2020.3.31

The last day of March.

One fourth of 2020 has gone.  Big news have been the pandemic of Coronavirus and the postponement of the Tokyo Olympic 2020 for a year.

I have been to many shrines for the past three months.

It was a slightly rainy day.

We had a farewell luncheon at a very nice Japanese restaurant for a temp staff. 

When I went to buy a bouquet, there were many of them ready at the shelf. Today is the end of fiscal year and academic year, a certain number of  people must have left their current workplaces.

I hope a good new year will start tomorrow for everyone.

On my way back I bought a commuter ticket for half year by a ticket vending machine. It cost yen180,200. One way to go to the office costs about 1200. So I really appreciate the commuter ticket.

2020.3.30

It was cloudy and still cold.

We are surprised at the news of the comedian Ken Shimura's death of Coronavirus. He was at the age of 70. 

From today NHK's new drama series "Yell" started. He was supposed to act as an important person in music world. This was his first attempt to be an actor in the drama.

He was a very popular comedian and we have known him since we were children.

He will be missed.

I pray for his soul.

2020.3.29

It was a cold rainy day. In many places it even snowed.

I stayed at home all day long as the Government hoped.

There were lots of things I should do. One of them was to write my 11th ebook.  I finished writing and am waiting for proofreading.

2020.3.28

It was a strange weather. In the morning it was raining. It stopped raining and became cloudy and shiny at the same time, and was  rather warn like early summer. At night it has started raining again.

They say it will be snow tomorrow.

I went to Hinodecho to get massage, which is my once a month body maintenance. After that I visited Iseyama Kotai jingu shrine and Naritasan temple to pray for the world safety by ending Coronavirus. I visited kimono shops and learned how to tie casual obi.

Cherry blossoms were so beautiful along the Oooka river.

After coming back I went to fill up my car and grocery shopping.

I watched the statement of Prime Minister on TV in the evening. Many countermeasures for coronavirus will be made soon.

I hope the world will become as normal as before so that we can live as what we want to do.

2020.3.27

It was fine but very windy, and finally rained.

After work I went to Shibuya to have dinner with my friend at a Spanish restaurant. Usually I eat course dinner there but since I have an invitation of Paella we ordered some tapas with drinks.

There were two choices of regular seafood paella and short pasta paella. We chose the latter. My friend was very pleased with that. They say tomorrow night it will be shown on TV.

It's been a long time since I went to last and the shops around there were changed a lot.

Time flies!

2020.3 26

It was fine.

There has been a booth to take body temperature at the entrace of our office building since this Monday. In addition to that there has been thermometer camera since this morning. Every day the countermeasure for corona virus is adding.

Classes will be taught by online.

They say not only masks but also many things such as rice are sold out at the stores. We are asked to refrain from going out this weekend if we do not have things in hurry and in need.

They say Toho movie theaters in Tokyo metropolitan area will be closed this weekend and so will Shibuya 109 building and other amusement parks.

2020.3.25

It was fine and beautiful.

We had a farewell luncheon at an open air cafe. It was a very nice place with reasonable price. I chose a restaurant, a gift, and a bouquet. Everything went well. We had a good time.

On my way home, I dropped at Kurihama to go to ATMs of the banks.

2020.3 24

It was fine but very cold.

We call this coldness "kan no modori (寒の戻り), return to cold" or  "hana bie (花冷え), flower cold." There is another expression, sankan shion (三寒四温), three cold days and four warm days.

Today is shingetsu(新月), new moon when is a good time to make a wish list.

I hope the earth to be a healthy and safe place soon so that we can travel freely again.

2020.3.23

It was cloudy first, rainy when I got to Jimbocho, but became fine and cloudy again. It was rather cool.

Every day top news is still about COVIT-19. US and Europe have a strict policy about incoming people.

I wonder what will happen to the Tokyo Olympic 2020.

Today is the last day of equinox week. The daytime will be longer day by day.

2020.3.22

It was fine.

I went to graveyard of my parents.There were many people there because it is a time of ohigan (お彼岸). 

After that I went grocery shopping. I bought botamochi(ぼた餅) too. They are sweets offered to ancesters. I chose mix of four different tastes, sesami, cherry, kinako, and tsubuan.

