Noriyuki's Impressions

Changing Impression

2008-05-14T05:14:00.000-07:00

This time I want to introduce my changing impression. That is about vending machine. Now that many people in the world take advantage of this machine, it became one of the most convenient thing. Through my class, I changed my mind. Before taking this class, I thought it was very natural to feel there were vending machines around the many places in not only Japan but also many countries, but I was very surprised to know that Japan was a country where various vending machines were the most. Juice, coffee, or sake is of course known. As you know, cup ramen(Chinese noodle) tobacco or bread like this university is also famous. In addition to this, these days some interesting vending machines were made for selling. These are vending machines of sushi, battery, curry and rice, book or magazine, video, CD, DVD, octopus fritter, umbrella, vegetable and can of oden, which is a kind of food stewed by soy sauce with konjak, egg, taro, bean curd and so on.

For octopus fritter, especially is sold in Osaka mainly. Octopus fritter is of course one of the most known fomous food in Osaka, so this idea makes me feel origin of Osaka. For can of oden, Especially is sold in Akihabara in Tokyo. Even now, this can is being bought very much and loved by many people, including foreign people.
I learned many things about Japan by reviewing. The start was when foreign students asked me about Japan. For example, why is tatami so famous in Japan? or why do Japanese women wear kimono? Even though I've lived in Japan more than for 20 years, I've never thought about Japanese culture. I felt it was very natural to feel like that. However, there were new Japanese culture from the situation of foreign people. That was this class, so now that I understood this experience, before studying abroad, I felt I should have enough knowledge about Japan in case I have trouble when I am asked.

Educational Problem

2008-05-01T01:52:00.000-07:00

This time, I want to show you Japanese Educational Problem. Modern education is free from stress, so there were some porblems such as a drop in scholastic ability, incresing a number of bullying or suicide, and teacher's problem of sexual harassment to the students. Especially, a drop in scholastic ability was terrible. I think bullying won't disappear forever because human has each different ability and if they see other types which make feel different, they tend to want to do something to them. Because I wondered why they have such a tendency, I reserched for the reason with a book and newspaper. The reason was just a human instinct. Especially if people who have strong power see people whoc have weaker power, they tend to meke them have trouble and that can relieve their stress, so unless this instinct disappear, this problem won't be able to solved. However we can try to decrease to the maximum. It depends on teacher and parents.
For suicide, the reliance and strong feeling of understanding the feeling of students will be needed for teachers. Students who commited suicide must have troubles about something, so before acting, teachers must notice and share with the feeling. It also depends on teacher and parents.
For teachers's problem, they must realize that they did and have strong responsibility to be a teacher. If teachers like this will increse more and more, Japanese Education will be ruined from now on.
For a drop in scholastic ability, as I said before, it was the most terrible problem compared to the years before. About this problem, now ministry of education is trying to improve and actually from 2011, new education style will be introduced, that is to say, they think they will make students focus on studying by revising, which are to increase a amount of class time, to introduce English from an elementary school student, to change some contents to teach for each subject and so on. Now that ministry of education realized these were problems, I hope Japanese Education will imporve.

Profound Art

2008-04-25T00:22:00.000-07:00

This time, I picked up a topic of this, 'Art'. Especially, I want to focus on calligraphy. This art is one of the most famous arts in Japan. Actually, I practiced calligraphy more than for 5years when I was an elementary school student, and then I learned and experienced a lot of things to be important in my life, so I want to introduce this story through my experience.
Precisely, calligraphy is a nice art which shows spiritual profound and beauty. In Japan, in addition to kanji of ideogram(character), people formed an unique letter art through combining with kana of ideogram invented in Japan. If you dip a wriing brush into the india ink, you can adjust thickness and hue of letters freely. Therefore the spirit or idea of writers can be described. This calligraphy requires us to have moral sense strongly and should have the sense of equity. When I began to practice calligraphy, I was very naughty, and I couldn't understand what was a moral sense very much. However, as I learned calligraphy, I started to realize that having only half-baked feeling didn't complete, and then I decided to be sincere for my life. I'm very grateful to the teacher who taught me about moral sense. I never remember these words which she always said to me without seeing these works. I'll tell these words.

