2014.11.30

The last stop before arriving was Ebina service area. In spite of early morning, there were many people there. I bought a famous melon bun which cost yen 270. There were some different taste, but I chose the best seller, and it was really delicious.
I came back to Shinjuku around 8:15, and went to Shinagawa to keep the baggage at coin locker.
Then I went to see a movie "Fury"at Shibuya.
I still have nearly two hours before the concert, so I went to visit the famous temples and shrine. This was the very first time for me to visit Togenukijizo(とげぬき地蔵)in Sugamo, and there were many people in two lines at the temple. So I thought it was the statue of Togenukujizo but it was not. It was a statue of Kannon. On TV we often watch this statue was being washed by many people so I misunderstood.
After that I visited the shrine which I have long wanted to visit.
Then I went to Ikebukuro to see a concert of Ludwig van Beethoven: SYMPHONY No.9 d-minor op.125 by Japan Philharmonic Orchestra because two of my colleagues participated in chorus.
This was also first time for me to see the Symphony No. 9.

2014.11.29

It rained heavily with thunder while I was sleeping.

In the morning I took a bath. Hot spring here is rather hot and salty.

After that I ate rich breakfast.

Today I visited five shrines which have very lucky names.

I visited fish markets and ate delicious female crabs and Benizuwaigami. Buying at markets and eat them are fresh and reasonable.

Now I am on the night  bus bound for Shinjuku. It will take about 13 hours.

2014.11.28

It was very fine.

I arrived at Izumo taisha shrine around 9:20 and joined the tour from 10:00. It cost yen 500 and lasted for 80 minutes. It was very nice and I want to recommend every one.
After the tour I visited many places where the tour guide recommended me.  They were all nice and I am very glad to know her.
We happened to see each other and had a nice reunion.
I took a train to Matsue, whuch was very interesting. I enjoyed chatting with the person sitting next to me.
After coming to Matsue, I came to Kaike Onsen and enjoyed the famous Matsuba gani dinner.

2014.11.26

It was another cold rainy day.

There were many events today.

We had luncheon for welcoming a new staff.  Twelve of us had sushi and pizza lunch.

In the afternoon a media company came to film the interviews of faculty and students.

At night there was an explanation meeting for study abroad program which started around 18:30 and ended around 20:30.  We have such meeting twice a year.  There were many Japanese students attended and they asked the former exchange students and current intrrnational students about their experiences.
I think this is a very good opportunity to know the wonderful programs.

2014.11.25

It was a very cold rainy day.

What will you buy if you have yen 500?
I had a yen 500 coupon which expires in a few days.  Therefore I decided to visit the shops on my way home.
It was so cold in the office that I decided to buy something warm. I happened to find a blanket which is also becomes a shawl.  It was just yen 500 so it was a nice choice.
I am looking forward to using it tomorrow.

2014.11.24

It was fine but cool.

Today was a transferred holiday but there were classes at our university and I went
 to work.
The timetables of the trains were different and I could not take the usual train. However it took shorter time than usual.
There were less people on  campus.

2014.11.23

It was fine today.

Today is a national holiday called kinro kansha no hi（勤労感謝の日）.

I went to Iseyamkotaijingu （伊勢山皇大神宮）in Yokohama in the morning where they were having niinamesai（新嘗祭）festival.  Since I did not know about it, I felt lucky to be there. There were many families to take their children for shichigosan （七五三）which is usually taken place on November 15.
After that I went to kimono shop again with my friend.
Then we went shopping and to attend a seminar. It started at 13:30 and ended around 20:00. We were given two books, and I asked the lecturere to give his autographs on the books.

It was a long but very fruitful day.

     

2014.11.22

It was fine.

I went to Yokohama to attend a meeting in the afternoon.

Then I went to Kimono shop with my friend.  I tried many and decided the one on the contrary to my original plan.
We are invited to dinner and enjoyed very delicious Japanese winter dishes called fugu (河豚) and shabushabu(しゃぶしゃぶ).

After that I went to Otori jinja (大鷲神社) shrine.
Today is ni no tori (二の酉),  the second day of Cock in November and there was a festival.

