Archive for June, 2009
#93 Mendokusai
In today’s lesson, Waka sensei told us how to say “it’s a hassle” in Japanese which is “めんどくさい” or Mendokusai. We also got a very interesting email from Kaori, a student of English who listens to Learn Japanese Pod. She told us that she in fact listens to the podcast to study English. Apparently she is not the only non native English speaker who is listening to this podcast to learn English. I’m hoping we can attract more Japanese people to the site so we can start some language exchanges on the Forums.Check out this letter from Kaori san,
Show notes for lesson#93:面倒くさい
1.
A: 宿題した？
B: 面倒くさいから、明日やるよ。
A: Shukudai shita ?
B: Mendokusai kara, ashita yaru yo
A: Did you do your homework ?
B: It’s a hassle so I’ll do it tomorrow
2.
A:部屋を掃除しなさい。
B: 面倒くさい。後でもいい？
A:今やりなさい！
B:は〜い。
A: Heya wo souji shinasai
B: Mendokusai. Ato demo ii ?
A: Ima yarinasai
B: Ha~i
A: Clean your room
B: It’s a hassle. Can I do it later?
A: Do it now!
B: Ok
QUIZ
How do you say :
1. It’s a hassle
2. Clean your room
3. It’s a hassle so I’ll do it tomorrow
Quiz Answers:
1. mendokusai!
2. Heya wo souji shinasai!
3. Mendokusai kara ashita yaru yo
Random Phrase of the week
焼きもち焼いてんの？
Yakimocho yaiten no?
You’re jealous aren’t you
Learn Japanese Pod, ©Alex Brooke, 2009
Kanto Fireworks Calendar
This is the Kanto Fireworks Calendar covering the greater Tokyo area and surrounding prefectures. Be sure to check out the Kansai Fireworks Calendar here. We will be adding extra information to this calendar as the festival season progresses here in Japan. Also check out our Japan Guide Page for general event and cultural for Japan.
Every year hundreds of thousands of people gather wearing 浴衣 – Yukata – summer kimonos and try to keep themselves cool with their 扇子 – Sensu – fans during the warm humid summer. Many of these fireworks displays have long histories stretching back hundreds of years so this is a great way to experience Japanese culture at it’s most exciting.
Please leave your comments, questions and fireworks tales on the comments below. Enjoy!
View Fireworks Festivals Japan 2009 in a larger map
4th July (Saturday)
(Yamanashi)
富士山 河口湖 山開きまつり花火大会 Mount Fuji -Kawaguchi Lake – Yamaaki Fireworks Display
Time: 20:00 – 20:30
Location: 10 mins walk from Kawaguchiko station, Fuji Kyuko line
2000 fireworks / 30,000 spectators / MAP / /TEL: 0555-72-2460
11th July (Saturday)
(Kanagawa)
2009 久里浜ペリー祭 2009 Kurihama Perii Festival
Time: 19:20 – 20:10
Location: Kurihama bay -15 mins walk from JR Kurihama station or 15 mins walk from Keikyu Kurihama station
3500 fireworks / 90,000 spectators / TEL: 046-822-2500 / http://www.kurihama.com/info MAP
18th July (Saturday)
(Tokyo)
調布市花火大会 Chofu City Fireworks Display
Time: 19:20 – 20:30
Location: 15mins walk from Chofu station
12,000 fireworks / 250,000 spectators TEL: 042-481-7311 MAP
(Saitama）
小江戸川越花火大会 Ko Edo Kawagoe Fireworks Display
Time: 19:30 – 21:00
Location: 20 mins walk from Kasahata station
4000 fireworks / 140,000 spectators TEL: 049-222-5556 MAP
(Saitama)
たまむら花火大会 Tamamura Fireworks Display
Time: 19:50 – 20:50
Location: 20 mins by bus from JR Takasaki Line, Shinmachi station
10,000 fireworks / 50,000 spectators / 0270-65-7144 MAP
(Shizuoka)
海の祭典 納涼花火大会 Umi No Saiten Nouryou Fireworks Display
Time: 20:00 – 20:30
Location: 10 min bus from Izushimoda station on Izukyukou line
2000 fireworks / 15,000 spectators / MAP / http://www.izu-shirahama.jp/event_guide.html#hanabi
19th July (Sunday)
(Saitama)
ドイツ村花火大会 Doitsu Mura Fireworks Display
Time: 20:30 – 20:50
Location: 15 min taxi ride from Ooko station (大湖駅)
