2016年1月29日金曜日 - 
Richard：Three Good Things in Winter.
Even though I don't like winter very much,
I have found three things in Japan that help me get through it without feeling depressed.
One thing is food. There is a variety of good
food in Japan. Japanese food is well known all over the world for its taste and quality.
The second is sightseeing. There are a number of sightseeing spots in Japan
that are great during the winter. The third is my friends. Thanks to my
friends, I can hang out with them and pass the cold wintry
days having fun.
There are so many foods to choose from in
Japan. Trying new food seems to be a pastime for some people. I also
tried some new foods this winter. My friends and I went to a steak and
okonomiyaki restaurant recently. I tried the vegetable okonomiyaki, which was beyond my expectations.
It was a little sweet and there were many surprise vegetables inside, including
pumpkin, tomato and cucumber. My friends got negi okonomiyaki but after tasting
my vege-okonomiyaki, they ordered one for themselves. I also went to my favorite
Indian curry restaurant and the curry was good as usual. I got the vegetable
curry with cheese nan. Earlier this winter I went to a friend's Filipino restaurant. The atmosphere was pleasant and
the food was great. I ate fried fish with vegetables in coconut sauce.
Sometimes I just relax with a book or my tablet inside a warm cafe watching
people
go by in the cold outside air.
Eating out at restaurants is great but there is always the risk of putting on weight during winter.
Last winter I took a
friend sightseeing around Kansai. First we went to the “Bamboo Grove”
in Kyoto. It was really scenic. I had seen it before in photos but to be there
was such a tranquil experience (until lots of people came). It would be really
nice to be there early on a spring morning. Bamboo groves are peaceful and can
help you to relax, even in winter. We also went to Ninja Mura in Mie. It was
really cold there but my friend was so excited to see ninjas and interact
with them that we forgot about the cold.
I am thankful that I
have friends here in Japan. My friends are from many different countries and we
all hang out and pass the wintry days together. Recently we had a party at a
friend's restaurant where we ate delicious food and sang karaoke. One winter we
had a party at a friend's house where we all gathered and cooked the food
together. After that we played games. Sometimes we go bowling together. It's
really a lot of fun.
I don't like long cold
winters but these three things help me to get
through them. Good food, sightseeing and my friends. I
am happy to have these three things.
get through：乗り越える
feeling depressed：落ち込んだ気持ちになる
well known：よく知られています
hang out ：お出かけする
wintry：冬らしい
pastime：娯楽
beyond my expectations：期待を上回って
go by：通り過ぎる
putting on weight：体重が増える
bamboo grove：竹林
scenic：風光明媚な
interact：やりとりする