Date & Time: Sunday, October 30, 2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Spots: Online meeting over Zoom
Participants: 29 Foreign students and workers*
Report by Kajumi (KSGG member)
Chiharu, a KSGG member, introduced Japanese tea ceremony and matcha (powdered green tea) to the participants. Some participants came to Japan only a few weeks ago; others joined from other prefectures. Chiharu also explained the main purpose of the tea ceremony. The most important spirit of Japanese tea ceremony is Wa-kei-sei-jaku, representing harmony, dignity, purity, and tranquility. Based on this spirit, the tea time host and the guest respect each other and spend the tea time in a harmonious manner as if it were like a once-in-a-lifetime-chance.
After giving the tea ceremony explanation, the KSGG member introduced matcha. She explained how to brew matcha, the difference between how to drink strong matcha and thin matcha, sweets using matcha, and the difference between matcha, green tea, and black tea. These three kinds of tea are made from the same tea tree. The picked tea leaves turn green with high-pressure steam. These green leaves are ground into powder, and it is called matcha. Black tea is made by fermenting tea leaves.
After explaining the tea ceremony, the KSGG member introduced matcha. She talked about how to brew matcha, the difference between how to drink strong matcha and thin matcha, sweets using matcha, and the difference between matcha, green tea, and black tea. These three kinds of tea are made from the same tea tree. The picked tea leaves turn green with high-pressure steam. These green leaves are ground into powder, and it is called matcha. Black tea is made by fermenting tea leaves. After the introductions, the participants were divided into small groups of three to five people. In each group, they gave their impressions one after another. Those who had drunk matcha were so interested in the powdered green tea and said opinions one after another, like “Matcha is a bitter drink for adults and good for health,” “I want to eat matcha curry!” “Matcha milk is sweet and easy to get,” “If you go to Kotoku-in temple** in Kamakura, try the matcha ice cream which the former President Obama liked.”
The participants expressed the following positive impressions of the networking event:“It was fun to learn about Japanese culture through the tea ceremony”, and “I didn’t have an opportunity to use Japanese in the daily life, so I enjoyed chatting in Japanese today.” They seemed to enjoy the event.
* 29 foreign students and workers including Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Tokyo/Yokohama participants, four from China, three each from Vietnam, Uganda, and Zambia, two from Thailand, and one each from Honduras, Malaysia, Cameroon, Papua New Guinea, Kenya, Laos, Solomon Islands, Rwanda, Liberia, Tanzania, Taiwan, Ghana, Nigeria, Pakistan, and one each of JICA Tokyo and Yokohama employee
** Kotoku-in temple is famous for the Great Buddha.
