Chrysta's Golden Week

During Golden Week I didn’t end up going anywhere outside of Matsuyama. But, I found it was a great chance to see places here that I don’t usually go to.

On a sunny day, me and a friend set out to see Gogoshima. However, when we got to Takahama, it clouded over and started raining. We decided to change our plan and took the train to Baishinji Station and had lunch at the beachside café, Buena Vista. It was my first time there, but ill definitely go again.

The weather decided to stay fine, so we enjoyed lunch on the terrace. The view was beautiful, as well as the food. The view from the terrace is of Gogoshima and the port or Mitsu so its great to go there on a fine day.

As you know, I am from New Zealand. New Zealand is famous for its beautiful nature, and I am often told by Japanese people “ New Zealand is so beautiful, there is so much nature and it seems so peaceful” but I think that Japan has just as much beautiful nature to see and enjoy.

After lunch, we decided to walk around the coastline to Mitsu town. It turned out to be a lot further than I had thought! But, it was a nice walk nonetheless. I saw many beautiful boats and old houses. I almost forgot I was in Matsuyama.

Mitsu town was also a first for me; there are many small shops and restaurants which I’m looking forward to exploring. Next time I wont eat lunch beforehand so I can enjoy some Mitsu Okonomiyaki!

I felt as if I had gone to another town and felt refreshed as if I had gone on holiday. Holidays are a great chance to get away from town and see somewhere new, but I think they are also a great chance to check out nooks and crannies in your own town which you don’t usually have the time to explore.

Let's Make Pizza!

This is Sean!
Do you like pizza? You know I do! Pizza in Japan is very different from America- sometimes I can't find exactly the kind of pizza I want so... I decided to make some myself.
You might not know, but I used to work in a restaurant that served pizza, steak and other dishes. I learned from our head chef how to make delicious pizza! I'll show you how.

First, you'll need (in the picture from left to right)

A large bowl, a measuring cup, a coffee mug and spoons (Tablespoon (15cc) and Teaspoon (5cc))
1 1/2 cup Water
2 tbsp (30 cc) Olive oil
1 1/4 tsp (6.25 cc) Salt
3 cups white Flour
2 cups white Flour (extra!)
1/4 tsp (1.25 cc) Yeast
1/4 tsp (1.25 cc) Sugar



Step 1: Pour the water into a coffee mug and microwave it for 1 minute. The water needs to be warm. Not hot!

Step 2: Mix everything but the flour.

Step 3: Add 3 cups of flour slowly and mix well. The mix should look wet and sticky, but not too wet like a pudding. Add more flour if you need to, but be careful! You don't want the mix to be too dry!

Step 4: Cover the bowl with plastic, and put it somewhere safe.




-----Wait 12 hours-----




Step 5: Put a lot of flour on your counter or a cutting board. Dump the mix onto the flour and cover the mix with flour. You want it to not stick to your hands.

Step 6: Cut the big ball into 4-8 pieces. cutting into 4 will give you big pizzas. 8 will give you small pizzas that are a nice size for 1 person.

Step 7: Make the smaller pieces into balls. If you are not going to eat them, put them in plastic bags and then into your freezer.

Step 8: If you want to eat a pizza, now you should roll the ball flat and make it into a large circle.

Step 9: Cover the pizza with your favorite toppings. Don't forget to put oil on the outside edge of the pizza!

Step 10: Put the pizzas in your microwave and bake for 10 to 20 minutes at 250 C.

Enjoy!!!

Sean > Biking In Matsuyama

As many of my students know, I love riding my bicycle anywhere and everywhere. Recently though it has been too hot to enjoy any bike riding.

So, Sunday night I was reading a book, watching TV and relaxing in my room. Since I took a nap Sunday afternoon I wasn't sleepy at all. So...before I knew it, time flew and it was already 5:30 AM. I decided this was the perfect time to ride- it was comfortable, quiet and there were few cars. After a quick shower, I started my ride towards Ishite river with a plan to see Owls (梟) I had heard about in student weekend news. Too bad! I couldn't find them! It was around 6:00- plenty of time to keep going before it got hot. I decided to continue traveling south- I'd never been there before by bike.


I soon saw a sign that told me I was in Iyo. I decided to continue south-east toward the ocean to see the water near Iyo. On my way, I passed a lot of fields with many different things. One had many sunflowers (向日葵), while another had many white herons (さぎ). It was still very early so many of the animals were awake getting their breakfast before any humans were around. Around 7:00 I began to smell a lot of different breakfast smells- some I knew, like bacon- some I had no idea about but I imagine they were fish or soup. Unfortunately at this time I realized my last meal was the night before, around 7 or 8 PM... I very quickly got really really hungry.

