WIT Life is a periodic series written by professional Writer/Interpreter/Translator Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken CIR, 2000-03). She starts her day by watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese, and here she shares some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with her own observations.
Kudos to 22-year old tennis pro Kei Nishikori for being the first Japanese man in 80 years to reach the quarterfinals of the Australian Open! Unfortunately, once there he was vanquished in straight sets by Scot Andy Murray, but his impressive showing in his previous five-set win over France’s Jo-Wilfred Tsonga bumps his world ranking up to 20 from 26.
Nishikori, who currently lives and trains in Florida, is known as “Air Kei” for his leaping groundstrokes. I can attest to the fact that watching his play is thrilling. A few years ago I caught a match of his at the US Open that turned into a nail-biting five-setter, and was hooked. Here’s hoping he can build on this impressive showing in Australia and have further success in 2012
WIT Life is a periodic series written by professional Writer/Interpreter/Translator Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken CIR, 2000-03). She starts her day by watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese, and here she shares some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with her own observations.
It is HOPE… fused with, and fueled by, resolve.
Dogged determination.
It is a BOOK… a culinary tribute to Japan’s Tohoku.
Recipes and stories: to comfort, to share.
On the afternoon of March 11, 2011, triple disaster – earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear accident – assaulted Japan’s northeastern corridor, the Tohoku region, and to a lesser extent the Kanto Plains area that includes Tokyo and its environs. In the hours, days, and weeks that followed, the enormity of the toll became painfully clear. There was unprecedented loss of life, personal injury and property damage, entire communities and industries had been wiped out. Surreal.
Like many Tokyo residents who had been personally spared serious loss, I wondered what I could do. In the post-disaster barrage of media coverage, I found the plight of evacuees particularly poignant. Uprooted and transplanted to shelters far removed from their home, I wondered how traditional Tohoku culture could be preserved in the Diaspora.
I wanted to soothe survivors with comfort foods, help Tohoku residents prepare familiar dishes in unfamiliar places. By writing a book that celebrated the Tohoku’s culinary culture I thought to help preserve the region’s rich heritage while nourish the morale of displaced residents. By writing in English I could reach a wide, global readership enabling them to share in the pleasures of the Tohoku table while supporting recovery efforts through the purchase of KIBŌ. My publisher, Ten Speed Press, has pledged with me, to donate a portion of proceeds to Japan’s rebuilding and renewal efforts.
希望を持って、頑張ります
KIBŌ wo motte, gambarimasu
Brimming with hope, pushing forward…
WIT Life is a periodic series written by professional Writer/Interpreter/Translator Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken CIR, 2000-03). She starts her day by watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese, and here she shares some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with her own observations.
ちょっと遅くなりましたが、明けましておめでとうございます！ I hope that your 2012 has gotten off to a good start, and that the year of the dragon is a fortuitous one for everyone.
I’m down in DC with a new group of International Visitors invited by the State Department to study U.S. energy policy. In light of the Fukushima accident nuclear is obviously a big focus, but we are also looking at renewable energy options like solar and wind (as well as geothermal which will take us to a plant on the Big Island of Hawaii!). As part of our cultural activities outside of the professional program, the other night we attended Millennium Stage at the Kennedy Center where a Japanese artist was featured.
Her name is Yoko K. and she hails from Nagano, and she is an electronic musician, producer, engineer and vocalist. I was not very familiar with that genre of music, but her performance kept me entertained throughout. She incorporates various tools in her sound creation, and you can see the basis of her classical training in piano from the age of 3. I particularly liked her bilingual and often humorous lyrics, especially from the song “Laptop on Top of Your Lap” (“I want to be a laptop on top of your lap”).
This song was from her 2nd album “Heaven’s Library”, which is available on iTunes and worth a listen if you are a fan of electronic music or looking to be introduced to it. We got to chat with Yoko after the concert, and she was super personable and eager to discuss her music. I look forward to following her continued success!
