Election Day

I went and voted today.

Japan has been under the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) regime since 1994. They have issued too many government bonds, and collapsed the social insurance and pension systems.

Now, the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) is trying to take over. They promise to revive the deeply troubled economy.

Both parties say they will do things successfully, so I have got leaflets of their political views.

The contents seem to be almost the same. My focus is on the appearances of the leaflets themselves.

The DPJ is a paper folded in the middle, and contains four pages. It doesn’t look too expensive, and the four pages are enough to know what they will do. It appears to show an efficient spending of money.

On the other hand, The LDP’s leaflet has 20 pages including the cover. The paper quality is better than the DPJ’s so initial impression is good.

However, the contents were not easily understandable or clear. The same descriptions are repeated on multiple pages. Also, there is no table of contents. I needed a lot of time to understand the ideas the leaflet presented. I judged that this was a waste of paper and money. This, to me, means that the LDP will be unable to quit their wasteful use of tax revenue. They don’t seem to be smart.

It’s 1:30 pm, August 30, 2009. The result of the vote will be announced tonight.

Thank you.

P.S. The picture shown is of the place where I voted.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberal_Democratic_Party_(Japan)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_Party_of_Japan
Koir, Orochitachi, thanks for helping.

Roten

Last night I went to a summer festival at a shrine. There were many roten and yatai, which are small mobile shops.

Yatai generally means a small mobile shop, a definition that includes roten. However, yatai and roten offer different things. Yatai offers different kinds of food, we think of shops selling food. Roten, on the other hand, offer toys, willow baskets, goldfish scooping or ring toss. The picture shown is of a shooting game roten.

Rumor has it that yatai and roten are affiliated with gangs. The people selling things at yatai have a certain hierarchy: the higher-ranked people cook difficult dishes such as “okonomiyaki” and “yakisoba”. The lower-ranked people cook simpler food like baked corns. (Which, as you may have guessed, only need to be baked.) The highest-ranked people normally don't sell anything, but instead patrol the area and prevent fights. Nobody would start fighting knowing the scary people are walking around.

Again, these observations are only rumors.

Thank you.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yatai
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Okonomiyaki
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yakisoba
http://www.kikkoman.co.jp/homecook/search/recipe.php?numb=00001876 = baked corns
Koir, thanks a lot.

Guin Saga Vol.128

This is the latest volume of Guin Saga, entitled “Secrets behind the Sacred Shrine”.

Chief of Staff Yona of the Parros kingdom travels to Yaga, the holy land of the Miroku religion. He is secretly investigating the religious community. Yona discovers the people of Yaga are brainwashed as though they are puppets on wires. The magus assigned to protecting Yona is burned in a magic fire. To make matters worse, the community is enforcing a law making it illegal to leave Yaga once they enter.

I really want to know the future of Istavan’s sons! I think I need to wait about 100 volumes, but there isn’t any information about the new author continuing the series. (The original author, Kaoru Kurimoto, died in May.) Istavan has two sons: he has never seen one of them. I’m dying to know if they will lead their countries to war with each other in the future!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guin_Saga
Koir, snbzk and ANegative, thank you for correcting my English!

Fireworks Display

Every August 15, there is a fireworks display held close to where I live. I watched and enjoyed it again this year.

In the Edo era, people used to shout “Kagiya” and “Tamaya” while watching fireworks displays. Kagiya was the oldest fireworks maker in Japan, and Tamaya was the second. They would alternate their fireworks displays on the banks of a river. Kagiya was in the lower course of a river, and Tamaya was in the upper. People would shout the makers’ names in admiration.

In 1843, the Tamaya Company burned itself and the half of the town in an accidental fire. In those days, such a thing was a felony charge. As a result, the government put an end to the company and took all its assets. The master of Tamaya, Ichibee, was banished.

Kagiya still exists, and their master is the fifteenth-generation now.

Nowadays, there are many fireworks manufacturers. So, few people shout “Kagiya” and “Tamaya” during fireworks displays.

Regardless, small children enjoyed shouting "Kagiya" and "Tamaya" this year. Their parents may have told them to shout it when they watch fireworks. Their voices were very cute.

Thank you.

http://www.souke-kagiya.co.jp/
Koir, thanks a lot!

Bon/Obon : Augusut 9, 2009

Bon (or Obon) is a Japanese Buddhist custom concerning the spirits of ancestors. It takes place around August 15 in many areas all over Japan.

The main custom of Obon is visiting the graves of the ancestors, but customs vary by area.

In many areas, they make a horse and a cow called “shouryouuma” with a cucumber and an eggplant to welcome the ancestors. Shouryou means spirit, and uma means horse. They are the spirits’ conveyances between our world and the afterworld. The cucumber represents a fast-running horse; the spirits use it in their journey to arrive in our world early. The eggplant represents a slow-moving cow; the spirits use it to travel back to their world late.

However, there are many people who don’t visit the graves or participate in the ceremonies. They go out for a trip because many companies are closed around bon, and they take advantage of this opportunity.

Almost 50,000 people departed from Narita Airport yesterday, and they stay abroad for about a week.
Like Golden Week, all leisure venues and almost all Shinkansen trains are full of people. Expressways are full of cars, and plane tickets are more expensive during bon.

You should avoid Bon when you come to Japan for the same reasons as Golden Week.

Thank you.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bon_Festival
Koir and Nathan, thanks for correcting my English.

Bon Dance Event: August 2, 2009

I went to a bon dance event today. It is a festival that is held by neighborhood communities on summer nights. During the festival, people perform bon dances.If you go bon dancing, you should wear yukata. They are more informal kimono made from thinner fabric. Those who have stayed in a Japanese-style hotel, or "ryokan", may have worn a yukata. Hotel customers wear it to relax. It functions as both pajamas and bathrobe. In the past I enjoyed bon dancing. When I was an elementary school student, I made a promise with friends to go to bon dancing every year. I was really looking forward to going to the festival. I would put on yukata the day of the festival. My mother gave me some money. I bought some food at yatai (stalls which are open only during a festival), and ate with friends. And then, we danced in line.After becoming an adult and before getting married, I took Japanese classical dancing lessons. As a part of the lessons we performed bon dancing while wearing matching yukata.I’ve heard people perform bon dancing in many other countries now. If you see people dancing, please try. It’s very easy and simple.

Thank you.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bon_Festival#Bon_Odori
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZA_JRSvRGQ
Koir, thanks for helping as always.