Somewhere in Iyo, near the main street with the pachinko shops and book stores, I found a convenience store and grabbed a bite to eat. I took my food and headed East, coming to Iyo city port.



It had been a long time since I saw the ocean, so it was nice to eat my breakfast while listening to the water and watching the boats get ready to fish for the day.

So, that was my morning. I finished up and was back at my apartment before 9 AM.



With all of this, I have one question for you all. I've been to many beaches, but only in Japan have I seen the tons of insects all over the waterside... what the heck are those things? Here's a picture of one- I always see them all over the concrete barriers. Leave me a message here so I can get it!


Vocabulary: Owl (梟), Sunflower (向日葵), Heron (さぎ )

Thanks Michito for some advice on editing!

Sean > At Tobe Zoo with Matsudai!

Yo!

This weekend I went to Tobe Zoo with some students from Matsudai. Part of my class is to speak English in a situation outside of class. Of course, it's for extra credit.

Some of us met at Shieki and went by bus to Tobe Zoo. Others met us later either at Tobe Zoo's gate or inside. In all, there were 14 members of our group including me. It was VERY hot and muggy (Humid, じめじめ) at the zoo, but we had a good time. If any of my Matsudai students want to download the pictures of the event, you can CLICK HERE.

We toured the zoo for a few hours then went top the Tobe Kid's Castle (Kodomo no Shiro). I was surprised by the main sign at the entrance. When you look at it from one direction it says, in Japanese "Kodomo no Shiro" (I think)...from another direction, it says "Kid's Park".

We walked around the park, rode the water-boats and the bobsled. I had a blast ("had fun")- time was flying (時早く過ぎる) by and soon it was time to go home.

After everything, some of us went to Freshness Burger for a bite to eat ("a snack, to eat") and then we called it a day ("finished"). All in all, a fun day...but I was completely exhausted Monday!

Again to any of my Matsudai students, you can download the pictures HERE.See you guys in class!

Vocabulary: Muggy (じめじめ), had a blast ("had fun"), time flies ("時早く過ぎる" ), bite to eat ("To eat"), called it a day ("Finished")

Sean > In a Jam!

That's right! I was "In a Jam" this week. The phrase "In a Jam" means: A person who is in a difficult situation.

I went to a friend's house to help pick Loquat (枇杷), or in Japanese "Biwa". Her grandfather was too old to do it himself and needed help. After we finished picking the fruit, he gave all of it to me- about 2 bags full!

What on earth could I do with 2 bags of loquat... they would go bad (腐る) before I could eat them all!

I had a great idea, I could make jam out of them...but...how do I make jam...?

I checked the internet for a good recipe(レシピ) and found a few good ideas. Finally I made my own recipe, try it if you like!

Ingredients (材料):

16 Cups of unpeeled (剥ける) loquat
1 Cup of water
1 Cup of lemon juice
20 grams of gelatin (ゼラチン)
3 cups of sugar (糖)

You will need:
2 large pots
A electric mixer or potato masher
A plastic or wood spoon to stir (混ぜる) the jam
Glass jars (ジャー, 瓶) for storing the jam
A Plate

This recipe will make 2 jars of jam (about 900cc total)

Ok, now how to make it.
1) Put the water, lemon juice, pectin and sugar in 1 of the pots.

2) Put the plate in your refrigerator (冷蔵庫).

3) Peel (皮) of the fruit and remove the seeds (実). The seeds can make you sick, so make sure to remove them all! Place the fruit into the second pot with a lot of water to keep them fresh.

4) Heat the sugar-water with LOW heat!

5) Drain (干す) the fruit and use a mixer to break the fruit into small pieces, or use the potato masher.

6) After the sugar is all melted(溶かす), add the fruit to the mix.

7) Turn up the heat to medium and cook slowly, letting the water and lemon juice boil (沸かす) away.

8) Keep boiling and stirring. Take that plate from the refrigerator and put some of the jam onto the plate. If the jam turns hard quickly, you know the jam is ready!

9) You're finished! Put the jam into jars or whatever you want.


After you make it, keep it in your refrigerator.

If you plan to keep the jam for a long time (more than 2 months), you should read about canning.

