Blog

Clam Digging
潮干狩り

May and June are the most popular months of the year to go clam digging (潮干狩り, shiohigari ) in Japan. You may think that clam digging itself is not so special, but “clam digging” is seriously an important keyword in Japanese society and history! I was very surprised by the extent to which the Japanese people love clam digging as a family activity! It also appears to get significant news coverage every year.

日本では、5月と6月が潮干狩りの季節ですね。日本人が家族と一緒に潮干狩りに行くはとても人気のある娯楽ですね。

初めて聞いた時、貝を掘ることはそれほど特別な活動ではないと思うかもしれませんが、日本の社会や歴史の中で「潮干狩り」は重要なキーワードらしいですね!また、今まで、毎年ニューズになっているそうです。私は、日本人が「潮干狩り」を楽しむことに驚きした!

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Tiger Kingdom Thailand
[虎の王国] タイガーキングダム・プーケット

皆様、虎と一緒に写真を撮ったことがありますか?猫のような虎に会ったことがありますか?タイに虎と直接戯れることができる夢のようなスポットがあるのはご存知でしょうか。プーケットにある「Tiger Kingdom・タイガーキングダム」(虎の王国)という観光スポットです。そこでは、虎と一緒の珍しい写真が取れます。

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Sumo Practice at Musashigawa-beya
武蔵川部屋の朝稽古

To the Japanese, sumo is not merely a popular wrestling sport, it has long been performed ritually at festivals since ancient times. Many ancient traditions have been preserved in sumo, and even today the sport includes many ritual elements, such as the use of salt purification, from Shinto. Life as a wrestler is highly regimented, with rules regulated by the Japan Sumo Association, and tickets to sumo tournaments are pricey and often sold out. This is one of the reasons why, besides watching sumo matches on TV, we usually have few occasions to enter the world of sumo.

日本人にとって、相撲はとても大事なスポーツですね。皆様、自分自身で、直接お相撲さんに会ったことがありますか?先日、私は武蔵川部屋に行く機会がありました!朝稽古を見学に行きました。素晴らしい経験でした!

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Disaster Preparedness Drill
防災訓練

The island nation lies along the western edge of the Ring of Fire, making it one of the most tectonically active places on Earth, with as much as 10% of the world’s volcanic activity! 

Most local Japanese have practiced various disaster drills (for earthquakes, tsunamis, etc.) since their childhood years. Foreigners like myself who have never grown up with the frequent risk of earthquakes, however, have to take extra measures to get familiar with what to do in the case of a disaster in Tokyo. Recently I took part in my office building’s earthquake drill and also a Disaster Preparedness Drill for Foreign Residents government sponsored by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government.

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2017 Harvard Prize Book Awards at Junten High School
順天高校の2017年度ハーバード・プライズ・ブック授与式

Junten High School has been awarding Harvard Prize Books annually since 2014. This year, there were many contenders for the Prize. The final winner selected was Mr. Takeru Ohmura (大村武尊), who has demonstrated great persistence and determination in pursuing his passion for studying hospitality.

順天高校では2014年度から実施していて今回は4人目の受賞者を選出しました。今年の受賞者は大村武尊君です。

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ArtBar
アートバー

Went to the ArtBar studio in Daikanyama recently for a painting session on “Greek Islands: Santorini”! Painting themes change every session~ The philosophy of “Paint & Sip” is brought to Tokyo from New York and emphasizes having fun painting while sipping wine. Free flow wine, soft drinks, and snacks are included in the lesson fee! (Although you are allowed to bring your own wine as well, which is what I did~) I have not painted for a very long time since art class in school and was a little worried I wouldn’t be able to complete a full painting in 2 hours, but it turned out alright (or so I think – check out the photos)!

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