Reading material

Sam's current Japanese reading practice consists of this little gem of a comic, picked up from a second-hand store nearby. You would have bought it too. It's about a gaijin English teacher in a Japanese high school. The subtitle seems to suggest he's good at his job.

Arimatsu Yukata Festival

Tomoko took us to Arimatsu, on the outskirts of Nagoya, to see one of the first summer festivals. Here they specialise in a special yukata-dyeing process called shibori, which is kinda like tie-dyeing but much, much more beautiful. Families were out for the day, and we were pummelled by innumerable old ladies' elbows. The town is centred around some old streets with traditional wooden houses and shops, a little like Ise or Takayama.

Minami Sports Day - Serious Stuff

Mikan's Performance

Our friend Mikan gave a shakuhachi performance with Hattori-san, a world-famous taiko (Japanese drums) player who just happens to live in our area. The two of them mostly improvised, jazz-like, on some traditional Japanese melodies and structures. The performance was in a little jazz bar in our very own Yokkaichi - wonders never cease.