Have you ever seen kung-fu movies? You may have seen Bruce Lee’s or Jackie Chan’s ones before. As you see, kung-fu is one of Chinese martial arts. I had an opportunity to see many of those Chinese martial arts yesterday.

     There was a course entitled “Chinese Martial Arts and Tai Chi” on Miyoshi Campus of Aichi University yesterday on November 3^rd. I took a class of Simplified 24- form Tai Chi with a friend of mine. There were 150 participants in the class! 

     I do Tai Chi, but the style is not the Simplified 24-form, which is common in modern China. I do Yang Ming Shi 24-form Tai Chi. Both of them have the same 24 forms, but the movement is different. It was a little bit hard for me to have followed the class because about 90% of the participants at the class had previous experiences. But I enjoyed the class and was able to learn many things for my Tai Chi movement.

     The course began at 9:30 a.m. and finished after 5:00 p.m. I was exhausted…I learned the 24 forms, some important points for the movement, and meanings of some actions as martial art. Tai Chi might look like an elegant dance, but it’s a kind of Chinese martial arts. Each Tai Chi action includes both of offence and defense.

     There were four classes in the course: 42-form Tai Chi, Taolu of Chuo Jiao (Poking Feet), Tai Chi Tuishou (Pushing Hands) ,and Simplified 24-form Tai Chi. All the participants and some college students performed at the end of the course. It was wonderful to have seen many different Chinese martial arts. That was so exciting.

     I experienced the resonance of Chinese martial arts and saw the potency of Tai Chi through the course.

     Do you know what day October 31^st is? Yes, it’s Halloween! There was a Halloween party at Mairo, the bakery shop, on October 31th night, and I took part in it. Halloween is never without crazy costumes. That’s why many people in fancy dresses gathered there. I enjoyed myself not only eating delicious food and chattering with my crazy friends but also talking to many new people and the atmosphere that night. 

     It’s difficult to express with words about the party…So, I put some photos here. I hope you’ll see joyful atmosphere at the party with them.

     Do you know about Japan in the 14^th Century B.C? Me? No…I don’t…I’ve studied about Japan’s history on my school days, but I can’t tell you about it in detail…What I was astonished last Saturday was that a friend of mine D knows about her country very well and the presentation was really fabulous!

     D is from Greece. She now lives in Nisshin near Nagoya with her husband. She and I met at an international event last year. I went to Aichi International Plaza to see her presentation about Greece on October 24. 

     The event was held by two organizations: AGVS (Aichi Gogaku Volunteers Seminar - an NPO of volunteer interpreters) and AGGN (Aichi Goodwill Guide Network - an NPO of volunteer guides) for their members training. Although I’m not a member of either groups, I was permitted to take part in it because I know D, the speechmaker, and some AGGN members. 

     It was for those members to practice translating D’s speech into Japanese quickly. D gave the presentation in English. The participants were divided into two: interpreters and listeners, and the roles were sometimes switched. But I didn’t play a role as an interpreter, and became one of audience. It’s difficult for me to take note while listening to and to translate into Japanese at once…

     It was amazing to me that many people were taking notes frantically while D was speaking, and that began interpreting all at once what she talked as soon as she closed her mouth at a suitable interval. Moreover, I was really impressed by her presentation! That was wonderful.

     Her speech was well-organized. D began with episodes about ancient Greece and finished with expectation for rosy future of her country with lots of nice gestures. Her story was copious and chastity, and her expression was crisp. I didn’t know that she’s such a speechmaker! No. She’s not only a speechmaker but also great performer! The event started at 1:15 p.m. and finished after 5:00 p.m. D mentioned about Marathon, but her presentation was a kind of marathon!

     It was great to have taken such a wonderful lecture about Greece. I'm positive that D's speech made all the participants want to visit Greece!

     What? Why didn’t they inform even earlier? I thought that when I checked my email one night. I was reading an email magazine, which said that Sisay was coming to Nagoya on October 23rd.

     You may already know about Sisay because I’ve written about it here many times, but it’s an Ecuadorian folklore band. I’m a fan.

     According to the info, they would come to a shopping mall in Ohdaka. Ohdaka? Where the hell is it? It’s a town located in the west of Nagoya and is a 15-minute train ride from Nagoya Station. I decided to come to see Sisay by myself next day.

     The shopping mall was almost empty because of the day time on the week. However, there had already been many fans of Sisay at the event place when I arrived. Some people who were not fans were gathering once their concert began. Most of them were elderly people, and some of them were with their grandchildren.