5000 fireworks / 8000 spectators / MAP / http://www.doitsumura.com/index2.html
(Kanagawa)
灯籠流し＆花火大会 Floating Paper Laterns On The River and Fireworks Display
Time: Events start at 19:00 with fireworks at the end
Location: 片瀬江ノ島駅 2 min walk from Katase Enoshima station
500 fireworks / 13,000 spectators / MAP
23rd July (Thursday)
(Tokyo)
足立の花火 Adachi Fireworks Display
Time: 19:30 – 20:30
Location: 15 min walk from Kitasenju station（北千住駅）
12,000 fireworks / more than 500,000 people expected to watch from the river /http:/adachikanko.jp/fireworks/ MAP
25th July (Saturday)
(Tochigi)
真岡市夏祭り大花火大会 Moka City Festival and Fireworks Display
Time: 19:20 – 21:00
Location: 15 min walk from Moka station (真岡駅)
20,000 fireworks / 280,000 spectators / http://www.city.moka.tochigi.jp/kankou/maturi/ MAP
(Tokyo)
隅田川花火大会 Sumidagawa Fireworks Display
Time: 19:00 – 20:30 (area 1) / 19:30 – 20:30 (area 2)
Location: On the Sumida river, 15 min walk from Asakusa station (浅草駅) or five min walk from Kuramae station (蔵前駅）
21,500 fireworks / 900,000 spectators / http://sumidagawa-hanabi.com/index_eg.html MAP
(Shizuoka)
安倍川花火大会 Abekawa Fireworks Display
Time: 19:00 – 21:00
Location: 10 min taxi or bus ride from Shizuoka station (静岡駅)
15,000 fireworks / 600,000 spectators / MAP
(Tokyo)
立川祭り国営昭和記念公園花火大会 Tachikawa Festival and Showakinen Park Fireworks Display
Time: 19:20 – 20:30
Location: 15 min walk from Tachikawa station (立川駅)
5000 fireworks / 600,000 spectators / MAP
25th and 26th July (Sunday)
(Shizuoka)
沼津夏祭り狩野川花火大会 Numazu Sumer Festival and Kanogawa Fireworks Display
Time: 19:30 – 20:45
Location: 10 min walk from Numazu station (沼津駅)
9000 fireworks / 360,000 spectators / MAP
29th July (Wednesday)
(Chiba)
船橋港親水公園花火大会 Funabashi Koshinsui Park Fireworks Festival
Time: 19:30 – 20:30
Location: 10 min walk from JR Minami Funabashi Station (南船橋駅) or 10 min walk from Keisei Daijingu-shita station (京成大神宮下駅)
6000 fireworks / 70,000 spectators / MAP
30th July (Thursday)
(Saitama)
さいたま市花火大会 Saitama City Fireworks Display
Time: 19:00 – 21:00
Location: 15 min walk from Omiya Koen station (大宮公園駅) or Owada station (大和田駅)
5000 fireworks / 130,000 spectators / MAP
AUGUST
8th August (Saturday)
(Tokyo)
東京湾大華火祭りTokyo Bay Fireworks Festival
Time: 19:00 – 20:20
Location: 15mins walk from Kachidoki station on Oedo Line(大江戸線勝どき駅) 20mins walk from Tsukishima Station on the Yurakucho line(有楽町線月島駅)
12000 fireworks / 170,000 spectators / MAP
(Kanagawa)
あつぎ鮎大花火大会 Atsugi Ayu Fireworks Festival
Time: 19:00 – 20:40
Location: 15mins walk from Honatsugi station north exit on the Odakyu line （本厚木駅北口小田急線）
5000 fireworks / 580,000 spectators / MAP
11th August (Tuesday)
(Tokyo)
せいせき多摩川花火大会 Seiseki Tamagawa Fireworks Festival
Time: 19:30 – 20:30
Location: 10mins walk from Seiseki-Sakuragaoka station on Keio Line(京王線聖蹟桜ヶ丘駅）15mins walk from Nakagawara Station on Keio line(京王線中河原駅)
5000 fireworks / 230,000 spectators / MAP
29th August (Saturday)
(Kanagawa)
相模原納涼花火大会 Sagamihara Fireworks Festival
Time: 19:00 onwards
Location: 30 min bus ride from Fuchinobe station on the JR Yokohama line (JR横浜線淵野辺駅) Car is probably best transport.
8000 fireworks / 290,000 spectators / MAP
Peeing Pilot’s Flight Canceled
While reading the news on the NHK website I found this hilarious story on JAL. Poor old JAL, they’re like the bigger, older but more hapless brother of ANA who just can’t seem to get it right.
According to this article, a JAL pilot was arrested by police for urinating in public on June 23rd near his hotel in Honolulu. He was kept in custody and as a result, the flight he was supposed to be on was canceled.
