Merry Christmas!!

 It is December 25th. Christmas is an event that is celebrated world-wide. Here in Sendai, trees on Jozenji-Street decorated with lights have been a winter feature for the last two decades. These days, more people enjoy decorating their whole houses as though competing with each other to have the most gorgeous decorations.

Common Christmas cake in Japan

 For good or bad, Christmas is not very much recognized as a holy and religious event in Japan. Therefore, many people take this event as an occasion to truly have fun: while people in Christian countries spend time with family and eat homemade dishes including turkey  on Dec 25, the Japanese (especially the youth) party with close friends, have various drinks, including alcohol, and eat the indispensable Christmas cake.

 Since the winter vacation is for two weeks, not all international students visit their hometown, so they try to plan events where people can share time and food together. The outside is cold, so let’s stay warm and active. Enjoy the holiday season.

We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!

Jozenji-Street in Sendai

International Festival this weekend!

 This weekend, another festival will be held, but this time, it will be primarily run by international students—the Tohoku University Foreign Students Association (a.k.a. TUFSA). This 28th Tohoku University International Festival will start at 11:00 on Sunday, November 10 at Sanjo Junior High School, which actually sits just next to University House Sanjo (most FGL students live there).
 A big stage will be prepared, and you will be able to see a fashion show of various ethnic costumes, singing and dancing by international students. If you look around, quite a large number of food stalls can be found. They will offer international cuisine, and you will have the opportunity to taste cooking from more than 20 countries.
 Entrance is free. For the food stalls, you can pre-order food tickets for 1,000 JPY from members of TUFSA, or buy them online (currently tickets cost 1,200 JPY).
 This is a great chance to experience many different cultures at once, so why don’t you join us?!? It will be fun!!

D-1 Grand Prix at cafeterias of Tohoku University

Have you heard the expression “B-1 Grand Prix” before? If you are interested in cars, you may think I mean F-1 Grand Prix. However, this expression exists, and it refers to food in this case.  The name derives from “B-grade gourmet,” which describes casual, inexpensive and tasty dishes served at restaurants and other eating facilities everywhere in Japan.

The first “B-1 Grand Prix” was held in Aomori in 2006 with the purpose of introducing local dishes from across Japan. This event has become annual now, and has been playing a role in grabbing attention for and revitalizing rather unknown towns that nurtured such dishes.

 Now, if we turn to Tohoku University, you will notice the “D-1 Grand Prix” is taking place. Why D, not B? It is for “Donburi” in Japanese, which means "rice bowl dishes." The university’s co-op carries out this event every year to upgrade their menu by bringing in the students’ ideas. So students can imagine their favorite donburi, write about them on special forms, and put them in boxes placed in cafeterias on each campus. Last year, “工学部焼肉丼,” grilled beef rice bowl from the School of Engineering, got first place.

 There will be prizes for the winners: winners selected on each campus will receive JPY 10,000 on a prepaid card usable at the cafeteria. A JPY 30,000 prepaid card will be given to the best of the winners. With ideas from international students, the menu at the cafeteria could include a fusion of multi-cultural dishes!

Warm porridge at Bee ARENA Cafe

The year 2013 has started, and Sendai is getting colder and colder with a stiff breeze blowing.  In Japan one of the ways to warm up under such conditions is to eat warm porridge.

On Kawauchi Campus, there are three types of cafeteria meeting the multiple needs of students from domestic to international: one of them is called “Bee ARENA Cafe” which resembles a café seen on the street instead of a traditional cafeteria on a university campus.

Tohoku University Student Festival! (Nov. 2 & 3, 2012)

Tohoku University is holding a festival today (Nov. 2) and tomorrow (Nov. 3).  Student organizations from extra-curricular activities show their achievements or run a booth to sell food and goods.  This festival is an important opportunity for the students to show what they do at their club activities and also to raise funds to manage their organizations.

Imonikai: A Tohoku Tradition

Today, I would like to talk about a specialty of Sendai: imoni. This literally means “cooked potato.”  That is, imoni actually means to enjoy cooking somewhere outdoors, such as along a river, to promote friendship among a group of people.  The main dish in Miyagi is a bowl of stewed pork, taros, scallions and konjak, which are cooked on a stove.  People help themselves to it, and relax and chat with friends, family members, neighbors and so on.

This custom is widely seen in the Tohoku region, the northern part of the main island of Japan, and it is often considered to be one of the two most anticipated events: Hanami (cherry blossom viewing) in spring and Imonikai in autumn, every year. 

 The reason why it is carried out in autumn is that taros are perennially harvested in October, and the newly harvested taros are always the main ingredient for the dish. 

 On October 20^th, students of engineering department voluntarily planned an imoni party alongside the Hirose River, and many international students participated in the event.  In addition to imoni, various barbecue items—sausages, pork chops, vegetables and many others—were prepared there, and the participants truly felt full from the delicious feast.

