just as beautiful. When we went through the entrance of the castle, the walls were really tall and made of big black rocks that would be impossible for any person to climb (I think that the purpose). Even the watchtower was over 50 m tall and when walking through the low doors, passing through the small rooms and going up the really narrow and yet tough steps, you could really feel those 50 m. But it was all worth it, when we got to the top of the tower the view was the beautiful city and mountains of Kumamoto. Afterwards, we went to the restoration of another part of the castle. Even though the restoration was new, it had been restored so carefully, that you could almost feel the spirits of the samurais and how they’ve been walking though the underground part of the castle.

400 years later and still standing strong

When we finished the tour of the castle, we went outside where we met a Japanese guy dressed as a red samurai looking prepared to win a battle (we thought it was hot outside but after seeing this guy dressed in a full samurai uniform weighing around 70 Kilograms we now thought we were the lucky ones) also he was very polite in front of the girls, he even took the ladies hands and got on his knees as a polite gesture.

After all this experience was so indescribably beautiful, that the pictures just doesn’t reach the same level of beauty. It’s just one of those special places where you just have to see it through your own eyes. I did, and I would properly never discover this castle without WCJ. And for that I’m truly grateful.

(Nina Møller from Denmark)

Arao City, City Life, Kumamoto City, Uda City

Welcoming 2011 Second Session!

July 16, 2011 Thomas Greve 1 Comment

Second session has begun this week and our schedule is full of some fun diverse activities! Visiting a Katana Sword makers dojo, a 400 year old castle, and hosting a culture fair in the mall to let the city of Arao
know some fun things from our countries! We’ll be sharing out foods, languages and of course music with the community! Stay tuned to find out how all those events go!! Love from Japan!!

(Brandon Serna – External Relations Manager for Summer ‘11 Road Team)

City Life, City Theme Activities, Omuta City

Cooking with Iris at Miike Elementary

July 12, 2011 Thomas Greve

One of the most amazing experiences of the first session was going to Miike Elementary School in Omuta for 2 days. I was kind of nervous because I had very little experience with kids. I was especially nervous because the first class we taught was cooking class and we were asked to teach the children how to make a dish from our home countries. So the class was divided in two groups, Andrew would teach one group a Chinese dish and I taught the other group a Dutch dish. I decided to teach them how to make hutspot, a really easy but really Dutch dish to make!

We started by cooking potatoes, carrots, and onions and then we mash them up and ate with sausage. The kids all paid good attention and I was really nervous because I am not the greatest cook and I’ve only made this dish twice in my life. After that, all the kids went to the stations and begin cutting the vegetables and preparing the food. I got to walk around and see the kids making the dishes and it was great to see them really enthusiastic and wanting to make it right.

In the Netherlands we have a special kitchen utensil that we use to mash the vegetables, but, of course they don’t have that in Japan (at least I don’t think they do?) so they gave me a stick to use which looked a lot like a Taiko drumstick but I am sure it was just a cooking stick. Now the kids were really excited because it was time to mash the vegetables. After that it was now time to eat. I was so glad to see the kids enjoying the hutspot and I even thought it tasted like the one from home! Andrew from China also made a great dish that we really enjoyed.

The next day, the class gave me a book made of thank you cards, which each kid wrote something nice on and a lot of kids wrote they like the dish and a few of them even said they would make it at their homes, how awesome. It was a really great experience, at first I was a bit scared and insecure but the kids were so welcoming and enthusiastic and they just loved the fact that I was there trying to teach them something. Thank you Miike School for the great experience!

(Iris Spruit from The Netherlands)

City Life, City Theme Activities, Guest Speakers, Omura City

A Peaceful man with not such a peaceful past

July 6, 2011 Thomas Greve

The more I come to Japan, the more I understand the importance Japanese people give to PEACE. After going through events as hard and powerful as the Hiroshima and Nagasaki Atomic bomb, I think any country would take the word “Peace” very seriously.

This time we had the opportunity to listen the story of a Nagasaki A-Bomb Survivor. As a 15 year old at the time of the bombing, his point of view of the event was surely very innocent but very realistic. With 81 years old today, he feels very lucky to have lived through this unfortunate event in 1945 and is now one of the many people committed to spreading the word of peace.

After he retired from his job as a teacher in 1998, he decided to start sharing his experience as a survivor from the A-Bomb and have been doing it for 13 years. With more than 70 speeches every year, he believes, this is his way of informing people about the facts of the bombing but most important, this is the way he is teaching everyone who meets him that hate is not the answer.

He shared his experience with all of us in World Campus Japan for about an hour. The final words of his speech were very calm and simple but the positive energy he was giving to all of us was more powerful than any words… “Since I retired my job as a teacher, my job has been to spread the word of peace and I will continue to do it until the day I die”

World Campus Japan members with the Survivor

I was seating there, as I did last year, and again I was reminded of the importance of the work we do in World Campus Japan, learning about other cultures, knowing the whys of every person and every country, to be able to respect each other.

After finishing his speech he gave us time for pictures with him and questions, he hugged all of us and said I love you to many of us. What a great feeling to have met someone that has gone through so much and has such a great outlook in life.

I believe this is the beginning of a new moment for the world and for young people that take the risk to step out of their comfort zone, putting themselves in other people’s shoes to truly understand each other. It is everyone’s personal effort what will make this world a better place. It is not easy but we have to start now to have the peace we all want for ourselves and for our communities around the world.

(Celiana Dolovitz – Education Manager in the Summer ‘11 Road Team)

World Campus International Blog

Never thought I’d do this

400 years later and still standing strong

Welcoming 2011 Second Session!

Cooking with Iris at Miike Elementary

A Peaceful man with not such a peaceful past

Unique Access to Japan!

Enjoy this blog? Please spread the word :)