According to police, the 53 year old co-pilot was caught urinating in the trees after drinking at his hotel. In violation of state law, he was kept in custody for two days and was given a fine of $25. He was due to co-pilot flight 75 bound for Narita on 25th. However, after failing to turn up to work, the flight had to be canceled affecting 297 passengers.
According to other JAL employees, he had had one small bottle of wine and five small bottles of beer. He went for a walk outside and peed in the bushes as he thought no one would be watching.
JAL issued an apology to the passengers and said they would be looking into how to deal with the co-pilot.
Language note
In the original article, the phrase, 立ち小便 – tachi shonben is used. It literally means peeing while standing and in this case means peeing in public. Some people shorten it to 立小 or tachishon. In Japan tachishon is not as heinous a crime as it would be in other parts of the world
J-Slang 02: Do Wasure
Today’s J-Slang is…
ど忘れ
DO WASURE
I completely forgot
今日会議だった、ど忘れしてた
Kyou kaigi datta, dowasure shiteta
Today there was a meeting, I completely forgot
Of course DOWASURE is a very casual way to say you completely forgot something. In more polite Japanese you would say “wasurete shimatta” or ” wasurete shimaimashita” which is even more polite.
Fun Friday for 26th June 2009
Holy okonomiyaki, it’s Fun Friday podcasting at you from a humid Shibuya with me Alex and the lovely Waka sensei. If you don’t know what Fun Friday is, it’s a podcast with music, chat, news and other general hilarity from Japan.
In this week’s show we covered quite a few topics including the weather, haiku, the economy and a story about a crazy guy who has been stealing garden ornaments. The poor man said he stole the ornaments, took them home and then he talked to them as he was lonely. Maybe not as original as most traveling gnome pranks but more bizarrely entertaining. (Original article here)
The featured bands in this week’s show were Natccu, a talented singer song writer who will be touring the UK soon. Check here site for details.
At the end of the show we played some Yugo Sato, a unique blues guitarist and singer from Tokyo. Yugo Sato was introduced to me by my good friend Ethan Green, creator of Tokyo Werewolf, a website that covers the underground music scene in Japan. Someone give this talented man a job.
We also talked about the latest goings on at Learn Japanese Pod which involve tidying up the site and a new set of articles and lessons which will be posted on the main site. Here’s what it looks like:
Monday – J-Slang
Weekly lessons on slang and the street Japanese you usually don’t find in text books
Tuesday – Main Lesson
As always we will be bringing you the main podcast lesson on Tuesdays
Wednesday -Kanji
We are thinking of doing some sort of weekly kanji lesson. Still thinking about the details but that should be coming up in the next week or so
Thursday – Japan guide
We will try to post some kind of travel guide and reviews at least twice a month for those interested in exploring Japan
Friday – Fun Friday
Of course. Did we really need to tell you that?
If you have any questions or comments either leave a comment at the bottom of this post or send us an email at info[at]learnjapanesepod[dot]com
Japanese Posters 02: Green Campaign
I found this poster on the wall of an alley way in Kichijoji in west Tokyo. Created by Musashino city, it asks people to reduce the number of plastic bags they use when shopping.
Top title:
ノーレジ袋キャンペーン。お買い物は毎バッグ。
noh regi bukuro kyanpehn. okaimono wa mai baggu.
No plastic bag at the check out campaign. Use your own bag for shopping.
The man on the right is saying to the woman:
またレジ袋なの？
mata regi bukuro nano?
Are you still using bags from the check out?
The woman sheepishly replies:
次からマイバッグね
Tsugi kara mai baggu ne
I’ll bring my own bag next time
So they are trying to reduce the amount of plastic bags which is good. Now all they need to do is stop people obsessively buying all the plastic rubbish that goes in “mai baggu” in the first place. Added to that is the large amount of packaging used for products here.
Although it is not the only place to indulge in green washing, Japan does have more than it’s fair share. Like a lot of green campaigns I have seen, the only thing green is the lettering on the promotional materials being handed out, printed on paper and wrapped in plastic. But it’s “OK” because the ink is eco friendly. I have seen hybrid taxis with their engines running while the driver sleeps in the cab. The other day I saw a t-shirt in a shop window that read “zero carbon” next to a 40 inchi plasma TV no one was watching.
Just about every car advert on TV here tries to bizarrely link driving a ton and a half of gasoline spluttering car to being eco-friendly. It’s not. ITS A CAR ( he self righteously writes from his un-eco-friendly mac laptop).