     I’ve seen senior citizens blocking their ears and passing by at rock concerts in public places many times. But interestingly I’ve never seen those scenes at Sisay’s concert. Most of them enjoy listening to their music and sometimes even dancing. So did those elderly people I saw this time!

     After the first show, I noticed that the man who was on a photo I had taken at Ecuadori-Andes Festa was sitting there. So, I asked him if the person was him showing my cellphone, with which I had taken photos at the former event. It was him. He was really surprised. He and I decided to wait for the next show over coffee together. It was revealed that he and I have a friend in common while talking. That’s why I made new friends!

     I saw three shows that day. I had a really good time! I love Sisay!

 
     “Why don’t you come to my new house?” One day a friend of mine M emailed me. Her house has been reconstructed recently. She invited her friends including me and had a potluck party at her brand-new house on October15th. It was Thursday. I usually take an English class at a university on Thursdays, but that day was a school holiday because of its anniversary of establishment.

     Another friend K drove me with other two of our friends that morning. We caught in a traffic jam on the way to M’s house. The road isn’t usually so busy. So, we thought that there was an accident or something ahead. Some police officers and men in the same yellow-colored jackets came into view in a matter of time. They blocked one lane and asked each driver to open their windows. An inspection? We wondered if there was an affair.

     “Hey! There’re five people in this car!” One of men in the yellow jacket shouted to other men, looking into our car, when K opened the window. He received something from his company and thrust them to K, saying “Drive carefully and have a nice day!”

     What happened? What he gave us were five paper bags. One of us opened one immediately and shouted, “There’s a pear inside!” There’re words on the bags: “No traffic accident!” in Japanese. Pear is called nashi in Japanese. There’s another word which has the same sound in Japanese. It means no or nothing. The police and the men appealed road safety using an equivoque. We had mixed feelings at that time: anger for the traffic jam because of the campaign and pleasure for getting fruits for free. 

     M’s house is in Chiryu. She welcomed us with a big smile when we got there. After a while other friends arrived gradually and a dozen people gathered finally. Each person brought something to eat. That was a great feast! Sushi, rice noodles, quiche, lasagna, tacos, many kinds of salads, cooked vegetables, fried chickens, hamburgers, fruits, lots of cake! Wow! Multinational foods! We enjoyed ourselves chattering and having delicious food. I had a great time together with my good friends!

 
     That morning, I was awake with terrible headache. I would have decided to stay home all day if Sisay hadn’t come to Nagoya. Sisay is an Ecuadorian folklore group and they had concerts at Kanayama.     

     There was an event named Ecuador-Andes Festa in Nagoya there from Octomber 9^th to 12^th. I went to see their performance on 12^th in spite of the headache because I couldn’t have made it on other days.    

     Sisay had four concerts that day, and the first one started at 11:00. I was going to see three concerts in the afternoon because I had something to do in the morning. My headache didn’t go away at all in the morning, but I headed for Kanayama.

     When I arrived at the place, Sisay was about to play music. Their performance was really exciting! I was able to forget about my headache during their stage. After the concert, I noticed a woman was staring at me. I didn’t remember her, but it seemed that she knew me. I also stated at her for a while.

     Ah…maybe she is…”Are you Yorimo?,” I said. She smiled and said, “Moshimoshimo?” Yorimo and Moshimoshimo are not our real names, but our online names at Mixi. Actually, we had met once at another concert of Sisay before, and since then we’ve kept in touch with each other in the cyber world. It is wonderful to meet someone I know at a concert. I bought two CDs with her advice.

     After the concert, there was a dance show. It was wonderful, too. Then, there was a workshop of playing musical instruments: quena and zampoña. I saw some people learning how to play zampoña from a musician for a while. But I couldn’t stand my headache any more…So, I gave up staying there until the next concert and went back home.,,I came down with a cold next day…

     
     After the biggest typhoon in about 60 years hit Japan, there was an annual tai chi camp in Nishiura Onsen Hot spring, Gamagori on October 10^th and 11^th. More than 300 people took part in it and I had a good time and learned many things there. Gamagori is famous for tangerines and fishery products. I also enjoyed seeing many unripe green tangerines on the way to the beach hotel.

     I joined in the camp with two of my friends. Because most room had five people, we had other two people in the same room. It was revealed soon that those two ladies were really nice and kind. During the camp, we’ve made good friends each other. 

