2020年5月3日日曜日

2020年5月3日日曜日 -

Ali- What Makes A Home


Some students may remember me from three years ago, when I moved to Japan for the second time in 2016. After my first visit to Japan as a university student in 2014, I decided that after graduating I wanted to live here for the rest of my life. It often surprises people when I tell them I want to move to another country and live there forever, and I can understand why they feel that way. It's a very frightening thing to move abroad and be so far away from your family and friends. Yet, having lived in Japan twice, I can say with confidence that this place feels like home to me. There is no place I would rather be than Osaka, Japan.


The next questions I might be asked are, “Why Japan? Why Osaka? Why do these places feel like home when you've only lived there for a year and a half overall?” When I think about what makes a place feel like home, I think about the people I've met here. I've met many interesting, warm people who have been friendly and happy to introduce new things to me. These people have been friends with me through the time I returned to the United States and when I came back welcomed me with open arms. Spending time with them now, it felt as if I'd never left at all.

When I think about what makes a place feel like home, I think about food that I look forward to eating. In Osaka, I get excited about every meal I'm going to eat, whether I cook for myself or go out. When I go out into the city, I try to find new places to try local cooking, whether it's takoyaki or ramen.


When I think about what makes a place feel like home, I think about the atmosphere. Osaka is a lively city with a lot of busy places, but when I'm here, I feel calm. I live near the bay, where I can sometimes go to the park and look out over the water. It was hard for me to feel that way about any place back in the United States. There were many places I love in the U.S., however nowhere felt like home like Japan does for me. When I returned to Osaka last May, as I got off the airplane at Kansai International Airport, I stood in the terminal and said “Tadaima.”

I'm so happy to be back!



frightening：ぎょっとさせる
confidence：自信
overall：全体
with open arms：両手を広げて
atmosphere：雰囲気
bay：湾
nowhere：どこにも～ない

2020年5月3日日曜日 -

Cody-Austin, Texas: Mini-Seattle or Foodie's Paradise?


When people hear "Texas", they usually think of BBQ, cowboys, cows and the professional football teams there. Maybe some of those are true to varying degrees in some areas. However, in the city of Austin, Texas, capital of the state, you could not find a city more out of tune with the state's image.

      For one, much like Seattle, Austin has a bustling live music scene with restaurants, bars and venues that feature great, local bands as well as famous ones. If live music is your thing, then you'll definitely want to see if you can get a ticket to SXSW (South by South West), which is a music festival known across the country for its yearly collection of famous artists and skilled indepedent ones.

      On the other hand, the BBQ thing is true. Austin, like a lot of Texas, has stellar barbecue that's never difficult to find. From the gas-station-turned-BBQ-joint of Rudy's, where they offer sausages, brisket, pork loin, chicken and pulled pork by the quarter-pound served up on butcher's paper, to the Salt Lick BBQ, where you can expect an hour wait at least to dine on their refined take on classic Texan barbecue.     

      Austin isn't all BBQ though. The city has garnered a reputation as a 'foodie city' over the last few decades, and has attracted a lot of culinary hopefuls and pros alike. You can find just about anything there, cuisine-wise. If you want some classic Japanese food, go to Uchi 2. If you want some modern Japanese fusion, go to Uchi. Would you like to try a Cubano? It's a sandwich on crusty Cuban bread, loaded with pork, beef, pickles, mustard, cheese and mayo. If you do, then you ought to head down to "The Trailer Park", where all of Austin's food trucks congregate to serve the community. Tacos, sandwiches, kebabs, pizza, BBQ, shaved ice, smoothies, burgers... they've got just about everything. You can even find a takoyaki truck there. Speaking of tacos, you'll want to hit up Torchy's Tacos for a modern take on the classic Mexican street taco.
      It would be a travesty not to mention the Kirby Lane Cafe, while we're on the subject of food. It's a classic American diner/family restaurant that takes Austin's crazy food culture and breathes life into the age-old style of restaurant. Yea, they've got pancakes. But not just pancakes. Lemon poppyseed pancakes. Chocolate strawberry pancakes. Blueberry and sour cream pancakes. Pancakes not your thing? Have some hashbrowns, eggs and bacon, then.

      The last great pillar of Austin's food culture that needs mentioning: the burger stand. In the last twenty years, the city has seen a resurgence of the casual burger restaurant with a walk-up window, little to no indoor seating, and a drive-thru. P. Terry's leads the pack with cheap but delicious double-cheeseburgers, lemonade, classic skin-on French fries and stellar chocolate chip cookies baked on the premises.

      The food, the music, and the slogan of the city, "Keep Austin Wierd" make it an interesting and delicious place for a short trip or vacation if you're fans of anything mentioned above.

to varying degrees: 程度に応じて
capital : 首都
bustling: にぎやか
stellar: 主要な
pork loin: ロース
garnered: 獲得した
reputation: 評判
decades: 数十年
culinary: 料理
pros: 長所
modern: 現代の
congregate to: ～に集まる
travesty: 拙劣な模倣
age-old style: 昔からのスタイル
poppyseed: 芥子粒
resurgence: 再起/復活


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