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This is the book "Technique to unify team mind", which she showed me at the practice place of JETS.
Lower left hand is Ms. Igarashi's.
When I visited the practice place of JETS the other day, Ms.Igarashi recommended the book "Technique to unify team mind" to me. JETS is a well-known cheerleader club of Fukui Commercial High School, and Ms. Igarashi is the head coach of it.
Not only did she and JETS members read it, but also they participated in a workshop by the author, Mr. Yusuke Murata.
I think Ms. Igarashi herself could write a book about teamwork because she's already had enough achievements. At any rate, I was impressed with a glimpse of her efforts.
So I ordered the book immediately after I got home and received it yesterday.
T.S
The figure of teamwork pyramid was put on the wall in the practice place.
I went to the Chorakukan to enjoy afternoon tea after Kyoto Sate Guest House, where I posted about it on our blog the other day.
The Chorakukan was built by a businessman Kichibe Murai in 1909 as a guest house for guests from home and abroad. The building and its household equipments are designated as a tangible cultural asset by Kyoto City. Currently, it is used as a restaurant, café, hotel and a place for wedding.
The afternoon tea starts with sparkling wine. You can choose soft drinks. And, you have various choices for tea.
I chose Dimbula, which is Sri Lankan tea. It has a mild flavor and I enjoyed the true taste of tea.
You can have a quiet moment as if times stands still, which is completely different from gaiety in Maruyama Park and the adjacent Yasaka-jinja Shrine. The Afternoon tea is so popular, so you should make a reservation in advance. (H.S)
The historical appearance of the Chorakukan
Inside the cafe
Afternoon tea set: Cooked sweets, fruits, scones, herb sticks with duck meat, sandwiches etc.
Early in the morning of last Tuesday, I was driving National Route 157 towards Nukumi Pass at the border between Fukui Prefecture and Gifu Prefecture. After a while, I stopped the car near Managawa Dam, where I thought that it was beautiful scenery.
A golden statue of Princess Manahime stands there. And it looked like a mysterious scenery suitable for the legend of the princess, with the morning haze over the lake in the background.
By the way, as this road goes further, the road width suddenly becomes narrower and there are several points along a cliff. But at least until around Sasogawa Dam upstream of the Managawa Dam, there is no problem. It is a nice drive way that you can enjoy the scenery.
T.S
On November 23rd, the movie "Echitetsu Monogatari(Echizen Railway Story)"
(the website is only available in Japanese) will be released throughout Japan.
The movie is about the local train line in Fukui, "Echizen Railway" and
its kind attendants. On the 23rd, the main actress Natsuko Yokozawa,
the actor Naoto Ogata and the producer of the movie Yoshihisa Kodama
will give speeches at Yurakuza Subaru movie theater in Tokyo.
*The speeches will be given after the movie that will starts at 11:35 ends.
You can check the movie theaters that show the Echitetsu Monogatari from here.
(the website is only available in Japanese)
The movie was released on November 3rd in Fukui Prefecture before its nationwide release , so I went to a theater to check it.
It was great to see the amazing scenery of Fukui, the nice local people,
Echizen Railway and its attendants on the large screen. They all looked
familiar to me because I was born and raised in Fukui.
It was also impressive to see the actress/comedian, Natsuko Yokozawa's
heartfelt acting with her cheerful smiles.
The attendants on the trains of Echizen Railway, they sell tickets, tell them how to get to
their destination if they need and show them recommended local attractions.
They are kind and friendly, so I always feel comfortable asking them questions.
It is very soothing and refreshing to see the Japanese houses, beautiful sky,
large rice fields, mountains and rivers from the train.
If you have a chance to see "Echitetsu Monogatari" (Echizen Railway story)
(the website is only available in Japanese) and ride the train,
enjoy seeing the great scenery of Fukui, and interacting with the nice local people
and the wonderful attendants.
The Kyoto State Guest House was built in 2005 as facilities to welcome distinguished guests from all over the world and allow them to deepen their understanding of, and cultivate friendly relation with, Japan in Kyoto, which symbolizes Japan's history and culture.
From September, advance reservations for individuals will be no longer required. So now you can always visit there. However, please check the website before you visit because when they receive guests from abroad, the scheduled public opening is going to be suspended.（H.S)
Tapestry of Kyoto
Mountain, which was woven using polychrome tapestry technique and portrayed the
sun setting behind Mt. Atago,
a peak to Kyoto's west.
Tea
utensils and a gilded folding screen
In the garden
pond, an evergreen plant called "nebikigusa" is planted to suggest a
rice paddy.
Table setting in the banquet room
The water in the garden pond is very clear.
The pond is stocked
with varicolored carp.
A traditional boat.
Dignitaries from overseas can enjoy boating
on the pond.
In
Novemeber 2011, the king and queen of Bhutan visited there and enjoyed boating.
