December 2008 Archives

<TOSINOSE HA, SHIZUKA NA HOU GA SUKI>
Most Japanese feels New Year (OSHOUGATSU) is important more than Christmas.
I'm the one.
Though it's busy to prepare for New Year (OSHOUGATSU), my feeling become tense.
For example (TATOEBA), huge housecleaning(OOSOUJI).
Japanese clean up house (IE) or office (KAISHA) in the depth of winter.
Originally (SOMO SOMO), the New Year event is for welcome the god (KAMI SAMA).
So, we purify (KIYOMERU) our town (MACHI), house (IE), and myself (JIBUNJISIN).
When finished the clean up,  we decorate (KAZARI TSUKE) and offer (OSONAE) for god.

 KAGAMIMOCHI

It's in the middle, and piled up the white rice cake (OMOCHI).

 

On the top, put a DAIDAI (bitter orange) or orange(MIKAN).
Under the KAGAMIMOCHI lay URAJIRO (kind of fern).
Every ornaments have the meaning.

SHIMENAWA

 

Hang it on the front door (GENKAN NO DOA).

In area of Japan, the form of SHIMENAWA is different.

In Hamamatsu dosen't have specific style, so our SHIMENAWA is standerd type.

See closely...

The gold bird is a crane (TSURU).

The green wisp is pine's leaf (MATSU NO HA).

The red bud is a flower of Japanese apricot (UME NO HANA).

The downside, there are ears of rice (INAHO).

 

Everything is lucky stuff.
(ENGI NO YOI MONO!!)

 

 

Thus (KOUYATTE), Japasene New Year (OSHOUGATSU) express our gratitude (KANSHA).

 
To water (MIZU), woods (KI), wind (KAZE), the sun (OHISAMA) and all nature glory (SIZENNKAI NO MEGUMI).

 

People clean the house noisily

(BATA BATA TO IE WO SOUJI SHIMASU.)
And finish all of the shopping for the New Year Holidays (OSHOUGATSU),
until Dec.31st. Very busy!! (TOTTEMO ISOGASHII DESU.)
It becomes quiet suddenly in the morning of 1st day of the year.
People straighten their posture. (HITOBITO HA, MI WO TADASHI MASU.)
The entire Japan is encompassed by silence. (TOTTEMO SHIZUKA DESU.)
The tension might reflect strangely to overseas people.
But I love this tension so much. (WATASHI HA DAISUKI DESU.)

SATE (By the way), the preparations for New Year holidays were done.
So I went for a walk (OSANPO NI ITTEKIMASHITA.) with my family
to the lake nearby.
Because Hamamatsu is a warm place (ATATAKAI TOKORO DESU) in Japan,
so the snow does not fall.
One fine winter day is just good for a walk.






















There is OJIZOU SAMA (guardian deity of children) on the roadside.It is CHIISANA OJIZOU SAMA (small guardian deity of children) of approximately one foot in height. I wonder if some child imitated the offering (OSONAEMONO) and put somepebbles in front of it

TSUBAKI NO HANA GA MANKAI DESU.
(The camellia flower is full-bloomed.)
There seems to be a person who enjoys leafing more than the camellia flower, too.
"TSUBAKI (The camellia)" is named by "TSUYAHA NO KI (the tree of shined leaf)".
The leaf is lighted up by the sun, and it's shining.
Isn't it beautiful?

For New Year holidays (OSHOUGATSU HA), I return to my parents house (We say JIKKA.) where families gather.

I really thank people in the world who I was able to come across with this blog this year.

Thank you.(ARIGATOU)

RAINEN MO, HEIWA DE ARIMASUYOUNI.
(I really hope that the next year will be the peaceful year.)

HAMAMATSU YORI AI WO KOMETE.
(With love from Hamamatsu.)

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<Aa, NIHON NO KURISUMASU>

The Christmas is almost here.(MOUSUGU KURISUMASU DESUNE.)

In Christmas season, (KURISUMASU NIHA,)
we see the Christmas boots in the supermarkets in Japan.
The boots is full of snack(OKASHI).
30 years are the continuing long sellers because it was when I am small.

I guess... doing as hanging at Christmas is socks(KUTSUSHITA)...??
Maybe(KITTO), the first time they make it with that image,
but for line up in the store with snack in it, the material needs the strength,
then the socks(KUTSUSHITA) changed to boots, I guess.
The boots has many variation recently.

 

These are the boots

for girls(ONNA NO KO).

 

It's almost long boots!

The illustration is "PRECURE".
This character is popular(NINNKI)

for preschool girls in Japan now.

