Full Moon 中秋の名月

Moon is so beautiful today....

Soyokaze 微風

Today is sunny day. May in Japan is so calm and fresh. We cam feel lively breeze. So I love this period. However, this fresh season is very short every year. June in Japan is so humid and uncomfortable. Rainy season will come soon.  

Soyokaze 微風 in Japanese means breeze. I like this sound. And I like to watch flowers or green leaves are trembling by soyokaze. Also it is so nice that clothes after washing are shaking under the sun. I feel happy.

I remembered about wind. I watched a documentary in TV about Hayao Miyazaki's work. He said wind or breeze was so effective item and a key of story in his film. For example, when a character makes a serious decision, it winds definitely. Certainly when something happens or change in our daily life, we might feel wind or breeze.

I wish soyokaze brings to happier things and hope in our future.        

Full Moon - Oborozukiyo

I looked up sky at night yesterday. Full moon was shining beautifully. There are my favorite songs for moon. Oborozukiyois an old Japanese song and  my favorite one. Sky in spring in Japan is hazy. So moon seems to be hazy. Oborozukiyo means night like this. This song is so beautiful. I found a music video. Japanese female singer, Mika Nakashima sing the song.     

Oborozukiyo by Mika Nakashima

Another song is 今夜月の見える丘に. This song was theme song of TV drama, "Beautiful Life". that was on air about ten years ago.

I'm happy to see beautiful moon now.

  

今夜月の見える丘に by B'z

Sakura 桜

It is sakura season now. Spring is a season of encounter and saying good-by in Japan. Japanese feel happy to see sakura every year. And we go to see sakura and have a party or festival under the trees. However, this year is different a little. Because we have a lot of problems and know various tragedy of this big earthquake. 

We can't imagine our future and feel depressing. However, Sakura brooms every year and the beauty let us calm. 

I memorized some sentences in lesson of Japanese literature at junior high school. They are written in the begining of the Tale of Heike.  (See "Classic military tale" in Wikipedia. )

祇園精舎の鐘の声、諸行無常の響きあり。娑羅双樹の花の色、盛者必衰の理をあらわす。

おごれる人も久しからず、唯春の夜の夢のごとし。たけき者も遂にはほろびぬ、偏に風の前の塵に同じ。

諸行無常 (Shogyomujo) in it is very famous phrase. It means impermanence. All of things and every moment is impermanent. I didn't know why we memorized at that time and I might not have understood the real meaning. I especially realize it now. 

I like this phrase.

There is a song of sakura that I love. The title is Sakura and this song is very beautiful. We especially hear it in graduation season. It was big hit song in Japan. 

Sakura by Naotaro Moriyama  

Our Destiny

Yesterday massive earthquake happened in Japan. The hypocenter is north area and far from Tokyo. Victims by tsunami are increasing now. However I and people in Tokyo felt big shake and impact. I was so scary and I have never experiented such a big earthquake. It was unbelievable shake even in Tokyo.  We use subway or train to commute to work in Tokyo. However, they stopped at the time to go home. Trafic was blocked. Defects for Tokyo are earthquake and sudden a lot of snow.

Earthquake is our destiny. There are a lot of active faults under our island. We can't avoid this fact. And there are a lot of other nature disaster in Japan. We have to receive and conquer these natural disasters.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12720489

         

Haruichiban 春一番

Spring comes. Beautiful cherry blossoms (Sakura) bloom now. Everything begins in April. New term begins at school. Recruits who graduate from university or high school join a company.

There are some words that express each season. Haruichiban 春一番 is a very symbolic word for Japanese spring. Haruichiban 春一番 means the first gale of spring in the end of February or March. We can hear this word in weather report. "Haru" 春 means spring and "ichiban" 一番 means first or No.1.

When haruichiban blow, it is a sign that long winter in Japan ends at last and we feel spring. Everyone wait for spring. March in this year was very cold after haruichiban blew. We couldn't take off winter coat for a long time. Now it becomes warmer in April.

I hate the gale, however, I like the sound of Haruichiban, I don't know why.


