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個人ブログ / Personal Blog:

秋の散歩は最高 — Taking Walks in Autumn

Dec 3

Walking Diary / ウォーキング日記, 個人ブログ / Personal Blog | コメントなし

オラ、年中、いつでもウオーキングするけんど、やっぱ秋が一番きもちいいかも。こん間、駒沢公園を通りながら、いい紅葉が見えた。他の皆さんも、紅葉狩りしていたみたい。また、鶴巻の辺りを歩いてみたら、桜新町駅にわりと近い丘の上に不思議な建築物を遠目で発見。近くまで行ってみたら、浄水場だった。なんだか、お城みたいな建物。

I like walking any season of the year, but maybe Autumn is my favorite. I recently strolled through Komazawa Park in Setagaya Ward and saw some beautiful maple leaves turning color. Looks like everybody else was enjoying them too. (Disclaimer : I’m from southern California where leaves never do anything, let alone change color, so forgive me if I seem overly impressed with this kind of stuff.) Wandering further, I spotted in the distance what looked like a castle on a slight hill in the Tsurumaki part of Setagaya Ward. Getting closer, I found it was actually two very large water towers obviously built quite some time ago, back when people appreciated cool architecture. Neat find.

お城っぽいか、モスクっぽいか、なんか面白いデザイン

お城みたいな浄水場も発見・鶴巻の丘の上

キーワード: walking, ウオーキング

長野さ行って来た — Went to Nagano

Dec 3

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番組の取材のため、長野さ行って来た。てんてんと県北部の村を回りながら、「ご年配の方の元気さ」と「長野の食文化」のつながりを調べています。取材はまだ終っていない。来週また行く。放送日は後ほど、お知らせします。

取材中は善光寺と青鬼村の農家の写真を撮ってみた。

横から見る善光寺。T字の形をしている建築が非常にめずらしい

Went to northern Nagano for a TV gig a few days ago. We are doing a report on the connection between the local diet and the fact that the elderly folks in this part of Japan are so healthy. Should be interesting when we get done. Gotta go again next week. I’ll post the broadcast date as soon as I know. In the meantime, I took a couple of photos of world-famous Zenko-ji Temple in Nagano City and the (formerly) thatched roof farm houses of Aoni Village, WAAAAAY up in the hills.

Now THAT'S what I'M talking about.

キーワード: Nagano, travel, 旅, 長野

世田谷通りと多摩川ウオーキング

Nov 23

Walking Diary / ウォーキング日記, 個人ブログ / Personal Blog | コメント 3

今日はちょっと頑張った。三軒茶屋をスタートして、まんづ世田谷通りを多摩川まで歩いて見た。馬事公苑とか、東京農業大学とかその辺までは何十回歩いた事があったが、世田谷通りは、どこまで続くものかなって、疑問でした。環八を超えたら、東京都内ちゅうなのに、だんだん田舎っぽくなる。なんだか東北の４号線を歩いているような感じになった。しばらくすると、狛江市に入った。オラ、狛江は年に一回必ず行くとこだ。いかだレースに参加するため。市内に入ったら、世田谷通り沿いの眼鏡屋さんの屋上に、なんと、キング・コング親子にばったり。

鉢巻きのコングは、なぜか、葉巻を吸う

I took quite a long stroll today. The weather was perfect, so I started from Sangenjaya and walked along Seatagaya Dori (Road) to see where it ended. I’d been out past Baji (Equest- rian) Park and the Tokyo Agricultural University many times before, but I didn’t know how far out Setagaya Dori actually went.

After passing Kan-pachi (Concentric Loop Highway No. 8), the scenery along Setagaya Dori turns a bit rustic. Sort of reminds me of Highway No. 4 up in the Northeast (Tohoku).

I entered Komae City and stumbled upon King Kong and son on top of an optomitrist shop. Not exactly sure of the significance of that, but it sure grabs one’s attention.

この親子もいた。稲荷神社のガード・フォックス

Came across a nice little Inari Shrine too. Stopped by and took a pic.

Inari Shrine are dedicated to the god(s) who deal with agricultural issues. Everybody prays here to wish for a good harvest. Obviously, Komae City and the surrounding areas were once much more rural than today.

This shrine guardian fox, a rather feisty looking sort, also brought his/her kid along to teach him the ropes I suppose. You can the kid underfoot. A local parishoner has gone to the trouble of providing “bibs” for both. A nice touch.

