Welcome to Indonesia! The Land of Everlasting Summer
Date: 30 October 2021 (Sat), 12:30～2:00PM Format: Zoom Hosted by: Yokohama Aoba International LoungeGuest Speaker: Ms. Shady Cecilia Ms. Shady came to Japan in 2019 and is currently enrolled in a doctoral course in environmental studies at the Tokyo Institute of Technology. Her hobbies include swimming, music, and reading. She particularly likes listening to others and hearing their opinions. She loves Japanese breakfast foods such as rice, kinpira gobo (braised burdock root), miso soup, and grilled mackerel. She is taking Japanese language classes at Aoba International Lounge.
The 72nd Afternoon Tea event, “Welcome to Indonesia! The Land of Everlasting Summer”, was held on October 31st (Sat). This Afternoon Tea was the first to be held online as a web event. Since it was the first of its kind, the preparation was challenging for the staff, but we are feeling relieved that it was conducted without an issue. There were １６ participants and 12 staff present.
Using pictures and maps of Indonesia, Ms. Shady was able to speak—in fluent Japanese—about １１ different categories such as geography, the history of the country, culture, food, clothing, and shelter, Indonesia’s relationship with Japan, and more. The materials she used were designed in a way that was easy to understand, and her explanations were easy to follow. It was a chance to learn a lot about Indonesia as a country, including the diversity found in its different cultures and ethnic groups. It was also very interesting to see that the Japanese and Indonesian languages share some similarities. Among the participants, there were individuals who visited Indonesia for business and for leisure. There were also those who gained a deeper interest in Indonesia and felt that they would like to visit someday. We are happy if the participants were able to deepen their knowledge and understanding of Indonesia. We would like to thank all the participants who attended. We hope that the next Afternoon Tea event can be held in person.
