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Thank you all very much for your loyal support, friendship, smiles, jokes, "sashi-ires", and last but not least - hard work and eager talking over the years! I'm sorry that I have to go - but I just have to go! The "Master" (who quit his job!) Continue reading ...
NO! I'm not lazy. I'm BUSY! And I know that you understand...... Members for the last two day were as follows -Shelby, Kelsey, Cassandra, Brooklyn, Michaela, Isabella, Brittany,Samantha, Ashley, Valentino, Kelly, Christina, Jade, Monica, Emma and Alicia! Everybody was fine except of course the "usual" exhaustion from the heat and gardening, or hobby-farming! On Thursday we tried to figure out the these riddles:(Sorry, lost the picture of the "Nose"!) And today we suffered, trying to find the a... Continue reading ...
I am getting busy as you might be able to tell from my recent postings (or rather NO postings!), so this is a combined one, a "コラボ"!!On Saturday, Jack, Jade, Jamie, Angela, Ian, Emily, Heather and Miranda showed up! That's a BIG WOW - FULL HOUSE!And my excuse for NOT blogging on this day? He he he - HERE:Because we had the first ever "Cafe Nijikai" in downtown Akashi - I had a great time! Thank you sooo much for organizing this unforgettable event! Our study paper for this day looked l... Continue reading ...
Ladies & Gentlemen (although today it was "ladies only"), time flies! And who were those ladies spending this precious, little left time with me at this world famous Cafe? First, there was Brittany, who said she was worn out by attending to her "hobby farm". Then there was Sabrina, who was fine, and she had the big news about having met me (by chance, of course!) near my house. According to her, it was bad timing as she had just finished work and was worried about looking exhausted - Sabrina,... Continue reading ...
Hello, people! Amy's friend is fighting with wild boars in Sasayama, which enjoy messing up the rice paddy! But Amy was fine!Erica was also "fighting"- but not with wild boars, with FISH! Her husband came back from a very successful fishing trip, bringing with him about 20 fish and another 10 squids! As it was her job cleaning & preparing the catch, Erica was tired today.Heather is the one with the very healthy lifestyle - she has been following her routine of taking a morning walk for the las... Continue reading ...
Hello, Ladies & Gentlemen! It's late, I just finished a very important meeting (true!!), and I'm a little too tired to write long stories today....But I want to thank Brooklyn, Emma, Hannah, Courtney, Michaela and Mike for coming in today!Today's paper:We had a nice time with delicious coffee jelly & many happy faces!Good Night,The "Master" Continue reading ...
Today was my 14th wedding anniversary, and on a day like this it was really nice to see so many faces here: Kiara was fine, Catherine, too, and she told us the funny story about the stupid American who actually thought she could smuggle her husband out of prison inside a suitcase! Tiffany felt okay, and she said that an angle had smiled at her - maybe this one?Lindsey was a little exhausted having just come back from her first-ever visit to Hokkaido where she noticed signs at public baths in E... Continue reading ...
The "Master" really, really appreciates so many noses showing up on every single Cafe day after his coming out, and also everybody's understanding of the situation. Kelly was fine, and she told everyone about a dream she had some weeks ago about the Cafe being closed for renovation of the building, and a note on the door informing visitors that the "Master" was doing a "Sozai" shop in the neighborhood! Well, it turns out the Cafe WILL close, and the "Master" WILL start another job, although m... Continue reading ...
WOW! 7 (in words "seven") nice people showed up today - Daniel, Crystal, Alicia,May, Jade, Kelsey and Miranda! I' m glad to be able to "report" that everyone was fine!Kelsey brought in a story about "Mizutorizousan"- a device to absorb the moisture from the air and other places during the hot & humid summer month. It contains a powder ( a chemical) which, when absorbing the water, itself becomes liquid. Kelsey was told by a friend not to dispose of this, as it was useful to kill off the weed i... Continue reading ...
A little tired Madison and Breanna, and a kicking Courtney chatted with me about, well, me, and the sad death of the unique Detective Colombo actor who was over 80 and suffering from Alzheimer. Breanna mentioned that that TV show was the only show her whole family could enjoy together, so she has some nice memories which again made her feel sad although she didn't know him personally. And why was Madison a little tired? Well, she and Breanna spent almost the whole day together (from around 9:3... Continue reading ...
A lot of people today talked about snakes, bugs, insects, fireflies, dragonflies, Chinese drinking extremely fresh snake blood, Japanese eating extremely fresh fish, and "Masters" being really kind to all kinds of living beings, not even hitting on cockroaches with slippers or newspapers! My advice to enjoy a peaceful life with cockroaches in harmony: Give them names!Let me introduce to you: PETER & FELIX! Aren't they cute????
So, Ashley, Cassandra, Jamie, Miranda and Mikayla (and everybody el... Continue reading ...
Before even starting with doing the "round" asking everybody's names, we all got carried away discussing the unique, Japanese "invention" of Women only cars on the JR and Kobe underground lines. It's quite amazing how many ladies actually became victims to these perverts at some point or another. I would find it very interesting to see some statistics (%) of the number of these unfortunate ladies. Also interesting was the fact Jacqueline pointed out that apparently the other way round also ex... Continue reading ...
First of all, thank you for your cooperation & understanding last Tuesday - I can only hope nobody stood in front of my door.... Thanks to some Tuesday members, today was well occupied:Barret visited Shimane, mainly to check out the world of Kitaro. Among places he and his wife visited was the Mizuki Shigeru museum, the man responsible for the Kitaro stories. Barrets topic started a surprisingly exciting debate about Kitaro - some likes, some dislikes, old Kitaro, new Kitaro etc.
Jamie's summ... Continue reading ...
Thanks everybody for "swimming by" in this wet weather! Our movie-goer, Chelsea, went to see the latest episode of "X-Men", and to my surprise felt that it was the best of the series so far. I was surprised as from experience I feel that usually the first is always the best - Back to the future, Die Hard, Beverly Hills Cop, 48-Hours etc. I can hear you all say: "When is the last time the Master went to the cinema?" And yes, you're right, I haven't been to the movies for ages!!Alexandria had ... Continue reading ...
Hello, people! We were 3 +1 today: Christina,who doesn't like the summer in Japan as it makes her tired and lose her appetite, celebrated her grandson's birthday recently by giving his father (her son) a present and some pocket money to pass on to the birthday boy. When he later called her to say "thank you", she noticed that his voice had undergone voice change! Last time she had met him was in October of last year! With Lindsey we talked about her dog, and how she doesn't like taking him out... Continue reading ...