狛江市を通ったら、多摩川に出た。川を渡って、神奈川県に入ったら、世田谷通りの名前が変わって、「津久井道」になる（つくいみち）。その点から、南へ（下流に向かって）。二子玉川駅にたどり着いたら、もうすっかり暗くなってしまった。全体的に歩きやすいコースでした。世田谷通りのところどころで、排気ガスはちょっと心配でしたが、大丈夫でした。寄り道も含んで、トータルで、２２KMでした。After crossing the Tama River, I headed south (downstream) about 6 KM to the Futako Tamagawa Station. Altogether, it was a 22KM course.

Good exercise.

The Tama River from Komae City

Near Futako Tamagawa Station - on the Kanagawa side

キーワード: Tama River, walking, ウオーキング, 多摩川, 狛江

ウオーキングで世田谷区の森巌寺（しんがんじ）

Nov 20

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東急田園都市線(旧名：新玉川線）の池尻大橋駅の北口を５０M先に歩けば、緑道があります。梅が丘方面へ目黒川の上流を沿うと、茶沢通りのひとつ手前の道を北へ約１３０M歩けば、世田谷区の「ヒッデン・トレジャー」（隠れ遺産）がある。森巌寺（しんがんじ）です。住宅街のど真ん中の御陰か、とても大都会だと思わぬ静けさはポイント。

四季ともいいオアシスだが、秋は見頃かも。非常に大きなイチョウの木が何本かあって、秋になると、「黄金」という色を描写する光景になります。今年のタイミングは多分来週（１１月下旬）。

A supremely quiet place, not far from Shimo-Kitazawa

I ventured out for a long walk today and decided to visit an old favorite. Shingan-ji in Setagaya-ku. Being situated in the middle of a residential area, this is a nice temple to visit anytime of year. It’s so peaceful.

But Fall is really special. The grounds feature several very old, very large “Icho” (Gingko) trees that literally define the word “golden”. They are absolutely gorgeous. I stopped by today to check on their progress. I believe next week (the last week of November) they will be at their most beautiful this year.

森巌寺は仏像を楽しむ人も喜ぶ。ちっとめんづらしいものがあります。エマ様、不動明王、また数本の腕を持つ弁財天。こんな弁天様は初めて見た。

Ema-sama & Fudo-Myo-o

Benzai-ten or Benten-sama

Shingan-ji is also a treat if you’re into Buddhist statuary. Along with the rather ferocious looking Fudo-Myo-o, they’ve got an absolutely HUGE, and rather ticked-off looking Ema-sama, the guardian of the gates to the afterlife (the dude you REALLY do NOT want to annoy). That combination alone was enough to satisfy me, but today I think I stumbled upon a special airing out of their Benzai-ten (other wise known as “Benten-sama”). She is the Buddhist deity in charge of music, the arts, wisdom, and beauty, and is a member of the “Seven Gods of Happiness” in Japan. I’ve seen quite a number of Benten-sama over the years, but this one has, like, ten arms. Don’t think I’ve ever come across one quite like her.

とにかく、お寺好きなオラにとっては、満喫出来たひとときでした。あと何点か写真をどうぞ。

Anyway, it was a nice afternoon. I leave you with a few more shots.

江戸時代から針供養で有名ですよ

来週のイチョウの木、楽しみだな〜

キーワード: setagaya, walking, オウーキング, 世田谷

Sacred Heart School Festival

Nov 15

個人ブログ / Personal Blog | コメントなし

Intercultural coomunication

On Saturday, the Sacred Heart School in Tokyo held its annual festival. I had never been there before, so when a friend invited me, I thought I’d check it out.

As school festivals go, it was awesome. Lots and lots of people there. Dozens of booths selling all kinds of great ethnic food, lots of activities and games for young children, and a dose of live music in the main courtyard.

My favorite part, I think, was the Swedish booth. They were serving something called “Aquavit” which is sort of like schnapps in little, tiny shot glasses. If you buy a glass, the Swedish fellows running the booth sing a sort of chug-a-lug song for you. Good, clean fun. Going to Sweden one day is now DEFINITELY on my bucket list.

Or, as we say in Yamagata . . .

. . . "Nommunication" ちゃん、ちゃん。

キーワード: friend, personal, walking, ウオーキング, 個人, 友達

青森県八戸さ行って来た

Nov 13

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ちょっと久々に八戸で講演して来た。なつかしい港町だ。海の幸は言うまでもなく豊富っですが、最近B級グルメのコンテストで大ブレイクしているのは、「せんべい汁」。オラ、４〜５年前に「せんべい汁」取材したけんど、あの独特な歯ごたえの「汁せんべい」は忘れません。あの時、「これ、絶対にヒットするだ〜」って思った。

とにかく、めっちゃうまっ。

The unique "cracker stew" of Hachinohe in Aomori

I went up to Hachinohe City in Aomori for a speech this week. As a port town, Hachinohe is justly famous for its seafood. But another dish you just gotta try is “Sembei-jiru”, or, VERY roughly translated, “Cracker Stew”.

