Back from quick trip to Japan 2014 ♪暑い日本から戻ってきました～ (2014年夏)

Hello everyone! I just came back from my quick and busy trip to Japan.  Above is the Rilakkuma bus I spotted in Tokyo.

お久しぶりのブログ更新です。

娘と日本に一時帰国していました。東京郊外の駅のバスロータリーではこんなにかわいいリラックマのバスを見かけました。ほかにもグリーンのリラックマ車両を見かけましたよ。

 Almost entirely, I stayed in Tokyo during my recent Japan trip. On most days, we took the very crowded commuter trains to get around the city.  Pictured above is the early morning Shinjuku station (very crowded!)

日本では東京都内に滞在して、ほぼ毎日満員電車にのって行動していました。写真は朝の混雑する新宿駅です。何度乗っても慣れないのが都内のラッシュ時の満員電車です。。。

Anime (cartoon) train from Tokyo's Hibiya subway line.  Featured is a main character from old Japanese volleyball manga series called "Attack No.1" from the late 1960's through early 1970s. Yes, as an old-timer, I remember watching this manga cartoon when I was young!

そんな中、都内移動中には懐かしの「アタックナンバーワン」車両に乗りました(地下鉄日比谷線)。鮎原こずえちゃん、懐かしいですね～。といっても若い人にはわからないと思いますが。。。当然ながら中学生の娘もアタックナンバーワンを知りませんでした。オバ・ブロガーですみません～。^^; 

Harajuku station (Tokyo) on a very hot day...

移動の合間に娘と一緒に立ち寄った原宿駅。竹下通りも暑かった。。。

 

Among other things, Harajuku is known for its crepe shops. I really like crepes, but the day was just too hot and humid to enjoy the delicate French dessert. Tokyo's temperature on this day in early August was over 35C or 95F with above 80% humidity. Agh!

私の中では、原宿といえばクレープ。クレープといえば原宿。でもこの日はあまりの猛暑のためクレープを食べる気になれませんでした(残念)。

Can you see the high tower in the center of the above photo? It's the Tokyo Sky Tree, a tallest building in Japan, located in Sumida-ku, Tokyo. My younger brother #2 and his wife live very close from this Tokyo's latest landmark.

東京の新名所といえばスカイツリーでしょうか。私は今回、はじめてスカイツリーをみることができて感激でした～。

I loved the view of Sky Tree from my brother's apartment window!

私の下の弟夫婦はスカイツリーの近くに住んでいます。この写真は弟夫婦のマンションの窓から撮影したものです。

Before the Tokyo Sky Tree was built in 2012, Tokyo Tower, observation and communication tower, was the tallest building in Japan (now Sky Tree is the tallest). I took this pic of Tokyo Tower from the Narita Airport Bus window, while travelling from Narita Airport to the Tokyo metropolitan area. 

こちらはご存じ東京タワー。成田空港から都心に向かう成田エアポートバスの車窓から撮影。



Here's some food that I enjoyed while I was in Japan...

お次は日本で食べたものあれこれ。

Ramen noodles, pot stickers, and Japanese beer (of course!) lol

ラーメン、餃子、とくれば、ビールは外せませんね(笑)。

Quick bento box from "depachika" (デパ地下) or basement gourmet food hall from the major department store.

デパ地下で購入したデり弁当。

My daughter loves Chinese food... and so do I!

娘は中華料理が大好きなので東京でも何度かいただきました。私も中華は大好きです♪

A Japanese style hamburg steak with soy sauce flavored sauce from Japanese Denny's restaurant. The dish comes with a choice of bread or rice.

日本のデニーズでは和風ハンバーグステーキがお約束です(私だけ？)

Simple Japanese dish, "ochazuke" shown above. "Tarako" (salted cod roe) and "Yuba" (tofu skin) on a hot rice with poured hot dashi (soup stock)... Salted cod roe and tofu skin???  I know, it may not sound good to you, but they're actually delicious!

お茶漬け専門店では、たらこと湯葉のお茶漬けをいただきました。日本食に慣れていない海外の方から見たら、たらこと湯葉の絶妙な組み合わせを理解してもらうのは難しいでしょうね。。。

Sea urchin cream pasta. As you can see, portion size served at typical Japanese restaurants are awfully compact. Or I should say, portion sizes served at U.S. restaurants are tremendously big!

