Japanese having calm spring time to overcome covid-19 epidemic

March 30, 2020

Japanese having calm spring time to overcome covid-19 epidemic

"Nothing can go on all the time as usual in people's life." This must be a feeling many Japanese equally have these days, as Japan finds itself in a hard fight to halt the spread of the covid-19 epidemic, as is the case with other countries.
Heartened with the arrival of spring, Japanese people enjoy themselves around this time of the year while having "sakura" cherry blossom-viewing parties at nice spots. But the new deadly virus has forced them to give up the sakura viewing and other outdoor spring functions.
Unlike the United States and European countries, Japan has no legal base to urge its people to stay at home in order to overcome the pandemic. Japanese people are instead asked to refrain from going out for nonessential purposes.
This is expected to amount to the shelter in place instructions, just as seen in some foreign countries, in view of the serious character of Japanese people.
Traffic and people's movement are limited, not just on streets in big cities but also at tourist spots and other places which attract people hoping to see sakura blossoms and pretty spring flowers. As a result, attractive sakura trees at many places stand little noticed by viewers.
Japan's first covid-19 infection was confirmed in mid-January, and then, the number of infected people in the country kept increasing uninterruptedly.
The pace of increase was less quicker than in other countries from February to early March, but the speed has become faster week by week since then.
As of March 29, the number of infections with the new virus across Japan had come to 2,612, including about 50 fatal cases.

Japanese people experienced hard days after the devastating earthquake-triggered tsunami tidal waves claimed some 20,000 lives mainly in the northeastern part of Japan in March 2011.
In the following years, the strength of their solidarity was tested as they tried hard to get back on their feet from the mishap. Their unity is expected to be tested this time, again, though their current enemy is invisible and hard to catch.

Schoolchildren, parents joining Japan's fight to contain coronavirus epidemic

February 28, 2020



Schoolchildren, parents joining Japan's fight to contain coronavirus epidemic

Japanese people find themselves buoyant with the advent of spring around this time of the year. March is one of the brightest times for most people living in Japan, but the situation for them has proved to be quite different this year.
Japanese government officials have been busy taking steps to contain the new coronavirus epidemic, which broke into Japan early February after causing thousands of people in China to contract the fatal disease from December to January.
Japan's shoreline operations against the epidemic failed as a luxury cruse chip with over 3,700 passengers and crewmen entered Yokohama Port February 7 without a sufficient quarantine, after carrying an infected passenger from Japan to Hong Kong.
Japan's fight against the covid19, the virus so named by the WHO, culminated in Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's call for closing elementary schools and junior and senior high schools across Japan from early to late March, in an effort to keep the epidemic from spreading among pupils and students.
The action triggered moves among school officials and parents across the country to prepare an environment for children and students to study and spend their time out of school. 
Most influenced by the action are parents both of whom have jobs. The situation is said to be even more serious for single mothers. Groups of such mothers in some areas wasted no time to talk to each other about ways to take care of their children by turn.
At an elementary school in the southern part of Fukuoka Prefecture, southwestern Japan, schoolchildren rushed out to the school grounds for a play time after lunch. They appeared to have no information as yet about exactly when the school is to be closed.
One boy said, "Don't know well, but the head teacher's just gone to meet somebody. So said an upper class kid."
Schoolkids seemed generally careless spending their time, despite their parents' concerns about what to do with their daily life ahead.
Nursery schools and after-school nursing facilities are exempt from the action for closing schools. This is expected to lead working mothers and others in a similar situation to flock to places which can take care of children while the schools are closed.

Japan's warm winter days add to fears of spread of irregular climate

January 30, 2020

Japan's warm winter days add to fears of spread of irregular climate

Japanese people in many parts of the country saw a string of warm, rather sunny days early this year. The warmness made many kinds of flowers bloom from early to mid-January, about 30 to 40 days faster than in the ordinary year.
On the bank of a brook flowing in the old castle town area of Akizuki in the northern part of Kyushu, southwestern Japan, were a few tiny white dandelions, which were seen standing straight up amid a warm rainfall. Daffodils and rape blossoms were also found around the brook.
Similar unusual phenomena have been witnessed elsewhere in southwestern to western Japan this winter.
Snowfalls were little seen or limited in many parts of the Japanese Archipelago in the early days of January. This came as a relieving, happy sign to those who have to grapple with heavy snow every winter. But some people complain of the abnormally warm weather this winter.
Limited snowfalls mean that soil in the fields is exposed to cold winds with no cover to keep it warm for a good crop in spring.
"Planted in my gardens are mostly cold-resistant perennial flowers, so, unless cold weather comes to stimulate their growth in winter, a smooth blossoming cannot be expected in the coming months," a flower lover says.
The unusually warm weather also has annoyed those who grow root vegetables like horse radish.
These vegetables grow too fast beyond specified sizes this winter, making it difficult to supply their produce to the market.
Some weathermen also warn that the warm weather in Japan this winter might have something to do with the recent extensive forest fires in Australia, which are linked to the global warming.

