TsukuBlog

I was on my way to a little adventure in the woods surrounding the ruins of Konda Castle, near Sakura Junior High School. As I turned off the road and headed onto a little dirt trail, I noticed a neighbor of mine busily doing something by a bush of some sort. I called out a greeting so as not to startle her (Have you noticed that when Japanese are doing work outside, they never seem to glance up or around? I always attribute this to a deep focus on what they are doing, which is probably true, though some have told me that it’s just a way of avoiding having to say hello!), and then I asked her what she was doing. “I’m picking NUKAGO,” she said, “why dont you join me?” I thought, ”Well, why not?!”

Nukago is the archaic name (still often used by native Ibarakians) for MUKAGO (零余子), which look like tiny potatoes (they are actually tiny yams) clinging delicately to vines which grow out of the stems of the yama imo ( Japanese yams). I say delicately, because to be picked, they merely have to be touched and they come right off. I helped my neighbor gather up a small bag-full. She said she was going to cook them up with the rice in her rice cooker (some people also add ginkgo nuts and some kombu stock). Some Ibarakians also fry, roast, or boil them with salt, sake, soy sauce, etc. I found some original recipes online as well.                     

Mukago can actually be found on sale at some supermarkets for about 500 yen a fistful (as you can see in the blog linked above), but buying them could never match the fun of finding and picking them yourself. Kids, especially, always enjoy cooking up what they have foraged.

Many of your Japanese friends might not have ever tasted or even heard of mukago (also remember that in Ibaraki it is often called nukago), and those who HAVE might not rave about their taste. Still, having mukago at least once in autumn is considered a MUST by many, since it is a rustic symbol of the season and a welcome change of pace from just plain ol’ rice.

Mukago can be found in this area throughout autumn. In English they are called wild yam propagules (or bulbils) as they are how the yam plants propagate (by dropping these little babies to the ground). You can find them in wild fields, by the side of the road, and even in some parks.

Happy hunting!

If your child is going to elementary school next year, and there is no one to take care of him or her after school because both parents are working, a “Children’s Club” could help you. Children can play and study with friends at a Jidoukan (児童館, children’s hall) or elementary school. There is at least one teacher with the kids.

Children: elementary grades 1-3
Fee: 4000 yen/month
Club Time: Monday to Friday after school until 18:00 (National holidays: 8:30 to 18:00)
How to apply:

In case of Public Children’s Club:
You can download the application form and fill it out, then you can submit it to the Jidoukan that which you wish to use. You have to submit the form from 17th December to 18th January next year.

If you would like Private Children’s Club, you can ask how to apply by phone from 15:00 to 18:00.

City Web Site ( in Japanese):
http://cms.city.tsukuba.ibaraki.jp/050400/modules/wordpress/index.php?p=130

http://tsukubainfo.jp/Category/ChildrensHalls
http://tsukubainfo.jp/Main/ElementarySchools

Also, there is some information about Children’s Clubs on this page.