     After entering the room, we went out to the court of the hotel by the sea to practice. It was clear up and the sun was dazzling after the typhoon outside. Most of the participants enjoyed doing tai chi together. I was also able to see a few people I hadn’t seen for almost a year there.

     We moved to a big room inside for practicing after a while because the sunshine was too strong and it was too windy to keep on doing outside. After the practice, I returned to my room with my roommates and enjoyed chattering. 

     As night fall, we had a feast. Each person picked a card written a number when they arrived at the hall. All of us had to sit at the table which had the same number. The organizer did that because they thought it was nice for us to get to know new people. My number was 79. When I was looking for my seat, seeing my number, a man talked to me. His number was 81. He was very friendly. 

     For a while, the seat 80 was empty, but an old woman came to me. She had the card #80. And she is 80 years old. She was very talkative and energetic in spite of her age. A young woman sitting at my left side was also nice and kind. I enjoyed talking with many nice people over delicious seafood. We had some games at the feast as well, and some people wan and got prizes. 

     After the feast, we had a lecture about tai chi. I couldn’t focus on it because I had ate too much…

     Next day, I got up around 5:30 in the morning. I’m usually asleep that time, but I even saw a sunrise and many fishery boats put to sea in a rush that morning. The reason why I got up so early is because we had an early morning practice at 6:00. The wind was cold, but it was nice to have done tai chi outside. The breakfast after exercise was really nice!

     About 50 test-takers for becoming grand masters did tai chi before the judge in the morning. It was filled with a sense of tension in the room, but all of them performed very well and were reviewed and approved as grand masters. Congratulations!

     After that all of the participants did tai chi together and the camp was over…

     The two of my friends and I visited a temple on our way back home. The temple’s chief priest and his wife were our friends, and the priest also took part in the camp. There is an about 150 year-old pine tree in the precincts, and we tried to take qui from the tree. My friends said that they felt something while stretching their arms out, but…I didn’t feel anything…Hmmm…I haven’t had enough training…

     Michiyo, a friend of mine, gave me a pack of Chinese tea yesterday. She went to Shanghai last week and bought the tea there for me because I had asked her.

     The tea is Kuding Tea. It was at the karaoke party at the beginning of this month to have tried the tea for the first time. Naoko, the pub’s owner, recommended drinking it at the party. She had a trip to China last August and bought the tea. According to her, the tea has detoxification.

     Some of the participants including me at the karaoke party tried the tea. All of us couldn’t drink when we raised our glasses to our lips first. It didn’t smell like tea at all, but smelt like passing behind a fish shop on a hot summer day. Nevertheless, I sipped the tea.

     It tasted really bitter! Maybe it was the bitterest thing I’d ever had. But slight sweetness spread inside my mouth after drinking. Hmm…strange taste…I got interested in the tea at that time.

     So, I asked Michiyo to get the tea for me if she could find in Shanghai. “One stick for three to four people,” she replied when I asked her how to make the tea. “Stick? Not spoonful?” Yeah, I got it when I opened the box. Tea leaves were plied. It smelt like wood creosote, not like fish.

     After making the tea, it smelt like bacon and tasted bitter! But I liked the tea somehow!

     
     Do you know Jimmy Ohnishi? He used to be famous as a comedian in Japan. But now, he’s transformed into a worldwide artist. There was an exhibition of his works at Mitsukoshi in Nagoya last week. It was held for celebrating publishing his new art book and Mitsukoshi’s 35^th year in business.

     What Jimmy’s paintings impacted me most was their color of daring, especially using yellow. All of his works so far have vivid yellow, which impresses viewers. Not only the way of using color, but also the composition is bold. His works, however, are sensitive as well. 

     I prefer his earlier works because they are bolder and more dashing. According to Jimmy’s interview, Mr. Okamoto Taro, who was a well-known artist, sent a message to him before his death, “Run off the edge of the canvas!” I think his earlier works are full of life.

     However, Jimmy’s recent works are very beautiful and many of them were born from the collaboration with enterprises, such as bank books’ design and labels of wine. He’s painted even an oil tanker.

     Jimmy is still at the developing stage. I’d like to follow his work in the future.

     Accio friends!
 

     There was a costume party again at Mairo last Sunday. Isn’t it earlier for Halloween? Yes, it is. The title of the party was About One Month Earlier Halloween Costume Party! That was really exciting!

