I'm vaguely famous!

Look who showed up in the Kyoto Newspaper! The picture's not that bad either (better than any of my ID pictures at least.)
Here’s a translation for those who struggle with Japanese.



“Seika Town’s New Coordinator for International Relations, American Kai Wiesner-Hanks”
=Seika Town Minami Ina Yazuma
From a young age, Kai loved Japanese food and had a strong interest in Japan, studying Japanese history in college. He also studied abroad in Tokyo, and was a member of the Taiko and Judo clubs. Having just graduated in May of this year, believing that this could be a chance to improve his Japanese, he applied to be a coordinator for international relations.
He says that Seika town and Tokyo are very different, and that Seika is a much greener place. There are also many children in town who often call out and talk to him in town. He hopes to teach these children some American games to held spread internationalization. Because he likes to cook, he also wants to try and teach Japanese people some recipes they may not know.”

Well, that is pretty much what I said. The cooking will be interesting to see how it goes, but as long as I can teach Japanese people to make a burrito sometime, I’ll be happy.

Give ballet a chance

This past Sunday myself and another member of the planning and coordinating division had the opportunity to attend Mami Ballet Land’s 25th anniversary celebration performance at the Keshena Plaza right here in Seika town.

Now, before you say, “But Kai, I really can’t see you being interested in dance,” you should know I’ve been involved in swing dancing over the years but I’ve never much been one for real dance and the tights that come with it.


I have to say though; I was really impressed. Even though the girls (and three boys) were young, they were all incredibly talented. Before a crowd of roughly 1000 people, dancers as young as five went up and did a great job (The five year olds had a Teddy Bear themed dance that was quite possibly the cutest thing in the universe.) The older students were fantastic as well, including two girls who performed solo pieces. Guest star Laura Morera, a principal in the Royal Ballet, was there to finish off the performance. It was really cool to see how something from a different culture (ballet) can become such an engrained part of Japanese life. I probably won't be joining myself (me in tights would not be good for anyone,) but I was still really impressed with their show and hope to see some more in the future.


今週の日曜日に、僕と一人の同僚は精華町のけいはんなプラザに麻美バレエランドの２５周年公演を見に行きました。僕はずっと前からスイングダンシングというダンスしていたが、本格的なダンスはあまり経験ありません。

しかし､この公演は本当に凄かったです。出た女の子(と男の子三人）は若かったが、１０００人もの観客を前に本間に良く出来ました。年上の生徒も本当よく出来ました。(五歳の子のテディーベアダンスは本当に宇宙一可愛い事だと思います。）特に二人はソロピースまで出来ました。そして､ゲストで英国ロイヤルバレエ団がフィナーレとして出ました。バレエのような異文化のことはだんだん日本のことにもなってきていますよね。本当に凄い公演だって、絶対将来にまた見に行きたいです。

http://www.mami-balletland.jp/

The New CIR in Seika Japan

So apparently in order to celebrate the opening of this blog, the clouds disappeared today, so you can see the Nara, Kyoto, and Osaka without too much trouble. Of course the sun being out also means it is approximately nine thousand degrees and my pale skin turns Kentucky fried in a manner of seconds　(Japanese summers are not for the faint of heart), but it is still amazing to look out and see so much of Japan’s history just a stone’s throw away.



Oh, by the way, name is Kai and starting last week Wednesday I took over as the Coordinator for International Relations (CIR) for Seika town, a town of over 36,000 people just south of Kyoto and north of Nara. The title implies much more power than I actually have (assistant/ helper to the planning division would be a more apt title), but I still get to do a variety of things to help promote internationalism in the town. This can run the gambit from writing the Town’s English newsletter to translating documents for the foreign residents of the town, and even helping out at events. I may even get the chance to plan and event if I can manage my schedule out right.



However, despite what I may say, I’m not the main focus of this blog. Rather, this blog is about the place that I have the good fortune of being able to work, Seika Town. Located about 15 minutes north of Nara City, an hour east of Osaka City, and just 30 minutes south of Kyoto City, Seika is basically smack dab in the middle of traditional Japanese Culture. After having lived in Tokyo for a year, it is nice to see a more traditional side of Japanese life, and the idyllic scenery (Japan is by far the greenest country I have ever seen. Well, except for Greenland) and wonderful people make me think that I’ll be very happy working here.



