京都府立鳥羽高等学校

Today we received some comments from the five exchange students (three from the Kyoto Exchange Students House and two from Kyoto Friendship Ambassadors) who attended the Poetry Recital on May 29. You can read their comments below and in the next several posts.

Duygu Sahin (Turkey)
It was my first time attending such an event with poetry in Japan. So I was very excited to attend. Before the event, we received necessary information regarding the roles of each performer and the way the poems are cited. This made it easier to understand the scene, and follow the poems when read aloud. The rhythms and the musical tones were very surprising and new for me since our culture is completely different. Performers were well studied with their good voices. The clothes were dazzling as always. After the event, the explanation from Sensei and the English translations of the students helped a lot to uncover what is really being told. I really enjoyed the event and learned a lot about waka. I am now thinking of studying and enjoying waka more thanks to the students and the teachers. I find these cultural values to be always eye catching and interesting. They can be well preserved as well as get well integrated into the modern world which would put more uniqueness and taste to the plate. At this point, the interest of youth plays an important role. Moreover, being able to learn and perform these cultural values at young ages contributes to the way of thinking, seeing and doing things in a unique and elegant way integrating the past and the present. As an art enthusiast, I would love to see how this waka will evolve with the contribution of Japanese youth.