Recommendation of Happy Life

Japanese Blog

2007-09-24T23:09:00.000+09:00

I started Japanese blog here. http://hunwaritime.blog119.fc2.com/
Visit here, too! (If you can read Japanese...)
I'm looking forward to your visit!

Today's Sweets

2007-09-07T21:19:00.000+09:00

I made the "Shiratama-Mochi with Sesame Sauce" for today's snack.

***Recipe***********
25g Sesame
1/4 cup Milk
1 tablespoon Honey
1 tablespoon Sugar
50g Shiratama powder
50cc Water
*******************

Since we were out of black sesame, I substituted white one as it. Though using black one could make a better contrast with the white shiratama, it's okey this time because it's trial.

First, I started on sesame sauce. I ground sesame with the pestle. It was pretty hard to keep grinding, and I gave up doing that in 10 minutes! ( Do you think I am lazy?) Then I added milk, honey and ... salt instead of sugar! I noticed my mistake when I tasted it to see if it's sweet enough. Yes, it was salty enough! Therefore I should have started all over again. I could succeed in making sauce this time.

Second, during refrigerating the sesame sauce, I set about making the shiratama- mochi. How to make it is as usual.

Finally, I put the cooled shiratama into a dish and poured the sesame sauce on it!

The impression of tasting... it was quite nice! I felt the aromatic sesame smell and fine sweetness. I thought, however, it would be much better to grind sesame more and to strain the sauce once. I will try again with black sesame next time.

Flower Brooch

2007-09-04T21:03:00.000+09:00

Can you guess what these brooches are made from?
Origami? Japan paper? ・・・The answer is newspaper!

I didn't color those at all. I made full use of the original color of newspaper.
I didn't notice there are such a lot of colors on newspaper until I know about this brooch.
What a waste we've thrown away those before!

We can, depending on the combination of colors, how to shape the petals and so on, enjoy the several variation.
Why don't you try to make Newspaper Flower Brooch, too?

Homemade Buns

2007-08-27T16:13:00.000+09:00

I tried to bake homemade buns !
It's first time to make buns that I chose to try the basic buns.

***Recipe*****************
300g flour
1 tablespoon dry yeast
2/3 tablespoon salt
3 tablespoons white sugar
3 tablespoons butter, softened
1 egg
150cc milk
*************************

The dough was very sticky on the beginning of mixing materials. But keeping kneading it, it was getting soft and smooth. After the kneading, setting the dough about 1 hour, it become bigger and softer like the skin of a baby! The dough becomes hard a little when I cut it with a knife and returns soft when I set it a while. I got interest because I felt the dough is alive.

And the taste was ... good! Though it was first time to bake buns, they're baked tasty and soft.
I already tried to arrange to add walnut or chocolate chip.
I want to try other kinds of bread!

Dear Karube- san
Thank you for telling me the recipes of breads and your advice! Tell me your favorite one or new one you tried!!

Maison Kayser

2007-08-20T21:59:00.000+09:00

Today I and my mother went out to have lunch with my sister, who works in Ikebukuro.
The restaurant we enjoyed is "Maison Kayser."
They are the bakery from Paris and have two cafes in Tokyo.

We all had Salad Lunch; plenty of fresh salad with spicy grilled chiken and cold pumpkin soup are served in one plate. Of course, we can taste many kinds of delicioius breads and can eat as much as we want! We arranged some like sundwich, dipped some in the soup and savored some themselves. We really enjoyed the different flavor of bread.

My mother and I also had Berry Tarte for dessert!
We had nice lunch time with happy chat.

Maison Kayser HP : http://www.maisonkayser.co.jp/index.html

OIRASE Keiryu

2007-06-03T23:52:00.000+09:00

OIRASE Keiryu is the mountain stream originated from the Towada Lake. It's 14km long, and the esplanade lais along the flow. Many waterfalls and other beauty sopts dot along the stream .

On the first day, we went up to the Towada Lake by bus and went downstream on foot. It took about two hours to walk down 5km. We got to a cataract called "Choshi Ohtaki," which is 7m in hight and 20m in width. Approaching it, we could hear the clamor of a waterfall and feel the smoke of it. We're really refleshed by shower of minus ion!

On the second day, we joined the early-morning walk tour. The tour started at 5:50am and took us to highlight spot in Oirase. We strolled about 1hour and had a breakfast by the river. It was kind of cold, so I appreciated the hot miso-soup! In the breakfast box, there were lots of local foods. However, what we enjoyed the most is the situation that we had meal. We were surrounded by the trees, heard the song of the stream and the humming of the birds, were bathed in morning sunlight and breathed fresh air. We all really enjoyed those and nice chat.

After we got back to the hotel, we took the hot spring and warmed our chilled bodies. It was short stay, though, we were satisfied with Oirase very much. I thanked there's such a beautiful nature in Japan and I could visit there.

Flower Carpet

2007-05-03T22:51:00.000+09:00

Shiba- Zakura no Oka ( The hill of Moss Phlox)

About 1.6 ha ground is covered with over 350,000 roots and 8 kinds of Moss Phlox.
That sublime scenery is as if a huge carpet of patchwork.

Bright blue sky... spring winds... and soft color of flower.
No one doubts it's a spring magic.

The language of Shiba- zakura is " perseverance."

http://www.hanasanpo.jp/index.html

Local Cycling Tour

2007-04-30T16:27:00.000+09:00

Azalea Garden

The Azaleas are in full bloom now.
Many kinds of Azalea smiled and welcomed us.
They seemed to enjoy spring sunshine.
The bees were humming round them.
The language of Azalea is " temperance."

Ristorante Tanaka

Today's menu:

Appetizer
Smoked salmon with yuzu- kosho sauce, Caprese, Grilled sierra with tomato sauce, Chiken pate and Peperoncini of bamboo shoot

Pasta
Spaghetti of labiate and small fish

Dessert
Rare cheese cake, Sponge cake with strawberry and Preserve fruits with liqueur

Wisteria

The Wisteria at the Nerima Higashi elementary school is the biggest one in Nerima- ward.
When the flowers trembled in the breeze, the air got saturated with the perfume of flowers.
The language of Wisteria is " Welcome."

Happy New Year !!