As I introduced in our previous blog that "Bhutan Museum Fukui" had its 6th anniversary, and they had the meeting commemorating the anniversary of the museum. I saw the speeches given by two guests. It was very interesting to know so much about Bhutan and how museums should be these days. I felt that it is important to keep our traditional things and combine it with the modern world.
This is the only Bhutan Museum in Japan. All the Bhutanese people who had visited the museum were surprised and grateful to see it.
Open: Tue.-Sun. 11a.m.-5p.m.
Closed: Mon. *Except for Japan's National Holidays on Monday, in which case the museum is open on the holiday and closed the following Tuesday instead.
Admission Fee: 300 yen for adults (19 and over), free for students (18 and under).
Bhutan is near India and it is a small country that is surrounded by mountains. The surface area of Kyushu in Japan is roughly the same as Bhutan. The population of Bhutan is 730,000 and Fukui has 780,000. As you can imagine that Bhutan is not as busy as big cities like Tokyo, London, New York City, etc.
Since there's no ocean in Bhutan, the people who have visited Fukui and saw the ocean were very excited to see it.
It is a small museum, but it has many interesting things from Bhutan. The signboards that explain about the exhibits are placed right next to those exhibits. You don't only enjoy watching them, you can also learn so much about Bhutan. Moreover, some music or films of Bhutan are played there, so you may feel as if you are in Bhutan.
You can sit on the chair of the king. People from Bhutan were very surprised to see this, and they couldn't sit on it. Some of them told me that they can't even see king's eyes because they respect him that much.
There are colorful costumes, and masks with unique facial expressions. People wear them for a special festival.
The traditional Bhutanese clothing is colorful and beautiful.
You can try wearing the traditional clothing and take photographs. Staff at the museum take them with your cell phones and/or cameras for you. Some people who tried this, they said that these Bhutanese clothing was instagrammable.
There are many documents, books, DVDs, and photographs of Bhutan.
You can enjoy shopping at the museum as well. There are several products from Bhutan. They are very colorful, and they were made of strong materials. They might be good for not only for daily use, but perfect for gifts as well.
I use a wallet from Bhutan which looks very similar to these. It is very pretty and handy, so it became one of my favorite things in my bag.
At the museum, you can enjoy not only watching the exhibits, buying things from Bhutan and learning about the country, but you can also enjoy the events that they sometime have.
The next event will be held on November 18th, 2018 from 13:30 to 15:00 on the second floor of the building that Bhutan Museum Fukui is located.
The event is a chatting about the happiness of Bhutanese people with Mr. Ugyen Dorji and other visitors. Mr. Ugyen Dorji is from Bhutan and he's studying as a teacher trainee at University of Fukui since around October of 2017.
If you have a chance to visit Fukui, how about stopping by Bhutan Museum Fukui, which is the only Bhutan museum in Japan. I'm sure you can have a good time there.
Mt.Somugiyama in the center, from the summit of Mt.Nogo-hakusan
Yesterday, I noted a nearby mountain at the summit of Mt.Nogo-hakusan and found out the mountain was "Mt.Somugiyama (mountain in the shape of buchwheat berry)". I'm sure they compare the prominent shape of that mountain to the triangle shape of buckwheat berry.
I have seen this characteristic triangle berry in cookings recently. I never eat buckwheat noodles because I am allergic to buckwheat. And I'm afraid that buckwheat flour is used for cookings or sweets, so I check with salespersons or avoid eating if in doubt. If buckwheat berry is served in the triangular shape, it is easy to find but if it is crushed, it is hard to find.
I sometimes feel troubled when there is no description of ingredients or explanation in advance about food. For me, trips to local areas famous for buckwheat are like walking in a minefield.
T.S
I have been waiting eagerly for the release in Japan and I went to see the film on the opening day.
The film ”Bohemian Rhapsody” depicts Queen, which is a British legendary band, and half the lifetime of Freddie Mercury, the lead vocalist. Actually, I am a big fan of Queen. When I was in junior high school, I heard the cool guitar riff of "Keep Yourself Alive" by Queen for the first time on the radio and I still remember the shock.
It is a well known story that Queen first became popular in Japan. Also, Freddie loved Japan so much and his house had a Japanese garden. He even had read "The Book of Five Rings" by Musashi Miyamoto (a Japanese swordsman). In the film, there was a line "If you get a hit record, you can go on a tour in Japan.", and there also was a paper charm of Kinkakuji Temple (Kyoto, Japan) was pasted by the door in a house set that was supposed to be in Munich.
Mr. Itami, who was Freddie's personal security guard in Japan, even now wears a wristwatch by Cartier that was a gift from Freddie.
The film is a masterpiece the you can experience real Queen's life by the actors' outstanding performances, especially Rami Malek, who played Freddie.
The running time, 2 hours and 15 minutes, passes by like a flash with excitement and tears for Queen fans or rock fans. I didn't want the film to end. I would probably never see such a film again. Next, I am going to see the film at an IMAX theater , so I am very looking forward to it. (H.S)
