「Circle (Non-Sports)」カテゴリーアーカイブ

Mira Gordon: Town Revitalization in the Kyoto Countryside

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For my CIP, I participated in two different groups that work on 町おこし, or town revitalization, in the countryside outside of Kyoto. One of the groups was the Nantan Regional-Revitalization Cooperative, where I shadowed their young farming representative, Yoshida-san. The other group was the Kyoto Seika University Takarasagashikai, a student circle that works revitalizing the town of Utsu, in the northern countryside of Kyoto, under the supervision of Humanities Professor Tamura sensei. As I was participating in two different groups, I alternated visiting one group per week, sometimes visiting both in the same week. Combining my CIP with my independent research on Japanese town revitalization, I used it as an opportunity to conduct ethnographic fieldwork by meeting and talking with a variety of people involved in such efforts.

Because of the multi-faceted nature of my CIP, every day was different. On the days that I participated in the Nantan Regional-Revitalization Cooperative, I would take the JR train about half an hour outside of Kyoto to Sonobe, Nantan. There, Yoshida-san would pick me up and tell me the day’s activities. Yoshida-san’s farming specialty is sweet potatoes, so one day I helped him bury last year’s leftover sweet potatoes, in order to form new sprouts for this year’s crop. He also took me to meet one of his neighbors, a farmer who has kindly welcomed Yoshida-san into the Nantan community and given him a lot of practical farming advice. One day Yoshida-san took me to an 朝市, or morning market, which functions both as a farmer’s market and community gathering space. There I had the incredible opportunity to chat with and interview several community leaders, and witness 炭焼き, traditional charcoal-making, in action. For the Seika University Takarasagashikai, I attended two club meetings, and also visited Utsu’s morning market once. One thing I really enjoyed about the Takarasagashikai was having the opportunity to interact with students my age. The club had a casual and fun atmosphere, and there was a lot of joking and chatting as we put together an informational pamphlet about their club and planned activities and games to play with the kids of Utsu at an upcoming retreat.

Overall, I was blown away by the warmth and welcome I received from everybody I met. Though neither group had ever had an exchange student participant before, both Yoshida-san and Tamura sensei worked to accommodate me and kindly found me many opportunities to talk to different people. Thus, through my CIP I had the chance to use Japanese in a variety of settings with people of all different ages, some of whom had strong regional dialects. It was incredibly special to be able to get different local people’s perspectives on the declining countryside population, and hear what they think can be done about it. Another thing I valued about my CIP was that it enabled me to get out of the city and enjoy the breathtakingly beautiful mountains and forests of the surrounding countryside. 

Even for those who aren’t researching town revitalization, I would highly recommend the Nantan Regional-Revitalization Cooperative to anybody who wants the opportunity to experience the Japanese countryside, and I would recommend the Takarasagashikai to anybody who wants to interact with a very fun group of college students. Though it was cut short, my CIP was hands down the best part of my study abroad in Kyoto.

Nathan Koike: Klexon

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For my CIP, I joined Klexon, an international conversation club where English speakers help Japanese members practice their English and vice versa. We met on Tuesdays from 7-9PM at Wings Kyoto, unless cancelled. Upon arrival, everyone sat down, Japanese members in odd numbered rows of tables and English speakers in even rows, and everyone mostly kept to themselves; some people started conversations, and were met with little (if any) resistance, but most people kept to themselves before the meeting started. However, promptly at 7PM, the meeting began, and the Japanese members turned around. The room quickly burst to life with conversation and laughter. I would speak with my partner for 10 minutes, at which point the Japanese speakers would shift over to the next English speaker, so most people had a chance to talk to each other. After meeting with 6 partners, for a total of 60 minutes, the second half of the meeting began, and we were (relatively) randomly assigned groups of about six people. From there, we would have a conversation as a group, usually about a different topic, then the meeting would end. Topics were provided, but I found that almost everyone I spoke with was much more engaged when talking about a topic that came up naturally instead.

I’m not a very outgoing person, so participating in Klexon was a great way for me to make some friends. Although many people went out for dinner and drinks afterwards, I wasn’t able to attend because I talked myself into believing that there would always be another chance. I was wrong. Because of the outbreak of COVID-19, I had to return early; not going out with everyone else is one of my biggest regrets. Still, I had a genuinely wonderful time. Even though I don’t consider myself advanced, by any stretch of the word, having to struggle through translations (mostly questions from English to Japanese and answers from Japanese to English) was one of the most fun challenges I brought upon myself.

