Japanese summer is very hot and humid. It is hard to get through the day during such heat, but there are many events that can be enjoyed, especially in the summer. One of my favorites is strolling through the yomise (night stalls). They are often seen when a festival is held and offer various food and games. Goldfish scooping is a popular game in which a player scoops goldfish with a special net. The scooper is made with thin paper attached to a round frame. The game lasts until the paper breaks. Since the paper is easily ripped when wet the game might end quickly if you don't have the skill to catch a fish. When I was little, I was so happy to bring back the goldfish that I caught, and let them swim at a small pond in our yard.
Japanese translation

"Doyo ushi no hi" is a day in late July dedicated to eating eel. The day falls on July 26th this year. The custom began in the 18th century. Since Japanese summer is hot and humid, many people suffer from natsubate (summer fatigue). It is believed that eating nutritious eel helps to increase stamina and beat the summer heat. On Doyo ushi no hi, you will find eels sold in every supermarket. Long advertisement flags (nobori) are often around to promote sales. I love eel. Una-don (unagi-donburi) is one of the dishes that I always request from my mom when I go back to Japan. It is particularly good with sansho pepper. I feel hungry!

Japanese translation

How is your Japanese study going? Have you started learning Japanese writing? If you are new to Japanese, I recommend you learn hiragana first. Japanese children usually start with hiragana as well. They practice each character repeatedly until they master it. It might feel a little tedious, but it is very important to write Japanese with the correct stroke order. There are various Japanese sites that allow you to download free hiragana worksheets. I like the Kids Nifty site as it has cute pictures to make studying fun. It is also pretty easy to follow the instructions, even if you can't read Japanese. I have also updated my hiragana lessons. I think it will be very rewarding if you start to recognize some hiragana characters. I hope you enjoy studying hiragana.

Japanese translation

July 7th is "Tanabata", the Star Festival in Japan. It is derived from a legend where Orihime (Star Vega) and Hikoboshi (Star Altair) are lovers separated by the Milky Way and are only allowed to meet once a year, on the seventh day of the seventh month. People write their wishes on narrow strips of colored paper (tanzaku) and hang them with other decorations on bamboo branches. It is a fun celebration, especially for kids. Some of their wishes are cute to read. You can check out the story of tanabata, written in hiragana, on this site. Also, if you would like to try making some tanabata decorations, this site has good instructions (some even have animated instructions).
Japanese translation