【English／日本語】
These are cherry blossoms at Shinshoin, a temple in Nishi-Hachioji. This temple was opened by the daughter of the famous warlord "Shingen Takeda". Unlike ordinary temples, it is very gorgeous with feminine decorations. Our school goes to visit it once a year. Before the visit, students learn in class about the tragic love story for which this temple was built. There are many historical buildings near the school. It can be said that Nishi-Hachioji is a very good environment for studying Japanese language.

西八王子にあるお寺「信松院」の桜です。このお寺は有名な武将である『武田信玄の娘』が開きました。普通のお寺とは違い、女性らしさを感じる装飾があり、とても華やかです。本校では1年に1回見学に行きます。見学の前に学生たちは授業でこの寺が建てられた悲恋の物語を学びます。学校の近くには歴史的な建物がたくさんあります。西八王子は日本語を学ぶ環境としてとても優れていると言えます。

目白庭園での一枚
夕暮れの水面にリフレクション

桜のフレームからスカイツリーをのぞく
隅田川に停車していた水上バスも桜色でした
場所:隅田公園

It's finally starting to feel like spring.
Loving the cherry blossoms around Tokyo already, it just needs to get a bit warmer.
Temperature feels a lot more up and down this year, but maybe it's just my imagination.

Hoping I can get out this weekend and enjoy some more views outside of Tokyo.
I'm not sure how much the cherry blossoms have bloomed in Saitama, but I enjoyed seeing all the photos and videos of the Kawazu Cherry Blossom Festival.

It's a bit too far/expensive for a day trip 6 hours on a train doesn't sound fun, but it'd be nice to see them one day.
From my knowledge, the cherry blossoms tend to stay in bloom longer there so it'd be nice to see them eventually.
Either way, I'm just happy spring is finally here!

[English／日本語]
The day before yesterday, the Japan Meteorological Agency announced that cherry blossoms had bloomed in Tokyo. In Japan, the weather forecast at this time of the year tells not only the temperature and weather, but also the cherry blossoms. Hanami, a traditional Japanese event, began 1,300 years ago and is popular among foreign tourists. In this issue, we will introduce the etiquette of Hanami.

1 The star of the show is the cherry blossoms
Cherry blossom viewing means eating and drinking under the cherry trees. Cherry trees are very delicate plants. When eating, do not place a sheet at the base of the cherry tree. The base of the cherry tree is where it breathes. Please place the sheet away from it. Also, do not break the branches of cherry trees just because of their beautiful blossoms. Cherry blossoms are a plant that easily decomposes. You may also have to pay a fine for "damage to property" if you break a cherry blossom branch. Please be careful.

2 Rules of the park
During the holidays at this time of year, the number of people viewing cherry blossoms in the park increases greatly. Some of them are also lit up at night, making them popular date spots. Each park has different rules, so be sure to check the park's rules before going hanami. For example, some parks prohibit the bringing of alcoholic beverages, while others do not allow the use of fire. Also, be sure to take your trash home with you and clean up properly before you finish your hanami. Even though it is spring, the nights can get very cold, so be sure to take warm clothing.

3Cherry blossom motif goods
Cherry blossom viewing is not limited to parks. During this season, you can see many cherry blossom-inspired decorations in the city and in stores. At cafes, you can enjoy cherry blossom latte art and pink-colored cakes. At general stores, you can find products with pictures of cherry blossoms. Since they are only available during this season, they are popular as souvenirs. Please look for them!

Hachioji, where our school is located, has many famous cherry blossom viewing spots. Some parks are lit up at night, so be sure to visit them!

