Saturday, March 16, 2013

Short trip in Gunma ~5~ My home town part 2 Sakura 桜

The spring is coming soon.
I found some cherry blossoms blooming a little bit.

This is a shrine in my hometown. There is no people there.

It is silent.

This small shrine has never been introduced on Japanese guide book.

 It is said that shrines are the center of the communities in Japan.

I guess a lot of people used to get together here many years ago.







This tree is Ume, I think. This tree is also nice.


 It is still not the best season of sakura(さくら 桜). Maybe it is the beginning of
April. The season correspond to the season when Japanese schools begin the classes.

It's getting warmer now in Japan.

Friday, March 15, 2013

Japanese lifestyle ~40~ portable chopsticks

  It has been almost six months since I started this blog.
How are you doing???
  Today, I watched some videos on You tube.
I saw some foreign people singing Japanese songs.
When I was a child, I have never imagined this scene.
I used to think it is very difficult for foreign people to learn Japanese
because even Japanese people think Japanese is difficult...
  And I sometimes see foreign people who know about Japan
much more than Japanese people. They speak Japanese better
than Japanese people...^ ^ ;
They have sincere hearts to Japanese cultures. I really respect for them.
  So, if you are Japanese learner, please encourage yourself.
You can become a good Japanese speaker!...as long as you study.
  And I am thinking  I start to learn Japanese teaching skill
because I want to help people who want to learn Japanese.
 Today, I introduce nice chopsticks. That's portable chopsticks.

You can take the center apart like this.


  This chopstick is useful. And design is good.
Here is the site I watched today.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQJog0rs7Eg
The arts are beyond nation and language.


Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Japanese lifestyle ~ 39 ~ Kaomoji (顔文字)かおもじ

  When Japanese people communicate with person through computer,
they use Kaomoji. Today, I introduce some of them.
I guess this culture is peculiar to Japan.
Actually, you may use emoticons. In Japan there are thousand of Kaomoji.
Kao means face.
moji means letter.
  Kaomoji is like this one.
\(^▽^)/
 This kaomoji shows "smile". When you have happy thing in your daily life,
you put on this kaomoji after Japanese sentence.

・゚・(ノД`;)・゚・
 This kaomoji shows "crying"


ばいばい(⌒ー⌒)ノ~~~  Good bye

(。・ω・)ノ゙ コンチャ♪
This kaomoji says, ”コンチャ” It is the shorten word of こんにちは

(*_ _)人ゴメンナサイ
When you say sorry.
Do you know Japanese people sometimes say sorry by joining their palm
together? 人 express the palm.

[壁]_・)チラッ
You hide behind the wall. 壁 means wall.
When you see something at glance, you say チラッ in Japanese.

(゚д゚)(。_。)(゚д゚)(。_。) ウンウン
This means "Yes". This figure is nodding two times. When you nod, Japanese
people say ウン


(--、)ヾ(^^ )なくんじゃないよ
This means "encouragement" He says, Don't cry.



Σ( ̄ロ ̄lll) ガビーン
This means "shocked !!"


( -_-)ノ ---===≡≡≡ 卍 シュッ!
What is this???
This is the scene Ninja is throwing "Shuriken".
It is the weapon of Ninja.
http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%83%95%E3%82%A1%E3%82%A4%E3%83%AB:Edo_period_shuriken.jpg


I can't introduce all. Because there are too many. It is said that people still
keep creating this kind of stuff somewhere.


Tuesday, March 12, 2013

My work(children's story)~4~ kamishibai ”A white cat”

Today, I introduce Kamishibai"紙芝居(かみしばい)".
Kami means "paper".
Shibai means "acting".
Do you remember my work "A white cat" ? That is posted on this blog a few weeks
ago.
My father made a Kamishibai of that story.
What is Kamishibai???
That is one of the way to tell a story for children in Japan.
Story teller tells a story by showing some drawings that is on some boards.

