「Circle (Non-Sports)」カテゴリーアーカイブ

アリ・ファレル: 「GRADATION」LGBTサークル

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私のCIPプロジェクトは同志社大学の「GRADATION」というLGBTQサークルに入る事だ。連絡の問題で、まだ参加のチャンスはないのが、公式にもうサークルに入部した。今までの経験が少ないのに、色々な面白い事がわかった。

最初から連絡が難しい事に気がついた。連絡のし方は一つしかない：サイトのメールフォーム。サイトにサークルの部員の名前もメールアドレスもついていない。会長の名前さえない。始めのメールを送った後、サークル公式メールで会長は面会がいつがいいかと聞いた。会長に会った時、その人の自己紹介はとても短かった。「GRADATIONの会長でマーベリックと申します」とだけ言った。それから、サークルのルールを説明した。本当の名前を使ってはいけなくて、皆がニックネームを使うそうだ。マーベリックもニックネームだ。他のルールは誰かが個人情報を言えば、会の外で絶対に言ってはいけないことだ。このサークルはまったく匿名だ。

アメリカのLGBTQサークルでも皆の情報を守るけど、こんなに匿名じゃない。いつも本当の名前を使う。サークルのリーダの情報は匿名じゃない。時々会場はフェースブークにある。日本の大学と全然違う。

http://dlgbt.blog101.fc2.com/

ナーディ・ディアナ：マンガ

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私はマンガを描くため、同志社大学のマンガサークルに入って、それと京都精華大学を卒業した先生のマンガのクラスも取っています。マンガサークルは新町キャンパスの学生会館で一週間に一回行って、マンガクラスはかくしゅう土曜日に先生の家にいきます。

マンガサークルに初めて行った時、まずドキドキしたにもかかわらず、部屋に入ったとたに進撃の巨人のコスプレーをしていた人が来たから、正しいサークルを選んだとすぐわかりました。進撃の巨人や、ドラゴンボールなど一番いいマンガが何かについて話すことによって、気がつかないうちに、きんちょうがなくなりました。それに、マンガサークルは自分たちの月刊誌を出しているので、私も宿題としてマンガを描けるようになりました。将来マンガ家になりたいから、本当にうれしいです。

マンガクラスは私以外に二人学生がいますが、マンガサークルに入る時に比べて、あまりドキドキしませんでした。でも、すぐに岡本先生は厳しいという事実を思い知りました。いくら私がある絵を時間をかけて描いても、岡本先生は容赦しないで「ここはだめ。直してください」と言います。岡本先生はとても上手なマンガ家とみえて、私が描くのに30分かかったものでも、先生は５分だけしかかかりませんでした。自信がなくなったのは言うまでもありません。でも、岡本先生のおかげで、学んだことがいっぱいあります。マンガサークルとマンガクラスを通じて、私のマンガ家への夢は少し近くなっています。

メロディー・ジェムス：英会話サーカル

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私は、今までCIPで色々な活動をしてみました。最初は、北野天満宮の太鼓会に参加しました。ドラムセットを叩くので、太鼓に興味を持っているんです。太鼓会に参加するのは楽しかったですが、太鼓会はあまり練習がないので、太鼓を習うのは難しそうだと思いました。他のCIPを選ぶことにしました。次のCIPは、京都にある「カフェルンビータ」とういサルサクラブでサルサのレッソンを受けることでした。そのCIPは面白かったですが、日本人と話す機会は少なかったです。私に取って、一番大切なCIPの目標は日本人と話すことなので、また他のCIPを選ぶことにしました。選んだCIPは京都にある「くれそん」という英会話サーカルです。

先週、私は初めて「くれそん」に行きました。「くれそん」のミーティングは二時間かかります。一時間目は、色々な日本人と十分ずつ話します。二時間目は、全員が小さいグループに分かれて、英語で会話します。ミーティングに来た人はほとんど若かったです。大学生が多かったです。同志社の大学生も一人来ました。私の会話の相手の一番話したかったトピックは旅行でした。アメリカの文化と日本の文化の違いについて話しました。面白い会話のおかげで友達を作るのが簡単だったので、うれしかったです。

