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Kamogawa Seaworld

    Killer whales are what my boys had dreamed to see!!

    The last Golden Week was the chance for my family and me to visit Kamogawa Seaworld, which is famous for the dynamic killer whale performance in Japan.
(  http://www.kamogawa-seaworld.jp/english/index.html )

    These photos were taken by my husband. (View them larger by click!) He concentrated on catching the moment of the killer whale somersaulting and kicking a ball!! The audience in the front section got wet to the skin.

     Besies the performance of killer whales, Kamogawa Seaworld puts on various performances of sea lions, dolphines, beluga white whales. We could cover all performances in one day.

    Can you see the sea lion’s smile? When the sea lion lifted up its lips and made a smiling face, all the audience bursted into a hearty laugh!

     Kamogawa Seaworld would be a good destination of a one-day trip from Tokyo. It’s about 200km from Utsunomiya, where we live. It’s about 100km from Kashiwa, where my parents live. This time we made a one-day trip (by car) from my parents’.

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THERMAE ROMAE (Roman bath)

The movie THERMAE ROMAE (http://www.thermae-romae.jp/index.html )
was released on April 28, 2012. Since then, it has amazed more and more people!
 

The story is a comedy about Lucius, an architect of public bath houses in ancient Rome, who time-travels to various modern day baths in Japan and explores the two cultures in the world “that have loved baths the most: the Japanese and the Romans.”

The original manga is written by Mari Yamazaki. The movie is directed by Hideki Takeuchi and distributed by TOHO.

I had a chance to see this movie! Let me say this is one of the best movies I’ve ever seen – from cross-cultural and comparative cultural point of view, from comedy point of view, from historical point of view, and from TOCHIGI point of view!!

Kita-Onsen in Nasu, Tochigi, was chosen as a location for the heroine’s parents house in the movie. Kita-Onsen is considered one of the secret baths (meaning “onsen” not known to many people.)
Here is the English website of Kita-Onsen.
( http://www9.ocn.ne.jp/~kitanoyu/mokujie.htm )

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MIYA-RUN (Utsunomiya Running Event)

A running event, called MIYA-RUN, was held on April 22nd. Its catch phrase was:
“Run through Utsunomiya-city, and enjoy the sights and sweets!!”
The marathon course for MIYA-RUN passed along the Utsunomiya belt line of 42km.
During the event, the runners were offered Utsunomiya sweets at every 5 km, 9 points in total.

The picture shows what sweets they were offered.

I hadn’t known about this event until it was reported on the Shimotsuke newspaper on the next day.

I wish I could have participated in this fun event!

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JAXA spring open-house event at Tsukuba Space Center

    JAXA annual open-house event for Science and Technology Week was held at the Tsukuba Space Center on April 21, 2012.  Its catch phrase is: “Come to TKSC! The place that is the closest to space” Please visit our facility with your friends and families.

   My family and I visited the event! So many people gathered at this hot opportunity!! Though we couldn’t try plastic-botttle rocket making and treasure hunting using the MICHIBIKI satellite & GPS, we really enjoyed the lectures by astronaut Hoshide and JAXA employee Uchiyama (Kounotori, HTV). Also, the exhibition of space solar power system was interesting even for my kids. 3D movie conveyed the sensation of extravehicular activities in space.

  The series of events will go on at other facilities. The schedule can be checked here: http://www.jaxa.jp/topics/2012/04_e.html

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Cherry blossom in full bloom in Utsunomiya

This weekend is the best timing for “Ohanami”(cherry blossom viewing) in Utsunomiya. Bloomy cherry blossom made people happy and exciting! People enjoyed Ohanami at various parks under the beautiful sunshine on Sunday. So did our neighbors and my family at our nearest park. Parents enjoyed drinking, while kids ran around.

“Sakurazensen”,which indicates the “front line ”of the bloomy cherry blossoms, keeps going north. Tohoku region will soon welcome bloomy cherry blossom!!

Hakone & Gotemba trip

My family and I took a trip to Hakone & Gotemba near Mt.Fuji. Let me share the beauty of Japan!

 

 

On the way to Hakone from Utsunomiya, we stopped by at the Odawara castle in Kanagawa, where people enjoyed cherry blossom viewing – ohanami.

The Hakone Open-air Museum was one of the places where I’d wanted to take my kids! This trip brought us the chance to visit this beautiful museum.
We could put ourselves in the harmony of the art and nature.

