Orenburg state university

OSU moves Japan nearer to Orenburg

On October 4–10 the university hosted the XV Festival “Days of Japan in Orenburg”. The event was a part of the Cross Year of Russia and Japan.

On the opening ceremony Vera Bashirova, Vice-Governor and Vice-Chairman of the Orenburg region Government for Internal Affairs, Zhanna Ermakova, OSU Rector, Toshio Yamamoto, Minister, Director of Information Department in the Embassy of Japan in Moscow and Liudmila Dokashenko, Director of OSU Japan Information Center greeted the lovers of the Japanese art.

Zhanna Ermakova noted that in this memorable Cross Year OSU Japan Information Center and Orenburg branch of “Russia — Japan Society” turned 15 years. Toshio Yamamoto reminded that it was for the first time in the history of both countries that they had the Cross Years. The motto of this grand event was “There is Japan that you do not know and there is Russia that you do not know”. For the third time Orenburgers got a chance to enjoy the performance of Shino Hidaka, a Japanese pianist. On October 8–9 the university hosted Russian-Japanese business seminar “Personnel Development through Kaizen technigues”. The invited lecturers were Koji Tsumagari, President of the Consulting Company “LOGO” and Hiroshi Tominaga, a business-partner of this company.

As always the Festival of Japanese Films provoked interest. As Toshio Yamamoto mentioned his country adhered to the principle of national spirituality — to introduce innovations but not to break traditions. The films demonstrated would tell about family relations, samurais and people of our time. The Festival program listed six films of different genres.

On the very day Nozomi Kusaka and Shino Hidaka conducted a workshop on kalligraphia. Next day the Orenburgers who attended the Film Festival participated in the origami workshop and made cranes from paper.

On the last day of the Festival OSU library opened a book exhibition and hosted a Japanese Poetry Readings. The Readings were on-line moderated by Victor Mazurik, a famous expert in Japan, senior lecturer from the Institute of African and Asian Countries at Lomonosov Moscow State University.

The most “tasty” event was the final activity — a workshop for kids on Japanse Cuisine hosted by the Yakudza sushi-bar. Orenburg State University, Ministry of Culture and Foreign Relations of the Orenburg region, the Embassy of Japan in Moscow, Orenburg branch of “Russia — Japan Society” acted as co-organizers of the Festival “Days of Japan in Orenburg”.