I've Come Back From Shimane, My Hometown.

I had spent Obon holiday season in my hometown Matsue city, Shimane prefecture for ten days and just came back the day before yesterday by airplane.
I met my mother, my brother and my sister-in-law living in Matsue city.

Obon is a Buddhist festival to recognize ancestral spirits in Japan.
It is believed these spirits return to their families during the period.

We invited a monk to the house and asked him to recite a religious sutra for ancestral spirits.

Before my father passing away, we had never invited a monk for Obon ceremony, nor had we been such a religious family at all.

During this Obon season, I took a ten-day-off from my office, adding a five-day-paid-holiday to my company’s predetermined five-day-Obon-holiday for every employees.

I stayed there so long that I could have really been relaxed.

Left: my mother, Center: my sister-in-law, Right: my brother

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Miya Matsuri Summer Festival in Utsunomiya

Miya Matsuri Summer Festival is held in the center of Utsunomiya city in early August every year.

Many people, young, old, men, women wearing Yukata come to the center area of the city to watch parades of decorated floats, eat and drink street foods.

My elder daughter Emi is too busy for studying to go to the festival. Younger daughter Rina went there wearing Yukata with her friends.

I didn’t have a chance to take pictures of Rina in Yukata but took some pictures of decorated floats and young guys carrying a Mikoshi or portable shrine.

Piano Concert

My wife Kiyono has started taking piano lessons once every two weeks since January this year.

Last week, she participated in a small piano concert with other piano learners and a teacher.

The concert was arranged by the piano school to which she goes.
It was the first time for her to play the piano, Chopin Nocturne Op.9 No.2, in front of the audience.

Most of the participants of the concert seem to enjoy their opportunities to play in a concert hall, just as I enjoy opportunities to take part in local tennis tournaments.

I’m not cut out for classical music though, it’s fun to listen live music. Kiyono and other eager learners did great jobs.

Lavender Field

A couple weeks ago, I went to a lavender field in Shirasawa Green Park near Kinu river.
It looked beautiful and smelled nice.

People working for Shirasawa park maintain various beautiful flowers, for example, lavender, poppy, field mustard, cosmos, cherry blossom, …

I’ve never met people in charge of gardening in the park but I know the work must be hard.
Thanks guys there for keeping beautiful flowers all the year around.
I really appreciate your efforts.

A Summer Festival Season Has Come In Utsunomiya.

Rainy season has been over here in Tochigi and a summer festival season has come.
Ten-nou-sai summer festival is the first summer festival in the year in Utsunomiya city.
We had it yesterday and the day before yesterday.

After practicing tennis with my colleagues as usual on Saturday, I went to the center area of Utsunomiya city and took some pictures.

Upper House Election in Japan

We have an upper house election today.

According to TV news, the ruling Democratic party of Japan appears to have suffered a major defeat. The ruling coalition is said to lose its majority in the chamber.

I think most Japanese don’t seem to be satisfied with today’s politics.

Then, which party, or who can change Japan to the right direction that we hope?

We need a powerful politician having a strong leadership and knowledge.

A woman is entering a local elementary school gym arranged for a voting station.↓

Flowers Blooming By The Roadside

It’s still in the middle of the rainy season in Tochigi prefecture.

I think it takes more two to three weeks before we have hot summer days.

Even these sultry rainy days, just short walking near my home brought me a nice discovery or tiny flowers blooming by the roadside.

Sheared Alpacas and Their Five-Day-Old Baby

I went to ‘Bell Mall,’ the largest shopping mall in Utsunomiya city with my wife Kiyono to see alpacas today.

Luckily, we happened to see their newly born baby. The staff said it had been born just five days before.

The father is pure white and the mother is dark brown. Mysteriously, the baby is not light brown but is exactly the same color as its mother.

Poppy Field

The local meteorological agency declared last week that this year’s rainy season in Tochigi prefecture had started.

It was sunny and sultry day today.

I went to a poppy field located northern part of Utsunomiya city with Rina today.
It took us about thirty minutes by car.

The top season of the flowers seemed to have passed, but still we could enjoy seeing colorful flowers.

After coming back home, Rina immediately went to a shopping mall alone to buy her favorite serial comic book scheduled to sell today and a small father’s day present to me.

The present was frozen sweets. That was delicious. Thanks Rina.

But, the main reason she instantly left home for the shopping mall was, doubtlessly, the comic book … lol

Kiyono Published A Book

My wife Kiyono published a book again about English cool phrases with two other English teachers.

This is a second time for her to publish a book. One of coauthors is Mr. Matsuno who was also my English teacher about twenty years ago.

Congratulations Kiyono and Mr. Matsuno on publishing the new book.

I’m very happy: Kiyono did a great job and my English teacher still vigorously keeps publishing new books like two decades age.
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“What Am I?”

“What Am I?”
“A dog, a rabbit, a sheep, a camel or a goat …”

“No, no, I am an alpaca.”

An alpaca came to Banba-Hiroba open space, the center of Utsunomiya city, from Nasu Animal Kingdom with dogs, rabbits and other animals yesterday.