The three most important holidays in the Chinese calendar are the Lunar New Year, the Dragon Boat Festival, and the Moon (Mid-Autumn) Festival. The Lantern Festival is the last day of the Lunar New Year holiday, which falls on the 15th day of the Chinese Lunar New Year.
The main theme of the holidays is for people to get together with family. The Chinese holidays are all based on the lunar calendar so they are on different dates as compared to the western calendar.
Lunar New Year
In the first day of the Lunar New Year, people in northern China eat dumplings, which symbolize prosperity. The dumplings symbolize prosperity because they are similar to sycee (元宝 yuanbao, used as a currency for centuries in China). Usually people in southern China eat sweet dumplings, which are filled with a sweet stuffing such as sesame, peanut, and red bean.
As most people know, the red envelope on the Chinese New Year is a very important custom. Usually parents give red envelopes to children, yet when children grow up and work they will give red envelopes to parents and grandparents.
In Chinese society, it is common that people believe in both Taoism and Buddhism. So on the Lunar New Year, the Chinese will attend Taoist or Buddhist temples to worship the
Bodhisattva and their family ancestors. Also people play mahjong with friends on the holiday.
Since Chinese people living in New York City and America have to follow the American calendar, it is rare that the Chinese here in New York get to the celebrate the holiday. But luckily in 2010, the Chinese Lunar New Year and New Year’s Eve fell on Saturday and Sunday, so most Chinese people seized the opportunity to get together with family and friends and enjoyed celebrating their most important traditional holiday.
Dragon Boat Festival
The Dragon Boat Festival is for commemorating the death of Qu Yuan, a famous Chinese Poet from the kingdom of Chu who lived during the Warring States period. He drowned himself in the Miluo river as a warning to his king. People threw packets of rice into the river to prevent the fish from eating his body. This was how the traditional food “zongzi” came about, which is made of glutinous rice stuffed with different fillings and wrapped in bamboo or reed leaves.
Moon (Mid-Autumn) Festival
Moon (Mid-Autumn) Festival is a popular lunar harvest festival. It became popular during the early Tang Dynasty. Other than symbolizing harvest, the Moon Festival has a legend and a historical/political story behind it. You may find the source on Wikipedia. The food for the festival is well known as a moon cake, which many people like.
For these traditional foods, you may find them in many Chinese societies. They are in Chinatown in Manhattan, Flushing and Elmhurst in Queens, and 8th Ave and Bensonhurst in Brooklyn.
Thanks for reading about the Chinese festivals. I hope you were able to learn more about them and most importantly more about the Chinese culture. Please continue to browse the Hills Learning website for more information on the Chinese culture and language.
Word of the Day: New Year’s Theme
Auld Lang Syne
“Auld Lang Syne” is a traditional New Year’s Eve song. It is a Scottish poem written by Robert Burns in 1788 and set to the tune of a traditional folk song. It is often sung to celebrate the start of the New Year at the stroke of midnight. The meaning of the words “Auld Lang Syne” can be translated as “days gone by” or “long, long ago” and the song is about remembering old friendships. In the UK, most people link arms or join hands as a symbol of friendship when they since this song on New Year’s Eve.
Eve
This word is used for the evening or day before a holiday, special event or festival, such as Christmas Eve, New Year’s Eve, and All Hallow’s Eve – All Hallow’s Eve is the traditional name for the modern festival of Halloween.
Eve is also an old word for evening.
Ring in the New Year
This phrase is still used today and comes from the traditional practice in Christian cultures of ringing the church bells at midnight on New Year’s Eve, the idea being that the ringing of the bells announces the passing of the old year and welcomes the New Year and all that it may bring. This is also a tradition in some non-Christian cultures such as Japan, where Buddhist temple bells are rung 108 times starting on New Year’s Eve and continuing past midnight and into the New Year.
New Year’s Resolution
A New Year’s resolution is a commitment or vow one makes on New Year’s Eve to a positive project or lifestyle change in the coming year. The name comes from the fact that these commitments normally go into effect on New Year’s Day.