Well, it's just like an age before's

 "SAILOR MOON".
By the way, the active preschooler,
dosen't know "SAILOR MOON".

  

 

 

And these are for

boys(OTOKO NO KO).

These are the boots of "YATTER MAN "
which remade and broadcasted on TV recently.

 Woof, bow- wow-wow!(WAN WAN WAN)
   Woof, beg beg beg!(CHIN CHIN CHIN)

 

Is "YATTER MAN" known in foreign countries(KAIGAI)　also?

 

 

The town overflows with a Christmas present.
I have kids, so my eyes go to the present counter unconsciously.
This shop is very popular(TOTEMO NINKI) for girls.

The shop sells rabbit's doll and the tool of concerning it with the series.
There are several shops in Japan.
In the Christmas season, the reservations(YOYAKU) rush in and running out of
stock(URI KIRE) soon.

What did I buy for my daughter(MUSUME) and my son(MUSUKO) ･･･?
I'll tell you after Christmas.
Why? Because my 4-year-old daughter(MUSUME) is a keen reader of my blog.

In my house(UCHIDEHA), everybody but me dislikes the cake.
So, this Christmas, we made a house of the cookies.
The mushrooms(KINOKO) of forest(MORI) and the firewood(MAKI) in front of a house(IE)
are from Japanese standard chocolate snacks "KINOKO NO YAMA" and "KOEDA".
My daughter made the snowman(YUKI DARUMA).
Oh oh... See this pic! Several places are bitten!

It must be... the kid

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<GIBO NO AI & UMI NO MEGUMI>
Mother-in-law send me NIBOSHI and CHIRIMENJAKO.
She loves using this ingredients for cooking, and we love them too.
(WATASHI TACHI MO DAISUKI DESU.)
She always send it to us about twice a year.


Well... Eeh...
Just in case, (NEN NO TAME,) explain for foreign people,
Upside the picture,these are NIBOSHI (dried small sardines)
in the cardboard box.(DAN BOURU.)
We also call it "IRIKO".
It is dried small sardine. We do not eat as it is,
Generally, (FUTSUU HA,) we put them into the water and take
the soup stock like this. (KONNNA FUU NI.)
Put them overnight, on the next morning, I set the fire (HI WO TSUKETE)
and make delicious miso soup with it.(OISHII!!)

I said generally a while ago,
In my home,(UCHI DE HA,)
NIBOSHI (dried small sardines) is the substitute for snack.
(NIBOSHI WO OYATSU GAWARI NI TABEMASU.)
When I put it in the kitchen as the cardboard box which arrived,
my husband and children takes and eats it when passing.
Munch-munch.(PORI PORI.) 
They are just like a cat, huh?
(NEKO MITAI DE SHO?)
But it's good for health, you know.
Because, it's all calcium, right?

CHIRIMENJAKO (Boiled and dried baby sardines) are in the
other white box in down side of the picture.
It's also dried by the sun (TEN PI BOSHI) and much smaller
than NIBOSHI.(dried small sardines)
We eat this as just it is.
SONOMAMA TABEMASU.
In my home, we put lots of minced leeks on top of it.
And eat it with some lemon juice and soy sauce.
When I put this on a table,
everybody begins to eat munch-munch.(PORI PORI.)


CHIRIMENJAKO (Boiled and dried baby sardines) is made a roundup arrest,
so the fry of various fish is mixed.
For example, octopuses,(TAKO,) shrimps,(EBI,) sea snakes(UMI HEBI)
and so on.(NADO NADO.)
When I was child, every time my father showed me when he found a strange thing.
"Look !" (MITE!!)
My husband dose the same thing to a children by chance. Japanese Goods eBay Auction

<NAGOYA NI ITTEKIMASHITA>
Get on a high-way from Hamamatsu,
and for one and a half hours by car.
We went to Nagoya for shopping.
NAGOYA NI KAIMONO NI DEKAKEMASHITA.
Hamamatsu does not have many new things.
DAKARA (So), we married couples sometimes goes to the Nagoya.
We goes to the tour named
"HE-. KONNAMON ARUNDA- TSUA-" ("Tour of New discovery.")
SHOJIKI ITTE (To tell the truth), the locality of Nagoya is not so
familiar for me.
DOCHIRAKA TO IEBA, (I prefer) Kyoto or Tokyo a little bit better.
However, nearest big city from Hamamatsu is Nagoya.
So we go.

