The Vsetin library was full of sushi, origami, katakana and kimonos.
Sushi, origami, katakana and kimonos filled the Masaryk Public Library in Vsetin.
The Japanese Day holiday was held on 7 August 2018 at Masaryk Public Library in Vsetin. Children attending the summer camp together with other members of the public enjoyed this day. The program was managed by employees and fans of Kayaku Safety Systems Europe a.s., the event’s partner. Mgr. Renata Jaroščáková, who has lived in Japan for several years, was the main guide throughout the event. The children were acquainted with life in Japan through Ms. Jaroščáková’s fascinating speech, a video presentation and an intriguing quiz. She talked about the education system in Japan and she presented Japanese culture, customs and traditions. The participants were able to create their own origami with help of the native Japanese, Mrs. Ikematsu; they were also able to script their name in Katakana, try to eat with chopsticks and perform the traditional OBON dance. Lightly flavoured Japanese green tea was served (contrary to the tradition) and it was possible to taste the traditional Japanese specialities and titbits. The more daring could try out chopsticks. The day also included a Sushi Workshop, which turned out to be a favourite among the public.
“It was perfect and the tea was delicious. We got a lot of presents”, said Matyáš (7 years old). Julie (9 years old) continued, “The preparation of sushi was delicious; I liked that the most. I hope that we will make it at home too. I also created a beautiful origami crane.”
In the photo corner, the children were disguised in Geisha or Samurai costumes using the props and make-up.
“We extended the original idea of getting the public acquainted with Japanese culture and customs using presentations and workshops in cooperation with Masaryk Public Library in Vsetin by adding a program aimed at the youngest. Those children who participated in this event were able to hear a good amount of interesting information about Japan and I hope that they experienced plenty of new things. I was pleasantly surprised to see how the public was interested in sushi preparation and sampling. On the basis of the smiles covering faces of the participants, I would surmise that the event was positively received.” said Ing. Lenka Ondruchová, representative of Kayaku Safety Systems Europe a.s., on her evaluation of Japanese Day.