For Example:
He made a New Year’s resolution to quit smoking.
As her New Year’s resolution she vowed that she would finally start her own business in the coming year.
Ball-drop (Times Square, New York)
Each year during the New Year’s Eve celebration in Times Square in New York City, a ball made of Waterford Crystal and hung with electric lights is raised to the top of a pole on the One Times Square Building, and then lowered to mark the coming of the New Year. The Ball descends 77 feet (23 m) over the course of a minute, coming to rest at the bottom of its pole at 12:00 am. During the final 10 seconds of the ball’s descent there is a countdown from 10 to 1, and all of the crowds gathered, and many watching at home, join in the countdown to the New Year.
Every year up to one million people gather in Times Square to watch the Ball drop, and an estimated 1 billion people around the world watch the video of the event.
Countdown
In many New Year’s Eve celebrations, there is a countdown during the last seconds of the old year until the beginning of the New Year; the countdown usually begins in the last 10 seconds of the old year.
A countdown is a sequence of numbers counting backward to indicate the seconds, days, or other time units remaining before an event occurs or a deadline expires. Typical events that use a countdown include the launch of a rocket or spacecraft, the start of a race, and the start of the New Year.
Toast
A toast is the act of raising a glass (usually of alcohol) to drink in honor of a person or an event/occasion. Popular times for toasts are at Christmas holiday parties, celebratory dinners, weddings and New Year’s Eve. On New Year’s Eve a champagne toast is traditionally made at the stroke of midnight. Usually, a bottle of champagne is shaken and then the cork ‘popped’ at the stroke of midnight, everybody’s glasses are filled and raised in a toast as they say “Happy New Year” together. After the toast, in some cultures, it is traditional to sing or play Auld Lang Syne (see above).
WIT Life is a periodic series written by professional Writer/Interpreter/Translator Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken CIR, 2000-03). She starts her day by watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese, and here she shares some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with her own observations.
This week I attended the Japan Society’s member screening of Norwegian Wood, the film version of this Haruki Murakami novel. I haven’t read the book, but the movie was quite moving. It takes place in the late 1960′s with student riots as a backdrop. It is a love story centering on the university student Toru Watanabe, who is torn between his first love from his hometown, Naoko, and a new women he meets at school, Midori. His relationship with Naoko is complicated as their mutual best friend (and Naoko’s boyfriend) committed suicide when they were in high school. They share this bond, but it is also the source of Naoko’s mental instability. Midori is a bit of a brighter character, though her life has been overshadowed by family members’ untimely deaths. The film is quite tender in its exploration of these relationships and the direction Toru’s future will take.
The movie was made in 2010 by the French-Vietnamese director Anh Hung Tran, who was on hand at the screening along with Rinko Kikuchi who plays Naoko (pictured above with Kenichi Matsuyama who plays Toru). They offered some behind the scenes stories, such as how Tran didn’t see Kikuchi as being right for the role but was overcome by her persuasion and powerful audition. One poignant anecdote he shared was of a night when Kikuchi asked him, “Why is it that when I cry during a scene, it feels more real than when I cry in real life?” to which he answered, “Because you are an artist. And to an artist, expression is more real than experience.” This exchange captures Kikuchi’s artistic process and offers insight into her poetic performance. I had the opportunity to interview her the following day, and found her to be both down to earth and impressive in her approach to the craft.
Norwegian Wood will be coming to the IFC Center on January 6, and my Kikuchi article will be in the February issue of Chopsticks magazine so keep your eyes peeled!
At Kyoto’s Kiyomizu Temple, 今年の漢字 (kotoshi no kanji), or the kanji of the year was just announced to be 絆 (kizuna) or bonds between people. According to the Japanese Kanji Proficiency Society, the rationale behind its selection based on ideas from the public was that in a disaster-ridden year that brought a nation closer together, kizuna best reflects the events of 2011. These bonds include those among family members, friends and neighbors, as well as refers to support from abroad. It was chosen with the hope that the world will continue to coalesce to help restore Japan.