2007-01-01T23:39:00.000+09:00

Happy New Year !
Próspero Año Nuevo !
Feliz Ano Novo !

Here comes 2007 !!

In 2007...

- Make myself skill up on my work
The new boss, who came to our company in the end of last year, seems to train me from the basics. It may be going to be a hard year, but I will do my best !

- Qualify myself as an English teacher for child
I started learning to get this qualification last year and almost finished paper based class. Taking lectures for two days and passing the exam, I can get qualification !

- Get the diving license
I set this aim on my birthday in last year, but I haven't tried yet. I'll challenge this year !

- Start taking Fula dance lesson
I expect Fula to give me good exercise, improve my posture, and keep broad- minded spirit.

- Do volunteer
I want to continue the activities that I do now and extend the playground in new field.

- Try the examination of color (If I can afford...)
I want to try learning color, if I succeed in getting at least one of the qualifications I mentioned above.

Though I do have many other things that I want to try, I don't want to do things by halves. So I will prioriteize things and work on each one surely.

Do you set your goal for 2007?
What do you want to try this year?
I hope you well and a fruitful year with lots of HAPPY !!

Pop-up Celebration by Robert Sabuda

2006-12-25T23:37:00.000+09:00

The exhibition, "Pop-up Celebration by Robert Sabuda," was held in Ikebukuro. His work is getting famous in Japan because of his shining talent. His work charms us with its brilliance, delicateness and incomparable beauty.

At the exhibition, the expanded picture books were displayed and opened automatically when we pushed the button.
The show that huge paper crafts were putting out was powerful and breathtaking.

Because it's much too 3-D crafts, I wonder how every pop-up is packed into the book when it's closed.

We got three books that we liked at the exhibition.
Cookie Count
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
Alice's adventures in Wonderland

Open these books !!
You must be drawn into Sabuda's magical world !!

- Robert Sabuda -
Robert Sabuda grew in a small village in Michigan, the U.S.. He made first pop-up of " The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" for his parents. He went to the art institute in N.Y. and aimed to be an illustrator. The training at publishing company led him to be an author of picture book.

Elephant Jazz Orchestra

2006-11-12T21:38:00.000+09:00

My coworker is a Trombone Player ! She is taking lessons and a member of big band, "Elephant Jazz Orchestra" !!
I went to their live at Ginza "TACT" with my sister .

The program is ...

1st SET -swing-
Day by day
YOU & ME
TENDERLY
Cantaloupe Island "99
You'd be so nice to come home to
NICA's dream

2nd SET -Brazil-
This maspuerade
TENGO TENGO
O-benado
Canta Brazil
Quiet nights of quiet stars (corcovado)
Wave ~ Ipanema ~ Batida

At the second set, the Brazilian singer came as a special guest ! Those numbers reminded me of the trip to Brazil.

Though It was first time to go to Jazz live, we had heard most numbers even if we didn't know the titles. All musics made our bodies swing.
The hobby that makes people happy is great !! Don't you think so ??

La Friandise

2006-10-22T22:16:00.000+09:00

La Friandise... this is the confectioner that my mom takes cake class.
The patissier provides us the sampling party in this season every year, and we can taste the confectionery that he's going to lecture next year.

MENU:
January Cookies (Apricot & Florentin)
February Valentine Chocolate Truffe
(Raspberry & Almond Paste)
March Madeleine & Financier
April Apricot Pie
May Strowberry Torte (Bavarois Mousse & Jelly)
June Key Lime Pie
July Tiramisu
August White Peach Short Cake
September Banana Pie
October Sweet Potate
November Cheese Cake Tarte
December Praline Mousse

Mmmmm....... I can't wait to have all of these!!!

Tokyo Tower

2006-10-03T23:57:00.000+09:00

I and Yusuke took the couple visiting Japan from Brazil to the Tokyo Tower. It was first time for me to go up though I was born and grown up in Tokyo.

The hight of tower is 333 meters. You can go up the special observatery in 250 meters high. To go up, you can choose by elevator or on foot!
We, of course, went up by elevator.

Because it was cloudy from the morning, I had been anxious if we could see the night view. However, when we arrived at the top, the fantastic view was waiting for us.

The words dropped from our lips were just admiration.
The skyscraper in Roppongi, the ferris wheel and the Rainbow Bridge in Odaiba, the avenue in Ginza....
Everything I could see was breathtaking visionary. It's just like the jewel box.

The couple was very satisfied. The husband said " Even if I go back to Brazil, I will flash back to this moment here when I close my eyes."

Today is also the last day we could spend together. They told me I was very special. They are very special for me, too. We promised we will meet again in Brazil next time.

I was very happy I could go up the Tokyo Tower.
And I was very very happy I could go there with them.

Wako Chocolate Saloon

2006-09-28T14:10:00.000+09:00

I finally visited the Wako Chocolate Saloon. It is the shop & cafe managed by the high rank department, Wako.

This saloon is in a back street of Ginza Central Avenue. The entrance is sophistivated and fashionable. Stepping into the Saloon once, you must feel as if you were in the world of chocolate. The stairs and the walls inside are made as chocolate bars.

At the cafe, I had the Marron Chocolate Parfait. Now it's the season of marron! The marron glaces, vanilla icecream, chocolate bar, and the craft of candy are on the top of the chocolate mousse. As you can imagin, it was very very good. Great work!

Sightly and good taste...this is certainly works of art.

Grape fever !!

2006-09-24T22:46:00.000+09:00

I got 3 types of grapes!!

My university mate whom I mentioned in previous article sent Pione, which is a kind of purple grape, a few weeks ago. I had those with my family, and we became a big fun of that grape.

We ordered Otsuka farm to send grapes as a gift to our relatives and the precious person.
Then they gave us 3 types of grapes that they grow as a present!

My friend said those were picked yesterday morning and really fresh.

A small note was in the box, and it said...

Black:Pione (their main breed)
Red:Golby (high sugar content)
Green:Seto- Giants (possible to eat with peal)

Thank you again!
I will enjoy those with my family!!

Season of Grapes

2006-09-10T23:27:00.000+09:00

One of my University mates is the successor as a farmhouse. They treat fruit, vegetables, green tea and so on. I guess it's a quite big farm.

