 |
| 消防士の仕事を体験している子どもたち（写真提供：共同通信社） |
Trendy Japanese #21:
Kidzania Tokyo |
* 2007/5/9 配信 ALC Newsletter No.59(ALC International Marketing 発行)より
* クリックできる語句には、語注がついています
In Japan, May 5 is a national holiday ─ Children's Day. Meanwhile, the most attractive theme park among families with children now is probably Kidzania Tokyo. It is an indoor facility that has a kid-sized replica of a real city with streets, buildings, retail stores, vehicles, etc.
In this "city," children play adult roles and learn how to be firefighters, cabin attendants, doctors, teachers, pizza makers ─ there are over 70 different professions and occupations to choose from. Children wear uniforms, and the instructors tell them what their jobs are and how to get them done.
After children get their "jobs" done, they are paid virtual money called kizzo. They then can use kizzo to enjoy various services including renting a cell-phone (a real one!), to turn it into real electronic money, or to "save" it in their virtual bank account so that they can use it the next time they come to Kidzania.
Kidzania first opened in Mexico in 1999, and Kidzania Tokyo opened in October 2006 as the first Kidzania outside Mexico. Since then, the facility has been very popular and packed with families on weekends. In fact, weekend reservations for entering the site are fully booked until several months ahead!
As a result, the reservation tickets are now sold on Internet auction sites for inordinately expensive prices. Kidzania officials have been troubled by this situation, but it shows how popular the facility is. Kidzania surely provides children with great opportunities to learn what kinds of jobs are out there, what they might want to be in the future, and above all, to learn the joy of working. |
