Apply for the 2012 Spring Henro Pilgrimage Experience Now!!

The 2012 Spring Henro Experience is here!

This year's Henro Pilgrimage will be bigger and better than ever! We are going to visit the temples around Zentsuji City - but that's not all! This time, we will be fully immersed in culture and history as we also trek to ancient Japanese kofun tombs, the Zentsuji Flowe...r and Garden Festival, and various other sites in addition to the temples.

But best of all, our participants this time can stay the night at Zentsuji Temple to see what the life of a Buddhist monk is really like.
 

Access the 2012 Spring Henro Application form and e-mail it to us at  kfunet@gmail.com
Be sure to turn it in via e-mail or post by May 8, 2012 (limit first 40 who apply).

We can't wait to have you join us for this two-day, extensive historical and cultural adventure!

Details:
1. Date and Time: Saturday 19th – Sunday 20th May 2012
Saturday Meeting Point: Zentsuji Station 8:20 a.m.
Sunday Finishing Point: Tadotsu Station 11:00 a.m.

2. Participation Fee
*6,000 for both days (covers accommodation, breakfast, dinner, and recreation insurance)
*200 for 19th May only (covers recreation insurance)
The cost of transport to and from the meeting points must be covered by participants.

Kagawa Prefecture's 8th Henro Pilgrimage Experience for Foreign Residents/Visitors

On October 29, 2011, we started off Kagawa Prefecture's 8th Henro Pilgrimage Experience for Foreign Residents and Visitors with a visit to the beautiful Honen-ike Dam in Kanonji.  This is a wonderful piece of Taisho period (1912-1926) architecture.  

Sakaide Summer Festival 2011

This is the third year that we have been bringing international residents to participate in the annual Sakaide Summer Festival, and once again we enjoyed all of the spectacle, sweat, tears, muscle-ache, and excitement of hefting a two-ton taikodai (enormous, traditional Japanese festival float) in the air and maneuvering it throughout the Sakaide Station Square.

Kagawa Prefecture's 7th Henro Pilgrimage Experience for Foreign Residents/Visitors

On May 14, 2011, Kagawa Prefecture held its 7th Henro Pilgrimage Experience for Foreign Residents and Visitors in the western part of the prefecture.  We walked 15.1 km between Daikoji (Temple No. 67) and Kannonji/Jinnein (Temples Nos. 68 & 69, the only temples located together in one location).  The weather was perfect, and we enjoyed the nature, history, and exercise from our day on the Henro Path.

Every Little Bit Counts - Volunteering at Second Hand

 On Saturday April 23rd, K-FUN took nine volunteers to Second Hand to help them prepare their all important quarterly newsletter.  The newsletter goes out to more than 4,500 organizations and individuals throughout Japan, keeping them updated on how they can help this Takamatsu-based non-profit organization continue to help victims of the Eastern Japan Earthquake and developing communities in Cambodia.

Be sure to read our previous article about what Second Hand is doing to help the people of northeastern Japan deal with recovering from the March 11th earthquake and tsunami. 

Second Hand is active with lots of events in Takamatsu (including their "Retro Fair" from April 25 through May 7, 2011) and Marugame (including a booth at the Marugame Castle Festival on May 3 and May 4, 2011).   If you want to know how you can volunteer with Second Hand, then check out their homepage, send them and e-mail or give them a call at the following:

Homepage: http://2nd-hand.main.jp/
E-mail : jimukyoku2hand@yahoo.co.jp
TEL:  087-861-9928

Acting Locally, Making a Difference Right Now: Second Hand Helping Tohoku

Second Hand is an non-profit organization that provides sustainable development assistance to Cambodia via its Japanese second hand stores and fund-raising efforts, and its headquarters are located right here in Takamatsu, Kagawa.  They are currently putting a massive focus on helping the victims of the Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami.  Below is a three-point outline of what they are doing and how you can help:

Second Hand Homepage:
http://2nd-hand.main.jp/index.php?English

Second Hand Tohoku Disaster Relief Blog:
http://nposecondhand.wordpress.com/

 

Contents of this Article:
1.  Donation Drives
2.  Cash for Work Project – How You Can Contribute
3.  Volunteers Needed!!!
4.  Outline of Relief Activities

Poems from the 4th Kagawa English Haiku Event!

We held the 4th Kagawa English Haiku Gathering at Ritsurin Garden’s Kikugetsutei Tea House on Sunday March 27, 2011.  Five local Japanese residents and 14 international residents from 9 different countries (including the U.K., Bangladesh, Vietnam, Zimbabwe, etc.) participated.

Under the instruction of Fumiko Hara-sensei, Vice-President of the Kagawa Branch of the Haiku Poet’s Association, everyone challenged themselves to write beautiful haiku poems.  This was the largest English Haiku Gathering yet to be held in Kagawa, and the atmosphere truly had an international feel to it.  Below you can find all of the haiku that was composed in the serene space of the Tea House – please enjoy!

平成23年3月27日、栗林公園の掬月亭で第４回英語の俳句会を行い、イギリス、バングラデシュ、ベトナム、ジンバブエなど９カ国から14名の県在住外国人と５名の県民が参加しました。

俳人協会香川県支部副支部長の原文子先生の指導をいただきながら、全員で英語による俳句づくりにチャレンジしました。これまでで参加者数最大で、とても国際的な顔ぶれでした。句会の素晴らしい作品を掲載しますので、是非ご覧ください。