Sunday, October 23, 2016

Japanese language Lesson Day1 - How to ask direction and price in more sophisticated way


The Japanese language is considered to be "a language of noun".
If you try to learn as many nouns as possible, you could probably make yourself understood in Japanese most of the time.

Eki Doko? - where is the station? Eki-station, Doko? - where?
(For your information, perfect/polite way of saying this is "Eki wa doko desuka?")

Kore Ikura? - How much is this? Kore-this, Ikura?-How much?
(Kochira(kore) wa Ikura Desuka? -More polite way of saying "Ikura" is"Ikahodo(如何ほど)". This is indirect way of asking price, not many Japanese people, especially young ones, use this word but if you'd like your Japanese to sound sophisticated, I highly recommend that you use/remember this expression)
You can also say like this,
"Kochira wa Oikura desuka?"  When you put "O" in front of some nouns, it sounds polite and elegant.  
Examples:
Hashi (chopsticks)-> O-ha-shi;
Namae (name) -> O-na-ma-e;
Bento (Bento lunch box) -> O-be-n-tou
(scene 1) at a convenience store, you buy a bento. A shop clerk handling your order didn't put chopsticks in your bag. Then, you say:
"Ohashi wo onegaishimasu"  (Could I have a pair of chopsticks, please?)
(scene 2) On your way to a famous sightseeing place, you ask a Japanese for direction. S/he can speak a little English and you two start chatting and enjoy talking to each other for a while. Later, you want to ask his/her name to say thank you with his/her name to express your sincere appreciation for helping you find the direction :
"Onamae wo ukagattemo iidesuka?" or "Onamae wo oukagaishitemo yoroshi-i desuka?"
(Would I be able to ask your name?)

You can use "kore" for a thing, but never for person! Kochira can be used both for a thing and person, and sound more sophisticated.

Friday, October 21, 2016

THREE is a very popular cosmetic brand, especially for its makeup items.
I have a couple of THREE makeup items I absolutely love! 
In addition to makeup items,  their skin care items are also very popular because of its quality.
I cannot live without these two items:

  1. THREE Balancing UV Protector  SPF30/ PA+++
2016-04-07 11.36.08
It's almost like lotion with an excellent spread and it smells fantastic.
2016-04-07 11.37.36
2016-04-07 11.37.46
You can literally feel relaxed by just applying this UV protector to the face.
I always look forward to applying this UV protector to my face every morning.
It gives me motivation to get up early in the morning!

2. THREE Lip Conscious Protector  SPF35/ PA+++
2016-04-07 11.37.14
This item has 3 functions:
1) UV Protector for lips, 2) Primer and 3) Lipstick
For 1) and 2), no explanation needed. Regarding 3), it leaves a very subtle color on your lips.
The things in common with 1. (THREE Balancing UV Protector SPF30) and 2.(THREE Lip Conscious Protector SPF35)  is that both of them make you happy every time you use!
Luckily enough, these are so-called "staple items" so you can easily get them unlike other THREE's limited makeup items!
2016-04-07 11.36.55


Thursday, October 20, 2016

Do you know iherb?

As some of you may have already known, it's an American online shop dealing with a lot of natural skincare/hair care/supplement items.

When I shop at iherb, I always look at items with more Japanese comments. Those items always live up to my expectation! The following items are successful examples...



1) LypriCel, Liposomal Vitamin C, 30 Packets, 0.2 fl oz (5.7 ml) Each




2) MORNINGSTAR MINERALS, DERMA BOOST, REJUVENATING SPRAY MIST, 8 FL OZ




One of the good things about iherb is that you can read reviews in different languages.
(I can only understand English and Japanese though)


Especially, those two above items have more comments in Japanese than any other languages.

(FYI, this LypriCel is very good actually. In winter, my skin always gets dehydrated but I've never felt my skin dried since I started taking this item. Plus, Vitamin C is said to be effective to prevent cancer. So I'm sticking to LypriCel for a little while!)