I believe the most common variation is a sort of chicken broth with lots of sliced vegetables. Toward the end of the cooking process, you add in these large, round crackers, broken into quarters.

These “shiru-sembei” crackers are similar to the “Nambu Sembei” famous in neighboring Iwate Prefecture. But they are made with no flavoring. Just plain, wheat-toasty-flavored crackers. They are made purposefully to soak up the soup of the stew. The interesting feature of these crackers is that no matter how long they soak, they maintain a certain chewy texture which is sure to please. Really good.

講演が終ったら、聞きに来た方がわざわざお土産を持って来てくれた。江渡さんっていう農家の方（？）が、なんと２８種類のりんごを集めて下さった。全部外国原産の実験的に栽培しているものだと思うが、とにかく、すんごい数。イギリス、スイス、フランス、ニュー・ジーランド、オーストラリア、カナダ、と、アメリカ産。

さすが、青森。　　江渡さん、おしょうしな（ありがとう）。

28 different varieties of apples

After my speech, a fellow named Mr. Eto brought me a big bag of apples. I love apples, of course, and Aomori is famous for them. But when I looked inside I was amazed. He had gone out and actually collected 28 DIFFERENT varieties of apples, ALL originating in either Europe or North America. I guess he may be experimenting with new varieties to see if any of them might work well in Aomori’s climate.

People in Aomori take their apple production seriously.

Anyway, I’ll be in apple heaven for a few weeks now.

これから、何週間、りんご天国にいます。

りんごも大好きなオラ

キーワード: Aomori, apple, Hachinohe, speech, りんご, 八戸, 講演, 青森

岐阜県土岐市さ行って来たWent to Toki in Gifu

Oct 29

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岐阜県の土岐市さ行って来た。土岐市の消防団の皆さんのインタービューのためだ。 I visited Toki City in Gifu Prefecture to interview the members of the local Volunteer Fire Fighters.

消防団の皆さん

土岐市下石（おろし）の消防署、はっぴの彩り

土岐市を中心に周辺で生産される陶磁器は「美濃焼」と呼ばれ、台所・食卓用品における日本の陶磁器生産量の６０％以上を占めています。すごい。Toki city has been a center for ceramics for centuries. The local products is called “Mino Ware”, and Toki produces roughly 60% of Japan’s kitchenware.

でっけ〜 Now that is one huge sake flask!

橋までも陶磁器で飾られる

消防団のインタービュー前後はちょっと町中をぶりっとしてみると、どっこ見ても手作りの陶磁器が現れる。さすが、陶磁器の町だ。橋の上、消防署の前、等々。　Both before and after my interview of the Fire Fighters, I strolled around the town. There are hand-made samples of their wares EVERYWHERE you look. On bridges, in front of the Fire Station, all over the place.

Fire fighting sake flasks?

Fire fighting sake flask with hook.

Fire Fighting Sake Flask with Hose

キーワード: Gifu, travel, 岐阜, 旅, 消防団

沖縄さ行って来た、えがった〜

Oct 29

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沖縄さ行って来た。日銀の関連の講演だったけんど、首里城の観光も出来た。台風の雨でちっと大変でしたけんど、皆さん頑張って下さった御陰さまで、無事にOKでした。お疲れサッマでした。

お世話になりました皆さん

ツーリストだなっす

首里城のガードしっかりしている

色も形も格別の首里城

改善中の首里城、２０１１年４月で完成

今、まだ改善中だが、来年４月で出来上がりだそうです。

皆さん、見に来てけらっしゃらい。めんそーれ。

Went to Okinawa for a speech recently, There was a typhoon in the area so it rained all day. But we braved it to visit Shuri Castle, the place where the old Ryukyu Kingdom held court. They are in the middle of refurbishing the main buildings, buit it should be done by April 2011. Ya’ll come over for a visit.

キーワード: Okinawa, speech, travel, 旅, 沖縄, 講演

つったらぱったらしてる！ What a week!

Oct 24

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いやあああああ。忙しかったよ、先週。山形の東根、東京の大田区蒲田、秋田の横手、三重の津、北海道の紋別、岩手の山田、静岡の静岡福祉大学。全部行ってきました。来週は沖縄と東京と新潟と、えええと、どこだっけ？

Man, what a week I had last week. I went to Higashine in Yamagata, Kamata in Tokyo,

Yokote in Akita, Tsu in Mie, Mombetsu in Hokkaido, Yamada Town in Iwate, and Shizuoka Welfare University in Shizuoka. Next week, I’m heading to Okinawa, Tokyo, Niigata and –uh–where else?