Halal food at Tohoku University

Food—it is something that you cannot live without.  There is a proverb that says "you are what you eat."  You select food for various reasons: because you like it, or you enjoy it, or sometimes because of the customs you have kept for a long time.

I have visited many high schools abroad, and one of the memorable questions I was asked is about the availability of halal food.

First of all, what is halal food?

Halal foods mean meals that are allowed under Islamic dietary guidelines.  They strictly exclude alcohol, pork, carnivorous mammals, birds of prey and such.  There is meat such as chicken that is allowed for halal meals, but the animals have to be properly slaughtered according to the code of Islamic law.  Basically, Muslims cannot eat certain types of food since they are taught that all animals should be treated with respect and well cared for: animals that are not treated that way cannot be eaten by Muslims.  On the contrary, there is not that type of tradition in Japan, and most kinds of meat, such as beef, pork and lamb can be seen anywhere here.  So there may be an impression among Muslims that it is hard to find a place to eat in Japan.

Each time when I am asked about halal food, however, I feel happy to say that “at Tohoku University, halal food is available!” 

Today, I went to one of the cafeterias on campus, called Couleur.  Having entered the place, I immediately found the halal food logo. 

Today’s halal specialty was seafood curry and rice.  So I ordered it and filled my stomach with it.  The taste was very good!  While the main ingredients were not meat that I am so used to, it was just like the curry that I have eaten from my childhood, moderately spicy and steaming hot.

I was already full, but tried to find other items that are eatable among Muslims.

At Couleur, you can find various side dishes that include a nutritional balance of foods from meat and fish to fruit and vegetables, and they are sold by weight.  Fresh salad is definitely eatable, and the boiled, dressed, or vinegar-based dishes are also highly recommended.  I also found the halal logo at the corner of the deep-fried fish sausages and vegetables.



As you can see, Tohoku University is making various efforts for internationalization, and improvement of the food menu is one of them.  Recently students as well as professors of various backgrounds have been choosing to eat at Couleur, so it is worth stopping by when you have a chance to!



text and photos by
Ishida-san (Tohoku University Staff)

 

Turkish breakfast and Palestinian lunch in Sendai!

Last Sunday was the most delicious weekend of the month as two events of Tohoku University student organizations coincided on May 27, 2012. 

First, Tohoku University Turkish Students Association (TUTSA) opened their doors for the Traditional Breakfast Party serving around 20 different dishes starting from exotic salads, different types of Turkish cheese and pastry to sweets and Turkish ice-cream for the dessert! The participants could enjoy delicious and authentic dishes prepared by the university's Turkish students. The party was accompanied by a slide-show presentation about Turkey and video materials about TUTSA activities. I doubt you could find such a luxurious breakfast buffet even at five-star hotels of Turkey. Top that up with a great company and friends, and you could totally say, “TUTSA, you made my day!!!”

2011 Tohoku University Festival

In Japan, school festivals are an important autumn event, whether at the primary, secondary, or university levels. Tohoku University is no exception, and the students enjoy their festival a lot! This year the school festival was held from November 3^rd to the 5^th under the theme of “Link Tompei” (Tompei is a nickname for Tohoku University).

Visitors, which included both students and the general public, were able to sample a variety of food at stalls set up around Kawauchi campus. There were art exhibitions, concerts, and various entertainment provided by the students. The annual school festival is an opportunity for the different student-organized clubs to publicize their activities, and for students with hidden talents to perform in front of their peers.

The school festival also provides a chance for the school’s cosplayers to show off the fruits of their labor. Cosplay (costume play) is a hobby that has spread from Japan to other countries in recent years. Cosplayers enjoy constructing hand-made costumes inspired by their favorite manga, anime, or video games and wearing them out to public events. It's not just a hobby; it's a way of life!

-FGL Staff

November 26, 2011 Trip to Yamadera

November 26, 2011 Trip to Yamadera

The FGL Program organized a trip to Yamadera, a temple in nearby Yamagata Prefecture, for the FGL undergraduate students. The Yamadera area is one of the many places in Tohoku where the Japanese haiku master Matsuo Basho (1644- 1694) stopped off to write a poem during his wanderings.

The conical hat the student in the below photo is wearing is the traditional headwear of “ohenro-san” (pilgrims) who travel to famous temples, such as Yamadera, on foot, or (more recently) by bus.

In addition to taking in the sights around the temple, the students attended a pottery workshop where they were able to create their own dishes or mugs.

The autumn foliage was gorgeous, and the surrounding mountains already had a light dusting of snow. It was very typical autumn weather for this part of Japan.

 The students also held a friendly photo competition. It was a close race, but eventually this photo was selected as the winner!

Almost every town in Japan is famous for some kind of food, sweet, or style of cooking, so no excursion is complete without sampling the local cuisine!

-FGL Staff