DAY THREE: Chen Xiongling
Today is the third day of PAHSA Short Program in Peace and Human Security at Nagasaki University and we spent most of the day on a field trip, although later in the day we regrouped at the university and discussed the day’s events. It was a precious time to learn more about Japanese culture and Nagasaki’s fascinating history.
First, We went to Nagasaki Museum of History and Culture. When touring the Museum, we not only got to known the historical connections between China and Nagasaki, but also learned more about the influences from Europe‘s trade and Christianity in Nagasaki, a port city. It is a spot that brought modernization from abroad to Japan. It made me realize how Nagasaki became open for foreigners, both for trade and to share in the religions of Buddhism and Christianity. Besides this, Nagasaki also has another key influencer, China, and particularly Chinese culture; this is still seen today alongside the Western cultural influences. Indeed, even though we now live in a globalized world, earlier influences can still be distinctly felt here. This is apparent with the thriving Chinatown and the well-kept Christian churches.
After we visited the museum, we then separated into two groups. Group A went to Japanese temple while Group B visited the Western church. I was in Group A. It was fantastic to see a Japanese temple that was combined in its construction with the Chinese style. From the decoration of temple, I could feel the culture fusion between China and Japan. Moreover, I tasted traditional Japanese tea and we tried our hand at making it. When the meaning of the tea bowl was explained to us, we were impressed by the enriched meaning of the tea ceremony and the significance of tea in Japan.
The next stop was to Dejima museum. We learned here about a Fan-shaped artificial island that connected Japan with the world, it was constructed in 1636, and for more than 200 years during Japan’s period of isolation, Dejima acted as the only window open to overseas trade. There were many westerners that lived and traded here. We leaned that despite the perception that Japan was cut off, in this way, Japan was open to trade in this limited way.
After our field trip, we had a round table discussion. Today’s topic was about the foreigners’ community in Nagasaki and the relationship between Japan, China, and Korea.
The Professor also explained the reasons why some Japanese still pay respect at the Yasukuni shrine. We got to known more about Japanese beliefs and traditions. It was also good to discus the thriving Chinese community in Nagasaki. Despite the difficulties that are reported in the Japan/China relationship, Chinatown in Nagasaki is the best witness to the good relations at the people-to-people level in the local community, the Chinese New Year Festival and Lantern Festival in Nagasaki are also good examples here. Given what we’ve seen today, I feel positive that the connection between Japan and China could tighten in a positive manner if the two country’s peoples had the opportunity to get known each other better. This I suppose is also the thinking behind the PAHSA Program. Knowing and understanding one another builds bridges, and bridges are key components for Peace and Human Security.
We’re all looking forward to the rest of the program!