Japan in Brazil
2008 is the 100th anniversary of the Japanese emigration to Brazil. It's also marked as the year of cultural exchange between Brazil and Japan. Therefore, my trip from Japan to Brazil wasn't totally unnoticed.
I'm not saying anything about media. Just about peers, friends and relatives asking lots about Japan. Maybe even more than when I came back from Himeji. That was part of the reasons I thought of writing a faq... idea discarded afterwards. There are lots of other sources for observations about Japan. For Portuguese speakers, Muito Japão II is one I particularly enjoy reading. The writer has a very good eye to notice interesting points about Japan.
Nevertheless, one question that I thought was really relevant was: how were the 100th anniversary celebrations in Japan?
To put it short, way less celebrated than it was in Brazil. I won't say that there weren't celebrations. There were. Official and not. Big or small. The ones I've heard about or went to were nice (the previous link has more information). Still, I have the feeling that it was more celebrated in Brazil.
One interesting thing is that most Japanese celebrations were concentrated on the day Kasato Maru left Japan, while in Brazil it was when the ship arrived. Both points of view make sense, and it created funny situations like friends from Brazil asking how are preparations for the celebration after they happened in Japan, but before the ones in Brazil.
Changing the topic, I should write someday about the view some Brazilians have about Japan... especially considering I already did the opposite. Maybe some other day. Anyway, Japanese culture has been popular in Brazil during the last years. In good part because of modern Japanese culture, especially manga and anime. The interesting thing is it often leads people to look for other parts of Japanese culture, like language or traditional Japanese culture (tea ceremony, martial arts, bonsai). And in some cases they become interested in that as well.
But imported culture usually is filtered, adapted and/or slightly modified. From that mixture may come lots of good things. Brazil benefitted from the different origin of its inhabitants.
Still, I really wasn't expecting otaku to meet emo...
Yes, it's happening. Or at least it was my impression when I went to the places I used to buy Japanese manga. And that fusion, although makes some sense considering the stereotypes of these two groups, is a little weird... or is it just me?
Last, some Japanese-related stuff in my hometown...
Praça Nishinomiya is a Japanese-themed square in front of the airport that have been the stage of some activities related to Brazil-Japan exchange. Nevertheless, in 2008 another square was built, in part as part of the centenary celebrations: Praça Tomi Nakagawa. Prince Naruhito was present during the inauguration ceremony, although only briefly.
Then, from September 5th to 7th there was a Japanese festival called Londrina Matsuri. Although it used to be held at Praça Nishinomiya, this year it happened in Parque Ney Braga. That's the same place where some months before there was a huge event celebrating the centenary of Japanese immigration (IMIN 100). I wasn't there, but all comments about the IMIN 100 were very positive.
The matsuri was obviously smaller than the IMIN, and for those who had been to both, comparing both events was unavoidable. Perhaps the greater loss was it not being an open event anymore. Now it required an entrance fee and was in a more distant place. One of the reasons for the change was perhaps security, since an open event in Brazil may attract the wrong kind of people... At least the there was more space and the stands for shops were better than at the square.
I went only on the 7th to, among other things, watch a performance of my former ballroom dance academy. There were also other performances, like Okinawan dances (one of the leaders is a girl who went to Okinawa the same year I was in Himeji), taiko and music.
But the most expected attraction was obviously the Matsuri Dance. It's a little hard to explain... Pick bon odori, put some band (or playback) playing J-pop and substitute the choreographies for something that may vary from funk carioca and axé to awa odori... Popular among some young people, especially Japanese descendents and/or anime lovers.
Anyway, guess a video is the best way to show what it looks like.
It has changed since I used to be in the middle of the crowd as well... It looks more and more like a band show since most people don't bother keeping the circular movement (characteristic of bon odori) anymore. Plus, the choreographies are becoming more and more "Brazilian like" using more popular J-pop songs. Guess that's evolution... can't stop it.
