The world largest fish market, TSUKIJI, the students from Yap visited this morning and walk around the area observing huge tunas and other fishes from the world.
2日目、朝7時発で築地魚市場へ。大混雑の中で、巨大なマグロなどが売られているのを見学しました。
The small aisles run like the shape of a huge fun. Shoppers and workers were quite busy in the morning hours.
縦横に走る通路は、働いている人たちで大混雑。その中をすり抜けるように見学しました。
Some tunas are from Japan ocean and some are from far away.
大きなマグロは、国内だけでなく、世界各地から来ていました。
The recycling facility for styrofoam boxes was also in the most busiest situation.
発泡スチロールのリサイクル施設も大忙しでした。
Then, we visited the huge dumping site in the Tokyo bay which has more than 500 ha reclaimed land fill area.
From 6 p.m. we have dinner together. Deep fried fish, cooked chicken, salad, soup and rice. Nothing similar to food in Yap, students finished dishes quickly. Tomorrow, we will go to the fish market in TSUKIJI area from 7 a.m. so students went back to their rooms after finishing reflection session.
A total of 20 people, including company workers, students, and families from various countries,visited Tochikubo, Niigata Prefecture from Tokyo metropolitan area. They enjoyed walking around the area and rice planting over the weekend.
The holiday agricultural project, ABC in a rice paddy, was held on 21 and 22 of May. It is a series of programs throughout the year, and this time, the first occasion of the year, was about rice planting.
On the first day, participants went for a walk in Tochikubo area with a villager, FUEKI Akira. From the centre of village to the top of Mt Taru, 736m, they enjoyed encounters with varieties of mountain vegetables and some rare wildlife. Although it was summer-like hot, they managed to reach the peak and one participant said \”When I stood at the top and saw how far we have come, I felt that I had achieved something\”.
After coming back from the mountain, they had a lecture and learned about the different types of rice seedlings, process of rice farming without any chemicals and pesticides, history and current challenges of rice farming in Tochikubo.
A snap from bird watching session in the early morning. Local children also joined it and enjoyed together.
On the second day, early in the morning, most participants and some locals joined a bird watching session by FUKASAWA Kazuki. Despite of poor visibility due to mist and rain, his knowledge helped participants have a great time. At the very moment he talked about the sound of rare bird species, Akashobin (ruddy kingfisher), participants actually heard it. Whenever someone or Fukasawa found wildlife such as frogs, salamanders, and insects in the water, he provided an instant lecture about the features and ecosystem of them.
Rice planting began, having waited for the rain to calm down. It was well-supported by locals as participants learned a traditional way to band rice plants with straws, and planted them. They went into a rice paddy together with baskets filled with bunches of rice seedlings.
After rice planting. People from various countries participated in the program.
At lunch time, a group formed by local women called \”Kaachanz\” (Team-mothers) served miso soup with lots of local vegetables and dried fish. Everyone appreciated the soup as it warmed up their cold body from inside. Many people went into the kitchen to have the second of the miso soup.
Participants continued planting rice in the afternoon, and managed to finish the whole paddy around 2:30. They got a compliment from a local person on how straight they could plant.
Thanks to the knowledge and skills of local people, ABC in a rice paddy in 2011 has been kicked off!