In this season, they provide the picking up grapes tour in their farm.
Here is the HP:http://www17.ocn.ne.jp/~budouya/ (Japanese)

Doesn't it look sweet?
Doesn't it look so delicious?
Don't you wanna pick up and taste some?

But what I really wanna say is that I like not only the picture of grapes, but also the smiles of the staffs in that farm. Everyone (especially that old man!) looks so happy.

I know the breeds of grapes raised there are high-class.
However the most important thing to make the best ones is to raise them with hearts.

From this picture, I can feel genuine affection.
Those grapes all must be supureme ones!

If the World Were a Village of 100 People

2006-09-02T10:45:00.000+09:00

To all my friends and loved ones

If we could shrink the earth's population to a village of precisely 100 people, with all the existing human ratios remaining the same, it would look something like the following:

There would be:
57 Asians
21 Europeans
14 from the Western Hemisphere, both north and south
8 Africans

52 would be female
48 would be male

70 would be non-white
30 would be white

70 would be non-Christian
30 would be Christian

89 would be heterosexual
11 would be homosexual

6 people would possess 59% of the entire world's wealth
and all 6 would be from the United States.

80 would live in substandard housing
70 would be unable to read
50 would suffer from malnutrition
1 would be near birth

1 (yes, only 1) would have a college education
1 would own a computer

When one considers our world from such a compressed perspective, the need for acceptance, understanding and education becomes glaringly apparent.

The following is also something to ponder ...

If you woke up this morning with more health than illness ...
you are more blessed than the million who will not survive this week.

If you have never experienced the danger of battle, the loneliness of imprisonment, the agony of torture, or the pangs of starvation ...
you are ahead of 500 million people in the world.

If you can attend a church meeting without fear of harassment, arrest, torture, or death ...
you are fortunate, more than three billion people in the world can't.

If you have food in the refrigerator, clothes on your back, a roof overhead and a place to sleep ...
you are richer than 75% of this world.

If you have money in the bank, in your wallet, and spare change in dish someplace ...
you are among the top 8% of the world's wealth.

If your parents are still alive and still married ...
you are very rare, even in the United States and Canada.

If you can read this message, you just received a double blessing in that someone was thinking of you, and furthermore,
you are more blessed than over two billion people in the world that cannot read at all.

Someone once said: What goes around comes around.

So ...

Work like you don't need the money.
Love like you've never been hurt.
Dance like nobody's watching.
Sing like nobody's listening.
Live like it's Heaven on Earth.

Azabu- Juban Festival　～Evening of "Night Stalls"～

2006-08-20T21:02:00.000+09:00

I like summer festival.
Here comes the season!

I went to Azabu- Juban Festival which is held on weekend of August every year. Plenty of stalls are crushing along the streets, and about 400 thousand people visit there every year.

Looking around the traditional festive stalls is of course so much fun! But it's " International Bazzar" that has their attraction for visitors. In this area, people from various coutries provide us their traditional foods and goods. Walking around this area, I felt as if I traveled around the world.

I had SHISH KEBAB at the Turkey stall. SHISH KEBAB is famous for Turkish traditional BBQ. It was good!
I've heard like this thing... The three great foods in the world are French, Chinese, and TURKEY! Have you heard this? I don't know it's true or not, though, I think it sounds interesting.
Do you know the truth??

INTERNACIONAL !!

2006-08-17T21:24:00.000+09:00

The champion of the "Copa Libertadores" is INTERNACIONAL!
They beat the Sao Paulo FC which is the champion of the TOYOTA CUP 2005.

The TOYOTA CUP 2005 was the first soccer game that I watched as a live one. In addition, I got to know some players of Sao Paulo FC, and they showed me impressive games last year. So Sao Paulo FC is kind of like my memorable team. Absolutely I supported them this year, too. I am sorry for them that they couldn't win the Copa Libertadores this year...

Well, but I am still looking forward to this year's TOYOTA CUP. Because my hero, Ronaldinho, is coming! He didn't bring us good performance at the World Cup in this year, so I am expecting he will bring us spectacular one next time!

The Farthest Paradise ～Blazil～

2006-07-26T23:54:00.000+09:00

Do you know how much I was happy to get to know you guys? How delightful, powerful and hearty you all are!

Muito obrigada, Jose, Valeria, Tati, Jackson, Lucio, Angelica, Lara, and all friends. I could make sweet memories with you. Muito Prazer.

The trip to Brazil was just wonderful!
The scenery is magnificent.
Time goes slow there.
Everyday is like a holiday atmosphere.
And people are warmhearted.
I became a big fan of Rio de Janeiro!

I'll introduce the places that I visited.

Pao de Acucar (Sugar Loaf)
"Pao de Acucar" means "Bread of Sugar" in Portugies.
It's made up of small and big rocks. You can go up to the very top of that via a small one by ropeway. From the top, I could see the Copacabana Beach. There were lots of personal boats in the inlet to enjoy sunshine. The white of boats stood out in the blue of the sea.

Corcovado
It is one of the most famous sightseeing spots in Rio and also called " The Hill of Christ." A huge statue of Christ looks down the whole city from the top of the hill. I was surprized at the size of Christ and impressed by the magnificent view. I heard the sea and the sky are dyed pink in the early evening. One Carioca (People who live in Rio) said whenever they visit there, the different view is waiting for them.

Estadio do Maracana (Manacana Stadium)
It's the biggest soccer stadium in the world and holds 100 thousands people. I saw the final game of " Copa do Brasil" which means " Brazil Cup." Vasco da Gama VS. Framengo
I supported Vasco, though, we lost the game... However I enjoyed enough the excitement of Brazil soccer.

Beach
The beach stretches for miles, and the front along the coast. The beaches are called differently depends on the point.
Leblon Beach
There are many high-grade apartment along the coast here. It is very calm and neat place. I heard that the child of Ronaldinho lives there.
Ipanema Beach
This beach is famous for "Garota de Ipanema ( Girl of Ipanema)." Yes! Here is the birthplace of Bossa Nova.
Copacabana Beach
This is also one of the most famous beaches in Rio. There were nobody who swim in the sea, but many people lay on the beach and got tunned. It was a routine to walk here after the breakfast every morning.