     Mairo is a bakery café near my apartment. They hold many events, and had the first costume party last June. They had the second one because the first one was really heated up. (http://moshimoshimo.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!1D0F2197A6F55843!3561.entry ) I was able to have fun with my friends and to make many new friends this time as well!

     It’s a bit difficult to express the party with words…so…look at photos! I hope you’ll join us next time!

MAIRO (Cafe & Bakery)
Address: 2-1112, Umemorizaka, Meito-ku, Nagoya
TEL: 090-6098-0160
Webpage: http://www.k2.dion.ne.jp/~bluerose/index.htm

     “Would you have a karaoke party at the pub before I go on a trip to Europe? I’d love to go to the pub!” Mitsuko told me that when I was talking about a previous karaoke party held at Isona.

     That was at the end of August. We were taking Michael’s summer course at that time. Michael has never joined in a karaoke party at Isona, but he sometimes goes to Isona. Mitsuko, however, had never been there and got interested in the pub.

     “OK, let’s have a karaoke party on September 5^th, then!” I thought it was better to have the party before universities began because teachers would be busy once classes started. Actually I was afraid that I couldn’t gather enough people to have the party because of the short notice. More than 15 people, however, came to the party and we had a really good time!

     I knew almost all of the participants, but most of them didn’t know each other. At first, they seemed to be nervous, however they gradually opened up. Finally the party was really exciting and reached a fever pitch! I had a great time with my friends! I’m sure all of the participants were satisfied and enjoyed themselves at the party!

     Isona, the pub, is located between Ikeshita and Imaike in Nagoya. The owner is a cute lady named Naoko. She’s very nice. You’ll like the pub if you go there once!

                ISONA

Address: 1F Fudosan Kantei Bldg., Nakata, Chikusa-ku, Nagoya
Phone: 052-751- 7815
Yahoo! Map

      Yesterday’s general election for the Lower House was historic. The Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which had ruled Japan for 56 long years (In 1993, they had been the oppostion for eight mounths.), has fallen from power at last. It has decreased its seat to 119 from a pre-election 300. Many LDP bigwigs including former a Prime Minister were rejected.

     On the other hand, the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), which was the largest opposition before the election, has increased its seat to 308 from 115. The power relationships between the LDP and the DPJ have completely changed.

     In addition, other parties have lost their presence behind the DPJ’s enormous gain. New Komeito Party, which had been a ruling coalition partner with the LDP for ten years, couldn’t win at all in the single-seat election districts. Even its party leader and party secretary generals were defeated yesterday. Moreover, other parties couldn’t increase their seats.

     This time not only most non-partisans but also people who used to support the LDP and Komei Party have given their votes to the DPJ. But they didn’t poll because of their expectations to the DPJ. They expected breaking out of this sense of stagnation. As Flanklin Pierce Adams, who was an American columnist at the beginning of the 20 century, said, “Elections are won by men and women chiefly because most people vote against somebody rather than for somebody."

     However, the election was historic indeed. Japanese people made a move and showed public opinion. It’s time for a change. Many of us have relied on the government, and have expected what it does for them, but we should think what to do for our society and take own responsibility from now on.

     Today is the general election day for the Lower House in Japan. This election is attracted because the Liberal Democratic Party might fall from power. According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, about 14 million voters have already polled before the voting day, and it is a 56.0% increase on the previous election in 2005.

     The Prime Minister has abandoned his duty during the term suddenly for the second time in a row, and many ministers have disgraced. The present Prime Minister has been accused for appointing those as the cabinet members and he himself has been criticized for lots of improper speeches and for the lack of leadership.

     Many people have been disappointed the current administration. In the midst of all this, the largest opposition of the Democratic Party of Japan has raised the expectations of many people. The LDP has been the ruling party for 54 years since after the World War II (In 1993, they couldn't have clean majority and they losed power. The government was ruled by the coaltion, which had had power for eight monthes.) but it would go into opposition.

     Nevertheless, I thought the LDP didn’t have much awareness of the danger the other day. An election campaign car came to my area and called the name of a candidate many times loudly. Yes, it’s common in Japan. But there was a strange thing. The voice said, “The candidate isn’t in the car! Look behind! The candidate is running! She’s perspiring for all of you now! Yes! She was a marathon runner of the national team for the Seoul Olympic Games!”

