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:)


Thursday, March 31, 2016

About Matcha


I usually buy matcha to use for cooking at near-by grocery store.

This kind of matcha is called Usucha. (thin tea) and widely used for cooking and beverages.

As you may know, there are two types of matcha, one is Usu-cha, the another is Koi-cha.

Usui means thin and Koi means thick in Japanese.

When I took Matcha lessons at school, I was lucky enough to taste Koi-cha many times.
But it took for a while until my teacher finally allowed me to do practice for Koicha.

Yes, you are expected to know about Chado (Sado) to some certain extent before learning Koicha.

I can say Koi-cha is totally different from Usu-cha.

It's a bit difficult to explain....
It's bitter but sweet (no sugar though) and very creamy.  I think if you try Koicha, it probably changes the concept of what matcha is all about!


I think the number of people knowing what Koicha tastes like is quite small even here in Japan.

Too shame....




This is one of the famous Matcha stores in Kyoto:

Tsujiri- very famous for Matcha Parfait and handling many types Usu-cha and Koicha

How to identify "Koicha" and "Usucha" - For Koicha, the name of product always ends with ”~の昔( ---no mukashi)” whereas Usucha with "の白(---no shiro)”.

If you find the names of Great Master of Tea Ceremon

y with product, you can say it's a good one!

Every time when you are invited to Tea ceremony, you are expected to ask questions about tea, utensils and tea cup used for the ceremony.

During the "question-answering " time, if you are asked about Matcha and you use those kind of "good" matcha, you always answer the name of matcha with information of the Great Master.




Wednesday, March 30, 2016

How to enjoy top-notch restaurants in Kyoto at reasonable price!

As you've already known, there're thousands of fantastic restaurants in Kyoto you cannot afford to skip to miss! 

The problem is always.....pricing. Usually, you have to pay almost 30,000-50,000 yen for dinner,

So my recommendation is to visit these places lunch time so that you can enjoy authentic Japanese food for about 5000-6000 yen.


You have to book a table beforehand but still, it's worth visiting.

This is a good website through which you can make a reservation at good restaurant.

最大53%OFF!レストラン予約も一休.com!

It's all in Japanese, but you can take a look at what they serve for lunch.

FYI, some restaurants like Sasaki may request you to be there, let's say, 1200 sharp so that first dish can be served all at once.

Hope it helps!














This is what I always get whenever I go to Kyoto!

Got a plan to visit Kyoto?

As many of you may already know, Kyoto City Bus & Kyoto Bus One-Day Pass is a must to buy if you plan to visit there.

You can buy this pass for 500 yen and you can use as many times as you'd like.

You can see more details from here.




Tuesday, March 29, 2016

Niku Jaga


I think Nikujaga is one of the icons of Japanese home-cook meal.

Here are the ingredients:


3-4 Potatos

Thin-sliced beef (200g)
(We usually use beef in Kansai area but I've heard that pork is used instead in Kanto)

1 Carrot

1 Onion

A bag of Konnyaku

some field peas for decoration

1. Peel potatos and carrot, and chop them into chunks.


2. Put 1. and water and Sake into a stew pan to cook for 10 mins.


3. When vegetables are almost cooked, add thin-sliced beef, sugar and say sauce.


4. Cover the pan with a cooking paper (Otoshi-buta) and cook for 7 more mins.


5. Put cut field peas on top and serve♡




This is a new item I found at a near-by grocery store.

It says..."mascarpone cheese-like tofu". Comes with a pack of olive oil.
//


It was good!










Saturday, March 19, 2016

Recipe: Tori no Karaage: Fried Chicken

からあげ(Fried chicken) is one of my favorites.
Also, Karaage is very popular menu for Bento Box.

I'm not good at taking a picture so please bear with me for a little while....



1. Cut chicken-thigh (or chicken breast) into small pieces and put them all in a bowl.




2. Add soy sauce, grated ginger and garlic, and rub them into chicken.




3. Add an egg and potato starch. Put a wrap on it and leave it in the fridge for at least an hour.




4. Take it out from the fridge and chambre for an hour before cooking.



5. Deep fry in heated sesame oil - Fry for 4 mins and pick them up and leave for 7 mins.


6. Then, put the chicken into heated oil again and fry for about 4 mins.



I didn't put exact grams and the ingredients but all you need is:
chicken meat
garlic
ginger
soy sauce
egg
potato starch
sesame oil

Of course you can replace sesame oil with another one :)


Thursday, March 10, 2016

Time flies!

Long time no see!

I've been thinking to discontinue this blog but I changed my mind.

I found that quite a lot of people seems to be interested in this blog so I decided to continue this....

I'll try my best to keep this blog updated : )

I'll be posting my recipes, skincare/make up items and travel tips to Japan.

You're more than welcome to leave comments if you have any questions about JAPAN!