What Cassia Curran has to tell you about being a supporter of ICC
It might be geeky, but I was really thrilled when I heard that a Scottish Festa was being held at the ICC. During the ten-day-long festa, two Scottish Cafes were held. The first one started off with a fascinating talk by Seki Taeko Sensei on Scotland's geography, culture and historical relationship with Japan. I learned many interesting facts about Scotland which I hadn't known before, even though I have lived there! Whilst munching on Scottish shortbread, we chatted about a wide range of subjects. Afterwards, we decamped to the Hub near Baba to continue our discussion. That night I left with my address book full of new numbers!
The main event was the Scottish Dance Party or a “ceilidh” as it is called in Scotland. The event was a great ice-breaker for students of all nationalities to enjoy themselves together; at the very beginning people were a little shy but by the end, all of the sixty-plus group were dancing“Strip the Willow”, the traditional last dance of any ceilidh, in a long line that stretched down the entire hall. Later we were entertained by Tokyo Piping Society, who I can honestly say were better and far more tuneful than any of the bagpipers I have heard in Scotland!
All in all, the Scottish Festa has been the highlight of my year so far at Waseda University. Each event (I haven't even mentioned the film showings and the haggis tasting session and the trying on of kilts that went on as well) was really enjoyable and I truly appreciated the opportunity to make friends with students from various countries and to introduce to them the culture of my home university.
As they say in Scotland; “Aye, it were grand.”
Cassia (right) is a Bekka student of
the Center for Japanese Language
