"Letﾕs put on Owase impression and get prize!" That is the headline of the information from Kazooﾕs e-mail which I received before the completion ceremony of 37th IATSS Forum in Suzuka, Japan. Personally, I always want to share my experience with others. I donﾕt intend to get a blue ribbon but just to share what I saw, heard, felt and experienced in Owase.

It will neither be sufficient nor complete to talk about my impression on Owase unless I mention about IATSS Forum. IATSS stands for International Association of Traffic and Safety Sciences and the IATSS Forum aims its participants from 9 South-east Asian countries and its home country Japan to think together and learn from each other in order to make a significant contribution to their mother lands with knowledge and experience they gain through the program. The IATSS Forum has been equipping its participants from all walks of life to become a driving force in the development of their countries.

I am thankful to IATSS that selected me to participate in 37th IATSS Forum program (11th April 2005- 6th June 2005) and my friend Kazoo who invited and persuaded all 37th IATSS participants to take part in writing Owase impression.

Come on! Letﾕs go to Owase!
With my friends, I went to Owase on 13th May 2005. I have been to a modern city Tokyo, an ancient capital city Kyoto, an atomic victim city Nagasaki, a flower city Suzuka and so on. Unlike those significant cities, Owase has its own unique. Before I came to Owase I had heard that it is just an ordinary small fishing town with an annual heavy rainfall. When I came into the city, I looked around. I had no excitement to see anything or any building in a quiet environment. Here we arrived at the Owase city hall that is really beautiful and clean. No sooner did we arrive than we were busy preparing for the cultural Exchange day that would take place the following day. Moving the tables, moving the chairs, unpacking the things, decorating them, we were very, very, very noisy! The calm, cool and tidy environment turned into busy, noisy and messy ones. Anyway, the place became really active and life-like. What a magic we did! In no time, everything was cleaned up. We were picked up by our host families. Wow! Among lay people, there were Buddhist monks. Some of our friends would become temple boys for that night. Next morning, they said that it was fun to spend a night at the Buddhist temple. As for me, I stayed at the house of the Hayami together with Wai Wai , my friend from Myanmar. We enjoyed the warm atmosphere of the family there. Father Makoto San, mother Ekimo San and sister Takako San are very kind to us and treated us nicely. I really miss them so much.

Weather in Owase was unbelievably fine during our stay. No rain! No storm! But a beautiful sunny day! We were gently kissed by cool zephyr. What a pleasant serenity! Sister Takako San took us for a walk in the early morning. Green mountain can be seen here and there under the cloudless blue sky. Fresh, clean morning air strengthened our energy. We became alert and active physically as well as mentally.

With full of vigor, we marched to the Owase City Hall to exhibit our Myanmar culture. It was on 14th May 2005. Fantastic! Wonderful! Look! Beautiful cultures of 13 countries; nine Southeast Asian countries- Cambodia, Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, Philippines, Thailand, Singapore, and the other four countries- Australia, Brazil, China and Great Britain. Lo! Colourful costumes, smiling faces, different kinds of traditional foods, souvenirs from each country and so many interesting things. I heard my heart beat. I was very, very excited. Two people came in, and then three or more and finally the entire hall were full. Owase town folks took part happily and interestedly in our cultural exchange day activities. How generous they are! They bought our auction items competitively. Auction money will be donated to Myanmar, our motherland. Think about it. How happy I am! ﾒOwase citizens, Sadhu, Sadhu, Sadhu for your merits.ﾓ I will always remember your generosity.

With Sukiyaki song, Indochina dance and our traditional games, cultural exchange day exhibition successfully came to an end. Another interesting moment was waiting for us. We had our dinner together with our host families at a Hotel in Owase. Japanese traditional Drum Performance is the most energetic and rhythmic musical performance I have ever experienced. Do you envy us? Donﾕt miss to watch it in your lifetime. It is really great. Food and drinks were excellent. Especially, seafood is yummy. After dinner, my host sister and her friend drove us to see the night beauty of Owase. People lead a tranquil life in Owase. A moonlit night! A peaceful night!

On 15th May, the last day in Owase, we woke up early in the morning, took a bus to Kumano Kodo and had hiking there. I have read that "Komano Kodo is the general name for the ancient pilgrimage route linking Kumano Sanzan, the three grand shrines of Kumano; Hongu-taisha, Nachi-taisha and Hayatama-taisha." The hiking route we took stretches into the beautiful forest covered with tall green trees, and short green plants with small wild flowers. There are points of historical interests along the path. One canﾕt see the religious objects like the guardian deity of children enshrined in a small wooden temple under a big tree, some stone pagodas built of piled up small stones etc. One can enjoy breath-taking view at the view point and overlook Owase city. How can we forget the panoramic view of the sea surrounded by the mountain rangers and overlooking view of Owase city. Before we reach the summit our group was divided into two- one group would continue hiking to the top and the other group would visit shrines located under the cliff of a waterfall. I was in the group that went to the waterfall. The place reminded me of the stunning waterfall in Myanmar. The surrounding looks like Dat-taw-gyaint waterfall at Pyin-Oo-Lwin Flower City in upper Myanmar. I discovered an identical beauty of nature in a different world. When we met the first group that climbed up the peak, they said that there was a bug boulder there, and the view is amazing. We missed what they have seen and vice versa. It is nature of our life that is like a coin which has two sides- if we look at one side, we cannot see the other, but both have the beauty of their own.

To sum up, my visit to Owase gave me warm and delicate pleasure and wonderful experience. If I could have some more chances, I would like to explore in and around the areas of Owase, to discover more and more hidden scenic spots. Hi, everyone, if you are in Owase, donﾕt miss to visit any wonderful spot there because
" Unforgettable
Beauty of nature lies in
Owase City."

(In honor of ﾔHaiku, 5-7-5 syllable poetryﾕ.)

Thu Zar Thwin
Myanmar