Japan Group Study Blog

Overall, I am very glad that our group chose to research karaoke and castles. I often go to karaoke in Calgary with my Asian friends, but I NEVER sing. This trip has been probably my 30 th time going to karaoke, yet only my second (or so) time of singing… and I am glad I did! It is actually very hard to keep a tune and to also pick a song that people enjoy. I feel like I can now relate to Japanese people more now that I have spent some time with a few Japanese girls on a karaoke train and also going out to sing songs with Yuna. I now see that singing karaoke is a great way to release your emotions and to also express how your heart is feeling, because music is so powerful and is so relatable to everyone, whether they all speak the same language or not! After singing with others, I also see how it is an experience that bonds us together. I will never forget the karaoke experiences we have had in Japan this year. With the castles, I really enjoyed learning more about Mat...

Although we have not try Karaoke in Japan yet, we have interviewed some university students about their opinion on Karaoke. Three students from Hokkaido University, Yuka, Yuna, and Misato have shared their opinion and thoughts with me. A prevalent opinion about Karaoke is that it is a fun activity which can strengthen the relationship between friends, senpai, and co-workers. And through Karaoke, people can find out their similar preference and liking. Even if there is no common preference, by knowing about other people's favorite songs can still provide an opportunity to get to know each other. Misato and Yuka believe that Karaoke is an easy way to get along with new friends and it gives an excellent opportunity to break the ice among new friends. Most of the time, Yuka goes to Karaoke with her close friends, because she will be nervous and shy when she sings in front of a group of new friends. Misato and Yuna also agreed that they would feel emb...

In the presentation done in class I looked into the history of karaoke and now I will look into karaoke in Hakodate. In Japan Karaoke is a very popular socializing activity. In Sapporo and Hokkaido there were many karaoke bars on the streets. Since we have not done karaoke yet, I interviewed 2 university students. These girls had their first experience with karaoke at the age of ten, and sixteen. It seems to be more common to go to karaoke with close friends. Misato’s parents do not like karaoke so she has never been to karaoke with her parents whereas Yuna went to karaoke with her parents when she was a young girl. However, as she grew up, she started to only go to karaoke with friends. Yuna prefers to go to karaoke only with very close friends whereas Misato enjoys going with people she just met as an ice breaker. No karaoke bar seems to be more popular than other ones; it just comes down to personal preference. For example, Yuna’s favorite karaoke bar is called MASH, and in Mi...

Goryokaku Fort is a special historical site in Hakodate City of Japan’s northern island of Hokkaido. It was Japan’s first and largest Western-style fort. It was built in 1866 to house government offices for the administration in Hakodate and to deal with commerce and foreign affairs related to the port of Hakodate that was opened to international trade in 1859. It has five V-shaped projections from the central core and was named Goryokaku (Pentagram Fort) in reference to its star shape. It was designed in the shape of a star so that an assault from any direction could be met with concentrated firepower. At the entrance to the park there is an observation tower that is 50 meters high. You can get a good view of the layout of the fort from there. Inside the tower, there were 16 dioramas and explanations that went with them to illustrate the history of the Goryokaku Fort. There is another post on this blog site you can read if you are interested. They also had a diorama of the s...

On Saturday May 12 th , our group had the opportunity to go to Matsumae! During this time, we were able to see not only Matsumae Castle, but the rest of the small castle town. Originally, this town was lived in by the Ainu people, who are the indigenous people of Japan. In 1604, the Matsumae Clan came and turned the castle town into a place of trade and wealth, which brought the name “Little Kyoto of the North” to the town. The castle itself was built in 1854 and is officially named Fukuyama Castle. It was the last Japanese style castle to be built in Japan, and originally was not under control by the Matsumae clan until Matsumae Takahiro, the 13 th head of the Matsumae Clan, and Hijikata Tishizo, a sub-leader of Shinsengumi took it over. Today, visitors can see 55 monuments that are dedicated to the Matsumae Clan. Unfortunately, our trip to Matsumae was brief because we were on a bus tour for the day, but the area itself was extremely beautiful! There were ten thousand che...

Hi! My name is Dorothy Walls. I am 21 years old and I am in my fourth year of my Physics Degree. I am usually very camera shy but I’m trying to break that habit on this trip and take more photos so here is the first: I come from a pretty big family; I have 3 sisters and a brother. We are all very close but I am closest with my older sister Holly and I am so excited that I get to share this trip with her! While on this trip I would really like to eat as much Japanese food as possible and try out all of the Japanese social activities because they are different than what we do in Canada. I also want to look into the architecture of the historical buildings and see how it compares to the modern day buildings in Japan. Other than being interested in Japanese culture and their skin care, I also love to dance, and I love to read. I know, nerd alert! I have also recently developed a love for slack lining (which I am not very good at but I’m determined to become b...