Funny, how hard it is to predict the future - I expected about 6 or 7 people today, however only Jacqueline & Kelsey showed up! The reason I thought so is because two of our Tuesday ladies said that they would come, plus our usual Saturday crowd and maybe our precious "boy" - well, that would make about six or seven noses, wouldn't it? And I made sooo much coffee (which I'm drinking now!). Jacqueline finished farming, Kelsey had yet another story about an unusual vending machine: This machine... Continue reading ...
Hello world! Mariah, Samantha (a Tuesday "spy") and Madison cheered me up with their company today! Thanks for being here! Maria, Samantha and another "unknown friend" to me told us about a "meeting" in a "rental room" somewhere in Kakogawa close to the Cafe-famous Terada pond. Apparently, a house which used to be a coffee shop is now serving as a recycle shop and this "rental room": It's a room suitable for about 10 people, and can be used for everything really. As there is a whiteboard, meet... Continue reading ...
A quiet Saturday for a change, just "one couple" - Michaela & Darrel, thanks for coming! Darrel said he was a little tired from work, but seemed fine to me. Working for a foreign-owned company, there are many foreigners working there, and he told us about them. Apparently though, the only English he can use on the job is "hey"!He also shared the secret with us that he doesn't like going shopping with his wife, especially for clothes, as she just can't decide. almost at the cashier, she would c... Continue reading ...
Let's all welcome Abigail from Higashi-Kakogawa who was in the area to visit her parent's house when she tripped over my Cafe - Signboard and decided to take a closer look. Abigail, you have obviously made the right choice climbing up my stairs, as inside beautiful Mikayla, lovely Ashley, charming Heather and irresistible Alicia were awaiting you with open arms! Once again: HELLO, NICE TO MEET YOU, WELCOME!!We covered various topics today, I won't be able to mention them all, but there are tw... Continue reading ...
The last day of the probably more bearable month - June will be here with heat & humidity, sticky clothes and tasty beer!! Jamie, Mikayla, Elisabeth and Olivia joined the party. Today I started the "class" by asking Jamie what she is doing at the post office every week before coming here - unfortunately we couldn't get a persuasive answer......she said business, we were betting on something fishy like money laundering or something! She also said she was mailing letters.Olivia told us about ho... Continue reading ...
Well, well well....I must say, I am amazed,surprised and of course glad that two weeks in a row, Saturday could boast with the biggest number of eager "chatterers"! Alexandria, Mikayla, Catherine, Darrel, Alicia and Chelsea decided to beat the rain and come here - Thanks a lot! Mikayla told us about her first-ever experience buying something from the internet auction. She purchased a vase, made by a famous potter friend of hers (ring a bell? Last Saturday?). The piece of art which sells for a... Continue reading ...
Let's start totally different for a change: We did a lot of discussing based on this paper: In Japanese for instance, bees, wasps, hornets, bumblebees etc. are all some kind of "ハチ".I also learned that not all houses in this country have back doors. I was under the impression that it's part of the package, so to speak. Like beer & 枝豆!! But it turned out that I was wrong! We than got heated up discussing about the big sliding entrances/exits from the living room to the yard: Are they w... Continue reading ...
It was a pretty "normal" Tuesday - except the fact that our regular girls were joined by Bill who attended our group Saturday two weeks ago. Bill, good idea of yours to check out our Tuesday girls, too! And this Bill told us about his 27th wedding anniversary he celebrated with his wife on May 20, eating cake. Strangely, there were no kisses & hugs! But Bill thanked his wife for the nice time together.By coincidence, Alicia's wedding anniversary happens to fall on the same day, although a dif... Continue reading ...
Full house! Well, almost! Kelly, Elisabeth, Madison, Sabrina, Christina and Emily decided to share their precious Saturday afternoon here at my humble Cafe, and - KELLY is a new face!! Hello, Kelly! Welcome, Kelly! Nice to meet you! And she is another one really bringing down the average age once again! We really didn't have any special personal subjects today, as we were, as usual, bombarding the new girl with various questions! Except that Emily told us she was tired after her son's mid-term... Continue reading ...
It was a nice, sunny day with Alexandria, Kelly and Mya joining in the conversation about uniforms, school uniforms and my story about this woman actually getting arrested for "disturbing the public peace" or something like that using a cell phone on a train. If interested, more info can be found HERE
Before all this, of course, the girls brought in some stories of their own:Kelly told us about how the buddhist priest at their family temple failed to read some names of ancestors at an annual r... Continue reading ...
Lindsey wore an interesting necklace today, we all liked it, but it was only ¥300! What a good shopper she is! She and her husband tried to create a nice flower bed in their garden, but unfortunately failed to be good gardeners the first time - her husband watered the flowers everyday - a practise which might be necessary for potted flowers, but it doesn't apply if they are planted directly in the garden soil. So, they got too moist! Lindsey and her husband bought new seedlings, and are hopi... Continue reading ...
Something is wrong with the average age on Saturdays recently - it's a little higher than it should be ~ Na.........where are you? Today's main topic: Farming! Below is a picture of Amy's husband planting rice, so Amy could be here today:Emily also has some "hobby farming", or "side business farming" experience when she was younger, Kiara said she wasn't feeling too well, but I think she was fine!Besides farming, we also discussed the serious matter of people committing suicide, as Amy brough... Continue reading ...
This first Thursday after the Golden Week break turned out to be a quiet one: Christina & Angela, both from Greece, paid the Cafe a visit. Both were in high spirits! Angela brought in a heart-warming story about her experience when visiting her husband's grave. Somebody had come before her - the grave was already decorated with beautiful, fresh flowers! What a pleasant surprise! It turned out that his former students had remembered the anniversary day of his death. How kind of them!Christina e... Continue reading ...
A very "normal", but of course enjoyable Tuesday is nearing its' end - I was glad to see "my" Tuesday girls all cheerful and in high spirits - thanks for being here Shelby, May, Alicia and Alexandria! Alicia's request today was for everybody to try not to talk about a Golden Week spent with grandchildren, for fear the whole Cafe time would be dedicated to the little brats! We all tried hard to keep it under control! Alicia herself visited the Himeji Safari Park & the Himeji Zoo (pssst.....with ... Continue reading ...
