Interviews

1. Visiting Japan to study kendo

2. Japanese wife with American citizenship

3. Appreciation of Japanese food

4. Not wanting to stand out as a foreigner

5. Japan vs. Tulsa Oklahoma

Sansei Japanese American living in Japan and Kendo practioner

Visiting Japan to study kendo

When I was in high school, I wanted to do something – some type of martial art and my cousins did judo. My brother did karate and I wanted to do something else. So at my church, they taught kendo. So I saw that and the teacher was an old friend of my family’s. He was from Akita and the story goes he was at his dojo. My great-grandfather was his teacher. So I started kendo there and my father said, “Once you start, you can’t quit.” So I’m still practicing today. So at least, he said…so eventually, because of my involvement in kendo, I became very interested in Japanese culture. I wanted to train in kendo for one year. So I came to Japan and studied Japanese first. And then I started studying kendo, actually while I was studying Japanese. For a long time, I stayed in Japan on a cultural visa, studying kendo and studying Japanese.

Finding Home (film) kendo martial arts

Date: November 11, 2003

Location: Kyoto, Japan

Interviewer: Art Nomura

Contributed by: Art Nomura, Finding Home.

Interviewee Bio

Peter Mizuki, a Sansei, was born and raised in Seattle, Washington. As a child he helped in his family’s lumber business and was involved with the Japanese martial art of kendo. Later, while a student at the University of Washington, he was one of the founding members of the Kendo Club. As his interest in Japanese culture developed, he traveled to Japan on a cultural visa to learn Japanese and continue his study of kendo. There, he met his wife in Kyoto. He now has two sons, is a permanent resident of Japan, and continues to practice kendo and teach English part-time at universities. In his interview, Peter shares his experiences of being a Japanese American in Japan and the struggles he’s endured to be accepted by Japanese society. (2005)

Explore More Videos

Interviewee

Tag

Keywords

FOB's

Hawaii born Nikkei living in Japan. English Teacher at YMCA.

Image of Americans

Sansei from Hawaii living in Japan. Teacher and businesswoman.

Grandmother's influence on decision to go to Japan

(b.1942) Japanese American ceramist, who has lived in Japan for over 30 years.

Band-Aid realization

(b.1942) Japanese American ceramist, who has lived in Japan for over 30 years.

Japanese influence growing up

(b.1942) Japanese American ceramist, who has lived in Japan for over 30 years.

Looking at your country from the outside

(b.1942) Japanese American ceramist, who has lived in Japan for over 30 years.

Wife's family in Japan

(b.1942) Japanese American ceramist, who has lived in Japan for over 30 years.

Lack of notion of citizenship in Japan

(b.1935) American born Japanese. Retired businessman.

Involvement in JACL

(b.1935) American born Japanese. Retired businessman.

Impression of Japan upon arrival

(b.1935) American born Japanese. Retired businessman.