TOKORODE, (By the way), Nagoya has a lot of mysterious things.
FUSHIGI NA MONO GA TAKUSAN ARIMASU.
TATOEBA, (For example), this tower is a Nagoya TV Tower.
Nagoya citizen loves it as this TV tower is like Eiffel Tower.
And, under this tower, there is Los Angeles plaza for some reason (NAZEKA).


It is a hometown of TOYOTA which is famous for a car here.
KURUMA DE TOTTEMO YUUMEI DESUNE.
I did not feel in bad times at all.
Gorgeous Christmas illuminations sparkled in many places.
So beautifull.( TOTTEMO KIREI DESU.)

This is an appearance of the annexes (BEKKAN) of Nagoya Mitsukoshi.
The Christmas tree was huge.
TOTTEMO OOKINA KURISUMASU TSURI- DESHITA.
I don't think that tree is real fir tree.
I feel too sorry for a tree if it is the real tree!
MOSHI HONMONO NO KI DATTARA, KI GA KAWAISOU DESU.







A young woman who passes each other in Nagoya has the bag of the brand thing
without fail. (KANARAZU!!)
They do too match make-up. (KOI OKESHOU.)
They have a long hair softly curled.
They look the same.
(MINNA ONAJI NI MIEMASU.)
Same make-up, same hair style,
same brand bag.
If daring to say, (AETE IU NARABA,)
They seems enjoying the costume play of "NAGOYA PPOI ONNA "
("Nagoya Woman".)




SOU SOU,(WELL), KOSUPURE TO IEBA, (Speaking of a costume play,)
such an exhibition (TENJIKAI) had been held at the PARCO (department store for young people) in Nagoya.Figure exhibition of japanese forming writer Bome.
(Real name is closed)
BOME made figure of the character of Sailor Moon and Evangelion.
"The King of Otaku" who attracts attention from all over the world.
Because his work is large,(SAKUHIN GA OOKII NODESU.) and has about 20" height,
transportation and handling are difficult.
This time seems to be the first time (HAJIMETE MITAI DESU.)
that his 80 works gather in one place.

ITTE MITAI?
Do you wanna go?

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It has deepened in autumn.
AKIMO FUKAMATTE MAIRIMASHITA.
AKI FUKASHI.
The leaf in the garden also turned red, and the fallen leaf danced.
NIWA DE OCHIBA(Fallen leaves) GA MAIMASHITA.
There is a forest near my home.
WAGAYA NO CHIKAKU NI HA MORI GA ARIMASU.
A lot of wild birds and small animals live in there.         
The squirrel (RISU), the kingfisher (KAWASEMI), and the owl (FUKUROU) also live in the forest.
We picked up a MATSUBOKKURI (pinecone) in a forest. And we filled there with bait called the bird cake.
When it hangs it with a hemp string to the branch of the garden tree,
It seems to be an ornament of Christmas.
MARUDE KURISUMASU NO OONAMENTO MITAIDESU.
IIKANJI DESHO. (Very nice isn't it?)
The children are happy to make a bird cake with me.


How to make bird cakes is very simple.
BA-DO KE-KI NO TSUKURIKATA HA TOTTEMO KANNTAN.
You can make this bird cake by mixing KOMUGIKO (flour),
RA-DO (lard), and SATOU (sugar) by the amount at 5:3:2.
Then make the dough into a shape of a ping-pong ball.
You may just put it in the garden.
Then a big bird lasts by a mouthful. PAKURI!! (Gulp!!)
Well, it's good, too.

Because the bird cake lasts with a refrigerator for around 2 weeks.
BA-DO KE-KI HA REIZOUKO DE NISHUUKANKURAI MOCHIMASU.
If a MATSUBOKKURI (pinecone) empties,
I fill the MATSUBOKKURI (pinecone) with a bird cake again.
Children are enjoying that the wild bird comes to our garden.
KODOMOTACHI HA YACHOU GA NIWA NI KURU NO WO TOTTEMO TANOSHIMINI SHITEIMASU.
I am not good at keeping a bird, but I like looking from far away like this.
For this season, I hung a pinecone yesterday.
(KON SHI-ZUN HA, MATSUBOKKURI WO KINOU TSURUSHITA BAKKARI DESU.)
So the wild birds are on alert now and watchingus quietly nearby.
YACHOU HA TADAIMA KEIKAICHU!!
Wow, Look!! MITE MITE!!
A wild bird flew to a pinecone and ate a bird cake now
KITA

It's very hard to see in this photograph.
It is a bird having green and a brown mixed feather.
I looked for the first time. HAJIMETE MIRU TORI DESU.
CHIISAKUTE KAWAII TORI DESU.
Small and lovely bird!!

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