The Communication Network of Temple University, Japan Campus
I’ve been procrastinating on this post because this is probably the most difficult/uncomfortable thing that’s happened to me in Japan–well, race-related. Now that I think about it, it might very well be the most uncomfortable, race-related situation that has happened to me in my life. And instead of drawing it out, I want to get right into what happened.
It was the middle of May.
My old roommate Kira introduced my to my favorite place on earth, the bar I mentioned in my previous post. After I went there twice with Kira, the bar owner and his wife invited us and a few others to their house for an okonomiyaki party. As we stepped into their house, I noticed that the house looked a lot like their bar–full of American paraphernalia. All sorts of gadgets and toys lined their walls and shelves. Cans of Campbell’s soup, a box of Stove Top stuffing mix, figurines of the Budweiser toads, 1950’s Coco Cola bottles, a stuffed animal of Alf (the 1980’s television show), Tom and Jerry mugs, etc. If you name something American, I’m sure they have a replica of it in their house. And if not, it’s in their bar.
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[This is Part 2. Click here for Part 1.]
Yes, I was uncomfortable beyond words.
I had a slew of different thoughts that kept hitting me at 1,000,000 MPH. The most important thoughts/questions were:
Why did he show ME that toy??
Doesn’t he understand where that toy comes from?
Doesn’t he understand the history behind toys like that?
Does he not know how many Black people have died to fight racist things like that?
More importantly, I wouldn’t even be here in Japan studying Communications and Japanese if it weren’t for my parents and grandparents who fought for their rights and the rights of their children.
But I couldn’t say any of that. Not only did I not know how to say that in Japanese, but I was completely speechless. What do you say to a toy like that in such a friendly environment?
The votes are in for this semester’s photo contest! Thank you all very much for submitting such wonderful photos. We had a hard time choosing. For those of you who did not get a chance to submit your photos this semetser, there is always next time!
*Each student was allowed to submit only one photograph per category. The categories for this semester’s photo contest were Japan, City, Scenic, Student Life, and Free.
Best of Scenic / Photo by Charles Schmunk
On July 19th, the TUJ Sports Club hosted a Basketball Game at Sukoyaka Plaza in Tobu-Nerima, Tokyo. About 25 people attended. The Sports Club often hosts/organizes various events (dodge ball, baseball, etc) which are open to all students as well, and we hope more students would join us in the future!
TUJ Sports Club Basketball Game
Submitted by the TUJ Sports Club
Last night, 25 students attended the Baseball Game held at the Yokohama Stadium. The seats were great, which made it worth staying even in the rain. Unfortunately the game was canceled after the 6th inning, but overall we all had a great time!
We had great seats
Summer 2009 Baseball Game
Dance contest after 5th inning (Giants fan???)
Yes, I am studying Japanese
Yes, you read the title right.
In this post, I want to talk about going to a Japanese bar in order to study Japanese.
When I first came to TUJ, I met a student who was really great at speaking Japanese. I asked him how long he had been studying and he said, “a year and a half.”
Any student of Japanese knows that a year and a half is a fairly short amount of time to get a tight grasp on Japanese. Eager for tips, I asked him what has helped him the most in his journey to fluency, and he said going to his local bar.
I was so suprised! He said he didn’t even learn from taking a class.
After going to a bar myself, I have seen how helpful it can be. You’re able to hear different speeds of talking, different accents and intonations, and you’re forced to speak– even if you’re usually too nervous!
For two months, I have been going to a bar in my neighborhood every Friday night. I bring my notebook and pen, electronic Japanese-English dictionary, and of course, money to spend. The bar is great for learning Japanese.
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Before I came to Japan, the one thing I didn’t want to be was unprepared.
Two weeks before getting on the plane to Tokyo, I might have gotten a little obsessive in my search for information on Japan. Useful language phrases, how to correctly use chopsticks (yes, there’s a correct way), how to make nikujaga, how to tie a kimono… and of course I spent hours upon hours locked in my room on Rosetta Stone pounding basic Japanese into my head, just to make sure I wouldn’t forget it when I arrived.
Maybe “obessive” isn’t a strong enough word.
However, no matter how much research I did on the internet, the one thing I could never find enough information on was how Japanese men feel about Black women.
And this was probably the question I cared about the most!
Do they think Black women are attractive? Are Black women “too curvy” for Japanese men? Why don’t I ever see Black women and Asian men together??
The information I found on the internet was very discouraging, to say the least. There were two types of websites.
The first type was always too open-ended. There were no personal testimonies of Black women in relationships with Japanese men. No data or statistics. Nothing but forums that asked “Do Japanese men date Black women?” … There were never any answers.
The second type was offensive and discouraging. These sites said Japanese men didn’t like Black women because we’re too dark, we’re not skinny enough, we’re too aggressive and blah blah blah.
However, I am happy to say, FROM MY EXPERIENCE, those awful websites are completely and utterly DEAD-wrong 
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Every summer (End of July through August), fireworks displays and summer festivals are held at various places in Japan. Unfortunately, it is not possible to list all the summer festivals going on (there are just to many), but we have put together some information on a few of the major fireworks events in or near Tokyo (follow the link, “Read the rest of this entry”).