1, "Thing which belongs to individual is sad and beautiful. That's sound and lead in own life."
2,"If you continue to try to be a hero in order to show only your good parts, you'll expose your faults someday."
3,"Doing what you are told to do and doing away with yourself isn't earnest. Bearing what you've done is really earnest. Expression can be so."
4,"If you have effusive feeling, form will be crumbled very soon.You should have perspective."

I always make it a rule to remember these words from my teacher. These words are really right. I'm feeling now very happy to encounter this art and from now on I want to keep it important. I wish I want everyone to do so.

http://syo-kitayama.jugem.jp/?eid=317

http://www.flickr.com/photos/pablodavidflores/132467256/

http://kakku.livedoor.biz/

Soccer Enthusiasm

2008-04-16T01:49:00.000-07:00

This time I chose a topic of soccer. Soccer is one of the most main sports in Japan, and there are many supporters. In Japan many people tend to divide into two parts between baseball and soccer. For the soccer supporters, World Cup will excite them very much. Not only people who love soccer but also other people watch World Cup. World Cup is one of the most exiting events all over the world. I want to explain about history of soccer introduction. First introduction to Japan was a match which was taken place in the place for foreign people in Kobe city in 1872. This influence prevailed gradually. In fact the only Japanese team didn't exist, because the soccer club which was main for English was founded around the area. But 1889, the club of Kobe university in Kobe city made only Japanese soccer club for the first time, and this stimulated other clubs of other universities in Japan. Later the pro soccer club was made from them like the modern clubs now, and Japan applied to FIFA. Because of this, Japan could be known as main countries in asia.

In my experience, I saw many people who loved to play soccer, but there were also people who loved only to watch. Baseball is also. I don't think people loved either playing or watching is bad. I want them to love both and love other sports, too. Sports are essential for human. In fact sports are very deep, because they require us to have skills such as mustle exercise, strategy, communication(teamwork). When they master all skills, they can be pro. The distance of pro is very difficult to complete, but they try to do their best, that is to say, they can learn an importance of making an effort. This is the most important thing in human life. Not only sports but also various fields require us to make efforts. We should learn anything important from pro.
Link to on Japan Football Association

Japanese Funeral

2008-04-08T18:55:00.000-07:00

Hello! The theme in this week is about Japanese religion, so I chose this topic. In Japan it is generalized that wedding is in church and funeral is in temple.From old,
it may relate to Japanese religion value which Japanese people have believed the god of 'Yaoyorozu', which is a kind of god in Japanese religion. Especially, almost all of the people in Japan are buddhist and they make a particular relationship between sect and temple. After dying, it cremates and puts bones in orn and finally buries them in graveyard of ancestor. Moreover, bereaved family pays a memorial tablet the dead in the buddhist altar, offers, floral tribute and prays. This is an usual Japanese style. In addition to this, we should be careful to the bereaved family. Japanese people make it a rule not to send a New Year's card on the next year's day to the bereaved family for mourning. In this case, we usually send news of period of mourning beforhand within by the end of the year. We should keep a rule in order not to trouble.
In Japanese funeral, there are four types mainly such as Buddhist, God, Christianity, and musyuukyou(has nothing to do with religion). Of these types, buddhist type is usual. Attendance must wear black clothes.

When I was in temple for funeral, I asked one monk like this, ' Why should I wear those?' The answer was 'For showing a meaning of sorrow, so it is better to unit one color, especially black. Gray is not bad, but black is better.' I learned this meaning at that time. If people are students, it is better to wear school uniform for full dress. The level of clothes or doing the mind depends on relation to the deceased. The closer the relation to the deceased people are, the more important they need a full dress and amout is higher. The day before funeral, wake for the dead is held. For funeral that day, attendance visits a funeral hall, and describes some regret words to the bereaved family. After that, a monk read a chanting sutra and the bereaved family makes an offering incense, and finally repots a separation to the dead, showing a sorrow attention and a regret affection.

In my opinion, these days circumstance of grave is getting more difficult. For busy contemporary people, they may need a new syle grave for time of cleaning and place, but I think the scene that family visits a grave om the Bon festival and holds a service for soul of ancestor always makes me feel Japan. For the grave arranged some flowers to cleanness,the grave which became France without relation roughly, and the scene of praying with the hand matched ardently to the dead, we may be able to feel common human desire(thought, idea, feeling and so on) on something.