It felt a little strange for me the last Cafe was a Saturday, then came Golden Week, and now it's Saturday again! I wonder how my little "Tuesday Girls" & "Thursday Girls" are keeping..... Today, we could welcome yet another new member to the Cafe, and, guess what? A MAN! Hurray! Yipeeh! Everybody, say hello to Valentino - Hello, hello, hello, hello etc! Abigail, Kelsey, Catherine and Monica enjoyed being asked several questions by Valentino, and of course were asking lot's of questions in re... Continue reading ...
I'm missing the "young Saturday girl" two weeks in a row - should I be worried? With me here today I had Catherine (no, NOT the just married one!), Alicia and Amy. Thanks to all the money and effort wasting events going on in England (sorry ladies, I just couldn't care less!), our chat topics could take a break from Tohoku, and concentrated on mentioned events. Alicia is busy at home since her daughter started regular employment (coming home at 11 every night!) - did she use her daughter that... Continue reading ...
......after what? Oh yes, the day I joined the old people! Besides some personal, "material" Birthday gifts, I was presented with a big, happy crowd today, counting six cheerful noses: Shelby, Tiffany, Christina, Crystal, Emma and Kelly! Thanks so much for pouring in!Basically everybody was very fine, but Shelby said she was a little tired as she had planted summer vegetables for two hours in the morning.
Christina surprisingly showed up - she was supposed to travel to Germany, but due to her ... Continue reading ...
We got so carried away with discussing so many matters eagerly and excitedly, that it was close to impossible to take notes of who said what!Taking part in today's "conference" were Heather, Emily, Kelly and Shelby. On the agenda was, after a short absence from the Cafe, the Tohoku earthquake, or rather about the present state of Japan as a whole. Heather believes Japan is finished, others obviously couldn't agree, or didn't want to. Emily's friend was going to buy some land for building a ne... Continue reading ...
Courtney, Lindsey, Mya and me enjoyed a great laugh when Courtney made a very harmless, small English mistake by calling the needle of a record player noodle!From there, our imaginations went all over the place - how it would be if actual noodles would be used instead of needles when listening to records!To make things easier to understand - When wanting to talk about this:
Courtney mistakenly mentioned this:
(This is a picture of her about to listen to a record)
Other, less amusing topics to... Continue reading ...
Another beautiful spring day has passed, so our study topic matched the season: We worked with two versions today, so our four "contestants", Emma, Kiara, Shelby and Alicia were trying hard to figure out these spring & easter riddles in two teams!Another little time consuming thing we talked about was an article Emma brought in she found in a free magazine called Kansai Scene. An article with the headline "A field guide to the foreigners of Kansai" lists about 12 different kinds of "Gaijin", a... Continue reading ...
On this nice, pleasant, warm spring Saturday four noses showed up: Cassandra, Kelly, Erica and Crystal. Let's start off with Cassandra, as she had really good news: Her son in law could finally receive his working permit for Australia! What a relief for the whole family, and not to mention, Grandma! A long, enjoyable year of "プー" draws to an end........ Cassandra also had a good time with her family in Japan on a day trip to Awaji, where they enjoyed a ride on the big ferries wheel at the ... Continue reading ...
How refreshing - another New Face! Welcome to the "club", Emma! I really hope you'll have a great time with us, I'm sure we will with you! Emma is living proof that one cannot judge the age of a person by the age of their children!! But you'll see what I mean when you all meet "Emma" for the first time!Brooklyn's new school year of her course in Buddhism has just started in April, like all other schools, and Isabella and her got quite excited about Temple and priest's names! Emma & me were a ... Continue reading ...
Abigail still had stiff shoulders, and she went to see a movie of such low quality that she knew how it would end after just 30 minutes! It's called "Tourist", an even though two really popular actors are starring, apparently it's a lousy picture! Watch out, movie lovers! Briana went for lunch to a usually packed restaurant and was surprised to find the place half empty. She believed it was because of self restraint - people don't feel right having fun while life in the Tohoku area is still ve... Continue reading ...
Today's topics: YAMADA STORE (???) - apparently a Supermarket every housewife knows, separation of garbage, also bulk garbage where I learned that in Harima / Kakogawa it's still okay to bring it to the general collection point, various parcel services and the possible delays to the earthquake affected areas, the nuclear threat, time spent at universities, and April fool: So, how did we come up with today's topics? Monica told us she was exhausted from buying & sending water to her daughter in... Continue reading ...
This last day of March brought back Elisabeth, a "member" from about 3 years ago, and with her Brooklyn, a brand spanking new first-timer who speaks English very well! Welcome, Brooklyn! I hope you will have many nice hours with our "crazy bunch" in the future - please also check out our Tuesday and Saturday faces! So, what did we talk about? Brooklyn told us how she had enjoyed watching the movie "Rapunzel", Elisabeth shared secret information about Broookyn, Shelby found a perfect, hitting ... Continue reading ...
Wheeeeeeere are youuuuuu? "Ms. Tuesday", "The Boss", the "Italian"?? We were so worried........really? Brittney, Cassandra and Emma shared the Cafe space with me on this sunny but still a little chilly Tuesday. We managed quite well to avoid the subject of the earthquake: Brittney was suffering from stiff shoulders from moving house. She said she is living in a two-storey house for the first time - always running up & down the stairs fetching things! She calls it "useless movement", I call it ... Continue reading ...
ATTENTION - MISSING PERSON ALERT - ATTENTION!
Has anybody seen "Ms. Kasai"? She didn't show up today - Christina, Michaela, Sabrina and of course me, the "Master" were dead worried..........Ok, just kidding, she is suffering from pollen allergy, hay fever, hangover......All of us here today were affected a little by these "season's blessings" - those little, almost invisible naughty pollen flying around with the aim to become new trees, flowers and plants, but sometimes taking breaks in our no... Continue reading ...
Yes, this is more like it! After three weeks in a row "private lesson" for today's Erica, she was joined by Ashley & Mya. This brings today's number of attendees to the amazing total of 3, three!! Feels much better, I can tell you that!Although Ashley's "fresh" grandchild in Takatsuki is very cute, lovely and everything, she doesn't really feel like going there again too soon as the 7-year old grandson is full of energy, and very naughty. Also, he plays games going by HIS rules! And the 7-year... Continue reading ...
Hello, "groupies", Did everybody have a pleasant, long weekend? Although I was working Saturday all day and Sunday morning, I could relax on Monday. I did miss the annual Motorcycle Show in Intex Osaka though, which was canceled due to the earthquake. Personally, I don't see the connection....... It was a comparably quiet Tuesday, "only" Erica, Briana Isabella showed up. Briana showed up twice, at 1:30, and the second time at 1:45! She told us about how she had to choose a new system kitchen ma... Continue reading ...
