Some may ask, “Who Is Yoshie?”
Yoshie Kinefuchi played dulcimer with the Twangtown Dulcimer Players from 2015- 2018, during the time she and her husband Masami, Consul-General to the Southern States from Japan, were living in Nashville. Yoshi joined the Twangs after being introduced to the dulcimer by Judy Beier. Judy and Yoshie met in a Tai Chi class at the GreenHills Y.
At the completion of their assignment in Nashville, Masami and Yoshie returned to their home in Tokyo. Yoshie shared her love for the dulcimer with her choir back in Japan. Their concert video can be found in an older blog, along with a picture of her first grandchild.
Read this recent letter from Yoshie to find out "Where in the WORLD is Yoshie?"
Excerpt from Yoshie’s letter to Judy:
Masami is officially appointed Ambassador of Japan to Timor Leste (East Timor) as of February 5th.
He had the honor to meet with the Emperor last week and the Emperor accredited his appointment as Ambassador.
We are leaving on March 11th for Dili.
Timor Leste is a small island nation, located North of Australia and East of Indonesia. It gained independence from Portugal in 1975. Unfortunately, Indonesian soon invaded the country and Timorese people were governed by Indonesia for 24 years.
But due to political change in Indonesia, a referendum took place in 1999, and to Indonesia's surprise, 98% of Timor people voted for independence. Then Indonesia army suddenly struck Timor Leste and destroyed and burned everything!!! Very sad history.
It was the UN Peace Keeping Organization that realized ceasefire and the nation's independence in 2002.
So it is a small and young country in the South Pacific, but it has a great strategic importance for Japan and Asia.
We are happy to go there and excited to meet with new culture and people.
The language they speak is a bit complicated. Their official language is Tetun and Portuguese, and working language is Indonesian and English. This is due to its historical background and geographical location. They aim to join ASEAN and has strong ties with their neighbor, Australia and Indonesia; as well as Portugal (Timor was a colony since 1514 for more than four hundred years).
https://www.britannica.com/place/East-Timor
East Timor | Geography, History, & Facts | Britannica
East Timor, island country in the eastern Lesser Sunda Islands, at the southern extreme of the Malay Archipelago.It occupies the eastern half of the island of Timor, the small nearby islands of Atauro (Kambing) and Jaco, and the enclave of Ambeno, including the town of Pante Makasar, on the northwestern coast of Timor. Dili is the capital and largest city.
www.britannica.com
I hear it is a peaceful island nation with beautiful beaches and mountains, and the people are very kind.
Japan is one of the biggest donors of Timor Leste and has been supporting their development and peace.
I will let you know about my new life there soon!