 My father is making this kind of stuff as volunteer work. He is doing just for fun
After he retired his job. (He used to get the first prize at a competition of Kamishibai
that is held in Osaka, Minoo every year!)
 There are 14 boards here. Story teller read the story loudly. He or she
changes the voice according to the characters. When the story teller comes to
the next scene, he or she change the board to next one. It is like a theater play by
one people.


This is the scene, The monk found a gold lump.


 It is like a story board of a film making.





 He dramatized and changed the story without my permission. ^ ^ ;
The setting  became Okiku was the white cat.
Okiku is flying to his temple like a superman.... ^ ^ ;
Probably, he is going to play Kamishibai at elementary school in the near future.
I don't know what happen there.

 I imaged the monk like above. The drawing will help you have the image.
But I didn't imagine Okiku flies like a super man!! Oh my God!!

Monday, March 11, 2013

Japanese lifestyle ~ 38 ~ Two years later

It has been two years from the big earthquake in Tohoku area.
I tell you about it.
 We see some articles on earthquake(東日本大震災 Higashi nihon daishinsai)
on newspaper. The top page broadcasts a family that lost 11 years old daughter.
People died 15,881. And there are 2,668 missing people.
People who have taken  refuged apart from their hometown are 315,196.
A lot of memorial ceremonies are held in many places.
Reconstruction of the Tohoku area isn't still on the way.
  But I heard that there are some areas where reconstruction is making
steady progress.
  I see some interviews of people living in Tohoku area on newspaper or TV.
 They answer positively.
  My hometown, Gunma is about 200 km far from those areas. There are
some people who moved to Gunma. I sometimes find supports for those
people. For example, if you are the resident of earthquake victims, you can
watch the movie at movie festival for free.

  We realize the importance of helping with each other.


Sunday, March 10, 2013

My work children's story ~3~ Genta part (1 ゲンタ 第1話)

 I translated my third work "Genta." I translated a part of it.
I will divide the story into four because this story is not short.
I show the Japanese translation each time.

Apology
My English won't be nice.
がんばって読んでください!


Genta

         ~ 1 ~  Genta likes mischief 



“ Puu kun, I can’t twitch my ear.”
The rabbit, whose name is Rabirin said to a squirrel. The squirrel, whose name is Poo answered, looking at overhead of Rabirin.
“Your ears were tied by a string.”
Rabirin touched his overhead, and he found his right ear and left ear were tied by a string.
“Oh, who did it!? ”
 Rabirin tried to undo the knot of the string. But he couldn’t reach. So, Rabirin asked Poo to undo the knot. Poo helped to undo the knot.
“I saw Genta walking around there with this string. Maybe this is his mischief.”
“Oh…Did you?”
“Oh, I lost…”
“What happened? Puu kun?”
“My acorns disappeared! I hid them around this stump.”
“Genta did it, too.”
“Yes, he did the same kind of mischief a couple of the days ago.  Oh, he promised he didn’t do that anymore.”

  There are some hills near the grassy plain, called “Horohoro”. And some of those hills have a hole. A bee is flying over the holes. A bear got into the hole, with a comb in his hand… The bear ran out of the hole a few seconds later.
“Oh, ouch!! Help!”
A fox ran out of the hole, holding his head in his hands. His name is Pokey. Pokey dashed to Chirochiro River. And a swarm of bee chased Pokey.
“Who did it!!?”
Pokey shouted in the distance.
  Genta roared with laughter. He was watching that in the bush. And then Genta ran away.

  By the way, in the season when persimmons have fruits on the branch, many animals in this town get together at a square. And they present a play at the square. Today, all members, living around Horohoro plain, were practicing there.
“Hey, you!  Stand there!  No! Stand there!”
A leopard cat, whose name is Luc, raised his voice. He was directing the drama in this year. Luc didn’t overlook player’s mistake. So, everyone was afraid of being scolded.