Not to be too cruel to Musashino city, it’s a cool poster with a good message. Now ,can we accelerate things so we aren’t just arranging chairs on the titanic?
Purse snatching in Japan
Recently I’ve been walking around Tokyo and noticing the talent the police have for making extremely disturbing posters. It seems they want to keep us safe while giving us freaky nightmares. These posters give us a glimpse into what is happening on the streets of Japan, at least in the minds of police and the powers that be. The topics in these posters related to issues you wouldn’t normally associate with Japan, possibly because most Japanese wouldn’t really want to dwell on them too much.
Take this poster for instance. The title in the red speech bubble at the top reads ひったくり多発 – hittakuri tatatsu – A large number of purse snatchings. I knew that there was an evil spiderman but I didn’t realize he and his friends had turned to stealing women’s handbags.
In the more boring outer suburbs of Tokyo, uninspired kids who haven’t thought of anything better to do hop on their 50cc scooters and cruise the streets for easy pickings. Targets are usually women carrying handbags, handbags that are probably worth more than their contents. It has become quite a problem and you can see signs warning you to be alert.
This poster gives a few tips on how to be safe:
防犯ネットが無いと危ない – bouhan netto ga naito abunai yo – If you don’t have anti theft net (over your bike basket) it’s dangerous
防犯ネットなら心配ないわね – bouhan netto nara shinpai nai wa ne – With an anti theft net, there’s no need to worry.
肩掛けだから安心だね – katakake dakara anshin da ne – because I’m carrying it over my should I can feel safe
At the bottom of the poster it tells us:
バッグは建物側に携行しましょう – baggu wa tatemono gawa ni keikou shimashou – You should hold your bag on the side of the buildings (not the road)
背後に用心して、振り返ってみましょう – seato ni youjin shite, furikaette mimashou – Be aware and see what is behind you.
You can find these posters outside police boxes and in train stations. I’ll be looking at some more interesting posters around Tokyo and posting the results here. Stay blogged…
Umenohana – Traditional Japanese Dining on the Cheap
Eating out in Japan should be one of the greatest experiences any travelling foreigner should ever encounter. Yet while it creates quite a lot of excitement for some (i.e. me. My mantra is “I can’t say I don’t like something if I haven’t tried it”) for many Japanese dining is cause for nerves and stress. Some worry that they may not understand the menu and end up with a plate full of sea creatures still alive enough to crawl down their throats, or that no-one in the restaurant will speak any English. Others worry about the cost too, which is definitely a concern in Tokyo – and I should know. A few months back, my boyfriend and I, on an impulse, ducked into a tiny teppanyaki restaurant in Roppongi. 2 hours and ¥70,000 yen later, we left full albeit a little dazed and confused too.
But a meal here with all the trimmings doesn’t ever need to cost you your month’s rent. An eatery in the heart of Ginza has the matters at hand covered, providing English and picture menus, the occasional bi-lingual waitress, along with a traditional Japanese dining experience.
Introducing Umenohana. Umenohana is actually a chain of restaurants found all across Japan that offers customers kaiseki style of dining within a small quiet dining area or in the privacy of your own tatami room. Kaiseki loosely translates to mean a customary multi-course meal and with Umenohana offering two set menus specializing in yuba (a tofu derivative) and tofu, this restaurant is a must-go for all foreigners in Japan.
Now for those of you unsure about tofu and yuba, let me assure you that I have taken even the most ardent “meat and potatoes” man to Umenohana and he loved it, even admitting that most of the time he could not tell it was tofu. In fact most people leave the place having learned a thing or two about tofu – firstly that it is incredibly delicious and secondly that they had no idea it could be prepared, cooked and served in such a variety of ways. I will let the photos speak for themselves…
As is customary with kaiseki dining, each portion is small, but with the courses number over 10 (I always lose count!), you will not leave hungry. The cost of the set menus are a very reasonable ¥4600 for Umenohana-zen and ¥5100 for Shiawase-zen and I recommend going at least twice as both menus are entirely different from each other. Drinks are not included in the price, but start around ¥530 for beer and shochu, going up to ¥5,500 for bottles of good quality sake.
Bookings are essential, particularly if you want to dine in a private tatami room (recommended, and at no extra cost too!) – use the opportunity to practice your Japanese over the phone. I always start off saying I do not speak Japanese very well and have my key phrases rehearsed concerning the time, day and number of people the reservation is, for and the receptionist has never been anything less than extremely helpful.
Umenohana is definitely one of those restaurants to take visiting friends and family to. The staff is warm and welcoming, and the “Japan-ness” of the encounter is second to none, with some great photo opps and interesting conversation points amongst scrumptious food and drink guaranteed.
