Japan Day 2019 at Old Dominion

This was an event at Old Dominion in which Japanese culture was celebrated through calligraphy, Japanese instruments, trying on kimono, Japanese food, origami and other activities. On this day, I helped with the calligraphy table, in which guests would ask for a word to be written. My role was to tell the calligraphists what the guests wanted in Japanese. In this photo, I am standing with a few friends in the kimono trying booth.

For my calligraphy piece, I had asked for ひまわり, but in Katakana. I think it is a very beautiful kana and wanted it applied to my favorite flower: the sunflower.

Making Japanese-style Chocolate

This was a JASA activity in which we learned how to make green tea matcha, white and milk chocolate by melting chocolates together then putting them into molds to make new chocolate molds.

Flower Arrangement Workshop

One of the courses I had taken at Old Dominion was called JAPN 310, and it was a Japanese culture class. It held two workshops that discussed the importance of 道 or dou (the way). They were a calligraphy and flower arrangement workshop. In this picture, my classmates and I are creating our own flower arrangement.

Interaction with Exchange Students

I was very grateful to have met these girls. They were a lot of fun to spend time with. They also helped me practice my Japanese. Shiho is still my friend to this day and keeps contact with me regularly.