As for how this year’s お正月 (oshougatsu) nine months after the disaster will be spent, it seems as if most people are being low-key and staying close to home due to 3-11. Many are still in mourning for the lives that were lost, and this probably will continue until the one-year anniversary next year. People aren’t even sure what to write on their new year’s cards, as the typical 新年おめでとう (shinnen omedetou) or “Happy New Year!” may not be appropriate. Below are some suggestions (in Japanese) for what to write on 年賀状 (nengajou) to those in the disaster area.
被災地への年賀状
祝いの語を使わない例
- 新年のご挨拶を申し上げます
- 初春のご挨拶を申し上げます
- 幸多き年でありますように
- 平和な一年でありますように
- 新しい年が明るい年でありますように
- 一陽来復
- 笑門来福
Learning and teaching are creative, spontaneous and enjoyable. Learning and teaching a language is interactive, experiential and continuous. A favourable learning environment is like a resourceful playground for learners as well as an enchanting stage for teachers. A favourable learning environment is far from given; however, it is created and maintained by both teachers and learners.
In this article series, I will try to compare and contrast various learning and teaching styles that enhance or hamper a favourable language learning environment. The aim of this article series is to prompt learners and teachers to reflect on their own language learning/ teaching approach; and more importantly, both learners and teachers will become more proactive, resourceful and expansive in their language learning/ teaching comfort zone.
In the following four articles, I shall focus on learning styles. They are (i) learner-centred approach vs generic learning, (ii) deep processing vs rote learning, (iii) collaborative learning vs competitive learning, and (iv) resourceful learners vs passive learners. I shall start with the first set of learning practices with regard to language learning.
Learner-centred approach
The generic learning style is characterised by a receptacle learning approach. This learning approach is ineffective as generic learners often reflect or retain little after class. It is because generic learners are viewed and taught as receptacles, somewhat like empty jugs and sponges. For example, teachers “pour” information, facts and contents into learners’ mind regardless of their previous experience. Similarly, generic learners soak up whatever is delivered to them as much and as quickly as possible. Learners lack the incentives to engage in knowledge discovery. As a result, this approach is likely to foster passivity and over-dependence in learners. This type of learners is used to receiving new information, facts and contents that are presented to them. They tend to attend classes with inadequate preparation, passive attitudes and poor interaction.
On the contrary, the learner-centred approach is characterised by learning through doing as well as integrating new skills and knowledge from both past and present experience. The language learning environment will be enlarged when learners incorporate their goals, interests, and daily experience in their on-going language learning experience. When the topic is personalised, learners are more motivated to engage in the dialogue. For example, if you are interested in travelling, why don’t you initiate lessons/ discussions that are related to your favourite destinations or travelling experience.
Moreover, the learner-centred approach enables learners to become active and curious about discovering, problem-solving and applying new skills.
Firstly, using daily experience, observation or interests as a learning tool enhances speaking and listening effectiveness. You will also find it easier to communicate personal experience than abstract ideas or hypothetical situations.
Secondly, you can even practise the target language mentally. For instance, you can practise the target language by thinking in the following ways.
By doing so, you become more effective and instantaneous in assimilating and producing the target language.
Thirdly, experience and context are crucial for effective listening. When learners become more receptive and observant to their surroundings, they are more likely to discover abundant learning opportunities to practise their target language. Learners must keep their eyes open and ears unplugged in order to pick up people’s conversation, gestures and actions that refer to a specific context. Learners immediately pick up the expression and reapply it when the same situation occurs to them in the future.
What a lively and remarkable way of learning! Please continue to read on in the Hills Learning website for more tips on effective language learning, and don’t forget when learning or teaching to use a learner-centred approach.
Ever eaten with your friends at a Chinese restaurant? Then you may have seen the waiters and waitresses speak Mandarin to their Chinese customers. Though it may sound foreign to you now, this lesson will teach you how to use common restaurant phrases in Chinese and make you seem like a natural Chinese speaker to your friends and guests.
