Welcome to the Denver Takayama Sister City Committee
activities page
Our coming events, background, some past activities, related organizations
DSCI home page
Denver Takayama home page
Links about Denver Takayama
Join us
Suggestion Box
Our committee activities
Committee general information
Our Social Media Sites
Denver Takayama on FaceBook
Denver Takayama on Twitter
Denver Takayama on Instagram
Galleries and Past Activities
Pictures from 2020 events
Pictures from 2019 events
==> The Yatai project
Pictures from 2018 events
Pictures from 2017 events
Pictures from 2016 events
Pictures from 2015 events
Other organization's activities
Ainu - indigenous people of Japan
Millenium Actress
Mochi Magic
Volunteer opportunities
While many committee activities are on hiatus due to the coronavirus, we have a web page that encourages you to share thoughts and creations with the committee.
Join the DSCI Takayama committee on May 20th 6:00 pm MT
for a screening of The Birth of Saké, a documentary about
Yoshida Brewery, a family distillery with more than 140
years of history, in northern Japan, with an exclusive
introduction by the writer director Erik Shirai.
This film is the Winner of the 2015 Tribeca Film Festival
Best Documentary Director Special Jury Mention award, and
the 2016 Palm Springs International Film Festival Best
Documentary Film award and John Schlesinger Award.
Tickets are $15 per household.
BONUS: Each ticket purchase will include a coupon for 10% off the special Mother's Day price for Takayama sake and a related food order from Qi-Lin through the month of May 2021 (click here to see more details on this bonus feature).
Click here
to watch the trailer and to purchase your ticket.
Join us in Japan!
In Pursuit of
Japanese Fall Colors
The Denver Takayama Sister City Committee is planning a fall trip
to Japan, to view the fall colors and visit our friends in Takayama!
From October 30 through November 12.
Starting near the northenmost spot in the main island of Honshu and
traveling down to visit Tokyo then on to Takayama before heading home.
This trip features travel on Japan's famed rail services, including several segments on shinkansen - bullet trains; a stay in a ryokan (traditional Japanese inn), stunning views throughout the country and amazing foods and sights.
For two weeks visit this beautiful, mysterious country and revel in a whole different world.
The cost is $4,865 per person, double occupancy, including:
- All lodging and land transportation
- All breakfasts and five dinners
- Admissions and tours of selected sites
- Two trip leaders from our committee
- A tax deductible donation to the committee to support our student exchanges
The cost does not include:
- Airfare
- Single supplement charge
- Meals not mentioned above
- Personal item purchased in country
Special note: there is some chance Japan will not have re-opened its borders to travelers, in which case the trip will need to be cancelled. If that happens up to 30 days before departure, you will not lose any money.
If you want more information, or are ready to sign up, please contact Kay Fahlberg, our travel advisor from Ippo Travel, at 720-773-0039. Or you can email her here
If you are planning on traveling to Japan, with our group or on your own, it would help to have some background information. Here is some useful information about traveling to, and within, Japan
Click here to get coronavirus information for Japan
Events and Upcoming Activities
Regular monthly meeting
(Our monthly meetings are held on the 3rd Tuesday of each month)
Tuesday May 18th: 6:00-7:00-ish; location: online via Zoom.
Click here to request the Zoom meeting info (If you have trouble, simply send an email to gilasakawa@gmail.com.)
City of Takayama Park work day
Saturday May 22: 9:00 a.m. to noon.
Location: Colorado Blvd. at Cherry Creek Drive North. Park in the office park
parking lot north across from the park, west of the car wash.
Click
here
to sign up (tell us who is coming so we know how many to expect).
(If the email link does not work for you, just send Gil an email directly: takayama@denversistercities.org)
We will supply water, light snacks, bags and a few tools. If you have work gloves you might want them. You may want sunscreen if it's hot or a light cover up if its cool.
Virtual book club meeting
Tuesday June 1: 7:00-8:30-ish; location: online via Zoom.
Informal get together to discuss the book "Mistress Oriku: Stories from a Tokyo Teahouse"
by Matsutaro Kawaguchi.
This summary / review is found, word for word, on several sites (kobo.com,
goodreads.com, and librarything.com (and probably others)):
Sensitive, compassionate, and indomitable, Mistress Oriku has abandoned the
pleasure trades of Tokyo to run an elegant teahouse on the city's outskirts.
Despite her hopes for a quieter, less hectic life, she finds she can't escape
her involvement in the city's creative, intellectual and political circles.
Oriku finds herself the subject of unanticipated attention, because along with
her passion for music, theater and storytelling, she offers her own invaluable
talents: a vibrant appreciation of life, an unparalleled gift for hospitality,
and the maturity and sensitivity necessary to instruct young people in the
all-important arts of love. Her independent thinking and love of Tokyo's
traditions offer a unique perspective on the surprising complexity and
contradictions of the Japanese culture of the era.
... filled with clear-eyed nostalgia for the vanished--and entirely captivating--world of old Tokyo.
Email Steve Comstock
to request the Zoom meeting info (If you have trouble, simply send an email to steve@trainersfriend.com.)
All are welcome, but please let Steve know you wish to attend so he can send you the link
for the Zoom session
Click here to see who has already signed up to come
Find out about the Committee calendar, budgets, and so on ...
A look back at activities and
involvement of members and friends during 2019 - a retrospective
(.pdf document) (Last updated 11 January, 2020)
And a look at the impact of our committee in the
community in 2019 - (.pdf document) volunteer hours and dollars spent doing our work.
(Last updated 11 January, 2020
Why Denver Takayama is relevant to the larger community - Japanese, Japanese-American, all interested in Japan - in Denver and Colorado (.pdf document) (Last revised 1 February, 2017)
Denver / Takayama: the first 50 Years an historical record in English and Japanese. (.pdf document) (Last revised 23 August, 2010)
Technical paper on emails
(.pdf document - Some thoughts on how to make email safer from hackers and more effective)
(Written 26 March, 2015)
Getting a gun in Japan
(.pdf document) - No matter where you fall on the gun control issue, this article
I found on Facebook has some intriguing ideas.
(Uploaded 11 March, 2018)
Other Organization's Activities
Film / discussion series about the Ainu
May 7 / 14 / 21, 2021 - see below for details
The Ainu are the indigineous people of Japan. For many years they were looked down upon by other
Japanese. Recently there has been a movement to reclaim their heritage and pride in their
ancestry. Many Japanese-Americans today have Ainu blood in them, and they are beginning to explore the
meaning of that. Watch this free three part series on You Tube Live: (film and discussion)
Ainu in Diaspora Friday May 7, 7:00pm
Ainu Art Friday May 14, 7:00pm
Indigenous activism Friday May 21, 7:00pm
Japan America Society of Colorado events
Movie and discussion
View on your schedule, then join the discussion happening May 19, 6:30 on Zoom.
Watch "Millenium Actress" streaming on various platforms; this may be included in your personal subscription, or you may
need to rent or buy the movie. Check out:
Amazon prime,
iTunes / Apple TV
Google Play Movies & TV, and more.
Then on May 19 there will be a Zoom discussion of the film, free.
Go here
for more details and to register for the discussion.
Makin' Mochi Magic
May 27, 6:00-7:00 p.m: watch and do: make three kinds of mochi - cook along or just watch!
Go here
for more details and to sign up for this family friendly free event.
Note that ingredients list and Zoom link are sent upon registration.