Author: Peter

Dear Swiss Citizens,

With a heavy heart, we have to inform you that due to the new State of Emergency in Tokyo and the current situation with Covid-19, the Swiss National Day Celebration (co-hosted by the Swiss Club Tokyo, the Swiss Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Japan and the Embassy of Switzerland) has to be cancelled.

Believe us, we did not make this decision lightly! A lot of work has already gone into the organization of the event, and it pains us to pull the plug — but after careful consideration, we came to the conclusion that cancellation is the best course of action under the given circumstances.

Let’s hope that we will be able to organize major get-together events again in the not too distant future!

Best wishes and stay healthy!

We are happy to announce that the Swiss Club Tokyo, the Swiss Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Japan and the Embassy of Switzerland in Japan are planning a Swiss National Day Celebration for Sunday, 1. August from 17:00 to 21:00 at the Keio Floral Garden “Ange”. And this time, we will have the pleasure to welcome Ambassador Andreas Baum in our midst as a guest of honor!

We are aware that these are difficult times, and organizing an event with a considerable number of guests is quite a challenge. We will do our best to adjust the format of the party in such a way, as to adhere to the current recommendations/regulations concerning the Covid-19 situation (physical distancing, hygiene, personal protection, etc.).
For details, please refer to the enclosed leaflet and application form.

Swiss Club Members, as well as members of the SCCIJ and the Japan Swiss Society, benefit from a considerably reduced admission fee of only JPY 3,000 as compared to JPY 5,000 for non-members.
If you are not a member of the Swiss Club Tokyo, but would like to take advantage of this special opportunity, please apply for membership and add the annual membership fee to the admission fee for the event (a membership application form is also attached to this message). 
Annual membership fees: JPY 3000 for individuals, JPY 5000 for family (includes spouse and children), and JPY 2000 for students.

Depending on developments regarding the ongoing situation with Covid-19, a last-minute cancellation of the event cannot be ruled out entirely! Therefore, in order to avoid undue hassle with refunds, admission fees will be collected upon registration at the venue. Thank you for your understanding!

I hope to see you at the party!

Needless to say that the ongoing situation with Covid-19 makes it rather difficult to plan and organize activities and events. In 2020, we focussed on outdoor activities; and we managed to find outside locations for all our main events (the Annual General Meeting, the 1. August celebration and the Christmas party).

Also, we moved the Stammtisch – our monthly get-together – to a terrace in Nihonbashi, while the freshly introduced hiking outings in fall became an instant hit.

This year, in the first week of March, we went ahead with our traditional ski week in the Shiga Kogen area, which was yet again a lot of fun and a huge success. Please check out the tab with the highlights of our ski holiday! Hopefully, it wets your appetite for next year!

And what’s in store for this year?

I guess we will continue in the same vein – while carefully assessing the situation at hand and adjusting to it.

The first spring hike was fully booked within one day. But no worries – there will be more to come!

Our Annual General Meeting (for members only) is roughly scheduled for the first half of June, and we might be able to use the Garden of the Swiss Residence for the occasion – provided there is no state of emergency at the time. If circumstances should prove to be too severe, an online-meeting (Zoom or similar) is not out of the question.

This year again, we can probably celebrate the 1. August on the proper date, as it falls on a Sunday. As for the venue, we plan to book the Keio Floral Garden Ange like in the last 2 years. The same holds true for our Christmas event with Santa!

We have a few other potential activities in mind, like some “Seaside Fun” at Yokohama Umi no Koen (Seaside Park), a summer experience weekend in the Japanese Alps, etc. etc. However, these are still rough ideas that need quite a bit of work. So, no promises… but we will try our best!

And we could use some help: If you have any ideas and suggestions – or even better – if you would like to play an active role in the Swiss Club, please let us know!

All the best and good health!

Our monthly get-together, the “Stammtisch”, has been reactivated!

However, because of the current quasi-state of emergency, the Restaurant will close at 20:00, with last orders at 19:00!
We start at 17:30, which still gives us about 2 1/2 hours to sit together and chat.
The maximum number of participants will be limited to 10 people, and masks must be worn at all times, except for food and beverage intake.

The restaurant Gino Sorbillo Artista Pizza Napoletana (Terrace) is located in the Coredo Muromachi Building very close to exit No. A8 of Mitsukoshimae Station.

https://goo.gl/maps/5H76Qh9LdEJKKpJa9

Stammtisch

The Swiss Culture Calendar is out!
Have a look at what Tokyo has to offer in terms of Swiss Culture.

The Tokyo Metropolitan Foundation “TSUNAGARI” was established by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government on October 1, 2020, and they seem to offer multilingual service (in 14 languages) for foreign residents living in Tokyo.
I believe this might be of interest to some of you, even if you understand and speak some Japanese!

Tokyo Multilingual Consultation Navi

When foreigners living in Tokyo have problems in their daily lives, they often do not know who to consult with. We accept such consultations, provide the necessary information, and connect them to appropriate organizations according to their needs.

In addition, we deal with cases that are difficult to respond to at each city’s foreign consultation desk, such as minority language and expert consultation. We also provide interpretation support when language support is inadequate at the destination organization.

Open hours: 10 am to 4 pm (weekdays only, excluding weekends and holidays)

Telephone: 03-6258-1227

Supported languages: 14 (Plain Japanese, English, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Tagalog, Nepalese, Hindi, Thai, Portuguese, Spanish, Indonesian, French, Russian)

Tokyo Coronavirus Support Center for Foreign Residents (TOCOS)

With the spread of new coronavirus infections, we have established an emergency support center to deal with diverse inquiries from foreigners (who do not use Japanese as their mother tongue) regarding effects on their life and related concerns.

Open hours: 10 am to 5 pm (weekdays only, excluding weekends and holidays)

Telephone: 0120-296-004

Supported languages: 14 (Plain Japanese, English, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese,  Nepalese,  Indonesian, Tagalog,  Thai, Portuguese,  Spanish,  French,  Khmer,  Burmese)

https://www.tokyo-tsunagari.or.jp/english/multicultura

The media firm SICHTFELD is producing the 3plus TV-docu series “Adieu Heimat”, and they are on the lookout for participants for season 7.

You can have a look at Staffel 6 here.

If you are interested and if you think you fit the profile, please contact them directly at casting@sichtfeldmedia.tv

For details, please check their original message (German only):

Sehr geehrte Damen und Herren,
ich arbeite für die TV-Produktionsfirma SICHTFELD Media mit Sitz in Berlin.

Eine Kollegin hat sich bereits vor einiger Zeit bezüglich desselben Anliegens bei Ihnen gemeldet.

Zurzeit produzieren wir die 7. Staffel des Formats „Adieu Heimat“ für den Schweizer Sender 3+, bei dem wir Schweizerinnen und Schweizer bei ihrer Auswanderung in ein neues Land begleiten! Dafür suchen wir immer nach Protagonistinnen und Protagonisten.

Egal ob sie bereits im Ausland leben oder sich gerade erst am Anfang ihres Abenteuers befinden. Egal ob Familien, Paare oder Singles. Wir wollen dabei sein!

Deshalb wollten wir nun fragen, ob es vielleicht ein Mitglied in Ihrem Club gibt, auf den diese Beschreibung zutrifft und das Lust hat von uns begleitet zu werden.

Wir freuen uns über eine Rückmeldung und bedanken uns für ihre Aufmerksamkeit.

Vielen Dank und liebe Grüße,

Annika

Annika Greulich