The number 2) item is also working! Japanese women love using toner - Kesho-sui in Japanese. 

In these couple of years, using oil in skincare regimen has been very popular - whatever it would be - argan oil, avocado oil, jojoba oil to name a few....

It seems that this Acure Organics' argan oil is the most popular one among iherb items....

I personally use this one for almost a year and recommend it to anyone who's interested in!

This is a very valued item 

Acure Organics, Aromatherapeutic Moroccan Argan Oils Trio Set, Coconut, Rose, Citrus Ginger, 3,1 fl oz (30 ml) Each


Most of the time, it's sold out.... If you happen to find it available, it's a must-buy!





Tuesday, April 5, 2016

How to get a discounted train ticket

You probably get a JR ticket at "Midori no Madoguchi" or ticket dispensers just next to the ticket gate.

There are many discounted ticket shops in Japan, some are close to train stations.


For example, I go to Ashiya, Hyogo Pref. very often and I usually use this ticket shop close to the JR Ashiya Station to buy discounted tickets.

For example, from Ashiya to Osaka, the rate is JPY300, but you can buy the same ticket with JPY220 or so.

However, this kind of discounted tickets have some limitation for use.

It can be used from 10:00 through 17:00 and weekends only.

You can also find "discount ticket vending machine" like this.

According to this article, there are a couple of hundreds of discounted ticket vending machines in Japan and 60% of them are in the Kansai area (West Japan).

(http://style.nikkei.com/article/DGXNAS18ABF01_V10C14A2AA1P00)


It's all in Japanese, so if you're interested in buying discounted tickets from vending machine, it would be a good idea to study some Japanese before coming to Japan.

Monday, April 4, 2016

Skin Conditioners (Toners)

I use ALBION's Skin Conditioner for my skincare routine.

This is a really good item and I've been sticking to it for many years.
However, I have to admit that the only downside is its price....

Due to that reason, there are times that I struggle to make the both ends meet from time to time...

Especially in summer/spring, I tend to consume much more of this conditioner (toner) to protect my skin from sunburn and to keep my skin hydrated compared to a cool/cold season.

So...I decided to give it a try to this:




Like Albion Skin Conditioner, this toner contains adlay in its ingredients.

According to the biggest cosmetic review site, @cosme, this item is also really good and resembles ALBION Skin Conditioner in terms of impression from use, texture and even color.



(There's precaution that those who are allergic to  poaceous pollen must refrain from using this item.)


When I look at the reviews posted on Amazon.co.jp, almost all users rated this item high.


It might a good idea to replace ALBION Skin Conditioner with this toner from time to time....

I've just purchased this toner, so I'll see....

Sunday, April 3, 2016

THREE cosmetics Popular Items

THREE cosmetic items are surprisingly popular in Japan and sometimes very hard to purchase when it comes to makeup items. Most of the time, they are sold out (T T)

Skincare items are relatively easy to get compared to color items but still, they release "limited items" one after another and they are so tempting in terms of color..

THREE is also very popular among not only celebrities but also professional makeup artists.

The recent very popular and hard-to-get items are like this:

1) Whisper Gross For Eye



Luckily enough, I could get this one :)  #01 Wanderlust love

2) Cheeky Seek Blush #05 Feeling the Flow




Many fashion magazines picked up this color #05. Also, many celebrities shared this item on Instagram.







I think you're super lucky if you could purchase this color.

Personally, I like the color #01. It goes well with any face color:)


To be continued....






About Matcha 2

Have you ever tried a bottled green tea in Japan?

There are many kinds of bottled green tea, but my favorite is this one:

綾鷹



The reason is that this tea is produced with the corporation of Kanbayashi Shunjyu Honten (上林春秋本店).

Kanbayashi Shunjyu Honten is, like Tsujiri, is one of the prestigious tea producers in Kyoto.

If you find it difficult to pick up one from wide variety of bottled green tea at grocery stores or convenience stores in Japan, this is the right one to choose:)