東京は一昨日、桜が開花したと気象庁が発表しました。日本ではこの時期の天気予報は気温や天気だけではなく、桜の様子を伝えます。日本の伝統的なイベントである「お花見」は1300年前から始まり、外国人観光客からも人気があります。今回はお花見のマナーを紹介します。

①主役は桜
お花見と言えば、桜の木の下で食事をしたりお酒を飲んだりすることをさします。桜はとてもデリケートな植物です。食事をするときは桜の根本にシートを置かないようにしましょう。桜の根元は呼吸をする場所です。離れたところにシートを敷いてください。また、桜の花が美しいからと言って枝を折ってはいけません。桜は腐りやすい植物です。また、桜の枝を折ると「器物破損罪」として罰金を払わなければならないこともあります。気を付けましょう。

②公園のルール
この時期の休日は公園でお花見している人がとても増えます。また、夜になるとライトアップをしているところもあり、デートスポットとしても人気があります。公園によってルールが違うので、お花見をする前には必ず公園のルールを調べてからにしましょう。例えば、お酒の持ち込みを禁止しているところや火を使ってはいけないところもあります。また、ゴミはきちんと持ち帰えり、きちんとそうじをしてからお花見を終えましょう。春と言っても夜はとても冷えるので、防寒対策も忘れずに。

③桜モチーフのグッズ
お花見は公園だけではありません。この季節は街の中やお店の中にも桜をイメージした飾りを多くみることができます。カフェでは桜のラテアートやピンク色をしたケーキなどを食べることができます。雑貨屋では、桜の絵が描いた商品がお店に並びます。この季節限定なので、お土産としても人気があります。ぜひ、探してみてくださいね。

本校がある八王子は桜の名所が多くあります。夜、ライトアップしている公園もあるのでぜひ訪れてみてくださいね！

川苔山/東京

真夏の小笠原諸島、南島にて。鮮やかな緑と青のコントラストはまさに楽園そのもの。地球の果てに来たような気分。

焼肉
Yakiniku

焼肉 牛宮城＠東京都渋谷区宇田川町
YAKINIKU GYUGUJOU＠Udagawacho, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, Japan

焼肉 牛宮城
東京都渋谷区宇田川町12-9 ジュール渋谷 5F
YAKINIKU GYUGUJOU
Joule Shibuya 5F, 12-9 Udagawacho, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, Japan

奥多摩でたまたま見かけた、
寝そべった女性のような氷柱です。

Beautifully decorated Yokohama China town during chinese new year using red lantern, chinese hoardings and lantern dragons.

東京都立川グリーンスプリングスで撮影しました。時期が、クリスマスだったので、サンタさんのコスチュームをしているぬいぐるみを手に持って撮影しました。

Famous Dragon Dance during Chinese New Year Festival at Yokohama's famous China Town. The dragon dance is very cute, funny and interesting. It was a vibrant and colorful festival.

Vibrant and colorful attire, graceful performers ,jolly faces .... Every good things were present during the 38th Samba festival of Asakusa.

Although the samba dance is from Brazil but I saw it 1st time in Tokyo at Asakusa area. It was from 38th Asakusa Samba carnival in 2019. I was really very excited and happy to see it. Unfortunately from 2020 because of corona the event is not happening but I wish this 2022 I could see it again.

On the occasion of Chinese new year the Yokohama China town was well decorated during pre corona situation in 2019. It was my first chance to enjoy Chinese new year in China Town. It was really a great fun. Wish after corona it will be back in full form.

[English／日本語]
Snow is predicted to fall in Tokyo this week. In Japan, there are many tourist destinations where winter sports are popular, such as Hokkaido, but in Tokyo, snowfall is not that common and the city is not prepared to handle it. As a result, even a 5 cm accumulation of snow can cause many problems. In this article, I will tell you how to deal with snow in Tokyo.

1 Transportation
When it snows, train schedules are often disrupted. Trains may be cancelled or the number of trains may be reduced, so you may be late for work. Try to leave your house early on snowy days. Roads can also be crowded, and few people buy snow tires for the rare snowfall in a year. As a result, many people drive with regular tires on snowy days, which can cause slip accidents. Try not to walk near cars on snowy days.

2 The day after it snows
Unlike Hokkaido, the snow that falls in Tokyo has a high moisture content. Therefore, the day after a snowfall, the roads are often icy. Since there are many buildings in Tokyo, there is no sunlight and the snow may not melt even after a week. Some people slip on the icy roads and get seriously injured because of it. On the day after a snowfall, try to walk in the sunshine.