Japanese traditional art and entertainment

2008-04-02T03:07:00.000-07:00

I want to show you Japanese art and entertainment:kabuki, no(h) play, and kyogen play. Now that these arts are so famous that these are becoming one of the most symbolized things in Japan. First let me introduce these arts simply.
Kabuki is a particular play in Japan and one of the traditional performing arts.

No(h) play is completed by from kamakura period to muromachi period. This is a kind of an original Japanese performing art. Now this is regarded as a representative performing art in Japan and prides a high publicity(celebrity)as well as kabuki in the world.

Kyogen play is also a performing art advanced from sarugaku like a kabuki and refined interests of sarugaku more. From the meiji period downward, kyogen is sometimes called no(h)gaku, because this put no(h) together.

When I was a junior high school student, I had a chance to visit a stage like these and bakcstage. Fortunately I could learn from some performers about a performing art. This was much difficult to perform what I had expected.Moreover, there were classes(ranks) in this society and all people who performed on the main stages were people who were in the upper class. If people are in the lower class, they can't perform there and must give the all rooms which people in upper class used a good sweep or help other staffs bring some properties. In this society, relationship between seniors and juniors is more important and more severe.

Japanese Style

2008-03-25T19:19:00.001-07:00

This time, I want to pick up a topic of Japanese pub called 'Izakaya' in Japanese. This is different from other bars though there are alcohols both in bar and Japanese pub. Japanese pub is a place that people can also eat food, drinking alcohols in Japan. I want to focus on traditional Japansese pub. Izakaya is a kind of restaurant that offers alcohols and dishes.Izakaya is different from bar, pub ,or snack in that there are many food comparatively. origin is from 'Edo period'. People began to drink in package store first, and gradually started to be served side dish. At that time, the ratio of man and woman was extremely biased toward man and because of a lot of single men, izakaya which they can drink and easily have food spread. The image that men drank at izakaya was very strong, but recently the image that not only men but also women can take advantage of izakaya took root, because izakaya changed the style, for example increased quantity of drink such as cyu-hai or wine, made kinds of dishes plentiful, or decorated more beautiful in order to be loved by women and so on. Most of the Japanese people usually drink beer first and toast to something. Though there is an original sake called 'Nihonshu' in Japanese, we don't often toast with it. Beers are standard to toast in izakaya. I wondered why Japanese people make it a rule to do that, so I searched for it. For Japanese, they are apt to think beers are almighty to any food at izakaya, that is to say, beers can adapt to side dish. The beginning is very important for Japanese people, for example, 'Are beers kept proper temperature?' or ' Is the quantity of froth proper when beers are poured? They make a rule like this. That's interesting. After that, they drink other kinds of sake, eating side dish and talk again and again, so izakaya is so busy. I love this situation. Moreover, they often go to karaoke after that. This is the second event. Many people always look forward to going to sing. Japanese people seem to be very happy when they go to izakaya.

Original McDonalds in Japan

2008-03-12T04:54:00.000-07:00

This time, I'll show you internationalization of McDonalds in Japan. Now that McDonalds are familiarize to many countries, this is very famous and loved by many people. Moreover, especially one hamburger is loved by Japanese people, and became the most famous hamburger of any kinds of hamburgers in Japan. That is 'teriyaki burger'. Teriyaki is a recipe(formula)of Japanese cooking. This is seared, laying sweet sauce with materials based on 'soy sauce'. This sauce is a key point which is loved by many people, especially Japanese people. Soy sauce is one of the most famous traditional materials in Japan. In 1989, the teriyaki burger which was original appeared. At first, this was time-limited product, but because of favorable review, it became standard product.This influenced McDonalds in many countries, and then made a prompt which the product went with each food ways in Asia or Europe.

By the way,Teriyaki is also used for fish or chicken in Japan. Main materials for fish are such as marlin, bonito, salmon, trout, sierra and eel. These are eaten as usual food in home cooking in Japan. Teriyaki is very famous in Japan.I think Japanese Mcdonalds tend to concentrate on CM strongly.There is a good device. Here is one example. I want to take an example of one burger. That is 'shrimp burger'. This is also famous product. On CM, the companies take advantage of person such as famous actor, actress, or any kinds of public figure. For shrimp burger, they asked a beautiful model to do public relations on CM after her name 'Ebihara(called Ebichan in Japan) Ebi means a shrimp in English and this product is 'ebi burger', so a common word 'ebi' is used. I felt this idea was funny and fascinated people,because she is a very beautiful model. I thought a device is important for business.

