Sunday, June 1, 2008

Scrabble contest seeks foreigners, Japanese

Competitors are being sought for a Scrabble competition to be held from 12:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. June 22 on the fourth floor of Kobe Crystal Tower in Chuo Ward, Kobe.

The event is being organized by the Kobe Systemized Goodwill Guides Club, a volunteer group of interpreters, with the goal of promoting friendship between Japanese and foreign players of the popular board game. No participation fee or advance application is required.

The venue is a three-minute walk from JR Kobe Station.

For more information, contact the organizer at (078) 291-8442 from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday. Evening calls between 6:30 p.m. and 9 p.m. should be made to (078) 891-5816 on any day of the week.

Tips on medical English to be offered at seminar

Japan Association for Health Care Interpreting in English and Japanese will hold a seminar on medical English from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on June 15.

Takayuki Oshimi, a doctor teaching medical English at Nihon University, will give a lecture in Japanese on how to learn medical terms effectively and demonstrate some of training techniques used by medical interpreters.

An advance reservation is required via e-mail by June 13. Participation is ¥3,000.

The venue is the Osaka Prefectural Women's Center, also known as the Dawn Center, which is a five-minute walk from exit 1 of Tenmabashi Station on the Tanimachi Subway Line. For an access map, visit www.dawncenter.or.jp/shisetsu/map.html

For further information and reservations, contact Makiko Mizuno, the president of the organizer, at h2omacky@mbox.kyoto-inet.or.jp

Day of free counseling planned for foreigners

The Kyoto City International Foundation is holding a free counseling day for non-Japanese residents from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday in Sakyo Ward, Kyoto.

Specialists in visa, tax, social insurance, pension, labor conditions, and mental health issues will be available to provide counseling and information. Interpretation will be available in English, Chinese, Spanish, Portuguese and Thai.

Participation is free. An advance application by phone is recommended but not necessary.

The venue is the third floor of the Kyoto International Community House, Conference Rooms 3 & 4. The venue is a six-minute walk northwest of Keage Station on the Tozai Subway Line. For an access map, visit the organizer's Web site at www.kcif.or.jp (available in Japanese, English, Chinese, Korean and Spanish).

For more information and an application, contact the KCIF Information & Programming Section at (075) 752-3511.

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