See the English website of the Hakone Open-air Museum :

http://www.hakone-oam.or.jp/english/

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Camille Pissaro and Impressionism at Utsunomiya Museum of Art

Utsunomiya Museum of Art had been closed for about a year and it reopened on March 24, 2012.

The ongoing special exhibition is Camille Pissarro—Patriarche de la modernité (Camille Pissaro and Impressionism.)  (From March 24 to May 27)

It focuses on what Camille Pissarro had in common with the other Impressionist painters.

 April 1^st  was Utsunomiya Citizen Day, and the entrance fee was free for Utsunomiya citizens. Many people, including my family and I, really appreciated the exhibition.  

Here are other good news: On Family Days (April 15^th and May 20^{th )} , the fee will be free if adults come with children under age 18.

The museum is located in the park, which is called Utsunomiya Cultural Forest. Its weedy hill includes some art figures. We had lunch at the park under the beautiful sunshine after enjoying Pissaro.

The following site shows the park map and you can see it is surrounded by beautiful nature.

http://u-moa.jp/park/index.html

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be off – Oya stone studio

I joined the ballet performance on March 18th, which was held at the studio “be off.” This studio is made of pale green Oya stone.
What is Oya stone? It was formed by the exlosion of a vocano about 20 million years ago. It is mined in Oya region, Utsunomiya, and mainly used as building materials. The characteristic of Oya stone is soft and light. Besides, it has warm atmosphere.
It was such an experience to dance in the Oya stone studio. The music spread to the whole space!!

TOSA BUNTAN

I received a box of TOSA BUNTAN (citrus grandis) from a friend of my mother’s, living in Kochi prefecture. Can you see how big it is? Compare its size with a stapler beside. 

In Japan, there are about 40 kinds of Buntan.  TOSA BUNTAN is the one that is  produced in Kochi prefecture.  This is big enough, but there are even bigger kinds.

When I peel it, the refreshing smell of citrus spreads the whole room. Its taste reminds me that spring is coming closer to Kanto area though the ground in Utsunomiya, Tochigi, is still covered with slight snow.

I made marmalade from two BUNTAN peels. It took two days to complete marmalade, but this is one of my favorite waiting-for-spring cookings!
Check the location of Kochi prefecture;

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SHIO-KOJI (salt-marinated rice malt) as a seasoning

Have you heard about shio-koji, salt-marinated rice malt? Shio-koji is an old Japanese seasoning, made just from rice malt, salt, and water. All these three ingredients are mixed, fermented, and matured. The old Japanese used shio-koji as a bed for pickling vetetables/fish for preservation as well as for staying healthy.

But is that only an old time story?

Amazingly shio-koji has become so popular again since 2011 that many recipes are introduced in various TV programs or blogs and at cooking schools. Besides many books about shio-koji are published.

To tell the truth, I hadn’t known about this popular fermented seasoning until one of my friends gave me her home-made shio-koji a few weeks ago. Since then, I have become a big fan of it.
You know what? I can use shio-koji for wide variety of dishes – ranging from miso-soup, oden, grilled fish/meat to curry, stew and pot-au-feu. What I do is just add shio-koji instead of salt. It is this fermented seasoning that can deepen the taste!!

Today I started making my own shio-koji:
・Only three gredients to start – dried rice malt (300g), salt (90g) water (500cc)
・Massage the rice malt with salt
・Add water and stir
・Transfer to a Tupperware or some container like that
・Remember to cover it lightly with a lid

That’s all I did today.

From tomorrow, I have to mix it once a day for even fermentation.
In 10 days – 2 weeks, shio-koji should be ready like this ;　（*this picture is not what I work on）

I can’t wait to enjoy my own shio-koji!

KOSODATE SHIEN CONCERT by Utsunomiya Business Denshi College

“KOSODATE SHIEN CONCERT” (the concert as a child-support program) was held by the childminder course of Utusomiya Business Denshi College on February 11. Since the curriculum of childcare workers was improved, the child support in community was also considered as an important role of care provider. One of the teachers made a comment that the concert would be the first step for the students to play a role of leading childcare in community.
The concert, which was admission free, consisted of two parts;
Part 1: Musical – Alice in Wonderland
Part2: Songs and dance
AKB48 Heavy Rotation
Marumaru Morimori
Ampanman Song
Doraemon
Etc.