I am glad to have done everything I planned today.

2014.11.21

It was fine but cold.

At lunch time when I watched at TV, the House of the Representatives was dissolved. Not only I but also many people do not understand why this happened.  I feel it is a waste of time and money because it would cost about yen 80,000,000,000 to have a general election.  This is a hard-earned tax money.
With this amount of money how many people would be helped!
I think there are much more things to be done besides election.

2014.11.20

It was cloudy in the morning but started raining in the afternoon and very cold.

I took a day off to take my father to hospital for once a month checkup. He had two examinations, one treatment, and a meeting with a doctor.  It took a half day.

We had lunch together.

In the afternoon there was a meeting with people who take care of my father.

After that I went to learn tea ceremony. My male master became 90 years old, aka
 sotsuju(卒寿) early this month, and my female master will be 79 at the end of this month.

After the lesson I went to grocery shopping.

I was rather busy.

2014.11.19

It was fine.

After work I went to have dinner with my friends.
It's been about three months since we had dinner together last.
One of them was going to enter the hispital a few days later when we met last time.  But she became very fine. 
And we were so glad that we could meet again and enjoy talking and eat delicious foods.

We are looking forward to seeing each other again next time.

2014.11.18

It was fine but very cold.
Sunset was very beautiful.

There was an accident at the JR Keihintohoku line and the JR Yamanote line also stopped and they were delayed for a while on my way to work.

One of the most famous Japanese actors, Ken Takakura (高倉健) passed away on November 10 at the age of 83. He acted in 205 movies.

Two years ago on this day one of the most famous Japanese actresses Mitsuko Mori (森光子)passed away at the age of 92.

And five years ago on this day another famous actor Hisaya Morishige(森繁久弥)passed away at the age of 96.

2014.11.17

It was fine in the morning but rained at nght. It has been getting cooler and cooler these days.
I wanted to see shooting stars tonight, but couldn't.

2014.11.16

It was fine.

I could not get up early as I wished.

I left home around 7:30 and arrived a little bit earlier than 9:30 at Ikebukuro. So I could take the express train at 9:30 and arrived at Seibu Chichibu at 10:48.
There were so many people in front of restrooms when I got off the train.

I changed the train and went to Shiraku and visited No. 30 temple first.

This is the fifth day for me to visit Chichibu and there were still six temples to visit today.

No. 30 is located at the furtherest place therefore I visited there the first.

After visiting, at the station I asked the person in charge how to visit other five temples and I was going to follow his instruction, but I took a wrong path and couldn't get the next place.

After all I visited No. 30, 27, 28, 29, 25, 26, and two shrines.
After visiting No.26, there was annex on the top of the hill about 30 minutes away which was the hardest part.

I am so glad to complete of visiting all 34 temples during this special exhibiting Buddhist images period.

I have met sisters who also participated in the bus tour yesterday.  They also completed visiting today.
It is very nice to have someone to share this happy feeling.

One more good thing today was I saw SL running. Many SL fan were taking pictures near the railway.

As dinner I ate a special dinner set for this occasion at a restaurant near the station.

I took a 18:25 train and came back home after 22:10 or so.

I walked more than 30000 steps today and feel tired.

2014.11.15

It was very fine today.

I got up very early to catch 5:05 am train to get to Seibu Chichibu by 9 am. I saw many stars when I left home.

There were two destinations on the Seibu train which my friend and I got on from Ikebukuro.  Unfortunately we took the wrong car, and we had to walk to get to the meeting point at Seibu Chichibu station. Chichibu railway doesn't accept Pasmo which is a kind of prepaid card with commuting ticket. Therefore I had to pay by cash for the fare.

This was the fourth day of my Chichibu 34 temples pilgrim visiting.  From No. 31 to 34 are located far away from each other, and it is impossible for me to walk in a limited period. So I chose to take a tour to visit No.31,32, 33, and 34 by bus.
There were 85 people joined this tour, and there were two buses.
I sat in the center of the back seat of the bus No.2. There were five seats there and all were women.  Besides my friend and I, we were all strangers at first in the morning but we talked our own experiences and became friends in the afternoon.  Two of them completed visiting 34 temples today. Two others started visiting today.
The tour was very good and reasonable. It was supposed to finish around 15:20 but since today is the last Saturday before closing this special opening the door event there were so many people here and there.  We heard it took more than two hours to get a stamp called goshuin(御朱印) at the last temple No . 34.  Therefore it finished around 17:30. I wished to visit one more temple today but I could not.

