2018.3.31

It was fine.

The last day of March is the last day of fiscal and academic year in Japan. How was your FY 2017?

There were many things and I have seen many people which brought me new information. I have joined many activities and traveled a lot both in Japan and outside of Japan for both business trip and private vacation.

Today I went to Ariake to attend a seminar. On my way to go there I went to Shimbashi and took Yurikamome and on my way back I used JR. Former is closer to the venue but took much time and money, the latter needs to walk more.
The seminar was held at the 32nd floor of the high-rise manshoin which is said to be the value of yen1,800,000, 000.
So I wanted to see the place where the millionaires live. The view from there was fantastic.

After coming back, I went grocery shopping and filling my car up which made me feel relieved.

I saw many beautiful cherry blossoms and tulips in the afternoon and the beautiful full moon at night.

2018.3.30

It was fine but cooler than yesterday.

It was the last working day of this fiscal year. There were two staffs to leave the office today and we had a farewell luncheon.
Weather was good and we took some pictures with cherry blossoms after lunch.

I left the office after 3 pm to go to Oji to attend the SRC convention. This was the second time for me to be there. I met some acquaintances. After the convention five of the group members went out for dinner. Each person has something to tell and it was interesting to explore their unque lives.

2018.3.29

It was fine and warm.

After work I went to Shinagawa to see my friends and ate a cake set again. The decoration was beautiful. On the top of the glass there was a thin piece of chocolate with holes of the petal-shape of cherry blossoms and pieces of gold foil, snd it looked gorgeous and delicious.

It's been a while to see one of them and we could not remember when we first met and last met.

The end of the fiscal year is approaching, therefore there are many paper works to be done within this month.
Some staff leave the office, and the new staff will come from April.
There will be a farewell luncheon tomorrow.

2018.3.28

It was fine and warm.

After work I went to Shinagawa to see my friends.
It's been a while to see one of them, and there were much things to catch up.

I am glad to see her again and get useful information.

2018.3.27

It was fine and warm.  They say it will be warmer like summer tomorrow.

Cherry blossoms are so beautiful.

There was a graduation ceremony today.
We have graduation ceremonies twice in a year. Fall is the main, and spring is the smaller.
In Spring there are more Japanese students.So we prepared only nine flags this time.

These days there has been something wrong with my battery charger.  It's been about a year and a month since I changed the smart-phone but its battery does not last for even half day. It is very inconvenient. Are there any ways to save battery?

2018.3.26

It was fine and warm today.

Cherry blossoms are full in bloom.

They were used to be in bloom around the time of entrance ceremony.
Tomorrow we have a graduation ceremony.

It will be a nice day for the graduating students.

Congratulations!!

2018.3.25

It was fine and warm.

I went to Kamakura (鎌倉) to escort two ladies from Argentina as a volunteer tour guide. I have a national licence of tour guide in English but not in Spanish. My friend from graduate school escorted from Shinjuku and we got together at the station at 10:30 am. We visited Tsurugaokahachimangu (鶴岡八幡宮) shrine, ate lunch, went to see Daibutsu (大仏), a big statue of Buddha and Hase Kannon (長谷観音), another big statue. Then we walked to the Yuigahama (由比ヶ浜) beach.

After that we went to Yokohama Minato Mirai (横浜みなとみらい) district and enjoyed the order-system buffet at a Chinese restaurant at the China town.
We walked around the Yamashita koen (山下公園) park to see the beautiful night view.

It became a bit cold in the evening but no wind.

We had a fruitful day.

2018.3.24

It was fine and warm.

It was so warm that cherry blossoms in Tokyo became full in bloom today.

I went to my parents' graveyard. Flowers there were also full in bloom but not cherry blossoms yet.

2018.3.24

It was fine and warm.

It was so warm that cherry blossoms in Tokyo became full in bloom today.

I went to my parents' graveyard. Flowers there were also full in bloom but not cherry blossoms yet.

2018.3.23

It was cloudy and rainy.

Cherry blossoms started blomig.
This weekend must be the good time to see them.