Along with this, Klexon brought a lot of time for me to reflect on language as a tool. My Japanese is far from perfect, but I generally manage to communicate what I want in spite of this; likewise, the Japanese members at Klexon don’t have perfect English, but it’s not difficult for me to understand what they’re saying and what they want to say. My reflection came in the form of a realization: the way I use a language isn’t as important as the ideas I can communicate. Along with this, I noticed a few mistakes where I knew exactly what grammar structure or mechanic from Japanese matched the mistake, having only recently learned the grammar structure or mechanic and made the inverse mistake.

Klexon is one of the most important things about my study abroad experience and one of the things I enjoyed the most. I’m not sure if I can be positive enough to reflect my time at Klexon. I am an introvert, but even with that I had an amazing time meeting new people and talking with them about all variety of topics, from stock trading to slang (both real conversations I had). While I am also fairly awkward, everyone I met was so kind and friendly that asking for their LINE to stay in touch was no issue. Klexon was a truly fantastic experience, and I absolutely recommend it to anyone who would like to make friends. The only tip I have is to be genuine; it’s a lot harder to make friends if you hide what you think and feel all the time.

Kyle Matthews: DJ Circle

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For my CIP I participated in the Ritsumeikan DJ Circle, called “L@bel”. Even though I had almost no DJ experience when I joined I can confidently say that joining the DJ circle was one of the highlights of my time abroad. I was able to grow and improve in a skill that I was very interested in all while being able to communicate in Japanese and participate in a Japanese University Club.

One of the things interesting about the DJ Circle was the fact that senpai-kohai (上下関係)relationship was almost nonexistent. I think one of the best lessons I learned from this is how different social hierarchies in japan are based on the environment you are in. As a new member in the club I had to introduce myself to a lot of the members and if I hadn’t they wouldn’t have introduced themselves to me. But after introducing myself I was able to build relationships with my peers and they were able to help me a lot in becoming a better DJ. Being a circle focused on music it was interesting to see what kind of music the Japanese students used. A lot of them were fans of hip hop and r&b but mixed all different kinds of genres in their playing. I remember one time specifically one of my friends played an older song from the 60’s or so and even then all the fellow members of the club sang along and knew the lyrics, which is pretty rare in America I think.

Practices for the DJ circle are on Tuesdays from 7-10pm at a bar called ルカ in Kawaramachi in the center of the nightlife. It was a great experience to practice with nice equipment at a very cool venue. Usually we practice individually on our laptops as we take turns using the speaker system and turntables. My friends were always very nice about letting me have ample time to practice and encouraging me to take as much time with the equipment as I wanted. Unfortunately, one of the issues with the circle currently is attendance. I was really surprised to see how relaxed the club president was about attendance, but on the other hand because I showed up every week I quickly gained some respect and was able to make connections easier.

I was able to learn a lot more about the hip hop culture in Japan which I’m really interested in. I have many Japanese friends in Boston who grew up in Japan before coming to University in the US and according to them hip hop in Japan is still pretty unknown and uncommon, but within my community of my circle it didn’t seem that way at all. It felt really great to be able to have conversations with my friends in the circle about hip hop, and made me feel a lot more accepted and normal.

I’ll have the chance next month to DJ at our live show and I’m getting a lot of support from my fellow members.

I’m glad that I chose this CIP because not only did I find a new passion in DJing but I made some great friends as well.

Tristan Kim: Animation and Voice Study Group/NASA

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I switched my CIP for the last few months of my time at KCJS, away from the Animation and Voice Study Group and into another circle called NASA (not about space). The Animation and Voice Study group met in a designated club room on Doshisha’s campus, every single day from a little after noon when one of the key holders arrived and until 7-8 pm. There aren’t many formal club activities, and for the semester I studied in, there was only one event scheduled in November concerning a voice actor interview. As the for the latter circle, NASA has regular meetings at Monday and Tuesday lunchtime and Thursday afternoon. The room for these meetings is decided on the day of and sent to everyone in the LINE group by the time a free classroom is found. There are also occasional spontaneous outings, where invitations are handled similarly through LINE.

Honestly, when I first read that this program required you to go out and find a way to participate in the community, I was nervous. I’ve never actively sought out conversation and prefer to be left alone half of the time, if not more. Therefore, when I first starting searching for a CIP, I thought it would be simple enough to find a circle at Doshisha, or another university, that dealt with manga/anime/games, which was one of the driving reasons I wanted to learn Japanese in the first place. After learning that the gaming circles that responded to me were monthly meetings, and that I knew I couldn’t draw well enough to keep up with doujinshi circles, I thought I found a suitable CIP in the Animation and Voice Study Group. I had read in a previous one of these blogs that this circle was fairly free-form and casual, without set days, and I valued flexibility in setting up my own pace of engagement.