http://tsukubainfo.jp/Main/Children
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Public Clubs (place, address, phone number, how many children) Map
────────────────────────────────────────
Kukizaki (茎崎)児童センター　　 Oguki(小茎)1793　　　 029(840)1321　　　30
Takezono Higashi (竹園東)児童館　　Takezono(竹園)3-18-1　　 029(851)5802　　　30
Takezono Nishi (竹園西)児童館　　　Takezono(竹園)2-19-2　　 029(852)5039　　　40
Azuma Higashi (吾妻東)児童館　　　Azuma(吾妻)4-12　　　 029(852)7858　　　30
Azuma Nishi (吾妻西)児童館　　　　Azuma(吾妻)2-5-4　　　029(851)8141　　　50
Kokonoe (九重)児童館　　　　　Uenomuro(上ノ室)2094　　 029(857)4631　　　30
Sakae (栄)児童館　　　　　　 Yokomachi(横町)127-4　　　029(857)4206　　　30
Namiki (並木)児童館　　　　　Namiki(並木)4-2-3　　　029(851)5331　　　45
Ounan (桜南)児童館　　　　　Namiki(並木)4-7-3　　　029(858)0791　　　40
Teshirogi Minami (手代木南)児童館　Matsusiro(松代)4-15-1　　 029(852)0670　　　50
Matsushiro (松代)児童館　　　　　Matsusiro(松代)2-21-2　　 029(855)6110　　　40
Yatabe (谷田部)児童館　　　　Yatabe(谷田部)4715　　 029(836)0611　　　40
Ninomiya (ニの宮)児童館　　　　Ninomiya(ニの宮)4-9-2　　029(855)6091　　　50
Yoshinuma (吉沼)児童館　　　　Yosinuma(吉沼)814-1　　　029(865)2070　　　30
Kamigou (上郷)児童館　　　Kamigou(上郷)2270-1　　 029(847)5546　　　30
Higashi (東)児童館　　　　　　Higasi(東)2-24-1　　　 029(851)4801　　　40
Ozone (大曽根)児童館　　　　Ozone(大曽根)447-3　　029(864)0181　　　50

───────────────────────────────────
Private Clubs (place, address, phone number) Map
───────────────────────────────────
Shimana elementary school club
(島名小学校児童クラブ)　　 Shimana(島名)537-1　　　080(6577)2163
Katsuragi elementary school club
(葛城小学校児童クラブ)　　　Karima(苅間)689　　　　090(1849)8067
Numasaki elementary school club
(沼崎小学校児童クラブ)　　　Numasaki(沼崎)1408-2　　 029(847)2887
Mase elementary school club
(真瀬小学校児童クラブ)　　　Mase(真瀬)2103　　　 090(4610)7523
Imakashima elementary school club
(今鹿島児童クラブ)　　 Imakasima(今鹿島)1761　　 029(847)4061
Onogawa elementary school club
(小野川小学校児童クラブ)　Tateno(館野)443-1　　　029(836)6659
Kukizaki Daiiti Children’s club
(茎崎第一児童クラブ)　 Takasaki(高崎)1873　　　 029(872)2866
Kukizaki Daini Children’s club
(茎崎第二児童クラブ)　 Simoiwasaki(下岩崎)2116　　 029(876)4100
Azora Children’s club
(あおぞら児童クラブ)　 Simohiratsuka(下平塚)886-1　　029(856)9696
Wakaba Day Care Children’s club
(わかば保育園児童クラブ)　Yatabe(谷田部)2061　　 029(838)0808
Minori Kindergarten Children’s club
(みのり幼稚園児童クラブ)　Takasaki(高崎)643-9　　　029(873)2540
Sakura Children’s club
(さくら学童クラブ)　　 Ueno(上野)1302　　　 029(863)0053
Kaname elementary school club
(要小学校児童クラブ)　 Kaname(要)449-1　　　　029(864)0571
Maeno elementary school club
(前野小学校児童クラブ)　　Maeno(前野)1367　　　 080(3399)0471
Yatabe Minami elementary school club
(谷田部南小学校児童クラブ)　Sakaida(境田)191-1　　　080(1363)3330
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Happy New Year!

Kumi

A group in Kyoto is trying to raise money to buy computers and support an internet connection for a local orphanage. If you have some spare change, please consider donating it to this worthy cause.

====================

On Sunday, December 9th, 2007 at 1:30 p.m. the students of FriendsWorld/Global College will be participating in a Clean Up Walk through Shimogamo Jinja and along the Kamogawa to help raise awareness about the environment as well as to raise money for the Karyo-en Orphanage in Kyoto.

Karyo-en is located in the Shimogamo area and houses 20 girls and 18 boys between the ages of 3 and 17 who have been abandoned by their parents, in most cases because they have remarried or somehow changed their lifestyles in a way that did not leave room for their children. Some children are of mixed blood and were abandoned when their mothers remarried into a Japanese family.