こちらはウニのクリームパスタ。長年アメリカのレストランの食事の量に慣れている私としては、日本のレストランで運ばれてくる食事の量の少なさにはたまげます。え？これっぽっち！？と思ってしまうのが恐ろしい。。。

As a chocoholic, I just had to have this ice cold chocolate drink from Godiva! Yum^^

チョコレートドリンクで一服。やはりゴディバはチョコレートが濃厚で最高ですね♪

I stopped by at the "tenugui (teh-noo-gu-ee) shop in Tokyo. Tenugui is a traditional Japanese thin cotton towel that comes in various unique prints.

今回の帰省中は忙しすぎて手芸専門店へ行くことができなかったのですが、手ぬぐい屋さんにふらりと立ち寄ることができました。手ぬぐいは柄の種類も豊富で見ていて飽きません。

And the Moomins! Did you know that this year (2014) marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of Moomin's Finnish author, Tove Jansson? 

お次はムーミンショップにて。今年(2014年)はムーミンの作者トーベヤンソンさんの生誕100周年という記念すべき年ということで、ムーミン好きの私はあちこちでムーミングッズを見ることができてハッピーでした^^

As a Moomin lover, I was excited to spot many Moomin characters in Tokyo this summer^^  It was amazing to see how popular the Moomins are in Japan, as I don't see much Moomins around here in Southern California, unfortunately.

日本では人々に愛され続けるムーミンですが残念ながら私の暮らすカリフォルニアではムーミングッズを目にすることはあまりありません。。。

White sock-looking character, or Hattifattener, sitting at the dining table, found at Moomin shop. (lol)

ムーミンショップでは、特大サイズの「にょろにょろ」が椅子に座っていて笑えました。

 Moomin character T-shirts sold at Uniqlo, a Japanese casual wear retailer.

ユニクロでもムーミン柄のTシャツを発見。可愛い！

Before I go, I'd like you to meet this cutie pie, Sora, who lives in a fancy Tokyo apartment with my younger brother #1 and his family．He was just too sweet!

最後に。。。今回、私が東京で初対面した可愛いワンちゃんをご紹介させてください。空ちゃんは私の上の弟一家とともに東京のマンションで暮らしています。

Then I met Jazz, a senior Labrador retriever, at my younger sis #2 and her family's cozy apartment in Tokyo. He was so calm and smart!

そしてこちらは下の妹一家と都内マンションで暮らすラブラドールリトリバーのジャズ君とパチリ。ジャズ君はもうおじいさん？の年齢に達しているそうですがとても聡明でおとなしい子でした。

Drawstring bag and a double zipper pouch set I stitched up for my youngest daughter prior to our trip. As always, my daughter selected the fabrics.

旅行直前に、次女のために作ったお揃いのダブルファスナーポーチと、巾着袋のセットです。例によって生地は次女が選びましたがちょっとボーイッシュな仕上がりになってしまいました^^;



Well that's it for today... Thanks so much for reading my super long post!!

Hope you enjoy the rest of your summer... or winter if you're in the opposite half of the planet!

今日は長々と最後までお付き合いくださってありがとうございました。みなさんも引き続き良い夏を (南半球にお住まいの方は良い冬を) お過ごしくださいね。

***Love, Amy***


Read more about my Japan trip in August 2013 (last summer)
（昨年夏の日本滞在についてのブログ記事はこちら) → ☆

Celebrating Father's Day one cake at a time... 父の日ケーキ…２つ？！

Happy Father's Day to the hard working, family loving, and thoughtful fathers, father-in-laws, grandfathers, uncles, husbands, and all the fatherly figures out there! 

今日は父の日。世の中のお父さん、お義父さん、お祖父さん、伯父（叔父）さん、そして普段から父のような存在で周囲を温かく見守ってくださっている方々へ。　いつもありがとうございます♪

We are celebrating our Father's day here, one cake at a time... Just too much cakes to eat!