X'mas season event in busy southwestern Japan city focuses on eco-friendliness

December 28, 2019

X'mas season event in busy southwestern Japan city focuses on eco-friendliness

Brilliant illumination displays have come to stay as an important part of Christmas and other open-air winter events across Japan.
The Fukuoka Christmas Market is one of these events, but it has been designed not just to entertain visitors amid cold weather but also to give them an opportunity to think about the importance of eco-friendliness.
The event was held simultaneously at four different locations in Fukuoka, one of the busiest cities in southwestern Japan, until December 25.
The  biggest site of them was set up at the square in front of the north entrance to JR (Japan Railways) Hakata Station.
The European-taste Christmas Market at the Hakata Place Light Town, the seventh of its kind, attracted hundreds of people every night.
A panel placed at a corner at the site carried an organizers' message calling for cooperating in reducing food loss and garbage while enjoying the happy event.
As part of efforts to raise awareness about eco-friendliness, organizers recommended visitors to use mug cups, rather than conventional disposable plastic and paper cups, at shops which serve hot wine and hot whisky.
The original, colorful mugs have been made with different designs every year since the first Christmas Market there in 2013.
In an additional effort to reduce the use of plastic products, wood-made knives and forks and a ceramic plate were used at a shop serving sausages.
As the number of supporting local businesses has continued to grow, this year's Christmas Market at the station square brought together about 30 shops providing foods and drinks and carrying accessories and Christmas goods.
"Some shops change sometimes and open on certain days, so you can enjoy many times," a staffer said.
The station square spreads on an area of about 200 square meters, including a rent site of 62 square meters.
The square is located at so convenient a place that draws not just interested people but also commuters or passers-by for attractive events.
As the night falls, seats in front of the stage and the light tower were occupied by spectators one by one.
At a different place at the square was a crowd of people, including families and kids, looking up at their own beaming faces displayed on a huge screen on the wall of the station building.
The use of less power-hungry LEDs is seen to spread further in Japan and this is expected to reduce the cost of night illuminations.
Many Japanese people, families and couples alike, are expected to be drawn more to heart-warming light displays in the holiday season ahead.

More attention called to "washoku" Japanese dishes as UNESCO World Cultural Heritage

November 28, 2019

More attention called to "washoku" Japanese dishes as UNESCO World Cultural Heritage

Japan's autumn this year should be shorter than usual. So had many weathermen predicted, and their prediction has almost hit, as early signs of winter appeared from the middle of November. Japan's autumn can be characterized many ways, say, "autumn of art" and "autumn of appetite” with lots of delicious foods available. The 24th day of November is designated as "the Day of Washoku" (Japanese dishes) by a domestic private-sector, nonprofit organization.
Washoku, or nihonshoku, was designated as the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage in December 2013 after years of campaign by groups and organizations in various sectors.
Japanese people's food custom has been largely westernized since the Meiji era late in the 19th century. The introduction of western foods led Japanese to favor meat-based rich-calorie dishes rather than their traditional seafood or vegetable-oriented, less oily meals. But these days, they have come to realize the reasonable, health-oriented nature of Japan's original meals once again.
Experts summarize the characters of washoku foods and dishes the following ways, washoku dishes are prepared with fresh wide-ranging ingredients in their respective season; they support healthy food life; they are made so to demonstrate the beauty of Japan's nature and seasonal changes; they have close links to Japanese people's life on seasonal events and functions related to special days like the New Year's holidays.
The Day of Washoku was designated so in 2015 by the Washoku Association of Japan, aimed at disseminating the knowledge about Japan's food culture and its traditional dishes and cuisines.
The 24th day of November, 11-24, was selected as the special day on a play on words, or the similarity of Japanese pronunciations of the terms involved and the day 11-24.
The traditional washoku meals basically consist of the main dish, usually cooked rice served in a cup, and two side dishes. One of the side dishes comes usually with a "dashi" soup prepared with ingredients like dried mushrooms and dried seaweeds. The combination enables the one to take various kinds of foods and nutrition little by little, neither too much nor too little, with the original taste of  each ingredient kept intact.
Japanese eat pumpkin on the winter solstice with hopes to bring in happiness on the cycling solar life, while the "osechi" meals with foodstuffs of good omen are served on the New Year's Day to celebrate the beginning of the year.
Japanese have had many other food-related customs to observe throughout the year, which help remind them how best to live in their season-rich country. The series of washoku-related events is expected to keep supporting their food life and health from generation to generation ahead.