Karyo-en is subsidized by the Japanese government and its most basic needs, such as for food, clothing and adult supervision are minimally provided, but as you can imagine, the children’s lives are far from complete. In the past few years, some of the students at Friends World/Global College have brought food, clothing, books and toys to them as well as spent time playing with them and teaching them English.

This semester, one of our students who has been interning there, thought to raise money for computers and an internet connection for them. Although this will in no way come close to filling the gap left by the absence of family, on- line computers will give the children a way to connect to the rest of the world.

We are asking the children at Karyo-en to participate in this clean up walk with us to help empower them and demonstrate they can make a difference in their own lives as well as in the lives of others. We are hoping to raise money to purchase new and/or used computers that have a wireless internet connections, to buy equipment to set up the connection and to pay for it on a monthly basis. We are planning to continue this fundraising drive when necessary to buy additional computers or replace broken or out of date ones and to support the monthly internet connection charges.

We hope that you will help us by offering whatever donation you can. Any support, no matter how small, will be appreciated, so if your children would like to participate in their own name by contributing along with you- even just a few hundred yen- we will be grateful. This is not to say that we are not looking for larger donations- only that we hope that everyone can contribute an amount with which they are comfortable. We would also love to have you join with us in the cleanup, and ask your friends, family and colleagues to be sponsors too. The more money we can raise, the more computers we can buy and the longer we can support the internet connection.

Please contact me or anyone at Friends World/Global College and let us know if you can contribute to this drive in any way. We would like to buy the computers as soon as possible and start setting them up so please let us know how much you would like to pledge by Sunday, December 9. And please suggest to your family - especially your children and your friends - that they participate. Also, if you could help by forwarding this email to anyone who you think might be interested in helping, we would be much obliged.

Here are some of the different ways in which you can help:

Donate money (any amount would be appreciated) by sponsoring the students and children from the orphanage who will be picking up trash in Shimogamo Jinja and along the Kamogawa.

Participate in the cleanup walk and/or after-party with the children.

Donate any used computers you have that have wireless capability and are in good condition.

Forward this email to people on your mailing list who you think may contribute to this very worthy cause.

Start your own fundraising drive by telling your friends about this and asking for their help in any of the listed ways.

Donations can be sent either by mail to

Friends World/Global College
1-287 Akasaka Cho
Kinugasa, Kita-ku
Kyoto 603-8486

or can be deposited into our account at

Bank of Kyoto (Kyoto Ginko)
Kinkakuji Branch
Branch code: 165
Futsu Account number: 553079
Account name: Global College Japan Center
Barbara Stein

Overseas contributions can be sent to the above school address by an international postal order which can be obtained at any US post office.

For more information, contact Daniel Douglass (douglassdanielk[AT]yahoo.com).

So…, many kids love everything nice and sweet. How about something…oh, yucky and stinky?

There is a new special exhibit called ”Naruhodo! The Unchi - Unchi no Unchiku- なるほど！ザ・うんち ～うんちのうんちく～”at the Aquaworld Ooarai. Naruhodo! means “Aha!” and unchi is the word for, well, what my kid refers to as poopee! (The exhibition name probably was inspired by the wildly popular quiz show from the early 80’s to mid 90’s by the name of “Naruhodo! The World” which, by the way, still comes on TV every once in a while as a special program. )

The exhibition is all about “Unchiku(stock of knowledge)” of “Unchi.” Over 100 sea and land creature poo specimens are on display, including the dinosaur poo fossil. You can also look at various paper products made from animal dung, and learn a lot about unchi, such as how to tell the health condition of a creature by looking at its unchi. Your kid(s) may even want to take a sniff at red panda poo! This is a very kid-oriented exhibit, so many articles on display are at kid’s eye-level.

The “poo exhibit” is from February 10 to May 6, Sunday, which is the last day of the “Golden Week” holidays. Remember, children can get in at half price on Saturdays except during long school holidays like Spring break.

