The Nishinomiya City International Association is seeking foreigners who want to carry “mikoshi” portable shrines and board special boats during the Nishinomiya Festival on Sept. 23. Applications must be submitted by Sept. 6. The participation fee is ¥500.

The participants will meet at 9 a.m. on the day of the festival in front of the office of Nishinomiya Shrine, a seven-minute walk from Hanshin Nishinomiya Station. All of the events will finish by 5:30 p.m. For more details, visit www.nishi.or.jp/homepage/nia/pdf/matsuri_e.pdf (in English) or phone 0798-32-8680.

Thai cooking lesson by Suita friendship group

The Suita International Friendship Association in Suita, Osaka Prefecture, will host a Thai cooking lesson Sept. 11. The lesson will run from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and cost ¥800. Reservations must be made by calling the association at 06-6835-1192.

The venue is Minamisenri Chiku Kominkan, located in the same building as the association, and close to Minami Senri Station on the Hankyu Senri Line. For more information, go to suita-sifa.org (in Japanese).

UNICEF charity concert on tap in Osaka

A free UNICEF charity concert will be held Sept. 7 in the city of Osaka. In addition to the music and dance performance from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., photos will be exhibited and cards will be sold.

The venue is the OCAT Building, near Namba Station on the Hanshin, Kintetsu, JR and Nankai lines, and the Midosuji, Sennichimae,and Yotsubashi subway lines. For more details, visit www.unicef-osaka.jp/act/index.html (in Japanese) or call 06-6645-5123.

Japanese-language lessons offered in Nagoya

The Nagoya International Center will run another series of Japanese lessons every Sunday from Sept. 15 to Nov. 24.

There are separate courses focusing on conversation, hiragana and katakana, and kanji, with a few classes each for different levels. The schedule differs depending on the course and level. Participation is ¥2,500 for an entire course, in addition to a textbook fee of ¥500 to ¥1,000.

Applications must be submitted between 11:30 a.m. and noon on Sept. 8 at the center, which is located seven minutes on foot from Nagoya Station. More details can be found at www.nic-nagoya.or.jp/en/e/archives/8095 (in English). The phone number is 052-581-5689.

Children’s books read aloud in English, Filipino

Volunteers in Nagoya will read children’s books aloud in English on Sept. 8 and in English and Filipino on Sept. 22. Each session runs from 2 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. No reservations are required and participation is free.

The venue is Nagoya International Center. For further details, go to www.nic-nagoya.or.jp/en/e/archives/9388 (in English) or phone 052-581-5678.