In the afternoon I watched a movie "Chihayafuru -musubi(ちはやふる -結び-)." It is the last one of three movies about high school card playing game club.

2020.3.21

It was fine.

I left the hotel around 8:30 am and headed for Kashihara jingu shrine in Nara prefecture. It is the birth place of Japan 2680 years ago.To my lucky today was one of three monthly festivals there and I could see the ceremony.

Next I headed for Nara.  First I ate lunch, and went to Kasuga taisha shrine. There I saw two weddings. It's been quite a long time since I visited there last. My memory of Kasuga taisha was a bit different from rhe actual Kasuga taisha. Precincts were quite big, and I walked and walked.

Next I went to Todaiji temple to see a statue of great Buddha to pray for the end of COVIT-19 and safe world.

I took JR from Nara to Tennoji and went back to hotel to pick up the carry case, and took subway to go to Shin-Osaka.

When I got on Shinkansen from Shin-Osaka, there were a few passengers, but from Kyoto so many peole got on, and the car became full.

It was a nice Kansai trip.

2020.3.20

It is a national holiday called Shunbun no hi (春分の日), vernal equinox day. 

It is one of nijushisekki(二十四節気), the 24 solar terms. The last one was keichitsu (啓蟄) on March 5, and the next one is seimei (清明) on April 4. It is the day when the daytime and night time are almost the same length.

Today is the first day of three day weekend.

Last night I came to Osaka.

This morning I went to Samuhara shrine.

Then I went to Sumiyoshitaisha to attend a special event organized by Mr.Hiroto Fujimoto, who has the highest rank of the shinto shrine profession without belonging to any shrine. It started at 10:30 and lasted until 17:00.  There were 45 participants. I know some of thrm from other events or seminars.

There was a lecture first, and we had lunch, had a special praying ceremony, visited the shrines within precincts.

Weather was good all day long.We had a very good day.

I came back to Tennoji after a half year. Restaurants open in limited spaces snd close ealier because of COVID-19.

2020.3.19

It was fine and warm.

After work I headed for Tokyo station to get on Shinkansen.

Many people often mentioned there were a few people on Shinkansen or at the airport.

But mine was full of people.

It took four hours from Tokyo to Shin Osaka by Kodama, and I took subway and Keihan train to get to hotel.

It was midnight when I checked in the hotel. There were three presents.

I felt lucky.

2020.3.18

It was fine.

At lunch time I went to Takebashi. I happened to find a small market from Tohoku speciality. They were offering famous sweets called "Kamome no tamago (かもめの玉子) Eggs of Seagulls." There were two different kinds. One is a regular taste, the other is a Cherry blossom taste which is only sold in Kanto. I thought there is a factory only in Iwate. But they say there is another one in Tokyo. It was a surprise.

2020.3.17

Happy St. Patrick Day!

It was fine, but still cold.

Usually I have lunch by myself, but today I had with three colleagues. Two of them are from the different section, and one of them was the new staff. Another one is from the same section.  It was a rare chance.

In the afternoon I attended the zoom seminar, and learned some tips.

After work I went to see friends at Shinagawa and ate dinner.

2020.3.16

It was fine.

After arriving at the station, I realized that I left the commuting pass in another bag. Since it costs more than yen2,000 per day to commute, I went back home to get it. Fortunately I was in time.

I tried to create the zoom meeting for the first time today. I have attended several zoom meetings before but have never organized. I was worried a little bit but it was easier than I thought.

Because of COVIT-19, the need to use the tele-conference system is increasing. I will learn how to do well more tomorrow.

2020.3.15

It was fine.

In the morning I went grocery shopping.

In the afternoon I went to attend a seminar of becoming the Power Spot Meister, Day 2. We learned about Japanese history. It was fun and very informative.

I am glad to take this seminar.

2020.3.14

It was a cold rainy day.

In the late morning I left home to Onarimon to go to a post office to send a birthday present to my English friend.  Only a few post offices open on weekends. It is located near the station of the place I had attended the seminar in the afternoon.

