We are pleased to add “Homestay Testimonials” to our blog. In this section, students who have experienced homestays can talk about the enjoyable times they spent with their new “Japanese home away from home.” Through homestays, many students experience a side of Japan that can only be experienced by living with a local family – a kind of international exchange that is unique to each individual and their family, creating bonds that often last a lifetime.
Name: Tom Macchi
Major: International Business and Culture
Minor: Economics and Japanese
Semester: Summer 2009
Favorite Courses: Okada Sensei’s Intensive Oral Japanese. Seeing as I was living with a host family this class was the absolute most appropriate for my situation and focused much more on practical use of Japanese. It was a ton of fun bringing what I learned in class right home to my family to practice. The course was a big help in allowing me to feel comfortable traveling Japan independently.
Best Excursion: To say there was one best excursion with my host family would severely downplay my experience with them considering we did so many awesome things together on a daily basis. One great experience was when my host mother took me out to dinner with her mother at a local restaurant for a ‘girl’s night out,’ even though I was with them. It was great to follow them down a side-street somewhere in Minami Kashiwa, passing tons of little restaurants and shops I would never had otherwise found. We eventually entered the back door to a building which turned out to be the front door to a little local restaurant filled with people. I quickly became the center of attention at the bar-style restaurant as everyone was eager to ask me, the interesting gaikokujin, an assortment of questions. It was a very fun experience.
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Are you thinking of staying in Japan
after graduation?
Are you currently or will you be looking for employment in Japan?
Then come and listen to two non-native speakers of Japanese talk about…
The Importance of Learning Japanese NOW
Date: Thursday, Nov. 26, 2009
Time & Location: 12:30 – 13:30 Azabu Hall 213 and
17:30 – 18:30 Mita Hall 503
Target Student: All non-native speakers of Japanese
Sponsors: Career Development Office and
Office of Student Services
Content:
- Learn from the experiences of Erica (CDO)
and David (OSS).
- Tips for studying Japanese in and outside the classroom
- Advice about the JLPT exams
- Chance to informally ask questions/receive advice from Erica and David.
Sign up at the Office of Student Services (1st Floor Azabu) or the Career Development Office (6th Floor Azabu)
TUJ Culture Exchange Camp - Fall 2009
The following is a student’s account of the OSS-organized Culture Exchange Camp, which took place from September 25-26, 2009 at the Center Village Campsite in Yamanashi Prefecture.
After leaving home at around 6:30 AM, I arrived at the meeting spot and met some other people who were attending the camp. We left the school around 8:30 AM.
We stopped at a resting spot about half way. At the resting spot, we bought some snacks and lunch. I ate dango.
After that we went back to the bus and then continued heading to the camping spot, which is deep in the mountains. The roads were curvy and up-hill. The weather was nice and not cold. Because the bus couldn’t get into the camp site, once we arrived to a certain point, we had to get off the bus and walk the rest of the way…
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Frijoles: Great-tasting real food, served fast. Not fast food.
Can’t find a good burrito in Tokyo?
Why not enjoy some great food for under 1000 yen?
FRIJOLES celebrated their grand opening on November 4 with mouth-watering success. And if their delicious food and great prices aren’t enough to pursuade you, just show your TUID (or alumni card) and get a free soft drink with any meal.
Just around the corner from Azabu Juban station. Check out their webpage here.
Frijoles Map
Members from TUJ’s Baseball Club volunteered as base umpires at baseball games at the Yokosuka Base. The games were between the Tokyo Yayoi Club and the Patriots, of the US Navy (USS George Washington CNV-73).
The first game ran from 13:00 to 15:00, and the second one from 15:20 to 17:30.
It was really a good experience for our team because we could enjoy our time inside the Yokosuka Base, and we could also make relationships with both baseball teams. They in turn got to know about TUJ and our Baseball Club. So now, we can hopefully have another game with them someday!
After the games, we had dinner at Subway & A&W. It was awesome!
Submitted by TUJ Baseball Club
The Fall 2009 Activities & Events are now posted on the TUJ website!
Activities are open to all TUJ students, and we encourage you to invite fellow TUJ students to join. Due to limited space, we advise that you register early as participation is sometimes dependent on advance registration.
How to Register:
1.Fill out the Activity Registration Form for the activity you are interested in. Forms are available at the OSS office (Room 108, Azabu Hall).
2.Bring the completed Activity Registration Form and the exact amount of the payment (CASH ONLY) to OSS during the activity registration times listed below.
★Activity Registration Times★
Tuesday – Friday (9:30am – 17:00pm)
Fall 2009 registration will begin on Tuesday, 9/1 at 9:30am
On August 7th and 10h, TUJ’s Sports Club organized basketball and futsal games at Sukoyaka Plaza in Itabashi-ku. More than 15 students attended each day.
Submitted by the TUJ Sports Club
- Posted: July 28, 2009, 2:39 pm
- Categories: Campus Life, Japan Life, Jasmine Louis, STUDENTS, TOPICS, Tokyo Life
- Tags: african american, black, black women, campus, culture, dancing, female, hip hop, history, japan, japan campus, japanese, japanese food, jigger, nihon, nihongo, racism, stereotypes, student, study, study abroad, temple university, tokyo, tuj, yakisoba
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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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- Posted: July 28, 2009, 2:39 pm
- Categories: CONTRIBUTORS, Campus Life, Japan Life, Jasmine Louis, STUDENTS, TOPICS, Tokyo Life
- Tags: african american, black, black women, campus, culture, dancing, female, history, japan, japan campus, japanese, japanese food, jigger, learning japanese, nihon, nihongo, okonomiyaki, racism, student, study, study abroad, temple university, tokyo, tuj, yakisoba
- 1 Comment »
[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?
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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
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