Posted May 28th, 2009 by President Whitlock
Our second day at the University of Yamanashi started with a visit to the office of the university’s new president, Dr. Shuichiro Maeda, who has been in office one month. Joining our discussion was his vice president, Dr. Takaaki Kawamura. The opportunity to meet my counterpart at this important partner institution was among the reasons we decided to come to Japan again when the China trip was cancelled. We discussed our mutual desire to strengthen our more than 20-year-old relationship between our institutions.
Here we have, from left, Beth Blanchard, Rhonda Whittemore, President Maeda, Joanne, the blogger, and VP Kawamura.
Before heading for a delightful traditional Japanese lunch at a local hotel, we spent some more time with Keiko Okumura-sensei and Michiko Ono-san in the offices of the University of Yamanashi’s equivalent of EELI. Here are the two ladies who have been indispensable during our visit to Kofu. Okumura-sensei is on the right.
Following lunch, Ueya-sensei took us on a campus tour that included a visit to the school for children with special needs at the University of Yamanashi. The school serves as a learning laboratory for University of Yamanashi students preparing to teach at schools serving students with special needs. Here students and teachers join in a traditional Japanese dance learned on a recent field trip.
Thursday ended like Wednesday, with Rhonda Whittemore teaching an English class, in the fashion provided by EELI, to some University of Yamanashi students, while UY faculty observed. One of the students wore a protective mask, a very common sight in Japan, especially now. The percentage of persons wearing the mask in Kofu, however, is much lower than was the case in Tokyo. The purpose for the masks is often to prevent spreading your own germs as much as being protective.
Posted May 27th, 2009 by President Whitlock
We had a long, but good, day on the campus of the University of Yamanashi Wednesday. Our very capable “handlers’ were Keiko Okumura and Michiko Ono, who work in UY’s equivalents of our EELI and International Education offices, respectively.
We had substantive discussions on how to improve the exchange of students, met with five of the 11 Yamanashi students who will be coming to the EELI program in August, visited with EKU student Patrick Shoemake who is studying here, attended a reception with many past EKU and EELI students, and had a delightful dinner at a “family style” restaurant with Yamanashi faculty and students.
The only downside was that I left my camera at the hotel. Rhonda Whittemore, who taught an English class and will do one again today (Thursday), had her camera, but my laptop will not handle her camera’s memory stick. I will do better today.
Posted May 26th, 2009 by President Whitlock
I probably won’t be posting any photographs from Kofu. Our hotel is nice enough, but it is lacking internet service, except for a shared PC in the lobby. It has no slot for my camera’s SD card, so I am at a loss in terms of uploading any photos.
Our day began today with Joanne getting her hair done at the beauty shop in our Tokyo Hotel. This was her second such experience and I believe she has taken to the combination massage, shampoo, and styling that Japanese beauticians provide.
Then it was off to Kofu by the Kaiji Limited Express train for Shinjuku Station. I made the arrangements for the tickets myself, found the correct track platform, and we arrived here safely. My Japan travel skills must be OK. We were welcomed by Professor Kiyomi Ueya and his lovely wife Noriko, who were so gracious to us last October. They were again today. He taught at EKU in 1994-95 as part of our long standing exchange with the University of Yamanashi.
We just greeted Rhonda Whittemore, EELI director, and Beth Blanchard of our international office here in the hotel lobby. They are fresh off a 13.5-hour plane ride and a three-hour bus trip from Narita. They will feel better when we see them tomorrow. We have two days of visits to the University of Yamanashi in store and I am looking forward to meeting my new counterpart there, as President Nukui has retired and a new person was installed last month.
If Rhonda or Beth have a USB thumb drive I can borrow, I might be able to do photos. This computer has a USB port.
Edit: (Wednesday morning) I discovered this morning that there is a wifi hotspot of which I was unaware. So, if I carry my laptop to the lobby, I can manage this blog to include photos. The other nice thing, is that I can use a standard keyboard instead of the Japanese keyboard on the lobby computer AND all the web and Explorer prompts are in English. Anyway, here’s a photo from a mountainside fruit park to which the Ueyas took us yesterday afternoon. It overlooks the valley in which, from left to right, Enzan, Yamanashi City, and Kofu are located. There was some haze, so you might need to use your imagination. We head to the campus in about an hour.
Posted May 25th, 2009 by President Whitlock
The highlight of today (Monday, May 25) in Tokyo was a followup to our October visit to Rikkyo University, a fine Tokyo university with strong historic ties to Kentuckian Paul Rusch. One of my goals has been to forge a partnership with Rikkyo. I came away from today’s meeting with our friend Herb Donovan, a faculty member and administrator and Masaaki Yamazaki sensei, Administrative Director of the Center for International Studies, feeling very good. I believe Yamazaki sensei found this second visit as an indication that we are serous about working with them, and I truly think a visit to EKU will be forthcoming within the year.
Joanne and I got there as classes were changing and I believe this scene is universal among campuses, regardless of location.
Before we left the campus we stopped to have our picture taken with Herb. An obliging Rikkyo student to this shot. And yes, that is an ivy-covered, brick building. Rikkyo is full of them and is perhaps the only institution in this bustling metropolis with such an American collegiate “look.”
Tonight we had dinner with Teresa and Kirby Easterling at a wonderful Thai restaurant in the Rippongi ward of Tokyo. They are Pikeville natives and are both EKU grads, holders of five Eastern degrees between them. Kirby’s employer, Corning Glass, asked him to move to Tokyo and work in the company’s operations here. Their appreciation for their Eastern education is enormous and Joanne and I greatly enjoyed their company.
Tomorrow we catch the train over to Kofu, where we look forward to an extensive visit. We will be joined there by Beth Blanchard, of EKU’s international office, and Rhonda Whittemore, director of the EELI program. Before leaving there for Korea on May 31, we will visit at the Kiyosato Educational Experiment Project and hope to see many of our long-time good friends there.
Posted May 24th, 2009 by President Whitlock
Today, Sunday, was a free day in Japan for Joanne and me. Tomorrow, we visit again with our friend Herb Donovan at Rikkyo University in Tokyo. I am hopeful that we can build a relationship with this fine institution. This is for a variety of reasons. Rikkyo has strong ties to Dr. Paul Rusch, the Kentuckian who is revered in the Yatusgatake Highlands which is Madison County’s sister region in Japan. Rikkyo is on the leading edge of green and sustainability issues in Japan. And, they have a fine program in global business in which the language of instruction is English.
But, back to today. We took a JTB-Sunrise Tour to Nikko National Park. This park’s claim to fame is that it was chosen as the burial site for Ieyasu Takugawa, the first Shogun and the person responsible for locating Japan’s capital at Tokyo — called Edo during his hey day. Look back at my posts last October and you’ll see a photo of a statue of this fellow.
There was a lot of very ornate architecture, the original (1630) hear, speak, and see no evil monkeys (a feature of the Tendai sect of Buddhism) and the magnificent Kegon waterfall. Its 97-meter drop makes this cataract one of the top three in Japan.
On the monkeys, I think I have met each of them, sometime or another in my career.
After our visit with Herb, we are having dinner with Kirby and Teresa Easterling, a couple of EKU grads and American ex-pats here in Tokyo, where Kirby works for Corning. Then, on Tuesday, we head over to Kofu by train. . . a feat we will be trying on our own.
My Japanese is coming back pretty quickly. That was handy tonight at dinner, where Joanne and I were the only two folks in the room who spoke English.