On my way back I saw the cherry tree in full bloom.

2018.3.22

It was rainy in the morning, but became fine and warm in the evening.

I attended an English seminar at office in the afternoon, and another seminar to improve the praising skill to make our life better in Shinjuku after work. To my surprise the venue was just next building where I have worked from March 2009 to sometime 2010.
The seminar itself started at 7 pm and lasted until 9  pm followed by dinner party at a Chinese restaurant nearby. It cost yen 3000.
There were 14 participants and we did many pair work to praise each other.
It was interesting.

2018.3.21

It is a national holiday called "shunbun no hi(春分の日)" vernal equinox.

It's been raining, but turned into snow and very cold in the morning, and became rain again in the afternoon.
It is very rare to have snow at this time of the year.

Since it was snowing, I gave up driving and walked to the station instead.

First I went to Kasuga to attend a seminar to be 20 years younger. It was supposed to be from 14:00 to 16:00 but it lasted until nearly 17:00. It was very interesting and informative.

Since I had another appointment in Ginza from 17:00, I had to change the schedule. I tried Hydrogen Inhalation. Before and after that I was measured the flow of capillary tube of the left ring finger. It was the first time for me to do so, and it was very interesting.

Then I went to Shinagawa to see my friends.

It was a fruitful day.

2018.3.20

It was a cold rainy day.

I was rather busy at office having two meetings, English seminar, and many paper works to send out.

After work I went to Kawasaki to see a movie "The Last Word." Its Japanese title is quite different from English one. It is " Anata no tabidachi tsuzurimasu(あなたの旅立ち 綴ります)" which means I will write about your departure. Today was the last showing day. It was a nice movie. So I am glad to see it tonight.

2018.3.19

It was cloudy but warm in the morning, however it was raining and cool when I got out of the office at night.

Cherry blossoms were about one third blooming.

On my way home I saw a young lady wearing kimono and hakama. There must be a graduation ceremony of college.

2018.3.18

it was fine and cloudy.

Today's big event for me was to get the new passport at Yokohama. It cost yen 16,000 for stamps to get it. I hope to use this one as many times as possible.

There was ASUKA II at Osanbashi pier.  Someday I want to circumnavigate again for the northern route by this kind of high class boat.

I walked along the promenade. There was a big event in front of the Red Brick Warehouse.

Then I went to Kamioooka and watched a movie "The Shape of Water." It was a nice movie.

After coming back I wanted to go grocery shopping, but the road was so crowded that I gave up.

The next big event was to book the flights for my trip in April.

It was a fruitful day.

2018.3.17

It was fine but very cold.

Happy St.Patrick Day!!

I went to massage in the morning. This is my once a month healthcare event.
After that we went out for lunch. We have checked many restaurants but after all we went to a Chinese restaurant. Their service was quick and price was reasonable. In Noge area there are many reasonable restaurants. Or at least my massager knows many reasonable places.

After that I went to see a movie "Moonlight" in Bashamichi where I could see at yen 600 which id one third of the regular price. It is the Oscar movie of last year. But I did not remember at all.

Then I went shopping. I was not going to buy, but I did.

I was going to see another movie, but it became too late and I gave up.

2018.3.16

It was a rainy day.

After lunch when I got out of the office I found the cherry blossoms started blooming.

In the afternoon I went to the United Nations University after a long time to attend the Myanmar Investment seminar.

Today is the last day of ongoing program. It was a fruitful program.

2018.3.15

It was fine and warm.

They said in Kochi cherry blossoms started blooming first in Japan today.

I visited two shrines before going to work as my ritual of the 15th.

Since I was out of office for three days I was very busy today and overworked.

I finished reading the recent book written by Mr. Ken Honda.

2018.3.14

It was fine and warm like spring.

We started at 8 am. First we went to Miyajima where is one of the three most beautiful spots in Japan and one of the UNESCO's World Heritage Sites by train and ferry which were operated by JR. We visited the Itsukushima jinja (厳島神社) shrine and the Daiganji (大願寺) temple.

