3^rd March 2019, Sunday- Bandar Seri Begawan- Japanese Language and Culture Week 2019 was launched yesterday with a ribbon cutting ceremony at Times Square Shopping Centre by the guest of honour, Yang Berhormat Major General (Rtd) Dato Paduka Seri Awang Haji Aminuddin Ihsan bin Pehin Orang Kaya Saiful Mulok Dato Seri Paduka Haji Abidin, the Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports and his spouse, Datin Nurhayana Janis binti Abdullah Lim. Also present during the launching were His Excellency, Mr Motohiko Kato, the Ambassador of Japan to Brunei Darussalam, and Ms Amal Majidah Hj Suhaili, the general manager of Times Square. The event is hosted by the Embassy of Japan and co-organised by Times Square Shopping Centre and the Japan Foundation. Today will be the last day for the annual Japanese Language and Culture Week 2019 and is currently taking place at the atrium of Times Square Shopping Centre.

Moreover, there was also a special guest appearance by Mr Gakuzinzan where he showcased Japanese Shakuhachi Music. The supporters for the event comprised of Japan Brunei Friendship Association (JBFA), The Japanese Association Brunei Darussalam (JABD), Brunei Association of Japan Alumni (BAJA), BERSATU (SSEAYP Alumni), BJFA-UBD Chapter, BJFA-UTB Chapter, JENESYS Alumni, Community Education & Training Division (IBTE CET), Chef Yamane, JUDO Academy Sports School and Wafiq Missli. Exhibitors during the event include Royal Brunei Airlines, Reiko Sdn Bhd, MC Biotech Sdn Bhd, Pan Bright Travel Services and Yeszone Enterprise.

The Japanese Language and Culture Week 2019 will also feature fun activities for the public which include Japanese cooking demonstrations, Yukata Dress Up Photo Booth, a unique instrumental musician, Mr Gakuzinzan from Japan will perform live with a Bamboo Flute (called Shakuhachi) which is a traditional Japanese instrument and many more. Furthermore, today will be the last day for customers to join the Instagram Contest organized by Times Square Shopping Centre. In order to join, customers will need to take a picture of them attending the event and to include #JLCW2019 and #timessquarebrunei in their caption before uploading on their Instagram account. The contest ends at 6pm and the most creative photo will win prizes. The prize presentation for both Instagram Contest and Anime Drawing Competition will be today at 7.15pm. Winners will be contacted earlier prior to attending the prize presentation.

For more information regarding the event, kindly contact Times Square’s marketing department at 2338208 or 2338006 during office hours. You may also find out about all upcoming events by visiting tsqbrunei.com or simply following Times Square Shopping Centre’s pages on Facebook and Instagram.