Your kid(s) may also enjoy a visit to “Doctor Fish” on the 5th floor of this aquarium. I’m sure Turkish people are very familiar with this fish, but it has very recently become well known and popular over here. For those who are not familiar with this fish, it’s known for its use in the treatment of skin problems like atopic dermatitis since it nibbles dead skin (and only the dead skin) off people. Please see this page for more information on Doctor Fish.
Why not experience what it feels like to be treated by Doctor Fish? The “doctors” are in the “touching pool” by the playground on the 5th floor ;-)

Aquaworld Ooarai(main page)
-Naruhodo! The Unchi
Feb.10(Sat) to May 6(sun)
-Doctor Fish
Feb.10(Sat) to Mar.31(Sat)

I think the foreign population has found a true kindred spirit in Kumi, a Japanese mom who is living in Tsukuba. According to Kumi’s blog, she lived in the US for two years and found it quite challenging to live in another culture. She started her Tsukuba Mom site so that she could help mothers and children in Tsukuba.

She only started her blog in early November, but she has already posted seven good blog articles on her site. Topics currently include food, medicine, school, and events. I think that she will be an excellent resource for moms (and others) in Tsukuba.

(I think I will also invite her to join the TsukuBlog team, if she is willing!)

A wallet, necktie or new set of golf clubs are fine Father’s Day gifts. But nothing could bring a bigger smile to a dad’s face than his portrait executed in crayon by his own toddler. And what better subject is there for all the budding young Hiroshiges and Sharakus out there than that big face, which all googly-eyed, has been cootchy-cooing at them since their eyes have started to focus?

Seibu Department Store has been displaying hundreds of such Father’s Day portraits as part of its Chichi-no-Hi (父の日, Father’s Day) campaign. They are sure to bring a smile to ANYONE who goes up to the 6th floor to check them out. Though these works lack polish and technique (they are by 3 year-olds!), they exude color, love and joy of life — and what could be better than that? And though we are grown up now, we STILL can’t escape those images of the big faces which peered down at US when WE were in OUR cribs. This exhibition will bring back a flood of memories and feelings.

Father’s Day was introduced to Japan after WWll and is held on the 3rd Sunday in June. Though at first completely overshadowed by Mother’s Day in terms of gift giving and spending, Dad’s Day has been slowly but surely catching up as family dynamics have been changing (more time spent with papa) and advertising campaigns have started to sink in.

The 6th floor of Seibu often has special events which are worth checking out. This month they will be having summer gifts (o-chugen) on display, and even if you don’t plan on sending these beautifully packaged and very over-priced boxes of juice, salad oil etc. to YOUR boss, in-laws, professor, or go-between (nakodo), many Japanese people do, and it is interesting to see all the different gifts and the lines of customers doing their duty.

The 6th floor events that I most look forward to are the Eki-Ben Fairs which bring together all the famous train station boxed lunches from around Japan, and the regional food fair which gives you a chance to taste and purchase delicacies for various prefectures, both far and near.

July 7 is the “Tanabata,” and people write their wishes on colorful pieces of rectangle paper and hang them on bamboo plants in Japan. If your kids attend daycares and schools in Japan, they might’ve already done so at their daycares and schools last week, but not all places do that.

Making Tanabata kazari or decoration is very easy if you and your kids are interested in trying out this Asian tradition. If you have origami (colored paper), string and scissors, then you are set! Oh, but where should you go for nice bamboo plants? The easiest way to get them is to ask someone if they have bamboo plants in their yard or neighborhood, but if that’s no an option for you, then you can go to 牛久自然観察の森(Ushiku Shizen Kanzatsu-no Mori) or Ushiku Nature Sanctuary in Ushiku City to get free bamboo grass for Tanabata. Ushiku Nature Sanctuary is closed on Mondays, but you can go there anytime between tomorrow and Sunday, July 8, to get free bamboo grass.