「くれそん」は、普通のミーティング以外のイベントもたくさんあるので、日本語を練習する機会もあるそうです。「くれそん」で、色々な日本人と話す機会があるので、「くれそん」に行くのを続けることにしました。

http://www.klexon.net/

Jessica Laufer: DESA

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This semester, I participated in the Doshisha Exchange Student Association for my CIP activity.  I elected to do DESA as my CIP because I thought it would be a good way to make Japanese friends while here in Kyoto.  I was initially worried about spring break in March, but I was pleasantly surprised to find out that there was still an abundance of activities planned for members.  Some of this semester’s most memorable activities were the Biwako snowboarding trip, and the sightseeing and sumo trip to Osaka.

As a student living in an apartment rather than a homestay, I do not have a host family with whom I can practice my speaking skills.  Participation in DESA became an excellent way for me to use Japanese outside of the classroom and in everyday conversation.  I started DESA as just another member of a campus circle, but I was extremely pleased when people I met through DESA started inviting me to hang out outside of official DESA events.  While speaking Japanese can oftentimes be quite difficult, I have been able to make meaningful friendships during my time in DESA, and I have been receiving complements on my improving conversational skills.

DESA has been an extremely fulfilling CIP, and I think that it was a great fit for me.  DESA has been a great way for me to make friends, improve my speaking skills, and to travel around Kyoto and surrounding areas.  It is disappointing to have to leave as the new school year starts and DESA gains new members, but my participation this semester has been a rich experience and I am looking forward to my final DESA events as my time in Kyoto comes to a close.

Sam Allen: Volunteer Circle

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For my Spring semester CIP, I participated in a Volunteer Circle composed of students from all of Kyoto’s many universities. I knew that I wanted to get involved in some sort of volunteer activities, and that I would like to do so among peers of my own age. But what really caught my interest was their slogan, posted on their website. Through volunteer activities, this circle aims to “Create warm, family-like relationships with everyone we meet”. I was impressed by this sentiment, and realized I wanted to be a part of such a circle.

After attending the orientation meeting, I was a little nervous. This circle is only composed of Japanese university students, and I was worried that misunderstandings on my part would get in the way of their usual volunteer activities, and I wasn’t sure how kids at the elementary school we volunteered at would react to a foreigner.

However, when I went to try out the volunteer activities, I found that I didn’t have to worry all that much. Aside from reading kanji, I was able to communicate with everyone fairly well, and at my first activity, where we picked up trash around Kyoto with another volunteer group of elderly Kyoto locals, I was able to make friends with the other first timers.

Having officially joined the circle and assumed my nickname “Haribo”, I began attending the weekly planning meetings. There, we discussed our future volunteer plans, including the contents of the activities as well as assuring the safety of the participants. While I wasn’t able to contribute much at first, I enjoyed being a part of the discussion, and little by little, I started talking with other members.

My first activity at the elementary school went far better than expected. Rather than be nervous around me, a foreigner, one of the boys wanted to play with me exclusively, and, seeing us play, the other children joined in as well. The actual activity was a simple cooking lesson, where we made okonomiyaki and fruit punch. While some of the boys were a little rowdy during the explanation, everyone seemed to enjoy the activity. Under the guidance of the other member in my group, a senior in college, the kids cooperated with each other and everything went smoothly. From then on, I really felt part of the group. Little by little, I was approached by other members, and rather than feeling as an outsider in their group, I felt that I had a place to belong.

The second time around at the elementary school, I played tag with the kids, and then we went inside to make picture frames. While the kids in my group were really wild, and would often run around, distracting other groups, we somehow managed to keep everyone under control. It was a little troublesome, but a worthwhile experience.