     The campaign car didn’t say anything about the candidate’s policy, but just repeated her name loudly. The voice even said, “Remember her name! And write her name on the election day, pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease!” Do they believe voters give their votes to him or her if they bring someone famous, such as TV talent and athletes as a candidate, and just let us remember the  name?

     In addition, the former Olympic athlete belonged to the DPJ before, but this time she has converted to the LDP and has changed the election area to run for election this time. Although I’ve read her agenda, I can’t see what she’s going to do if she becomes a low maker in blunt terms…Well, I’ll see if the regime is changed or not soon.

      Do you know the World Cosplay Summit will be held this weekend in Nagoya? The event started in 2003 with only four countries, but now it has 15 participating countries and is the largest as an international cosplay event in the world. The official web page is here: http://www.tv-aichi.co.jp/wcs/2009/e/index.php

     I had an opportunity to take an interesting lecture entitled “Popularity of Otaku Culture Aboard” from the organizer of the event last Sunday. The lecturer was Mr. Edmund Hoff, who has worked with the World Cosplay Summit since it started in 2003. He’s now studying about Japan’s otaku subculture at Nagoya University.

     Although the word of otaku has become a kind of global word recently, you may not know it. Otaku is a kind of negative expression in Japan, and it means nerd or geek. Usually Otaku people are really big fans of Japan’s anime and manga, or comic. (But according to Mr. Hoff, manga and comic are different. He thinks that Japan’s manga and anime are deeper and has more complex stories than comics and cartoons.)

     Firstly, Mr. Hoff gave the participants a manga quize to match titles and pictures. The Sheet had 10 manga (comic) titles, such as, One Piece. NANA, and Naruto. Actually I know just those three manga, but have never seen other seven. According to him, the younger, the more know.

     Secondly, he introduced popular manga in Japan and in the US.

     Thirdly, he explained why Japan’s manga has become popular abroad. He revealed five reasons:
1. Unique – the look is very different, for example, Japan’s manga’s characters have really big eyes which twinkle.
2. Flipping – reading “backward”: According to him, “flopping” was common in 60s and 70s. That is, all manga books were remade abroad for Westerners to flip from right to left those days because Japan’s books are turned from left to right. But since 80s people have accept the Japan’s way. And many think it’s cool.
3. Well drawn characters: In Japan’s manga, even backgrounds are well drawn.
4. Addictive: Most of manga are series. So funs have to wait next episode and it makes them addicted
5. Some like, some do not – Shojo manga is popular but sports manga is not: Not only all people like Japan’s manga, but some really love them. But it may depend on the genre.

     Fourthly, Mr. Hoff introduced popular anime in Japan and in the US.

     Fifthly, he talked about the popularity of Japan’s anime abroad. He gave four reasons:
1. Exciting action and complexity, comedy, suspense and violence: Each story is complex and has many factors.
2. Main characters grow. : According to him, so-called heroes in the US seldom grow, and they just repeat the same old pattern, but Japan’s anime characters live their lives like human-being.
3. Make viewers watch next episode. : He told us that Japan’s anime producers know that technique well.
4. Wide target audience. : In the US, anime is for kids in general.

　　Next, Mr. Hoff mentioned about games, plastic models, figures, arts and cosplay. Moreover, he introduced many otaku shops in Nagoya area, such as Mandarake, Tora-no-ana, Animate, Tenishi-no-sumika, M’s Melody and Comok.

     Finally, he talked about the coming World Cosplay Summit. There will be a big parade by cosplayers in Osu this Saturday. It starts at 3:30 in the afternoon before Osu-Kannon Temple. And The Cosplay Championship will be held at Oasis 21 in Sakae the next day on Sunday. It’ll start around 7:00 in the evening. You'll get the information from the offical page. http://www.tv-aichi.co.jp/wcs/2009/e/index.php

     I was really impressed with Mr. Hoff’s knowledge on Japanese subcultures and love of them through his lecture. There were many points to understand Japan’s own culture in it. In addition, I was able to exchange opinions with a person who sat next to me. He is from Spain and also studying at Nagoya University. He told me that he’s loved Japanese anime since he was a child in Spain. He said that he liked Captain Tsubasa, Touch, Dragon Ball, and Naruto. It seems that Japanese subcultures, especially manga and anime, have more standardized in the world than I thought…

     I went to Doho-Gakuen again on 20 to join in Aichi Summer Seminar. The day before I took an oriental medicine class and an English class, and that day I took a cooking class and a singing class.