On our way back we took a World Heritage Cruise from Miyajima to the A-Bomb Dome where is also one of the UNESCO's World Heritage Sites. It took 45 minutes and cost yen 2,000.

At the Peace Park we visited Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, Hiroshima National Peace Memorial Hall for the Atomic Bomb Victims, and so on. I have been there before but there were something new too including the ex-US president Barack Obama's cranes and message and Panels of the Nobel Peace Prize of 2017 and so on.

On our way back we took a tram.  It took about 20 minutes to Hiroshima station and cost yen 180.

We did not have time to eat lunch but I am glad to take the scheduled bullet train.

On our way back Mt.Fuji looked very beautiful.

At Shinagawa station there were long lines waiting to buy sweets because today is March 14, White Day when boys and men who got chocolates on St.Valentine's Day give back something.

2018.3.13

It was fine and very warm like spring.

There were seven lectures and four site visites and we were rather busy.

At lunch time eight of us ordered one by one. Some ordered the same menu but there were differences. If you order the small size of rice, a small dessert dish was added.

In the evening we moved to Hiroshim by Shinkansen Kodama.

The hotel was very close to the station and convenient. To my very surprise the room No. was the same as yesterday.
We walked and walked to find a nice restaurant. After all we ate Oyster dishes set at the restaurant in the station building.

It was a long day.

2018.3.12

It was fine.

In the afternoon I headed for Yamaguchi prefecture on a business trip.

At the station we were welcomed by people we were going to see tomorrow and decided to have dinner.

After dinner I met my friend from high school.

2018.3.11

It was fine.

It's been seven years since the Great East Japan Earthquake happened. Seven years is the same length as the newly-born baby enters the primary school.
How was your life changed?
I became not to wear high heel shoes.

Today I went to Yokohama to see a movie "Ku-Kai (空海)." It was quite different from what I expected. Kukai is one of the most famous Buddhist priests about 1200 years ago. The movie had another title "Legend of Demon Cat." So it was something unusual.

After that I went to Shinagawa to see friends.

2018.3.10

It was fine but partially cloudy.

Today is my dead mother's birthday.

In the afternoon I went to Kamioooka by walking to Miura kaigan station watching cherry blossom trees in leaf and rape blossoms.
I saw a movie titled "Kita no sakuramori (北の桜守)" because I got an invitation ticket from a famous kimono designer who made some kimono for Ms. Sayuri Yoshinaga (吉永小百合) who is a famous actress and the heroin of this movie. Since it deals with war and aging problem, most of the audience was senior. And because today is the first day of releasing and this is the 120th movie of Ms. Sayuri Yoshinaga, seats were almost full. It was a unique style nice moving movie.

Then I went to buy some books at my favorite bookstore whose cover is very beautiful. I also ordered some books through Internet.

In the evening I went to Yokosuka chuo to attend a meeting for organizing the second grand reunion of high school on July 7. There were about 20 people from 10 classes of 450 students. After talking the points of reunion, we enjoyed eating and drinking.

It was a fruitful day.

2018.3.9

It was slightly raining in the morning but rather warm. It stopped raining but became colder in the afternoon.

I went to MLIT to attend the lecture. When I go there from home I go to Higashiginza straight and changed to Hibiya Line. After that I went back to the office in Roppongi. When I use PASMO, the prepaid card, it usually cost yen 434 in total. This week I took the same route three times but on the first day it cost yen 504. I wondered why and asked my colleague in charge of PASMO. Usually if you transfer within 30 minutes, it is regarded as one way and reducted yen 70 from the sum of both lines. This time we were not sure but a staff at the Higashiginza station might have used the different way and charged. It was weird.

After work I went to the Fuji Film Square, my favorite place in Roppongi. There was the new exhibition, DYNAMIC LANDSCAPE PHOTOGRAPHY II, by Mr.Kenji Yamamura  and Mr. Shumon Saito.
This is the second time for me to visit their exhibition. When I visited last time, there were very beautiful pictures, and I liked them very much. Therefore I was very looking forward to seeing the new exhibitions.
Fortunately they were at the venue and we could take pictures.