I'm not saying anything about media. Just about peers, friends and relatives asking lots about Japan. Maybe even more than when I came back from Himeji. That was part of the reasons I thought of writing a faq... idea discarded afterwards. There are lots of other sources for observations about Japan. For Portuguese speakers, Muito Japão II is one I particularly enjoy reading. The writer has a very good eye to notice interesting points about Japan.
Nevertheless, one question that I thought was really relevant was: how were the 100th anniversary celebrations in Japan?
To put it short, way less celebrated than it was in Brazil. I won't say that there weren't celebrations. There were. Official and not. Big or small. The ones I've heard about or went to were nice (the previous link has more information). Still, I have the feeling that it was more celebrated in Brazil.
One interesting thing is that most Japanese celebrations were concentrated on the day Kasato Maru left Japan, while in Brazil it was when the ship arrived. Both points of view make sense, and it created funny situations like friends from Brazil asking how are preparations for the celebration after they happened in Japan, but before the ones in Brazil.
Changing the topic, I should write someday about the view some Brazilians have about Japan... especially considering I already did the opposite. Maybe some other day. Anyway, Japanese culture has been popular in Brazil during the last years. In good part because of modern Japanese culture, especially manga and anime. The interesting thing is it often leads people to look for other parts of Japanese culture, like language or traditional Japanese culture (tea ceremony, martial arts, bonsai). And in some cases they become interested in that as well.
But imported culture usually is filtered, adapted and/or slightly modified. From that mixture may come lots of good things. Brazil benefitted from the different origin of its inhabitants.
Still, I really wasn't expecting otaku to meet emo...
Yes, it's happening. Or at least it was my impression when I went to the places I used to buy Japanese manga. And that fusion, although makes some sense considering the stereotypes of these two groups, is a little weird... or is it just me?
Last, some Japanese-related stuff in my hometown...
Praça Nishinomiya is a Japanese-themed square in front of the airport that have been the stage of some activities related to Brazil-Japan exchange. Nevertheless, in 2008 another square was built, in part as part of the centenary celebrations: Praça Tomi Nakagawa. Prince Naruhito was present during the inauguration ceremony, although only briefly.
Then, from September 5th to 7th there was a Japanese festival called Londrina Matsuri. Although it used to be held at Praça Nishinomiya, this year it happened in Parque Ney Braga. That's the same place where some months before there was a huge event celebrating the centenary of Japanese immigration (IMIN 100). I wasn't there, but all comments about the IMIN 100 were very positive.
The matsuri was obviously smaller than the IMIN, and for those who had been to both, comparing both events was unavoidable. Perhaps the greater loss was it not being an open event anymore. Now it required an entrance fee and was in a more distant place. One of the reasons for the change was perhaps security, since an open event in Brazil may attract the wrong kind of people... At least the there was more space and the stands for shops were better than at the square.
I went only on the 7th to, among other things, watch a performance of my former ballroom dance academy. There were also other performances, like Okinawan dances (one of the leaders is a girl who went to Okinawa the same year I was in Himeji), taiko and music.
But the most expected attraction was obviously the Matsuri Dance. It's a little hard to explain... Pick bon odori, put some band (or playback) playing J-pop and substitute the choreographies for something that may vary from funk carioca and axé to awa odori... Popular among some young people, especially Japanese descendents and/or anime lovers.
Anyway, guess a video is the best way to show what it looks like.
It has changed since I used to be in the middle of the crowd as well... It looks more and more like a band show since most people don't bother keeping the circular movement (characteristic of bon odori) anymore. Plus, the choreographies are becoming more and more "Brazilian like" using more popular J-pop songs. Guess that's evolution... can't stop it.
2 comments:
Sem falar no mangá da Turma da Mônica! A Turma da Mônica era um marco da cultura brasileira e agora também tem a versão niponizada…
Hisashiburi...
Vc continua escrevendo muito bem. Isso pq era resistente ao blog antes de começá-lo.
boa sorte aí no japan...
t+
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