Arthur Binard Lecture

Arthur Binard, an American author and poet living in Japan, came to speak to us last week.  He talked about why he moved to Japan and his experience with the language and culture of Japan.  He then went into detail about his views on nuclear power and the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II.  He was staunchly opposed to any practice regarding nuclear energy.  He spoke about how words helped him to understand the magnitude of the situation.  His commentary of the word "Pika" was so interesting; referring to it as a great burst of light made the event more real.  I was taken back to seventh grade, when I traveled to Hiroshima on a class trip. We saw the Peace Park, the various memorials, the A-Bomb Dome, and other various hot-spots.  In the memorial museum, I was struck by the information I was seeing; the pictures, the stories, the artifacts painted a picture of a horrific day in history.  I saw the stones with people's shadow's burned into them, the paintings of people begging for water, the watches that stopped at the moment the bomb hit.  I, like Arthur Binard, was at a loss. I didn't know how to feel about nuclear energy or the USA's decision to bomb Hiroshima and Nagasaki.  Although I still struggle with this debate, Arthur's lecture helped me to reform this question in my mind years after my trip to Hiroshima. 

まいにちの せいかつ

まいにち、くじに おきます。 シャワーをあびます。 あさごはんをたべません。 コーヒー を のみます。 まいにち、 クラスにきます。 じゅうにじはんひるごはんをたべます。 まいにち、にじに にほんごのじゅぎょがあります。 すぎ、うちにかえります。よじはんにしゅくだいをします。 ときどき、テレビをみます。 でも、まいにち テレビをみません。 しちじにばんごはんをたべます。 すぎ、べんきょうします。じゅういちじはんにねます。

Post 2!!

1. はじめまして。マキューです。わたしはアメリカじんです。わたしはいちねんせいです。 わたしのせんこうはまだわかりません。どうぞよろしく。

2. My favorite place in Japan is Takeshita-dori shopping street in Harajuku.  Harajuku is famous for shopping and fashion.  I love all the little stores; my favorite store is one that has funny t-shirts with Japanese badly translated into English. The phrases are all hilarious and don't really make sense.  We always bought them for our friends and relatives back in the US.  I also love to see all the people in Harajuku dressed up. When I was little, I always wanted to dress up like the women in the little-bow-peep costumes.  Harajuku was always my favorite place to go on the weekends and I can't wait to return there when I visit Japan!