Let’s begin our lesson by walking into the restaurant and approaching the counter with your party of five. In this situation you tell the person working at the counter:
请问,有没有五个人的桌子？Qǐng wèn, yǒu méi yǒu wǔ ge rén de zhuōzi?
May I ask, do you have a table for five?
Before we look at the whole phrase, let us break it down into smaller pieces and analyze the most important parts.
1: 请问 (Qǐng wèn) Before asking any question you should always say this first. It means “May I ask?” and it’s a polite way of asking anything.
2: 有没有(yǒu méi yǒu) means “to have or not” and by following the pattern “A有没有B” where A is the person you’re asking the question to and B is the object you’re asking for. This is a form of a yes or no question.
For example: 你有没有茶?(nǐ yǒu méi yǒu chá ) means “Do you have tea?”.
Now as we continue on, your group is seated but unfortunately the waiter forgot to give out the menus! To remedy this we simply say:
请问我可以看菜单吗？
Qǐng wèn wǒ kěyǐ kàn càidān ma?
May I look at the menu please?
3: 吗 (ma) is the question particle and by putting it at the end of the sentence you are turning the sentence from a statement into a question.
For example: 他是老师(tā shì lǎoshī ) means “He is a teacher,” while 他是老师吗？(tā shì lǎoshī ma) means “Is he a teacher?”
It is important to note that these patterns can be used anywhere due to their simplistic nature.
Looking at this sentence we can already see two patterns which we have already learned, 请问 and 吗. It is not unusual to see these as they can form the beginning and the end to most questions.
But we can use another way to ask a question as well. In stead of using 吗 at the end of a sentence“可以…吗”，we can also use positive negative form to ask a question:
可不可以 (kě bù kěyǐ ), means “can or cannot.” Similar to 有没有both patterns can be used either as yes or no questions. We can use the pattern A可不可以B, where A is the subject of the question and B is any verb or action.
It is finally time to leave the restaurant. After eating the whole evening you are stuffed from the delicious food, you call the waiter over and ask him:
请结帐
Qǐng jié zhàng
OR
买单
Mǎi dān
Check please
Unlike the other sentences we learned there is no pattern to learn here! This is just a simple phrase to end the night on. 请 (qǐng) means please.
Thank you for reading this article on ordering in a Chinese restaurant. These simple phrases will hopefully help you the next time you’re in your local Chinese restaurant, and want to show off to your friends or acquaintances that thought you only spoke English. Keep reading on the Hills Learning website for further articles on Chinese speaking patterns.
WIT Life is a periodic series written by professional Writer/Interpreter/Translator Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken CIR, 2000-03). She starts her day by watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese, and here she shares some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with her own observations.
Time truly flies, as I can’t believe it has been so long since I’ve been here. At any rate, tadaima!
Although almost nine months have passed since the earthquake/tsunami in Fukushima, and I am glad to say that the recoverｙ effort is still on people’s minds. Last night I went to the Artist Showcase and Fundraiser for Japan held at Ambassador Shigeyuki Hiroki’s Residence. The event featured a reception honoring a visiting Fukushima prefectural government delegation to New York, along with artwork (some from JET alumni!) available for silent auction purchase.
Ambassador Hiroki offered his comments, and a representative of the Fukushima prefectural governor read a letter from him on his behalf. On display were Fukushima goods, and guests partook of Fukushima sake as well as local culinary offerings such as delicious rice and peaches. The filled to capacity crowd seemed to enjoy themselves and were glad to be able to contribute, even in a small way, to the ongoing struggle to restore normalcy in Fukushima.
For those who weren’t able to attend last night but feel like they want to do something to help the cause, there is an event tonight in Union Square called Support Fukushima: Candle Night in NY. It is being held by the Blue Sky Project, a group of young Fukushima enterpreneurs, with backing from the New York Fukushima Prefectural Association. For details, please see the press release below and hope to see you all there!
