Students fold origami paper figures at the Japanese New Year celebration on Saturday afternoon in lower Alexander Dining Hall. (Michael Pickering)
Combing miso soup, Dance Dance Revolution and a drum concert, the Japanese Culture Language Club's (JCLC) Japanese New Year celebration this weekend did more than entertain and feed Miami University students - it brought a piece of Japan to Oxford.
Junior Heather Bosak attended the event Saturday in lower Alexander Dining Hall, which attracted more students than in year's past, according to members of JLCL.
"I came to watch four of my friends perform the traditional dance and ended up learning how to make a paper crane with the traditional origami paper and write 'peace' in Japanese," Bosak said.
The celebration, which featured food and entertainment, is called Shinnenkai, according to JCLC vice president Amanda Hahn, and a number of the festivity's events were new this year.
"This year the traditional Soran bushi dance (performed by Miami's Asian American Association) was new," Hahn said. "From year to year, the menu changes, depending what the officers choose to cook and buy."
Hahn is a senior East Asian culture and languages major and has been involved with the Shinnenkai celebration since her first year at Miami. She said that this year in particular, the group saw a greater diversity in the students attending the event, including many from outside of the Asian studies academic community.
The celebration Saturday consisted of four hours of activities and a wide array of traditional food. Some of the food, such as the miso soup and curry rice, was made by members of JCLC, while the mochi, a pounded sweet rice stuffed with red bean paste that is eaten as a dessert, was bought from a special Asian store that had it imported from Japan. Other more commonly known foods, like sushi and gyozi, were also served.
The Red Dragons Martial Arts club held a demonstration, members of JCLC and the Asian American Association performed, and the Cincinnati-Dayton Taiko Group gave a traditional drum concert.
Those in attendance had a chance to participate as well, through Dance Dance Revolution, learning to write names in Japanese, and the JCLC's Ramen game. The Ramen game is where one person is seated, a person behind is blindfolded and the blindfolded person and must feed the seated person.
Miami junior Kim Kelso said she loved the environment of the festival.
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"I chose to come because it's a really cultural atmosphere," Kelso said. "It's always really well-organized and the food is always great."
Every Thursday, JCLC eats dinner at a language table in the Alexander Dining Hall. During this dinner, members have an opportunity to speak Japanese and socialize with each other.
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