Please check the website below for restaurant locations and booking information:
http://www.umenohana.co.jp/e/index.html
Note: Prices and menu offerings may vary slightly between restaurants. These prices have been taken from Umenohana, Ginza.
AUTHOR: ELISABETH LAMBERT
J-Slang 01: Bakappuru
Welcome to J-Slang, a new weekly article teaching street Japanese to amaze and terrify your Japanese friends. We will be posting these every Monday with a new phrase which is usually funny and regularly used by Japanese people. As the title suggests this is slang so it may be wise to not use these phrases in a formal settings when trying to be polite. We hope this will amuse, not offend and inspire you to learn some more Japanese.
So here’s the first phrase:
バカップル
bakappuru – A stupid couple
あの二人、バカップルだね
ano futari bakappru da ne – Those two are a stupid couple aren’t they?
This phrase is taken from the words “BAKA” which means stupid and “KAPPURU” which is an imported word from English meaning couple.
Incidentally, the kanji for BAKA is 馬鹿 which is comprised of the kanji for horse 馬 and deer 鹿.
Funny poster of Japanese Prime Minister
Poor old Aso Taro, the embattled Japanese prime minister. He’s not having an easy time now and is possibly the most unpopular PM ever.
My friend Sandra found this poster in the stairwell of TGI Friday’s in Shibuya and it gave us a chuckle. Some of the more uncharitable would say that Japanese prime ministers stay in power just long enough to get a photo shaking hands with the American president. I don’t think the irony was lost on the creator of this poster.
I suppose I should now go into a long in depth analysis of Japanese politics and Aso’s chances for reelection in the next parliamentary session but I won’t. I don’t care and neither do you. The Japanese people certainly don’t. Suffice it to say, Aso may just survive the next election. Can the Japanese people find a new inspiring candidate to lead them out of their current malaise?
No they can’t
Fun Friday for 19th June 2009
In this week’s Fun Friday we have music from Crispy Nuts and Electric Eel shock, two awesome rock bands from Japan. We also talk about some cool Japan related websites, how to become a ninja and other sillly banter with me Alex and the unstoppable Coffeebot.
Shout out to Tomo Akiyama who taught us how to say “Is that a sword in your pocket or are you happy to see me?”.
If you have any funny, interesting or amazing Japan related pictures or stories, shout outs or whatever please send them to info[at]learnjapanesepod[dot]com
Featured websites included:
Featured bands were:
Featured Photo
The sign reads “HOMO SAUSAGE”…no comment. Thanks to Coffeebot for sending this photo in.
Please send your own Japan related photos to info[at]learnjapanesepod[dot]com to be featured on Fun Friday
#92 The Rainy season
In this week’s lesson we talk about the rainy season in Japan and some useful related Japanese vocabulary and phrases. We also talked about using rain coats and the number of umbrellas sold in Japan every year which totals a staggering 130 million
Show notes for lesson#92: 梅雨 Rainy season
梅雨単語:rainy season vocabulary
1. 梅雨 （5月から7月にかけて毎年めぐって来る雨の多い期間のこと）
tsuyu – the rainy season (mid may to July)
2. 梅雨入り (梅雨の時季が始まること)
tsuyu iri – The beginning of the rainy season
3. 梅雨明け (梅雨が終わって夏になること)
tsuyu ake – The end of the rainy season
4. ジメジメする (湿り気が多く不快な感じがすること)
jime jime suru- to be humid, sticky and uncomfortable
5.ムシムシする (湿気が多く、蒸し暑いこと)
mushi mushu suru – to be humid
6.集中豪雨 (限られた地域に対して短時間に多量に雨が降ること)
shuuchuu gou u – Concentrated rain in a certain area
7.ビショ濡れ (雨などが衣服にしみとおって、からだ全体がぬれること)
bisho nure – soaking wet
8.どしゃ降り (大雨)
dosahburi - Heavy rain
9.ゲリラ豪雨 (予測困難な局地的な短時間の豪雨に対して用いられる)
gerira gouu – Unpredictable and sudden heavy rain
Conversations
1.
A: 東京はもう梅雨入りした？
B: 梅雨入りしたよ。ジメジメするから早く梅雨明けして欲しいよ。
A: Tokyo wa mou tsuyu iri shita?
B: Tsuyuiri shita yo. Jimejime suru kara hayaku tsuyu ake shite hoshii yo.
A: Has the rainy season come to Tokyo yet?
B: Yes. It’s humid, so I want it to end
2.
