[Date & Time] Thursday, Dec. 18, at 10:00~17:30
[Spots] Tsurugaoka-Hachimangu Shrine, Kotokuin Temple (Great Budda), Hasedera Temple, and Yuigahama Beach
[Visitors] A French Couple (around 60)
[Attendant] 1 KSGG member
[Language] French
It was as moderate and clear as we could see all the way from Hachimangu to the beach. The couple who were from Rouen, where Jeanne d’Arc was put to the stake and the cathedral famous for the works drawn by Monet is, had already visited Japan several times. They have made a tour of Japan, and seemed to appreciate Japanese culture deeply. Since the attendant had an experience of having been moved by Monet’s works in Paris, she said, “We had an exciting conversation about history and arts.” When she told them that Notre-Dame’s construction in Paris and the Hundred Years War started almost at the same time as the Ashikaga Shogunate did, they seemed to have felt the history of Japan and France closer. As the history of the Mongolian Invasions into Japan is televised and Japan is introduced in many fields to promote tourism, they said that an increase in the number of tourists from France should be expected, they said. The three of us were sheerly astonished to know that there were such active communication opportunities in French here in Japan with junior high school students exercising their club activities, senior citizens taking a stroll, souvenir storekeepers, and tourists from Europe. We felt that small exchanges have made the world really closer. I was really encouraged by the fact that we can share our wonderful nature, history and heart under the clear sky like this will help lead to the world peace more than materialism and mammonism. This is the very role of volunteers. I parted from them at Yokohama Station thanking for having a chance to communicate with those living and appreciating the merit in the same way.