http://www.yamasa.org/acjs/english/hotel.html (for accommodation description)
http://www.yamasa.org/acjs/english/tankisei.html (for price list of accommodation)

Message from Yukiko Iijima (Housing Officer): Please also note that it is extremely important that you rank your accommodation preferences clearly. Upgrades are possible in the event of cancellations - so if your first preference is a single room in the village, select "Village single" as first choice, "Residence U" as your second choice and so on.

Long-term Courses:

Student Visa: We are now accepting applications for the April 2003 student visa start. Please note that we will take into account a number of factors when considering a student visa application including age, academic background, nationality and so on - automatic acceptance of a student visa application is not guaranteed. If you need more information about dates, please check the deadlines for the student visa listed in each course in the program catalogue. If you wish to apply for the April 2003 start please contact admissions@yamasa.org for more information.

Short-term courses:

Discovery Tour starting on January 24th - itinerary at: http://www.yamasa.org/acjs/english/programs/discovery_20030124.html Contact admissions@yamasa.org for details. There are still a number of places available - join a very small private tour: Includes Okutono Jinya, Toyota Kaikan, Hakuba valley, Skiing - Hakuba valley plus outdoor Onsen, Tokoname, Yoshihama Ningyou, Denpark, Atsuta Jingu, Tokugawa Art Museum, Tabata Jinja and other locations.

Other Discovery Tours all have vacancies - contact admissions@yamasa.org for further information. Tour dates for next year are available at http://www.yamasa.org/acjs/english/programs/discovery_dates.html

All SILAC start dates have space from November 28th but accommodation is limited. Contact admissions@yamasa.org as soon as possible for information.

There are only a few places left on the Acceleration Format 1 and Format 2 programs from January.

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3. Student Interview: July Teh (SILAC)

July Teh

July, who is a permanent resident of Australia but was born in Indonesia, started on the SILAC program a week ago.

Jon: I know you've only been in the SILAC program for a week, but can you give me your impressions of it so far?
July: Really good. It's fast, but I covered some of the grammar we are studying now previously so the first few days have been like a review for me. I think that if I didn't know some of what am I studying it would be more difficult to keep up, but it's fine!

Jon: I see that there is only 3 people in your class at the moment. Do you find that the smaller class size helps you learn more quickly?
July: It's good because you have more chance to speak, more interaction, and the teacher gets more time to listen to each of us speak and can also spend more time with us on an individual basis.
Jon: How have you found the teaching faculty?
July: Helpful, kind, and they explain things clearly.

Jon: Where are you staying at the moment?
July: I'm staying with a host family in a town called Iida near Okazaki.
Jon: How long does it take you to get from the family's home to Yamasa?
July: It takes a total of about 40 minutes, which includes a 20 minute bus ride.
Jon: Are you finding the homestay a good experience?
July: Yeh, it's really good. The family....................

Continued at http://www.yamasa.org/acjs/network/english/newsletter/student_int_37.html

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4. In the News: New articles

In this edition we have two more articles to help you practice. The first concerns the unusual step of using public funds to support the "Omiai" industry - ie arranging marriages. Japan's low birth rate and aging population is producing some interesting (perhaps weird) responses. The second is the widely reported racial discrimination case involving an onsen in the Hokkaido town of Otaru.

About "In the News": This section aims to help you improve your understanding of articles in contemporary Japanese print and web media. Articles are from a wide range of sources including business, fashion, music, lifestyle, entertainment, crime, politics, international relations and so on. All articles are printable, and are accompanied by streaming audio files of the article being read at normal speed by male and female native speakers. Furthermore there are questions from the OCJS faculty that will help you confirm your reading or listening comprehension skills. (If you are an advanced learner, you may wish to attempt the questions after first listening to the audio link only, and then read the article to test your listening comprehension skills).

In addition, by using the link generator of the OCJS online dictionary with its definitions and kanji animations, you can easily check the meaning of new words, and also the stroke order of any Kanji that are new for you. The titles of the links ARE NOT translations of the headline accompanying the article (we don't want to give beginner level students too many hints to the answers), but are indicative of the subject field.

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5. Japan Guide: Ise Grand Shrines

For anyone living in Japan or interested in Japanese culture, Ise Jingu is a must-visit. It is the most sacred shrine in Japan, with great spiritual and historical significance; in fact, some residents of Ise City will even tell you that every Japanese person knows of Ise Jingu, but not a lot of them have heard of Ise. The city of Ise, located in Mie prefecture, is about two hours from Nagoya. With a population of about 100,000, it isn't a very busy place; but with more than 6 million people visiting Ise Jingu every year, it can become very crowded, especially around holiday seasons. The busiest time of year is definitely oshougatsu (New Year's), when people gather from all over Japan to pray at Ise Jingu.

Ise Jingu is actually divided into two large shrine compounds, containing over one hundred and twenty smaller shrines in addition to the two major shrines: Naiku (Inner Shrine) and Geku (Outer Shrine). The Inner shrine enshrines the sun goddess Amaterasu Omikami, who is believed to be.......

Continued at http://www.yamasa.org/japan/english/destinations/mie/ise.html

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6. ABOUT THE YAMASA INSTITUTE'S AICHI CENTER FOR JAPANESE STUDIES

The Yamasa Institute is committed to providing high-quality education in the Japanese language. We are a non-profit organization, a part of the Hattori Group. We are accredited by Association for the Promotion of Japanese Language Education - APJLE, accreditation number B302 - and "the only Institute in the Mikawa region with the appropriate programs, systems, curriculum and facilities required for quality Japanese language education" according to the Ministry of Justice. Further, in recognition of the excellent quality of our programs, we are in the top tier of 'Appropriately Authorized Japanese Language Education Institutes' - in fact, the only school in the Mikawa area with this prestigious recommendation. For full details see the accreditation section on the homepage at http://www.yamasa.org/acjs/english/accreditation.html

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7. SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION

You are being sent this newsletter because at some time you contacted the Yamasa Institute's Aichi Center for Japanese Studies through email, or you contacted an internet-based Japanese language information service which forwarded your email to us. If you do not want to receive further issues of this newsletter, please send a message to unsubscribe@yamasa.org with the word "unsubscribe" in the title. We apologize for any inconvenience.

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(c) 2002 The Yamasa Institute Aichi Center for Japanese Studies
1-2-1 Hanehigashi-machi Okazaki Aichi Japan 444-0832
Tel: +81 (0) 564 55 8111 Fax: +81 (0) 564 55 8113
URL: http://www.yamasa.org/acjs/
Email: admissions@yamasa.org