The excitement of the fifty children from the Child Hope Asia Philippines contained the halls of Museo Pambata as they attended the Hello Japan Special, an event organized by the Embassy of Japan on March 20, 2012.
An art exhibit was staged depicting the artworks of the children from the Tohoku area about their experiences during the massive earthquake and tsunami last March 11, 2011. The embassy gave a brief talk on how to respond during a disaster like an earthquake.
The children attended a workshop facilitated by the University of the Philippines Anime Manga Enthusiasts (UP AME). In the workshop, the children were inspired by the courage and the friendliness of Momotaro, the great hero from a popular Japanese folklore. As part of its output, the children were delighted to draw their favorite characters from the story-telling workshop. Afterwards, the kids were served refreshments provided by Yoshinoya.
The Hello Japan Special is packed with interesting activities which aims to introduce different aspects of the Japanese culture. The event starts with a brief talk and a video presentation about Japan and is culminated by a museum tour for the children.
On March 22, the embassy will be teaching children under the SPECS Foundation Incorporated to speak simple Japanese greetings and to write in Japanese. Ms. Chedilyn Magaspar, a former scholar under the teacher-trainee program of the government of Japan will be presenting another Japanese art form called etegami. It is a picture letter which is used in Japan to send messages for different occasions. Participants from the FCED Foundation will be attending a children's workshop conducted again by Ms. Chedilyn Magaspar on March 23. The Nihon Kenykyu Kai, a cultural organization based in De la Salle University will be holding an origami workshop on March 28 to the children of the Bahay Tuluyan. A demonstration on wearing Japan's national costume, the Yukata and Happi will also be featured. The event will be capped off on March 30 with a Japanese sing-along activity by the Nihon Kenkyu Kai for the fifty children of the Erda Foundation and Bukas Palad Foundation.
Hello Japan Special is being organized by the Embassy of Japan with the cooperation of Museo Pambata and Yoshinoya. This event which is geared towards promoting the Japanese culture through the arts will run a children's artwork exhibit from March 20 to March 30, 2012.