A:今日はムシムシするね。
B: 夕方からは集中豪雨らしいよ。
A: Kyou wa mushi mushi suru ne
B: yuugata kara wa shuuchuu gouu rashii yo
A: It’s humid today
B: They say it’s going to rain heavily this evening
3.
A:どうしたの？びしょ濡れじゃん！
B:急にどしゃ降りにあって、大変だったよ。
A: doushita no. bisho nure jan
B: kyuu ni doshaburi ni atte taihen data yo
A: What happened? You’re soaking wet!
B: I was caught in a downpour. It was terrible.
4.
A:最近はゲリラ豪雨による洪水が増えてるね
B:やっぱり温暖化の影響かな
A: saikin wa gerira gouu ni yoru kouzui ga fueteru ne
B: yappari ondanka no eikyou kana
A: Recently, flooding has increased because of heavy rain
B: I guess it’s because of global warming
QUIZ
How do you say in Japanese:
1. The rainy season
2. The beginning of the rainy season
3. The end of the rainy season
4. Unpredictable heavy rain.
Quiz answers
1. 梅雨
2. 梅雨入り
3. 梅雨明け
4. ゲリラ豪雨
Random Phrase of the week
彼女ファンデ濃いよね
Kanojo fande koi yo ne
Learn Japanese Pod, ©Alex Brooke, 2009
Beb and Alex show 復活しました！
Beb and Alex Showが復活しました！
久しぶり！Beb and Alex showが復活しました。久しぶりだけどもっとポッドキャスト作らなきゃという気持ちで今日新しいポッドキャストをおくります。
Beb and Alex showというのは何でもについてしゃべって楽しい時間をすごすのポッドキャストです。２００５年に始まったけど忙しくなってきたので２００６年１２月に休むことにしました。しかし今はBeb and Alex showのポッドキャストの死体を蘇って新しくシリーズを作ります。どうぞ聞いてください。
The Beb and Alex show is back but what is it?
The Beb and Alex show is a podcast entirely in Japanese hosted by Beb and yours truly. It is a basic talk show related to anything and everything that started way back in August 2005. It lasted until December 2006 when we decided to let it die due to other outside commitments. That was the first series which can still be found here at http://bebandalex.libsyn.com
However, after a two year break, we are reviving the corpse of this podcast and starting season 2. I wanted to get back in touch with Beb more and practice my Japanese. The new Beb and Alex show could also be seen as the Learn Japanese Pod advanced course which I believe is more effective than contriving high level abstract grammar lessons.
I’ll make no promises as to the regularity of this podcast as the Learn Japanese pod lessons and Fun Friday lessons will take precedence. But we shall try. Once we have a few recorded I will then register an RSS Feed with iTunes. In the mean time you will be able to download the shows directly from the forums or the main site.
In case you missed it here is Show #01
And here is the brand new Show #02
In show #02 we covered various topics including whaling in Japan, the whale stuck in Tanabe city in Kansai and how lazy I have been in not making any music recently. In comparison Beb has been busy not only being a mother and chef but also the No.1 diva of Kyobashi in Osaka. Enjoy the show.
We will be recording new shows very soon.
You can also visit the Beb and Alex Facebook page here
If you have any feed back please contact imunique999(at)yahoo(dot)co(dot)uk
Sushi with Beb
<div align=”center”>
<object width=”500″ height=”405″>
<param name=”movie” value=”http://www.youtube.com/v/afmoLwbJOjw&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0&border=1″>
</param>
<param name=”allowFullScreen” value=”true”>
</param>
<param name=”allowscriptaccess” value=”always”>
</param>
<embed src=”http://www.youtube.com/v/afmoLwbJOjw&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0&border=1″ type=”application/x-shockwave-flash” allowscriptaccess=”always” allowfullscreen=”true” width=”500″ height=”405″></embed>
</object>
</div>
<p><strong>What</strong>: Eating sushi with Beb</p>
<p><strong>Where</strong>: Osaka</p>
<p><strong>Why</strong>: Cos it’s so damn delish…</p>
<p align=”justify”>This video is of Beb taking me to one of her local sushi restaurants. It was cheap, cheerful, delicious and had gadgets. What more could you want from a sushi restaurant?</p>
<p align=”justify”>Since this was a Kaiten sushi restaurant, you could just take sushi from the moving conveyor belt. However they also had an LCD touch panel display for ordering special dishes. Not only that but after eating, you put your empty dishes in a slot which counted them and you were billed accordingly. One gimmick that made me laugh was the chance to win a prize after every 10 dishes you put in the slot. We didn’t win anything… However with sushi that good and cheap I couldn’t complain and Beb was in Beb heaven. </p>
