♫Song of the week: “君へのラブソング〜１０年先も〜” by Matsushita Yuuya (松下優也)

This week (sorry I missed out on last week’s!) the spotlight is on Matsushita Yuuya’s song, “君へのラブソング〜１０年先も〜” (“Love Song To You ~ Even after 10 years ~”).

<video updated soon, hang in there!>

This song is still pretty fresh! It came out exactly three months ago in January. I recall hearing it somewhere on the internet when it first came out, and heard it again last week when I was at Daiso! (yes that is where I get my music from) It’s a nice break from all the techno-supersonic-pop that seems to be all the rage these days, and best of all it’s a sappy love song! The music video is quite interesting to watch too, Yuuya seems to have hand gestures to match all his lyrics!

The best part of this song is the actual lyrics being sung, so I tried to translate them for y’all, check it out below!

Jelly・ゼリーMay 2012

The magazine ‘Jelly・ゼリー’ is a fashion magazine that describes itself targeting ‘new generation’ gyaru. Others will call this style ‘glam’- think Ayumi Hamasaki, who also appeared on the cover of this month’s magazine :O It is published by Bunkasha, which also publishes another magazine called Ranzuki.

Here’s Ayu-chan showcasing her ‘new generation’ gyaru – a combination of cute glam.

Harajuku Street Fashion・原宿ストリートファッション

Harajuku is ‘the fashion capital’ of Japan, commonly known as the area around Harajuku Station in the Shibuya ward of Japan. Today the term ‘Harajuku’ can refer to anyone dressed in any fashion style walking around Harajuku. They are normally teenagers that donne a variety and hybrids of styles such as goth lolita, visual kei, decora, gyaru and also cosplayers that come together and socialise in this giant area. Ultimately, there are no set rules for Harajuku street style because it is it is all about portraying your ‘own’ style – which can be as unique or bizarre as you want.

Alright, please hold onto your seat dearie, because I am going to transport you to another world:

I like how she looks cute but spunky at the same time.

Mori Girl・森ガール

Since we haven’t posted much on Japanese fashion yet [not really much = not at all] I would like to officially start our fashion section! Perhaps the more popular or well known Japanese fashion styles are the bright, neon Harajuku street styles complete with wacky hairstyles gelled up ten feet, the kawaii lolita/hime gyaru, schoolgirl/ganguro, dramatic visual kei – just off the top of my head.

However to start off, I would like to introduce a style that is more subculture but has gained popularity very quickly since 2006, the official launching of the mori girl community by a girl calling herself choco on Mixi, Japan’s most popular social networking site.

‘森・mori’ means forest in Japanese and the term ‘mori girl’ is a style concept that refers to those ‘that like to look they they live in a forest’, wandering in their loose dresses, vintage prints and quaint accessories. It is a rather natural and earthy look and Mori girls are often described as being down-to-earth [literally and metaphorically] as well as being joyful of life’s simple pleasures.

A mori girl! :O I like the vibe of purity and innocence that this style normally gives off.

Crème Brûlée・クレーム ブリュレ

お久しぶりですね＾＾
Hi everyone! :> It’s been a while!

Today I’ll be sharing a recipe I found on Crème Brûlée (down…), the French dessert, but with a Japanese take on it. This is for all you Amélie fans out there.

Melon Bread・メロンパン

Melon Pan・メロンパン is normally sold in bakeries in Japan as well as in cafeterias at schools. They resemble the appearance of a rock melon, sort of, and so therefore they are intelligently named ‘melon’ bread.

Here’s a gimungo melon pan that I bought from 85 degrees, a Taiwanese bakery shop. One of these is enough to fill you up for lunch or dinner. And as you can see in the picture, I had two.

Now…introducting Cooking with Dog! No, not literally. Francis, the host of the show will show you how to make melon pan.

♪Song of the Week: “手纸一拝啓15の君へ” by Angela Aki

According NHK, news broadcaster of Japan, the life of a Japanese teenager is harder than others. The pressure to study hard has driven many cases of suicide amongst junior high school students in Japan.

Angela Aki (one of the bests artists ever. hands down) wrote a song targeting junior high school students. It is about a 15 year old student who writes a letter to her future self, asking for guidance and reassurance.

…and sure enough, she receives a reassuring letter back.

It is such a beautiful song so please do listen to it. When you feel that the workload is pulling you down so much that you are suffocating and you can’t escape, find a peaceful spot and play this song.

手紙ー拝啓十五の君へ・Tegami – Haikei Jyuugo no Kimi e
Letter – Greetings to a 15 Year Old.

歌手: アンジェラ・アキ
作詞: アンジェラ・アキ
作曲: アンジェラ・アキ

Dorayaki・どら焼き

This is a typical Japanese dessert/street food that consists of two small pancake patties with a filling of red bean. For all those who have watched Doraemon・ドラえもん, a popular Japanese cartoon, good on you, a pat on a back. Dorayaki is Doraemon’s favourite food and unfortunately he gets bribed with it all the time. I understand his sentiments because I am also a major fan of dorayaki, especially the red bean. We can be dorayaki buddies.

Here’s our favourite Doraemon nom nom noming away at his pile of dorayaki. As you can see, it is so sought after that the other characters have carved a hole in the ground just to steal some.

For all those who have not watched Doraemon, your homework for this week is to watch it.

Curry Rice・カレーライス

In my spare time I read recipes in Japanese (yes, I do that as procrastination). Therefore, I’ve decided to translate recipes for you, my friends, so everyone can learn Japanese and cuisine all in one go! Har har. Aren’t I a smartie one?

Today’s recipe is curry rice. Yes, although it is supposed to be a Western dish, it was introduced in Japan during the Meiji era and it has become super widespread nowadays. You can find it in supermarkets and restaurants all over Japan now. Unlike Indian curry, Japanese curry normally has a milder flavour and it has a sweet taste to it.

Eri and I tried this recipe a while back, but we sort of ad libbed the whole process to serve two people ☆～（ゝ。∂）. I must say, curry rice is one of those recipes that even two baka teenage girls can’t mess up, therefore it is virtually i-have-never-cooked-a-day-in-my-life-proof. If that makes sense.

オススメ：Lang-8 – Don’t fear mistakes!

Hi everybody!

I’d like to recommend a website to everyone today to help you with your Japanese (or actually any other language) studies. The website is www.lang-8.com. I’ve been using it for… maybe half a year now? And i’m really loving it!

Since their last renovation they’ve added a few nice features here and there, so it’s even easier to use now! Oh and it’s free!

Now I can hear you all calling out: “But what is it?” Good question.
Well, it’s