Cosmos flowers charm Japanese with elegant, dignified appearance

October 30, 2019

Cosmos flowers charm Japanese with elegant, dignified appearance

As the season gradually shifts from fall to winter, the view around the living environment is becoming gloomier in many parts of Japan. People in northern Japan have already begun to prepare for the arrival of cold days, while those in warmer regions are still enjoying their days with less brighter but cute autumn flowers.
The cosmos flower, which belongs to the chrysanthemum family, is one of the most favored autumn flowers in Japan. Cosmos is sometimes called "akizakura" in Japan. This means the autumn sakura cherry blossom.
Japanese liken cosmos flowers to sakura blossoms which charm and enliven people across the country in spring, maybe because both flowers have the same character which inspires their heart, something which is fragile but strong and tough inside.
The sakura blossoms are loved by Japanese perhaps because they fall in a graceful manner quickly after blooming. The cosmos flowers are pretty, willowy and pitiable, but they can stand softly against strong winds, and if trampled on, get back on their feet.
Besides wild species, there are over 20 garden species of cosmos flowers in Japan.  They are available mostly from August to October, but a garden species called "winter cosmos" by cosmos lovers can bloom toward winter.
One day, a bunch of winter cosmos flowers was placed in a vase at the entrance hall of my home.
My wife had just obtained the flowers from a friend of her, who is living in the neighborhood. She said, "the flower (winter cosmos) can be easily spread by cutting, and we can long enjoy it," according to my wife.
The white, single-petaled flower, with a yellow center, looked dignified in chilly morning air.
The cosmos flowers including the garden species should continue to console and support many Japanese, helping them to withstand hard times ahead.

Japanese hoping to see quiet autumn after busy start of new Imperial era

September 29, 2019

Japanese hoping to see quiet autumn after busy start of new Imperial era

The "sakura" cherry blossom tree is one of the most beloved flowering trees in Japan. About 400 to 500 species of sakura trees are known, and almost all of them bloom in spring, from late March to early May, northward up on the Japanese Archipelago.
It is known that a few of them bloom toward late autumn, but spring flowering trees also sometimes bloom in autumn, depending on the weather condition and other factors. These ones are called October sakura or November sakura trees.
The phenomenon is believed to be unseasonal flowering, but some foresters say this is a kind of the reversion to the origin, or genetic throwback.
The origins of sakura trees seen in Japan, which came from the southern part of Asia, mainly the Himalayan area, had been blooming in autumn, but while these species spread to colder regions, to China and to Japan, they obtained the nature of dormancy to overwinter by shedding leaves.
In September this year, strong winds often blew in some parts of Japan and there were warm days, too. These obviously let the sakura trees believe that spring has come for them to bloom.
Japan's current Imperial era of Reiwa, which means "beautiful peace," was declared on April 1. This coincided with the blooming of sakura trees in most parts of Japan. Then, the Reiwa era began a month after, on the enthronement of Emperor Naruhito.
Greeting the start of the new Imperial era, many Japanese hoped that the coming period will be a peaceful one, unlike the just finished Heisei era, which was filled with a host of big natural disasters and serious incidents. But Japanese saw not a few serious accidents and incidents occur in the first months of the new era.
In the two months from August to September, as many as four powerful typhoons came close to or landed on the Japanese Archipelago, playing havoc with widely scattered areas of Japan.
Japan plans to hold a series of events or ceremonies in October in celebration of the Emperor's enthronement.
"The sakura flowers I just saw look like celebrating the happy occasion once again," said my wife.
"It's me. I found some sakura trees bloom when I drove up on the approach road back to our town," she said. "I haven't seen the trees right there bloom in autumn so far."
The sakura flowers are tiny and admirable, but purely white. The flowers appear to be ushering in quiet days in the autumnal air for the new Imperial era.