Japan Day 34: Okurayama International Forum

The Okurayama International Forum this year was held in collaboration with Harvard University, so those of us who were in Japan were invited to attend this event in Yokohama (specifically Okurayama). We were able to meet students from Keio University, Yokohama City University, and Tokyo Institute of Technology! There were also speakers, including Ted Gilman (Executive Director of the Reischauer Institute of Japanese Studies), the deputy mayor of Yokohama, the sound director of the movie Akira, and a representative from the U.S. embassy. This month also marks the 160th anniversary of U.S.-Japan Relations, which is part of the reason for holding the forum. 

At the forum, we were able to enjoy a performance by a traditional Japanese acting troupe, and we were also able to voice a part of episode three from the anime Tari Tari! The seiyuu's (voice actors) came to the conference, and demonstrated how they voiced the characters, and we were given a chance to voice them in English. I played Konatsu in the show, and I was very nervous. Voice acting is a lot harder than it looks! After that, we collaborated with the Japanese students in making sensu (Japanese folding fans), which was very fun! We ended the day with a lavished dinner with both western and Japanese foods.