It looks like everybody remembered our delayed starting time, except the people who DIDN'T show up......or DID you - at around 1:15? Brooklyn, Catherine and Mikayla found their way here on this nicely warm Saturday afternoon. The list of "missing persons" for today consists of 1) Ms. Kasai 2) Ms. Young-Girl. We hope you are doing all right!Catherine is suffering from hay fever. Apparently, the symptoms become more bearable in the afternoon, so she didn't seem to be too strongly affected, but ... Continue reading ...
Snow, that's what we call the white stuff falling from the sky when it's too cold up there to rain. Apparently, today happens to be one those days - it started to snow again! I didn't expect anyone today due to this unusual weather - snow in March in this area is extremely rare, but - there she was! My life saver! My loyal Ms. Thursday (no, no that one, the other one!) came in through that strange, brown door of mine!
Erica! Hey, how nice to see you (I naturally felt).
And after talking a litt... Continue reading ...
Today's crowd included happy, second-time grandmother Miya - CONGRATULATIONS for the new member of the family! Sumire was born on the 27th of February -Other members of the gang were Chelsea, whose son lives on the 24th floor of an apartment building in Nishinomiya which shook so strongly that her daughter-in-law wants to move, Alicia, whose daughter received an e-mail of concern from her friend in L.A (also an earthquake-prone area), Gracie, her two sons live in Tokyo, and Miranda with a daug... Continue reading ...
I had planned not to talk about the terrible earthquake too much as it's too sad and depressing, but I guess it couldn't be helped - it just happened to be top news - if we like it, or not. Monica has a sister living in Chiba with her family, and her husband's brother in Tokyo (or was it: Traveling to Tokyo a lot?),and fortunately, everybody is all right, Elisabeth's nephew & niece also living in the capital are alive and kicking, too, so is my sister and her family(also residents of Togane-S... Continue reading ...
Another "cry cry day"? Well, close, very close! But today, Elisabeth saved my life, and prevented a "ぼうず" situation! Thanks a lot! We talked about so many things it's impossible to remember all, and then write about it, but a few topics were: Japanese education system, introduction of Kanji to Japan from China (and script in general), seals (no, not "stickers", and also not "あざらし!"), but "印鑑"and how foreigners these days can't get away with just a signature but are also requ... Continue reading ...
We were a nice group today, all ladies - Brittney, Courtney, Kelsey and Alexandria. We had various topics covered: Kelsey was a little tired from "home farming", and teaching her grandchild some skiing. Our hottest discussion was probably the one about tap water and mineral water. For some time now, it's trendy (or rather "normal") for the Japanese to pay money for mineral water, although Japanese tap water is perfectly save for consumption. It's one way to manipulate the public, and pull unn... Continue reading ...
Now, please nobody tell me that the snow has kept you away! I will not believe you (and besides, you can always come here by sledge!). Originally, I had planned to continue with "Spring topics" for our study material, but I changed my mind, as this was the view out of my window when preparing for today's Cafe: Outside, the winter had come back! So, my loyal guest, customer & student, 32co, and me worked through some things we can learn from snowmen:Other things we chatted about was my skiing tr... Continue reading ...
Let's see who showed up on this rainy first day of March......okay, one boy,and three girls: Valentino (from Italy), Brittney and Heather (from England), and Michaela (from Israel). Heather tried to remember both the name of the movie AND the actor in which, she believes, somebody screams in Japanese while escaping (saying: やばいよ〜) - but this is an American picture, so I believe it highly unlikely to be Japanese.....it might be a case of "空耳アワー", maybe something like this? ... Continue reading ...
"Hello? Hello? Oh, hi Laura, thanks a lot for coming. Where are the others? You don't know? Maybe they are running late? Yes, but it's 14:45 already, I seriously doubt anybody else will show up today...." Let's ask them: "Hello, community, where are you?"..................... So, Laura enjoyed (I hope) a private Cafe Chat lesson today, and she told me about a lot of things: Most of the harvest in her vegetable garden being eaten away by crows, how she got rid of her 40-year old gas oven creati... Continue reading ...
Hello, crowd of 5 - four girls & one boy! The girls: Olivia, Amy, Alexandria and Mariah -the boy: Ian.Olivia had the great news of becoming a grandmother (again!) very soon! Congratulations!........Unfortunately, being a good granny, she'll be busy so we won't see her for about three weeks! An eternity! I'll miss you (really).Amy brought in a newspaper article about barley cultivation in Inami-Cho. Apparently, it's the biggest barley field in West Japan. Barley becomes Mugi-Cha, beer (!!), an... Continue reading ...
Hey, the Cafe was open today! Where were you all? Thank you Ms. Kasai fo saving my life........So, as you might expect, there's nothing to report today, as we mainly talked about each other's business and how we could make it BIG! Unfortunately, we couldn't come up wit a good answer. We just realized the fact that we probably will never be successful, as it's necessary to be greedy, dishonest, wrenched, savvy - basically, a bad person in order to become a successful businessman/woman. As it s... Continue reading ...
We had lot's of laughs today - Shelby told us about "Mr.Ogura's Wig" accident.....ha ha ha.... this ONE!The unsure reaction of the other people in the studio is actually more funny than the falling hair itself! Crystal showed up the second time today in spite of being really busy preparing for her son's music trip to Hawaii, and "stuff like that". Gracie rhapsodized about her trip to Kinosaki with the "KaniKani Express", enjoying lot's of crabs raw, boiled, grilled (?) etc, not forgetting to d... Continue reading ...
Well, crowd, that was some reeeeeally nice snow yesterday - I've got a picture right here which is way nicer than the one from my previous post - check it out: Talking about the beautiful snow, later about skiing with me were Madison, Bill, Alicia and Emily. That is really all we talked about, nothing else! Well, I guess we won't see that kind of snow we could enjoy here yesterday for another ten years or so....It's easy to travel to places which can provide guaranteed snow, but it makes me ha... Continue reading ...
Hello! It was really nice snow in Kobe yesterday, I enjoyed it a lot, but it seems other areas were more rainy than snowy.This is a picture of my little garden at around 7:15 in the morning when it had just started snowing seriously. As it snowed until about 11 o'clock that day, I suppose at a later time it would have been more charming. Unfortunately, I couldn't be at home then:Talking about "this & that" with me on this Saturday were Miranda who brought in the story about the first assignmen... Continue reading ...