What I ended up realizing was that the clubroom was a place to relax, passing time through talking with friends, playing the various consoles or board games, or reading manga from the shared library or whatever books a member decided to bring on a particular day. Despite a good first CIP assessment, where I talked with the club president and a few others for an hour, I ended up falling into a routine that was counter-productive to the purpose of engaging in a CIP. I would walk in on a free day (if I hadn’t come before a member who could open the door, in which I would go home for the day), greet everyone with an “お疲れ様です”, stare at my phone half-heartedly as I worked up the nerves to strike up even a few minutes’ worth of conversation so I could say I learned something, realize I mostly wasted an hour or more doing nothing productive, and leave the room with everyone saying another “お疲れ様です”.

I can’t say if it was due to looking like I was peacefully reading, my poor social conversation skills, if the other members were as nervous as I was, or some combination of the above and unmentioned factors, but I ended up in my usual position of being alone in a room of people. I would answer a question of two, I’d try to interject in a conversation or two if I could actually understand and had something halfway interesting to say and try to scrounge up some reflection of Japanese culture by the time I decided to leave. By the time I decided to stop, I learned about the traditional “お疲れ様です” greeting, that people mostly talked with pre-formed groups, that conversations wouldn’t stop or dampen even when someone was asleep, and that the guys grouped around the playmat whereas the girls sat around the table. Honestly, if I were to transcribe everything that I felt I learned, more than half of that report would be the rules of the Power Grid board game.

When I was going over some of these grievances with Nakamura-sensei, she suggested that I switched CIPs, a suggestion that made me feel dumb about trying to salvage something that I was barely participating in. This is how Kyle, a fellow classmate, got roped into introducing me and a few others to the NASA group.

Within the very first meeting, through non-stop interactions with people whose purpose in coming to the club was to talk with foreign students, I came to multiple realizations about everyday conversation: about people who would always confirm “私ですか” even if the conversation had been one-to-one the entire time, about how people are understanding and flexible about switching between short form and ‘desu/masu’ form, about Japanese understanding on English words and the difficulty of perceiving a verb as a noun or vice versa (impacting, a fail), and even about how strong anti-piracy views concerning anime and movies (which I only got an impression of previously).

As a recommendation to any future extreme introverts with social anxiety, I would suggest trying to get outside of your normal comfort zone. I know that CIP is encouraged to be aligned with your interests, but it can be very easy to use that comfort as a crutch. I’m sure you’ve read through other blogs saying how the club members here are all very accommodating, and that can also work as a negative if you’re uncomfortable with social interaction and they pick up on that. Try volunteering and working with people who are happy that you’re there, introducing yourself to a new craft like crocheting or music, or finding a group that genuinely just wants to get to know you and your friends like NASA is for me. Maybe you don’t have to go as far out of your comfort zone as I do, or that your interests have a clearer objective with an active subculture and a dynamic vocabulary, but make sure to find a CIP where you won’t have any regrets about missed opportunities. Take it from someone with a few of his own.

Kiara Harding: Ritsumeikan Taiko Circle

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For my CIP, I joined Ritsumeikan University’s taiko circle, Wadaiko Don. Everyone was very welcoming, and though I was only able to be there for a short time because of the end of the taiko season, it was very educational. I had a little bit of taiko experience previously, but not much, so I mostly practiced the basics with the first years. I thought that the club would be a bit strict, but I realized it’s much more of a “do what you need to do” atmosphere. Additionally, the members were very laid back, and were always willing to teach me new things. I primarily attended for the free practices, where everyone just practiced whatever they needed to work on. I learned and practiced a song with a few of the other members with the intention of playing in a small performance, but it was unfortunately cancelled due to the typhoon. After that, the taiko season had eventually come to an end, so I moved on to a new CIP, but I still learned a lot from my time at Wadaiko Don. What initially surprised me was that I didn’t really notice a strict hierarchy among the members like I expected. There still were some elements of hierarchy where the more experienced members taught the younger ones, but everyone participated and practiced equally. Additionally, when I went to the all-club meeting, all of the members participated equally as well.

In terms of cons, I found that inserting myself into conversations could be difficult at times because I tend to be a bit shy, and I wasn’t sure what would make a good topic of conversation. Also, since the KCJS calendar doesn’t really align with the Japanese university calendar, it is a bit hard to join clubs, since I ended up joining in the middle of the year, and towards the end of the taiko season. By the time I joined everyone was pretty much already entrenched in their friendships and practice routines. But despite all of this, everyone was still very kind to me, and overall I had a good experience.

