Life on Taketomi Island in Okinawa

Hi everyone, I’m Riku.

Today, I’d like to introduce a place in Japan that I find very unique.
It’s called Taketomi Island, located near Ishigaki Island in Okinawa.

Taketomi Island is a small traditional island with a very small population.
About 350 people live on the island, which gives it a quiet and relaxed atmosphere.

One interesting fact about Taketomi Island is that there is no school on the island.
Because of this, children have to take a boat to another island to go to school, which shows how different daily life is there compared to big cities.

The island is also famous for its red-tiled roofs, stone walls, and white sand streets.
These traditional features create an exotic atmosphere, as you can see in the picture below.
Walking around the island, you can really enjoy the beautiful nature and peaceful scenery.

By the way, here is a question.

On Taketomi Island, tourists can go sightseeing in a vehicle pulled by a certain animal.
What animal do you think it is?

The answer is a water buffalo.

Water buffaloes are not unique to Japan, but they are special in Okinawa because they are used for tourism.
Riding a water buffalo cart is one of the most famous experiences on Taketomi Island and a great way to explore the island slowly.

If you are interested in unique culture and love nature, I highly recommend visiting Taketomi Island.

Thank you for reading! 😊

Introducing Myself

Hi everyone! My name is Riku. I’m very happy to join Tenatch as a new intern.

I’m from Hyogo, Japan, and I’m currently studying web design and programming.
I majored in psychology at university and worked as an operations engineer at an IT company for three years. After that, I worked at restaurants in Toronto until recently, and I have just returned to Japan.
While working at the IT company, I became interested in IT technology because I enjoyed learning new technical skills. This experience motivated me to start learning various IT technologies, including web design and programming. When I was living in Toronto, I was looking for an IT related internship, so I’m very excited to have this opportunity at Tenatch.
My hobbies include playing basketball, going to the sauna, and traveling. I have visited three countries so far and would love to visit many more in the future. I currently play basketball on a local team and still play regularly. Playing sports helps me relax and stay healthy, both physically and mentally, so I plan to continue playing sports in the future as part of my mental self care.
In my free time, I enjoy going to cafes and reading books. I read a wide variety of genres, but recently I’ve been especially interested in self-help books. I find them fascinating because they introduce new ideas and perspectives that I wouldn’t come up with on my own.

I’m really excited about this opportunity to learn new things, and I’m looking forward to gaining valuable experiences through this internship.


Thank you very much for reading my introduction.

Music motivator application business proposal

Hi. my name's Cher-Zhen and I'm here to introduce a business idea. 

Over the Summer, I dived into the deep realm of anime and watched them consistently, one thing that really stood out was the original music that each anime had, and being a really hands-on person, I myself tried to play it. 

And at the end of Summer, I realize, I still could not play the song I wanted to.

This resulted mainly due to the a few reasons:

1️⃣ I was juggling an internship and other interests — time was a challenge.
2️⃣ My motivation faded once I finished the anime — the initial excitement didn’t last long enough.

After some reflection I've thought of an application idea that can serve as a music motivator. With this idea in mind, I began reading.

🎶 Introducing: A Mobile App for Musical Motivation & Community

I read this research article on what could really help motivate others, and from here I got to know about Self-Determination Theory (SDT).I learnt that the majority of people found motivation when their psychological needs were met, and I decided that capitalising off nurturing a conducive society arround one's identity would help with this.

After much brainstorming, I've decided that an application which served as a community platform, with constant daily reminders to sign on and collect points which contributed to a leadership system with friends would be helpful

⭐ Key Features

Bandplay
Users join friends or others in the community to learn the same song together — but each on different instruments. The song is split into weekly segments. At the end of each week, everyone’s recordings are merged into a musical section, allowing the group to hear their progress come together. This nurtures teamwork, accountability, and a strong sense of belonging.

Daily Reminders
Friendly push notifications keep musical goals top-of-mind, making it easier to build consistency.

Leaderboard System (selectable)
Collected effort points can be shared publicly — motivating users in a fun, friendly competition with friends.

In-Game Store
Points can be used to unlock avatar cosmetics and other engaging digital rewards.

