Outdoor Screening and Star‑Gazing Night On Saturday, May 24th, we spent an evening of film and stargazing at the Forest Park. That said, the sky was unfortunately cloudy that night. It was also a bit chilly. We couldn’t look up at the stars, which was a shame, but the talk given by staff from Nayoro Municipal Observatory Kitāsubaru was fascinating, and they kindly opened their observatory vehicle for about 30 minutes. How long would it take to fly from Earth to the Sun by plane…? They explained the universe in a very easy‑to‑understand way, and both children and adults were captivated. While promoting this event, we discovered that far more people than expected are actually interested in the stars, which was a pleasant surprise. We’d like to create another opportunity to invite the observatory vehicle Polaris No. II again. (Nayoro Municipal Observatory website below) https://www.nayoro-star.jp/kitasubaru/ For the screening, we showed the Japanese‑dubbed version of the French animated film Linda Wants to Eat a Chicken! Amid the absurd twists and turns, I kept mentally reacting to the antics while enjoying a delightful 76 minutes. For movie snacks, Cafe Granch and Nishiokoppe Uenshiri Taiko offered food stalls. Coconut dumplings, pudding, popcorn, mamecha (roasted soybean tea), and hojicha chai. Although the stalls were run by village residents, they offered some rarely seen menu items, and thanks to that the event was a big success. This was Nishiokoppe Village’s first outdoor screening. Despite weather concerns and other uncertainties, we managed to hold the event. Alongside this program, we inflated the bouncy dome until 9:00 p.m., and the children kept jumping for a long time—apparently bouncing at night feels different from daytime. Thank you to everyone who came, and to everyone who lent their support to make the event happen! #Nishiokoppe Village #Forest Park #Hokkaido #Outdoor Screening #Linda Wants to Eat a Chicken! #Stargazing #Nayoro Municipal Observatory #Kitāsubaru #Observatory Vehicle Polaris No. II #Cafe Granch #Nishiokoppe Uenshiri Taiko