At this point, I was invited to the “Graduation Party”, where the efforts of the seniors who would be graduating were acknowledged, and the underclassmen thanked the seniors for their guidance and support. I was glad to be there – while I never realized just how big the group was (over 50 members!), I had become close with one of the seniors, and was thrilled to be included.

Of course, this transition to a full-fledged member of the group did not take place immediately. I would try to make conversation with the people sitting next to me before meetings, and I made sure to remember names and chat with the people I had met. More than anything, my actual participation in the group really got things moving. Once the members saw that I was actively participating in the activities (and was able to communicate), they felt more at ease carrying on a conversation with me. It certainly wasn’t easy, but once I got a feel for the activities, continuing to participate every week allowed me to build connections with my peers.

I’ll be sad to have to leave so soon after finding such a wonderful group, but being a part of this circle even for a short while enriched my semester. Regardless of nationality, I was able to find a place where I was able to touch other people’s lives, even in a small way, and, in return, form warm, family-like relationships with my fellow volunteers. I know I’ll never forget my experiences in this circle, and I hope to keep in touch with the friends I’ve made.

Jamie Suzuki: Kyoto University Ballroom Dance Circle

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My CIP, Kyoto University’s Ballroom Dancing Club, has been both a dance and a cultural experience. I look forward to going to practices every week for two reasons. First, it gives me a chance to dance, something that I have been missing since coming to Japan. Secondly, I get to meet new Japanese students and communicate with them on a weekly basis.  Some practices have been more challenging than others, especially with the language barrier, but since the other members are so nice and helpful, overall, it has been a great choice.

The first thing I noticed was the difference between the dance classes I take in America and the practices here. In America, the dances are taught in a much more interactive way. Students are allowed to take time and figure things out on their own and the dance material is presented in verbal and visual means. At the practices here, the material is taught mainly through verbal ways. This could be because there is only a little bit of time to learn a lot of material; so much of the practice time is done with a partner. This disparity made learning some of the dances, especially the ones with complicated footwork, much more difficult than anticipated.

Even though I picked up the movement slowly, the other members were always willing to help me and never seemed to become frustrated. It is a mix of me asking for help and them offering it when they saw me confused. Although there was a language barrier, they used a lot of non-verbal cues to help. How well they treat me and have welcomed me into their group completely combats this stereotype that Japanese people are closed off or shy. Each member of the group has their own personality. The more I get to know them, the clearer their differences become. The idea that Japanese is a homogenous group is completely wrong. There are members who are always making jokes or members that are sassy. I have enjoyed meeting all the different personalities and watching them interact with each other in a culture that is typically portrayed as quiet and agreeable.

Thanks to my CIP, I have had the chance to get to know my new Japanese friends outside of dance practice. I went to a their end of the year celebration with them and had a great time. I have really appreciated how curious they have been about American culture because it helps me feel comfortable when I want to know about their culture. The majority of parties in Japan occur in restaurants or at a nomikai. There are not any wild parties that American culture has become accustomed to. Instead they are more intimate and focused more on getting to know one another and having conversations. My favorite type is nomikai where you can just sit and enjoy conversations with many people. I really appreciate this change because it gave me an opportunity to really get to know the other members.

My CIP has been one of my highlights of studying abroad. It gives me insight into what it is like to be a college age student in Japan. Without my CIP, I may have never experienced what it is like to be a student in Kyoto. It has also taught me a new talent that I hope to continue in America.

 

 

Aelita Parker: DESA (Salsa!)