No.31 has 296 steps before getting and it was rather hard , but it has a nice view.
The leaves at  No. 32 were turned to red and yellow and they were so beautiful.

There was an incredible long line at the No.34 to get the stamp as we heard  because it is the last one and it means your dreams would be granted.

I enjoyed this tour very much.

I left there at 18:00 and came home at 22:00.

I hope to finish all tomorrow.

2014.11.14

It war fine and Mt. Fuji looked beautiful.

There came a new staff today.

After work I went to a kimono shop in Yokohama. There I happened to
 see the making process of special dying way of kimono. The craftman came from Kyoto, he said it takes a few months to make one roll of kimono.
I understood why it cost a lot.

2014.11.13

It was fine and we could see Mt.Fuji today.

In the night news I knew it was a day when it happened the Diamond Fuji from the Lake
 Yamanaka.  This is one of the things I would like to see and to take a picture.  Other things are the stars around the Polaris, the movement of the mid night sun, northern lights, and so
on. How wonderful the natures are!

2014.11.12

It was cloudy, but the sun was shining beautifully in the afternoon. It looked white at first.  Around 5pm it was already dark.
We felt cool, but to our surprise a student from Denmark was wearing half-sleeved T-shirt.  And he said he did not feel cold yet.

There was an interesting article in the newspaper.
That is the ranking of beauties in Japan.
Women in Shimane prefecture have been ranked No.1 for their beautiful skin for three years straight. 
The climate influences the making of beautiful skin.
The less time of getting sun light, the more beautiful their skin will  be. 

2014.11.11

It was cloudy and cold today.

There were many interesting articles in today's newspaper regarding entertainment. 
One of them is a drama performed by two actresses. A very famous scenario writer wrote a modern drama featured by Japanese most famous female writers in Heian (平安) era, Seishonagon (清少納言) and Murasakishikibu (紫式部).  Both are regarded as rivals in their time. I seldom go to see the theater to see a play.  But if I have a chance, I hope to see the play.
The other was a movie taken for many years until a boy became a man.  I hope to see this movie too if I have a chance.
Another was forever ranking of actor and actress.  Who do you think the best actor and actress? They are Clint Eastwood and Audrey Hepburn.  My favorite Paul Newman was ranked in as No. 5.
Who are your favorites?

2014.11.10

It was fine.

Today is ichi no tori (一の酉), the first day of the  Cock in November.  There is a festival at the Otori jinja(鷲神社) shrine. As bringer of good luck, rakes with decoration are sold.
There will be ni no tori (二の酉), the second day of Cock on November 22.

2014.11.9

It was rainy.

I went to Chichibu again.  This is the third time.

It was dark when I visited No.14 and the shrine last time, so I went there again. 

I left home before 7:30 and arrived at Seibu Chichibu around 11:30.
I have visited one shrine, and No.14, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, and 24.
After No.23 I got on the pilgrim circulaton bus for one stop. There were only 30 minutes left but I could go to No.24.
However it was too dark to see.
The way back to the station was dark and long.
I took a 18:00 train and came home after 21:40.
I walked more than 30000 steps today.

2014.11.8

It was cloudy and chilly.

I went to Yokohama to take my friend to a meeting,  and had lunch together.  There was another meeting in the afternoon.

After that I visited a shrine.

Then I go to massage.
After coming back, I went to grocery shopping.

It was a busy day.

2014.11.7

It was a fine beautiful day.

During daytime I met an ex-colleague for a meeting.
And at night I had a birthday gathering and I met four ex-colleagues.  I arranged the gathering at a darts bar which offers Mexican foods.  I have never been there but decided there just by the name of Mexican place I have long wanted to visit.

