Visit of the Isahaya Agricultural Highschool

The Leiden Friends of Nagasaki Foundation paid its latest visit to the Isahaya High School for Agriculture.  They were greeted by Mr. Hayashi, the school’s director, head teacher Mr. Maeda and Mr. Uchikawa, head of the veterinary sciences department.

They spoke at length about the prospect of establishing ties wth the Netherlands, in particular to enhancing and enriching the school’s curriculum.  Naturally their interest lies with the Netherlands – a recognized leader in the field of agriculture.
The school offers a wide variety of courses including flower arranging (Ikebana), animal care (pet shop), agriculture and horticulture, farm and livestock and bio & life science studies.  Graduates are skilled in both management and research & development sectors in these courses.

At a press briefing the results of a 2-year study (from cultivation to finished product) were presented.  The product:  AsuTaro is a joint venture between university students and locale manufacturers.

The school is interested in establishing contacts in the Netherlands, interested parties are requested to follow this link to our website for further information.

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Courtesy visit to the Matsura Historical Museum and Former Dutch Trading Post Hirado

The Leiden Friends of Nagasaki Foundation recently visited the Matsura Historical Museum and the former Dutch trading post in in Hirado.
In a beautifully restored traditional Japanese tea house they were welcomed by the director of the museum, Mr. Y. Okayama. 

Ronald Hilhorst and Yoshiharu Okayama in the tea house of the Matsura Historical Museum.

They enjoyed traditional Japanese green tea and sweets in the splendid surroundings of a characteristic garden.  In addition to the historic ties between Leiden and Japan that span over 4 centuries, the ties between Leiden and Nagasaki also include Hirado where the first Dutch trading post was established in the 16th century.  

According to resident Dutchman and present-day chief Remco Vrolijk, ties exist between Hirado and Noordwijkerhout as wel as Hirado and Leiden. After interesting talks and a tour of the museum 
it was time to take out leave and bid goodbye to Hirado.

 

 

Visit of the Dejima Restoration Office

Ronald Hilhorst, Secretary of the Leiden Friends of Nagasaki Foundation   (ライデン日蘭協会) visited the Dejima Restoration Office  recently

(出島復元整備室) and was welcomed by the director Junji Mamitsuka.

Ronald Hilhorst and Junji Mamitsuka at the main entrance to Dejima Island

Ronald Hilhorst and Junji Mamitsuka at the main entrance to Dejima Island

The two discussed the existing ties between Nagasaki and Leiden and the prospects to strengthen and further develop their mutual interests.  This year is an important one for Dejima as it will see the completion of the five warehouses on the island.  The final touches are now being added in time for the Siebold Collection Conference to be held in Nagasaki in October. Another milestone for Dejima will be the grand opening next year of the newly constructed land bridge.  In both cases all eyes will be on Nagasaki this year and next.

For more information on Dejima: http://nagasakidejima.jp/

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Courtesy call to The Japan-Netherland Society of Nagasaki and the Honorary Consul of the Netherlands

Today the ‘Leiden Friends of Nagasaki Foundation’  (ライデン日蘭協会) and the City of Leiden paid a courtesy call on the Japan-Netherlands Society of Nagasaki  (長崎日蘭協会) and the Honorary Consul of the Netherlands in Nagasaki.

We were given a warm welcome by Mr. Keizo Ueda, Chairman of the Japan-Netherlands Society and spoke at length about the friendly and historic ties between our two cities.

The Honorary Consul of the Netherlands in Nagasaki Mr. Masahide Shimazaki, emphasized the  importance of strengthening  and further developing the friendship affiliation between our cities.

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16 highschool students from Nagasaki will homestay in Leiden

After the highly successful visit in 2014, this summer 16 students from Nagasaki will visit Leiden. From 19-22 August they will stay with members and host families of the Leidse Alumni Vereniging ‘ Van Hier tot Tokio”. On August 19, the students will be received at City Hall then visit Japan Museum SieboldHuis and the Museum for Ethnology. There they will have an opportunity to meet with high school students from Leiden. At the weekend they will stay with their host families.

10th International SIEBOLD collection working conference

This year the The tenth International Siebold collection working conference will be held on October 20-22, 2016, in Nagasaki, Japan.

In view of this occasion, we are now inviting abstracts that will be reviewed by the international Conference Committee. We will only consider contributions based on research of Siebold’s various Japan collections, or the lives of Siebold and his direct collaborators.

For more information: (http://www.sieboldhuis.org/en/actueel/detail/10th_international_siebold_collection_working_conference)
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Comic book “Von Siebold and the plants from Japan”

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This year the Hortus Botanicus in Leiden will commemorate the German physician Philipp Franz von Siebold. A wide variety of activities will take place amongst which will be the release on May 1st of a comic book on Von Siebold’s plants written in Dutch  by Stephen Timmers.  Children visiting the Hortus will be given a copy free of charge.  A German edition will be available later this year.Strip

Establishment of the Leiden – Nagasaki Friendschip Association

Sinds kort heeft Leiden een nieuwe stichting met een Japans tintje.

Naar aanleiding van een Round Table bijeenkomst met verschillende organisaties, bedrijven en instellingen is de Stichting Leidse Vrienden van Nagasaki opgericht.

Sinds 2013 heeft Leiden een vriendschapsband met de stad Nagasaki. Nagasaki ligt op het meeste zuidelijke eiland van Japan: Kyūshū.

Al sinds 1600 met de landing van het Schip “De Liefde” op Kyūshū hebben Nederlanders en in het bijzonder Leidenaren een speciale band met deze stad door onze gedeelde lange geschiedenis.

Deze geschiedenis kan men onder andere vinden in de Hortus Botanicus, Museum Volkenkunde, Naturalis Biodiversity Center en natuurlijk het Japanmuseum SieboldHuis, maar ook op enorm veel plekken in de stad, in organisaties en bedrijfsleven.

De stichting Leidse Vrienden van Nagasaki brengt organisaties, bedrijven en instellingen in zowel Leiden als Nagasaki met elkaar in contact op allerlei vlakken zoals cultuur, muziek, kunst, onderwijs maar ook bedrijfsleven, detailhandel en culinair. Wij zijn een NederlandJapanplatform voor een ieder in de regio Leiden en Nagasaki.