Welcoming 2011 Second Session!

Welcome 2011 Session 2 members

Second session has begun this week and our schedule is full of some fun diverse activities! Visiting a Katana Sword makers dojo, a 400 year old castle, and hosting a culture fair in the mall to let the city of Arao
know some fun things from our countries! We’ll be sharing out foods, languages and of course music with the community! Stay tuned to find out how all those events go!! Love from Japan!!

(Brandon Serna – External Relations Manager for Summer ‘11 Road Team)

Cooking with Iris at Miike Elementary

One of the most amazing experiences of the first session was going to Miike Elementary School in Omuta for 2 days. I was kind of nervous because I had very little experience with kids. I was especially nervous because the first class we taught was cooking class and we were asked to teach the children how to make a dish from our home countries. So the class was divided in two groups, Andrew would teach one group a Chinese dish and I taught the other group a Dutch dish. I decided to teach them how to make hutspot, a really easy but really Dutch dish to make!

Iris and Brandon teaching the kids


We started by cooking potatoes, carrots, and onions and then we mash them up and ate with sausage. The kids all paid good attention and I was really nervous because I am not the greatest cook and I’ve only made this dish twice in my life. After that, all the kids went to the stations and begin cutting the vegetables and preparing the food. I got to walk around and see the kids making the dishes and it was great to see them really enthusiastic and wanting to make it right.

Andrew from China teaching his dish


In the Netherlands we have a special kitchen utensil that we use to mash the vegetables, but, of course they don’t have that in Japan (at least I don’t think they do?) so they gave me a stick to use which looked a lot like a Taiko drumstick but I am sure it was just a cooking stick. Now the kids were really excited because it was time to mash the vegetables. After that it was now time to eat. I was so glad to see the kids enjoying the hutspot and I even thought it tasted like the one from home! Andrew from China also made a great dish that we really enjoyed.

Iris playing with the kids after eating


The next day, the class gave me a book made of thank you cards, which each kid wrote something nice on and a lot of kids wrote they like the dish and a few of them even said they would make it at their homes, how awesome. It was a really great experience, at first I was a bit scared and insecure but the kids were so welcoming and enthusiastic and they just loved the fact that I was there trying to teach them something. Thank you Miike School for the great experience!

(Iris Spruit from The Netherlands)

A Peaceful man with not such a peaceful past

The more I come to Japan, the more I understand the importance Japanese people give to PEACE. After going through events as hard and powerful as the Hiroshima and Nagasaki Atomic bomb, I think any country would take the word “Peace” very seriously.

This time we had the opportunity to listen the story of a Nagasaki A-Bomb Survivor. As a 15 year old at the time of the bombing, his point of view of the event was surely very innocent but very realistic. With 81 years old today, he feels very lucky to have lived through this unfortunate event in 1945 and is now one of the many people committed to spreading the word of peace.

Rianne and Iris with the survivor


After he retired from his job as a teacher in 1998, he decided to start sharing his experience as a survivor from the A-Bomb and have been doing it for 13 years. With more than 70 speeches every year, he believes, this is his way of informing people about the facts of the bombing but most important, this is the way he is teaching everyone who meets him that hate is not the answer.

He shared his experience with all of us in World Campus Japan for about an hour. The final words of his speech were very calm and simple but the positive energy he was giving to all of us was more powerful than any words… “Since I retired my job as a teacher, my job has been to spread the word of peace and I will continue to do it until the day I die”

World Campus Japan members with the Survivor


I was seating there, as I did last year, and again I was reminded of the importance of the work we do in World Campus Japan, learning about other cultures, knowing the whys of every person and every country, to be able to respect each other.

After finishing his speech he gave us time for pictures with him and questions, he hugged all of us and said I love you to many of us. What a great feeling to have met someone that has gone through so much and has such a great outlook in life.

Celi and Brandon with the Survivor


I believe this is the beginning of a new moment for the world and for young people that take the risk to step out of their comfort zone, putting themselves in other people’s shoes to truly understand each other. It is everyone’s personal effort what will make this world a better place. It is not easy but we have to start now to have the peace we all want for ourselves and for our communities around the world.

(Celiana Dolovitz – Education Manager in the Summer ‘11 Road Team)

Making Origami Cranes…with a purpose

Making origami cranes with host families in honor of the Nagasaki victims


Last week we had the chance to learn from our host families the tradition of Japanese origami. Because we were visiting Nagasaki to meet a survivor for the WWII bombing our goal was to collectively make 1,000 cranes in his name. This tradition symbolizes a hope for peace through a lady named Sadako Sasaki and her unforgettable story of perseverance. She was diagnosed with leukemia after being exposed to the radiation after the bombing of Hiroshima she then became determined to fold 1,000 cranes in hopes of recovering to good health, happiness, and a world of peace. Although she completed 644 cranes before she died, her classmates folded the remaining 356 to honor her. There is a statue in honor of her at the Hiroshima Peace Park.

World Campus Japan Members in front of Cranes


For a lot of us this was our first time making cranes and after making the first one the thought of making 999 more did not sit so well in our heads. Luckily we had great host families and little siblings to help us along and be patient for when we made a mistake, I now know I will never forget how to make paper cranes. It is also a tradition to make cranes when someone is suffering from illness, as a prayer for their recovery, as a wish for happiness, and as an expression of sympathy and peace. You are supposed to focus on why you are making them while folding. All and all it was a great connection to make them with our host families and talk about the rich history of this story and be making them for someone that was about to share his story.

FUN FACT: The word Origami in Japanese means (ori- to fold) and (kami – paper)

Group of school kids placing cranes at site the atom bomb was dropped


(Brandon Serna – External Relations Manager for Summer ‘11 Road Team)

Metting Omura Mayor Matsumoto

Metting Omura Mayor Matsumoto

Meeting Mayor Matsumoto in Omura was such a great chance to learn about the inside view of what is going on in Omura and what are some of the future plans for the city.

We had a great conversation with Mr. Matsumoto and talked about how much we were enjoying Omura and letting him know he is the Mayor of a great city! He said they are currently working on partnering with sister cities around the world and because we represent 8 different countries we had some great ideas to help make that happen in our home towns.

We thank Mr. Matsumoto very much for spending the morning with us and we hope the best for Omura!

(Brandon Serna – External Relations Manager for Summer ‘11 Road Team)