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東根はサクランボで有名だけど、もう一つの名物はこの大ケヤキ。１５００歳で、幹の周囲は１６m、高さ２８m。ケヤキ番付で「東の横綱」になってるよ

北海道にまけねーど

Higashine is famous for its cherries, but another claim-to-fame is its “Big Keyaki Tree”.

It’s 28m tall (93 ft.) and 16m around (53 ft.) near the base of the trunk. In Japan, there is actually a “Sumo Ranking Sheet” for these Keyaki Trees, and this one in Higashine is known as the “Yokozuna of the East” (Grand Champion of Eastern Japan). Cool, huh?

東根はフルーツの宝庫

ぼちぼち旬となるよ、東根のりんご。

Higashine is, of course, best known for its cherries (June – July), but we are coming up on the season for another of its famed products — apples.

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よこてダンサーズと記念写真

本番中、よさこいの一種かな

B級グルメの王様じゃ

Yokote is probably best know for the igloos they make out of the deep snow that falls there in the winter. You build an igloo out of packed snow, set up a little Shinto shrine inside, and sip “sweet sake” to ward off the cold.

But Yokote is also better known recently for its Yakisoba (fried noodles). Yokote Yakisoba, with its distinctive sunny side up egg on top, has recently won several awards in those so-called “B-Grade Gourmet Contests”.

Since the economy is slow, people here are more interested in less expensive yet tasty ways to eat-out. This dish fits the bill perfectly.

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三重県津市の身田中生が金融研究の結果を発表

三重県津市に行ってきました。身田中学校の生徒達が、会社の設立の事、いろんな職業と業界を調べて習った事を発表しました。自分のみらいについて、真剣に考えている生徒さん達の顔を見て、心強くなりました。お疲れ様でした。

I made a speech down in Tsu City, Mie Prefecture this last week too.

A bunch of Junior HS students made presentations about research they are doing into careers and the business world. I spoke a little bit about how kids in America learn about careers and money matters.

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岩手県山田町のカッパ

岩手県の太平洋側のリアス海岸のほぼ真ん中（宮古と釜石の中間）に

山田町といういい町がある。漁港でホタテ貝で有名なスポット。

海のあんなにきれいなところ、めったに見ない。町のキャラは「ホタテ・カッパ」です。普通、カッパは「河童」と書くけど、山田町のカッパは川から海に降りてきたものだから、「海童」と書く。つまり「うみがっぱ」なんだそうだ。さらの上にホタテの貝殻を帽子のようにかぶるから、ちょっとめんずらしい。

I also visited Yamada-Machi in Iwate last week. As any fan of Old Japanese Folk Tales will know, Iwate is famous for its various legends of supernatural creatures, including the “Kappa”, a sort of green, frog-like water sprite. “Kappa” usually inhabit rivers, but the “Kappa” of Yamada is a “Sea Kappa”. It wears a large scallop shell on its head like a hat. The town’s Chamber of Commerce recently published a children’s book about the creature to instill a sense of local pride in the town’s youngsters.

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Some of the modes of transportation used during my trip

Good old reliable Y-Shink

Local airports use these babies

キーワード: cool places in Japan, speech, Tohoku, travel, 旅, 東北, 講演

北海道の紋別に行ってきました

Oct 24

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上陸したガリンコ１号

今週、紋別に行ってきました。僕にとって、３回目なんだけど、今回ちょっとだけ観光出来たから、写真を載せるね。

紋別はすんごいいい所だ。気に入った。ホタテ貝、いか、かに、等々海の幸にめぐまれ、また、流氷の研究センターがある。左は「ガリンコ１号」、流氷の見物のために作った観光船。先端の大きなスクリューで流氷をガリガリしながら進むデザインだから「ガリンコ」という名になったのかな？

I went up to the City of Mombetsu in northern Hokkaido this week for a speech. It was my third time there. I did a little sightseeing, so I’ll post some photos.

Mombetsu is a really cool town. They catch a lot of scallops, squid, crabs, etc. so if you are into seafood, this is a great spot. They’ve also got the “Okhotsk Sea Ice Flow Research Center” here. The town is famous for the ice flows which come in from the Amur River in Russia. (Best time to visit and see the ice flows is probably February — dress warmly.) This first photo is of the original “Galinko #1″, a tour boat which actually goes out into the ice flows. Notice the huge grinding screws on the front underside of the hull.

オホーツク・タワー

浜から見るオホーツク・タワー

オホーツク・タワーからも流氷見物出来る。海面下７mまで降りれる。上からも下からも流氷を。

Also in Mombetsu is the Okhotsku Tower, an ice flow observation tower. You can view the ice flows both from above AND below the water line — it descends to the sea floor, about seven meters or 23 feet deep.