Day 8: Time to relax

Thursday March 3rd, 2011 by Mike Wilmer

Considering all the hard work that had been done the past days, it was time to relax a little. After sleeping in - which meant getting up at 7.30 - we set out for the Dutch embassy in the Tokyo bay area near the Kamiyacho subway station. The fan-shaped building was in the shape of the island Dejima, where only Dutch were allowed to trade with the Japanese for most of the Edo Period. The afternoon was enlightened with a visit to the coastal town of Kamakura, home to numerous Zen temples, hiking trails and other tourist attractions.

The embassy visit brought us the pleasant delight of good old coffee and biscuits, information packed presentations about Japanese history, culture and technology, and genuine Dutch discussions. We were received by the Dutch ambassador, Mr. de Heer, together with two people from the TWA. One of them was an intern who used to study in Eindhoven. The presentation and following discussions were extremely helpful in putting our newly attained views of Japanese society into a more sophisticated perspective. Very un-Japanese, the highly worthwhile visit took somewhat longer than expected.

One hour after leaving Dutch ground, we set foot in Kamakura, where hungry stomachs were treated to some local cuisine. What was left of the afternoon was spent at two Zen temples, Engakuji and Kenchoji. Unfortunately there was not enough time to finish the full city tour to the big Buddha in the south of the town. Both temples offered different, yet astounding scenery. The first temple offered the serenity of Zen archery and moss covered steps, while the latter was a vast temple complex leading to a hill top with an overview of both Kamakura and Tokyo. Shortly after sunset, the tour ended at the Shinto shrine of Hachiman, the patron of Samurais.

Visit by the embassy

Friday November 19th, 2010 by Giel Op 't Veld

Last Tuesday, two representatives of the embassy of Japan visited us to give us a presentation about etiquettes and language. A good thing, since Japanese politeness does not stay at simply bowing. We learned a lot about customs we were not familiar with, like what to do when your phone rings.  The presentation was interactive and also involved some effort from us. The correct postures for greetings and bows were picked up rather quickly. The basic phrases, however, turned out to be a bigger challenge. Even written in our alphabet, their pronunciation takes some practice to say the least. The embassy laughed a little at our attempts, but hopefully we are now able to introduce ourselves. Luckily, according to what we have heard, the Japanese people will at least appreciate the effort. We will upload the presentation as soon as possible so that you can keep practicing at home.

How to behave...

Wednesday November 10th, 2010 by Giel Op 't Veld

To tease you and teach you for our upcoming study tour, there will be some preliminary activities before we leave. Next Tuesday, a representative from the embassy of Japan will come to tell us all about Japanese (business)etiquettes and the language. This is of course very useful in a culture in which correct manners are of the utmost importance.

Location: Auditorium 8
Date: Tuesday the 16th of November
Time: 19.00