Click here to see what a typical Tanabata Kazari looks like (from Japanese Wiki)
Tanabata (wikipedia, English)
Tanabata (wikipedia, Japanese)

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Ushiku Nature Sanctuary
Admission: free
Map: http://map.livedoor.com/map/?ZM=10&MAP=E140.10.40.4N35.57.39.7&SZ=740%2C450
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It is easy to give up your seat on the train when you see someone who is elderly or has a clear physical disability. However, it can be difficult to tell when someone is pregnant. In order to help pregnant women get the special consideration they deserve on trains and other public places, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare has created a “maternity mark”, a kind of sticker or badge that pregnant women can put on their purses or key chains.

If you see a woman displaying this symbol, please refrain from smoking and treat her with special consideration, if the situation calls for it.

I think that women who are pregnant will receive some “maternity mark” goods when they receive their “Mother and Child Health Handbook”, but I am not sure. Can anyone else confirm this? I know that they were handing out badges with this symbol at some train stations when they first came out (in the summer of 2006), but I don’t think they are doing that anymore. Can anyone tell us where to get maternity mark goods in Tsukuba?

I think this is a good idea, in principle, but I am not sure how many women will actually display the sign when they are pregnant. It seems like an invasion of privacy, in an especially private country. It also seems kind of embarrassing to walk around with a badge that says “there is a baby in my belly”. Then again, I would never wear one of those surgical masks in public, but people do it here all the time. So, I guess if women start using the sign, it will become more acceptable, and they will feel more comfortable using it.

MAMA-GOTO Club’s Iishida-san and Yukimi Kono, illustrator of TIN TON TAM (sp?) are having special mother and child cafe days at AHIRU in Doho Park.  The Cafe will operate from 1 to 5pm and you can find TIN TON TAM character goods and a special children’s playcircle for young children (under two).  The cafe is open on 10/21, 23, 28, 30, 31.  11/1,7,8,10,11.  On 11/7 there will be a special event (reserved party) with a guest speaker there to talk about weaning and introducing solids to a baby.  For more information on how to join that please contact me, Vivian.  (leevivlee at yahoo dot com)

こんにちは。改めまして、同峰公園のあひるカフェが期間限定でままごとカフェになります。１０月２０日～１１日１３日まで。1pm~5pm。ティントンタンでおなじみのイラストレーター・コンノユキミさんとママ達のコラボレーションです。キッズやベビーの遊び場所があります。ユキミさんのグッズも販売しています。ドングリをつかったアートを作ったり、ままごとのプチイベントなどあります。ぜひぜひ遊びに来て下さいね。ちなみに石田は１０月２１、２３、２８、３０、３１ １１月１、７、８、１０、１１にいますよ。ままごとのイベントとして１１月７日（金）の午後はアヒルを貸し切り、食育＆食欲(持ち寄り)パーティーを開きます。食育の専門の杉田利美さんを迎え、実体験からお話や離乳食のサンプルなど紹介して貰います。食欲に関しては皆で持ち寄りましょう。こちらもどうぞよろしく。

Piqniq is a social network for English-speaking families living in Japan. Their goal is to create a Japan-specific online community and information resource to help families get things done in a country where simple tasks can easily become complicated.

A children’s superhero, Anpanman and his friends are coming to Yokohama! There’s already a museum in Kouchi Prefecture in Shikoku Island where the creator of Anpanman, Takashi Yanase is from, but that’s just too far for kids in Kanto region to visit. The new museum is still a bit far from Tsukuba, but you can get there in 2 hours from Tsukuba Station. A new museum is called Yokohama Anpanman Kodomo(children) Museum, and it will open tomorrow at Noon!

The museum’s website doesn’t have much information yet, but I’m guessing that they’ll put more info once the museum opens up. According to the Yokohama Keizai Shinbun, this museum has a movie theater, shopping mall, restaurants and amusement facilities, all built with Anpanman themes. Admission to the “museum part of the museum” is 1000yen, but it’s free to go inside the museum facility.

