22 March 2010

Students enjoyed Japanese ‘Flowing Noodle’

By Asuka Senoo, Cultural Exchange Committee, IPC Student Association

On the 26th of February, the Cultural Exchange Committee of IPC Student Association organised a Japanese cultural event called ‘nagashi somen (flowing noodle)’ outside the Dining Hall.

Somen is a Japanese word for a thin noodle made of wheat flour. For nagashi somen, the noodle is placed in a long bamboo pipe where water is constantly flowing to move the noodle, and people pick it up with chopsticks and dip it into sauce to enjoy it. It is a popular summer delicacy in Japan.

We have successfully found a sponsor in Auckland who kindly provided long bamboos, which are quite hard to find in New Zealand. With the help of the IPC Physical Resources team who set up a pump to circulate water onto the bamboo pipe, we built a high quality noodle stand.

Time management was a challenge for us before the event, but 83 students from different countries enjoyed noodles in the sun. Some New Zealand students wore yukata, Japanese traditional summer wear, to enter into the spirit. We received feedback like: "Please organise this event again!" from participating students. We think this event was totally successful.

Noodle stand made of bamboo appeared outside the Dining Hall

Students enjoying flowing noodles

A student explained about flowing noodles using a megaphone

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