THE JAPAN SOCIETY
JAPANESE CONVERSATION GROUP
Meetings - 2009 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001
The December Conversation Group meeting saw the annual Christmas Quiz. Did you know that Japan-bred horse Deep Impact placed third in the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe race at Longchamp in Paris this past October? Or that the Japanese singer planning to release an 80s music cover album in January 2007 is Seiko Matsuda? With seventeen questions also covering news, politics and film, competition was stiff for a prize of not one but two packs of organic mince pies! Congratulations to the winning team, who managed an impressive fourteen correct answers.
In November, the Conversation Group explored Ancient Japanese Folklore, and in particular the Story of the Flute's Tomb. The story tells of the revenge taken by a blind flute player, who on discovering his wife's affair with a good-for-nothing actor, accidentally falls and bangs his head. After his death, the flute player enlists the help of a friend to make sure that the adulturous couple receive their just desserts! Admittedly, the tone for this month was a bit "darker" than usual, but our members nevertheless enjoyed translating elements of the story into Japanese, and definitely got into the spirit by using spooky voices to tell the ghost story. In some cases all that was missing was a camp fire, and upturned torch light on their faces for effect!
In October, we had the honour of hosting the Mugensha theatre group. The group was in London to perform "Madmen in the court yard", and offered to drop in at the Masons' Arms to tell us all about their art. The Mugensha group is unusual, as their script is ad-libbed using the techniques of traditional Japanese culture such as Sado (tea ceremony), Tate (sword fighting), Bunraku (puppet play), and Noh (play). We were particulary impressed by a lead actor's ability to recite at a break neck speed a particularly difficult sounding passage of something close to gibberish. Though, I doubt any of us would have been aware if he had made a mistake, as we witnessed the vocal equivalent of simulataneosuly juggling with plates, flaming torches, and knives. Check out. www.mugensha.net for more information!
September's event follows on the heels of our earlier food-related and dancing activities and presents a slightly more intellectual challenge in the form of a competition about the ten most popular English and Japanese names in 2005. Those with "people skills" should have a chance to shine!
This month, it's O-bon, when the ghosts of the departed return to the earth to be greeted by O-Bon festivals and Bon Dances. Appropriately, we'll be celebrating by learning the steps of the Coal Miner's Dance or Tanko Bushi. The steps are easy, so don't worry if you have two left feet - if you can manage the Hokey Cokey, you'll be fine. For those who have Yukatas hanging in their closet, but no occasion to wear them, Thursday night is also your chance to get dressed up. Dust off that Yukata and bring it along...
This month's game took the form of a quiz focussed on the Germany-hosted World Cup. Could you remember which England and Japanese players were fielded, for respective specially selected games? And even if you could, could you remember in which positions? Some participants found this a bit hard, and many voices were heard questioning "was it Beckham? or Lampard", "Inamoto, or Nakata?". In view of the apparent difficulty, there was suprise when the winning team answered all questions correctly!
June 2006 Sushi Contest PHOTOS ARE HERE!
Saturday, 22nd April 2006, 1PM
Annual Hanami Picnic at Hyde park.
If the weather does take an unexpected turn for the worst we will be decamping to the nearby Queens Arms at 30 Queen's Gate Mews. This is off Queen's Gate Terrace, which branches off Queen's Gate about a third of the way from Kensington Gore to Cromwell Road. You might also find us in the Queens Arms later for a few evening drinks.
Place: Hyde Park. The Cherry trees are a stone's throw from the North East corner of Albert Memorial.
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Thursday, 2nd February 2006
In 2005 Cupid's arrow found many a target among the rich and famous. So in February, the month of romance, we checked to see if our members had been paying attention, and if they could match the faces of new celebrity couples from the West and East. Obviously, the many glossy magazine readers in our number tipped the scales, and most people matched the candidates up successfully. Answers: A Sayako Kuroda -> 2 Yoshiki Kuroda B David Furnish -> 5 Elton John C Peter Andre -> 9 Jordan D Kaho Minami -> 7 Ken Watanabe E Cheryl Tweedy -> 8 Ashley Cole F Takashi Fujii -> 10 Otoha G Kelly Brook -> 4 Billy Zane H Shidou Nakamura -> 1 Yuiko Takeuchi I Jun Itoda -> 3 Yumi Adachi J Prince Charles -> 6 Camilla Parker Bowles |
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