Anpanman (wiki)
Anpanman Museum (Kouchi Prefecture)
Yokohama Anpanman Kodomo Museum

After 5pm the sun’s cruel and deadening grip began to ease up, and Tsukuba’s old neighborhoods started to come to life. By day, most adults had sought out the comforts of some air-conditioned refuge, while those with no such luxury sufficed with a shady place and a fan to laze away the day watching High School Baseball or the Olympics. It was even hard to spot any kids outside enjoying summer vacation. It seems that, they too, much prefer to be indoors with their beloved video games which have overwhelmingly supplanted hunting for insects and playing in the fields as the number one summer fun.

The evening of August 13th is always filled with excitement in these traditional enclaves. It is the first day of Bon, the three day period in which the souls of departed ancestors return to their hometowns to be with their descendants. Children and grandchildren have arrived. Preparations have been made. The house cleaned, the Buddhist altar (butsudan) set up with the proper decorations and offerings (these can conveniently be purchased at the special O-Bon corners in the supermarkets) and special lanterns and votive strips of paper placed at the front gate or entranceway to the house.

On this evening, the spirits of ancestors will come home, and their living descendants go to the cemetery to greet them and guide them home. This evening I saw Tsukuba’s small graveyards teeming with color and activity as families brought flowers, water and incense, as well as a lantern with which to guide the spirits back to their homes. Many neighborhoods can be seen with streets fully lined with such lanterns so no spirits will lose their way. Homes in which someone has recently passed away usually put out a much larger lantern suspended high on a pole since this will be the first time that that particular soul makes the journey back. These families celebrating a first Bon, might even light a traditional Bon Greeting Fire (迎え火, mukaebi), which have have been almost completely replaced by lanterns, for guiding and welcoming returning ancestral spirits.

When the families arrive home, the spirits are symbolically purified with water and salt, and greeted with 長い道を御苦労さまでした (nagai michi o gokuro sama deshita), you must be tired after your long journey! Then tea is drunk and incense burned.

In Ibaraki, especially around Lake Kasumigaura, there are many villages which continue to keep alive a very interesting custom, which is especially fun for the kids. The spirits of ancestors don’t have to walk from the graveyard. They are transported IN STYLE, on the backs of large dragons or snakes of straw, carried by the village children from the cemetery to EACH HOUSE IN THE VILLAGE where the appropriate ancestors are dropped off with much merriment.

Fortunately, there are also a few neighborhoods in Tsukuba which still keep the same custom, called Bon Tsuna (盆綱), or Tsuna Bon (綱盆). I joined two separate such events (in different parts of Tsukuba) this evening, and I would like to tell you about them.

Before the war, Bon Tsuna had been practiced in numerous hamlets in what is now Tsukuba City. It is now found in only a handful. Today I went around with the the straw dragon of Kami-Sasagi, near Tsukuba Hospital and the Space Center, and also that of Kurihara, farther north, near Tsukuba’s heliport.

In both of these magnificent hamlets, the children make the straw dragons on the morning of the 13th, with the help of some adults. At the end of the day, this year’s dragons are burned. In Sasagi, the dragon was more elaborately made, and well… more dragon-like, while its Kurihara counterpart seemed to be a thick pole made of straw.

The kids of Kurihara, however, certainly, showed lots of enthusiasm and stamina. They carried the heavy pole to more than 30 houses. They ran up to each house with a cry: “The spirits have arrived!” Then they proceeded to toss the dragon into the air about ten times before going on to the next house. In Sasaki, the same went on without the tossing and chanting.

Besides these straw dragons, both in Tsukuba and in some other area of Japan it is customary to decorate the Buddhist altar with a horse and an ox, made from a cucumber and an eggplant, respectively. These are also meant to represent rides for the spirits, and they are often cast off onto rivers or into the sea at the end of the festival. These decorations are fun for kids and utilize IN SEASON vegetables. A friend of mine in his 80s, Yoshida-san, told me something that I had never heard or read anywhere before. He said that the cucumber horse was meant for the arriving spirits, because horses are fast, the ox is for the departure, because it is slower, allowing for some last lingering moments with mortal loved-ones.