I had a wonderful time in Rio de Janeiro.
Thank you again, all friends that I met there.
Muito muito muito obrigada!

I'll come back!

Sleepless in Japan

2006-06-24T06:21:00.000+09:00

The World Cup Soccer is now getting into the final tournament.
In English, they call the final tournament "the knockout stage."
It is same as that of boxing and means being sealed their fate with a single game.

16 countries that won advance to "the knockout stage" are...
aaaGermanyaaaArgentinaaaaaaItalyaaaaaaSwitzerland
aaaEcuador aalaNetherlandsaaaGhanaaaaalFrance
aaaEngland aallaPortugal aaallaaBrazilaaあlaSpain
aaaSwedenaaaaMexico aaaaallaAustraliaalaUkraine

The final tournament starts on June 24 in German time.
Still continuing sleepless nights...

Which country will win the first prize?
What do you think??

I believe BLAZIL will !!

Unexpected Gift!

2006-06-01T22:51:00.000+09:00

When I got home, a big box addressed to me was arrived.
I checked who the sender was and found it　was from my university mate.

I opened the box immediately with my mom.
"Wow!!"
The surprise escaped our lips.
It was filled with fresh sweet summer orange, plum, turnip, green tea, and boiled bamboo shoots!!

This friend works for his parents' farm after he graduated from the university.
All of those products were raised in his farm.
I e-mailed him to say thank you.
Then he replied and gave me an explanation.

・The sweet summer orange is raised in local area only and gathered up by him and another friend from university.
・The plum is cut right before he packed. It's really fresh.
・The turnip is grew in his garden.
・The green tea is the very new one.

I and my family are really happy that we got those fresh and healthy foods.
Thank you friend! I can't wait to taste those!!!

What day is today??

2006-05-28T08:49:00.000+09:00

It's my Birthday!!
I became 25 years old.
Yes, the turning point of twenties!

Well, my 24 years old was a new encounter and reunion. I started working and got to know nice cooworkers and bosses. On private, I had met good old friends again.

The slogan of my 25 years old is "CHALLENGING." I am planning to qualify myself as an English teacher for children. To get this skill, I need to study at least 6 months.
And I want to get C license for diving. Though I wanted to get it last year, it was already late summer when I tried to start.

Anyway I want to make my 25 years old fruitful one.

Petit Reunion

2006-05-26T23:37:00.000+09:00

My university mate is visiting Tokyo from Hokkaido.
He and another mate planed to get together with several friends from university today.
It's kind of Petit Reunion!

I haven't seen three of all since we graduated.
So I could spend fresh time with them.
We just talked and talked.
How we've been doing, How's our jobs going, what we are striving for, and about the precious memories of our schooldays...
We never ran out of the subject to talk.

To listen what my friends' goals are excites me.
To talk about my aim to my friends makes my decision strong.

To meet the friends that I haven't seen for some time always gives me energy.

Cats & Dogs Brought Nice Dinner!

2006-05-24T20:41:00.000+09:00

It's raining cats and dogs in Tokyo Tonight!
In the early evening, the sky got dark and started raing soon.
I did know it was gonna rain tonight,
so I brought my umbrella to the office.
But it didn't work so much...
When I left the office, it was already cats and dogs!
I prepared to get wet and decided to go home ASAP.

When I got home, I was sopping wet.
My mom got home a little earlier than me.
She said that she got wet a lot on her way home, too.
After 15 minutes later, My dad got home.
He seemed he diceded to go home ASAP, too.

It was awful weather today.
But because of it, everyone got home earlier than usual.
Though we usually can't be gathered at dinner time on weekday, I could spend good dinner time with all the family members tonight.
So I wanna thank this weather!

The Moment of Truth

2006-05-18T22:31:00.000+09:00

May 18, 2006 at 3:45am in Japan.
The game that seals the strongest soccer team in Europe started at the Stade of France.
It's the final of the Champions League.

The club teams that have kept winning to this final, FC Barcelona from Spain and Arsenal FC from England. FC Barcelona has a big big star, Ronaldinho, and Arsenal FC has famous FW, Henry. Because of the showdown of these two top players, this final attracted attention of soccer fan's in all over the world.

I am a big fan of Ronaldinho. His attraction is not only his soccer skill but also his character. He loves soccer and always looks happy when he plays. Though he is a big star, he is very frank and treasures his fans.

At the game, Arsenal scored first at the half set and led one goals up when the first half of the game finished. Barcelona caught up with Arsenal at 31 minutes at the second half, and after 5 minutes they got another goal. As a result, Barcelona had topped the league after an interval of 12 years!

The team that won the Champions League can take part in the Toyota Cup in December in Tokyo. So Barcelona headed by Ronaldinho will come to Tokyo at the end of this year. I am very looking forward to seeing him at the studium!!

Got The Invitation To The Wedding

2006-05-13T22:16:00.000+09:00

Today I got an invitation to the wedding party from my friends from the high school. What a wonderful news I've got!

You know what? They are the special couple for me. Why? Because I introduce that bride to that groom!!
The bride and I were classmates in the first grade. And the bridegroom was the captain of the volleyball team that I belonged as a team secretary.

After I made introductions of them to each other, they fell in love soon and have cultivated their love for over 8 years. Finally, they decided to get married. Isn't this nice episode?

I am really happy that I got a special news today.

On My Way Home...

2006-05-11T22:54:00.000+09:00

Today it had been raining scince this morning.
In the early evening, it had stopped raining and changed to like this lovely sky.

What a magnificent view!

On my way home, I got a special present.

Gourmet Tour in Korea

2006-01-14T16:28:00.000+09:00

I had been kept so busy busy busy and finally got sick, so I couldn't update my blog... Sorry, everyone who has visited here occationally for this long period. And I have one more thing that I wanna say to everyone. That's "A Happy New Year!!" Is it too late...? Forgive me!! Actually I didn't feel that a new year had come. When I noticed, it was already 2006. I think that's because I did work until December 29 last year. It was the first winter break since I started working. When I was a student, the break started in the middle of December. So I could do many things before new year begin. This year, I could just say "Time went so fast."

However I could relax and had a good time in Korea in the end of the year. We had good Korean foods so much and charged the energy for coming new year! I'd like to report the gourmet foods that we had during this trip.