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Aelita Parker

At salsa, aside from the dancing part, which is consistently enjoyable and has quickly become what I look forward to most on my Friday’s, I’ve gotten such an incredible opportunity to observe an entirely different side of Japan and Japanese. Here there’s no keigo, no bowing, and no real boundaries between sexes. Sometimes I’ll see two women dancing together or two men, and when I see a man and woman dancing it’s a completely different world of interaction. Even when people don’t know each other there’s an immediate familiarity and comfort that you can see in everyone’s complete lack of abashment. It almost feels like a different country in the drastic differences. My understanding of Japanese male female relationships (in a complete simplification) was one where the women sit at different tables then the men when there’s a gathering, where the woman cooks and washes dishes (for the most part), and when you meet someone new you do so with a bow and 「はじめまして」. Not to say that I see no love or joking between couples, but the inequality almost feels built in many times, especially with older adults. Café Rumbita however, has given me such a completely different view, one that expands my view not only of this group of individuals, but also of Japanese and Japanese society in general.

I think in our human need to define and explain, to make sense of people and situations, many think of Japanese and Japan in very narrow terms. We associate collectivism with a lack of uniqueness or personality, and while I didn’t need Salsa to tell me that’s a false and unfair label to place on a whole nation, Salsa gives me proof of that untruth every week. Because the stereotype of Japanese adults is one that can be hard to break, I’m so glad I’ve been in so many situations that completely contrast my previously conceived notions. Here there’s no hierarchy, just lots of spinning and Latin music.

Normally when I meet adults in Japan I get really nervous, trying to review all of the keigo I know in my head before I’m forced to say it. What I’ve noticed here though is that even with people I’m seeing or meeting with the same time, the interactions are much freer and more natural. Sometimes I dance with friends from DESA and we joke in Japanese and spin around with no attention paid to form, and other times I dance with 45 year old men who’ve taken their share of classes. No matter who it is though I don’t think I or they feel any apprehension, or think twice before asking to dance. It’s interesting that something you might peg as being outside of most people’s comfort zones, is the most comfortable place I’ve found myself in Japan, and I think other regulars would agree with me.

Because the context that we see adults in (even in America) you generally have to know someone on a pretty intimate basis to really get below the surface, to see more than a house wife or a salary man. Again I’ve gotten to see thoughts and motivations behind certain decisions from family and my host family in japan, gotten opinions on topics ranging from teenage pregnancy to testing in high schools, but for the first time I was able to see the completely carefree, the completely honest side of adults here. One of my favorite regulars is one of the most proactive and brave women I’ve seen, and it makes me wonder if she carries the same attitude with her back home. Is she as demanding, as enveloped in her life outside as she is in salsa? I see Japanese men dancing the Cuban “sexy” style, men in suits with such grace and precision that I can’t believe they’re not doing this professionally.

The other weekend I spoke to a woman who’s maybe in her forty’s for 20 minutes about the differences between LA, New York, and Cuban styles, after which she taught me a few new steps and we danced the marchata. An interaction I never would have believed would happen in Japan if I had not come here. I’m shy as well, so this has been such a great opportunity for me to break out of my shell and completely unfurl.

When I went this past Friday, for the first time, I danced with the teacher Masanori. Maybe an irrelevant side note but that moment was added to my top three favorite moments of my trip so far, and added to my already inexpressible love of salsa and café Rumbita.

 

Sara Allen: DESA (Doshisha International Student Club)

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Since the Japanese school semester finishes in mid-March, I unfortunately had to end my CIP as a volunteer at a Kyoto Middle School. For the rest of my time in Japan, I decided to join DESA, a Doshisha University international exchange club. During my first few weeks in Kyoto I had attended a few DESA events so it was a natural fit for me to become involved in DESA.

I found DESA to be an invaluable experience. Although I was able to practice Japanese at home with my host parents, I felt that I was able to talk more candidly with the Japanese students in DESA. Moreover, it was interesting to learn Japanese slang, as well as being able to hear Japanese university students’ thoughts on global issues. Most of our outings were to nomikai’s and izayaka’s (all you can eat and drink restaurants), which are large part of Japanese nightlife. This was a great way to familiarize myself with Japanese drinking culture and also provided a relaxed and friendly atmosphere for us all to get to know each other.

