The topic I chose is Japanese sports and games, especially sumo and other sports. I chose Japan because I went to a camp where some Japanese tourists were staying and I met some great people. They were so friendly and kind that I want to find out more about their culture.
I chose sports because I like to play sports and I’m interested in what kinds of things they like to do in their free time.
I took a Japanese odyssey class in elementary school and I learned some interesting facts about the Japanese culture. The Japanese people are generally short, smart people who are generally interested in technology. They make good cars and they go to school all year long and all week long. As a culture, they eat lots of rice, and modern teens like to play video games.
Sports are very popular in Japan. Baseball, soccer, boxing, and sumo wrestling are some of the most popular sports they play. Sumo wrestling is very popular in Japan. Generally, Two humungous men square up in a circular mat. They wear only a diaper-like cloth while they push and run into each other to try to get his opponent to fall to the mat or step out of the ring.
I want to find out more of the Japanese culture and how they spend their time. I want to know what other sports they like and which ones are televised. I wonder how old sumo is and if it is a tradition. Who participates? Are there requirements? How many people attend these tournaments, and what kind of people are they? Where they held? Is it an Olympic event? I know that Americans have sumo suits and I wonder how the Japanese feel about that. These are my goals for what I want to learn, and also it is what I expect of myself.
I hope that with this project I can learn more about the culture and sports, and general knowledge about other cultures can help me see the big picture of people in the world.