I want to add new part "My favorite phrase " in my blog. I will update when I'm touched or find good phrases. Please sometimes check it.

Carpet of falling leaves

I drove today. Trees are so nice.

I like this season because leaves in trees turns red or yellow. And falling leaves (落葉) are like carpet on the roads.

Maple (Momiji もみじ or かえで) in Japan is very beautiful and one of symbolic trees in autumn.

There are a lot of deciduous trees in Japan. Japanese people enjoy seeing beautiful scenery of Momiji. It calls it "Momiji Gari" もみじ狩り”.

I went to Kyoto about few years ago in Autumn. I enjoyed seeing Momiji or colorful leaves there. Especially falling leaves of Momiji in Toufukuji (東福寺), one of famous temples for beautiful scenery, was amazing ! Momiji was just like picturesque red carpet.

We can see cherry blossomes in spring and Momiji or other colorful leaves in autumn. 　 　

Teru Teru Bozu and Snail

It has been humid and muggy in resent days. Rainy season in Japan is very humid.

Teru teru bozu is an essential item for children. It is used as a kind of charm to stop raining. It is a paper doll and easy to make for them. When a child wishes that it becomes sunny next day, he or she makes teru teru bozu and hung it in front of the house. I used to make it before I went to picnic. I believed my wish came to be true.

Snail is symbolic animal of rainy season. It crawls on leaves of Ajisai in raining day. I didn't be scared of snail when I was a child. I could even hold it. However, I dislike it now because it is slimy.

Now I don't like rainy season in Japan. However I didn't feel unpleasant, when I was a child. Teru teru boze or snails is an good memories in my childhood.

Teru teru bozu

Hydrangea あじさい

Many beautiful , pink, blue, white or violet hydrangeas あじさい (ajisai) blooms in Japan. It is typical flower of our rainy season.

初鰹 Hatsugatsuo

We say that it is good for health to eat foods in season. We call these foods in season "Shun" 旬 no tabemono (food). "Shun" is especially important for Japanese life and we use this word for each season.

Katsuo (Bonito) is "Shun no tabemono" now. We call it "Hatsugatsuo" 初鰹. We normally eat it as one kind of sashimi. We call it Katsuo no Tataki. Katsuo no Tataki is raw, however, only surface of a piece of Katsuo is grilled. The relish of Katsuo is grated garlic. I like sashimi and Hatsugatsuo is so delicious.

There is a famous Haiku of Katuo.

目に青葉　山ほととぎす　初鰹

(Meni aoba Yama hototogisu Hatsugatsuo)

It expresses early summer in Japan.
We can see a lot of green leaves (青葉) outside, Lesser Cuckoo (ほととぎす) chirps in mountains and Bonito is in season (初鰹）.

What is "Shun" of early summer in your countries ?

Golden Week and 五月晴れ Sunny Day In May

It is calm and sunny today. Today's weather in Tokyo is like early summer. Sky is blue and clear green leaves are very beautiful. We call good weather in May like today "五月晴れ" (Satsuki bare). Satsuki is name of May for the lunar calendar. May is a month before rainy season (梅雨). I think that May in Japan is most comfortable month.

Golden week, long holidays, begins in Japan. We were looking forward to this week. A lot of people go to a trip. Traffic jam in highways, people in international airports or stations are topics in golden week. Probably you might see some Japanese people in your country in this week. Although swine flu spreads in the world in these days, many people who put on medical mask leaved Japan.
Golden week is a special holiday for Japanese people.
　

Name of 12 months for the lunar calendar

January 睦月(Mutsuki) February 如月(Kisaragi) March 弥生 (Yayoi)
April 卯月(Uzuki) May 五月 or 皐月(Satsuki) June 水無月(Minazuki)
July 文月(Fumizuki) August 葉月(Hazuki) September 長月(Nagatuki)
October 神無月(Kaminazuki) November 霜月(Shimotuki)
December 師走(Shiwasu)

* We seldom use these names in daily life now.