Vocabulary: In a Jam, Loquat (枇杷), Go bad (腐る), recipe (レシピ), ingredients (材料), unpeeled (剥ける), gelatin (ゼラチン), sugar (糖), stir (混ぜる), jar (ジャー, 瓶), refrigerator (冷蔵庫), peel (皮), seed (実), drain (干す), melt (溶かす), boil (沸かす)

Sean > Long Time No See!

Yeah! Long Time No See! (久しぶり)

This month has been busy with events!

My university students turned in their book reports and had a test last week, so I have been busy grading those. In addition to that, Word Up had a summer picnic at Ishite River Park! You can see the pictures of the event here! It has been a fun and exciting three weeks.

So, my news happened on June 1st, about 2 weeks ago.

For fun I went for a long bike ride from Ishite river to Tobe Town, then to Toon and finally Shigenobu. On this trip I had some exciting and interesting experiences.

First I went to a small park near Tobe. The name of this park is, I think, "Jo no Fuchi". I went before and it was very beautiful. This time, though, there was almost no water. Matsuyama has had a very dry spring.

At one of the shrines near Shigenobu, I met a dog whose leash (革紐) was tied (羈縻) to a tree. It looked like he had been left there for a few days- all the grass around him was broken and the area had a bad smell.

I sat with him for about 30 minutes, sharing some snacks I had brought with me- he ate them very quickly and I could tell he was happy. I decided to take a chance and untie (解く) his leash. I knew from his eyes I could trust him. I took him to a nearby pond (池) and let him drink as much water as he could- I was surprised that he could drink for a full three minutes!

After he finished drinking I took off his leash and set him free. I don't know if it was the right thing to do (正しい), but I imagine he is happier now.

After leaving the shrine, I continued my ride towards Shigenobu Fuji and one of the 88 temples near there. I didn't have a lot of time to stay, because it was beginning to get late. I made a plan to goto Ishite river park at dusk (日暮れ) to try and see fireflies (蛍). I had to get to the river before it was too late!

I went back to the red bridge at Ishite river and relaxed, eatting my packed dinner. It was very quiet and relaxing, but I didn't see any fireflies. I imagine it was too soon to see them - maybe I will have better luck near the end of June.

I did get to watch two cats trying to catch fish at the river. One of the cats, larger and pregnant (身重), was doing all the work. Of course, with of the kittens (小猫) inside her she was too slow to catch the fish. The other cat, who I imagine to be the father, just sat and watched and whined (駄々をこねる) about his dinner being late. Eventually the mother cat smacked the father cat and ran off into the bushes (かん木)... he followed slowly and quietly - maybe to say he was sorry for whining.
:-D

I don't know the true story here, but it was fun to watch how animals are a lot like people too.


Vocabulary: Leash (革紐), Tied (羈縻), Untie (解く), Pond (池), Right thing to do (正しい), Dusk (日暮れ), Firefly (蛍), Pregnant (身重), Kitten (小猫), Whine (Whined/Whining) (駄々をこねる), Bushes (かん木)
Review: Shrine, Temple,

Sean > In My Own Backyard

Hello everyone!

That's right, today is about "My Own Backyard". This is a phrase that means "The area near my home". This week, I took a day trip around Matsuyama. I was surprised- there are so many things to see and do!

I decided that I wanted to go out and see Ishite River Park and enjoy the warm sunny day. After riding my bicycle east (東) I found a red bridge and a small park with many carp (鯉). I continued east until I saw a large statue (像) on a hill (丘). I have been living in Matsuyama for over 2 years and it was my first time to see it! I had to find out what it was!

I rode my bike north (北) and found that the statue was near Ishite Temple (寺), "Ishiteji" in Japanese. It had been a long time since I visited, so I decided to take a look.

Ishiteji has a small cave (洞) with many statues inside. It was very dark and quiet inside- I felt like there might be ghosts! I decided I had enough of the cave and wanted to look around the temple area more.

I learned about the big statue by asking people in the area: it is a statue of the man who made the 88 Temples, or the "Hachijuchachi" temples in Japanese. These temples are all over Shikoku and are part of a pilgrimage (巡礼). I want to try it when I have some time! Did you see any of the 88 temples? Leave a comment for me about them!


The last thing I decided to do was to climb the mountain near Ishiteji and take a good look around the city. You would be surprised how much you can enjoy your own home if you'd only go out and take a look.



So, go and take a look in "your own backyard"!

Vocabulary: East (東), Temple (寺), Carp (鯉), Statue (像), Hill (丘), North (北), Cave (洞), Pilgrimage (巡礼)