Heading to the land of the rising sun any time soon? Well, you might find this site called Japanese Guesthouses very useful. The site offers a way to investigate the hundreds of possible guest houses around the country and to book. It is, thankfully, in English and has 500 ryokans (AKA: inns) all over the country. The site is fairly easy to use and nicely put together.
Word for the Travel Wise (08/19/06)
Figured this word would come in handy (no pun intended) for the visitor looking for a souvenir while in Japan. Happy shopping trails!
Today’s word is a Japanese word used in Japan:
uchiwa – fan (hand-held nonfolding)
Spoken Japanese comes smoothly for those who either practice or submit themselves to hours of Japanese pop music, but either way one can learn this language in through several avenues. Japanese Online is a VERY good FREE site to start learning. They have audio and a great conversation lessons. The lessons get more in-depth as you become a registered user which is still free of charge. Takese.com has a list of over 2000 words worth checking out. Those on the road already may want to pick up the LP Japanese phrasebook or check into a school for a few weeks of learning. Study Abroad has a list of school located all over the country. If you’re seeking help with written Japanese best of luck to you!
Past Japanese words: hajimemashite, dewa mata, tomodachi, omocha
Gay Travel Phrase Book
Everyone here knows I’m into learning as much and many foreign words as my brain can possibly soak in, which is why this particular book caught my eye. I’m a straight woman so I don’t know how far some of the phrases in eight different langs will take me in some place like Portugal, but I find it might help someone. I saw this one over at Get Lost Books and laughed at first because I don’t know any of my gay pals that would use this book. (Unless they’re secretly doing so.) According to the short blurb on Get Lost Books the most interesting part of the book are the euphemisms for being gay in different lingos with literal English translation. For example: “he’s from third parish” or “slipped an okra.” That was in English and I’m still confused.
Oh well.
Sake Shrine
It is my belief that certain things should not be fermented and rice is one of them.
I’ve never been a big fan of sake and can’t think of a quicker way to ruin my sushi than a shot of this potent Japanese alcohol.
Like all specialty drinks, however, sake certainly has a faithful following of fanatics and connoisseurs–enough, in fact, that an entire museum in Berkeley, California is dedicated to the drink.
The Sake Museum features sake-making materials, various artifacts, and a short video on the history of sake in both Japan and America.
Most importantly, the museum has a tasting room. The 2,260 square foot room is built from Douglas Fir and decorated with a glass-tiled floor “inspired by Japan’s rice paddies.”
Oh, and it’s free. Don’t tell the frat houses up the street at Cal; the Sake Museum may just run out of its namesake by the weekend if word gets out.
Japan and Baseball
Nothing goes together quite so nicely as baseball and apple pie. Except maybe baseball and sushi. And sake. Or so the Japanese would certainly have you believe. The fact is, while we love our national pastime, lots of other countries out there share our passion for that little stitched, white ball, and among them, Japan may one of the more interesting. This article over at the Continental in-flight Magazine is all about the Japanese fascination, if not obsession with baseball.
It offers some scintillating insight into how and why the sport has become such a big deal over there ,and how they play the game a little bit differently. One thing that didn’t surprise me, but that I thought was cool ,was that there are fewer “stars” over there ,as the Japanese way favors teamwork over superstardom. that’s a fine idea, and one would guess that might also lead to fewer ejections for steroid use (hello!?). I had though that baseball was a relatively new phenomenon in Japan, but it turns out that it was brought to the island in 1872 by Horace Wilson, an American teacher at what is now Tokyo University. Japan’s first team was called the Shimbashi Athletic Club and was organized in 1878 by Hiroshi Hiraoka, who worked as an engineer on U.S. railroads and returned home with a suitcase full of gloves. (OK, I don’t know if that’s true, but it could be).
Anyway, as a nice dose of a different culture this morning, I figured y’all would like the article.