Making horses and oxen

When you are living in Japan, but you cannot read Japanese very fluently, it may seem like it is impossible to find out about things that are going on. To be honest, even if you can read Japanese, it can be hard to find things out — like the schedule for the events at Tsukuba Capio and Nova Hall. These events used to be listed in the city hall newsletter, but for some reason, the city government decided to stop publishing the information when they went to once-per month distribution of the newsletter. (It used to be published twice per month.)

I don’t always have time to translate the information that I find around Tsukuba, but I think that it is important to at least let people know about it so they can find out more if they are interested. The latest Tsukuba City Hall Newsletter was published today, so I made a list of some of the topics you might be interested in finding more about. The links below all go to pages in the latest newsletter, so the information is all in Japanese. However, if you want to find out more about a particular topic, print out the relevant page or get a copy of the newsletter from somewhere around Tsukuba and find someone to translate the information for you. (Or, you could use it as a reading exercise if you are studying kanji!)

Tsukuba Industrial Fair
October 10-12, 2008
See: Page 1

Tsukuba Culture Festival
November 1-9, 2008
See: Page 2 and Page 3

Rabies Shots for Dogs
See: Page 6

Tsukuba Citizen’s Day
November 30, 2008
See: Page 7

Health Checkup for Students who will Enter Elementary School in 2009
(Children born between April 2, 2002 and April 1, 2003)
See: Page 8

How to Start Receiving Digital Broadcasting
See: Page 8

City-run Kindergartens Accepting Students for 2009
See: Page 9

Nursery Schools Accepting Students for 2009
See: Page 9

October is Ibaraki Tree Month
See: Page 9

The YMCA recently contacted Alien Times to ask us to let foreign parents know that they are accepting children into their day care program.

Eligibility: Children who are three years old as of April 1, 2008 (limited to 28 children)
Location: Ibaraki YMCA (24-7 Higashi Arai, Tsukuba), their sister organization “YMCA Child Care Home” is located next door
Days: Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Time: 9:30am to 12 noon (From October, they eventually start to bring lunches and can stay until after 1pm.)
Fees: 25,000 yen entrance fee (one time), 30,000 yen activity fee (one time), 24,000 yen monthly fees (except August). Total yearly cost: 264,000 yen

If the child takes a holiday from the day care, the parents will still be expected to pay a portion of the fees. Also, there are some programs that siblings may attend, but parents will be expected to cover the costs for the sibling.

There are three terms and the program runs for a total of 39 weeks. There are special activities on Saturdays during the terms.

The program includes two qualified child care workers, a physical education instructor, assistants, and student volunteers. There are always at least three adults taking care of the children. The day care also organizes interviews with the guardians of the children.

It is possible to communicate with some of the day care staff in English. They also have activities for elementary school students, including an after school program, camping, day camp, etc.

Please see the Ibaraki YMCA website for more information and feel free to call them or email them in English if you have any questions.

I was surprised, when I first noticed that they grew commonly in the gardens of Tsukuba`s newer , as well as older neighborhoods. They were often on branches which had grown out over their houses` fences , dangling seductively, just over the heads of anyone who happened to be walking along the sidewalk. I had always associated them with the Middle-East (they are listed in the bible as one of the seven species of the Land of Israel), or The Caucasus (where they were originally cultivated), and I had fond memories from many years earlier of staining my face and clothes while very unskillfully partaking of their sour yet sweet and very RED seeds.
Im talking about pomegranates (zakuro, in Japanese), the large ,leathery-skinned ,red berries which have been cultivated in Europe and the Near East since ancient times. When the fruits casing is cracked open ( a  tricky thing to do well) the seeds are chewed softly and then spit out. Pomegranates  are  a major feature in the food culture of Persia , Armenia ,Turkey and Greece, and its juice is drunk in many other countries (there was a big zakuro juice boom in Japan about 4 years ago, as it was promoted for its beauty enhancing and female hormone balancing properties).  

