August 12, 2010. "Since you've come all the way from Japan, you should first check out Villa Amazonia." When I first visited Parintins with a JICA coordinator, I had the opportunity to visit Vila Amazonia, arranged by the vice-mayor at the time. Vila Amazonia is a settlement where Takataku (a …
Read Part 1 >> One of my activities in Brazil with JICA was to make a round trip to Japanese language education institutions scattered throughout the western Amazon region. I helped out with Japanese organizations in each state capital, with a focus on Manaus in Amazonas State, Rio Branco in …
There are many strange festivals around the world, but there is one in the Amazon jungle that is unique. This is "Boi Bumba," which takes place every June in Parintins, the second largest city in the state of Amazonas, with a population of 110,000. Transportation to Parintins is by boat …
Read Part 1 >> "It was probably from 1960 to 1964. My father and my brothers were selling vegetables. I was about 13 or 14 years old then. I sometimes helped out. At that time we sold radishes, cabbages, and cucumbers. Our friends from Sales (immigrants and Japanese people in …
There is a tourist spot called Teatro Amazonas in the Centro (downtown) of Manaus. It is an impressive building with pink walls and a mosque-like roof covered with tiles that imitate the Brazilian flag. Every year at Christmas time, a large-scale opera with the participation of local citizens is held …
One day, while I was working in the Japan-Brazil office, I was approached by Mr. Kawada, a living encyclopedia of the Amazon who is over 80 years old. "The sports day is next week, so could you help me buy the prizes?" We got into Kawada's car and headed for …
I was dispatched as a senior Japanese language education volunteer to the Western Amazon Japan-Brazil Association (commonly known as Japan-Brazil) in Manaus, Amazonas, and the first thing I did was to observe about 40 Japanese language classes that were held every week. The students' levels varied, from those who struggled …
After completing our pre-training in Japan, which began in March 2010, we Japanese community volunteers flew from Narita to Brazil via New York on July 1st, where we also undertook a month of on-site Portuguese language training in Sao Paulo. Once this training was over, we were finally dispatched to …
"It happened! It happened! It really happened!" It was May 2010 and I was at the JICA Yokohama Migration Museum in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture. I had been selected to be dispatched to Manaus, Brazil as a senior volunteer for the Japanese community in 2010. Before being dispatched to South America, …
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