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BSE again
Just when I was starting to think it might be safe again, another Hokkaido cow tested positive for BSE. It’s been five or six months since the last known mad cow. Good thing I’m not overly fond of beef. But I was looking forward to some yummy yakiniku on our grill this summer. Oh well,…
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While Snow
In a tiny alley bordering Kausuga 2-20, is the White Snow restaurant. The noren was out as we walked past at lunchtime yesterday, so we slid open the wooden door, ducked under the curtain and tried our luck. What a delight. It’s a classic place that could be 50 years old, or five. An L-shaped…
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Latte Disguised
You know Latte, Sony’s cute white Aibo pet. Meet LonLon–Latte dressed as a panda to promote Suntory’s oolong tea. Suntory’s gone all out with its LonLon campaign website devoted to silly Flash games, clips from the TV commercials, a contest to win a keitai strap and some very kawaii LonLon wallpaper.
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Translating interview
Translation is slow and painstaking work. Not my favorite, but I’m faced with an e-mail full of Japanese answers to my English interview questions. It’s easy enough to get the general meaning of text by reading for the nouns and verbs. but the nuances are in all of the joining phrases and particles. Using ga…
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Japan Gensuikyo
Japan Gensuikyo is a national anti-atom bomb, anti-nuclear organization that was founded in 1944. They do grassroots awareness and fundraising for vicitms of nuclear war, nuclear testing, and disasters like Chernobyl. They call these people hibakusha. Yesterday, they began their annual march from Tokyo to Hiroshima. They take a rather long route–curving around the country…
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Japan’s international affairs
Japan’s international political affairs seem quite parochial. North Korea, South Korea and China get into snits about various slights in ways they would never fuss with othercountries. As some examples, everyone complains when Koizumi visits Yasukuni Shrine, where the war dead are entombed. Diplomatic letters fly across the sea from the neighbors and complaints are…
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Advance summer
Today the weather is forecast to reach 28 degrees (82 F). It seems like a good day to break open the box of summer clothes. Although it’s too early in the season for shorts, there are a few favorites that I’m looking forward to unearthing. But it’s also time to shop for there are two…
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Taste testing sweets
Taste testing two new sweets may not be the healthiest way to begin a new day, but it is entertaining. This “sugar milk” flavored Petit Toast (118 yen for a 40 g cup) has the identity of a breakfast food but I’m not fooled. The toast nuggets are about an inch square and lightly coated…
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Today is Greenery Day,
Today is Greenery Day, the first of the official Golden Week holidays. We got a jump on it by strolling through Koishikawa Korakuen this weekend. This is the oldest park in Tokyo and was laid out by a Chinese landscaper for the Tokugawa clan in 1629. It’s full of water and bridges, minature mountains, shrines…
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New product season
It’s new product season. In the late spring, all of the summer products start appearing on the shelves of conbini around town. Many of these new items are simply variations on a theme, taking a twist to accomodate whatever lifestyle fad is current. Last year it was blueberries and cranberries–drinks, chocolates, yogurt, ice cream, pastries.…
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