The concert was held at Tochigi Fukushi Plaza and crowded with many families. My family and I sat on the front seat and really enjoyed the musical as well as songs and dances. I could see all the students had practiced so hard that some of them were moved to tears when the concert was finished.
I heard that all the final-year students in this course got a job offer though it’s tough finding a job these days in Japan.
*Tochigi Fukushi Plaza

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Japanese high school girl- the winner of the Prix de Lausanne 2012

Madoka Sugai of Japan (aged 17) became the winner of the Prix de Lausanne 2012, the 40th competition. The Prix de Lausanne is an international dance competition for aged 15 to 18. The competition this year had 226 applicants from 30 nationalities, including 19 Japanese. The final competition was held on February 4th at the Beaulieu Theater in Lausanne, Switzerland.
Each of 8 winners is awarded one-year scholarship to an internationally notable dance school.
Japanese famous ballerina Miyako Yoshida, former winner of the Lausanne prize and one of the jurors this time, praised Ms.Sugai’s dance a lot.

I myself got so excited about the news that Madoka Sugai, a Japanese high school student, won such a big prize! Surprisingly, the paper said that it was her first experience of joining the competition overseas.

VARIENTINE by Clementine

Today let me introduce Bossa version of Japanese music,  played in Japanese variety programs.  VARIENTINE by a French singer and songwriter, Clementine, was first released in August 2011.  Since then, the bossa flavors of Japanese songs, which are familiar to most of us, have comforted and cheered the Japanese.

Clementine was born in Paris and raised in different countries, so her music has been influenced by various local music as well as Bossa Nova; first debued in Paris, and now based in Japan.

You should also check out ANIMENTINE(released in July, 2010 ) and ANIMENTINE-plus(released in May, 2011), both of which are Bossa version of Japanese anime songs.

My family and I enjoy both VARIENTINE and ANIMENTINE while driving!

Why don’t you check some?  I’m sure you’ll love them!

＊Bossa du SUDARA BUSHI by Clementine
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Nanakusagayu

January 7th is the day when the Japanese eat the traditional Japanese rice porridge with seven spring herbs, called Nanakusagayu, praying for good health throughout the year. The custom was first introduced in Japan from China in the 8th century.
The spring herbs put in the porridge are: seri(Japanese parsley), nazuna(shepherd’s purse), gogyou(cottonweed), hakobera(chickweed), hotokenoza(henbit), suzuna(turnip), suzushiro(radish).
Talking about my family, my grandmother used to cook Nanakusa-gayu on this occasion. I had never cooked it myself until today. Yet, the time must have come when I should pass the tradition down to my sons’ generation!!

But I didn’t have to feel pressured…
What I did was just buy “Nanakusa-gayu seven herbs set” at a supermarket and cook rice with them!! I bought the set at 398 yen.
The first Nanakusa-gayu I cooked myself was delicious and all my families loved it.
May everybody stay happy and healthy this year!!!

IBARAKI NATURE MUSEUM

The special exibition called “The World of Dinosaur Hunters – Digging up the Huge Animals” is currently held at IBARAKI NATURE MUSEUM.  (until January 9^th)

In December 2011, the exciting news was released that one of the junior curators, Yumeki Hoshika (17), had discovered the fossil skull of Stegolophodon, relative of an elephant. The fossil was in good condition and invaluable especially because even cutting teeth (tusk) was not missing.

Though it was not announced beforehand, January 2nd 2012 turned to be the first day for the Stegolophodon’s fossil skull to be released to public!  My family and I were on the way back by car from Tokyo to Utsunomiya and happened to visit this Museum on that day.  Lucky us!! What amazed me most was the fact that it was a high school student, who made such a big discovery!!

The regular exhibition at the museum was also content-rich; the space and earth, the history of nature, etc.  The new year concert as well as the new year lecuture about a dragon(2012 is a dragon year!) were held.  Outside the museum, the beautiful park welcomed us. 

IBARAKI NATURE MUSEUM became one of our family’s favorites.

Why don’t you feel the atmosphere of the museum? (Check the following YouTube.) 

IBARAKI NATURE MUSEUM

*English site of IBARAKI NATURE MUSEUM:

http://www.nat.pref.ibaraki.jp/english/index.html

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