Hello community and a heartfelt welcome from the "Master & his Bunch" - To Isabella! Another excellent, eager English speaker joined us today. I'm sure she had a good time with us! Isabella is lowering the average age of the Cafe members a little.......I'm not going to say anymore!Welcoming her were Kelsey, Sabrina and Brittany. Kelsey spent a cold night recently - the plug of her "hot blanket" had popped out (what a wild sleeper she must be!!). Also, her name today was the same one with a h... Continue reading ...
There are special days, others again are ordinary. I believe however that there must be something "a little different" about each single day of the year. So, today, the 5th of February, with Crystal, Mariah and Monica surrounding me, we talked about TODAY: Other BIG topics: Some really bad guy stole the front, left tire (wheel) from Crystal's beautiful hybrid car, scratching it really badly in the process. Apparently, he was clumsy with the car-jack......stupid low-life! Because of this, Cryst... Continue reading ...
Happy "Setsubun" - it doesn't happen all too often that special days fall exactly on Tuesdays, Thursdays or Saturdays, but today it did, so we studied about this Japanese custom all in English: So, now you all know everything you needed to know about this unique custom here in Japan!
We didn't eat beans, but instead indulged in this nice looking plate full of sweet things. The red & white box is a prezzie brought in by Lindsey - you can all check what's inside next Saturday and the following... Continue reading ...
Unbelievable - first, the blog counter hit the 10.000 mark while I was sleeping! Now, who was the lucky visitor? Second, compared to January's "sad" closing (just one lady here), the start for this month looks promising: 7 (in words: Seven) eager English speakers showed up today! What's more, a gentleman by the name of Charlie visited after a very long break, we're happy to have you back! This also means that - wow - today we could count two "boys" here on the same day! Gary, Bill, Abigail, Cr... Continue reading ...
Hey, where were you all? Nothing to report, as it was just "Kasai-Katie" and me! We had lot's of personal talks, all secret, ha ha ha!Well, we studied this - And got fat, fatter, fattest with this - Okay, Saturday night - it's time to rock and roll!Have a great weekendThe "Master" Continue reading ...
4 faces showed up today: Brittney, Gracie, Laura, Jamie and the "Master". Wait, that makes 5, doesn't it? Laura, Jamie and me got so excited about the football match on Tuesday between Japan and Korea that Gracie and Brittney started regretting a little bit that they had chosen "sleep" over "support Japan", in other words, having missed the game in favour of their bed/futon.Gracie brought in a really strange story about a lonely piano sitting on top of a sandbank in the middle of the ocean. Yo... Continue reading ...
Is Saturday slowly but surely turning out to be the busiest Cafe day in the week? Well, seems like it: Catherine, Laura, Heather, Kelsey, Madison and Sabrina filled my little room today! Wow, thanks! Sabrina mentioned Kanpei-san's return to Japan after a two-year "earth-run", which was interrupted by cancer treatment for a while. She respects and likes him now! apparently, she didn't before!We all learned the expression lowbrow, used for really "ミーハー" people! Madison had this story ab... Continue reading ...
Hi, girls! Lindsey was fine, although a little bit maybe tired & relieved at the same time, as she had her 84-year old and extremely 元気 mother staying with her for 6 long days!
Emily brought in a brand-new electronic dictionary, bought just 30 minutes ago (well, not 30 minutes anymore!). She did lot's of research before buying and pulled off a great deal!
Sabrina told us a touching story. However, as it was a little too difficult for her (don't forget - she is our newest!), all in Japanese... Continue reading ...
Well, this is going to be really short - I'm incredibly busy! Thanks for coming Mikayla, Amy, Monica, Brooklyn and......yes....and Berret! A guy! Welcome! All "my girls" treated him nicely, I hope, he'll come again! Although I've got a feeling that......All cookies were eaten, so there's no picture, but you can check out today's "paper":Thanks, good night!The "Master" (Oh yes, my e-mail should be working properly again! Start commenting like hell!) Continue reading ...
Well, according to last night's weather report, all of Japan would be suffering from a heavy snowstorm today......can anybody feel anything even a little close to such circumstances? I'm in a little bit in a hurry today....this blog will be short! Today saw Monica, Brittney and Sabrina (my son's homeroom teacher's name!). I hoped Monica would bring in a picture today of her son's "coming-of-age-day" taken together with his "ghost roommate", but she was advised by her friends NOT to keep a "... Continue reading ...
Thank you for coming, "mini-crowd", Lindsey & Brittney! We talked about the weather - not only in Japan, but especially about the extreme flooding in Australia.....they MUST find a way to keep all that water for harder, draught times Down Under is usually associated with! Also a lot of (nice, I think!) snow in Japan this year! Great news for lovers of the "white splendour", and skiing population! Our conversation for some reason drifted to the topic of car license plates, particularly in Jap... Continue reading ...
I could welcome a mini-crowd of three girls on the last day of the "new-year round". New Year Round means all three Cafe days have passed once now in 2011 - so from Thursday, no more "Oshogatsu stuff" on the menu! Having said that, Heather, Cassandra, Britanny and me didn't really talk about the subject of the new year. On the agenda were, in a totally higgledy-piggledy manner, a story about dinner show in a hotel (which celebrity could fill the hall AND make money at the same time!), yet anot... Continue reading ...
Already the second Cafe for the new year - watch out, this one will pass by in no time, like all the previous years did! Before you know it, you'll be saying "あつ〜いな〜” Time flies, a fact we are all too aware of.......The 8th of January was a busy day. Although our "Saturday country girl" was missing, I could still count 5 happy noses:Katie, Amy, Elisabeth, Heather and Kelsey! Still being a little bit in "Oshogatsu-mode", I asked each one of the crowd how they had spent their holid... Continue reading ...
Happy new year to the world! Let's start this one with a little prayer: "Praying" with me today were Kiara from Ireland, Jamie from Spain, and Crystal from some Latin place (actually, we weren't really concerned about names today). Everybody seemed to have enjoyed the "Oshogatsu"-days, some with, others without family (the "peaceful way").Naturally, we discussed a little about new year's resolutions, where Jamie had the best one: Enjoy at least one thing every single day, and also do some kin... Continue reading ...