<p><strong><em>Here are the names of he sushi mentioned in this video:</em></strong></p>
<p>Natto – Fermented beans</p>
<p>Ebi – Prawns</p>
<p>Tamago – Egg</p>
<p>Nama aji – Raw horse mackerel</p>
<p>Ika – Squid</p>
<p>Unagi – Eel</p>
<p>Kani miso – Crab in miso</p>
<p>Hamachi – Yellow tail</p>
<p>Teka maki – Tuna roll</p>
<p>Ohba maika – Squid with shiso leaves</p>
<p>Ikura – Salmon roe</p>
<p>Katsuo no tataki – Lightly roasted bonito</p>
<p>Dashi maki – Rolled Egg</p>
<p>Kyuri Maki – Cucumber roll</p>
<p>Tai – Sea bream</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Some other phrases in this video:</p>
<h2><strong>一番好きな寿司はなんですか？</strong></h2>
<p><em>ichiban suki na shishi wa nan desu ka</em></p>
<p>What is your favorite sushi?</p>
<p> </p>
<h2><strong>生鯵が好き</strong></h2>
<p><em>nama aji ga suki</em></p>
<p>I like raw horse mackerel</p>
<p> </p>
<h2>おいしい</h2>
<p><em>oishshii</em></p>
<p>delicious</p>
<p> </p>
<p><a href=”http://learnjapanesepod.com/category/video/”>All videos</a></p>
<p><a href=”http://learnjapanesepod.com/”>Home</a></p>
<p> </p>
Fun Friday for 12th June 2009
It’s been getting a little warmer in Tokyo now and summer is definitely on its way at last. Now is the time to get out and enjoy the weather in Japan before it gets too hot. So last Friday I cycled from Shinjuku to Odaiba to check out the huge Gundam statue that has been built in Shiokaze Koen. It’s quite an impressive structure and they were putting the last finishing touches to it when I arrived. The scale is impressive and made the people working on it look tiny.
It’s worth a visit as you usually don’t see 30 meter tall robots in Tokyo plus it’s free. So check it out at Shiokaze Koen in Odaiba.
Apart from describing Gundam in this week’s Fun Friday Podcast, I also interviewed Patrick Widdess, somewhat of a renaissance man living in Cambridge England. He is an old chumb of mine from my days in Osaka. Patrick is involved in various creative projects including his own radio show on 209FM called Headstand, a show with an ecclectic mix of music, spoken word, interviews and live music. We also talked about life and art in Osaka and comparing the English teaching industries in Japan and the UK.
Finally, the music at the end of the Podcast was by Fatblueman a band from Nagoya. Info and links at the bottom of this post.
GUNDAM PICTURES
Links mentioned on the show
#91 Yori
In today’s lesson Waka sensei teaches us how to use the word 「より」yori which means “more than”. We will deal with other uses of より in a future podcast.
よりdoes have a few other uses. For example, when finishing a letter and you want to write “from Alex” you would write 「アレックスより」Alex yori. There are one or two other exotic uses but I’ll leave that to a future podcast. If you have any questions or ideas, please leave a comment at the bottom of this post. Your feedback is always very welcome.
Although totally unrelated to today’s grammar point, we also talked a little about Okinawa town which you can find in Saszuka in western Tokyo. It’s an awesome little street with some delicious Okinawan restaurants and supermarkets stocking specialty produce. Enjoy!
Show notes for lesson#91: Yori – More than
Today’s target grammar – より
A より B はいい
A yori B wa ii
A is better than B
Example sentences
1. インドは日本より大きい
indo wa nihon yori ookii
India is bigger than Japan
2. MatrixはStar Warsより面白い
Matrix wa Star Wars yori omoshiroi
Matrix is more interesting than Star Wars
3. 彼は昔より背が高い
kare wa mukashi yori segatakai
He is taller than before
4. 思ったよりテストが難しかった
omotta yori tesuto ga musukashikatta
The test was harder than I thought ( it would be )
5. より効果的な勉強方法を探す
yori koukatekina benkyou houhou wo sagasu
Conversations
1.
A: 日本とインド、どっちが大きい？
B: インドは日本より大きいよ
A: nihon to indo, docchi ga ookii
B: indou wa nihon yori ookii yo
A: Which is bigger, India or Japan?
B: India is bigger than Japan
2.
A: Star Wars 面白いよね
B: そうだね。でけどMatrixはStar Warsより面白いよ。
A: Star Was wa omoshiroi yo ne
B: Sou da ne. dakedo, Matrix wa Star Wars yori omoshiroi yo
A: Star Wars is really interesting isn’t it?
B: Yeah, but Matrix is more interesting than Star Wars
3.
