By Mark Kregel
Travelers have just left for their biannual trip to Muko, Japan, Saratoga's Sister City. Led by John Tauchi, the group left March 30 for16 days in Japan and Korea, traveling to Mount Fuji, Hiroshima, the Horyu-ji temple in Nara and then on to Seoul.
Tauchi has been leading tours to Saratoga's Sister City and other points in Asia for nine years. He's one link in Saratoga's strong bond to Japan.
Saratoga's Sister City program with Muko began in 1983. Saratogans usually travel to Japan every other year, and members of the Muko delegation visit during alternate years.
Muko and Saratoga have much in common--both cities are relatively the same size, both are bedroom communities for nearby larger cities (Muko is very close to Kyoto) and both have beautiful landscaping.
Tauchi noted that this year is the 1,200th anniversary of the Imperial City's moving from Muko to Kyoto. Muko was the Japanese imperial capital for 10 years. This period started, coincidentally, 1,200 years before the founding of the Sister City program.
Saratoga's Sister City relationship with Muko began in 1983 with the help of Japanese architect Kiyoshi Yasui, a resident of Muko. Yasui initally became involved with Saratoga through the Hakone Gardens as an architect and benefactor.
"This man [Yasui] has been an example of personal diplomacy at its finest," said Bamboo Society President Bruce Parkinson. "He is a master at the art of 'nemawashi,' a Japanese word referring to networking while implying a great deal more."
The Sister City program also sponsors a student exchange. Each year, five Saratoga students are chosen to visit Muko, while five Japanese students come here to stay in the students' Saratoga homes.
This year's students are being selected from applicants, said Joan Gomersall, chairwoman of the Sister City Student Exchange Committee.
"Students are selected on the basis of their compatibility, scholastic and other achievements and interests consistent with the exchange program," Gomersall said.
Saratoga students are not required to speak Japanese. The program will include classes in Japanese culture, language, customs and cuisine.
The exchange program runs July 28-Aug. 18.
This article appeared in the Saratoga News, April 16, 1997.
©1997 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.