Daily Mini-Games
Quick, fun activities — like mobile instrument play or reaction-training games — that support skill growth anytime, anywhere.

🎧 The Heart of the Concept

The aim of these features are all to enable users to partake in learning their favourite songs, as well as fostering a community around our users that makes learning fun and interactive. With so many social aspects to it, we hope that our users can take this oppurtunity to meet new people with similar interests and for them to learn their songs!

Our Bandplay feature builds on a sense of belonging and accountability. Knowing you are part of a group and are expected to deliver will keep you on yout toes, and listening to your piece of music coming together at the end of every week is surely to be a boost of motivation! I believe that this application can serve as an outlet for stress, anxiety as well as serve as a great solution to boredom.

📱 Why Mobile?

I wish to implement this application on mobile, where learning can be really portable and convenient to bring around, as well as to utilize the device's speakers for audio recognition, which will be a crucial function for our features to work properly. Musical instruments will connect to the app after a tuning system, where music will be played on the instrument and our application will pick up on the frequency and wavelength of the emmitted sound waves, then after some processing, it will be synced and will be able to tell the chords and notes our user plays. A silent environment is best for this to work. 

An interesting place I've been to

I've lived through my first winter over here in England now and have made it through. What it left me was many good memories, a wedding anniversary, and hikes up and down a mountain where we had picnics in the freezing cold.

From this, I was allowed to experience many things, one of these was skyline. Skyline, Bath, lives true to its name. Standing on top of this hill, you get to see the stunning landscape of the historical city of Bath, deemed as one of the prestigious heritage UNESCO cities in the UK, it offers an experience through time to architecture that is unreplicated today. 

Bath Abbey, heart of the city centre

Bath Skyline

This is where I relax and go on walks. Where I have picnics with friends. Where I come to think and engulf myself in the vast expanse of history that is placed before me. I'm always reminded that the city was always here first, and compared to it, I feel small and unimportant, but it's really comfortable. This place is a mood reliever for me, where I had some of my best memories. During winter, I sat here for 2 hours with friends in the freezing cold as we ate our pre-packed dinners. We shared oreos even though the cold bit into our nails and froze our blood. Yet we still reached out and shared food. 

It's interesting to me how spending time here during different seasons alters my mood. How during the rainy Autumn that I arrived, Skyline was brooding and dark grey, it comforted the me that first arrived in England and kept me ready for each event that eventually came my way. During winter, when the cold seeped into our bones and kept us rooted to our homes, every trip out felt like an adventure. Spring, when it came with its hay fever and pollenating flowers that sprung between every sliver of space between grass. Summer, when the heat seared our skin and loosened our layers of clothing. Every season brings a different mood about me, and I travelling here is always a better part of my day. 

Did I mention there were also ducks!?

Ducks

Self Introduction blog!

 

Malaysia (Merdeka 118)

Hi! My name is Cher-Zhen and I grew up in Malaysia! There, its always hot and sunny with a plethora of cheap but really good options everywhere. I was raised in a loving family of 5 in the suburbs of Kuala Lumpur and as of writing this, I'm a 2nd year student in University of Bath! I'm currently based in the UK where its cold and windy and am pursuing a bachelors degree in Computer Science! I like the weather here(sometimes) and the overall vibe over here. I've been experimenting with different hobbies such as cooking and running recently and I'm also the chairperson of the Malaysian Society here. I enjoy talking to people and working on innovative projects and just generally seeing plans come to fruition. I'm always looking out for more oppurtunities to develop my personal growth and I'm a firm believer that a good community stimulates good behaviour!

United Kingdom(Skyline,Bath)

Aside from my general information, I am an avid nature lover and love spending time going on lesiurely walks with my dog! I really enjoy just going outside and enjoying what the natural world has to offer. Coupled with a good playlist, saturday mornings spent hiking or trekking is ideal for me. Before interning at Tsuin.Ai, I was working as a Cybersecurity intern in UOB Malaysia where I got loads of hands on experience dealing with ID Management. and before that I've worked several customer service jobs after my IGCSE's and A-Levels to earn some extra pocket money but I've simultaneously gained some extremely important life lessons that still follow me till this day! I'm happy to chat to anyone that reaches out, and I'm looking forward to meeting new people and learning from everyone! :D

Anne of Green Gables

 

One Canadian book that I would really like to read is Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery. This classic novel was first published in 1908 and is set in Prince Edward Island, a place known for its beautiful landscapes and strong cultural traditions. It is one of the most famous works of Canadian literature, loved by readers all around the world. I am especially interested in this book because it represents not only the story of one girl’s life but also an introduction to Canadian nature, history, and values.

