Tuesday, Sept. 18, 2001

Turkish culture marked via four-day celebration

A four-day event to introduce Japanese to Turkish culture will be held Friday through Monday at the Kyoto International Community House in Sakyo Ward, Kyoto.

The event -- Merhaba Turkiye (Hello Turkey) -- will feature Turkish music, food and crafts with a variety of attractions running over the four days.

Kebabs, kilim fabrics and the Turkish-style tea called cay will all be available.

From 1:40 p.m. Sunday, there will be a live performance of saz, a string instrument for Turkish folk music, as well as lectures on kilim and cay. The lectures will be made in Japanese.

There will also be a raffle of a pair of round-trip air tickets from Osaka to Istanbul.

The free event will culminate with a belly dance performance and folk dancing.

The venue is a five-minute walk north of Keage Station on the Tozai subway line.

For more information, call the venue at (075) 752-3010 or the Japan-Turkey Culture Society at (075) 255-7530.

Emerging artists selling 5,000 original paintings

The Japon-France Art Marche 2001 exhibition will be held from Friday through Monday at the Event Hall of the Grand Cube Osaka (Osaka International Convention Center) in Nishi Ward, Osaka.

A total of 5,000 works of art by 130 French and Japanese emerging artists will be put on sale by the artists themselves. Visitors can talk to the artists and buy works at discount prices.

The venue is a 10-minute walk from Fukushima Station on the JR and Hanshin lines, or Awaza Station on the Chuo and Sennichimae subway lines.

Admission in advance is 600 yen for adults, 300 yen for students and free for elementary school students and younger.

For more information, call the executive committee at (06) 6881-2418.

Association hosting seminar on Bangladesh

The Minoh Association for Global Awareness, a foundation based in Minoo, Osaka Prefecture, is hosting an English-language seminar by a Bangladeshi on Sept. 29 between 10 a.m. and noon at the foundation's office in Minoo.

Sabina Yasmeen from Bangladesh will give a brief talk on her home country.

Admission is 200 yen for members and 500 yen for nonmembers. Reservations are required.

The venue is on the second floor of the Toyokawa branch of Minoo City Office. Take Hankyu bus No. 30 or No. 59 to the Ninotani bus stop or bus No. 54, No. 55, No. 56 or No. 66 to the Toyokawa Shishomae bus stop from Senri Chuo Station on the Midosuji subway line or from Kita Senri Station on the Hankyu Senri Line.

For more information, call MAFGA at (0727) 27-6912, fax (0727) 27-6920 or e-mail: mafgavc@wombat.or.jp

Participants sought for Japan culture course

Kyoto City International Foundation is seeking foreign participants for its weekly course on Japanese culture starting in October.

There are five courses: tea ceremony at 2 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays; koto at 6 p.m. on Wednesdays; traditional noh drama at 10 a.m. on Thursdays; and basic Japanese language at 1 p.m., 3:30 p.m. or 6 p.m. on Fridays.

Each of the courses will be held at the organizer's facility in Sakyo Ward.

All of the two-hour classes are for beginners. Each course accepts 15 people, except for the Japanese language course, which takes a maximum of 13.

Japanese residents who wish to introduce Japanese culture to foreigners can also participate.

To participate in the event, foreigners will be required to pay 3,000 yen, while Japanese will be charged 6,000 yen.

Applicants will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis.

Applicants must visit the organizer's facility (Kyoto-shi Kokusai Koryu Kaikan), located a five-minute walk from Keage Station on the Tozai subway line.

For more information, contact the organizer at (075) 752-3010.

Bridges to Osaka one-day orientation

Bridges to Osaka, an annual one-day orientation program for non-Japanese, English-speaking Kansai residents, both newcomers and longtime residents, will be held on Oct. 13 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Kita-senri YWCA.

The program is designed to benefit all incoming expatriates, offering three presentations on topics as diverse as etiquette, the medical system and mastering transactions and daily business in Japan.

The venue is a five-minute walk from Kita-senri Station on the Hankyu Line.

Participation fee is 2,800 yen, including lunch.

For reservations and more information, call Osaka YWCA Senri Center at (06) 6872-0505 by Oct. 5.

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