"Fugu（Fuku）"

In a recent few years, our family had spent one-night at "onsen" in Kyushu in the end of December.But, this year, we gave it up from several reasons. Instead, we decided to have a luxurious dinner in Kokura.

Yesterday's our dinner was "Fugu(Fuku) no full-cource"（ふぐのフルコース） that included "Fugu-sashi"（ふぐ刺し）, "Shirako-iri Chawan-mushi"（白子入り茶碗蒸し）,"Kara-age"（唐揚げ）, "Fugu-nabe"（ふぐ鍋）. I and my wife drunk "(Fugu) Hire-zake"（ひれ酒） that is Sake with baked "Fugu"'s fins.

Our table was in a separated room, so we spent a very relaxed relaxing time.

Candle lights event

Last Saturday, an event called "Orio-Haku Toumyou de X'mas"（おリオ博　灯明 de X'mas） was held near JR Orio station（JR折尾駅）. In this event, people placed a lot of candles covered by paper backs on the ground to create fantastic atmosphere.

In its opening event, my son's wind orchestra band performed two songs, "Winter Wonderland" and "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer"（赤鼻のトナカイ）.

It was a little bit cold, but their performance gave audiences hot,peaceful feelings.

Christmas lights in Kokura

IMG_0786.JPG, originally uploaded by bikenglish.

In this season, we often see beautiful lights here and there. This time, I took several photos of Christmas lights nearby my work office.

Unemployed Man

I have learned "Unemployed Man" thorough VOA Special English program. I like this kind of naming to the characters in comics. It reminds me of "Kobayashi Yoshinori"（小林よしのり）'s comics. For example, in his well-known work named "Toudai Ittyoku-sen" （東大一直線）, the main character's name is "Toudai Touru"（東大通）.

"Motsu-nabe"

"Motsu-nabe"（もつ鍋） has become a popular food for ordinary people in Japan. Generally, "motsu" means animal's internal organ, but in this case, it means bovine's intestine.

Last Saturday, I took part in a party of parent's group of my son's high school wind orchestra club. There, I ate "motsu-nabe" drinking beer.

People in Japan can get "Motsu" in low price because it used to be thrown away in the past. So, "motsu-nabe" is a less expensive food.

Autumn leaves in Fukuchiyama

The Fukuchi-yama（福智山） is the highest mountain in my area.　It is about 900 meters high. The top of the mountain has no obstruction for viewers, so people can enjoy panorama there. It is one of my favorite mountains.

Last Sunday, I climbed it with my several old friends. I have ever climbed the mountain several times in the past, however it was the first time for me in five years.

It was very fine and the autumn leaves looked very beautiful. We enjoyed a good day in autumn.

Fukuchiyama

AＥＲＡ's short message

"AERA"（アエラ） is a weekly magazine released by Asahi Shimbun(朝日新聞）. I am looking forward to seeing a short message in its advertisement on a newspaper each week because it let me chuckle every time. It contains a kind of "word play".

This time, I try to explain it. We often use only one Kanji character to express a country's name or itself. For example, "米（べい）" means the United States of America. "仏（ふつ）" means France. "露（ろ）"　means Russia and it also can be pronounced "つゆ". And "つゆ知らず in Japanese means that (a person has) "unconsciously" (done wrong or done something that he does not plan to do at first).

So, "日本の領土とは、露知らず？" has two means. The first is "it(or he) did something but it has been unconscious that it is Japanese territory". Another mean is "Russia has not known (or learned) that it is Japanese territory".

There has been a dispute on small islands near Hokkaido（北海道） between Japan and Russia. It is one of on-going issues that Japan has faced now. You can learn more about this problem here.

Cadence

Yesterday, I replaced a cyclocomputer on my bike. The new device can measure "cadence".

In Japan, "cadence "（ケイデンス） is a special term for people who like riding bike, but general people do not know the word. It means rpm of a pedal. It is generally said that a good cyclist keeps the cadence about 90. My old device could not measure cadence, so I replaced it.

