我孫子市国際交流協会

Day/Time: Thursday, January 26  10:40am to 11:25am
Venue: Kohoku Primary School, Abiko City
Sponsored by: Abiko City Board of Education
Supervised by: Association for Promotion of International Understanding
Lecturers: Ms. Sun Jia Ru/Chinese, Mr. Kachkynbaev Seiteku/Kyrgyz
The two visiting students told about each country to 28 pupils of the class-1, 6th grade. 

China: Ms. Sun, from 10:40a.m. to 11:25a.m.
“My home town Luo Yang City is about 8 hours far from Beijing by train. In China people shake hands when meet others, and looking at other’s eyes is important at that time. When we mention about where we are from, we say “I’m from the North” or “I’m from the South.” On the other hand in Japan you say, from the East or from the West. This means that the one is either from the northern area or the southern area of Yangzi Jiang (Yangzi river), the longest river in China.
Talking of the locality, people in the north eat bread, baozi (manju), jiaozi (gyoza), etc, as they produce wheat there, while in the south people eat boiled rice (gohan), rice cake (mochi), mifin (bifun), etc., as there grows rice.
The principal race in China is Hanzu, but there are 56 ethnic minorities. So-called China dress is the ethnic clothes of the Manzu, but is not worn by Hanzu, the people of Han race. The New Year’s Day of lunar calendar lasts 15 days. It is customary that people make homecoming to their birth place to celebrate the holidays.”
Ms. Sun let some pupils try to wear Chinese clothes she brought, then everyone in the class enjoyed china dance and some plays.

Kyrgyz: Mr. Seiteku from 11:30a.m. to 12:15p.m.
“My country gained independence in 1991 from the Soviet Union and became a republican county. Kyrgyz means the 40 races. We use and write Russian as our official language, but the Kyrgyz language is still in existence.
When we call a person we usually call his/her first name instead of the family name. Calling someone by the family name is a kind of formal case or when talking badly of the person.
Kyrgyz is a pro-Japanese country. We usually call this country Japan, but we also call her “the country of rising sun”.
In the countryside you will find traditional prefabricated mobile house called bozui, just like Mongolian ger. A bozui and the sun are described in our national flag. The designed 40 arrows jetting out of the sun mean the 40 races.” Then Mr. Seiteku showed a model of bozui around the pupils.
“Talking of the geography, at the border of Kyrgyz and China there runs high mountains, Tianshan Mountain Ranges with the 7400 meter highest peak. There also is a huge lake 10 times larger than that of Lake Biwa.
When I was studying at an university in China I came to know a Japanese student. His politeness moved me to go to Japan. I am now strongly hoping to bring what I have studied here back to my country so to be of any contribution to creating my country.  (vol.155)