Seeming very enjoynable

2008-03-04T18:16:00.000-08:00

This time, I contributed some pictures to my blog, which is a typical view of Japanese people. I thought these pictures were a little bit in advance of season, but now that February has already passed and March has come, Japanese people begin to think about a cherry blossom-viewing picnic called 'Ohanami' in Japanese, so that's why I decided this theme. It is well-known for Japanese people to drink together and hum a tune to oneself under the cherry tree. The Hokuriku region(including Toyama, Ishikawa, Fukui, and Niigata prefecture) is coming to a thaw season. Events in all the year around which are coming to spring are keeping Japanese people to themselves for various ideas which people look forward to generous harvest.

As you can see, Japanese people usually enjoy this event. This event always makes them feel that spring has come and the beginning the new semester. Wheneever I do this event or see like these pictures, it seems to be like a picnic or school trip, because we spread some big sheets when we had a lunch, watching around the view.

Unique Japanese foods!!!

2008-02-26T07:17:00.000-08:00

Here are two foods that I found as Japanese culture. First one is about 'Ehomaki', which is a kind of sushi roll. Japanese people usually eat on February 3rd(Setsubunnohi called in Japanese).There is an interesting custom that makes people feel Japanese culture. They turn toward almost east direction and pray their wishes, eating Ehomaki. At this point, they must not say anything. All they have to do is to wish in their heart, eating it. This custom weren't famous very much at fist, but since around 1990 ,this custom prevailed in many areas in Japan and became one of the most intersting Japanese culture gradually.

Second one is about 'Yakiimo', which is baked sweet potato in English. It is very natural to know this food and very famous during winter season in Japan. If people think about only yakiimo, they may wonder why it's Japanese culture strongly. What I want to tell is yakiimo stand. When it becomes night, we sometimes hear a speaker. Though it is natural for customers to go to buy it to some shops or supermarket, coming to sell it by yakiimo stand itself is a little rare and I feel Japanese culture. There are also ramen(Chinese noodle)stand or pole(rod) stand in Japanese. There may be other interesting stand in small areas in Japan. It is very convenient for people who want to eat it.

What a wonderful scenic concourse!!!!!

2008-02-19T04:54:00.000-08:00

I want to show you two long beautiful concourses around my city, Makino. I always go to school by bicycle, going through this concourse of below photos.Whenever I go through this, I feel very confortable and motivated by refreshing air. Moreover, there is a big river under this concourse and there are spotbills and other kinds of birds.The view is very beautiful. Why don't you come to see them once? I strongly recommend!!!

Let's move on the other concourse of photos below.

First, I was so surprised to see this concourse when I came to Makino, because this concourse is connected to Hirakata city, but is almost beeline. Can you believe that? This beeline is so long that I sometimes feel tired of length. However if I go by bicycle, listening to music, it makes me feel happay, and because many people don't know this concouse, they must pass through on the road. This may be dangerous. Traffic accident may occur. But this concourse I found is much safer. As I said just now, this is almost straight. The only fault is the length. If you walk, it'll take about 50 or 60 minutes. It'll also take 20 minutes even by bicycle though there is no hurdle.However this concourse is also worth seeing and going once. I think these concourses will make you feel impressed. If you want to go, please ask me without hesitaing.

Punctual schedule system

2008-02-11T23:48:00.000-08:00

These are two impressions about Japan. As you know, Japanese style is modesty, especially if we think about other people, that is to say, they tend to think seriously whether how other people will feel or not if they do somthing for others, but this is Japanese culture, so I don't care. This time, I found it very considerate that the rule of the road of the companies made schedule system clearly, especially bus and train. Here are pictures about them.

About bus, three days are divided into weekday, saturday, and sunday(holiday) The schedule is made steadily for passengers. About train, three kinds of trains are divided into usual train, rapid train, and limited express mainly. I'm very surprised to see that each detailed time schedule is made in an every hour. We are usually passengers, so we don't really care about that, but we should be grateful to that technical divice to make time schedule efficiently.

The reason of I post these pictures is because too detailed about time schedule. Of course other countries have time scedules, but I felt Japanese culture strongly when I saw these. In Japan, hierarchy for visitor, guest, customer, or passenger is the highest, so sponsor(seller) always tries to offer as the best condition for them in order not to be complained, because ,as I said before, Japanese people tend to care about other's feeling strongly.