From now, I can train myself checking cadence during my cycling.

Land slide

This picture shows one scene that I saw when I went to the foot of Mt. Fukuchi（福智山） by bike on Oct. 11. Probably, a land slide happened there and the slope is repaired by the concrete.

I thought how much money it cost and how many people's lives it can save. It looks a kind of "Koukyou-kouji"（公共工事）(in direct translation, public construction) that means the government build some constructions mainly to create jobs.

As you might know, Japanese land is occupied by large mountain area and we have a lot of rain. So, sometimes we see land slides（地すべり）.

"Home Bakery"

I don't know that the word "Home Bakery" is used in the United States .And also I don't know that this kind of product is common there. But, it has been generally used among Japanese, and I have used it for our breakfast every day since I bought it through Amazon several days ago.

To make a bread by using it, we use wheat flour(250g), sugar(large spoon 2),salt(small spoon 1).skim milk(large spoon 1), butter(10g) ,180ml water and dry yeast. Its total cost is about 120yen, I think.

We can buy a same amount of bread named "食パン"(sliced bread) at a lower price than 120yen at a supermarket. So, we can not save money with this convenient machine.

Cycle Tour Kitakyushu

I was planning to take part in a bike event named Cycle Tour Kitakyushu last Sunday. But, I gave up it because of heavy rain in morning even though I had already paid entry fee.

The rain continued until about 11AM. After it had stopped raining, I rode my bike for short trip in my neighborhood. When I saw several people who had taken part in that event on the road, I slightly regretted my earlier decision.

How to use Kindle

In this point, there have not been any Japanese books sold by Amazon for Kindle yet. So, we have to create Japanese texts that is available on Kindle. Now, I am developing several ways for it. I introduce two useful ways that cost no money.

The first way is by using the websites, Aozora-bunko（青空文庫） and Aozora-kindoru（青空キンドル）. At Aozora-bunko, you can get Japanese texts that is out of copyright with free. And you can convert a text into a PDF file that is written in vertical direction by using Aozora-kindle. I have downloaded some books into my Kindle. They includes Terada Torahiko's（寺田寅彦） essays and Kikuchi Kan's（菊池寛） novels.

The second is for my business. I often see some documents about my work. They includes laws and rules in particular fields. I can see these documents on my Kindle by sending text files or PDF files to my own kindle's e-mail address.

Kindle is a interesting device, but my hope is to be able to read newly published Japanese books by it.

"Karatsu"

Last Sunday, I visited "Karatsu"（唐津） with my family. The purpose of this trip is to spend relaxed time at a hotel. The city of "Karatsu" locates in the eastern end of Saga prefecture（佐賀県）. It took about 2hours by car to get to the hotel from my home. (But, we used several roads that require fees to reduce the driving time. If not, it would take more than three hours.)

After taking a bath, we had dinner at the restaurant in the hotel.

The next day, Monday, we visited "Yobuko"（呼子） where is famous for its morning market. We bought several foods there and went back to "Karatsu-Jo"(castle)（唐津城）. For our lunch, we ate "Karatsu-burger"（唐津バーガー） in "Niji-no-Matsubara"（虹の松原） where is a man-made forest with a lot of traditional pine tree.

On our way to our home, we stopped at ”Canal City Hakata”（キャナルシティ博多） in the city of Fukuoka because our children wanted to buy some character goods at "Jump-shop" and "Pokemon-center".

I took several photos in this trip, but unfortunately, I could not take a photo on the second day because my camera's battery was out.

Kindle has come!

Recently, I have got the "amazon-kindle Wi-Fi" without considering about how to use it because its price looked very attractive to me.

I have learned how to use the device from several web-site about it after the oder. In my final thought, the kindle is a very good device for non-native English speaker to learn English because we can read many English texts written in English that are downloaded from web-sites by using the device and also it can read a text loudly aloud in English.

For a while, I will try to use it in several usages.