The first gourmet is Samgetan.
In the morning on the second day, we had Samgetan for brunch. Rice, garlic, and some chinese herbs are stuffed into the stomach of the whole chicken, and the stuffed chicken is stewed with the simple salt soup. It's served in the hot stone pot. It's not spicy, but plain and tender, so it is very good for our body as a first meal of a day.

Though we enjoyed shopping and working around the city, the winter in Korea is really cold. So there are lots of stands around the city and they provide hot foods. We had Toppoki to get warm. Toppoki is kind of long rice cake. whick stewed with vegetables in the sweet and spicy soup. Absolutely we ate outside, but it was enough hot and spicy to warm our body.

The dinner on the second day was Purukogi which is called Korean Sukiyaki. It is sweeter than Sukiyaki and used a bunch of garlic . Lots of vegetables and mushrooms came with meat, and the waitress fixed it for us. Coming to the boil, it smelled so good and whetted our appetite!

As you can see, the table was full of side dishes. In Korea, when you order one dish, many kinds of appetizers like Kimchi, Namru, Kakuteki, Tofu and so on are provided. You can always enjoy many tastes.
The menu that we chose to close the dinner was Reimen (Cold Noodle). It can refresh your mouth and stomach after the rich taste.

To be continued...

Trip to Korea

2005-12-16T09:20:00.000+09:00

I've been to Korea.
The post is coming soon...

Day Trip to Kyoto

2005-11-20T21:36:00.000+09:00

I ran up to Kyoto for a day with my sister. We haven't traveled together for a long time, so I had been looking forward to this trip. The purpose of the trip was to enjoy trees aflame with red and yellow in the ancient city in Japan. As you know, in Kyoto, once there was a capital about 12 hundreds years ago. There are still lots of historical temples and shrines there.

Kyoto is about two and a half hours away from Tokyo. We took the bullet train at 6:53 am at Tokyo station and arrived at Kyoto at 9:14 am. In Kyoto station, the tour bus was waiting for us, and we headed to nothern part of the city, Ohara. We had free time in here for three hours, and we visited three temples, Hosen-in, Sanzen-in, and Jakko-in.

Hosen-in Temple
First, we visited Hosen-in temple. Hosen-in is famous for "flame garden." If you see the garden from inside of the temple, the pillars looks like a flame, and the view is like a picture. Sadly, it was a little bit early for perfect red leaves. But the garden seen from the temple was enough beautiful, and I could imagine how picturesque it was if all the leaves turn red.

Sanzen-in Temple
Like Hosen-in, about half of trees still green, but some parts had already turned red and yellow in Sanzen-in. It was like a mosaic of red, yellow and green. Maybe in a few days, all of them will have turned. We could enjoy the nice scene unique to only this time.

Jakko-in Temple
It took about 20 minutes on foot from Sanzen-in. The way to there was a country road. Looking up overhead, there was a persimmon tree! The contrast between the orange of persimmon and the blue of the sky was very pretty.
Jakko-in is a snug little temple. The turned leaves were falling from the trees and spread on the mossy ground. This contrast was also nice combination.

Looking around these temples, we also enjoyed having some snack, broiled rice cake, rice cracker, and warabi- mochi. The tour served us with bento (lunch box). We enjoyed those, and headed back to Kyoto city in the afternoon. We looked around Jisso-in temple and Renge-ji temple.

Jisso-in temple
This temple is famous for "floor maple." When you see the garden from the inside of the temple, the maple trees reflect on the polished flooring. I really respect like this spirit of ancestors. Old Japanese people enjoyed the garden not only itself but also with the constructions. They are good at assimilating the beauties of art and the one of nature. It was also unlucky that the leaves haven't turned yet. I wanna come back here in the best season and see perfect "floor maple."

Renge-ji temple
Before we looked around the garden, we listened to the chief priest at this Buddhist temple. He told about "the garden" in Buddhism. According to him, "the garden" expresses the universe and the Buddhist priests live there to keep that universe. He told us " Japanese garden is actually not a garden. It is not a place to walk around or take a rest, but is a place to learn and think about the universe and ourselves." Now I satisfied myself of the reason that I feel reverential at the Japanese garden... In this temple, the maidenhair trees were impressive. Yellow carpet lay all around.

Macaroon Cookie

2005-11-11T22:24:00.000+09:00

The macaroon is a well-known cookie made from meringue and almond poudre.

Yesterday, my mother went to cake class and learned the recipe of the macaroon. She made two kinds, plain and chocolate.
The plain one is with butter cream between, and it's very soft and not so sweet.
The chocolate one is with chocolate cream & raspberry jam between and tastes sweeter and crunchy.

I really liked the plain one! I was almost gonna eat the rest of all...

Paella

2005-11-06T22:22:00.000+09:00

Paella party!!
Since I brought back a bunch of squids caught in Los Angeles from work,
my mother fixed Paella with those tonight.
Besides squids, shrimps, clams, chicken and vegetables were in it. It was so tasty and went well with white wine!
Thanks mom for nice dinner!!

Italian Gelato from BABBI

2005-11-04T20:58:00.000+09:00

Do you know the Italian way of having Gelato?

BABBI recommends how to eat Gelato as an Italian style.
Italian people serve at least two kinds of gelato on a corn. And after they taste each flavor, they enjoy the balance of the mixed flavor at the very end.
So if you go to BABBI, you can chose the size from double, triple, or five kinds. There's no single.

I chose "Chocolate" and "Yoghurt."
Chocolate was absolutely good! I imagined it was very heavy before I tried it, but it was not heavy but mild and rich.
Yoghurt was very fresh and light. I thought those were nice combination.

I heard there are more than 100 kinds of gelato there.
About 30 kinds of those are waiting for you, and those are changing everyday.
So it must be fun to go to BABBI occationally, and try every flavors!

Today's Lunch

2005-11-02T13:37:00.000+09:00

I got smoked salmon from work yesterday.
Since I am working for seafood company, I can often get some seafoods...

So I decided to go getting Bagle!
After the work, I walked to Matsu-ya department in Ginza.
The department after 7 pm is always so crowded in downtown.
I squeezed my way through the crowd, and managed to get to the "Bagle & Bagle."

