Category Archives: Comparative Cultures
World’s Greatest Libraries ★
Moldova National Library – Photograph by Daniel Zollinger
1. University Club Library – New York City, United States
Photograph by Peter Bond
2. Canadian Library of Parliament – Ottawa, Canada
Photograph by James Gillard
3. Yale University’s Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library – New Haven, Connecticut
Photograph by Lauren Manning
Photograph by KAALpurush
4. Iowa State Capital Law Library – United States
Photograph by Tani Livengood
5. Suzzalo Library at the University of Washington – Seattle, Washington
Photograph by Sam
6. Admont Abbey Library – Austria
Photograph by Ognipensierovo
7. State Library – Victoria, Australia
Photograph by Waltonics
8. Library at El Real Monasterio de El Escorial – Madrid, Spain
Photograph by Jose Maria Cuellar
9. José Vasconcelos Library – Mexico City, Mexico
Photograph by Pedro Vasquez Colmenares
Photograph by Aurelio Asiain
10. Real Gabinete Português de Leitura – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Photograph by Ruy Barbosa Pinto
11. National Library of Finland – Helsinki, Finland
Photograph by Marj-Liisa
12. Mitchell Library – Sydney, Australia
Photograph by Christopher Chan
13. Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library at University of Toronto – Toronto, Canada
Photograph by Fadi J
14. George Peabody Library – Baltimore, Maryland
Photograph by Danielle King
15. Strahov Theological Hall – Prague, Czech Republic
Photograph by Rafael Ferreira
Menu ★★
Black Bear Diner is a restaurant chain in the western United States, which serves homestyle and “old-fashioned” comfort foods. The first restaurant was opened in Mount Shasta, California in 1994.
Black Bear decor is a rustic motif with “over-the-top bear paraphernalia” and each restaurant is decorated with a 3.7 m black bear carving. The menu is in the form of an old newspaper; the portions unbelievably huge.
I visited a Black Bear a few years back while traveling through Central Oregon. Dying for a beer, I was disappointed to learn that the restaurant didn’t serve alcohol. No ales, no porters, no stouts, no lagers. Nothing! In a state which boasts of its microbrews, this is a sacrilege. I asked the waitress if we were in a dry town to which she replied with a pained look, “Something like that.” I ordered a chocolate malt instead, my first in about ten years.
I’ve included a page from Black Bear’s breakfast menu. Note how there aren’t any pictures. One of the nice things about restaurants here in Japan is that most menus come with photographs or illustrations so you know what to expect when you order something. Let me tell you, I was dumbfounded by everything that was hauled over to and then dumped on our table. The portions! You could have fed a nuclear family in Japan with each dish.
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Speak! English Salon/スピーク英会話サロン
http://web.me.com/josephcamcinnis
福岡市中央区大名１－１２－３６
★ためにならない日本語ブログ↓↓↓
http://22311221.at.webry.info/
Fidgety Philip ★★★
Hawaiian English
Recently I’ve been listening a lot to KINE 105 FM, a radio station from Honolulu, Hawaii. It offers a selection of both old and new Hawaiian songs, as well as information about what’s going on. When you listen to it, you can almost imagine that you are actually in Hawaii. (Sadly, I’m not.)
Anyways, the more I listen to KINE, the more I pick up Hawaiian words which I understand from the context. This reinforces why it’s so important for language learners to expose themselves to the language they are learning. If you study English, then try to listen to English as often as possible. With the Internet, there are no longer any excuses!
Some of the Hawaiian words and phrases I’ve picked up:
Aloha Kakahiaka – Good Morning
Aloha Auina La – Good Afternoon
Aloha Ahiahi – Good Evening
Aloha au ia ‘oe – I love you
Kala mai ia’u – Excuse me
Mahalo – Thank you
‘A’ole pilikia – You’re welcome / No problem
A hui hou – Till we meet again
Pehea ‘oe? – How are you?
Maika’i no au – I am fine
‘O ia mau no – Same as usual
‘A’ole – No
‘Ae – Yes
Pupule – Crazy
Hau’oli La Hanau – Happy Birthday
Hau’oli Makahiki Hou – Happy New Year
Mele Kalikimaka – Merry Christmas
Keiki – Child
Pili loco – Local places
Ohana – Family, relatives
Aloha – Love, compassion, affection, etc.
And here’s a good resource for Hawaiian-English dictionaries.
Caide Sin Do’n Te Sin
More sights and sounds from the Emerald Isle. I hope you enjoy it.
Note:
Emerald Isle: エメラルド島：アイルランド(Ireland)の異名
Irish Trad – Dervish
The folk music of Ireland (also known as Irish Trad) is the generic term for music that has been created in various genres on the entire island of Ireland, North and South of the Border. Dervish is a traditional Irish music group from County Sligo, Ireland, formed in 1989 by Liam Kelly, Shane Mitchell, Martin McGinley, Brian McDonagh and Michael Holmes. The band was originally formed to record an album of local music which was later released as “The Boys of Sligo”. They later formed Dervish.
An Irish Toast ★★
May you always have
Walls for the winds,
A roof for the rain,
Tea beside the fire,
Laughter to cheer you,
Those you love near you,
And all your heart might desire!
And may you be in
Heaven a half hour before the
Devil knows you’re dead!
Note:
toast:
1 祝杯, 乾杯；乾杯の辞［あいさつ］; 乾杯の呼びかけ［音頭］
propose a toast｜乾杯を呼びかける
have ［raise］ a champagne toast｜シャンペンで祝杯をする［あげる］
drink ［make］ a toast to a person｜人のために乾杯する［乾杯の音頭をとる］
2 祝杯［乾杯］の対象となる人［物, 行事］；絶賛［もてはや］される人物, 人気者, 花形；評判の美人.
St. Patrick’s Day
You can learn more about the history of St. Patrick’s Day and Irish culture here on the History Channel’s site.
St. Patrick’s Day
Everything you’ve ever wanted to know about St. Patrick’s Day in English and Japanese courtesy of Fukuoka Now.
Speak English Salon 