One Coin Horse Riding
Riding Club Crane is offering people a chance to try horse riding for 500 yen (plus 1250 yen for equipment and insurance) on December 23, 25, and 26. However, only the first three people to sign up will get that special offer and you have to have a copy of the little coupon they have been putting in mailboxes in order to claim this discount.
If you don't make is as one of the lucky three or if you don't have a copy of the coupon, you can still try horse riding for 2100 yen (plus 1250 yen for equipment and insurance) until December 28, 2008. You can also get a 525 yen discount if you go on a weekday.
Riding Club Crane is located in the Mizubori area of Tsukuba, which is south of Gran Stage near Banpaku Kinen Koen Station on the Tsukuba Express Line. Take the Tsukuba Express to Banpaku Kinen Koen Station (万博記念公園) and then take TsukuBus Route 9-A (Click to see the schedule. Banpaku Kinen Koen Station is number 18 and Mizubori Iriguchi is number 16 on the schedule.). After about three minutes, get off at Mizubori Iriguchi (水掘入口) and walk for five minutes.
乗馬クラブクレイン茨城 (Riding Club Crane Ibaraki)
Address: 〒300-2654茨城県つくば市水掘410 (〒300-2654 Ibaraki, Tsukuba, Mizubori 410)
Tel: 029-861-8867
Open: 10am and 6pm
Closed: Tuesdays
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Sold on Square Dancing
I attended the first lesson of the Beginner Square Dance Classes (April to July) in Tsukuba last night. The Tsukuba Square Dance Club has been in existence for more than 25 years and it shows! They are an extremely well-organized group with a very large number of members (almost 70).
I went last night with the intention of just watching, but that was really not an option! As soon as I arrived, one of the members took my hand and led me onto the dance floor. Many people made a special effort to come and talk to me and ask me where I was from and how long I had lived in Tsukuba. Everyone made an attempt to speak to me in English, even if it was not perfect English.
Some of you may not be familiar with square dancing, but you really don't need to know anything to join these classes. The lessons start from the absolute beginning and don't assume that you have any knowledge of square dancing. Also, square dancing involves a "caller" who tells everyone what to do during the dances, and all of the "calls" are in English. The instructions are often in Japanese, but the Japanese members of the group offered to translate for the foreign people. It is also easy just to watch what other people are doing.
I can't say enough about how friendly the people were and how well-organized this group is. If you are having trouble finding ways to make friends with local Japanese people, I strongly recommend that you get involved with some sort of group or club that will effectively "force" people to interact with you. The Tsukuba Square Dance Club has a long history of welcoming foreign residents and I don't think you could find a more friendly club to join. The next round of 15 lessons started yesterday, but they might still allow people to join from the second class (Saturday, April 14).
I am a bit busy these days, so I don't know if I will be able to continue to attend every lesson, but I definitely want to try. Hope to see you there!
See: Tsukuba Square Dance Club
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February 2008 Update: I did end up continuing with the classes and have thoroughly enjoyed myself since that day back in April 2007 when I thought I would just show up, take a few pictures, and leave. I highly recommend this activity to anyone who thinks they might enjoy some good, clean fun with some lovely, warm-hearted people. Tsukuba Square Dance Club is one of the most welcoming groups of people I have ever met, and they are always happy to accept new foreign members. If you are thinking about joining, but you are not sure, just come for the first class and see if you like it.
February 2009 Update: I have now graduated from "Basic" and "Mainstream" to the "Plus" level. Believe it or not, there are even more levels, where the steps get more intricate and a bit harder to memorize. I am not usually very good at sticking with any one hobby for more than a few months, but square dancing has really stood the test of time for me (two years!). I think it has something to do with the fact that there are levels, so rather than doing the same thing over and over, I keep learning new things every time I go to a class. I can't say enough good things about this club. The members are so friendly and everything is well-organized. In fact, the Tsukuba club is so well-known for its high quality that people come all the way to Tsukuba from as far as Mito and Kanagawa every week (despite the fact that there are clubs in these places) just to participate. If you like to move your body and enjoy keeping your brain active, I strongly recommend giving square dancing a chance! (I know that it has a really lame reputation, but if you can see beyond that long enough to give it a try, you won't regret it.)
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The 34th Japanese Conversation Course
Here's an announcement from the Tsukuba Cultural Foundation.
You can also see this information in the March issue of the Alien Times.