The seminar is about becoming a Power Spot Meister. This is a five days course, and today was the day 1.

When I learned about Power Spot Meister last summer, I did not have any interest to take a course.

However after attending the instructor's other events, I felt like becoming the power spot Meister by myself and decided to attend for the second batch. 

The seminar consists of the lectures series of  first two days in March and the next two days in April and one day OJT at the Shrine.

After becoming the Meister, I hope to guide many foreign tourists to shrines and temples.

Today is White Day. It is a day when men who got chocolate on St. Valentine's Day return the sweet gifts to women. It is the custom of Japan. They say it snowed in Tokyo and became a real White Day.

2020.3.13

It was fine and warm.

Tomorrow is White day when men who received chocolate on St. Valentine's Day return sweets to women. My colleagues and I gave someone chocolates last month. To our surprise and fun we got sweets from someone we didn't present. Maybe next year we should.

On my way back I went to a kimono shop, and met some kimono friends there. I bought something at a good price. It is fun to shop.

At night I enjoyed talking with my friend through LINE. It was fun to talk after a long time.

2020.3.12

It was fine and warm.

On the way to the office I saw some shidare zakura (垂れ桜), weeping cherry blossoms starting to bloom. Spring is nearing.

Today the Torch relay of the Tokyo Olympic 2020 started in Greece. The first Japanese representative runner is Ms. Mizuki Noguchi, the Gold medalist of the Women's Marathon of the Athene Olympic 2004. I was there and saw her running a little bit.

When I was in Seville, Spain in 1992, I had a chance to see the Barcelona Olympic. Since then, I went to see the Atlanta Olympic in 1996, Nagano in 1998, Sydney 2000, Salt Lake in 2002, and Athene in 2004.  Athene is the origin of Olympic. Therefore I decided that Athene Olympic would be the last one I would go to see.

WHO announced that COVIT-19 is pandemic. I hope it will end soon and Tokyo Olympic will be held without any problem.

2020.3.11

It was fine and warm in the morning, but rained in the afternoon for a while.

It's been 9 years since the Great East Japan Earthquake happened.

I remember the day clearly even after 9 years.

It was fine but very cold on that day, Friday, March 11, 2011.

In the morning I went to Asakusa area to book the conference rooms to prepare for the JENESYS programme and I went to the office in the afternoon.

At 2:46 pm the big earthquake happened. It lasted long. We decided to evacuate to the nearby shrine and stayed there for a few hours. We saw our ex-office which was located in the 22nd floor of the building across the street swaying slowly. Trains stopped for a long time but when they started runing, those who could go home went home. Since I live far away from the office, and decided to stay overnight at the office. We went out for dinner at a small ramen shop. On our way back we were interviewed from the journalist because we were wearing helmets which were provided by the organization.

I stayed up all night. Fortunately Facebook was available, and I could let my friends abroad know that I was fine.

Next morning the director went to get something to eat. The director, my colleague and I lived in Kanagawa. The director was kind enough to let us go with him by Yokohama by taxi. 

From Kamioooka I took a train to home.

There was not so much damage at home fortunately. But the planned blackout started and we had to live without lights and heater for a several weeks.

However compared to the affected area in Tohoku or Fukushima, we were far much blessed.

There are still many people suffering in the area.

Those who lost their lives never come back.

We won't forget the day and their difficulties.

I hope the early recovery of the are and damaged hearts and bodies.

2020.3.10

It was cloudy in the morning, but raining when I got to Gimbocho. It was a rainy day all day long.

When I got to my station at night, I could see the beautiful full moon for a short period.

Today is my dead mother's 82nd birthday. I cannot believe it's been nearly 18 years without her.

I could accomplish many things today, and felt relieved.

The pandemic of threat of coronavirus is becoming real. I am wondering about Olympics.

2020.3.9

It was fine and rather warm.

One project was over successfully today.

After work I dropped at Yokosauka chuo to go to some places.

At night the full moon was so beautiful. 

Because of coronavirus there seems many economic problems happening. 

Flights between Japan and Korea are canceled.

I wonder what would happen to Olympics.

2020.3.8

It was a very cold rainy day.

In the morning I went grocery shopping. 