I had nothing special to do yesterday so I went to Banba-Hiroba and took some pictures.
Isn’t it cute?

It is said that alpacas are kept in herds that graze on the level heights at an altitude of around 4,000 m in Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador and Chile.
Alpaca fiber is used for making knitted and woven items including blankets, sweaters, hats and gloves.

Nasu Animal Kingdom in Tochigi is at far lower an altitude than that of those countries.

Alpacas attract maney tourists in Japan these days thanks to their increasing popularity by TV broadcasting.

Kiyohara Industry Park Tennis Tournament

A tennis club I belonged to for twelve years closed in the end of March this year.

After the closing, my weekly tennis routine has changed a little. I used to play tennis on Thursday, Friday and Saturday at the club.

I couldn’t do that any more, so I looked for colleagues who play tennis. Then, I found a group of people who practice and play tennis on Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday.

Without hesitation, I asked them to join in the group and I have become a member of the group.

Two weeks ago, I attended to the Kiyohara Industry Park Tennis Tournament with one of the members and got a prize of doubles consolation tournament winner. The prize was about 18US$ wroth coupon.

It’s fun to practice in a new group and with new members.

Unchanged Scenery of Matsue City

I’m posing in front of a bus stop in the downtown of Matsue city. ▼

Downtown of Matsue city has changed drastically in the past few decades but scenery in the suburb, near my mother’s house, has not changed a lot.

Rice fields, birds, the view from the hill top where I used to go and a small shrine seem almost same as those in the decades ago.

Above all, unchanged spirit and kindness of my mother, my brother and my sister attract me and make me come back to my hometown even such a hectic itinerary.


A small shrine near my family home. ▼

A bird, heron in a rice field. ▼

A view from the hill top where I used to go. ▼

‘Dance Of Dragon’

On our way to my hometown Matsue city, we stopped over Yokokawa Service Area for taking a short rest.
 I found a guy who was making sweets in front of the people there and selling them.

‘Dance Of Dragon’ is the name of the sweets.

The way of making the sweets seemed like a way of making noodles in China.

Chinese make hand-pulled noodles using a flexible dough that can be stretched easily.
The dough is stretched until it looks like a long, thick rope.
The rope is folded in half, and stretched back to its original length, again and again.

The man in Yokokawa SA used special dough with honey and made fibers far thinner than Chinese noodles. Then, the man wrap up a variety of ground nuts with the honey taste fibers.

Are you asking they were delicious?


Sure, they were. I had never tasted like them before.

Golden Week in Shimane

I went to my hometown Shimane prefecture during the Golden Week and stayed there on May 2 and May 3.

Golden week: the period from April 29th to May 5th when there are four national holidays in Japan.

My mother, my brother and my sister-in-law live together in Matsue, a capital city of Shimane prefecture.

Shimane is located about 1,000 km southwest of Utsunomiya.

During this Golden week season, it becomes very hard to take air tickets, so I drove all-night-long my car to the town, to be exact, it took us seventeen hours.

It’s really tough to drive so long hours but we had a very meaningful moment together with family members.

Flowers and a butterfly in the garden of my mother’s house.↓

Hanamizuki Festival 2010

Annual Hanamizuki Festival was held near my home today; It takes just one minute on foot to the main stage of the Festival.

Hanamizuki is the name of a tree whose white, red, pick or yellow flowers bloom in late April after the cherry blossom season.

The festival is not celebrated nationwide but is celebrated locally, especially, at least I know, in east part of Utsunomiya city.

People in the city enjoy the beginning of a short warm season, just one month before the rainy season.

They used to have a motor bike show, I love very much, in the festival but they don’t have it this year because of, I guess, financial problem.

Around the Hanmizuki Festival season, I can feel a nice spring breeze while riding on my bicycle.

Kinu Green Park

I went to Kinu Green Park to take flower pictures yesterday.

Kinu Green Park is located near Kinu river in the eastern part of Utsunomiya, about thirty minutes driving from my home.

It becomes warmer and warmer in my town, the field mustard flowers in the park were beautifully in full bloom.

As it was clear sky, we could see Nasu mountains far away to the north from the park.

Cherry Blossoms

I go to and back from my office by bicycle, feeling full of spring atmosphere these days.

On the way from home to my office, there are cherry trees. Only for about one week in April, they have amazing beautiful flowers on their branches.

Yes, it’s hard to go to my office by bike on a rainy day.

But, being able to do good exercise and lots of seasonal beautiful scenery prevent me from giving up an every day thirty-minute biking journey to my office.

I show you cherry blossom pictures that I took today and yesterday.

I'm Back On My Feet.

Suffering from a terrible stomachache and loose bowels last week, I took a three-day-sick-leave from my office. I had intravenous drips for two days.

And what is worse, I have had a backache for the first time since almost two years ago.

Now, I’m back on my feet and healthy enough to play tennis again.
Since I haven’t had such a long sick leave before, I really feel the importance of good health more than anything else.

It has nothing to do with my physical condition, I made a fake picture on the web site for fun.
Please take a look.