Since it was almost closing time, there were not so many kinds of bagle unfortunately.
I picked "Sesame" and "Volcano," which is coated with some kinds of cheese. I also got Italian cream cheese.

Today I brought those to the office and made my original bagle sand!
I enjoyed my lunch time with a special sandwich.

Of course, I also had my favorite dessert, "Aloe yoghurt."

BABBI

2005-10-31T15:33:00.000+09:00

From Italy!!
We, chocolate freak sisters, tried BABBI this time.
It is very pop and cute Italian chocolate brand.

BABBI started as an icecream corn shop, and now they treat the chocolates using wafers.
We got "Viennesi" which come with cute red clear cases.
Oh, my goodness! It was so tasty!! The wafers melt in the mouth and are good balance with sweet chocolate.

We tried another kind of candy called "Cremini." It is a small piece of chocolate, and chocolate cream and the hazel nuts cream are tiered. Six small chocolates came in the white clear case.
It was also good and sweet! I have a sweet tooth, so I liked it. I could taste the strong flavor of hazel nuts. But my sister likes bitter taste, so she prefered Viennesi...

Anyway I liked this shop a lot. The chocolate is good, the package is cute, and the wrapping is artistic. I think it can be nice present for little celebration!

Papas Cafe

2005-10-30T14:09:00.000+09:00

After morning exercise, I had a lunch with my sister as usual.
Today we decided to go to "Papas Cafe" in Yuraku-cho. It's located in front of the "Bagle & Bagle" that I mentioned before and set up as an annex to the shop of men's & women's wear.

The aspect of the shop is very elegant and quiet. Going into the cafe, the refined apace spread out, and I feel as if I am in Europe.

I ordered the soup and salad set, and today's soup was minestrone. It was good and kind of new because I felt the flavore of shiso ( labiate). So it was very fresh taste.
My sister chose the one plate lunch. The humburger steak, salad, piece of smoke salmon, corn soup and breads came in one plate. It was kind of big, but she could enjoy different tastes. Of course I did, too......because I stole some from her plate.

I like this place very much. Tough Yuraku-cho is downtown centers, this cafe makes me feel calm and refresh.

La Friandise

2005-10-24T08:30:00.000+09:00

My mother is going to "La Friandise" to take the cake classroom once a month. This patisserie is near my house and has a shop and cafe there, too.
According to the patissier, "La Friandise" means "tastes good" in French. That's right. All sweets that my mother brings back from the class is so good!!

Today there was sampling party here. We could taste 12 kinds of sweets that they are going to lecture next year.
Cinnamon roll, blueberry and mascalpone icecream, strawberry mousse, chiffon cake of lemon with raspberry cream, cookies, apple pie...
I shered those with my parents.

I liked the strawberry mousse and apple pie a lot! I am really looking forward to having those made by my mother, I forgot which month she is going to make, though... Shame on me!!

River Dance

2005-10-21T15:44:00.000+09:00

Cooooooooooool!!!!!
It's so powerful, skilled, airy and enchanting dance.

"River Dance" is Irish traditional dance. Dancers stand upright to the waist and tap by moving only legs. They tap lightly and time their steps to the music.

The most incredible part was line dance. About 30 dancers lined up on the stage and tap together. It was very, very powerful! Though they danced with only their legs, the dance looked very hard. But all river dancers are top ones who got through world championship, so they succeeded in expression of not only passion but also delicateness.

I have to mention about music, too. All the music was live performance and also Irish music.
I like Irish music because it's so comfortable. One of my favorite musisians is "The Corrs" from Ireland...
Anyway the sound from this show was more modern and danceable. Traditional instruments like bagpipe, percussion, and violin made lively sounds. Their music made us want to dance.

I got a CD right after the show ended. Absolutely the BGM now is "River Dance."

Sleepless Nights

2005-10-19T15:25:00.000+09:00

I have spent sleepless nights recently. That's because I am reading the books.

As I mentioned, I went to "Leonardo da Vinci Exhibition," though, the novel called " Da Vinci Code" made me get interest in Da Vinci at first. It's written by Dan Brown and read in all over the world. It's a murder mystery, and Da Vinci's famous works are brought up as keys to solve that matter. I don't usually read mystery, but the novels by Dan Brown really draw me into the story.

After I finished reading it, I started to read the " Deception Point." It is about the presidential election and secret of NASA. The falling stone that NASA digged up showed astonishing facts, and it plays very important role in election. It was also interesting for me. I could see both the system of the election and government in the U.S. and space science.

Then, now, I am reading the "Angels & Demons." This features about religion and science. Whether those, religion and science, can be compatible? This novel refers to this question. I don't really know because I am not familiar to the religion. I hope I can get some idea from this book.

I've already read two and half novels by Dan Brown so far. In all honesty, his work is kind of the familiar story, but the profound remarks and the fantastic idea are perfect.

Half of " Angel & Demons" is left. I am going to be lack of sleep at least two more days...

100% Chocolate Cafe

2005-10-17T15:50:00.000+09:00

I went to 100% Chocolate Cafe in Kyobashi. It is produced by Meiji, which is one of the most famous Japanese confectioners and located on the 1st floor of Meiji headquarters. The first impression of the cafe is simple, clean- cut, and casual. The popularity is evident in a crowd.

I ordered Hot Chocolate and Chocolate Bousee. Bousee is the soft sponge cakes with the chocolate, which is called "Fresh Chocolate," between. This " Fresh Chocolate" is like cream, and there are always 5-6 kinds of flavors. So I could pick one, the plain chocolate. Both chocolate and sponge tasted very good and melted in the mouth.

If you order a drink, you can get " Today's chocolate." Their concept is "365 Days Chocolate," so they provides different flavored chocolate bar every day. And each chocolate is printed with date! Today's one is Corn which is Aztecan era chocolate. It tasted bitter and little salty.

They always have 56 kinds of chocolate bars in the cafe. The flavors are from familiar ones like strawberry and orange to rare ones like pepper and chili. You can also find the chocolates made from 22 different kinds of cacao from 16 countries. It might be fun to compare them.

All menu here is reasonable, and the mood is very casual. So you can drop by without constraint. The high- grade chocolate from abroad is good, but the taste we have grown with is also good.