Bike touring

P8220084, originally uploaded by bikenglish.

Last Sunday, I took part in a bike touring that was formed from 9 members. Only one of them was my acquaintance in them. He had suggested me to take part in it and I decided to do it.

Usually, I ride my bike alone along coast line without up-down. So, this riding was very hard for me because it included many slopes in very hot weather. The distance was about 100Km. We started at 8AM and came back at 4PM.(Of course, it includes several rest.)

I managed to keep up with them at the end all time. But, this was good experience that tell me a joy of group riding. And "mini-puffet"（ミニパフェ） ,"Ringo-curry"（りんごカレー） that I ate at a farmer's restaurant were very delicious.

"Hatsu-Bon"

IMG_0539.JPG, originally uploaded by bikenglish.

People in Japan believe that spirits of ancestors return to the living world in a period known as "O-Bon"（お盆）, from August 13 to 15. And people celebrate the first "O-Bon" that comes after their loved people died. It is called "Hatsu-Bon"（初盆）

The period of last Friday to Sunday was "Hatsu-Bon" for us because my father died this January. Around "Butsudan"（仏壇） was decorated with special ornaments in my mother's house.

Several people, mainly relatives, visited my mother's house to pray for the spirit of my father in front of the Butsudan.

Until my father's death, "O-Bon" was a good time for my family to gather, eat and drink. But, now, this has become a little bit lonely time because of the lack of our family member.

seeing Fukuoka with Australian

IMG_0521.JPG, originally uploaded by bikenglish.

Yesterday, I guided an Australian man who sent a message through Japan Cycling Navigator in the city of Fukuoka. He says that he will stay in Japan for about 2 months.

At first, we visited the Kushida Shrine（櫛田神社） in Hakata ward（博多区）. It is a famous shrine because the Hakata Yamagasa（博多山笠） is held around the shrine each year. But, unfortunately, the building is smaller than I expected and dons not has great atmosphere.

Next, we visited the Fukuoka Jyo-shi（福岡城址） and the Oohori-kouen（大濠公園）. The sky was clear, but air was very hot.

After that, we ate Nagahama-ramen（長浜ラーメン） as earlier lunch. Also, unfortunately, it was not so delicious as well as I ate in the past.

And, we went to the highest place in the Fukuoka Tower（福岡タワー） to see the city.

Our last visit was a shop that sells bike goods because he needed some items for his this touring by bike.

He will leave Fukuoka for Beppu（別府） early morning on August 7. Using a map, I gave some advices to him about the route that he will use for his way to Beppu at his accommodation before I said "good-bye" to him.

I really hope his secure and enjoyable touring by bike in Japan.

The day's result

Last Thursday, I went fishing in the sea. This is the day' s result. I made "Nanban-zuke"（南蛮漬け）, one of Japanese traditional dishes, from them.

Ross will take part in the ceremony in Hiroshima

I have written about this problem in the past articles on my blog. And, here. Yesterday, I came across with an article in Ashahi that tells some developments on the issue. I have translated it into English.

The US State Department spokesman PJ Crowley announced Wednesday that John Ross, the ambassador to Japan will take part in the annual peace memorial ceremony August 6 in Hiroshima. He says that the purpose of Ross's participation to it is to express the honor for all victims of the World War Ⅱ. But, in another development on this issue, a high level official in the department said clearly that the USA does not have any idea that it will express apology to Japan about using the mass destruction weapons in WW2 in the ceremony.

"Kaku-uchi"

This time, I intoduce a unique word in Kitakyushu（北九州） area.

"Kaku-uchi"（角打ち） is a special word used in only this area. It means a place to drink without using chairs. So, people can drink saving money.

A big ironworks led by those day's government was built in Yahata（八幡） (now a part in the city of Kitakyushu) in 1901 and the area had developed as an industrialized city. Many people, workers and their family members, gathered in this area.

There used to be a lot of workers until in the area in the 1970's when Japanese major industry had begun to change from "heavy" to "light, or electronics, or car".