The story follows Anne Shirley, an imaginative orphan girl who is mistakenly sent to live with Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert, two siblings who originally wanted to adopt a boy to help with their farm. Despite the mistake, Anne becomes part of their household and gradually wins their hearts with her lively personality. She faces challenges at school, builds friendships, and learns the importance of family, belonging, and personal growth.

I first became interested in this book after seeing photos of the beautiful scenery of Prince Edward Island. The landscapes looked so peaceful and unique that I immediately thought it would be a wonderful place to visit someday. When I later learned that this island was the setting of Anne of Green Gables, I became even more curious about the story.

Another reason I want to read this book is that it reflects Canadian culture and identity. Prince Edward Island is described with vivid detail, from the “Green Gables” house to the surrounding countryside. Through the story, I would like to learn how Canadians in the early twentieth century lived, what values were important to them, and how their connection with nature shaped their daily lives. I believe reading this book would give me a deeper understanding of the cultural background of the country I am experiencing now.

In conclusion, Anne of Green Gables is not just a children’s story but a timeless Canadian novel that explores universal themes such as family, friendship, identity, and hope. Even though I have not read the book yet, I am eager to do so because I believe it will help me learn more about Canadian culture and also inspire me to approach life with more imagination and courage. For these reasons, I consider this novel to be the Canadian book that I most want to read in the near future.

Different Spirits: Humor in Osaka and Formality in Tokyo

My hometown Osaka is not only famous for delicious food and historic landmarks, but also for the warm and humorous character of its people. Osaka people are often described as friendly, direct, and cheerful.Unlike in some other parts of Japan, they are not shy about expressing their feelings and are quick to strike up conversations, even with strangers. This openness creates a unique atmosphere where visitors immediately feel welcomed.

A key feature of Osaka culture is the Kansai dialect, which sounds quite different from standard Japanese. Kansai dialect is often described as rhythmical, expressive, and even playful. For example, the simple phrase "Thank you" is usually "arigatou", but in Osaka people often say "ookini", which carries a warmer and more casual feeling. Because of its lively tone, Kansai dialect is strongly associated with humour and is frequently used by comedians to make their jokes sound funnier.

(Dotonbori)

Osaka is also considered the birthplace of Japanese comedy. The style called "manzai", performed by two comedians who exchange quick and witty dialogue, has its roots in Osaka and remains popular all over Japan today. However, comedy in Osaka is not only performed on stage; it is part of daily life. People enjoy making jokes in casual conversations, and even shopkeepers or taxi drivers may add humor to their words. This shows how laughter is deeply woven into the culture of the city.

Compared to Tokyo, which is the capital and often seen as formal, fast-paced, and business-oriented, Osaka has a more relaxed and approachable atmosphere. People in Tokyo may appear polite but distant, while people in Osaka tend to be more direct and willing to joke around. For instance, in Tokyo it is less common for strangers to casually talk to each other, but in Osaka this happens naturally. This cultural difference makes Osaka stand out as a city where humour and friendliness are essential parts of everyday life.

(Namba Grand Kagetsu, the most famous comedy theatre  in Osaka)

Growing up in Osaka, I experienced this cheerful culture every day. At school, even teachers sometimes told jokes to makes the lessons more enjoyable. In public, I often heard strangers laughing together, even if they had just met. These small but memorable moments taught me that humour is not only about laughing, but also about building connections between people

In conclusion, Osaka is a city full of warmth, humour, and openness. The personality of its people, the charm of Kansai dialect, the rich comedy culture, and the contrast with Tokyo all highlight what makes Osaka unique. This lively and welcoming spirit is one of the reasons I am proud to call Osaka my hometown, and it is also why many visitors leave the city with unforgettable memories.