     I cooked Bangladeshi curry at the cooking class at the first period. The class had many students including a lot of high school boys and girls. Amazingly, I met the person who took the same oriental medicine class before the day at the cooking class, and we cooked together. 

    We cooked Bangladeshi chicken curry that day. The recipe is simple:

(For six people)
Ingredients
Chicken wing sticks               12 pieces
Onions                                    2 (medium size)
Ginger                                   1.5 tbsp
Garlic                                    1.5 tbsp
Oil                                           6 tbsp
Curry mixed powder             1.5 tbsp
Salt                                       1.5 tsp
Water

1. Shred ginger and garlic and chop onions.
2. Sauté the onion with the oil on a pot until the onion turns light brown.
3. Add the ginger and garlic, and add the curry powder to the pan.
4. Add the chicken and sauté them well.
5. Pour in just enough water to cover and boil after adding salt.

     The curry we made was really delicious! The curry powder we used was different from mine. So I asked the organizer to sell one and got it. Yay! At the class we enjoyed chai as well. The class was really nice and interesting!

     After the cooking class, One of my friends and I went to a classroom for a singing class. I had to get petrified again when I opened the door. The teacher was the same person of that memorizing famous speeches class before the day!

     But that day at least I was not alone at the classroom. There were seven students there. But you know, the teacher was the same. That is, we had to sing with gestures! Ha ha! But it’s OK. The more, the merrier!

     How come I didn’t know about such an interesting event until this year? Most of my friends also didn’t know until I informed them. I’d like to join in Aichi Summer Seminar next year too!

     Do you know a big annual event where anyone can study many things among nearly 1.000 classes has held for more than 20 years in Aichi prefecture? The event is called Aichi Summer Seminar, and it was the 21^st this year. Most of the classes are free of charge. Actually I didn’t know until Rosario, a friend of mine, came to my apartment with the information the other day.

     The Aichi Summer Seminar was held at Doho-Gakuen in Nakamura-ku from the 18^th to the 20^th of this month and I joined it on 19 and 20 with some of my friends. I took an oriental medicine class and an English class on 19, and took a cooking class and a singing class on 20.

     According to the organizer, there were nearly 1.000 classes in the event, and many famous people, such as, Mr. Shinya Yamamoto, a movie director, and Ms, Motoko Obayasi, an ex-volley ball player for Japan’s national team, were invited as lecturers as well. That’s why, so many people came to the place that it was really crowded.

     Each day had three periods, and one had 100 minutes. The class on oriental medicine I took was held at the second period after lunch time. So my friends and I met at the school cafeteria and had lunch there before heading the classroom. The taco-rice was not so good, but…was OK for 400 yen.

     There were already many students in the classroom of the oriental medicine. The teacher came from a big medical professional school named Nagoya-Isen. Dr. Yamada has been in the U.S. for more than 10 years and treated many people there with eastern medicine. He introduced many interesting methods for treatment to the audience that day, for example, using crystals, colors, o-ring test and therapeutic points of the body.

     Dr. Yamada is so friendly and funny that the classroom was filled with laugh. I can learn many things from the class, especially using colors. According him, the color of red will work for your stiff shoulders, and blue will be good for pain. In general, if you have stiff shoulders, you must have bad blood circulation. Red is the symbol of blood and the warmth. So you should send the image of the red color to the stiffened parts of your body. On the other hand, the color of blue is the symbol of coldness. So the image of the blue color may help draw out the infection.

     After the oriental medicine class, I headed for an English class alone. Each of my friends took another class at the third period. I was petrified when I opened the door of the next class. There were no people except for the teacher in the classroom. He appeared to be relieved to see me. Probably he’d thought that no one would appear. I wondered whether he could go home if I left. So, I asked him, “Shall I leave?” But he replied, “OK. Let’s get started.” And then the class started…

     The class was for learning famous speeches, such as, Mr. Lincoln, Rev. King, Mr. J.F. Kennedy, and Mr. Obama, with his special method. The method was to use imagination and gestures to memorize sentences. So, I had to kind of dance with him in the big classroom…That was a sort of a torture for me, but I was able to memorize those famous phrases during the class…But I was so tired…

     After the class, I found out that my friends also were exhausted when I met them. One of them was late to come to the place because the teacher of the class she took had thought each class was 120 minutes. The reason she looked tired because it was not only taking the class longer but also she couldn’t understand the lecture at all! She asked some questions to the teacher during the class, but he just said “Study it with newspaper later by yourself, please.” and didn’t answer to her questions at all…

     According to another friend, she waited for the teacher with other students in the classroom, but he or she didn’t appear after all. She had been with the others for more than 30 minutes, but she gave up the class and moved to another class. But the next class was horrible. It was a kind of emotionally manipulated sale and she got almost forced to buy something. She hastily left the room and went to another class about allergy. But it was so boring for her…

     I’ve learned that no all are good among those 1,000 classes. Anyway, I had a good time at the eastern medicine class and had a precious opportunity at the memorizing class that day…I’ll write about the next day’s classes later on.

