祇園祭2026年

京都の夏といえば祇園祭が真っ先に浮かびますね・・・
祇園祭は、京都の八坂神社の祭礼で、疫病退散を祈る行事として平安時代に始まったと伝えられています。
現在は日本三大祭の一つとして知られ、豪華な山鉾や神輿、さまざまな神事が1か月にわたって行われます。

7月1日ごろ 吉符入など 祭の始まりを告げる神事
7月10日 神輿洗・お迎え提灯 鴨川で神輿を清める神事
7月14日〜16日 前祭・宵山 山鉾が建ち並び、夜の賑わいが最高潮
7月17日 前祭・山鉾巡行と神幸祭神輿渡御
7月21日〜23日 後祭・宵山 落ち着いた雰囲気で山鉾を見学
7月24日 後祭・山鉾巡行と花傘巡行 山鉾が再び都大路を進む日
7月31日 疫神社夏越祭 祭の締めくくりの神事

熱中症対策がとても大事な場面です。
通気性のよい薄手の服、帽子、(日傘巡行時はNG)
首元を冷やせるタオルや保冷剤
こまめに飲める水やお茶、スポーツドリンク
塩分タブレットなどナトリウム補給ができるもの
体調が悪い・・・人混みや長時間の観覧を無理しない

トイレはコンビニなど使用できません・・・
トイレマップアプリで・・・

Wagashi, the world of traditional Japanese confections, has a great variety of individual treats, each with their devoted fans. Broadly generalizing, it may be said that they feature anko(red bean paste) as often as not, and invariably go well with green tea. Monaka sandwiches anko between two crispy rice crackers, while Taiyaki is a similarly crispy batter made into a distinctive fish shape, again with anko inside. These are perhaps two of the most famous Wagashi. Monaka has inspired a variety of monaka-style ice cream sandwiches you can find in any convenience store, and Taiyaki is unforgettable as the snack that looks like a fish.

A similar snack with even longer roots is more of a no-nonsense round cake, fluffier than Taiyaki, chewier and thicker. Its delicious and filling, but perhaps the most noteworthy thing about it is what it is or isn't named.

The pictured round delicious treat has not been able to settle on a single name across the country. In Kanto, where most visitors may gravitate, it is known as Imagawayaki. Outside the capital region, you may be more likely to hear Obanyaki, a name evidently spreading out from Shikoku. In Osaka and Kyushu, it may be called Kaiten-yaki, Taiko-yaki, or Taiko-manju. In Hyogo the -yaki convention is entirely discarded, and it is widely known as Gozasoro, the term almost universally used in Himeji.

Incredibly, these don't count for half the known names for this snack. This makes for a fun game when you see at at festival stalls or in market streets travelling across Japan. What name will it have when you find it?

豊中つばさ公園「ma-zika」

所在地 大阪府豊中市原田中2丁目2番14号
敷地面積 5.9ヘクタール
開園時間 9時～21時30分（入場は21時まで）
休園日 無休
入園料 無料
一部開園日 令和7年8月12日
全面開園日 令和９年3月予定
駐車場 一部開園時：127台（身体障害者専用3台、大型バス専用1台を含む）
全面開園時：273台（身体障害者専用5台、大型バス専用1台を含む）
駐車料金 100円/20分（平日最大900円 土日祝休 上限なし）


平日は食事は有りません・・・コンビニエンスストアが近くに有ります。
キッチンカーが休日等出ますので・・・

豊中つばさ公園「ma-zika」は、大阪国際空港（伊丹空港）の南側、
千里川土手のすぐ横に整備が進んでいる新しい都市公園です。
着陸直前の飛行機を、真下に近い感覚で「間近」に見られるのが最大の特徴で、
名前の「ma-zika」も「間近」と「マジか」の語感から来ています。
イベントなど有ります・・・キッチンカー土日祝日など
豊中つばさ公園『ma-zika』で確認して下さい。

June is a rare month for Japan in that it has no national holidays. After "Golden Week", it is a difficult time for some, as the days without a day off continue and the days get more and more humid, culminating in the rainy season that covers most of the country in regular rainfall.

