Japanese guests enjoy taste of Marlboro’s hospitality

Trips to Great
Adventure, Yankees game are highlights

By larry ramer
Staff Writer

Japanese guests enjoy taste
of Marlboro’s hospitality
Trips to Great
Adventure, Yankees game are highlights
By larry ramer
Staff Writer


VERONICA YANKOWSKI Yuka Yamakawa enjoys a game of cards with Rithu Ramachandran of Marlboro during a visit to the Marlboro Swim Club. Yamakawa was among a group of students from Johana, Japan, who enjoyed a recent visit to Monmouth County.VERONICA YANKOWSKI Yuka Yamakawa enjoys a game of cards with Rithu Ramachandran of Marlboro during a visit to the Marlboro Swim Club. Yamakawa was among a group of students from Johana, Japan, who enjoyed a recent visit to Monmouth County.

The Japanese students, dressed in traditional, colorful Japanese clothing, stood in two receiving lines, cheerfully greeting American students and adults, who were mostly clad in standard Amer-ican suits and dresses.

This scene took place on Aug. 26 at the Battleground Country Club in Manalapan, during a "Sayonara Dinner" which commemorated the final night of a week-long visit to Marlboro by a group of Japan-ese students and adults from Johana, Japan.

Since the Japanese students were hosted by families from Marlboro, children from both countries had plenty of opportunities to interact with one another and to learn about each other’s culture. In a week that included visits to the beach and a New York Yankees baseball game, as well as the opportunity to sample various American and Japanese foods, the children also had fun.

This is the 13th summer that students and adults from Johana, located in the western part of the country near the Sea of Japan, have traveled to Marlboro in the framework of a cultural exchange program between Marlboro and Johana, the founder of the program, R. Michael Wirin, said.

The program is now called the Marlboro-Johana Sister City Exchange Program. Wirin, a Marlboro resident, said he had the idea of starting the exchange while he was an English teacher in Johana. He convinced the Johana Board of Education and the Marlboro Township Council to implement the program, he explained.

Wirin, a proponent of bringing people throughout the world closer together, said he found the best way of accomplishing this is by carrying out projects at the local level that can eventually branch out and affect events on the international stage. Young people, he added, are great diplomats.

"Kids, who are not affected by prejudice, can teach adults how to be better citizens of the world. Young people can remind adults that we should be more focused on our similarities rather than our differences," he said.

The Japanese students said they enjoyed their visit to America and staying with families in Marlboro. Reading from pre­pared English speeches and speaking in enthusiastic, but sometimes halting, English, all of the students praised their hosts. Many described the Marlboro resi­dents with whom they lived as kind or in­teresting.

Several of the Japanese children said they liked their hosts’ smiles, while others raved about their hosts’ cooking. All of them said they enjoyed their stay in America, citing the beauty of Marlboro and the fun of Six Flags Great Adventure theme park, among other things.

The visits by the Japanese also gave the Marlboro families some memorable expe­riences.

Anish Reddy, 13, of Marlboro, said he learned a few words of Japanese, including the Japanese words for "Oh, I see" and "delicious."

Andrea Block of Marlboro, a host mother, said the two Japanese girls who stayed at her home cooked her family an authentic Japanese dinner. Block’s daugh­ter, Leah, 14, said she enjoyed learning about a new culture and going swimming with the Japanese girls.

The Japanese and American children manage to bond together in spite of any language barriers that existed.

JoAnn Denton, a former Marlboro councilwoman who co-chairs the exchange program and is a host mother, said, "Language is not an issue [for the children]. They are so alike in their interests that language is not a barrier. Video games are the same, and so is basketball, baseball and soccer. Children are able to communicate in ways adults cannot."

With the help of translations by Wirin, who speaks fluent Japanese, several of the visiting Japanese students said they were amazed by the size of various objects in America, compared with Japan.

"Everything here is big — skyscrapers, the Statue of Liberty, and all of the build­ings. Everywhere I looked there was open, green space in Marlboro," said Tomohiro Yasumura, 14.

Wirin explained that Japanese homes do not have lawns; any spare space in front of a Japanese home is usually covered with rice paddies.

Murata Yuka, 15, said the large size of the eggplants and green peppers in America surprised her. Another student, Tomoaki Ogawa, thought that Coca Cola bottles and hamburgers are very big in America.

Several Japanese and American digni­taries attended the Sayonara dinner. All of them said the exchange program is very beneficial.

"This program was one of the highlights of my time as mayor. This is a pure, natural loving program … that helps bring an understanding of our way of life to another country. It is wonderful to see young people from both countries interact," Mayor Matthew Scannapieco said.

Johana Council Chairperson Tomoyuki Kawai said, "This whole stay was a won­derful experience for our students. We have wonderful memories of it. The confi­dence of our students has grown two to three times since they arrived. We feel a friendship with everybody in Marlboro. Because of this project, the friendship be­tween our cities has deepened and widened, and will last forever."

State Sen. John O. Bennett presented the students with a certificate of commen­dation from the state Legislature during the event.

Marlboro Councilman James Mione, the Township Council’s liaison to the Marlboro-Johana Committee, was also on hand and said the program allows the students to "exchange ideas and smiles."

"The Japanese students are so happy to be in America and enjoy the freedoms we have here," Mione said.