I was fortunate enough to be around when one of these competitions was held at my University, otherwise I would have remained mystified. Lights flashed and music played while teams rotated on and off the round outside stage, dressed in costume and laughing, all the while with legs flying about in the air. The energy that radiated from the teams made me want to dance, too. It was easy to understand how students could get drawn into this crowd.
I remember thinking back to a movie my host family had introduced me to months before called, "Umi Zaru" or ocean monkeys. The term, in itself, is a nickname referring to the Japan Coast Guard rescue divers who demonstrated a group mentality quite like what I was seeing on the stage in front of me. It's a fantastic movie, though still untranslated, with keen insight into the ways that people can bond together towards a common goal. Then, I thought back to the comedy film "Waterboys", and then to my own personal experience with clubs.
Business has also been portrayed in this light in the West. We see videos of company workers gathering in the early morning hours outside the building, exercising in formation in huge numbers. We see videos of uniformed police officers, also in formation, lined up outside of headquarters to hear the chief's morning address. We see office cubicles neatly arranged, and automobiles meticulously parked. It's very easy to forget that each of these minds is a unique individual by looking at these videos.
However, it is simply true that people here in Japan just prefer to work in well-organized, large groups. The benefits of it are many. Social networking is made easier by connections with like minded people, and there is rarely a time when a friend would look at a class picture and say, "I know this person, but I've forgotten their name."
By watching these competitors and dancers express their passion in such an unrestrained manner, I found that I had learned a vital secret towards the goal of adjusting to this culture and making friends.
To the reader who may travel over to unknown territory someday, please consider joining a club or organization as soon as you arrive. You won't regret it.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Dancing in the Streets
Article 1 - Dancing in the Streets
Many of us have heard the rumors that there are many, many people in Japan. One of the more accurate descriptions that I have heard is that it is a land of mountains and rice fields that stretch out into the distance. In the countryside, the rice fields do in fact roll out for miles and miles in all directions, and even under the highways and railways until they hit the looming mountain ranges on the horizon. Of course Japan has its fair share of urban setting, though you do find the occasional rice field among the apartments as well. With much of the available land used for agriculture or made uninhabitable by jutting crags and hilly giants, one thing is for certain, and I think that the second accurate description that I've heard can present this fact well enough. Take the entire population of the United States and try to fit it into an island the size of California, more than seventy percent of which is not suitable for building, and you have a general idea of what Japan is really like.
So, what happens when you have so many people attending a single University? This brings us to the point of today's article. The typical Japanese University is both vibrant and compact, offering students the opportunity to pursue all sorts of hobbies and interests in a group setting. Sports, Brass Band, Photography, Mountaineering, and Aviation are some of the interesting clubs that can be found, along with street dancing...
Yes, street dancing! A quick jaunt around campus during early evening hours, or a quaint amble into the downtown area of the nearest city will provide you with a glimpse of something not normally seen in American Universities. There are people, sometimes in the tens or twenties, standing in formation before any store glass window large enough to provide an adequate reflection, practicing their group hip-hop dancing routines for the many competitions that are held in various places across the country.
I was fortunate enough to be around when one of these competitions was held at my University, otherwise I would have remained mystified. Lights flashed and music played while teams rotated on and off the round outside stage, dressed in costume and laughing, all the while with legs flying about in the air. The energy that radiated from the teams made me want to dance, too. It was easy to understand how students could get drawn into this crowd.
I remember thinking back to a movie my host family had introduced me to months before called, "Umi Zaru" or ocean monkeys. The term, in itself, is a nickname referring to the Japan Coast Guard rescue divers who demonstrated a group mentality quite like what I was seeing on the stage in front of me. It's a fantastic movie, though still untranslated, with keen insight into the ways that people can bond together towards a common goal. Then, I thought back to the comedy film "Waterboys", and then to my own personal experience with clubs.
Business has also been portrayed in this light in the West. We see videos of company workers gathering in the early morning hours outside the building, exercising in formation in huge numbers. We see videos of uniformed police officers, also in formation, lined up outside of headquarters to hear the chief's morning address. We see office cubicles neatly arranged, and automobiles meticulously parked. It's very easy to forget that each of these minds is a unique individual by looking at these videos.
However, it is simply true that people here in Japan just prefer to work in well-organized, large groups. The benefits of it are many. Social networking is made easier by connections with like minded people, and there is rarely a time when a friend would look at a class picture and say, "I know this person, but I've forgotten their name."
By watching these competitors and dancers express their passion in such an unrestrained manner, I found that I had learned a vital secret towards the goal of adjusting to this culture and making friends.
To the reader who may travel over to unknown territory someday, please consider joining a club or organization as soon as you arrive. You won't regret it.
I was fortunate enough to be around when one of these competitions was held at my University, otherwise I would have remained mystified. Lights flashed and music played while teams rotated on and off the round outside stage, dressed in costume and laughing, all the while with legs flying about in the air. The energy that radiated from the teams made me want to dance, too. It was easy to understand how students could get drawn into this crowd.
I remember thinking back to a movie my host family had introduced me to months before called, "Umi Zaru" or ocean monkeys. The term, in itself, is a nickname referring to the Japan Coast Guard rescue divers who demonstrated a group mentality quite like what I was seeing on the stage in front of me. It's a fantastic movie, though still untranslated, with keen insight into the ways that people can bond together towards a common goal. Then, I thought back to the comedy film "Waterboys", and then to my own personal experience with clubs.
Business has also been portrayed in this light in the West. We see videos of company workers gathering in the early morning hours outside the building, exercising in formation in huge numbers. We see videos of uniformed police officers, also in formation, lined up outside of headquarters to hear the chief's morning address. We see office cubicles neatly arranged, and automobiles meticulously parked. It's very easy to forget that each of these minds is a unique individual by looking at these videos.
However, it is simply true that people here in Japan just prefer to work in well-organized, large groups. The benefits of it are many. Social networking is made easier by connections with like minded people, and there is rarely a time when a friend would look at a class picture and say, "I know this person, but I've forgotten their name."
By watching these competitors and dancers express their passion in such an unrestrained manner, I found that I had learned a vital secret towards the goal of adjusting to this culture and making friends.
To the reader who may travel over to unknown territory someday, please consider joining a club or organization as soon as you arrive. You won't regret it.
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