Mori no Ike

森の池

 
Mori no ike is the name of the lakeside village in Minnesota where Monica and Jonah stayed at the Japanese language camp they attended for a month earlier this summer.  Since I picked them up there in late July, we've been constantly on the move, and haven't had a chance to write about any of it here. 

 
The goal was for them to "level up" their Japanese, and though it's not yet certain whether or not that occurred, it is clear that the month they stayed at Mori no ike was an unforgettable experience.  In keeping with the concept of immersion, the campers learn about the country's culture, eat the food and speak and listen to Japanese every day.  For Monica and Jonah, it was also an opportunity to meet some American kids with whom they share an interest in learning Japanese, and actually let them experience a sort of reverse culture shock.  Each made some good friends at camp and we hope that some will come visit us in Tokyo before we move next summer.

At Mori no ike, all the campers and counselors chose a Japanese name, Monica became Yui and Jonah became Dai for the entire month.  When they get back to Tokyo, our Japanese friends are welcome to call them by their Japanese camp names, Yui and Dai.  Since camp ended, Yui and Dai have been able to stay in touch with some of their friends from camp via facebook and phone text. Some of their friends are Hiroto, Hokuto, Cupcake, Saki, Reijirou and Yuzuki. They also made friends with several wonderful councelors who are really not much older than themselves, but have very good Japanese.

Soon after they arrived at Mori no ike, the campers (known as gakusae) were given an assessment by the councelors (known as sensei).  Yui and Dai were put together in the highest group.  Every day, they spent several hours studying Japanese grammar and vocabulary, practicing kanji, and writing in their journals in Japanese.  Towards the end of the month, Yui and Dai created a final project together which they presented to the other gakusai and sensei.  Their project is a book, which compares a day in the life of a high school student with a gakusai at Mori no ike.  They drew the pictures and wrote the Japanese themselves.  It looks to be accurate, and is really quite a treasure.

But it wasn't all studying, there were lots of fun activities going on every day.  Just like any other summer camp with a lake, there was swimming and boating and all sorts of group activities.  They lived in cabins, slept in bunkbeds, ate their Japanese food galley style, and had to follow a rigid shower schedule.  Living with strangers in a group setting was a new experience for Yui and Dai, but they got used to it.

They attended International Day, where campers from all the language camps came together at one location, and half way through the month they all went to Fargo, to do their laundry and visit a mall.  The rest of the time, they were "deprived" of their usual electronic communication devices, such as computer, cell phone and ipod, so they could concentrate on advancing their Japanese without that distraction.  To this end, Yui and Dai each had an electronic Japanese dictionary which they used quite a bit, especially for new vocabulary. 

In a few days, we will return to Tokyo, and hopefully Yui and Dai will be able to communicate like never before with our Japanese friends.  Please give them as much practice as possible during this, their last year in Japan.

森の池はモニカとジョナは参加したのカンプの名前です。カンプは一ヶ月だので、３週間前に終わったときに、私は行って、会って、連れて来ました。あそこから、いつも動いてから、ここに書けなかったです。

ミネソタ州の日本語のカンプの目的はレベルアップです。たぶん、 経験はそれですが、もっともっと面白かったです。　　毎日に日本語を話した、日本語を聞いた、日本料理を食べたので、日本文化も勉強しました。　実は、モニカとジョナのために、カンプにたくさんアメリカ人の知らない人に会ったから、逆カルチャーショックの経験を体験しました。それから、いい友達たちが好ききたので、よく連絡をしました。

カンプにいるときに、皆は日本語の名前を選んだので、モニカはゆいなったので、ジョナはだいなりました。ともだちたちの名前はひろと、りじりょう、ほくと、カップケイキ、さき、ゆすきとか。日本に帰るときに、日本人の友達はゆいとだいも呼んだら、日本語をできるだけ話したいです。

カンプの間に、最初に、日本語の評価は起こりました。カンプの参加する人の中に、ゆいとだいのレベルは一番高いです。そして、一緒に勉強しました。毎日にたくさん文法と言葉も勉強して、電気辞書を作りました。漢字を書いて練習して、特別プロジェクトもやりました。 ゆいとだいは一緒に最後のプロジェクトをして、カンプの皆と見せました。もちろん、毎日に、一日中、日本語を話して、聞いて、練習をしました。

でも、全部は勉強することじゃないので、たくさん楽しいこともしました。池があるから、泳いで、カター、キャンプファイヤーのすることもしました。カンプの 間中に、ファーゴーに行って、洗濯をして、マールーに買い物に行きました。夜に皆はカービンに寝てので、ちょっと難しかったです。ゆいとだいはだれも知らないから、込んでいると思いました。カービンは１２人ぐらいで寝てので、慣れていてがんばりました。

カンプの間に、ゆいとだいは電子ことをしないから、恵まれない感じがありました。携帯とか、ペソコンとか、Ipodも持ってない。ゴールは日本語だけから、電気辞書を作れました。望みはゆいとだいはゆいとだいはたくさん新しい言葉を学びました。今年はマレー家族の日本に住んでいる最後の年から、私の理想は、ゆいとだいは日本語を上手になってので、友達たちは少しずつおしゃべり練習の手伝いことを感謝します。