Speaking of the people, I will say this about Seika; there are an astounding amount of children here, and I hope that I will get the chance to interact with these kids and teach them something about my home and American culture. They certainly seem receptive to me and I’ve already played hide and go seek with a few of them when I should have probably been working. Of course, there’s more than just kids here, and the adults I’ve met so far have been great in teaching me all about Seika Town and Japan. In particular, the folks here seem very excited to teach me the Kansai dialect. It’s great to feel so welcome, even though the difference in dialect can sometimes make me feel as if all of my Japanese study was for nothing.



Even though I’ve only been here in Seika Town for a little while, I’m already excited for the coming years. And for it to stop being so hot.





このブログの公開をお祝いする為に晴れたみたいですね。本当に奈良と京都も、そして大阪までも見えるかもしれません。凄いですね。しかし､晴れているというとめっちゃ暑いというわけですね。私の白い皮膚は十秒後フライドチキンのようになってしまうと思います。でもまだ､この所は本当に凄いですね。

ところで､私はウィズナー・ハンクス・カイと申します。先週の水曜日から精華町役場で国際交流員として働くことになりました。簡単にいうと、私の仕事は国際化を進めることです。これから私は「いちご」という外国人の向けのニュースレターを書いたり翻訳したりイベントで手伝ったり、本当に色々な事をします。そして時間があったら､自分のやりたいイベントも企画できるかもしれません。
でも、このブログのテーマは私ではないですね。このブログのテーマは精華町よ！奈良と京都と大阪の間中にあって、本当に日本の文化を感じられると思います。私は一年間東京に住んでいましたが、日本の伝統的なところを見ることが出来るのを本当に喜んでいます。景色もきれいだし、人たちも優しいし､精華町で働くのを楽しみしています。

人たちといえば､精華町では子供さんが本当に多いですね。この子供にも自分の文化を教える機会があるのは喜んでいます。もちろん、大人の方も優しいです。もう精華町の人たちにたくさん教えてもらいました。

たった一週間だけでしたが､もう精華町にこんなに感動したので､この二年間を本当に楽しみます。

光陰矢のごとし Time Flies

Time sure does fly by quickly! This month marks two years of me living and working here in Seika Town as the Coordinator for International Relations. This is also my final entry into this blog as two years is the length of my job contract. When I think back over my time in Seika it is hard to believe that two years could fly by so fast, but at the same time I have experienced so much, and met so many people that its hard to believe that its only been two years.

One of my favorite parts of my job here has been going out into the community and interacting with people of all walks of life. For example, I think that from my visits to all five elementary schools in Seika I know every single young child living in Seika. Also, my visits to the Kashinokien Day Service Center gave me a great chance to meet and talk with some of Seika’s more experienced citizens. Then of course all of the people I was able to meet at all of the international exchange events and festivals that I have taken part in. Everyone in Seika has been so kind to me in my time here and because of the warmth of the people here I have been able to have many amazing experiences.

My only other experience living in Japan was during a year of university in Tokyo. Tokyo is a fun and exciting place, but I am very happy to be able to have had the opportunity to live in a more traditional town like Seika where the people are friendly, the air and water are clean, and I was able to experience things like rice planting/harvesting, the Igomori Festival, and my favorite of all; eating school lunches with the kids at elementary schools.

I honestly had no idea what to expect before I came to Seika, but my time here has allowed me to meet interesting people, and take part in experiences I would not have been able to imagine before coming here. But of course my job wasn’t all about what I could learn, rather what I was able to contribute to Seika. So I truly hope that in my time writing the newsletter column, teaching at schools, giving presentations in the community, and helping out at various festivals that I was able to have an effect on the lives of Seika’s residents. I would be happy if something I did or said changed people’s impressions of Americans and foreigners for the better, broke down a long held stereotype, or helped to aid international understanding. My biggest hope is that I was able to encourage the younger children to think of the world beyond Japan, and hopefully to inspire some of them to learn more about foreign cultures, peoples and languages.

I want to thank all the people who have been reading this blog and for helping to make my time here a wonderful and rewarding experience. I know that no matter where I end up in life I will always consider Seika as a second home.