Experts claim that the pomegranate had made its way to China by the 3rd century, and there are records of its having appeared in Japan by the 8th .By now ,the zakuro has become a common in the gardens of private homes in Japan. It is mostly considered to be an ornamental  tree, but its fruit is sometimes eaten (though much less frequently than one would expect), turned into juice or liquor, or even used as medicine( for stopping diarrhea, getting rid of parasites, or gargling). 

Most people that I have talked to about these beautiful fruits have told me that even if they had them growing in their gardens they would have only nibbled on them once or twice ,since they were difficult to eat and usually too sour for their taste. Home-made Zakuro-Shu (pomegranate seeds soaked in  liquor )seems to be, far and away the most common way of dealing with home grown zakuro (and is surely my favorite way of enjoying them myself ! ) This is good news for any lover of this fruit, because it means that friends, neighbors, or even strangers might give you a bagful if you show interest !

Though the zakuro is not a major player in the Japanese culinary world, it does have special cultural significance, especially in connection with KISHIBOJIN (sometimes called Kishimojin or kariteimo , etc), a popular Goddess of Childbirth and motherhood who can usually be seen, in sculpture or painting, holding a pomegranate in her right hand. The reason for this is quite simple - zakuro are bursting with an abundance of juicy seeds - making it a perfect symbol of fertility. Pomegranate images also can be found adorning the many famous temples dedicated to this Goddess, who started out on the long cultural journey to Japan as the Hindu Goddess Hariti. Her story is one of learning to empathize with the suffering of others . Here is basically how it goes -

Hariti ( Kishibojin ) was originally a selfish and heartless woman, who would feed her own numerous children the flesh of other children whom she had abducted and slaughtered (she also lived on human flesh) .To show her the error of her ways, the Buddha kidnapped one of HER children, keeping him hidden away. This threw Hariti into a state of frenzied anxiety, and she scoured the globe, in vain for her precious son . this experience led her to an awareness of the terrible suffering which she had been inflicting for so long upon countless parents. She became a fervent adherent of Buddhist doctrines, and eventually became revered herself as a protector of children, mothers and marital bliss.

Kishibojin in Hojo in Spring

There are numerous temples in Japan famous for the worship of Kishibojin. These almost always feature statues of the her holding a zakuro. Besides it being a sybol of fertility, some say that the bloody red seeds of the pomegranate represent a replacemnt for the human flesh on which she and her children once lived.

 The most famous of these temples in Tokyo are in Meguro , Zoshigaya and Iriya (this last Kishiboji Temple hosts the famous annual morning glory market).  In Tsukuba`s Hojo district I was introduced to a small and secluded, hill-top shrine dedicated to the Goddess (her Shinto manifestation - Suiten )by local artist and musician Thomas Mayers (it is a favorite spot of his). I had almost discovered the place myself once, but the Japanese friend who was driving me was frightened off by the creepy Jizo signboards posted at the foot of the hill. Possibly the most interesting feature of this too little known spot is the large natural rock used as the washing basin (chozuya). There is also an old and mostly faded painting (on a wooden tablet) of Kishibojin and her children.

A Japanese Language encyclopedia I consulted stated that there were differernt attitudes towards zakuro , as connected with Kishibojin, depending on the region. Ibaraki was used as an example for an area which has a very positive image. The article said that in Ibaraki children are set to play under pomegranate trees, as it will keep them healthy, especially emotionally (I have been asking around but no one i have spoken to has confirmed this story).

In contrast, the entry said that in Tottori Prefecture the zakuro is avoided because it looks like blood, and , I quote- likes to hear the sick moan.

For much more about Kishiboji, and plenty of pictures see- www.onmarkproductions.com/html/kariteimo.html