We really enjoyed meeting, eating, drinking, talking, and playing darts.
We did not know the rules but there were eight different games and we enjoyed a lot.

TGIF!

2014.11.6

It was cloudy and partially fine, but it also rained in the afternoon and evening.  I was lucky enough not to get wet though.  The sun set looked beautiful between the clouds.

Today is the opening of the crab season.  The names of crabs are different depends on the place.  Snow crab, (ズワイガニ: zuwai gani) is called Echizen gani (越前ガニ) in Hokuriku (北陸) and Matsuba gani (松葉ガニ) in Sanin (山陰) area.  Females are also called Kobako gani (香箱ガニ) in Ishikawa (石川) and Seiko gani (セイコガニ) in Fukui (福井).  The sizes of males and females are quite different.  Females are small but I prefer females because of eggs.


 

2014.11.5

It was cloudy and rather chilly.

I expected to see the miracle moon which happened once in 171 years but unfortunately it was cloudy.....
There is only one moon, but it is interesting to be seen differently.

Human being is the same.  Every one is unique.  But depends on people they are seen differently.

2014.11.4

It was fine today.

 

I went to Chichibu again.
I left home around 7:30 am, bought something at Ikebukuro, and arrived at Yokoze  around noon. I bought sweets at the shop there and asked how to walk around.
I went to No. 9 temple first. I was going to visit No.8 next but I took a wrong way, and visited No.7,6,8,5,10, 11, 12, 14 and two shrines.
After visiting No.5, I went to benefactor's house who helped me last time to say thank you. When I visited, it was time for afternoon tea, he and his colleagues were drinking tea and chatting, and he invited me for tea and offered me to take to the next place.  He is very kind always.
There are still 19 temples left.
I hope to visit all of them by November 15.

2014.11.3

November 3 is a national holiday called bunka no hi (文化の日), Culture Day.  It is one of hare no tokuibi (晴れの特異日), Fine singularity.  And indeed it became fine.  Many people had three day weekend.  I am having 6 days off.
I went to Isogo (磯子) to have lunch with people who love wearing kimono.  It was a nice restaurant.  An interesting thing was we needed to pay to get on the elevator there.  There were nearly 20 people.
After that I went to Sankeien (三渓園) with my ex-colleague.  It is a very famous garden in Yokohama (横浜).  There were many things to see there and we walked a lot.  They were having Chrysanthemum exhibition.  We have spent for 2 hours and a half and went to Sakuragicho (桜木町) to have dinner.
We enjoyed having dinner and talking a lot.

 

2014.11.2

It is windy now.  Weather was fine, cloudy, and rainy.

When I went grocery shopping, the road was very crowded, and I came home later than I expected.  Therefore I gave up going to yoga lesson today.  There were many things to do.
At night there was a once a month representative meeting.

2014.11.1

A new month has started. November is jyuichigatsu(十一月), its old name is shimotsuki (霜月), frost month.

It was rainy.

I went to Shinjuku to attend once a month meeting, then had Chinese lunch with friends.
After that I went to school  to see the school festival.
Then I went back to Shinjuku to have dinner with my advisor at a newly opened crab restaurant. I have tried to book by yesterday, but I could not.  Therefore we had to wait for a long time.  It was not so good as I expected.

2014.10.31

Happy Halloween!!
Have you wear the costume? I saw some people wearing them in Yokohama.  Now there are so many people wearing costume in Shibuya, which I have just seen on TV news.

 

It was cloudy today.

 

I did many things today.

First I went to learn how to tie sash of kimono in front. Usually we do in the back, but since I bought a special under-sash belt the other day, I went to learn how to use it.

Second I went to see my friend at her office.  She started a new business and now owns her own office in Yokohama.

Third I went to Yurakucho to take a medical check. It took only 20 minutes to examine for nearly 10 items.

 

Fourth I came back to Yokohama to see two movies, Hercules and Fushigi na misaki no monogatari (ふしぎな岬の物語).  I had 18 points to see movies, but this term (May to October) I only used 5 points and today was the last day of using those points.  I lost 13 points in vain. I should have used them every month for 3 points.