　時間がたつのは何て早いのでしょう！精華町で国際交流員として働くのが今月でちょうど２年となりました。そして、仕事の契約は２年間ですので、今月のコラムは最後となります。私が精華町に暮している時を振り返ると、２年間がそんなに早く過ぎ去るとは信じられませんが、一方で色々なことを体験し、多くの優しい人々と出会ったので、もう２年たったのかあと言う感じがします。

　精華町のコミュニティで様々な住民の方とふれあうことは仕事の業務の中で一番好きな役割でした。例えば、町内５小学校全ての学校訪問のおかげで、精華町の小学生は全員知っていると思います。また、かしのき苑への訪問では、お年寄りの方と出会え、素晴らしい話し合う機会がありました。そして、たくさんの国際交流イベントと祭りなどで多くの人々と出会うこともできました。精華町に暮していた間に、みなさまが非常に親切で、心の温く接してくださったおかげで、大変素晴らしい経験になりました。

　日本に住む経験の中では大学の時、東京に一年住んだことがあります。東京は面白くて、楽しいところですが、精華町では人々が優しくて、空気と水がきれいで、田植えと収穫を体験でき、いごもり祭りを見られ、小学生と一緒に給食を食べることができ、これらの伝統的で文化がある精華町に住むことができて、大変嬉しく思っています。

　精華町に来る前は、どんなことをするのか、正直全く知りませんでしたが、ここでは予想できないことを体験しましたし、面白い人と出会うことが実現しました。しかし、私の仕事は、自分自身が何かを学ぶことだけではなく、むしろ精華町に貢献することですので、このコラムを書いたり、学校を訪問したり、地域の講座に行ったり、祭りに参加する時間の中で、精華町民のみなさまの暮らしの中で何か影響を与えることができたらと思っていました。私の発信や行動によって、アメリカ人や外国人の印象を変えたり、ステレオタイプを打破したり、国際理解を深めたり、することができたのでしたら嬉しいです。子どもたちの世界観を広げて、将来に外国の文化や人類や言語などに興味を持ってもらえることは私の一番希の望していることです。

このコラムを読んでくださったみなさま、そして全ての方々に、大変素晴らしくて、価値のある経験をさせていただいたことを感謝しています。私の人生の旅は、どこまで歩んでも、第２の故郷は精華町であると思います。

京都市でのお花見 Flower Viewing in Kyoto

そして、大阪城公園に行った翌日に伝統的な京都市でお花見をしに行きました。祗園で舞妓さんを見かけて、桜もきれいだったし、とても楽しかったです。丸山公園の桜も満開で、人がいっぱいでした。

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Then the day after I went to Osaka Castle Park I went to traditional Kyoto City to do some more flower viewing. In Gion I saw some Maiko, and the cherry blossoms there were also very beautiful. In Maruyama Park, the flowers were also in full bloom so there were a lot of people.

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大阪城でのお花見 Flower Viewing at Osaka Castle

先週末の良い天気のかげで、今年初花見ができました。土曜日の昼頃友達と一緒に大阪城公園に行きました。もちろん、お花見をする人々が多かったが、その上、公園の中コンサートもあったので、すごい人いっぱいでした。でも、桜が満開だったし、温かかったし、完璧でした。お花見の楽しい雰囲気があるので、一年中この季節が一番いいと思います。

Thanks to the nice weather of this past weekend I was able to go for my first flower viewing party of the year. On Saturday afternoon I went with my friends to Osaka Castle Park. Of course there were a lot of people there to enjoy the cherry blossoms, but there was also a concert in the park too so it was so crowded. But the cherry blossoms were in full bloom, and the weather was warm so it was perfect. Because of fun atmosphere of flower viewing I think this is the best time of year.

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梅のお花見 Plum Blossom Viewing

日本では春になるとお花見が大人気の遊びです。多くの人がお花見を考えたら、桜と想像するでしょう。今京都府では桜がまだまだ咲いていないので、先週末に京都市内の植物園へ梅を見に行きました。そのときに、梅が満開だったので、とてもきれいでした。桜より梅はもっと深いピンクと紫色だし、白もあるので、すごくきれいな景色でした。

In Japan once it turns to spring during hanami (flower viewing) is a very popular activity. For most people, thinking about hanami conjures images of cherry blossom trees. Right now the cherry blossoms have yet to bloom in Kyoto Prefecture so last weekend I went to the Kyoto City Botanical Gardens to see the plum blossoms. At that time the plum blossoms were in full bloom so it was very beautiful. Compared to the cherry blossoms the plum blooms in deeper pinks and purples, along with white so it creates a really gorgeous scenery.

(下の写真は早めに咲いていた桜です。 The picture below is a early blooming cherry blossom tree.)