A: 彼は昔より背が高くなったな
B: そうね。
A: kare was mukashi yori sega takakunatta na
B: sou ne. gasshiri shiteru shi
A: He’s taller than before
B: Yeah, that’s right
4.
A: テストどうだった？
B: 思ったより難しかった
A: Tesuto dou data?
B: omotta yori musukashikatta
A: How was the test?
B: Harder than I thought
5.
A: 先生、最近の成績がだめなんです。
B: じゃ、より効果的な勉強方法を探しましょう。
A: sensei, seiseki ga dame nan desu
B: ja, yori koukatekina benkyou houhou wo sagashimashou
A: (Teacher), my test results are no good
B: Well, let’s find a more effective method of study then
Quiz
How would you say in Japanese:
1) China is bigger than New Zealand
2) “Kung Fu Panda” is more interesting than “Shrek”
3) He is fatter than before
4) The lesson was harder than I thought
Answers on the next page
5
Answers
1) 中国はニュージーランドより大きい
2) Kung Fu Pandaは Shrekより面白い
3) 彼は昔より太った
4) 思ったよりレッスンは難しかった
Random phrase of the week
穴があれば入りたい
ana ga areba hairitai
I’m so embarrassed (lit. if there is a hole I want to go into it)
Learn Japanese Pod, ©Alex Brooke, 2009
Tenjin Festival Osaka 2006
What: Tenji Matsuri
When: 24th – 25th July
Getting there: Rail: Osaka-Temmangu Station on JR Tozai Line Subway: Minami-mori-machi Station on Tanimachi Line or Sakaisuji Line
I took this video of the Tenji festival in Osaka in 2006. It is one of the “big three” festivals in Japan and is an incredibly crowded but fun experience. The festival is held in late July and over a million people regularly attend each year. It has everything a good Japanese festival should have, stall food, games, people in Yukata and fireworks. There is also a procession of over 100 boats on the river which is an incredible site.
It has over 1000 years of history and is one of the main cultural events in Kansai. So if you are wondering what to do on your trip to Japan this is a must.
#90 Kureru
In this week’s lesson, Waka teaches us how to use the verb くれる kureru which is used when someone does for someone else. It can be used to ask some one to do something for you such as: やってくれる？ Yatte kureru – Will you do it for me? It can also be used this way: 彼が買ってくれたんだ. Kare ga katte kuretan da – My boyfriend bought it (for me). This is an essential phrases you will hear a lot in conversations in Japan. Kureru is similar to the verb もらう morau although used in more polite contexts. We will be comvering “morau” in a future podcast.
Show notes for lesson#90: Kureru
Conversations
1.
A: 手伝ってくれる？
B: いいよ。
A: Tetsudatte kureru?
B: Ii yo
A: Will you help me?
B: Sure.
2.
A: 窓開けてくれる？
B: いいよ。
A: mado akete kureru?
B: ii yo.
A: Could you open the window for me?
B: Sure.
3.
A: ちょっとお願いしていい？
B: 何？
A: 宿題やってくれる？
B: やらない
A: chotto onegai shite ii
B: nani?
A: shukudai yatte kureru
B: yaranai
A: Could I ask you a favour?
B: What?
A: Will you do my homework for me?
B: (No) I won’t do it
4.
A: 素敵なバックだね。
B: 彼が買ってくれたんだ。
A: suteki na bakku da ne.
B: Kare ga katte kuretan da.
A: That’s a wonderful handbag.
B: My boyfriend bought it for me.
Other sentences
ブッシュ大統領が買ってくれたんだ。
Busshu daitouryou ga katte kuretan da
President Bush bought it for me
Quiz
How would you say in Japanese:
1) Could you do it for me?
2) Waka bought it for me
3) Could you open the door for me?
4) Could you help me with the report?
Answers
1) やってくれる？ yatte kureru
2) 和歌が買ってくれた waka ga katte kureta
3)ドア開けてくれる？ doa akete kureru
4) レポート手伝ってくれる？ repooto tetsudatte kureru
Random phrase of the week
俺が敵をうってやる
ore ga kataki wo utte yaru
I will get my revenge!
Search Learn Japanese Pod
Recent Posts
- 34th Grand Sumo Tournament
- Hay Fever in Japan “花粉症” (Kafunshō)
- Tokyo Weekender on NHK
- Japanese Language Learning Links and Resources
- Tokyo Weekender Magazine
- Reading Practice – Japanese Graded Readers
- Climbing Mount Fuji
- Japan Links And Resources
- Learn Japanese Pod New Year’s Party
- Mt. Fuji in winter