After the cherry blossoms, before the delights of autumn, and just in time for rain and humidity, it is not exactly the most popular season for travel. But rain in Japan has a culture all of its own! Did you know Japan spends more on umbrellas than anywhere else in the world? There are designer umbrellas, cute and distinctive umbrellas, and umbrellas decorated with subculture characters, but the real workhorse of the Japanese umbrella world is the see-through vinyl umbrella.

They are available in any convenience store for a few hundred yen, and this cheap cheerfulness leads them to being left behind. (Or taken- charitably, we may say that as they all look indistinguishable, someone may have mistaken your vinyl umbrella for another.) They also can break in a strong wind. But the disposable, readily-replaceable nature of this umbrella is at the core of its charm. In a country with so much foot traffic, the transparency comes in handy for navigating crowded streets. In a crowd a majority of people can often be seen holding these exact same umbrellas in the rain, giving off a distinct atmosphere you can't find in another time or place.

If you find yourself in the country in this drizzly time of year, why not bring yourself a cheap and iconic umbrella souvenir?

2025.1.31

セブンイレブン安曇総合病院前店が駐車場が大幅に拡大し、店舗もリニューアルしてこの度オープン！

2月2日（日）まで1000円以上のお買い物で1回、ガラガラ抽選会にチャレンジできます！（実施時間:9:00〜17:00）

I got another good workout done today. Just gotta keep at it. I was hoping to see Blue Impulse today but I didn't see them anywhere overhead and didn't manage to hear any jets in the air either. I saw a lot of photos being posted on social media though so that was pretty cool. I'm looking forward to checking out the Paralympics though, hopefully it gets good coverage on tv. I'm not really a coffee drinker but lately I've been trying different coffees from the local convenience store in an attempt to find one that I like. I tried the Boss coffee today since I always see commercials for it and it seems to be pretty popular, but it seemed a bit watery to me so I think I'm going to have to keep searching. If anyone has any coffee recommendations for me I'd love to hear them lol

Was pretty nice weather outside today, felt good to be outside for a bit. Finally got to work out again, wasn't able to since I had to wait after getting my first shot of the vaccine. Trying to eat a bit healthier lately, avoiding sweets and stuff like that. The convenience stores in Japan are really amazing for having pretty tasty salads and even different varieties. Wouldn't be able to find that at most convenience stores in America. I've been trying to do some meal planning but I need some more recipes so I'm not just eating the same thing though. Not being able to go outside much this year was a little rougher on my body than I would have imagined. Managed to put on a couple pounds lol. Gotta get back in shape before winter, though, the heat helps with weight loss which is nice. The weather is supposed to be pretty decent this weekend too, so hopefully that doesn't change. Would like to go to the river and have a picnic or something like that. That's all for today I guess. Here's a photo of a station I took a few days ago. Thought it looked kind of neat with all the wires and everything. Would probably be better with a nicer camera though lol

[English／日本語]
Things that Surprised International Students When They Came to Japan: Shops 1

For two consecutive weeks, I have been telling you about the city, but this time I would like to introduce you to the "stores" in the city. All stores in Japan are famous for their courteous service, and the customers themselves are known to form beautiful lines when waiting in line at the cash register. Here I would like to share with you what kind of problems international students encounter when they come to Japan for the first time and shop, based on the stories of our students.

Convenience stores are a bit expensive but convenient. Is this juice? Or is it alcohol?

There are about 7,800 convenience stores in Tokyo. In other words, the city is full of convenience stores. Most of them open 24 hours a day, so international students often say things like, "It's convenient because they are open even when I come home from my part-time job late at night.” and "I don't feel scared when I walk alone late at night because the stores are well-lit. ” Also, when international students enter a convenience store for the first time, they are surprised at the large number of products. I often hear that they are impressed by the variety of drinks. However, there are many stories of people who bought what they thought was a beautifully packaged juice, only to find out that it was alcohol. Because of this kind of trouble, the Chinese character for "liquor" is not usually taught at the beginner level, but at our school, it is taught immediately after entering the country. Please be careful, everyone.