What an amazing way to finish of the "Cafe-year 2010" - 7 girls joined in today to see the tiger off! Wow! Thanks so much for coming! Being the last day for this very short, fast year, we studied using "New Year Resolutions", you know, those funny promises to yourself which are impossible to keep! As it is a well-known fact that (as mentioned above) resolutions are impossible to keep, here is an alternative list of examples which should be quite easy to do so:
10. Read less.
9. I want to gai... Continue reading ...
MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU ALL! Yes, I wore the red hat today - with me were Kelsey from Scandinavia, Emma from Germany andAlicia from England. And they were three lucky ladies, I can tell you that! Why? Well, they had thechance to taste real, home-made German Christmas " Stollen" (シュトーレン). Take an envious look! In the northern part of Germany where I come from we don't say "Stollen", but "Kloeben" (クレーベン)
Kesley told us about her Christmas dinner with her daughter and husband... Continue reading ...
Hello, people! I was just about to start typing when I noticed the rear side of my supercomputer being all wet! Help! There's a leak in this "classic" building! Rain is coming into my office!
Today's Cafe was the closest Tuesday to Christmas, so I arranged for "Christmas-athmosphere" cake -
Looks really pretty, doesn't it? And it tasted great, too! Of course!The paper of the day asked the group some very simple questions, nothing special, just daily life things - check it out: Ashley told u... Continue reading ...
My children's school ended yesterday for the year 2010 - so I can take a break from getting up at 6 every morning to take them all the way to Rokko Island! Unfortunately, one of our "Ms.Saturdays" couldn't make it today, but we still were a happy crowd of three + me - Crystal, Laura and Briana. Briana, being a HUGE fan of the Korean K-Pop group "B2st" (to be pronounced "beast") told us that she went all the way to Korea to see them in concert! Here is a recent picture of the them (for people w... Continue reading ...
After the "rush" of the recent Cafe days, today was fairly quiet - "only" Angela & Brittany decided (or had the time?) to show their happy faces. Angela told us about her (still weak) egg allergy, which was the reason she couldn't get an injection against the flu! did you know that that medicine is partly produced from those tasty, oval things? What a surprise!
She also mentioned she can't eat shrimps, but is still okay (for the time being, she worries) with crabs, which are in high season now.... Continue reading ...
What a nice, warm day it is! At the same time, of course, it's a bit scary - what is wrong with the climate? Have we finally managed to destroy the world? Nevertheless, a huge group of five members joined in today: Kelsey, Monica, Kiara, Emma and Heather and, I think, we had a good time, enjoying with Almond Sabre (?) cookies: (They look like Japanese "あげ"on the picture, don't you agree?)
Our material for the day was something new I found for today by searching the net for "very short, str... Continue reading ...
Here I am again trying to find a way to get around "today, blah blah blah"....this proves very difficult, as I have to write about today! Anyway, I enjoyed the company of Ashley, Crystal & Lindsey on this rainy Saturday. We had a cozy Christmas feel to the Cafe, with German-style "Lebkuchen" (in English: Ginger Bread Cake) - soft & fruity:And tried our English skills at this paper:Lindsey talked about & answered our various questions concerning the infamous city of Kasai. What is it about this... Continue reading ...
There was another surprise visit today - by this kind, old man:  He brought my favourite beer, "a winter's tale" - a six-pack(!) - accompanied by the beverage's best friend, two packs of chips! Thanks so much, ladies, for telling Santa about my "craving"!The girls responsible for this pleasant surprise today hid under the names Kelsey, Courtney, Christina, Kelly and Ashley!Of course, I love you all! Kelsey from Scandinavia needed a little "geography brush-up" about her origin, just for your in... Continue reading ...
Well well well, see who was here! Yes, that's right - Mikayla is back! After two years, back from Nagasaki! (I think maybe she missed me!)She showed a little surprise at how the Cafe's interior layout had changed, and the "pull-a-name-system" was also new to her. When she left, she said:" See you next week". So, I'm sure she had a good time!Ashley made a surprise visit to the Cafe today, as she is one of Thursday's crowd. She told us about her enjoyable time at the German Christmas Market in ... Continue reading ...
It was a little quiet as two of the usual, regular members decided to stay away......sniff. But: I could enjoy Heather and Laura's company, and together we studied the following pet peeves:Before that, Heather told us that her daughter & her family presently living "down under" were fine, and that her son-in-law was waiting for a working visa. Her granddaughter is now attending a Japanese pre-school after having finished "lessons" in a Japanese nursery. Laura & me were very surprised to hear t... Continue reading ...
.....and she really didn't come..... Hello! First Cafe day in the last month of the year - arguably the most romantic time of year!The Cafe, too, is decorated very nicely for the Christmas season, better come and "check it out"!We enjoyed this first day with two + one, that is Alexandria, Briana and me. I don't have much to write about, as today was somehow "listening day" for the ladies - upon request, I explained, to the best of my knowledge, the differences between the various ways and style... Continue reading ...
Last day of November, one more month to go in 2010 - I can already hear the rabbit hopping along!  Emma, Katie, Monica and Heather shared the last day of the month with me - first I thought it would be a very quiet day, then suddenly everybody showed up together! Thanks a lot for the invasion!Monica is going to visit a famous "autumn leaves spot" near lake Biwa, Kotosanzan (I think...). For some reason which is beyond my comprehension she has to go on Thursday, meaning she will be absent on tha... Continue reading ...
Another "ghostly" Saturday with the usual members - Miranda, Christina, Emma & Elisabeth is drawing to an end....... Why "ghostly"? Well, the topic of autumn leaf viewing naturally popped up again, and we were talking about this famous spot, a temple far, far away in Kasai, at which the area behind the temple is apparently the mysterious entrance to "another world"!! Shiver shiver!
Miranda wore a skirt today, and looked somehow formal. When asked the reason for this very unusual outfit (No, no... Continue reading ...
A nice Thursday Cafe has passed with Kelly, Miranda, Kiara & me sharing several interesting stories. Miranda went to see some beautiful autumn leaves at some temple (or did she say shrine?) somewhere in Kasai (now, where have I heard this name before?).......maybe "oriental" can help with the place?Kiara found an English teacher on youTube by the name of Mr. Duncan. Actually, he seems to be calling himself"misterduncan", all in one word. For reasons I missed to ask Kiara, she was recommending ... Continue reading ...
Today I got notes! Yes! I'll be able to write about everybody's stories! But - do I want to do that? Ha ha ha! Kiara, Ms. Tuesday, showed up today and told the group about a day return trip with about 21 of her friends (what a popular girl she must be!!) to some very nice mountain/forest area somewhere in the Kyoto prefecture. The group went hiking & walking in the rain, which first was a disappointment, but later turned out to be quite moody. Here is a picture of them:(Hope you all get the j... Continue reading ...
