Otto's blog

Tarumi Tour Time

Jun

29

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I caught a one-car train from Ogaki to a small town in the mountains called Tarumi, then rode my bicycle back from there. I stopped to have lunch by the Neo River, under a rail bridge. The train crossed it while I was there, so I was able to take a nice photo. There was a lot of nice scenery, so I often stopped riding and took photos. I want to go there again.

Grammar
stop + 動詞ing = (動詞)〜するのを止める
stop to + 動詞 = (動詞)〜するために止まる

A Bagful of... What!?

Nov

15

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The Biwa beach that I visited was pretty empty - just a handful of people were there, walking their dogs, or sitting on benches. A couple were beachcombing, like me, but I don`t think they were collecting what I collected - walnuts & water chestnut seed pods*. I had an idea, so I gathered a bagful of them. What do you think I`m going to make? Hint: Next month is December. The answer is in comments.

* https://jp.bloguru.com/otto/341395/water-chestnut-seed-pods

Vocabulary:
- a bagful/boxful/mouthful of ___ = 袋/箱/口にいっぱいの＿＿
- a handful of ___ = a small number/amount of ___
- 'A Fistful of Dollars' (Movie name, in Japanese: 荒野の用心棒) = 拳固にいっぱいの金

Biwa Beachcombing

Nov

14

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On Saturday I took a daytrip to Biwa Lake. I went to Maibara Station by train, then rode my folding bike (折りたたみ自転車) down* to a beach near Hikone Castle, where I found a couple of small rubber balls, a lure, a float, & some lighters with a little gas left in them (I was going to use them to make a small fire to make coffee, but there was a convenience store across the road, so I just bought coffee there instead).

I didn`t ride far on Saturday, but when I packed up my bike & carried it up** the stairs at the station, my legs felt tired. I guess I walked a lot without realising it.

Vocabulary:
- 'down' = *南 or 下
- 'up' = 北 or **上

Mystery Mihama Mountain Mushrooms

Oct

28

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After camping one night in Wakasa-Wada, I packed up & went by train to Mihama, where there is a mountain that I hiked up several years ago. That time, I saw wild deer & wild boar (イノシシ), but this time, I only saw some wild... mushrooms. I don`t know much about mushrooms, so I can`t tell you what kind they are. Do you know?

Anyway, so I didn`t see any wildlife, but the view from the top of the mountain was nice. As you can see, the side facing the sea is very steep, so although I wanted to explore the beach, I didn`t want to climb down.

Vocabulary:
- HIKE UP a mountain: walking on a path, not using hands
- CLIMB a mountain: very steep, using hands, maybe special equipment e.g. carabiners, ropes, etc.
-　岐阜の金華山での「ハイキング」は『hike up』を使った方がいい

Rowboats to Rent? Or to Borrow...?

Oct

27

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In this picture of Wakamiya Beach you can see a row (列) of row (コグ) boats on the right. I guess you can rent them during the summer. But how about late autumn? I didn`t see anybody around to ask. Maybe I could just quietly borrow one for a little while and nobody would mind... Haha, but not this time. As you can see by the length of my shadow (影), it was getting late, so after taking this photo, I headed back to the campsite.

Vocabulary
- rent = 借りる (+ pay money)
- borrow = 借りる (free)
- Be careful: rental: 形容詞. rent/rented: 動詞

Still Violinin`

Oct

27

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At the other end of the beach where I camped, there`s a nice park with a unique view. I took this photo there, then I noticed a sound... someone was playing a violin... playing a violin badly... Haha - I think it was the same guy I heard when I came here last year: https://jp.bloguru.com/otto/posts/2019/11/15 I`m glad he hasn`t given up. It must be a hobby that he really likes. Or his music teacher is very strict (厳しい )?

Grammar
- ____の場所 = [place] where ___
- ____の人 = [person] who/that ___
- ____の物 = [thing] which/that ___
- ____の時 = [time] when/that ___

Wakasa-Wada Camping

Oct

26

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Last week I went camping in Fukui. I arrived in Wakasa-Wada around midday, set up my tent, then went beachcombing. My main target was fishing floats. As you can see, I managed to (= tried & could) find several, so I was satisfied. I was also pleased with the weather - mainly sunny, with some clouds. Another good point was that the campsite was almost empty - in Japan, people mainly camp in summer only.

Grammar:
- Be careful: 'main' is 形容詞, 'mainly' is 副詞, so 'My main purpose...' OK, but 'The mainly reason...' WRONG

Wakasa-Wada Camping

Nov

15

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I stayed two nights at Wakasa-Wada Campsite. I love camping by the beach – the sound of waves, the smell of a campfire, the sight of thousands of stars at night... wonderful. On the other hand, the taste of bugs in your food, the feel of sand in your underwear...not so great.

Grammar
- __ の音/香り/光景/味/気持ち = the sound/smell/sight/taste/feel of ___

Little Boy with a Violin

Nov

14

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As I was passing this fishing port in Takahama Town, I could hear someone playing a violin...badly. I stopped & looked around and I saw a young guy standing alone, practicing his violin. There was nobody else around. Haha - it made me think of a book that I read when I was a child called "A Little Boy with a Big Horn". His tuba annoyed everyone, including farm animals, so eventually he had to play on a small boat at sea.

Vocabulary
- someone, anyone, no-one, everyone = somebody, anybody, nobody, everybody

Strange Sea Creatures

Nov

13

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Walking along the beach in Wakasa at about 4:30pm, I was getting a bit cold, so I was surprised to see so many surfers in the cold water. They must love surfing.

Speaking of strange sea creatures, I found an unusual shell, about 15cm long, on the beach. When I got home I researched it. It`s from a kind of octopus called a paper nautilus. It`s the first time I`ve seen this kind of shell.

Vocabulary
- Speaking of ___ = ___ と言えば