Do you buy too much? 100-yen stores

Did you know that there are stores where all items are sold for 100 yen excluding tax? Although not as common as convenience stores, there are nearly 800 of these 100-yen stores in Tokyo. These 100-yen stores, commonly known as "100-yen stores," offer daily necessities dishes, cleaning supplies, etc. and even food. Therefore, when students start living in Japan and need daily necessities, they go to these 100-yen stores to buy them. Not only are they inexpensive, but they also come in a variety of designs, and once they have been to a 100 yen store, many of them end up going back again and again to buy things they don't need. I often hear stories of students, especially those who have just arrived in Japan, who have spent a lot of money at 100 yen stores. This is the time when you need money until you start your part-time job. Be careful when shopping.

A room full of stuffed animals! Be careful not to get too carried away at the game center.

Just like 100-yen stores, game arcades are a place where people tend to spend a lot of money. Some study abroad students get addicted to "crane games" and spend a lot of money on them. And before they know it, their room is covered with stuffed animals from the crane game. Because of this, students often throw away their stuffed animals as trash when they move out, crying because they have too much luggage. Students often feel lonely when studying abroad, and many of them find comfort in their stuffed animals. Try not to have too many stuffed animals, and enjoy them!

Did you get to know about Japanese stores? We will continue to introduce stores in the next article. By the way, our school has a convenience store and a 100 yen store just a few meters away from the school student dormitory. Even if you have just arrived in Japan, you can get everything you need quickly. You can learn how to shop with your teacher at first, so you can start your new life with peace of mind.

留学生が日本に来て驚いたこと ～お店編①～

2週連続で街の様子についてお伝えしてきましたが、今回はその街の中にある「お店」についてご紹介します。日本のお店はどこも接客が丁寧で、お客さん自身もレジで並ぶときにきれいな行列を作ることで有名です。ここでは留学生が初めて日本に来て買い物をするときにどんなトラブルを起こしてしまうか、本校の学生の話を元にみなさんにお伝えします。

少し高いけれど便利なコンビニ これはジュース？お酒？

東京にはコンビニが7800件ほどあります。つまり街の中はコンビニだらけ。ほとんどのコンビニが24時間営業なため、留学生からは、「深夜にアルバイトから帰ってきても開いているので、便利です。」や「夜一人で歩いていても明るいので怖くないです。」という話をよく聞きます。また、留学生が初めてコンビニに入ったときに商品の多さにとても驚くそうです。その中でも飲み物の多さに感動したという話をよく聞きます。しかし、きれいなパッケージのジュースだと思い買って帰ったら、お酒だったという話はとても多いです。このようなトラブルが多いため、普通「酒」という漢字は初級では学びませんが、本校では入国してすぐ教えるようにしています。みなさんも気をつけてくださいね。

ついつい買いすぎてしまう？ 100円均一のお店

すべての商品が100円（＋消費税）で買えるお店があるのをご存知ですか。コンビニほどではありませんが、この100円均一のお店も東京に800件近くあります。この100円均一のお店、通称「100円ショップ」は生活に必要なもの（食器や掃除用具など）や食品もあります。そのため、日本に住み始めて生活用品が必要になったとき、学生たちはこの100円ショップに買いに行きます。安いだけではなく、デザインも様々で一度100円ショップに行ってしまうと、何度も通って必要のないものまで買ってしまう人も多くいます。特に入国したての学生が100円ショップでお金を散財してしまった話をよく聞きます。アルバイトが始まるまではお金が必要なときです。買い物は慎重にしましょうね。

気がついたらぬいぐるみだらけの部屋に！ゲームセンターはまりすぎに注意。

100円ショップと同じように、ついついお金を使ってしまう「ゲームセンター」。その中でも「クレーンゲーム」にはまりすぎて、お金をたくさん使ってしまう留学生がいます。さらに、気がつくと部屋中がクレーンゲームのぬいぐるみだらけに。そのせいで学生たちは引っ越しの時に、荷物が多すぎて泣く泣くゴミとしてぬいぐるみを捨てることがよくあります。留学生活は孤独を感じることが多く、ぬいぐるみに癒されている学生も少なくありません。ぬいぐるみは増やしすぎないように楽しみましょうね。

日本のお店について知ることができましたか？次回も引き続きお店について紹介していく予定です。ちなみに、本校は学校（学生寮）から数メートルのところにコンビニと100円ショップがあります。入国したばかりでもすぐ必要なものが揃えることができます。買い物の仕方は最初は先生とすることができるので安心して新生活がスタートできますよ。