おくりびと "Departures"

I couldn't have posted for a long time. Because my PC haven't worked.

I saw wonderful Japanese film, "Departures" that won Oscar Best Foreign Language Film last month. It is first time to win Oscar for Japanese film. The big news was reported on large scale in our countries and we were greatly glad to hear this news.

There were a lot of people in the movie theater. Departures is set in Yamagata prefecture, northern rural area of Japan. I have known by this film first time about the ceremony in Japanese funeral. It expresses a kind of Japanese delicate feeling for the departed. You can know about Japanese funeral situation in this film. The scores that are composed by Joe Hisaishi and scenery in Yamagata are very beautiful and magnificent. They are very effective for this film.

Today is Girls Festival (Hina Matsuri) in Japan. You can see a set of Japanese traditional dolls (Hina Ningyo) for Girls Festival in the film.

Haruichiban 春一番

I heard weather news today. A weather reporter said Haruichiban blew tonight or tomorrow. Haruichiban 春一番 means very strong wind that blow after the first day of spring. February 4 was the first day of spring by the old calendar. (This letter "春" means spring.)

Haruichiban is like storm with warm and strong wind. When I heard this word, I think that spring is coming.

Tomorrow is St. Valentine Day. As I explained this day in Japan last year, almost Japanese women buy and send sweet chocolate for their boyfriends or coworkers. A trend for Valentine Day this year is "Gyaku Choco". This means men may send chocolates to their girlfriends. I think Japanese people love commercial events as St. Valentine day. A lot of people go to shops to buy many chocolates today. Wave of people will be just like Haruichiban.

Walking

February is coldest month. And the air is very dry. So many people tend to catch a cold, especially flu spreads in our country now.

Japanese people have a interest for health. Preventing disease is important. Exercises is one of way to maintaining our health.

Walking is simplest and most effective exercise. We need no tools. Just only shoes. I often see people who are walking faster than usual walking in weekend. Pedometer is good tool to continue walking. Japanese pedometers have a lot of variations now. There are pedometers with game or other functions.

When we are walking in fresh air and feeling nature, we can refresh and find various things that we can't find in the car or train in our view. Ume 梅 (Japanese apricot) are blooming at this season. They are very tiny, however, so cute flowers. I feel that spring is approaching.

What can you see in your countries now ?

Tiny and cute !!

Flower and small buds

Relax in Autumn

Now it gets cooler and air is so clear and fresh. Kinmokusei (Osmanthus fragrans) is good smell and we fell autumn.
I went to Obuse in Nagano prefecture this weekend. Nagano is a place that Olympic winter game was held in 1998. Obuse is very small town in countryside. Special products of this town are grape, apple and chestnuts. They are autumn foods. I like autumn season because we can eat abundant and delicious foods.

Beautiful Apples in Obuse

The motif of this shop curtain (Noren) of Japanese sweets is three chestnuts.

I visited a museum of Hokusai , Hokusai kan and Gansho-in (I'm sorry for no English site). Hokusai is very famous Japanese artist as you know. He had visited and stayed for several years after he was 80 years old in Obuse. He drew celling painting in Gansho-in when he was 89 years old. The selling painting (Happo Nirami Houou zu) is vivid color and I couldn't feel that it was old work. I was touched.

Autumn is good season for travel. I can so relax. Eat delicious foods and feel good arts or nature... It is very excitied and delightful thing.

Jugoya

Today is Jugoya. Jugoya means night of full moon. We have a traditional custom in Japan. It is Tsukimi. Tsukimi is to view full moon in September. Weather in Tokyo today has a little cloud, however, I can see beautiful moon. Some typical offerings for Tsukimi are dango (white dumpling), Sake and Japanese pampas grass. There was porch (Engawa) at Japanese traditional house. We have enjoyed viewing the full moon at porch hearing chirp of bell-ringing crickets (Suzumushi) outside. We have felt beginning of autumn season.