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Tsukuba Cultural Foundation (TCF)'s
34th Japanese Conversation Course
TCF (Tsukuba Cultural Foundation) will be having 34th Japanese Conversation Course for the foreign residents of Tsukuba or the person who works for somewhere in Tsukuba and their family who wish to learn everyday Japanese Conversation. The course is lightly complies with the request of the beginner level as well as the people who have learned Japanese before. Come and join our class!
[Class/ Class Level/ Textbook/ date]
1.Japanese1...on Tuesdays
2.Japanese2...on Tuesdays
3.Write & Learn ...on Tuesdays
4.Japanese3...on Thursdays
5.Japanese4...on Thursdays
6.Nihongo no Kai...on Thursdays
[APPLICANTS]
Applicants must be foreign residents of Tsukuba or the person who works for somewhere in Tsukuba and their family who wish to improve their Japanese language skills.
[CLASS SCHEDULE]
Tuesday Class...April 7, 2009 to September 8, 2009 (20 sessions)
Thursday Class...April 2, 2009 to September 10, 2009 (20 sessions)
[HOURS]
From 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
[LOCATION]
Tsukuba Capio (1-10-1 Takezono, Tsukuba City)
[ADMISSION]
Limited to 15 applicants for each class
[COST]
6,000 (new students), 5,000 (returning students to TCF)
*Please take note that there will not be any refund.
[TEXTBOOK]
Not included in the cost.
Please pay for the textbook on the first day of the class.
[HOW TO REGISTER]
From March 1st (Sun.), Please pick up an application form from the office of Tsukuba International Association from 9:00a.m. to 5:00p.m. (Closed Mondays)
http://www.tsukubacity.or.jp/info/english/modules/tinyd3/index.php?id=1
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Tsukuba Square Dance Club
Tsukuba Square Dance Club will conduct an American Square Dance beginner class. Square dancing is a lot of fun, involving both rhythmic movement and a bit of puzzle-like brain work. It was originally an American folk dance, but in the last 30 years has been considerably altered to its modern form, which is now quite popular all over Japan, as well as in the U.S., Canada, Europe, and Australia.
Come on and join the class!!
Period: April 7 to mid-July, 2007
Time: 19:00 to 21:00 ; every Saturday evening
Place: Takezono Kominkan (Takezono Public Hall)
Fee: 2,000yen (single), 3,000yen (couple) for 4months
Bring: Indoor-only shoes
Contact: HANDA: hank[AT]olive.ocn.ne.jp, KUDO: kkudo[AT]sannet.ne.jp
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Tsukuba Square Dance Club: Beginner’s Class 2008
I joined the Tsukuba Square Dance Club last April and found it to be really fun. The club is going to start its beginner class again in April of this year and they have asked me to announce the class to the foreign members of the community. The Tsukuba Square Dance Club has been in existence since 1981 and it is an extremely well-organized group.
I can personally vouch for the classes being a lot of fun. The members are extremely kind-hearted and welcoming, and they are always delighted when a member of Tsukuba's foreign community joins. Most of the current members are Japanese, but the square dancing calls are all in English, and some of the members have excellent English and will offer to help you if you can't understand what is happening. I think that most people have the impression that square dancing can only be done to country and western music, but that is not the case. The callers can choose whatever kind of music they like, so we get a range of music styles including oldies, dance music, celtic music, and even enka!
If you don't have any plans on April 5th, please come and join us for your first square dance lesson in Japan!
Here is the information on the classes.
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Tsukuba Square Dance Club offers an American Square Dance beginners' class every April. Square dancing is a lot of fun, involving both rhythmic movement and a bit of puzzle-like brain work. It was originally an American folk dance, but in the last 30 years it has been considerably altered to its modern form, which is now quite popular all over Japan, as well as in the U.S., Canada, Europe, and Australia.
Come on and join the class!!
* Period: April 5 to mid-July, 2008
* Time: Saturday evenings from 7pm to 9pm
* Place: Takezono Kominkan (Takezono Public Hall)
* Fee: 2,000yen (single), 3,000yen (couple) for 4 months
* Bring: Indoor-only shoes
* Contact: HANDA: hank[AT]olive.ocn.ne.jp, KUDO: kkudo[AT]sannet.ne.jp
See also:
Tsukuba Square Dance Club website
My impressions from the first time I attended a square dance class in Tsukuba
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