Chika

2016 July Courses

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Course Schedule for 7/5/16 ~ 7/27/16              week 1 Tue 7/5/16 Wed 7/6/16 6:00-6:50pm Beginner 3 Beginner 1 7:10-8:00pm JAP 101   week 2 Tue 7/12/16 Wed 7/13/16 6:00-6:50pm Beginner 3 Beginner 1 7:10-8:00pm JAP 101   week 3 Tue 7/19/16 Wed 7/20/16 6:00-6:50pm Beginner 3 Beginner 1 7:10-8:00pm JAP … Read more

書道 – Japanese Calligraphy

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Calligraphy

Japanese calligraphy or “shodō” in the Japanese language literary means a way of writing.  Normally we use a brush with sumi or ink on washi for calligraphy.  Japanese calligraphy came from China originally.  A calligraphy class is one of the compulsory educational classes in Japanese schools.  We start learning calligraphy in elementary school.  To me calligraphy is also a type of meditation.  It lets me focus but relax at the same time.

If you are interested in it, let’s do it together.

– Contact Info –

Chika Sugiyama

mail@learnjapan.co

202-656-6085

2016 June Courses

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Sign-up is available for June courses: 6/6/16-6/29/16 Limited Time Offer (until 5/31/16)! Only $90 for 4 classes!!!  (You save $30) We will meet once a week for four weeks in College Park, MD Course Schedule          week 1 Mon 6/6/16 Tue 6/7/16 Wed 6/8/16 6:00-6:50pm Beginner 1 Beginner 2 Japanese for Kids (age … Read more

子どもの日 – Children’s Day

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鯉のぼり 02

May 5th is an official holiday in Japan called Children’s Day or Kodomo No Hi (こどもの日).  Often we raise carp-figure flags (こいのぼり – Koi Nobori) on the roof of the house to wish a child (or children)’s health and strength.  In a Chinese legend a carp that swam against upstream turned into a dragon, so we wish our children to be as strong as the carp.  

Photo is at the Tokyo Tower.

Shin Godzilla vs Godzilla

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Godzilla vs Shin Godzilla

Upper photo: Godzilla from 1964. Lower photo: Shin Godzilla from 2016. Shin Godzilla got a huge glowing red body with tiny eyes. On the other hand, Godzilla from 60’s~70’s has big eyes and has a charm about him.

桜 – Cherry Blossom 2016

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sakura16 01

It’s time for cherry blossoms in DC!

Cherry Blossoms in Washington DC have reached peak on 3/25/16 according to The National Park Service.

Although cherry blossoms are not a floral emblem of Japan officially, cherry blossoms are strongly associated with Japan and Japanese culture.

日本から贈られたDCの桜は今がピーク。　正式には日本の国花は菊ですが、桜もほぼ、日本の国花のように扱われていますよね。

新幹線 – Bullet Train

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Shinkansen 01

As you may know, Japan is famous for its bullet train or shinkansen (新幹線, which literally means “new trunk line”).  These trains can now run at speeds up to 320km/hour (200mph).  When shinkansen service first started in 1964, the bullet trains only ran at about 210km/hour (130mph) on one line connecting Tokyo and Osaka – but even this speed was much faster than most other trains.  Today trains that run this fast or faster already connect most major cities on the islands of Honshū (Japan’s Main Island) and Kyūshū (South Island).  Beginning on 3/26/16 the first shinkansen will travel between Honshū and Hokkaidō (North Island), and those islands will be connected through a tunnel.

A short video showing shinkansen trains in operation network is here.

Sakura Strawberry Drinks

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Starbucks sakura 01a

An early spring special for Starbucks in Japan is sakura (cherry blossom) strawberry flavor.  They have both latte and frappuccino versions that come with sakura strawberry flavor sauce, sakura strawberry whipped cream and sakura strawberry shaved chocolate.  Japanese people get excited about seasonal limited time items, and these are only available for one month until 3/15/16.