     Probably you know these music: El Condor Pasa or Moliendo Café. The former is a Peruvian famous forklore, and the latter is a Venezuelan great hit song. Not only those songs, I enjoyed listening to more South American music on July 18.

     An Ecuadorian band named Sisay came to Airport-Walk, which used to be an international airport of Nagoya district but it’s now a big shopping complex, that day. I’ve been a fan of Sisay since I first met them at EXPO in 2005. So I knew they would appear on the stage of the former airport by their mail magazine. 

     They had three stages that day: the first one started at 1:00 p.m., the second one at 3:00, and the last one at 5:00. I saw the first and the second stages. There were already many fans of Sisay in front of the stage when I arrived there around noon. I found a space where I could see their performance upstairs because all the seats had already been occupied. 

     The stage was beside the food court. So, not only Sisay fans but also many people who didn’t know about the band were gathering the place to see their performance. There were five musicians that day. Actually I’m not sure how many members are in Sisay! According to the announcement, they’ll have a big concert played by their 15 members next January. Wow! It’ll be exciting!

     Sisay’s music started. All people were clapping. Many of them were dancing. One concert was only 30 minutes, but their performance drew the people enough. The last music was Moliendo Café. The song is well-known in Japan as well, though the lyrics are totally different from the original one.

     All the audience near the stage were clapping and dancing together. Of course, I did! That day, Sisay must have made many new fans through their performance. 

     By the way, Airport-Walk is located at the former international airport as I said above. It’s very easy to access there from Nagoya Station. The bus takes you just 20 minutes or so to the shopping mall before Midland Square at Nagoya Station.

     The former airport is now a big shopping complex, which has a movie theater, a big grocery store, and about 135 shops and restaurants. The domestic airport is still next to the building. So you can see many planes there. There are many remainders of its old time airport in the place, such as its information counter. Anyway, I had a great time there to see and listen to Sisay’s wonderful music performance that day.

 
     Have you ever eaten chanko with a sumo wrestler? I have! I had a precious opportunity to visit a sumo stable and have chanko with some wrestlers in Inuyama last Wednesday.

     I don’t know when they began training, but sumo wrestlers of Tokitsukaze-beya Stable were about to finish that day’s practice when I arrived at their camp around 9 o’clock in the morning. They stay at a temple in Inuyama during Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament in July every year.

     A young sumoist, who has just joined in the sumo world this spring after graduating from a high school, was sparring with a wrestler of high rank when I saw their training space. The tension was so thick. There were many sumo fans around the ring, but no one spoke. The atmosphere, however, changed completely after training. A lot of fans asked wrestlers to take photos together and many people talked and laughed cheerfully. But no one never entered the ring, in which is very holy. Especially, woman are never allowed to enter it.

     After the practice, young sumo wrestlers start cooking chanko, which is a sumo wrestlers’ meal without changing clothes. They usually begin eating chanko in descending order of wrestlers of higher rank. But if they have guests, they regard guests are more important.

   I visited the camp with some of my friends that day, and we were treated as special guests by them. So we start to eat first that day. Amazingly, they gave us beer in the morning! In addition, they served beer to rice bowls!

     Sumo wrestlers take the bath in descending order of higher rank as well, and after bathing they have hair set by an exclusive hair dresser called tokoyama in the sumo world. A famous wrestler called Toyono-Shima came to our table. He’s a 26 year-old star of the stable. He’s a nice and friendly person and never arrogant in spite of his position, in which he’s always adored by others.

