「Cornell University」カテゴリーアーカイブ

Elise Nishii-Kim: Yin Yoga

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Me with my yoga teacher, Asako-sensei!

For my Community Involvement Project, I attended weekly Yin Yoga sessions at Tamisa Yoga Studio’s Teramachi-dori location. Our classes focused on breathing and slow pose transitions, which created an amazingly relaxed and centered environment. The instructor, Asako-sensei, was a kind and supportive presence for me throughout the semester and I always looked forward to attending her class. Studying abroad can be overwhelming and stressful at times, and going to Yin Yoga was a great way for me to practice mindfulness and calm while also learning about Japanese culture, communication styles, and social expectations.  I loved my class and my teacher, and was able to build a lot of meaningful connections with my classmates during our post-class tea time. I highly recommend Tamisa Yoga studio to incoming students, whether they have experience with yoga or not!

Nicole Beamon: Volunteering at Nalba

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Nalba is an after school program that provides children with a place to play and one highly-balanced meal a night. The team takes time and consideration to make sure each meal is locally sourced and delicious for both kids and adults. I had a very pleasant time at Nalba hosting games with the kids and cooking with the staff. From the beginning, I became very appreciative of Nalba’s mission and the help they provide for busy working parents. However, as rewarding as my CIP has been, I do believe that Nalba is for a specific kind of person. Everyday you’re invited to help with homework, talk/play with the kids, and initiate games. Their homework typically consists of kanji and Japanese grammar workbooks. The kids also tend to talk very fast even if they recognize that you’re a foreigner. With that being said, If you are a person who is confident in their speaking or listening skills, I believe you can really thrive at Nalba. Being able to guide them through their homework or even initiate conversations/games will truly add to the kids’ and your experience!

Colin Dunn: Futur Boxing Gym

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For my CIP activity I elected to join the Futur Boxing Gym by Muratamachi Station. By signing up, you get access to all the gyms facilities throughout the week, with instructors on standby to adjust your form, give you tips, help you run drills (like pad work), and assist you in getting acquainted with the training area. I had a great time not only training with the coaches, who were always enthusiastic and eager to help, but also using the sport to bond with others over a shared admiration. If you watch combat sports, it can be a fantastic way to break the ice with some of the other people training there. My advice for anyone interested in boxing gyms is to be confident when approaching someone to practice Japanese. Because of the nature of the gym, people probably won’t just come up to you to talk, it’s up to you to make the first move. However, if you do overcome some of the awkwardness, it can be an extremely rewarding experience both physically and linguistically.

Shawn Chen: Koto

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For my CIP, I took Koto lessons with Iwasaki sensei! Koto, shamisen, and shakuhachi are also taught at the studio and there was a chance for me and 4 others to perform together in traditional attire!

While learning the instrument was fun in itself, the community in the studio is definitely the key highlight of the experience. They’re all so welcoming and often help out with teaching.

If you take lessons here (which I highly recommend), I would advise you to never be afraid to ask questions if you have any and to talk about your experiences in Japan as you go. They’re also curious about us and want to hear more!

Gavin Dutterer: Volunteering at Ohara Elementary and Junior High School

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At this CIP, I went to Ohara Elementary and Junior High School once a week, eating lunch with the students and helping out primarily in the English classes. I worked mostly with the 6th graders as they worked on their end-of-semester English presentation, offering advice and answering any questions they had. If you’re interested in this CIP, I’d recommend getting ready to get out of your shell, as a lot of the students are shy and it can be difficult to talk to them. However, it’s a great experience, and being able to help them and provide them with an international perspective they probably wouldn’t get to experience otherwise is extremely rewarding.

 

Kylie Gillen: Wasai

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For my CIP activity, I did Wasai (和裁) which involves the traditional Japanese art of hand-sewing garments including a Haori (羽織), which was what I ended up making. 

The environment of the particular Wasai classroom I went to, Kyoto Japanese Dressmaking School Rokkaku Omiyacho (京都和裁教室六角大宮町), was conducted in an old, Japanese-style house with traditional sewing notions, providing an authentic, comprehensive experience. I had the opportunity to participate in the course alongside Japanese students of all ages. 

Although it can be intimidating, please try to speak in Japanese whenever you can! Most times, it will turn out better than you think 🙂

Nikolas Martin: Weaving

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 I did my CIP with Kawasaki-sensei, a renowned fiber artist in Kyoto, where he taught us how to weave in his studio. From scarves to mats, Kawasaki-sensei and his wife Yuri-sensei, taught us everything from the basics to more advanced techniques for weaving.

I spent ~5 hours a week with them learning how to weave and it was defintiely one of my highlights of being in Japan. Kawasaki-sensei and Yuri-sensei are probably two of the nicest people I have ever met; always showering us with compliments and spoiling us with snacks every time we went (they were indeed delicious!).

For anyone interested in weaving, textile, or fashion-related, DO THIS CIP!!! It taught me so much related to my field of interest while also being in a very supportive and comfortable environment. However, I do recommend anyone going into this CIP to do a little research into weaving related vocabulary in Japanese, as it makes those first few times easier and makes communication with the senseis smoother if they can understand what you are referring to or asking about. As I said, please do this CIP! And if you do, tell my senseis I said hi!

Bryan Wang: Yoshida Daycare

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I  had actually started out working at a cafe, but after a couple weeks I ended up switching to working at a daycare. I mostly just helped around the daycare and played with the kids, who were all super sweet. They were all very curious about me and American culture as well, so it was fun talking to them about that. One challenge I faced was communication. A lot of the kids spoke very quickly and with a lot of slang, so it was hard to understand them at times. But the kids were surprisingly patient with me and kindly explained what I did not know. The senseis I worked with were also very kind and accommodating and were happy to help with anything I had questions about. My biggest piece of advice is to not be afraid to ask questions. Even if you end up embarrassing yourself, you’ll inevitably learn something!

Joyce Wu: ナルバ子供食堂

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My CIP was volunteering at a children’s cafeteria called Nalba. I really enjoyed my experience. My responsibilities included playing with the students and helping out with cooking here and there. I was able to learn a lot of new recipes that I plan to try out after returning to America. The kids were also really fun to interact with and I made a lot of precious memories. I would definitely recommend this activity!

Bella Besuud: Koto

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For my CIP, I took koto lessons with Iwasaki Sensei. Since I’ve played the piano, violin and have had brief stints with some other instruments, I wanted to learn another instrument. I’m always looking for the opportunity to learn how to play more instruments because I love music! It’s been rewarding and interesting to learn how to play the koto. It’s unlike any instrument I’ve played before, including the way the score is written