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受講生20 女性

試験の様子

試験官は2人、いずれも日本人と見られる。女性と男性一人ずつの面接官で、女性の方が、全て英語で質問、男性の方からの質問はなし。

質問内容

(以下、J:日本人試験官、N:ネイティブ試験官、A:受験者)

A: (扉を開けて)宜しくお願いします。Good evening. Nice to meet you.

F (女性試験官): Good evening. Take your seat. What is your name?

A: My name is...

F: Where do you live?

A: I live in... But I was born and brought up in ... near ...

F: That’s nice. How did you come here today?

A: My husband drove me here.

F: Oh, you are lucky!

A: Yes. He doesn’t usually do this.

F: Was there no traffic jam? How long did it take?

A: No, there was no traffic jam. It took about 30 minutes or so.

F: Beside cherry blossoms, what is a flower that represents Japan?

A: The most important one must be chrysanthemum. It is the national flower of Japan, and it’s also used as the crest for the Imperial court.

F: Could you tell me about Ikebana?

A: Well, ikebana is Japanese traditional flower rrangement. It originated to decorate Buddhist altars, and later became an art to discipline oneself. To reach a certain level, and to get a license to teach others, it will take a long time.

F: Have you ever done it?

A: No, I haven’t done it yet. Oh, I forgot one thing. The basic idea of ikebana is harmony between men and nature. Excuse me. I haven’t done it before, but if I have time, I want to learn it in the future.

F: Please tell me about Japanese traditional costume, kimono.

A: Kimono is a Japanese traditional costume. Japanese people used to wear kimono in the daily life, everyday. But these days, we usually wear Western style clothes because they are easy to put on and cheaper than kimono. But we still wear kimono on some special occasions such as wedding ceremonies and Coming-of-Age Day. We also have informal cotton kimono called yukata. They are much easier to put on and inexpensive. We wear those cotton kimono in summertime for festivals.

F: When did Japanese people start wearing Western style clothes?

A: That’s from the Meiji Restoration. In 1868, the long lasted military government ended. And there was a political change. Since then, many things were changed. Samurai warriors were eradicated, and Japan was opened for the West, and clothing, food, buildings ? many things were Westernized.

F: When did you wear kimono last?

A: Oh, it was a long time ago. Actually my mother had a master license of kimono, so in many occasions, she asked me to wear kimono, but I think the last time I wore kimono was almost three years ago when I had some ceremony with my husband.

F: All right. By the way, when do the cherry blossoms bloom?

A: Well, it depends on the region. Because Japan is stretching about three thousand kilometers from north to south, cherry blossoms start blooming from south and to the north gradually. As far as in Tokyo, they bloom at the beginning of April. But if it’s a warm year, they bloom earlier.

F: What are you going to do when they bloom?

A: Every year, I go to see them and have cherry blossom viewing party.

F: What is a cherry blossom viewing party?

A: Friends or colleagues get together and bring their lunch boxes to a park, and then drink sake and beer with talking under the trees.

F: Why do Japanese people like cherry blossoms so much?

A: Well, in Japanese people’s spirit, we have a thought of “mujo”, which is the thought that “Nothing will last forever.” Because cherry blossoms bloom only for a short time, it matches this thought. Cherry blossoms have been loved by Japanese people for many centuries since ancient times. We love it.

F: Next, tell me about a new shopping area.

A: The newest one is in Ginza. I think it’s been only one month or so since it was opened. There is a new department store, called.... I forgot the name,... Ah, Maronier Gate. And there is another new department store of Marui in front of it. That is the newest area, but if you go to the Odaiba area, there are many shopping areas as well.

F: Tell me about Asakusa.

A: Yes. It’s close to my hometown. Asakusa is an old-fashioned town. It is famous for a big temple called Sensoji temple. Its symbol is kaminarimon-gate, or thunder-gate. At the gate, we can see a large red paper lantern hung there. If we go through the gate, there is a shopping street where you can find a lot of souvenirs. It is stretching to the entrance of the temple. Inside the temple, I mean, on the grounds of the temple, there is a five-story pagoda and a main building. You can also enjoy a boat cruise of the Sumida River from Asakusa.

F: OK, Ms... That’s all for today.

A: Thank you very much.

試験を終えて

印象としては随分質問の数が多くて長いなと思いました。実際、時間は測っていなかったものの15分以上はかかったと思います。

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