Is it Christmas already? Is it really Thursday today? I mean, WOW, six (sechs, six,έξι,sei,zes,seis) ladies today! Emma, Christina, Sabrina, Angela, Cassandra & Shelby joined our chat on this slightly chilly day (I switched on the heating just a little).Surprisingly though, we pretty much stuck to one main topic today - after crying a little about "Tako Ferry", we mainly discussed Christmas and other festive decorations and seasonal products. This started off with the chocolate I offered be... Continue reading ...
Four happy faces showed up today, but we got so carried away that I totally forgot to "check" everybody's names! Anyway, it was Monica, Amy, Emily and Mariah. One of these is a "Thursday spy", another one is going to go on a cruise ship to Shanghai on the "Asuka" (a beautiful ship she is, I just saw her at Meriken Park last Sunday), yet another one is sometimes being referred to as "the boss", and number 4 is a big fan of Terada Pond! Ok, now we all know who was who!I started the chat with re... Continue reading ...
Hey! Country-Girl (You KNOW who I mean!) - Where were you? Ok, fine. So today Kiara, Lindesy, Christina and me had to do without ghost stories!Kiara and Lindsey were welcomed to the "lost & found" office today - they had to pick up some belongings forgotten last week.Kiara told us about a reunion she attended recently held at Maiko Villa. Only 12 of her classmates could attend, although her class had about 50 students in the old days. But her grade consisted of seven classes altogether, so I ... Continue reading ...
Cassandra from Greece told us a story about three tomatoes - Mother, father and child. They were taking a walk, when the little one started to lag behind. Father went to the child, smashed it, and said:  CATCH UP! - Ketch up - KETCHUP! Get it? Cassandra also taught us a British slang being used by someone who is really tired. It rhymes with the quite well-known and popular: I'm knackered! And it goes like this:Ok, not really - it goes: I'm cream crackered! I had never heard this one before, ... Continue reading ...
Mikyala managed to get a new member to her "Terada Pond Fan club", Jamie! She has already visited the place twice - something must be really special about that place. I guess I have to check it out sooner or later, if only to be able to join the exciting chatting about it! Emma had a little "accident": When stepping back, she tripped over the concrete block separating the street and the sidewalk, and fell over backwards, hitting her head! The amazing part of this story is that she managed to ... Continue reading ...
Sorry for this late posting - on Saturday I had to rush off to attend my son's Yamaha-Electone "Concert". Naturally, I don't remember ANYTHING discussed last Saturday.But: Thanks for coming Samantha, Chelsea and Jade! One girl forgot her hat & paper bag, the other one her blue pen! On Sunday, we finally managed to go riding, although in the morning at the departure, it was raining a little...We said: What the heck, let's go!This was taken in Tamba:Our study material was this: And our cake (reall... Continue reading ...
13:44......it doesn't look good today.....13:45 - Yesss, Kelly walks through the door (after knocking!), saving my live! It still doesn't look too good: Kelly, already having received her tea & cake, and me are emotionally preparing to be "alone", meaning a private "lesson" for her. But our "romance" was abruptly interrupted by Briana with a BANG of the door, only to be joined by Shelby shortly afterwards. As it turned out, we had a nice, averagely occupied Cafe today!Thanks for showing your n... Continue reading ...
So, DID you have a good weekend? I didn't do too much, as you know, Saturday I'm here playing "the Master", and the following Sunday the weather was not so nice, to say the least, so we just did some shopping, and that was basically it. Here we are, already counting the second day of the eleventh moth of the year.....gotta start thinking about the new year cards - OMG!
Heather, Katie and me talked a "little about everything"- so it's virtually impossible to "blog" about today's chat, but topi... Continue reading ...
The "night before Christmas", eh, no sorry, the "Cafe before Halloween" showed three ghosts: Mya, Erica and Mikayla. Unfortunately, our "youngest Saturday ghost" couldn't make it today, but the mother of the "super-phsycic boy", Mikayla flew all the way from far-away Ka..... on her broom to join the class!Maybe like this?By the way, as I'm from Germany I don't relate to Halloween at all, for it's an Irish tradition brought over to the U.S, where it was commercialized a big deal, and so found i... Continue reading ...
Hey there ~ Shelby, really long time no see! How have you been? Alexandria, too! Nice to see you two again! Let's see who else was there.....oh yes, Ms. Tuesday (Sabrina), and Ms. Thursday (Crsytal). What a luxuryline-up! Know What I did the first time today? Take a guess from this multiple choice: ① I fell in love with one of the ladies here today ② I wrote "pumpkin pie" on the menu board, but actually served spaghetti③ I switched on the heater④ I took the day off & let my uncle play "... Continue reading ...
We had a "riddle day", even before we could start with this: (Absolutely NO relation/connection picture to riddles or vice versa!)
Brittney teased us with one of hers: "Ten sparrows are sitting on a roof. If you shoot one, how many will be left?"
But before that, I teased her with Brittney Spears, an American celebrity who does all kinds of naughty things, like running around with no underwear or hanging out with Paris Hilton, another American celebrity who is also known for not being the nices... Continue reading ...
Hi, S.S.T! Yes, Super-Saturday-Team! Don't really know what that's suppose to mean.....I guess I'm running out of ideas how to start this blog. What I meant to say was: Thanks for coming Isabella, Cassandra, Kelly and Jamie! You read correctly - four names! And welcome back to the "world of the living", Cassandra! Nice to have you back. Cassandra had been busy on business trips (see the connection - "busy", and "business trip"?), and eventually she got hospitalized for no apparent reason, so... Continue reading ...
Today, my Cafe almost burst at the seams - 5 (five!) people showing up on a Thursday! Haven't had something like this for a long time! Let see who the crowd consisted of: Katie (our "newest"), Jade (our "techno-specialist"), Mikayla (our "walking dictionary"), Cassandra (our rep from India), and Isabella (our rep from Tuesday)......oh yes, and me, the guy with the reading glasses!!Isabella told us (just a little, unfortunately) about an Argentinian movie she "had to see", meaning of course sh... Continue reading ...
Super-quiet Tuesday! No, I wasn't alone - Gracie & Isabella joined me, and we talked a lot! Gracie told us about earlier today how she thought there was a fire, as she met quite heavy smoke on the way back from her (morning?) stroll. It turned out that a man on a field, a former farmer, was burning the usual things farmers usually let go up in smoke during this season, only that his fire was so big that somebody actually called the fire department, and he also got in trouble with the police! ... Continue reading ...