Aiko Johnston: Crafts Circle at Ritsumeikan University

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For my CIP, I joined a crafts club at Ritsumeikan University, a university in Kyoto near Kinkakuji. The club typically met every Friday evening to make crafts together. Usually between two to five other girls would show up, and we’d all work on various crafts.

It was an interesting to see how clubs (which are called ‘circles’) at Japanese universities worked. Ritsumeikan had a school festival, at which my crafts circle sold tons of crafts—hair pins, hair ties, charms, earrings, etc.—and raised over 20,000 yen, which they then use to purchase materials and supplies for crafts. They were surprisingly well-stocked—they had a UV light machine to use for resin projects, a sewing machine, and a few other devices that I was surprised by.

I did enjoy the experience, and enjoyed learning how to make several kinds of crafts. I’ve always been interested in kanzashi, or hair ornaments used in traditional Japanese hairstyles. They’re most often made out of chirimen, a kind of silk crepe, which I always thought was expensive but is actually pretty easy to get your hands on in Japan. I got to make several flowers (marutsumami) at my club, which was very fun, and something I think I’ll continue after going back to the US. It was definitely an interesting experience to see the kinds of crafts that are popular amongst Japanese college students, and how to make them. I was a bit surprised at the quality of the crafts my circle made—a lot of the earrings and charms looked very professional. Crafts clubs like Ritsumeikan’s don’t seem to be very popular or common in the US, but it seems they’re fairly common in Japan.

The members of my club were generally pretty quiet, and it seemed like this club was mostly a way for people to relax at the end of the week by doing crafts. We would chat a bit, but people also tended to focus on whatever craft they were doing. I am also a fairly shy person, so at times I had difficulty starting conversations or trying to engage more with the club.

People were very friendly despite the fact that I joined in the middle of the school year (fall is the second semester in Japan) and didn’t even go to Ritsumeikan. Even if you’re nervous or scared, reaching out and asking questions is always better than staying quiet. People are usually very happy to explain things, and are more welcoming than you might expect. I would also recommend maybe exploring more than one CIP at the start of the semester—I ended up starting my CIP late due to some bad luck, and so didn’t really have enough time to test things out and see what I liked. Also, make sure your CIP is something you enjoy and are interested in! Your CIP is a great opportunity to get more involved in Japanese society and get to know people outside of KCJS.

Anthony Villa: Origami and craft circles

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For various reasons, I ended up having two CIPs. The first was an origami club at Kyoto University that I participated in during October until autumn break. There were various origami tutorial magazines and paper provided, but I found some of the tutorials pretty difficult to follow so I ended up finding easier ones online. This was totally fine because most of the others were working on all sorts of cool and complicated looking origami projects that weren’t in the magazines. 

I don’t think I could find the dedication to this craft that I saw in everyone there in American craft clubs. They were always chatting about something or other but they would still be working on these big, modular crafts that couldn’t be finished in one sitting. I think some of them were folding projects they wanted to submit to origami magazines like the ones the brought. That kind of craftsmanship was honestly impressive to see. Despite that, because of the gap from autumn break, scheduling, and because the location kept changing to rooms I wasn’t familiar with, I decided it would be better to look for a different club to join.

I was in a bit of CIP limbo for a bit after autumn break, but I eventually joined a craft circle that another student was a part of. She had also just recently joined it which made it a bit easier to jump into as well. At the club we have been crocheting which is honestly a skill I never thought I’d learn but so far it’s been fun. Receiving verbal instructions in Japanese is challenging but I’ve managed to figure things out with everyone’s help. Some of the members let me use some of their yarn and hooks which was extremely kind (I have since bought my own to practice a bit on my own time). 

I don’t think these clubs were too different than those in America, but there were some differences that stood out. That these clubs were pretty popular was a bit surprising to me; the craft circle was also mostly men, which isn’t what I would have guessed. One thing I couldn’t help but notice was that in both clubs people were talking about anime they had seen recently and games they had played; I don’t hear that all that often as a smalltalk topic in America. 

