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)

Douglas > Lions and Tigers and Kids - Oh My!

On April 26, my youngest son’s pre-school (幼稚園) went on a field trip (修学旅行) to Tobe

Zoo. The weather had been warm recently, so we dressed for a nice spring day. Of course, that meant that it was unusually windy and it turned out to be a rather cold day.

Looking at the animals is always fun! But when you go with a group of people, there is a schedule that needs to followed. First, we need to take a class picture. Then it is time to eat (although it is not even lunch time yet). I am not going to argue. Eating is one of my favorite things to do!

After lunch, we worked our way to the elephants and then the monkeys. We wanted to see the orangutan cross the rope bridge, so we waited around for his performance. Another of my kids, Douglas Jr. didn’t want to wait. He wanted to continue walking around the zoo with some of his friends. Off he went, while we waited. The orangutan made his walk extra interesting by slipping for a sec. ("second"; "short time") He recovered without any trouble, but I started to wonder what would happen if he fell? Would he be injured? Would he be angry? Do orangutan’s eat people??

When I was a kid, I used to love going on field trips. But now as a parent, I enjoy them much less. They are hard work! First of all, we have to wake up early on our only day to catch some z’s. (get extra sleep) Then, we have to prepare a boxed lunch (弁当) for the family (and when I say we, I mean my wife).

Finally, when we get back home, the kids are exhausted (疲れ果てる) and need to be carried back into the house. What I want to know is, who is going to carry me??

Vocabulary: Pre-school, field trip, sec, catch some z's, boxed lunch, exhausted

Sean > Golden Week News (Day 2)

Ok, Day 2 of Tokyo!

I woke up around 7 AM and, after a quick breakfast at the hotel, I headed out("to go") to see more of Tokyo. I started my day by going to Asakusa. There is a famous shrine (神社) there and many interesting shops and foods. One of the famous foods that I bought was the steamed red bean bun, or Manjuu (饅頭). The picture I took is a joke for one of my classes: Fuujin (風神), the wind god ; Raijin (雷神), the thunder god, and Gaijin, which means foreigner (外人).

After Asakusa, I went to Akihabara. Akihabara is famous in the world as a place for electronics (家電). I was surprised how many shops there were and at how many of the SAME shops there were... It is my guess that really, there are only about 5 to 10 different kinds of shops in all of Akihabara: Electronics shops, plastic model shops, maid cafes and costume shops were almost everywhere. I enjoyed Akihabara, but after a hour or two I was ready to move on("to leave").

After Akihabara, I went to a few museums (博物館) around Tokyo. The first was the Edo-Tokyo museum, which showed a lot of history and art from the Tokyo area. I also went to the Tokyo Museum of Natural Science in Ueno. I recommend both if you like history and science... or if you just want to see dinosaurs (恐竜).

It was a hard schedule, but I am happy to have seen so many things and experienced so many different places in Tokyo.

Now... to plan my next vacation!

Vocabulary: steamed red bean bun, foreigner, electronics, move on, museum, dinosaur
Review Vocabulary: head out, shrine

Sean > Golden Week News (Day 1)

Hello everyone! This time, I want to tell you about my Golden Week vacation to Tokyo. It was a lot of fun, but very busy! First, I went to Kamakura to see the Big Buddha Statue (大仏). I was surprised at how large it is.

After that, I went to see the Hachimangu Shrine(神社). The shrine area was large, and filled with many tourists(客). I was suprised to hear the sounds of a ceremonial(儀典) dance. I followed the sound to see many people dancing in traditional(伝) costumes(衣装). I don't know the Japanese name for this style of dance, but I heard it was a dance used for religion(宗教).

Next, I relaxed in my hotel room for an hour then headed out ("to go"; "went") to Roppongi and Odaiba for some exciting night life (夜遊び) and shopping. I found a mall called "Venus Fort" in Odaiba which was very beautiful inside- it made me think of a theme park. Take a look at this fountain (泉)!

That's my first day in Toyko!

Day 2 coming soon...!



Vocabulary: Big Buddha Statue, Shrine, Tourist, Ceremony (Ceremonial), Traditon (Traditional), Costume, Religion, Head Out, Night Life, Fountain,