To be continued

日本語

ゲンタ

いたずら好きゲンタ

 「ねえ、リスのプーくん、さっき目がさめたら耳がうごかないんだよ。」
 うさぎのラビリンくんはリスにむかっていいました。リスのプーくんはうさぎのあたまの上を見ていいました。
「ラビリンくん、耳がひもでしばられているよ。」
うさぎのラビリンがあたまのうえの耳を手でさわってみると、右耳と左耳がひもでしばられてくっついてました。
「ええ!?だれだよ、こんなことやるのは!」
いそいでうさぎのラビリンはひもをとこうとしましたが、なかなかひものところまで手がとどきません。しかたがないので、うさぎのラビリンはあたまをよこにかたむけて、リスのプーくんがひもをほどいてあげました。
「そういえば、さっきくまのゲンタがひもをもってそこらへんをあるいていたな。きっと、ゲンタにいたずらされたのだよ。」
「ゲンタはいやなことするな。」
「あれ!ない!」
「どうしたんだい、プーくん?」
「このきりかぶのしたにどんぐりを100個くらいかくしておいたのに、ないんだよ。」
「ゲンタのしわざなんじゃないのかな。」
「きっとそうだ。だって、このあいだも同じことがあって、かくしたのはゲンタだったんだ。もうやらないってやくそくしたのにな。」

ホロホロ草原(the name of plain)のちかくにはいくつか小さく高くなったおかがあって、おかのところどころにあなぐらがあります。さて、そのあなぐらの上を、ぶーんと一匹のハチが空を飛んでいます。そんなことはおかまいなしに、一匹のくまがゴソゴソとあなぐらに入っていきました。右手におおきなみつばちのすをかかえながら・・・。しばらくすると、あなのなかからくまが走ってでてきました。
「いてーっ!たすけてくれー!」
あたまをかかえながら、一匹のキツネがあなぐらの中からもうれつないきおいででてきました。キツネのポーキーです。キツネのポーキーはもうれつないきおいでチロチロ川のほうにむかって走っていきました。そして、そのあとを何匹ものミツバチの大群(taigun)が追いかけて(oikakeru=chase)いきました。
「だれがやりやがった!おこったぞ!」
とおくでキツネのポーキーがどなりました。

いわのかげにかくれて様子を見ていたのはくまのゲンタ。ゲンタは大わらいしながら、スタコラサッサっとにげてしまいました。

ところで、このむらでは、カキの木がえだにたくさんのみをつけるころになると、村中(murajyuu = town)のみんなで劇をするならわしがあります。今日は劇のれんしゅうの日でした。ホロホロ草原のまわりにすんでいるどうぶつたちは、村の広場にあつまって、ほんばんにむけてれんしゅうをしているようです。
「ほらほら、そこ、そこに立つんだよ!そこじゃないってば。」
やまねこのリュックが、やまざるのキキにむかって大声をはりあげていいました。今年、劇をしどうするのは、このやまねこのリュックです。村中のどうぶつたちは、やまねこのしどうにしたがってれんしゅうしています。やまねこのリュックは、少しのまちがいも見のがしません。だから、みんなどきどきしながられんしゅうしていました。

つづく

Saturday, March 9, 2013

Japaense lifestyle ~37~ hay fever かふんしょう(花粉症)

  Now, a lot of Japanese people are annoyed with hay fever.
I have a hay fever.
Hay fever is caused by cedar pollen.
I always sneeze. I always blow my nose hard.
My yeas are always filled with tears. おそろしい。It's awful.

  In Japan, we usually don't use a  handkerchief when we blow our
nose. Do you use a handkerchief? I have seen a people who uses
handkerchief in New Zealand. That scene was kind of culture shock
for me. Japanese people would use tissue.
  Or when you are in a bathroom, some men may use hands. ^ ^ ;
Women would not do that.

  By the way, have you heard hay fever in your country?
I guess, if you are living in a countries, where there is no wind that contains
pollen, you would not have annoy of hay fever.
  Is this disease peculiar to Japan? (T ^ T)
  In this season, when you see a weather forecast, they always tell the amount of
pollen in Japan.