2019年1月26日土曜日

2019年1月26日土曜日 -

John - January 2019


I had a wonderful New Year holiday with my wife and her family this year. As tradition dictates we went to her hometown in Ehime, Shikoku and visited her family. They had booked some private wood cabins in the mountains for a Kanreki party as two people had turned sixty. We had a marvelous dinner, the red clothes were funny and we also

had a bingo game with many small prizes, which everybody enjoyed. I always feel like a very lucky man every time I meet her family as they make me feel so welcome and they are all very kind.

We also had a great home party the next day where I tried kani shabu for the first time. I'm not a big seafood man but it was delicious. Japanese TV at New Year is also very interesting. The younger cousins loved the big music shows and it was fascinating to see what kind of music and celebrities were popular in 2018. Japanese game shows are always very entertaining. This time I saw one about which product was generic or super expensive, which was fun to play along to. At New Year I always enjoy the Downtown no Gaki no Tsukai ya Arahende!! - No Laughing Batsu Game despite not fully understanding everything that's going on.
 
Last year was quite a stressful year in many ways so I'm hoping this year is more relaxing and that I can visit more of the beautiful Japanese countryside. Last year I went to Nagano for the first time, which was fantastic so maybe I can get back there this year.

Hopefully, everyone can have a good year and enjoy themselves.



As tradition dictates：伝統が語り継がれているとおり
marvelous：素晴らしい
prizes：賞品
generic：一般的な
despite：～にもかかわらず
Hopefully：～だといいですね

2019年1月20日日曜日

2019年1月20日日曜日 -

Christmas and New Year - Jonathan

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With the end of 2018, I was surprised to see how different the holidays were spent in Japan compared to America. Firstly, Christmas is not a national holiday here and seems to be more of an occasion for younger people. When I was younger, Christmas was a special time for the family. We would spend time together and give each other gifts to show how much we appreciate each other. This usually meant my parents would spend money on my brother and me and my brother and I would get a gift together for our parents.



This Christmas I wasn't able to go home and stayed in Japan. I visited Kyoto and had a small party with friends who were also staying in Japan. We watched Christmas movies and ate lots of delicious food and sweets. New Year's Day in Japan seems to be the equivalent of this, where families come together, play games, eat delicious food and enjoy each other's company.

New Year's Eve (December 31st) in America is usually spent with friends and watching the countdown to the New Year. The custom of making a New Year's resolution is popular. This is where we try to make a major change in our lives to improve ourselves in some way, with many people promising to become healthier or watch less television.

This year I want to put more effort into learning about Japanese history and culture and speaking Japanese. I also want to go to the gym more consistently and focus on my health. Next New Year's Eve (December 31st 2019) I want to visit a shrine and follow traditional Japanese customs.

compared to：～に比べ
occasion：行事
spend money on：～にお金を使う
equivalent：同等の
custom：習慣
New Year's resolution：新年の抱負
in some way：何とかして

2019年1月11日金曜日

2019年1月11日金曜日 -

Matt - Playing Basketball in Japan


Recently, I began playing basketball with a Japanese friend of mine. He invited me to join his basketball circle, which meets about once a week for games at a junior high school in Osaka. The players are a mix of men and women, mostly about twenty to thirty years old. I have really enjoyed playing basketball in a foreign country, because it allows me to notice some of the differences between playing here and back home in California.

     One important difference is the way the teams and games are organized. Back home, individual people talk to each other and form a team, and then each team must call out to claim the 'next' game. This way, we can make teams with our friends, but it causes problems because it is not well-organized and often leads to arguments about who actually is next. In Osaka, the process was quite different, and seems more fair to me. First, we all stand in a circle and count ourselves to find out how many players are joining tonight's games. If there are thirty players, then five teams will be created. At this point, we count around the circle to determine randomly which team each player will join. After joining together with our new teammates, we play the Japanese version of 'rock, paper, scissors' in order to determine our position on the team, which we will use for substitutions. Of course, the substitutions here happen equally in the order of our numbers, while in California, we don't ever have more than five players on a team and never substitute.

     The style of play is quite different as well. In Japan, players seem to want to pass and run around more compared to America, where players want to dribble and shoot. In America, when we pass the ball, we usually pass it very fast, because the defense is aggressive. In Japan, I noticed that the passes are much slower, and the defense doesn't seem to try to steal the passes very much. And, when a fast pass is thrown, it is often dropped by the players here. I need to remember all the time to throw slow passes that my teammates can catch!

     Overall, I have had a great time playing basketball here in Osaka, and I am looking forward to my next game, and perhaps trying to find other groups that join together to play other sports. If I do, I'll be sure to let you know.

once a week：週に１回
organized：組織化されている
call out：試合を申し込む
leads to：～につながる
'rock, paper, scissors'：ジャンケン
Substitutions：補欠要員
while：一方で
dribble：ドリブル

2019年1月4日金曜日

2019年1月4日金曜日 -

Dan ：An-eating we will go!


Life has been quite hectic as of late, and I've found that I've not been able to enjoy one of my    primary hobbies of travelling and sightseeing. With the limited time that I have, I've been spending many of my weekends in Osaka. And in Osaka, one of the most popular things to do is to eat. So,

an-eating we will go!

I've been eating a lot of Korean food these days. Now, I don't particularly like Korean food. I would guess that the reason for eating all this Korean food is that it must be popular in Japan. Recently, I ate the standard fare of pajeon (chijimi) and naengmyeon (reimen), but I was also able to try for the first time, a kogo (cheese dog). It was much better than I expected! The next time I'm in Myeong-dong, I'll definitely have to try an authentic one.

While not a food exactly, I've also really taken a liking to bubble tea (tapioca tea). I'd have to attribute this to my recent trip to Taiwan. But at any rate, I'm generally always on the lookout for a bubble tea similar to what I had in Taiwan. I would have to say that one sign of a good bubble tea shop is customizable levels of sweetness. If it doesn't offer that, I would hesititate to order one. I've also grown to like xiaolongbao (shoronpo). For me, this was most definitely an acquired taste; I initially hated them. The hot soup within the dumpling shell seemed unnecessary, but I've come to appreciate it and enjoy even the process of eating them.

There are still more things I have to try. Why, even this weekend, I'm planning to eat some fish and chips from the UK and hamburgers from the US. The only thing I haven't eaten recently in Japan is Japanese food! (^_^')

Hectic: てんてこ舞い
authentic:　本物の
taken a liking to:～を好きになる
attribute:～のせいだと考える
on the lookout:　アンテナをはる/探す
customizable levels of sweetness:甘さを調整できる
hesititate:躊躇する
acquired:後天的な


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