Japanese souvenir suggestions 2: KitKat limited editions

Chocolate bar KitKat can be bought worldwide, not only in Japan. I know that, but it is probably only Japan where you can enjoy a great variety of flavors, including some strange ones.

Family bag containing 15 mini KitKat bars bars

Since 2000, Nestle Japan has introduced over 200 flavors. Several kinds are at any supermarkets and convenience stores all year around, but many are seasonal or regional flavors that are sold only for a limited time or certain cities or regions.

Seasonal flavors available now are "KitKat Otona no Amasa White (otona no amasa: lit. sweetness for adults)" less sweet white chocolate and "Otona no Amasa Strawberry." Until stocks last. Hurry up!


By the way, in the Japanese confectionery industry, "otona no (for adults) "  usually means "no sweet" or "a little bitter" than the children-oriented sweets. Don't expect anything other that!

You might think that white chocolate, strawberry and green tea flavors are nothing special. Yes, I agree. But regional limited editions are very "original." You can even say "strange." They reflect special food products of each district, which include Yatsuhashi (traditional cinnamon flavored cookies of Kyoto), strawberry cheese cake (Yokohama), wasabi (Shizuoka), apple (Nagano),  azuki (sweetened red bean, Tokai & Hokuriku Regions), purpose sweet potato (Okinawa), citrus fruits  (Shikoku island), powdered hot chilli pepper (Nagano). But what temps me most is pudding flavor (Kobe)! 

KitKat Kobe Purin (pudding) 

Ah! I almost forgot to tell you this! Nestle Japan opened last month a fancy KitKat store in the basement of Seibu Ikebukuro Department store. At this KitKat Chocolatory store, you can find very rare (and a little expensive)  items such as cream cheese flavor created under the supervision of renowned Japanese patissier Yasumasa Takagi (sorry I don't know him).

This cream cheese KitKat (photo below) released on Feb. 3, is 420 yen, containing 4 bars.

I'm sure this will be a great gift for your friends and family, because you cannot get it nowhere else in the world but this KitKat Chocolatory!

Cream cheese flavored KitKat available only at KitKat Chocolatory

ここからは日本語で。

キットカットはもともとイギリス生まれのお菓子ですよね。でも、知っていました？日本には期間限定や地方限定味のキットカットがたくさんあって、２０００年以降に発売されたのは、なんと２００種類！

もともと：　originally
お菓子 　（おかし）: treats, sweets, snacks
限定　（げんてい）　limited
期間　（きかん）　time, season
地方　（ちよう）　　region
以降　（いこう）　since
発売　（はつばい）　to put on the market
種類　（しゅるい）　kind

現在の期間限定商品は「オトナの甘さ　ホワイト」と「オトナの甘さ　ストロベリー」です。在庫がなくなったら販売終了なので、興味がある人は急いで！

現在　（げんざい）　at present
商品　（しょうひん）　products
在庫　（ざいこ）　stocks
販売　（はんばい）　　sales
終了　（しゅうりょう）　finish
興味　（きょうみ）　interest
急ぐ　（いそぐ）　hurry

ご当地ものは、変なものがたくさんありますよ。りんご味、柑橘味、わさび味、紫芋味、などなど。旅行に行ったら探してみてね。友だちへの良いお土産になりますよ。

ご当地　（ごとうち）　
変な　（へんな）　　strange
柑橘　（かんきつ）　citrus fruits
紫芋  （むらさきいも）　purple sweet potate
旅行　（りょこう）　trip
探す　（さがす）　to look for
お土産　（おみやげ）　gift

先月は池袋の西武デパートの地下にキットカットの専門店ができました。世界初だそうです。

池袋　（いけぶくろ）　name of a town in Tokyo
西武デパート　（せいぶデパート）　Seibu Department store
地下　（ちか）　basement floor
専門店　（せんもんてん）　store specializing in certain items

その店、キットカットショコラトリーでしか買えない商品がチーズケーキ味。普通のものよりちょっと高めですが、ここでしか売っていないので、キットカットファンの友だちや家族には喜ばれると思いますよ！

普通　（ふつう）　ordinary
喜ばれる　（よろこばれる）　be pleased

Souvenir suggestions: disposable toe warmer!

Hi everyone!

I don't know whether disposable body warmer are available anywhere in the world, but I had never found such things in Europe. Do you know what I'm talking about? Often called by a brand name "Hokkairo" (not Hokkaido!) here,  they are small pouches containing iron powder, salt and some water that heat up when exposed to Oxygen in the air.

In Japan these disposable body pads are very popular, almost indispensable items for many women sensitive to cold. I usually don't use them, but last weekend when east Japan was hit by an unexpectedly heavy snowfall, I really thought they are great inventions...

In the Tokyo metropolitan area it snows twice or three times every year, but not much -- normally 5 centimeters at most. But this time, don't be surprised,  27 centimeters of snow accumulated in the center of the capital. In general, densely populated areas like Tokyo are relatively warm; therefore, it does not snow so heavily.

This is the photo I took from my place. I'm living in Yokohama, about 30 min. away by train from Tokyo. My little container garden on the balcony was totally covered with snow. It kept snowing after I took this photo so you can imagine it was like...

According to the Japan Meteorological Agency it was the third heaviest snowfall since World War II. Weather forecasters repeatedly warned people to stay home if possible, but unfortunately I had to go out in the midst of the violent winter storm, as I had bought a theater ticket for that day.

