The shimenawa on my house entrance. In Japan everyone used to celebrate becoming one year older on New Year's Day regardless of their real birthday until the end of the World War II. Now,the time has passed and the New Year has less signif…

In Japan, many people go traveling to see autumn colored leaves with face masks on. In Tokyo, we can enjoy yellow-colored ginko trees at any and everywhere, along the street or in the parks. The other day I went to the university which my …

Last month I went to Asakusa to buy a tenugui I wrote in my previous blog. Asakusa is a popular sightseeing spot in Tokyo and famous for this giant lantern. Kaminari-mon gate is the symbol of Asakusa. Before the pandemic this town attracte…

A tenugui is a thin Japanese hand towel made from cotton, according to Wikipedia. A tenugui shop in Tokyo In the past it was daily used as a wiper. It also has been used to cover people’s heads like a cap to prevent heatstroke as well as s…

Autumn has come and we can see many kinds of fruits in stores and shops. A Japanese proverb says when persimmon fruits become ripe, doctors become pale. It is because persimmons are rich in vitamin c, which prevents us from getting cold an…

Today, we can enjoy various pasta dishes in Japan, not to mention spaghetti bolognese, spaghetti alle vongole, pomodoro, carbonara….you name it. We also have spaghetti menus unique to Japan, such as spaghetti with spicy cod roe (mentaiko),…

In this season, festivals used to be held here and there in Japan, such as in schools, communities, and Shinto shrines. However, because of the pandemic some of them are canceled or some are simplified. A shrine close to my house used to h…

Ice cream soda When I was four to five years old, I couldn’t fell asleep until midnight and got out of bed to go to the living room. There, my mom and dad amusing themselves over a glass of some green liquid. It was soda water which was ea…

Many kinds of iced tea and coffee are available over the world today. In Japan we have had tea served cool traditionally. When I was a kid and there were no plastic bottled or canned drinks, cooled barley tea was made in almost all the hou…

When I was a child I liked to watch horror dramas on TV. Many of them were based upon ‘so-called real’ stories and broadcasted mainly in summer to chill spine. After I watched them, I got too terrified to go to toilet or sleep alone at nig…

It used to be said that houses in Japan are made of woods and paper. For the national stadium of Tokyo 2020 olympics, woods from every prefectures in Japan are used. Now, the half of them are made of concrete, while my house consists mainl…

We had heavy and persistent rainfall over two weeks. Even if it stopped, it has been very humid and uncomfortable. I have been reluctant to go out, not only because of the virus spreading but because of this weather. That is why I am writi…

About twenty years ago, an elderly woman gave me three pieces of a plant leaf. I placed them into the soil and one of them took root. Before long another leaf grew out from the edge of the first leaf. In such a manner it grew larger and la…

Ever since the pandemic has began, I have had Chinese dishes more often than before. Cold Chinese noodle. Usually we go to Chinese restaurants as a group. On a round turning table various kinds of dishes are served one after the other. My …

The rainy season is approaching. This season is essential for the growth of rice and other plants. In the past it used to rain moderately and persistently with occasional sunny spell, until it ends with occasional thunder and heavy rain. H…

An-mitsu is a Japanese dessert, which made of small cubes of agar jelly, boiled peas (=mame), variety of fruits pieces and azuki bean paste (=an), and poured sugar syrup (=mitsu) before eat. Mitsu-mame is almost the same as an-mitsu except…

We are now under the “declaration of emergency” due to the corona virus. Thanks to the virus, we have seen wide variety of takeout dishes recently. The other day, I tried a curry dish made by a French restaurant. It was tasty Yet, I wonde…

Soon after the cherry blossom season comes to an end, azalea season begins. It seems that azaleas adapt to the Japan’s climate and can be seen magenta flowers here and there, along the main road, in the park and so on. Yet, azalea flowers …

Strawberries are now available any and everywhere in the world. Among others, Japanese ones are sweeter, juicier, and larger. Japanese strawberry. Now, the strawberry is in season and we can have tasty strawberries at reasonable prices. At…

The infection curve (graph for daily COVID-19 cases) of Japan consists of a number of low peaks. Now, we are at the beginning of the forth upslope. Under such a critical situation, the cherry trees are in full bloom. It is irresistible for…

Now, the cherry Blossoms are at their best. The flowering season is becoming earlier year by year. When I was a student they flowered in early April. As the financial year as well as school year starts in April in Japan, we used to welcome…

A decade has passed since the Great East Japan Earthquake. A powerful earthquake measuring 9.0-9.1 on the Richter scale hit mainly the Tohoku (North-east) region at 14:46, followed by massive tsunamis, resulting in 15,899 of death and 6,15…

Last week I went to Yushima Tenmangu shrine to see plum flowers. I have visited there several times at this season. However, I only remember the coldness and hot foods sold at the stalls in the shrine precincts. Animal-shaped candies are s…

Tsukiji Hongwanji Temple is the symbol of the town. This building was built in 1934. My grandfather worked at Tokyo Metropolitan Central Wholesale Market at Tsukiji. The market consisted of two areas: inside and outside market. The inside …

14th February is St.Valentine’s Day. I don’t know how Western people celebrate it, however, in Japan it is the time for everyone to become chocolate mania. For every reader, from Auntie Mee, with love. Some people give chocolate to their t…

When I was young I lived with my parents and my father’s parents, that is my grandparents. My grandfather was a fishmonger and owned a shop at Tsukiji central market. He bought a tuna from fishermen as a whole, cut it into chunks and sold …

A quarter-century ago, I went to Oxford, Britain to learn English while staying at a British home. The school assigned me to a home of an elderly woman. For two weeks she offered me a bed room with a bathroom as well as served me with brea…

Furo-shiki is a piece of square cloth made of cotton, silk, or polyester fiber. Furo means bath in Japanese and it is originally for wrap up clothes you have removed at a public bath house. Now, we use furoshiki in many ways, such as a bag…

The Japanese celebrate Christmas as Western people do, but put more importance on New Year’s days. Usually (but not this year), families and relatives get together and eat “osechi” and “zouni”, the New Year’s dishes. Each ingredients have …