     He told me many interesting things. For example, he used to use detergents when he washes hair because of the hair oil. Moreover, the brands of shampoo he likes are Mod’s Hair and Vidal Sassoon. Furthermore, most of the wrestlers need one bottle of shampoo once they wash their hair…

     In addition, he explained the origin of the name of chanko to me when I asked. By the way, do you know chanko? It’s a kind of stew and is eaten by almost all sumo wrestlers in Japan every day. According to Toyono-shima, chanko means a father and children. Chan is a father and ko is child(ren). In a sumo stable, the stable master is a father and the wrestlers in the stable are his children. Chanko is a symbol food of the tight-knit sumo stable.

     This is the stable master, Tokitsukaze. Actually I have thought he was a just youngster of lower rank until I was introduced… You know, he looks so young! Yes, he is young. But he has responsibility to unify his team and have his “children” strong as their “father”.

     In Tokitsukaze-beya Stable, there was a very sad incident last summer. At the Inuyama camp, a young sumo wrestler has died through the training. Allegedly, it seems he was killed by other wrestlers and the former master in lynch called practice. Some sumo wrestlers and the previous master were arrested and accused last year.

     It appeared for me that the young people who were left behind after the scandal in the stable never forget about the affair but are trying to lift up their spirit. So, they train hard and eat chanko together confirming their unity every day.

     I enjoyed watching sumo practice, talking with sumo wrestlers over delicious chanko that day. I hope they will make a very strong showing at Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament.

       Do you know tai chi has some styles? I’ve practiced tai chi called Yang Ming Shi style for nearly four years.

     This year marks the 10^th anniversary of becoming an NPO for the style and a big ceremonial event for was held at Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium on July 2. I participated in it with my teacher and some of my classmates.  

     I don’t know how many people do the same style tai chi or belong to the association, but nearly 6,000 people got together to the ceremony. They were divided into some blocks by regions and about 2,000 people performed together each.  

     It’s easier to move closely together if the number of performers is around 200. But it’s difficult to keep pace together for more than 1000 people. The participants had to wear a karate-gi, the formal costume, or an official T-shirt and black pants at the event. So when the performers synchronized their movement, it looked so beautiful.
    
                                                                                                                                                            Look at this!

     They are over 80 years old. The oldest man is 96! They looked very energetic and stronger than youngsters on the street. I’ve heard it’ll have been for 50 years next year since Yang Ming Shi started his style of tai chi here in Japan.

     So, I thought that I’d keep on doing tai chi until the 100^th anniversary and wanted to perform with others aged over 80 at the ceremony 50 years later while seeing those senior performers’ dynamic movement.

      A friend of mine Yuko and I went to Chat Tea Café after enjoying shopping and making accessories at Handicraft Fair in Fukiage Hall on Saturday of the 27, June. Chat Tea Café is located near Mizuho Athletic Stadium along the Sakura-Dori Line of the Nagoya Municipal Subway. She and I decided to come to the cafe because Fukiage Hall is also along the same subway line.

     Yuko and I have visited the café once when a tea tasting seminar was held there last March. (http://moshimoshimo.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!1D0F2197A6F55843!3400.entry) We haven’t come to the café since then because it is a little far from our places: Yuko lives in Owari-Asahi and I live in Meito-ku. But we were at Fukiage near the café that day.

    

     Rie, the wife of the café’s owner Robin, noticed us and opened the door when we were peeping inside through the glass of the door at the café. She is beautiful and accomplished lady. She is talented to make sweets as well. Robin was smiling behind Rie and invited us into the café. 

      
     There were two women inside. One was a member of the café and another one was a visitor. Yuko and I ordered cold drinks to Rie because it was really hot that day, and joined them. All of us tried speaking English. You know, Chat Tea Café is not an ordinary café, is a place for practicing English conversation.

    
     Most of us were new people each other, but enjoyed chatting in English very much. We didn’t just banter. We learned many things from Robin. He is very good at teaching through relaxing conversation. Here is the information about Chat Tea Café:

        Chat Tea Café

     This is a new style café where you enjoy chatting in English with the master from UK at the relaxing atmosphere whenever you like. You can also enjoy delicious M&P’s Tea’s tea, coffee, soft drinks and Rie’s special sweets there…

     Monthly membership: 8,800 yen a month (You can come anytime during the period.)
     Book of coupons: 11,000 yen for five tickets (valid for six months)

     Open: 2:00 p.m. Close: 11:00 p.m.
     Shop Holiday: Mondays

     Address: Takasu Biru 1F, 6-24 Mizuho-dori, Mizuho-ku, Nagoya    
     Phone: 052-851-5161
     Webpage: http://www.chatteacafe.com/
     Email: chatty-mail@chatteacafe.com