Christmas holiday is coming…

The University of Waikato will close at 5pm today and reopen on the 3rd of January. A few divisions remain open to help our students/future students for their enrollment etc.; so please do make an inquiry during this period! ワイカト大学は今日の午後5時で閉[し]まります。1月3日にまたオープンします。でも、全部[ぜんぶ]が閉まるわけではありません。来年のコースや入学[にゅうがく](= entry)の質問[しつもん]などがあれば、どうぞ問[と]い合[あ]わせ(= inquiry)をしてくださいね。 You can see beautiful red flowers in New Zealand now (see the above photo) […]

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Congratulations! おめでとう!

The University of Waikato has graduation ceremonies this week. It is nice to share this wonderful moment with friends and family. 今週、ワイカト大学は卒業式[そつぎょうしき](= graduation ceremony)の週です。すばらしい瞬間[しゅんかん](= moment)を家族[かぞく](= family)や友だちとシェアするのはいいものです。 We all wish our graduates a bright future!  卒業生のみなさんのすばらしい将来[しょうらい](= future)を祈[いの]っています!

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A Japanese tea shop in New Zealand

I love macha ice cream; how about you? Have you ever tasted macha ice cream before? 私は抹茶[まっちゃ]アイスクリームが大好きです。みなさんは、どうですか。食べたことがありますか。 Macha is a type of Japanese green tea and the green bit in the above photo shows is macha ice cream. Now you can eat authentic one in New Zealand – to be more accurate, in Auckland. 抹茶は、日本のお茶の一種[いっしゅ](= a type)です。上の写真[しゃしん]の緑色[みどりいろ]のものが抹茶アイスクリームです。ニュージーランドでも(正確[せいかく]に言えば(= […]

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Bocchi meshi (eating alone)

Have you heard of a Japanese word ‘Bocchi meshi’? Bocchi means ‘alone’ and meshi means ‘meal’ in this context; then Bocchi meshi means ‘eating a meal by yourself’. Anybody anywhere eats meals alone from time to time and you might think that this is nothing special, right? The word, Bocchi meshi, often appears in the […]

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Fukuoka!

I found another article related to Japan on today’s paper (New Zealand Herald); this time it is about a trip to Fukuoka, a sister city of Auckland. 今日も新聞[しんぶん]記事[きじ](= newspaper article)を見つけました。今日は、ニュージーランド・ヘラルド紙で、福岡[ふくおか]の記事です。福岡はオークランドの姉妹[しまい]都市[とし](= sister city)です。

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A Japan tour

Today’s Waikato Times gives an article of an upcoming tour to Japan a few NZ celebrities are involved with.  Probably quite a few people are now thinking of going to Japan next year; why? – it is because of RWC2019! 今日のワイカト・タイムズにニュージーランドの有名人[ゆうめいじん]が随行[ずいこう]する(= to escort)日本旅行の記事[きじ](= article)がありました。多分[たぶん]、ニュージーランドのかなりの人たち(= quite a few people)が来年、日本へ行くことを考えていると思います。なぜかって?-それは勿論[もちろん]、2019年のラグビーワールドカップですよ!      

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Japanese onsen and tattoos

Do you have tattoos and are you interested in onsen (= hot spring)? People with a tattoo(s) are normally not permitted to enter bathing facilities in Japan. The reason is that tattoos are considered as an indication of association with yakuza crime syndicates. This tattoo-related regulations has become tricky nowadays as so many non-Japanese tourists […]

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Intriguing sanitizer

Winter is approaching in the northern hemisphere and people there have started worrying flu. One of the effective prevention methods is to sanitize your hands. Although everybody knows that, it is not easy to do that… 北半球[きたはんきゅう](= the northern hemisphere)では冬[ふゆ]が近づいています。インフルエンザの季節[きせつ](= season)です。インフルエンザの予防[よぼう](= prevention)には手洗[てあら]い(= washing hands)が大切[たいせつ](= important)です。でもわかっていても、なかなか難[むずか]しいです。 Then, a hospital in Osaka, Japan, came up with a […]

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