In the afternoon I went to Kimono-style Miya to have my new kimono pictures taken. Usually when I go there to have pictures taken, I go somewhere after that wearing kimono because I want to wear kimono as long as possible. However since it was raining, I gave up today.

Today is International Wonen's Day.

The other day "Time" magazine published Woman of the Year for the past 100 years. As the representative of 1995, Her Excellency Sadako Ogata Ex-United Nations High Comissioner for Refugees from1991 to 2000 was selected. Congratulations! She is my admired person. I have seen her once at a conference or something at a university long time ago, maybe when she was a President of JICA. I wanted to talk to her but did not have a courage to talk to. I should have tried.

I hope to serve for the World Peace in a way I can do.

2020.3.7

It was cloudy.

Because of Coronavirus, some events were postponed and canceled, therefore I stayed at home all day long.

I enjoyed chatting, shopping, and reading. All was done through smartphone,  what is more, all was free because I had some accumlated points. How convenience it is!

2020.3.6

It was fine.

TGIF

I came home before 8:30pm because a seminar was canceled.

From 9:00 pm I watched the Ceremony of Japan Academy Award on TV.

I have not seen most of movies which got awards. So I feel like watching them.

2020.3.5

Today is keichitsu (啓蟄), one of nijushisekki (二十四節気), the 24 solar terms. The last one was usui (雨水) on Feb.19 and the next one is shunbun (春分) on March 20.

Keichitsu is the time when worms or insects come out from the earth. It means spring has come.

It was fine this morning but became cloudy, windy and cold. In Hokkaido it has been snowing heavily. So I feel it is still winter.

Because of the spread of Coronavirus one event in May was postponed. We do not know until when. It was a very unfortunate change but most of us are trying to think of it as positive way.

After a bad thing happens, good things happen for sure.

After work I attended a monthly meeting. I feel like sharing the information I learned today to those who have been taking care of me and those who have ears to listen to retun for the kindness.

2020.3.4

It was a cold rainy day.

The spread of Coronavirus is making many social problems such as lack of masks, sold out of toilet paper and tissue paper, close of schools, postpone and cancel of the events, close of public facilities, false rumor, and so on. 

The high school baseball tournament will be held without spectators. So will the grand sumo wrestling.

I wonder how the Olympics will be.

2020.3.3

It was fine and rather warm.

March 3 is hina matsuri (ひな祭り), Doll's festival or joshi (上巳) or momo no sekku (桃の節句), peach festival. 

It is one of the five sekku (節句), seasonal festivals. Other four festivals are jinjitsu (人日) or nana kusa no sekku (七草の節句) on January 7, tango (端午) or shobu no sekku (菖蒲の節句) on May 5,  shichiseki (七夕)  or tanabata (七夕) on July 7, and chouyou (重陽) or kiku no sekku (菊の節句) on September 9. 

Families with daughters decorate hina ningyo (雛人形) dolls and wish their healthy and happy growth. 

Special menu on this day are chirashi zushi (ちらし寿司) and hamaguri (蛤) cram soup. Sweets are hishi mochi(菱餅), hina arare (ひなあられ), and sakura mochi (桜餅). Drink is shiro zake(白酒). We decorate peach flowers too.

Here is a shichidan or nanadan kazari (七段飾り), seven steps decoration. I hope you enjoy.

2020.3.2

It was a cold rainy day.

I still have a back and shoulder pain and cannot walk fast.

On my way home on the train I watched many short videos of cooking and baking. There were so many easy recipes which I felt like trying. 

Maybe some day. Who knows?

2020.3.1

A new month has started. March is sangatsu (三月) or yayoi (弥生) in Japanese.

It is a month of goodbye or graduation.

Due to the spread of Coronavirus, most of primary, secondary and high schools in Japan decided to close from March 2 to spring break which means they will be closed for more than one month. There will be no graduation ceremony as usual. What a pity!

I have had a back pain and canceled the special luncheon and stayed at home most of time except to visit the shrine as the first day ritual.

It was fine.

I started to drink Tahitian Noni CBD shot. It is rather sweet. I will try for a month.

I watched TV for a long time today.