今日は、博多（はかた）のお寺や神社に行きました！

博多町屋（はかたまちや）では、はかたおりのたいけんも楽しみました！

We visited shrines and temples in Hakata area. And it was a great fun to experience weaving Traditional Hakata Ori textile.

Here are comments from our students.

“It was so interesting, We saw so many temples and jinja. Tochoji temple let me give deep impression because the Buddha was so big. We went to temple before, pay respect ceremony is very different to Taiwan because we can used red candle to Buddha.  White candle just used people die. And I went to Kushida jinja so many times, but every time see the Kushida jinja, I always think it’s so amazing. I love here so much. We went to Hakata traditional craft Center and saw doll museum, then they taught us how to make mocha, it was so nice.”  — Pete, from U.S.

“On my second day of class since I arrived in Fukuoka, I had a very interesting activity with the other students and the teacher. It is my first time coming to Japan, and one of the thing I wanted to see the most here was Shrines (神社) and Temples (お寺). We went for a tour in Hakata with a guide who explained a lot of things about each traditional places. It was really interesting to learn about culture and traditions. I was very pleased to visit Kushida shrine, it was a very interesting, colourful and impressive place. Learning how to pray and behave was also very interesting because in Canada, traditions are not very important. The Hakata dolls museum was also so interesting. On the first floor, we could make matcha and learn how to properly drink it. It was so delicious. In Canada, matcha is expensive and the quality is low. On the second floor, we could see beautiful Hakata dolls and Hakata fabrics. I’m really pleased to have done that tour and learned more about Fukuoka history and Japanese culture!” — Nadine, from Canada.

We visited a museum where you learn what kind of disasters you face and how to cope with it.

Our students gave us their impressions of the event;

“It was to interesting about Disaster prevention, Japanese really very importance Disaster prevention. We can try so many disaster. We have Disaster prevention in Taiwan, but just used Fire extinguisher, we didn’t try Level 32 wind and Level 7 earthquake in Taiwan, so awful. It was good experience about that, so interesting.”

“Interesting activity. Was fun to learn to use the fire extinguisher!”

We went to a town called Yame located middle part of Fukuoka prefecture. There are a lot of traditional buildings and some museums. Our student experienced making “Washi”, traditional Japanese style paper.

Here is the impression of this tour from our student;

“We went to Yame city and made paper. It’s very interesting because not many chance can made paper for myself. We made it so fast, but we should wait 30 minutes for drying paper, so we saw traditional Japanese antiques in exhibit. It’s very nice, because I like Japanese culture.

We get off bus by walk about 20 minutes, so many older houses on the roadside, it’s like back to Samurai age. We went to temple and my teacher taught me how to get in to temple, so interesting.”

Our students experienced making Ramen and Gyoza this time.

We have an impression from our student;

“I made Dumplings in Taiwan before, but I just knew how to do Dumpling Filling, and how do made Dumpling, but I don’t know how to made Dumpling skins, so I very enjoyed that, and I very Surprised about made Ramen, because we should squash Dough with our feet, it was funny, and then we used machine cut noodles. When we finished Ramen and Dumplings and then eat that, I very enjoy about made and taste, it’s so nice, because we are did very serious.”

We went to the sea at Hakata and our students enjoyed the cruising.

Here are comments from our students;

“The boat activity was a lot of fun. We were surrounded by beautiful scenery as we travelled down the river. I took a lot of nice pictures and got to watch the sunset. Our guide was also very friendly and tried to speak Japanese with me. Overall it was a great experience.”

“I enjoy the water boat ride. I saw the Canal City, Hakata near the bay, ships, and the ocean. Since the activity start late afternoon, I was able to see the setting sun and some nighttime city lights.”

We visited one of the well-known shrines in Japan. A god of study is there. Many Japanese students come to this place and pray for their exam success.

Here are comments from our students;

“Being able to visit Dazaifu was a great experience. It was my fist time visiting a shrine so I was really excited. The weather was great and I was able to take nice pictures. I also got to try real Japanese Matcha for the first time. I had a great time and now want to visit more shrines in Japan.”

“It was my first excursion with the school and we went to the Dazaifu Temple, and to the Museum of Kyushu. It was located on a gorgeous little street that we stopped off at and had Matcha and red bean rice cakes. The day was well run, interesting and full of great conversation. Both the teacher and other students were great company and I had a really nice day.”

Last week of March was the best time to watch cherry blossoms in Fukuoka!

Here are comments from our students;

“The hanami activity was very refreshing and fun. After arriving at the station, we bought our bentos at a local store and walked to the park. As we talked under the shade of the cherry blossom trees, I felt like I grew closer with the NILS Teachers and my fellow students. When we walked around the park the many forms and sizes of the cheery tress left a deep impression on me. Every tree, every flower each had its own beauty. After taking many pictures of the trees, we returned to our picnic spot to continue talking and exchanging. Our talks continued as we returned to the station to break for the day.

Through this activity I was able to get to know everyone, which is important in communication, no matter what language is used. I used both my native tongue and my acquired Japanese to exchange my culture, history, experiences, and ideas with everyone. That is something that made me feel very happy and wish I was here for more than one week.”

“I enjoyed watching the cherry blossom with everyone. The cherry blossom viewing is a big event like a festival, which last for a few weeks, and a very relaxing to enjoy with people.  In United States, there is cherry blossom, but there is not as many as in Japan. Also, the cherry blossom event in United States only last 2 weekends. The experience is very different between Japan and the United States. 

My recommendation for everyone is staying in Japan to view the cherry blossom, which only happen once a year. “

“For this week’s activity we went to see the hanami, I was very excited because all my life I wished to see it. We went to Maisu Koen, which is a perfect place, because there are many sakura trees, canals and an observatory. We sat under a tree and ate an obento while we were talking and having a great time. After that, we walked around and took pictures of the beautiful landscape. I am very impressed of how the spring time arrived and suddenly all the nature changed. It was very interesting and funny. I want to do it again.”

Our students practiced making Sushi being helped by a Japanese professional.

Here are impressions of our students;

“The sushi making event was my second time going.  It was still very fun to experience and I was able to become better at making sushi.  My friends and I were able to have fun and enjoy eating afterwards.”

“We were fortunate to be taught how to make delicious sushi and Nigiri firsthand from a talented sushi chef. While he made it look so easy and sushi looks so simple from a glance,  we soon found out that it took a high level of skill to transform the ingredients into a delicious lunch. We will definitely be practicing our skills to impress family and friends back home!”

We went to Nagasaki where a Lantern Festival was taken place.

This event was quite enjoyable for our students;

“After my first week studying at NILS, I went to a trip to Nagasaki to see the lantern festival. It was very interesting and beautiful. There were a lot of paper lamps and ornaments that created a very pleasant harmony. The teacher explained to us the celebration, what are the local traditions and recommended us to try some of the famous food of Nagasaki. Everything was delicious. We also enjoyed exploring the streets and taking pictures.”

“The Nagasaki Lantern festival was a very exciting trip.  We traveled by bus 2 and a half hours each way to experience the lantern festival.  The festival was a very unique experience. We had the pork belly delicacy which was very good.  We looked at the various lantern setups and took many pictures.  At the end we looked though some shops.  I wish we had more time, but it was a very fun event.”

“We were lucky to go on a trip to Nagasaki during the lantern festival. Even though it was raining, the lanterns were breathtaking. It seemed as though the whole city was covered in the beautiful, intricate lanterns. We even got to see a kangaroo lantern, which was a nice reminder of home! The lanterns were so colourful and bright, they brought so much joy and light to the dark, wet night. It was a great experience! “