Workers needed a place where they could drink after work with less money. Some liquor shops started to serve alcohol to them (I think), people called it "Kaku-uchi". But, no one exactly knows where the word comes from.

Generally, "Kaku-uchi" means a place where people can drink next to a liquor shop. But, recently, there are drink places named "Kaku-uchi" in city's urban area. These photos are some examples.

"Green" road

Recently, my ride course has been partly painted in "green". I don't know that the painting the road in green is really needed , but the color is very nice ."見事な緑色！"

Seeing "Kokura-Gion Daiko" with Indonesians

Last Saturday, I took three Indonesians to Kokura （小倉） to see "Kokura-Gion-Daiko"（小倉祇園太鼓）. They are working in a nursing home and a hospital in Japan as workers under EPA, Economic Partnership Agreement between Japan and Indonesia.

Two men of them have already been introduced on this blog, but I saw this women for the first time.

Her name is Elice-san, and she is working at the hospital of the University of Occupational and Environmental Health（産業医科大学病院）. She is a very smart woman who has a nice Asian smile, I think.

After seeing several teams that played "Gion-Daiko", we took a dinner at a restaurant that serves mainly "Soba"（そば） that is one of Japanese traditional noodle.

At first, I would treat them to this dinner. But, she said that she would to treat three men including me to this dinner because she had just received a special payment on her job. Finally, I decided to accept her offer. I will send a small gift as "Okaeshi"（お返し）to her.

"Senkyo"

Election for Member of the House of Councillors was held last Sunday across the country. I worked for this election as an extra stuff because I am a local government worker.

There are many varieties of place for election in Japan, but one of most used places is a gymnasium in a school.

We had set several equipments for election in a gymnasium Saturday morning and I took this photo as a record for next election.

humid days

Humid days have continued in this area. Today, it was cloudy and sometimes rainy. But, "green" has become more green.

This photo is a rice paddy near my house.

civilian control

I have often come across the word, "civilian control" （シビリアンコントロール）in Japanese newspapers, but I have never listened to the word in English until now. But today, I found the word in Obama's speech in VOA Special English program, this happening let me a little bit happier.

"Civilian control" is translated 「文民統制」 in Japanese.

"Ume-shu"

This year, I decided to try making "Ume-shu"（梅酒） because the Japanese apricot tree in my yard had a lot of its fruits. Making "Ume-shu " and other products from the fruits was the work of my father by last year. But, he died January, now no one do it.

I am looking forward to drinking it about three month later.

"Gougai"（newspaper extra）

Friday morning, I received "Gougai"（号外） that tells about the Japanese foot ball team defeated the Denmark's and will go into the tournament stage. Of course, I did not pay for it because it is generally delivered with free.

I could not remember when the last "gougai" was published and about which article it told before this time.

a little bit busy days

Recently, I am a little bit busy in my work. I have several topics that I want to tell you on my blog, but tiredness from my work takes away my drive. Please wait for new articles on my blog until my motivation returns.

World Cup songs

I like both.

mini concert

On May 29, several members of my son's brass band club performed at a community center. Usually, they perform in more than 50 members. But, this time, their performance included solo, ensemble from two to five members.

My son played a tuba in solo. Tuba is the biggest brass instrument, this photo shows its size very well.

O.Henry

O.Henry is one of the most famous American writers because "The Gift of the Magi"（賢者の贈り物） is used as English text in many junior high school in Japan.

By the way, I studied O.Henry's "The Exact Science of Matrimony" on the VOA Special English program several days ago. But, unfortunately, I could not understand the important part of the story so well.

So, I decided to buy the O.Henry's book translated in Japanese. I ordered its second hand book through "amazon". Finally, I understood the story after reading it.

cooking wild boar's meat

Last Sunday, I cooked the wild boar's meat for our dinner. It was better than we expected. The left in this photo is "mame-gohan"（豆ご飯） that included peas taken from my garden.

Its recipe is here.