Special Morning Present

2005-10-15T01:30:00.000+09:00

This morning, I went downstairs and said " Good morning" to my parents. When my father saw me, he asked " Did you see the sky?" I went out of the house and looked up the sky.

"Wow"
The clouds were interesting shape.

"It's the sardine clouds!"
It is tipical fall clouds called sardin cloud. That's because it looks a school of sardines is swimming in the water.
I run up stairs and took a picture.

Thanks dad for telling me that. I got a special morning present.

Pierre Marcolini

2005-10-14T15:31:00.000+09:00

I LOVE CHOCOLATE!

So I am making a chocolate tour with my sister, who is also chocolate lover.
We went to Pierre Marcolini in Ginza last Monday. It came from Belgium, and has many shops in the world. But only the shop in Ginza sets up the cafe.

Since it is famous, many people always line up. So we went there at 11 am, the opening time, but there was already a line. After we waited for 30 minutes, we finally got in.

I ordered iced chocolate, and my sister chose hot one. Mine came as a martini glass filled up with chocolate. It was the best one I've ever had. Most iced chocolate in other cafe is like iced cocoa, but that in Pierre Marcolini was not like a drink, but chocolate itself. It was rich, creamy, flavorful, and not sweet.

I fell victim to its chocolate! But it is not reasonable, so I will go back there when I have something special.

My Favorite Walking Course

2005-10-13T15:50:00.000+09:00

Today I walked to Yuraku-cho from the office. It takes about 30 minutes... It is kind of challenging, huh?

A few weeks ago, my superior, Naoko, and I went to the movie after the work. She told me how to get there by walk then. When we left the office, it was already dark. So we could enjoy the night view. Since I really liked that sight, I sometimes walk that course from then.

Walking toward Yuraku-cho, I cross a Kachidoki Bridge, which is lighted up with blue and green lights. And from that bridge, I can see the Tokyo Tower and skyscrapers!
This is really, really nice view.
I like Tokyo because I can see like this beautiful scene.

It's getting cooler, so now is the best season for walking. In this walking course, I can also feel the sea breeze.

Leonardo da Vinci

2005-10-12T15:39:00.000+09:00

"Leonardo daVinci"---What do you recall when you hear this name?
An artist? or An inventor? or An architecture??

Now "Leonardo da Vinci Exhibition" is held in Roppongi Hills. Since I saw the poster at the station a couple of months ago, I had been looking forward to it. And today, I went there after the work.

When you think about da Vinci, most of you might recognize him as an artist. He surely is because he left several famous paintings, like "The Mona Lisa," "The Last Supper," and "The Virgin of Rocks."

BUT this is just one side of his character. In reality, he described himself as a "scientist." For proof of that, while his paintings are just about ten and most of those are unfinished, the codex that he took his own study and experiment down are left at least 8,000 pages! The one of those codices, The Codex Leicester, is featured in this exhibition.

The room where the codex were displayed was very dark. According to the explanation, they can't light them strongly because of the quality preservation. The Codex Leicester consists of 18 pieces of paper, and we can see the entire pages in this exhibition. Each Paper was put between the glasses and the lighting was pretty weakly. In addition to it, the light faded out in shortly. So I had to move to another paper when the light faded out.

His study covered the astronomy, the anatomy, the architecture, the nature, the geology, and more. He recorded those studies with beautiful sketches. And the most surprising thing was that he wrote in mirrored character. It means you can read normally if you see it in a mirror.

How can I describe him? I can say just "He is the very genius." And I can also say "Genius is only one remove from insanity."

By way of parenthiesis, this codex now belongs to Bill Gates from Microsoft. He provides it once a year in one place in the world. Of course, this is the first exhibition in Japan. I am very curious to know which city this is going to be held next...

Easygoing Holiday

2005-10-10T13:34:00.000+09:00

I slept late this morning. I have been busy recently, so I wanted to rest as long as I could. I finally got up around 9:30, and then I spent an hour in having breakfast. I took it easy and do nothing in the morning.

Then I decided to go to the gym in Yuraku-cho. I go there about three times a week, after the work on weekday and sometimes on weekend. I worked out for an hour today. Moderate exercise always promotes good feeling and health.

Leaving the gym, I walked toward Ginza. Those two areas are pretty close and it takes just 10-15 minutes on foot. Ginza is one of my favorite towns, and the atmosphere of the town is like downtown Seattle. They don’t have market, though. I like spending the time there especially on weekend because it becomes the pedestrian precinct.

I didn’t have any purposes there, but just walked around. In spite of the rainy weather, the town was so crowded. I think it is because today is the middle day of three successive holidays.
As I checked some shops of bag, shoes, and clothes, I found an autumn flavor. The colors of all stuffs are quiet and warm hue like purple, crimson, and brown. I like those colors, so I got to ache to wear autumn clothes.

Since I got tired, I went to Starbucks and had Caramel Mocha which is new menu of this autumn. It was good, sweet and slightly caramel flavored. I often call at　Starbucks, but their coffee in Japan is weaker than that in Seattle. I miss Seattle’s Starbucks coffee… But Caramel Mocha was enough good to ease my tiredness. I had a seat and spent two hours on reading a book.

I enjoyed my private time today. I had always hung out with somebody recently. I like sharing time with my family and friends, but I also like spent my own time by myself at times.

Japanese and Western Youkai

2005-10-09T14:36:00.000+09:00

Today I took the third lecture at Musashi Univ. The small theme was “ The Japanese Youkai (hobgoblins) and the western ones.” I had looked forward to this lecture because the theme sounds very fun! Tradition says that there are hundreds of Youkai in Japan. Since there are still lots of movies, books, and animated cartoons about Youkai, it is very familiar to me and I can mention some of them.

Today’s teacher was American man. Since he got 15 Japanese writings from his teacher when he was 15 years old, he got interest in Japanese literature. At the beginning of the lecture, he asked us…
“ Do you think there are Youkai in other countries?”
Mmm…I hadn’t thought like that thing. Well, Frankenstein, werewolf, Casper, Moomin, Troll, Adam’s family…?? Yes, he introduced those, and vampire and plastic man, too.

