The Ho Chi Minh City Youth Cultural House was a splash of colors last Sunday: Young people were dressed up as Lolita and as characters from popular comic books; people sat around tables folding color papers under instruction from an origami group; camera flashes were going off everywhere.
It was the Vietnam- Japan Day hosted by the Japanese consulate, and the venue was filled with young people.
In another corner, some people were trying to make sense of ukiyo-e, or traditional Japanese paintings, featuring motifs like landscapes and historic tales.
Displayed in a room were an elegant red kimono, vases with flowers, handmade toys, and miniatures of Japanese heritage sites.
Kim Hoan, 24, looks closely at the miniatures, reading the descriptions in Japanese and Vietnamese, and occasionally explains to a friend.
“When I was a student, I often went to Japanese events like this,” Hoan, who majored in Japanese and is a regular at the annual event, says.
“Though I’m busy with work now, I still try to make time for this event.
“In previous years, there was only an exhibition of documents and pictures. This year, there are real objects that people can see and touch.”
There is a group of Asian youths. One speaks in Japanese and the other replies in Vietnamese. They are from the Tounichi Group, a Japanese club at the Ho Chi Minh City University of Social Science and Humanities.
“We’ve come here to see how Japanese culture is showcased,” Akaishi Hironori, who has learnt Vietnamese for three years and plans to get a degree in Vietnamese studies, explains.
“I can see the connection between the two cultures. For example, Vietnamese banana flowers are used in the Japanese flower arrangement, which I have never seen before,” Hironori says pointing to a large white vase with a variety of beautiful flowers.
“I really appreciate Vietnamese who are interested in Japan,” Nakamura Keiichi, who is in intermediate Vietnamese class says. “Friends at school sometimes ask me about different aspects of Japanese culture”
Hironori adds: “The event is indeed a good opportunity to promote our culture. However, I’d like to see more interaction between Japanese and Vietnamese -- like talk shows and music performances by people from the two countries.”
Present at the festival to support the drama performance by his Vietnamese students is Hidehisha Yusa, a teacher and manager of Nicco Japanese School.
“In our school, we have speech contests and Japanese festivals. This event is on a larger scale and open to everyone, not just students of Japanese. I’m delighted to see so many people coming today.”
Asked what event he had been most anticipating, he replies instantly: “Cosplay -- it is so colorful and fun!”
Cosplay, short for costume play, is a performance art in which participants dress up to represent fictional characters, mostly out of comic books. The art, which began in Japan, has now spread worldwide and is a big attraction among young people.
Indeed, at the Youth Cultural House, the cosplay venue was mobbed by people longing to see their favorite comic characters. There are excited shouts and screams and thunderous applause at the beginning and end of each performance.
At the back, standing on his toes to get a view past the throng, is Thomas Paine, an American who teaches history in the city.
“I used to live in Japan for two years and enjoy comic books, science fiction, and beautiful cosplay shows. It is great to see the cosplay performances today. I’m happy!”
After the performance, your correspondent met up with a petite French blonde in black glasses. But she turned out to be a Vietnamese girl, Truc Anh, 13.
She fell in love with Japanese comic books while in primary school and is a member of some cosplay groups on Facebook. Truc Anh takes part in cosplay performances three times a year, playing characters like Lolita and the comic book Card captor Sakura’s heroine Sakura Kinomoto.
“My parents allow me to do it as long as it doesn’t affect my study,” she replies when asked if they know about her interest.
“The costumes are a bit expensive but I don’t want to ask for money from them [parents]. And I hardly earn anything from cosplay performances. So, I have begun an online shop with a friend and we make enough money for the clothes.”
She points to her French maid costume and says it cost VND350,000 (US$18).
At 6pm the event is over but many people still linger.
“Japan has a very rich culture and they know how to turn normal things like drinking tea or arranging flowers into an art,” Hoan says.
“It is because they feel strongly about the need to preserve and promote their culture. I hope we can advertise more of our culture to the world like them.”
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