一期一会（Ichigo Ichie)
10/26/2021
Vocabulary
I would like to talk about Ichigo Ichie.
Have you ever heard of this?
It’s frequently used in Japan.
It means you meet or experience something once in your life,
and that we should be grateful for these meetings/events/happenings.
Ichigo means one’s lifetime, and Ichie means experiencing something just once.
This phrase was born out of tea ceremony but can apply to real-l…
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Field Day
10/15/2021
Culture
Do you have a field day in your country? Japan has a national holiday in October called Sports Day, and most secondary schools celebrate it by organizing field day activities. It’s called Undokai at elementary schools or Taiikusai at middle and high schools. Let me talk about the kind of events students participated in.
There are a variety of events depending on the school.
For example, you will…
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NILS Blog – “Sanma”
10/13/2021
Culture
I would like to write about Sanma (Pacific saury) today. Most Sanma is fished in open seas off the coasts of Aomori and Chiba prefectures. Sanma caught in October is fatty and full of nutrients which help alleviate symptoms of lifestyle illnesses like high blood pressure, etc. Sanma in Chinese characters is written as ”秋刀魚”which translates to “autumn sword fish” because of its sword like apperance…
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Abbreviation
10/13/2021
Vocabulary
Hello, everyone. I would like to write about abbreviation today. I am sure you use your own unique abbreviation in your country. Japanese people are constantly abbreviating words to create new ones.
・Konbini
Convenience store
I always buy an obento box at Konbini by the station.
・Sumaho
Smartphone
Japanese people say Sumaho or Ketai.
・Sutaba
I like mocha frappuccino…
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Letter from Senpai at NILS Annex (Vol.2)
10/08/2021
News
We got a message from Senpai (a senior student) at NILS Annex.
His name is Alex. He is the billiards King at our school.
He is always looking for more people to play with.
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Hello.
My name is Alex and I love playing Billiards.
I have played and won many pool tournaments back home in America.
I have been at the NILS Annex school for…
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Let’s try Tongue Twister!
10/06/2021
Vocabulary
How do you normally practice your Japanese pronunciation?
Have you found a winning strategy?
Today, I am going to introduce some Japanese tongue twisters (早口言葉(はやくちことば)).
Like "She sells seashells on the seashore".
It may not help you to learn any conversational skills but might improve your pronunciations indeed.
Level (1)
生麦(なまむぎ) 生米(なまごめ) 生卵(なまたまご)
nama-mugi nama…
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虫の声－Mushinokoe
10/04/2021
Culture
It’s been cool lately, hasn’t it?
Today, I would like to tell you about the voice of insects.
As you know, there are four seasons in Japan. Autumn is a wonderful season here. It is cool and comfortable, and insects gently “cry” in the evening. (Autumn in Japan is from September to November.)
Since ancient times, this insects’ “cry” has been written in waka and haiku. Whe…
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What does “autumn” mean to you?
10/01/2021
Uncategorized
It’s getting cooler in Japan as we enter the fall season. What images come to you when you hear the word “autumn”? Japanese people often say “autumn is the season for …..” Let me give you four examples.
(1) Autumn is the season for eating.
There are a number of tasty things in autumn such as sweet potatoes, chestnuts, pears, bonito fish, mackerels, etc. It’s so easy to over eat. When ask…
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