In the meantime, in Japanese Youkai, followings are well- known.
Tofu Kozo – The boy who always has Tofu
Kitaro – the famous character of animated cartoon
Nuri Kabe –The Youkai of wall which have hands and foot.
Ittan Momen – The clothes which can fly
Konaki- Jijii – The old man who can be very heavy like rock
And there are much more kinds of Youkai. I regret I can’t tell everything here…

Attending to the teacher, I and my mother noticed one thing. Western Youkai are more like human-being and noble. On the other hand, Japanese Youkai are more like commoner, and not only like human-being but also animals, plants, and “stuffs” like wall or clothes. Those are kind of deformed “stuffs.”

I think it comes from the Japanese traditional way of thinking. The old people thought every thing has life. It means not only human being, animals and plants, but also desk, lamp, wall, cloth, stone, hammer and every other thing. That brings the idea that every thing has a potential to be Youkai.

As I expected, today’s lecture was really interesting for me. I didn’t know the world of Youkai was so profound…

"Koromo- Gae" Season

2005-10-06T15:00:00.000+09:00

In Japan, around beginning of October, most people are busy changing the wardrobe from spring & summer clotheｒ to fall & winter one. We call that custom “Koromo-Gae” in Japanese. Koromo means clothes and Gae means change.

Business people start wearing jackets at all times, and almost all uniforms for like students, station attendants, and office ladies become winter-like. In plain clothes, women change to boots from sandals, and the materials of clothes are shifted to wool or velvet from linen and cotton.

I think “Koromo-Gae” became a Japanese custom because Japan has distinct four seasons. I can enjoy different types of fashion in each season, so I always get excited around the turn of the season. I already changed my uniform that I wear at the office to winter clother, but I haven’t done with my drawer in my room yet. I think I will do that next weekend.

Do you have "Koromo-Gae" in your country?

Japonism in France

2005-10-04T12:04:00.000+09:00

I am taking the extension lectures at Musashi University on Saturdays with my mother. “ The Japanese culture seen from abroad” is the big theme, and we can take part in five lectures about each small theme through five weeks.
The lecture of last Saturday was about “ The influence of Japan culture upon France; Japonism.“ The teacher was a French woman, Ms. Bridget Koyama. She came to Japan right after she finished the graduate school in Paris, and became a teacher at Musashi. Of course she can speak Japanese fluently.

The teacher showed many pictures of arts, like drawing, sculpture, dish, and so on to us. She always compared those to the Japanese original ones. I could see the influence of Japan in those French Arts clearly. The diagonal composition and the pose of models in drawing, the description of birds, the combination of colors, the technique of japan ware…

The most surprising thing was that many nobles and famous artists collected Japanese stuffs, and they wore Kimono as a gown! There are lots of pictures that show people are in Kimonos. I didn’t know Kimonos had already gone over to France about two hundred years ago. But no one could tie their Obi well in those pics…

At the beginning of the lecture, she played music on the CD that is very familiar to us. It was “Orpheus in the under worldーoverture (J.OFFENBACH).” “Tengoku to Jigoku” in Japanese. What do you image when you listen to this music? I think most Japanese people bring the school sports to mind. Actually I did at that time. BUT according to the teacher, for French people, it is the music of French cancan, and typifies the times that the Japonism started in France. Though this is not related to Japanese culture directly, I had an interest in it because the symbol in Japan and that in France is different, even the same music. According to my sister, who graduated from the University of music, this music is originally from German opera. So if German people listen to it, they must feel different from us. Isn’t this interesting??

Tiny Little Happy

2005-10-02T15:43:00.000+09:00

Since it was very nice day today, I went to Yuraku-cho and had lunch at " Bagle & Bagle" which is one of my favorite cafes. I chose blue popie flavored bagle with vegetable as usual, and sat on the outside table because I wanted to feel this gorgeous weather. The sky was completely blue and high, the Sun was shining, and not cold nor hot. Though I have lots of tiny little happy moments, enjoying the calm weather outside is one of those. Having good and healthy food is even better!! I could relax and refresh myself.

After the lunch, walking around, I heard the lively sound of some instruments. I looked for the place the sound came from. It was from the square in front of the International Forum Building, and I found that unique jazz band group was playing music! I took a picture of them instinctively. Can you see what they are wearing? Yes, they were in work clothes of construction! They were also wearing hardhat of course!! Isn’t that funny? I have no idea why they were like that appearance, though, their play was absolutely nice. They played some numbers from famous movies like “ New Cinema Paradise.” I run across them, and I got another tiny little happy today.

I think pieces of happy are spread everywhere in our life. So our mission is just to find those as much as we can. Gathered tiny little happies will be big, big happy someday, I believe.

Welcome to my blog!

2005-10-01T16:10:00.000+09:00

I started my own blog! I got the idea that creating the blog in English from my friend, Maffie, from Seattle. This is nice way to keep in contact with my all precious people. Enjoy browsing and feel free to leave comments!!

Recommendation of Happy Life

Japanese Blog

Today's Sweets

Flower Brooch

Homemade Buns

Maison Kayser

OIRASE Keiryu

Flower Carpet

Local Cycling Tour

Happy New Year !!

Pop-up Celebration by Robert Sabuda

Elephant Jazz Orchestra

La Friandise

Tokyo Tower

Wako Chocolate Saloon

Grape fever !!

Season of Grapes

If the World Were a Village of 100 People

Azabu- Juban Festival ～Evening of "Night Stalls"～

INTERNACIONAL !!

The Farthest Paradise ～Blazil～

Sleepless in Japan

Unexpected Gift!

What day is today??

Petit Reunion

Cats & Dogs Brought Nice Dinner!

The Moment of Truth

Got The Invitation To The Wedding

On My Way Home...

Gourmet Tour in Korea

Trip to Korea

Day Trip to Kyoto

Macaroon Cookie

Paella

Italian Gelato from BABBI

Today's Lunch

BABBI

Papas Cafe

La Friandise

River Dance

Sleepless Nights

100% Chocolate Cafe

Special Morning Present

Pierre Marcolini

My Favorite Walking Course

Leonardo da Vinci

Easygoing Holiday

Japanese and Western Youkai

"Koromo- Gae" Season

Japonism in France

Tiny Little Happy

Welcome to my blog!

Azabu- Juban Festival　～Evening of "Night Stalls"～