2018.3.8

It was a cold rainy day.

There happened something, and my train was delayed for a while on my way to the office.

In the morning there was a lecture. After that we went out for lunch at a Shabushabu restaurant nearby. Shabushabu is a popular winter pot dish.  There were 2 choices of meat: beef or pork, and 4 choices of dipping sauce: citrus vinegar, sesami, tomato, and soy bean, and 2 choices of either noodle or rice. We enjoyed eating and chatting.

2018.3.7

It was cloudy and very cold like winter came back again.

After work I went to Yokohama to apply for the new passport. On Tuesdays and Wedesdays they open until 7 pm which is really nice for those who have a regular 9 to 5 working time job. It will cost yen 14,000 for stamps and yen 2,000 for Kanagawa Prefecture stamp when we receive the new one for 10 years. To my surprise it is open on Sundays too to receive it. It will take about a week to be issued and we need to receive within 6 months. If you have VISAs, they will expire.

I made the last one when I was in the USA in 2008. So it is a very special one for me.

I hope to travel around the world as much as possible with the new passport.

2018.3.6

It was fine but very cold.

At this time weather is very changeable. We say sankan shion(三寒四温), which means three cold days and four warm days.

After work I went to Suidobashi to attend a monthly meeting. Since my smartphone could not been charged I was worried if I could get to the venue or not. Fortunately I could but I was a bit late and missed one of the speeches.
After the meeting we went to a coffee shop. I ate shrimp and abocado basil sauce pasta.

2018.3.5

It was cloudy in the morning and started raining in the afternoon. I did not use the umbrella, but when I got back at the parking lot, petals of cherry blossoms were blown to the earth. My car was covered with petals. It seemed to have rained heavily and strong wind must have blown. I was lucky, wasn't I ?

From today a new program started and it lasts for two weeks. I started ealier and ended later than usual.

2018.3.4

It was fine and warm. Spring has come.

I went to Yokohama to see two movies. One is a Japanese movie titled "Inori no maku ga oriru toki (祈りの幕が下りる時)" and the other is an American movie "The Greatest Showman."
I think both are very good movies. If you have chances, I recommend you to watch.

2018.3.3

It was fine.

March 3 is hinamatsuri(ひなまつり), Doll's Festival. I decorated the one I got from my Peace Boat friends about 11 years ago when I was in Florida.

It is also the day of ear. I finally took out the rest of small patches of ear point pressures.

In the morning I went to Shinjuku to attend Morinda's monthly meeting,

In the afternoon I have my kimono-style pictures taken for the exhibition of the photographer at Ginza in June. It was fun to get dressed and posed.

2018.3.2

It was fine.

In the afternoon I attended a training for English self-guided learning. Nowadays there are many free ways to learn English. I commute for more than four hours a day. I should make the best of it.

The full moon was so beautiful when I got out of the office.

2018.3.1

A new month has started. March is sangatsu(三月) or yayoi (弥生).
It is the end of a fiscal year and an academic year in Japan. It is a time of graduation.

It has rained heavily since last night and strong wind was still blowing this morning. Weather forecast said it would be more than 22 degrees centigrade like the end of April or early May at the daytime.

Fortunately when I left home, it stopped raining and I did not have to use the unbrella.

As a custom of the first day of the month I visited two shrines, one near my house.
the other near my office.
When I visited the latter, they were offering amazake (甘酒) which is made from the sake produced in Izumo (出雲) and hinaarare (雛あられ), sweet rice crackers for hinamatsuri (ひなまつり), Doll's Festival on March 3. Amazake was very tasty with yuzu (柚). They said they would offer them until March 5 as long as they have.
I felt very lucky.

After work I went to attend a talk event of my teacher in Yotsuya. There I met some friends whom I met at his event last month.
Then five of us went to nearby izakaya (居酒屋) and enjoyed eating & drinking & talking.
It was very interesting.