我が家の父の日は皆でケーキを食べてお祝い^^

Actually, I was too busy today with our girls' activities so I asked my hubby to pick up his own "Happy Father's Day" cake from the bakery that I pre-ordered.  When he returned, he brought home with his favorite Japanese style fluffy cheesecake with "Happy Father's Day" chocolate on the top, plus another family sized chocolate cake in his hands!  Which is just too many cakes for a family of four... but who can complain? It's Father's Day! 

今日は私は娘達の用事でバタバタしていたので、夫に頼んで近所のケーキ屋さんに「父の日」ケーキを買いに行ってもらいました。帰宅した夫の手には、注文しておいたレアチーズケーキ（夫の好物）以外にもなぜか大きなチョコレートケーキが！家族4人で大きなケーキ二つはどう考えても多いと思うのですが・・・。でも文句は言えませんね。今日は父の日ですから。笑！

I managed to cut up the pieces for my next project.  Can you tell what the pieces are for?

次の作品の裁断をしました。何が出来るかわかるかな？

Hope you're enjoying your Father's Day with your loved ones. 

皆さんもご家族で引き続き楽しい父の日をお過ごしくださいね。

***Love, Amy***

Japan's Earthquake

As you already know, Japan was recently struck by a most powerful earthquake in the recorded history of the nation, followed by killer tsunamis, leaving thousands already reported dead and even more people missing.  At this moment, there are a very serious concern about the nuclear radiation exposure in the area, also.

During this very difficult time, I would like to thank every one of you who contacted me about the well being of my family members relating to the earthquake.   My family members live in Tokyo and Nagoya, and my husband's family also lives near Tokyo, which are all quite away from the epicenter of the recent quake.  I am grateful to let you know that all of the family members of myself and my husband's are safe.

And I'd also like to send a big thank you to all of you out there who has sent prayers to the recent earthquake and the tsunami victims in my home country, Japan.

For me, it's very hard to cope with this tragedy living away from my country. I cannot stop thinking about the quake and the tsunami victims of Japan, and the ongoing uncertainty and fear of the nuclear plant disaster over there.  I normally almost never watch T.V., but right now, I just cannot stop myself from watching the news about Japan whenever I'm home.  (In our house, we can view NHK, or Japan's largest broadcast station, to get more detailed information). 

Meanwhile, I had been busy with my kids health issues (they're getting better now), and my work (the tax deadlines!!), and I just couldn't find time and energy to update my blog, which may have added concern to some of you nice readers/friends about my family's situation in Japan.   Thank you very much for caring about us, always.

Although the death toll and the scope of destruction seems to mount every day in Japan...  I still feel that the Japanese people can overcome this serious disaster and to eventually rebuild the country, with strong will and wisdom, and with the support from people around the world. 

Thank you again for thinking and praying about my country.

Long Beach Quilt Festival 2010

Yesterday, I had a chance to visit the International Quilt Festival held at Long Beach, California.  The show is open throughout this Sunday, July 25th.

This was the first time in my life to visit a big quilt show like this one, so I was pretty thrilled!  

And despite the $11 admission plus the $10 parking (so expensive just to park a car!), and although I did not have enough time to walk through and enjoy looking at all the displayed quilts slowly and spend as much time as I wanted,  I still had a very inspiring and motivating time.

I took several pictures of the exhibited quilts, both contemporary and antique, but I will only post the antique ones which were made in the 1800s and early 1900s, by the unknown quilters.

antique quilts

According to the information provided, some of these antique quilts are multigenerational quilts.   Can you imagine making the same piece of quilt, made by your grandmother and your mother, and eventually completed by you?  That sure is time consuming!!

 

 I just loved looking at the elaborate handwork of the quilters from the centuries ago...

And after I saw all the quilts, I quickly walked through the aisles of booths, booths, and more booths at the convention.  

At the booths area, they sold fabrics, yarns, notions, sewing and quilting machines, baskets, stencils and supplies, irons, antique items, and you name it, there were just too many interesting things to see!

And here are the items that I snatched from the quilt show...

My first feedsack set.  Included are nine pieces of 7" x 7" fabrics.

Lace = 3 for $5

Fat quarters in red, blue and white.  They were approximately $1 - $2 a piece.

Another fat quarter of a Japanese floral fabric

Well, I guess that's it for today.... 

Thanks for reading and hope you all have a good and relaxing weekend ;)