The temperature stayed very low and I was so reluctant to go outside. But I suddenly remembered that I had bought some "disposable toe warmer!" They are a pair of thin adhesive pads you can stick to your socks and keep you warm for 8 hours.

    
 If you are looking for a nice souvenir for your family or friends from snow countries, I would strongly recommend this toe warmer. You can find them at any drugstores and maybe at convenience stores as well. The one shown in the photo is 500 yen, containing five pairs. Pretty reasonable, isn't it?

さて、ここからは日本語で。

先週末、東日本は珍しく大雪でした。例年は、２，３回、５センチ程度降るだけなのですが、今回は東京の中心部で２７センチ！

東日本　（ひがしにほん）　east Japan
珍しく　（めずらしく）　　rarely
例年　（れいねん） the average year
～程度　（ていど）　　about
降る　（ふる）　 to fall

私の家の窓から写真を撮ってみました。私は横浜に住んでいます。渋谷から電車で３０分ぐらいのところです。バルコニーの私の植物たちも真っ白・・・。

窓　（まど）　　window
撮る　（とる）　to take (photos)
横浜　（よこはま）　Yokohama City
渋谷　（しぶや）　Shibuya

気象庁によると、この積雪量は戦後３番目だそうです。テレビでは不必要な外出はしないようにと呼びかけていましたが、私は演劇のチケットが買ってあったので、出かけましたよ。寒かったー！

気象庁　（きしょうちょう）　Japan Meteorological Agency
積雪量　（せきせつりょう）
戦後　（せんご）　after the war (normally WWII)
不必要 （ふひつよう）　unnecessary
呼びかける　（よびかける）　to warn
演劇　（えんげき）　theatrical play

そのときに、使い捨てカイロが買ってあったのを思い出しました！使い捨てカイロとは、中に鉄の粉と、塩と少量の水が入っている小さい袋で、空気中の酸素に触れると発熱するのです。

使い捨てカイロ　（つかいすて）　disposable body heater
鉄　（てつ）　iron
粉　（こな）　powder
塩　（しお）　salt
少量　（しょうりょう）　little
袋　（ふくろ）　pouch
酸素　（さんそ）　Oxygen
触れる　（ふれる）　to touch (but in this case "to be exposed")
発熱する　（はつねつ）　to heat up

私が持っていたのはつま先に靴下の上から貼るタイプ。８時間温かさが持続します。持っててよかった！コンビニやドラッグストアに売っています。日本のお土産にどうですか？

つま先　（つまさき）　toe
靴下　（くつした）　socks
貼る　（はる）　to stick
温かさ  （あたたかさ）　warmness
持続　（じぞく）　maintain
お土産　（おみやげ）　souvenir

Useful Japanese expressions ②： o-kaikei onegaishimasu (check please!)

OK, suppose you are at a restaurant. You finish the meal and want to leave, but no one brings you the check. What should you do?

The first thing you should do is find a waiter/waitress and raise your hand. If you fail to get their attention, you can call them out "Sumimasen! (excuse me!)." Don't be shy. Many people from the "Western world" says making a loud shout to call a waiter is bad manners, but don't worry, it is quite normal here. I do too, not too loud though.

When the waiter comes, let's ask for the bill. The phrase for that is...

お会計、お願いします。　O-kaikei onegaishimasu.  (May I have the check please?)

Kaikei is "check" and o is an honorific suffix. Onegaishimasu means "please."

Onegaishimasu is such a convenient expression when you order food or ask for service. For example,

ハンバーガー　お願いします。　Hamba-ga- onegaishimasu.　(One hamburger, please.)
お茶　お願いします。　　Ocha onegaishimasu.  (Can I have some tea please?)
東京駅まで　お願いします。　Tokyo eki made onegaishimasu. (To Tokyo Station, please)

When you leave the restaurant,  let's say to the restaurant people:

ごちそう様でした。　Gochiso-sama deshita. （Thank you for the meal.) 

We use this phrase at home too, after every meal to thank the person who cooked.

Useful Japanese expressions ①： Kore kudasai

As everyone knows, whether you can enjoy the life in a foreign country depends on your communication skills.

If you live here, learning Japanese is definitely important, because I'm sorry to say this but Japanese are internationally known for being bad at English and it is unfortunately true. Even if you are just a tourist, knowing some Japanese words and expressions will help you a lot during your visit.

Japanese are basically shy but interested in communicating with foreigners. Trust me, that's true! Some foreign people complain that Japan is xenophobic. If they really think so, I have to say I'm sorry because they have had some bad experiences, but the truth is many Japanese (especially those living in the countryside) have never interacted with non-Japanese and don't know what to do when they are spoken to in English or some foreign languages. They just feel tense. If you speak even a little bit of Japanese, they will smile at you. Do you feel like learning Japanese now?

So...today's useful expression is

これ　ください。　（Kore kudasai.）

I was living in Paris for three years for my husband's work, but when I arrived there I could not even count numbers in French. For the first several months my husband and I survived with only three phrases  "ça s'il vous plait (This one please)" "C'est tout (that's all)." and  "Je prends ... (I'll have...)"

Kore means "this,"  and kudasai means "geve me." Wherever you are --- at a restaurant, a cafe or a shop --- you only have to say "Kore kudasai" pointing at whatever you want. 

You can replace kore with different nouns, such as 水　(mizu, water) and メニュー　（menyu, nemu).

水　ください　　Mizu kudasai (water, please)
メニュー　ください　　Menyu kudasai (menu please)  
コーヒー　ください　　Kohi kudasai (coffee please)