It was interesting to see the differences in nightlife and drinking culture. American university students usually frequent bars and clubs and Japanese students tend to go to nomikai’s in small groups. This more intimate setting allows people to get to know each other since nomikai’s are more relaxed and quieter than the clubs and bars in America.

However, since Doshisha was not in session at the time I was attending DESA meetings there were not as many meetings as usual. Even when there were meetings, the number of international students greatly outnumbered the number of International students.

That being said, the people I did meet, both international students as well as Japanese students, were all awesome people. All of them enriched my time in Kyoto in some way.

 

 

Yejing Gu: Social Dance & Calligraphy

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Luckily, I have two CIPs, Kyoto University’s Amateur Dance Circle and Kyoto University’s Calligraphy Circle, and I love both of them.

I participated in the Kyoto University’s Amateur Dance Circle for the first half of the semester. This Amateur Dance Circle focuses on social dances, which I had no previous experiences of. Although I learned Chinese dance when I was young and I took dance lessons in college, it was difficult for me to remember step sequences in a fairly short time and dance on high heels. Taking the challenge, I practiced at home by learning basic steps on YouTube and I think I did much better later on. The best thing about this Amateur Dance Circle was that it provided a wonderful way to socialize with local Japanese students. While practicing in pairs, I got to know almost every member in the circle. After dancing, I usually stayed for lunch and talked to them about dances, Kyoto University, tourist attractions, and etc. I think lives of Kyoto University’s students are very enjoyable because they have such interesting circles.

It is a pity that during the latter half of the semester, the practice’s time for the Amateur Dance Circle shrank from three hours to only one hour, which is even less than my commute time. Instead, I joined the Kyoto University’s Calligraphy Circle. The practice in the Calligraphy Circle is very flexible, for I can write whatever I want for however long. I learned Chinese calligraphy before, so I was very interested in their differences. One thing I noticed is that Chinese usually write calligraphy on a table while standing or sitting on a chair, whereas Japanese write calligraphy on a low table or on the ground while doing seiza, which is challenging for me. My legs were usually numbed after the practice. But I appreciate that experience because now I can do seiza for much longer. Calligraphy is probably not an ideal CIP because calligraphy requires the person to be quiet, which makes it hard to socialize. However, it’s not a problem for Kyoto University’s Calligraphy Circle, because they have another activity room for meetings. I usually stay in that room before and after the practice. Circle members always took the initiative to talk to me when I came into the room and invited me to join them. Maybe because I am a junior and most of them are freshmen and sophomores, they use the polite speech form to me. I was confused which form I should use until I met a senior who talked to me in the short form. The experience of this kind of Japanese upperclassmen-underclassmen relationship is interesting and useful.

Based on my CIPs’ experiences, my advice for future KCJS students would be, your CIP should be something you are good at, and it should be easy to socialize.

Good Luck and Have Fun!

Jerome Molasky: EMBG and DESA

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As I said in my previous blog, it has been very difficult to have a regular CIP activity this semester due to the fact that school was not actually in session the majority of the time. I have been to my CIP from last semester, the Kyoto Daigaku music circle EMBG, once this entire semester (I had another chance to go as well, but I happened to be sick that day). They are starting again next week, so I will probably go again and with any luck it won’t be too awkward.

Because of the limited activities of EMBG this semester I have been participating in some of the activities of DESA, a cultural exchange circle at Doshisha. The only problem is that DESA does not have activities every week, leaving me with nothing to do. The several events I have gone to with DESA, including a nomikai and a video game party, have been very fun and I have had opportunities to talk to Japanese students, but nevertheless feeling like a true member of the group has been a bit difficult due to the lack of regular meeting times.

I think that in the future it might benefit KCJS to stress the high likelihood that daigaku circles might not be the best idea for second semester (especially to full year students like myself who may want, as I did, to continue their CIP from the first semester) because of the discrepancy between the American and Japanese school years. If I had known this at the beginning of this semester I may well have looked for a different CIP early on, rather than sticking it out and settling with a slightly less than rewarding experience.