[Spot] Nihon Minkaen
[Visitors] 11 JICA Yokohama participants from Turkey, Vanuatu, Iraq, Indonesia, Cambodia, East Timor, Fiji, Kenya, Brazil, and Japan
[Attendants] 2 KSGG members
[Language] English
We changed the schedule hastily that day for the participants to have more free time. We decided to make a group tour till 11:10 am, and then walk freely till 11:50 am. We met all the participants at the Museum House at 12:00 am.
After we explained the outline of Nihon Minkaen, we took pictures of us all and entered the Museum House. One of the KSGG members explained the differences in the houses of regional villages. Then the two of us explained the exhibits in turn. The participants listened attentively to us and sometimes asked us questions, which made us feel eager to tell them more for a longer time. We tried being careful of keeping time.
We visited several houses hurriedly to take a rest at the Yamashita House (Gassho Zukuri style house). At the Yamashita House we explained the house to them and chatted with participants around Irori (sunken hearth). They seemed to enjoy the atmosphere there. One of the participants asked a museum guide about the building materials of the house and so on. During the free time after that, they walked around freely in a small group. We accompanied each group and explained the houses. After visiting the Kudou House, all of us returned back to the meeting place and then parted. Around the end of the tour it began to be cloudy and a little cold, but it was good to finish the tour without rain and any trouble.