Yesterday we went on a bike ride to a park not too far from our house.
At the park, my kids caught 蛙 (frogs) and 蝉 (cicadas).
They’re girls and they’re teenagers…but they’ll still go out with their parents. And they still wanna catch bugs.
I’m glad! As their father, they’ll never grow up…in my mind!
Here’s a video of my second daughter holding a couple of 蝉 (cicadas) she caught. At the end, she asks me 「もういい？」 (“Enough?”):
There’s a Japanese style garden at the park.
 |
 |
| (A wooden lantern) | (Looking thru a stone lantern) |
Here’s a couple of shots of the river near the park:
 |
 |
And here are a couple of videos that I took of trains going over the bridge:
++++++++
One the way home from the park we stopped at 「ザ・ダイソー」 (“The Daiso“) for a couple things.
Do you know “The Daiso” (usually just called “Daiso”, or 百均 (Hyakkin (which is an abbreviation for 百円均一 (Hyakuenkinitsu), or 百円ショップ (¥100 Shop))?
There are other ¥100 shops…and even a ¥99 shop. But Daiso is almost synonymous with ¥100 shop.
Daiso is basically the Japanese version of the American One Dollar Store. (¥100 is almost equal to US$1)…but Daiso sells better merchandise. Better quality and more useful.
So, I guess I shouldn’t be surprised to learn that they’ve expanded overseas.
There are now Japanese Daiso stores in Korea, Singapore, United Arab Emirates, and the west coast of Canada and America (among other countries)!
Here’s the Daiso website.
++++++++
It’s obvious by their manners…but now it’s official:
Japanese travelers are the best tourists.
Tokyo Five 
Alot of foreigners go to that Daiso, huh?
There’s actually two of them within walking distance from my house.
LikeLike
Yes, we love the Daiso store – we usually go to the one in Harajuku, which I think is one of the bigger stores in Tokyo.
In Canada, we also have Dollar stores and I have to agree with you that the quality and selection is better in Japan.
LikeLike
hangyodonさん, (I assume that comment’s from you. You forgot to write your name…so I added it for you).
I know a bit about cicadas and other insects because my 2nd daughter (the one in the video) likes bugs and she’s read alot about them…and told me.
I’m glad that you use the ふりがな…I was wondering if anyone used it—if not, I wasn’t gonna bother anymore.
So I’ll continue to add it.
LikeLike
They were so big; I thought for sure they would bite! I cannot believe they live such a long time, even if it is underground. How did you learn so much about cicada?
I can understand some Japanese children’s books but not all of them and I often need assistance. It is definitely my favorite way to learn though.
Yes, I can see the ふりがな when I hover over this site’s かんじ and I do find it helpful, particularly when faced with many unknown kanji that I may not have been exposed to before. Plus it saves me a lot of time when I think I recognize the kanji but just want to check on the reading to be sure.
LikeLike
hangyodon….
It’s not a “silly question”. Ask anything you feel.
Yes, there are cicada in America. Actually, every continent on Earth except Antarctica.
The 蝉 (Cicada) grows underground for about 6-17 years (depending on the species)…then they come out of the ground to mate and die about a week later (they only see the world for a short time…most of their life is underground).
The noise they make is the mating call (or a call of distress if you catch one). But only males can make the noise. The female cicada is silent.
In Japan, they grow underground for about six years, and every summer a group of mature cicada emerge.
There are cicada in America…but in the twenty years I lived in America, I have no recollection of seeing (or hearing) them. This may because, I’ve heard, that the cicada in America don’t emerge every year like they do in Japan…they all stay underground for 17 years and come out in a kind of a “mass exodus”. Meaning, if that’s accurate, that they can only been seen in America for one week every 17 years.
They are harmless. They don’t bite, sting, or even harm crops…they survive on tree sap.
By the way, it seems by your blog that you’re studying Japanese. Can you understand Japanese kids’ books?
Can you see the ふりがな on the かんじ on this site? Does it help you?
LikeLike
This might sound like a silly question but do you know if there are cicadas in the United States? It wasn’t until I started reading some Japanese children’s books that I first learned of cicadas and I was curious if there were any here. I’ve never see one before and watching the video of the two your daughter caught was loads of fun! Do they bite?
LikeLike