3What to wear
What you wear the next day is more important than what you wear when it is snowing. The roads are very slippery, so it is best to wear long boots or other non-slip shoes. You should also wear gloves because the ice can cut your hands if you slip and fall on them. A hat is also necessary to protect your head. A backpack or other bag that allows you to keep both hands free is also a good idea. If you don't have boots, there is a life hack to prevent slipping by putting an adhesive bandage on the back of your sneakers. Please give it a try.

Many of the students at our school come from warm countries. Some of them have caught colds from playing in the snow because it was their first time to see snow. Please play in the snow in moderation. This time, we are planning to spread snow-melting agent in front of the dormitory. If your neighbors are having a hard time shoveling snow, let's help them out. It's also a chance to make friends with Japanese people. Also, it's best not to go outside too much on snowy days, so get your shopping done as soon as possible!

今週、東京では雪が降る予報になっています。日本では北海道などウインタースポーツが人気の観光地も多くありますが、東京では雪が降ることはそこまで多くないので、東京の街は雪に対応できるようになっていません。そのため、雪が5㎝積もっただけでも色々な問題が発生します。今回は東京での雪対策についてお伝えします。

①交通
雪が降ると電車のダイヤが乱れることがよくあります。電車が運休してしまったり、本数が減らされてしまうので、会社に遅刻をしてしまう可能性があります。雪の日は早めに家を出るようにしましょう。また、道路も混むことがあります。1年に降るか降らないかの雪のために、雪用のタイヤを買っている人はほとんどいません。そのため、雪の日は普通のタイヤで運転している人も多く、スリップ事故を起こす人もいます。雪の日はなるべく車の近くを歩かないようにしましょう。

②雪が降った次の日
東京に降る雪は北海道などと違って、水分が多いです。そのため、雪の降った翌日は道路が凍っていることが多くあります。東京は建物が多いので、日の光があたらず、1週間たっても雪が解けない場合があります。凍ってしまった道路で滑ってしまい、それが原因で大けがする人もいます。雪が降った翌日はなるべく日があたる道を選んで歩きましょう。

③服装
雪が降っているときよりも翌日の服装が大切です。道路がとても滑るので、長ぐつなど滑りにくい靴を履きましょう。また、滑って手をついたときに氷で手が切れることがあるので、手袋をしましょう。頭を守るための帽子も必要です。また、鞄はリュックなど両手があくものがいいです。長靴がない人はスニーカーの裏に絆創膏を貼るとすべりにくいというライフハックがあります。ぜひ試してみてください。

本校ではあたたかい国から来る学生が多いです。雪を見るのが初めてだとはめをはずして雪遊びをしてしまい、風邪をひいてしまった人もいます。雪遊びはほどほどにしましょうね。今回は寮の前に融雪剤をまく予定です。近所の人が雪かきで大変そうなら協力しましょう。日本人と仲良くなれるチャンスでもあります。また、雪の日はあまり外に出ないほうがいいので、買い物は早めに済ませましょうね！

「特別巡回ラジオ体操・みんなの体操会」（1978年開始）は、全国10会場程度で開催されています。この写真は、小金井市にある江戸東京たてもの園前広場で夏に開催された時の物です。

お台場の花火大会。レインボーブリッジと屋形船と花火が調和して真夏の夜を彩っていました！

Was passing through Komagome the other day and stumbled across this quaint little shrine in front of the station.

Apparently it was established in the Edo Period but didn't actually look like a shrine until the Meiji Period.

It's also dedicated to Okuninushi who has a lot of different mythology surrounding him, but according to what I could find, he was the head of the gods on earth.
There are also a lot of legends and folklore about him in the Kojiki as well it seems, the most interesting sounding one being 'The White Hare of Inaba" 因幡の白兎 where he apparently wins over a princess that his brothers wanted to married and then is subsequently killed by them with the use of a flaming boulder and he is then brought back to life by the gods after his mother goes up to heaven to ask another deity to bring him back, after which he is brought back to life as a handsome man.

