Yesterday I went to Japanese Culture Workshop Day (日本文化まるごと体験ＤＡＹ) at Kansai University in Osaka. This event is held by Japan-America Society of Osaka (JASO) and Kansai University to give foreign students the chance to experience fields of Japanese culture. Other foreigners are welcome too. When I attended it last year, I tried ken-dama, chigirie, samurai sword fighting, Japanese confectionary and the tea ceremony. This year I tried calligraphy, origami and manga. My favourite was calligraphy where I wrote chinese characters (kanji) using a special kind of brush (fude). I chose prewritten samples of calligraphy, which indicated the stroke orders, and copied them. The volunteer staff kindly showed me how to hold the brush and, holding my hand, wrote something to show me how it was done. I then practiced writing myself and enjoyed it. Calligraphy is a cross between writing and painting. I think it is a great way of learning how to write Chinese characters too.
I found out about last year’s event from a Smith’s School of English Tsukaguchi student who is a chiropractor. A customer of his is a volunteer at this annual event. This year, I was sent an email by Japan-America Society of Osaka (JASO) announcing this year’s event date. I thank JASO, Kansai University and the volunteers for this year’s event. It was fun!
How about joining next year? It’s free!
JASO web site address: http://www.jaso1946.com
Email address: jaso@rihga.co.jp
Enjoy! (^.^)
Derek
Leave a Reply