It looks like there are all sorts of CIPs, so if you look hard enough you’ll find something you enjoy. If the one you pick at first isn’t working out for you for whatever reason, I don’t think there’s any shame in looking for another one. Your time in this program is precious, so you should spend it on activities you’ll enjoy doing, not something you’ll trudge through out of obligation. There shouldn’t be any problems once you find something that works for you; both clubs that I attended had a very friendly, relaxed atmosphere. As someone who couldn’t speak Japanese very well there was always some sort of language barrier, but don’t let that stop you from trying your best to communicate. I found talking to the students was always very rewarding.

Things might be a little awkward at first, but if you make an effort you’ll have invaluable experiences to show for it.

Theodore Sternlieb: Kyoto University Hiking Circle

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I participate in Kyoto University’s Hiking Circle. Although due to weather and field trips, I did not end up getting to go on any of the overnight hikes, I did actively participate in the more mundane events hosted by the circle. Groups of 6 or so would gather in the room which the circle had access to and do anything from make gyoza to watch the Rugby World Cup. Even though it would have been a great opportunity to camp out with the members, I still enjoyed getting to know them over the course of the semester.

Camrick Solorio: Ballroom Dance Circle

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For my CIP, I asked to join Kyoto University’s Amateur Dance (ballroom dance) club and they kindly let me participate. Club activities consisted of weekly or bi-weekly practices at local recreational centers, where we learned a variety of dances from tango to cha-cha. The club members were all extremely kind and accommodating despite the frequent language gap, and it became quickly apparent that the regular club members are really invested in the club—not just in improving their dance skills, but in building community. I did roughly a year of ballroom dance in college prior to joining this club (zero dance experience before that), and with this background the practices being held were challenging but somehow manageable. There were some members with similar skill levels as me, but I would say most are better dancers than I am. Some of the members were even taking private lessons outside of club practice.

I was constantly amazed at how kind everyone was to each other. They treated me as a regular member of the club even though I was only to be there for a semester, and I can’t stress enough how incredibly grateful I am for that. Around mid-November I attended one of their bi-annual Dance Parties (formal venue, ~100 guests, dance time), and even though I couldn’t contribute much to planning the event, they kindly welcomed me as a club member and let me celebrate with them after the event.

Some general advice for interested students: the club members are extremely kind and welcoming towards everyone, and that very much includes study abroad students (they told me it isn’t uncommon for short-term study abroad students to join for a while).  Having seen the intergenerational ties and motivation of the club members, I highly doubt this inclusivity and positivity is something that will change in the near future, so don’t be afraid to take a first step. Lessons might be particularly challenging for newcomers (notably because fall is second semester in Japan), but this is not a steadfast obstacle. You should definitely feel empowered to reach out and try if it’s something you’re interested in. Be sure to reach out for help, practice to have fun, and (very important) show others a smile even if things are difficult!! It makes a big difference.

Some other one-off tips:

  • You can buy cheap dance shoes on Amazon (~$30?). Gentlemen, if you can only get standard or Latin shoes go for the former.
  • Go to the post-practice afterparties.
  • If you’re interested in private lessons in addition to club practice, reach out to the senior members.
  • If you don’t quite understand something, ask! I had a number of times I did something clumsy because I didn’t quite get what was going on.
  • Always say please and thank you (aka お願いします、ありがとうございます、お疲れ様です、失礼します、).

Leo Feininger: Kyodai Kendama Circle

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This semester I have been attending a kendama circle at Kyoto University (Kyodai). The circle is held about once every two weeks at a community centre near Kyodai. At an average meeting there are about 5 to 7 people, sometimes more. Kendama is loved by people of all ages in Japan. While it is perhaps more traditionally considered a children’s toy, many also recognize it as a serious pursuit for adults young and old. Aside from being satisfying in other ways, Kendama appeals to me because there are no official rules, and every player you meet has a slightly different technique and selection of tricks.

There were a few regulars at the circle, all university students, but at an average meeting there would usually also be some other kids high-school age or younger, sometimes accompanied by a parent. Because the focus of the circle is ultimately on improving one’s skills, most conversation ends up being limited to explanations of particular tricks. However, because Kendama is generally a more casual and individualistic pursuit, it was not that hard to make other conversation. Even when not actively engaged with each other, members would support each other as they tried different tricks. This is not necessarily unique to Japan, but I was struck by the way in which people have reverence for relatively insignificant activities like kendama.   

In the United States, when it comes to individualistic pursuits such as Kendama, I wouldn’t be exaggerating at all by saying that practitioners of such activities barely interact with or even acknowledge people who are less skilled than they are. Of course, there’s a slightly different dynamic in my case as I am a foreigner, but still I have not observed this phenomenon nearly as much in Japan. Joining this circle was a great experience and I hope I can become involved in similar activities in the future.