And that's why I like reading about Japanese mythology lol. So much interesting stuff to read about

東京スカイツリー駅の、こいのぼりの写真を撮りました！シーズンの時のものです。
日本の行事にぴったりのものです！さわかやかな風と癒しの季節が香ります。

初詣は日本の年の初めに行う大切な行事。
みんながこぞって参拝します。
コロナ禍で今は初詣分散参拝が主流となりつつあります。
どうにかしてみんなが初詣を行おうと工夫をこらして参拝しています。
それだけ大事な行事です。

場所は東京靖国神社 大晦日の早朝です。

Was walking through Shimokitazawa the other day and found some really cool street art on the shutter of some shop or something not really sure what the building was.

Just thought it was cool to see this.
Don't see much street art in Japan, which isn't necessarily a bad thing as usually it involves vandalism, but this doesn't look to be vandalism, although I could be wrong.
Either way I think it's a nice improvement to the empty shutters and definitely adds a little spice to the area.

Aesthetically I'm a huge fan since I enjoy learning about Japanese history, especially samurai, swords, etc., even if this is a fantastical rendition of the likes you'd find in some anime or manga.

Shimokitazawa is a pretty cool place though.
It seems like a lot of younger people go shopping in the area and there's a lot of restaurants as well.

If you're into coffee, cafes, and unique shops with trinkets, etc. it's an enjoyable place to visit. Really trendy

Decided to donate some clothes I wasn't wearing anymore over the weekend so I decided to go to the Second Street in Minami-Senju.

Managed to find some cool stuff along the way.
I was walking from Minowabashi and saw this nice looking temple, apparently called Koshunin 公春院.
It was a really lovely spot and I would have liked to take more photos but I had some luggage with me and also wanted to avoid taking any photos of the tombstones as I thought it might be rude.
It seems the temple focus on memorial services though and looked like a nice place.

The next spot I came across was just a really small shrine that seemed so randomly placed that I wanted to take a picture of it.
There wasn't much space inside the shrine are so it was quite difficult to get a decent photo, but I did the best that I could and tried to take a photo from the side street next to it which was also incredibly narrow lol.

The last thing I ended up finding was a statue of Matsuo Basho!
I'd not been to Minami-Senju as I've never really had a reason to go there, but I saw the statue from the corner of my eye and thought "Hmm I wonder if that's Basho" and sure enough it was.
It even has "The Narrow Road to the Deep North" 奥の細道 written below it.
Also, apparently there is debate about which "Senju" he started at Adachi or Arakawa, so this is one of the statues depicting the place where he started his journey!

It ended up being a pretty interesting walk.
I'd like to visit the area again as there was a ton of cool stuff.

初詣⛄
荻窪にある井草八幡宮、広くて居心地の良い神社でした⛩😊

Meiji Jingu shrine during snowfall

Was walking past a park in Arakawa the other day and came across this interesting statue.

I think the name is read as Honda Takatomo 本田 貴侶 but it was difficult to find any information. I kept finding stuff showing the same statue but instead of "聖なるもののリピドー" they all show "聖なるもののリビドー"

I'm not sure what the differences are though.
Perhaps there are multiple statues in different locations?
All the ones I saw referred to this statue in Arakawa though so maybe there's a misprint or something?

Also I'm not sure what "リピドー" or "リビドー" means, but if anyone has any idea about what the statue's meaning is I'd love to hear it!

Either way it's a nice looking statue. I always enjoy finding things like this around different parts of Japan, they really add to the atmosphere of the city.

日本の行事 浅草寺

Happy new year🥳 I was interested in visiting a kotatsu cafe and finally found one in Shimokitazawa! It was called Cafe Stay Happy and made me happy 😊 The atmosphere and food was really good ❤️

Nakamise dori avenue in Sensoji temple. The avenue is well decorated for the new years eve.

The iconic symbol of Tokyo, Sensoji is now fully prepared for the new year's prayer. It looks very beautiful and it is waiting for several hundred people for visiting the Temple in the new years eve.