Now we actually don’t do this custom at big city or town. We are forgetting these traditional customs like feeling nature or season, especially at town. Tsukimi might be a custom of other days. However, I will view the moon even if I don’t prepare the offerings.
every year. Not to forget this good Japanese custom.
By the way, what can you see in the full moon at your countries? In Japan, we imagine a rabbit that makes rice cake.

Postcards in summer (暑中見舞い and 残暑見舞い)

We don't recently write a letter or postcard to friends. We can contact them easily now. Almost people use e-mail of cell phone or computer. Even elder people can use e-mail and contact with grandsons or granddaughters with photos. Handwriting is rare thing in daily life or business. It is so convenience, however, e-mail is sometimes literal and it is difficult to feel emotions of the sender. There is a custom to write postcard in summer in Japan.
"Shochu Omimai Moshi Agemasu" and "Zansho Omimai Moshi Agemasu" are first phrases to write in postcards. Japanese write postcards to ask friends how he or she has been getting along in summer. "Shochu" 暑中 means the hot period from the end of rainy season to Liqiu (August 7 in this year). and "Zansho" 残暑 means the heat after Liqiu. So we write "Shochu Mimai" before Liqiu and "Zansho Mimai" (We call each postcards as "Shochu Mimai " and "Zansho Mimai".)
I have received a Shoshu Mimai from my friend this year. I was very glad. Receiving a letter or postcard is glad and special for us. (Do you think so ?) As I mentioned before, we seldom write a letter now. However, I think that this is good custom.

This is image of Shoshu Mimai

Cicada - Semi

What sounds do you feel hot summer in your country? I definitely feel summer and heat by the sound of cicadas in trees. Loud sound of cicadas is vibrating in town during summer.
Some kinds of cicadas live in Japan. The sound of Min-min Zemi, Kumazemi (I don’t know the English names.) and large brown cicadas (Abura zemi) is so loud at noon. However, this is the summer in Japan. The sound of Tsuku-Tsuku Boshi is unique. We can hear the sound like this name, “tsuku tsuku boshi”.
Sometimes a cicada comes into the balcony in my house by mistake. I am so surprised at the big sound. Since I hate insects personally, I’m so scared.
However, I like the sound of Higurashi . The sound of Higurashi is high and quite. Higurashi sings at evening in the end of summer.
A cicada is often used in Haiku, Japanese poetry. “Semi” is a season word in summer.

Karuizawa

Rainy season is over. Is it hot summer this year ? School is in summer vacation.
Karuizawa is one of famous summer resorts in Nagano prefecture. It takes about 1 hour by Shinkansen from Tokyo. It is a small and quite town in winter. However, in summer a lot of tourists visit there to relax or play sports. It is cool in summer, there is no sea but a lot of trees, fresh air make us happy. And rich people have own cottage or villa. Therefore, Karuizawa is famous place and resort for high society.
I'm not rich but I have visited several times. When I was a college student, I used to go playing tennis with friends or stay for relaxation at villa for rental.
There are a lot of shops around Karuizawa station. We can eat delicious food or buy souvenir. Everyone can enjoy fresh air and atmosphere.
I have heard that John Lennon loved this place and stayed in every summer. If you have a chance, I recommend you would go to relax.

Umbrella

Japan totally has a lot of rain. Rainy season begun yesterday around Kanto area. If you live in Japan, it is essential to have umbrella in rainy day. From June to the end of July is usually rainy season in Japan. We call it “Tsuyu”. Tsuyu is very humid. I think almost Japanese don’t like rainy season. It is especially horrible in commuter trains or buses during rainy season.
And a lot of typhoons hit Japan end of July. They bring big disasters every year. I have heard that Japanese consumption of umbrellas is No.1 in the world. We often have folding umbrella. They are very light and small. It is convenient to put it in our bag. And we can buy simple and cheap vinyl umbrella at convenience stores or pharmacies now. These vinyl umbrellas have been broken by strong wind and thrown away after storm. A lot of vinyl umbrellas have changed to wastes on the streets. And umbrellas are one of things that people frequently leave in the bus or train after rain.
When we look down the street from the heights at the building, colorful umbrellas look like beautiful flowers.