FSFA January Bulletin No. 11

Frankston Susono Friendship Association

Bulletin No. 11

January 2020 

Dear Members and Friends of FSFA,

Welcome to our old friends and new found friends to the FSFA monthly bulletin. It is a snapshot of our happenings and interesting things about Japan.

Don’t forget you are most welcome to attend our monthly FSFA Executive Committee meetings. They are held at 6.30 p.m. on the first Tuesday of the month. Location is the Acacia Room in the Frankston Council Offices. Enter off Young Street. However, there is no January meeting.

2020 – The Year Ahead

We have a very busy and exciting year ahead with a number of important dates already locked in. The major events include a Proclamation Anniversary event in February, a Tastepoint Fundraiser in May, Japanese Speech Contest in September, Hanami Party in October, and the Susono Delegation Visit and Japanese Festival in late November! Our calendar of events appears towards the end of this Bulletin and we would welcome your attendance and assistance – please consider! Our Executive Committee requires your support to make the major events such as the Japanese Festival and delegation visit run as successfully as they do.

Experiences in Japan

Japan is a land overflowing with amazing and unforgettable experiences. The following link sent by our former Chairperson Peter Patterson is a curated guide to 100 such destinations that offer visitors hands-on experiences that are distinctively and uniquely Japanese.

The destinations have been catalogued into 7 categories: Tradition, Outdoors, Cuisine, Cities, Nature, Art and Relaxation. The information is designed to make your journey to Japan a deeper and more memorable experience!

https://asset.japan.travel/image/upload/v1563519630/pdf/100experiencesinjapan.pdf

NHK World Japan

                                        

NHK World Japan is the international service of Japan’s public broadcaster NHK (their equivalent of our ABC) and is broadcast through satellite (Foxtel Channel 656) as well as online (https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/) and through its mobile app.

My personal favourites are Cool Japan, Japan Railway Journal, Great Gear, Wild Hokkaido, and of course anything to do with sumo – yes, I’m obsessed and love watching their preview show aired before each tournament, their daily highlights show, and the one-hour LIVE broadcast aired on the three Sunday evenings of each tournament – held during the odd months of each year.

If you aren’t a Foxtel subscriber then I suggest you try their On Demand option. 

Walkers in Japan

FSFA Life Members Steve and Vic Walker have spent the Christmas/New Year period holidaying in Japan with family and friends. Vic celebrated his 80^th birthday with a go-kart ride through the streets of Tokyo! I did a 2-hour session in 2018 and it was a blast – a highly recommended activity!!

Vic is dressed in the yellow costume to the left of picture.

Japanese Language Teachers

Those of you who are Japanese language educators may be interested in this free Japanese clip art link to add to and enhance your collection of teaching resources. Thanks to Tonia Hast.

https://www.irasutoya.com/

Keeping in Contact

Our website http://www.frankston-susono.com/ and Facebook Page

https://www.facebook.com/frankstonsusono/ will help you stay connected to what FSFA is up to.

Upcoming Events

Event/Activity	Venue	Scheduled Date
FSFA Executive Committee Meetings	Frankston Council Chambers	First Tuesday each month @ 6.30 p.m.
Proclamation Anniversary 38 Years	Japanese Garden Frankston High School	Sunday 23rd February 2020
Tastepoint Fundraiser	Frankston High School Senior Campus	Wednesday 20th May 2020
2020 FSFA Annual General Meeting	Frankston Council Chambers	1st September 2020
2020 Japanese Speech Contest	Monash University, Frankston Campus	4th September 2020
2020 Japanese Garden Hanami Party	Japanese Garden Frankston High School	18th October 2020
2020 Susono Delegation Visit	Various venues in Frankston	Thursday 26th to Monday 30th November
FSFA Japanese Festival	Frankston High School Senior Campus	Sunday 29th November 2020
Frankston Delegation to Susono	Susono, Shizuoka, Japan	October 2021 – Dates to be confirmed

Feedback

We welcome your thoughts on the bulletin and things we could include, etc. We all share a passion for Japan and its culture and traditions. This is one way we are using to share and spread the love.

Thank You and we look forward to keeping in touch.

 

Simon Hast

On behalf of the Frankston Susono Friendship Association

Executive Committee Meeting With Frankston City CEO

Members of the FSFA Executive Committee recently met with new Frankston City CEO Phil Cantillon prior to our December meeting. The purpose of the meeting was to introduce ourselves and to give Phil a briefing on the role FSFA plays in the sister city relationship with Susono.

FSFA Chairperson Julie D'Arcy opened the meeting by giving a brief outline of the history of our Association and the formation of the sister city relationship from the early 1980's. This included the vital role Yazaki (Australian Arrow Pty Ltd) played in bring the two cities together, the early delegation visits between the cities, the proclamation ceremony in February 1982, and the subsequent student exchanges that commenced in 1983.

Vice-Chairperson Simon Hast outlined how our Association promotes Japanese culture, language and activities via the delegation visits, our bi-annual Japanese Festival, the annual Japanese Speech Contest, our Hanami (Cherry Blossom) Party, maintaining the Japanese Garden at Frankston High School, along with representations and presentations at a number of Japanese themed events within the wider Melbourne community.

We wanted to convey the strong commitment and passion members of our Committee have in promoting the sister city relationship with Susono on behalf of the Frankston City Council. Members of the Committee also spoke of their reasons for joining FSFA before CEO Cantillon outlined his background in local government, future planning and expectations in his role as CEO and any ongoing concerns we might have and how the Council may be able to support our Association.

Our positive meeting ended with the understanding to remain in contact and discuss any issues which may arise in the future.

ABC Article on Sister Cities

FSFA Executive Committee member David Cross has bought to our attention an interesting ABC article discussing the value of sister city relationships.

We strongly believe we have established a very worthwhile relationship with Susono that brings great value to both cities! We have passionate volunteers working to create meaningful opportunities for the citizens of our respective cities, and have done so for over 37 years!

The costs involved in sister city delegation visits appear to be the main area of concern. Frankston and Susono arrange delegations where they visit each other approximately every 4 years, often to coincide with significant anniversaries. These delegations offer citizens and school students potentially life-changing experiences as a part of their travel to another country, their sister city, and a homestay experience with a Japanese family.

However, our Association offers a great deal more than just delegation visits. We organise a Sister Cities Australia award-winning Japanese Festival every 2 years which allows Frankston citizens the opportunity to experience Japanese culture, music, activities, food and more; our annual Japanese speech contest provides over 70 primary and secondary students the chance to practice their Japanese language skills and supports the teaching of the language in schools within and beyond the City of Frankston; our annual Hanami (cherry blossom) Party held in the Japanese Garden at Frankston High School allows Japanese families to meet and extend their friendship and support network; we also petitioned Frankston Council to relocate Susono Way to the front of the Frankston Private Hospital and the construction of the Susono Tribute Garden along Susono Way.

These and more activities are organised and run by members and friends of the Frankston Susono Friendship Association on behalf of the Frankston City Council!

If you are interested in joining our Association or becoming more involved, then please follow the Contact Us tab at the top of this page. We would welcome your involvement!

Please click HERE to read the online ABC article on sister cities.