2019年5月29日水曜日

2019年5月29日水曜日 -

Christopher- NewZealand


Last February I decided to head south to New Zealand and escape the cold of a Japanese winter for a warm New Zealand summer. I left a chilly Osaka, around 3 degrees Celsius, and arrived in New Zealand to a ground temperature of around 28 degees Celsius! Perhaps not surprisingly, I got a few odd looks when arriving at the airport terminal building in New Zealand, as I was one of only a handful of people wearing long sleeves and winter clothes! I had a bit of body-shock, you might say, upon my arrival! I had gone from shivering to sweating in less than twenty-four hours!

The real benefit of my trip was to escape the cold, and to see my family, of course. I would gladly recommend New Zealand to any of you, whether you have been there or not, if you are keen to escape a Japanese winter. There are many things that you can experience in New Zealand that you can't experience in Japan. For example, you can try star-gazing and see the Southern Cross, which is only visible in the Southern Hemisphere. Other things you will be able to do in New Zealand that you can't do in Japan include eating Hokey Pokey ice cream and drinking Lemon and Paeroa, the popular soft drink.

Alternatively, if you want to escape the heat and humidity of a Japanese summer for a cool New Zealand winter, you can switch from swimming and surfing in Japan to skiing and snowboarding in New Zealand in June, July or August. Then you will get to watch live New Zealand rugby, and if you are lucky, you may get to see the famous All Blacks play! Their traditional pre-match Haka dance is world-renowned and not to be missed!

For those of you not sure of the geography, New Zealand lies in the Pacific Ocean to the south-east of Australia and consists of two main islands. The climate is basically temperate with hot summers and cold winters. There are four seasons, which occur roughly as follows: spring (September and October); summer (November to February); autumn (March and April); and winter (May to August).



chilly: 肌寒い
shivering: ぶるぶる震える
benefit: 便益
be keen to : ～するのに乗り気である
star-gazing: 星を眺める
the Southern Cross: 南十字星
visible: 目に見える
the Southern Hemisphere: 南半球
Alternatively: あるいは
Haka  :ニュージーランドのマオリ族の民族舞踊
world-renowned: 世界的に有名な


2019年5月25日土曜日

2019年5月25日土曜日 -

Matthew: All About Davis, California


I come from a city called Davis, which is located in Northern California. Davis may not be a very famous city, and it's definitely not a big city, but I believe that it's a unique and special place.

Davis began as a farming community in the second half of the 1800s, became the home of the newly established University of California (UC) University Farm in 1908, and was incorporated as a city in 1917. That was more than a century ago, so we can imagine how much has changed, and explore what has remained the same.

Davis began as an agricultural, or farming, school, where students came only to study subjects related to agriculture. Over the years, the school has grown and expanded its focus quite a lot, truly becoming a top level university (with thirty thousand students) that excels in many different fields such as plant science, veterinary science, and medicine. So where do most of the students, professors, and staff live? They live in Davis! Universities are famous for being centers of culture, and even though Davis is a small city, it is no exception. Let me explain a couple of fun and important contributions Davis has made to California and the United States.
The 1970s was an important time in Davis, the city and university were growing, and city leaders and residents were asking some important questions about the future. Should we grow the city as big as possible? Where should we shop? How should we move around the city? Perhaps because of its beginning as a small and conservative farming community, the people of Davis (and UC Davis) chose to try and preserve their local small town atmosphere. They chose, famously, to reject growth and embrace the use of bicycles more aggressively than any other American city at the time. Davis actually installed the first bike lane in the country, and then encouraged people to move around town by bike. This was different than basically anywhere else in the country, and Davis was proud to be unique. Still today, you can see bicycles everywhere you go, and everyone in town accepts this as the local reality.

The other important contribution was connected to farming. The Davis Farmers' Market opened in the 1970s and has grown to become an extremely important part of the community. It's not only the place where many residents come together to buy local fruits and vegetables, it actually serves as a social environment where people meet, eat food, and listen to music. About ten years ago, the Davis Farmers' Market was chosen as the best farmers' market in America! Its atmosphere reminds everyone why they love Davis, and are happy that it hasn't changed that much over the years.

I think Davis is a special place, and I would encourage anyone to read more about it or even visit someday if they travel in California.
establish: 設立する
incorporate:合体させる 
explore: 探究する
remain: 残る
agricultural: 農業の
related to:　～に関係した
agriculture: 農業
excel:　～に勝る
veterinary science: 獣医学
exception: 例外
contribution: 貢献・寄付
residents: 居住者
Perhaps: もしかすると
conservative:　保守的な
preserve: 保つ

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