Hope nobody stood in front of my door last Saturday! Thanks for your understanding & see ALL OF YOU tomorrow!The "Master" Continue reading ...
Hi, ladies - Lindsey, Mikayla, Elisabeth and Alicia! (And of course "hi" to all the others who couldn't make it today!) The main topic talked about was, quite naturally, the big news about the freed miners in Chile. Anybody watched the rescue operation live on TV? I did, part of it, and I must say, it was somehow moving. The whole world helped wit the rescue operation (the "luxury capsule" is German, although NO German man would ever fit inside!!), probably the whole world followed the proceed... Continue reading ...
This nice & sunny second day of the week brought in Ashley, Chelsea and Isabella - by now all regulars, all of them are bosses: Boss, vice-boss, and substitute vice-boss! Again today, we talked about the Nobel Prize, especially this time concerning the Chinese Peace Prize winner - a fact that really upset the Chinese government. I say: Who cares? Naturally, this topic made us discuss politics again, heavy & serious. We talked about Chinese relations with the world community (they're getting ca... Continue reading ...
It was "healthy" today - meaning I wasn't alone!
Three nice "girls" pleased me with their company, Chelsea, Lindsey & Brooklyn.
Although it was raining cats & dogs, everybody "landed" here safely, and we talked about the
Nobel prize again, but this time not about the two Japanese, but about the Chinese fellow sitting in prison who received the Peace prize. The Chinese government didn't like this at all, and they're threatening Norway with "consequences". Recently, they always threat other ... Continue reading ...
Again today, when I was almost certain I could close my little Cafe, Brooklyn, Tuesday's "Boss", turned up to save my day, soon to be followed by Brittany, a loyal member who can be expected here any day, really. Being the hottest subject in Japan without question since last night, we talked about Alfred N.:
While getting all heated up with the two extremely intelligent Japanese gentlemen, Mr. Suzuki & Mr. Negishi (pictured below, from left to right), Brittany suddenly noticed some figure whoos... Continue reading ...
I believe it's Tuesday today, but where is..........THE BOSS? Well, she didn't show up, but all the other "bosses" turned up - Abigail, Crystal and Courtney!Our discussion again turned out to be really serious, kicked off by Crystal: She asked us our opinion on the subject of organ donors (See? Heavy!). Since the Japanese law changed, family member's can decide whether to donate the organs of their brain-dead loved ones, or not. They can decide this without the deceased family member's consen... Continue reading ...
First posting in the new month of October, and it's about 27 degrees outside (and 35 inside?) - SUMMER!We had a nice crowd which consisted of Mikayla, Kelly, Samantha and Amy! Amazing considering the past two or threeSaturdays - Thanks!As our "Kasai Farmer", Samantha, showed up today and the harvesting season is full under way, today's main topic was actually RICE!Apparently, Kasai rice is really tasty (What do I know? I'm a potato eater!). Also, Samantha's daughter got her informal decision ... Continue reading ...
Haven't seen such a busy Thursday in a while - I suppose a little "Thank you" to Jade would be appropriate (pulling some strings)? So it was Jade, Christina (nice to see you again after some time), Miranda (Ms.Powerful), and loyal Chelsea!Today, we mainly discussed (again) China-Japan relations, and Japan's position on the world's stage in general. For me, it is extremely interesting how (naturally) people of different generations have distinctive views. My "younger" students from my various p... Continue reading ...
Well, ladies, time really does fly, doesn't it? Only one more Cafe to go in September, and then it's just three more month until we go "hop hop" into the next year ~ If you were born in the year of the rabbit, then this is YOU:Rabbit (usagi)
Born 1999, 1987, 1975, 1963, 1951, 1939, 1927, 1915. People born in the year of the Rabbit are the most fortunate. They are smooth talkers, talented, ambitious, virtuous and reserved. They have exceedingly fine taste and regarded with admiration and trust... Continue reading ...
"Saturday" is not feeling well, "Saturday" is lonely, something is wrong with "Saturday"................
3 weeks in a row only one nose decided to visit the Cafe.....sniff sniff.....
The moment I turned off the fan, Monica walked in and saved my life! Of course, at that time she wasn't Monica yet, as names are decided at a later stage, but you all know that, don't you?
As Monica was also the only one who could manage to check out the German School Oktoberfest (the BEER festival!!), our two mai...
The Cafe was CROWDED! Well, not really, but we had five people here today, which for recent times can be considered a "crowd". This is basically thanks to Miranda (aka Ms. Thursday) , who kindly (or eagerly?) showed up today knowing that next Thursday is a public holiday, and there will be NO CAFE - please take note. Joining her were Jamie, Kelsley, Christina and Heather.Recently, it's very difficult to summarize the day's chat as there's a trend to switch between lots of short topics almost e... Continue reading ...
Hey, I have NO IDEA what happened here today - only that "Mrs. Tuesday" showed up and had good time - thanks for coming!At that time, I was drinking lot's of beer at the German School Oktoberfest!I think this was studied:See you all today!! The "Master" Continue reading ...
....and after musing a little about which option to choose, I eventually did switch on the air conditioner. The weather has been very nice to us lately, and we were even spoiled with some long awaited rain last night - I can hear all the trees and flowers in my garden cheering! Alicia was really fortunate: She had just planted onion and carrot seeds yesterday, and as all we "green-fingered" people of course know, a good load of rain couldn't come at a better time! Let me at this point introdu... Continue reading ...
After quite a while, Jamie, Catherine, Amy and Kiara (and me, of course!) were able to say: WELCOME TO THE NICEST ENGLISH CHAT CAFE IN JAPAN, BRITTANY!
Yes, we could say "hello" to a new face today! She is one of the "younger ones", a single (?) lady from Akashi -welcome to the crazy bunch! We hope you'll enjoy your time with us! We ate a refreshing berry mousse, looking like this:A feeling of relieve showed among our people as finally autumn's footsteps can be heard in the mornings and evenings... Continue reading ...
Emma, Jamie and Alexandria visited the Cafe today.....and.......yes, we continued our "ghost stories"! Now, read this (I mentioned before that Jamie's son is psychic, seeing "things"....):One night, he was lying in bed, trying to sleep. Suddenly, his compo turns itself on! He got up and switched it off, just to see the same thing repeating itself! Next, he decided to pull the plug (at this stage he was sure "somebody" was with him in his room, although he couldn't see "anybody" - yet!). Next, ... Continue reading ...
Finally it seems like, very slowly, autumn is approaching. Temperature still high, the breeze is a little dry and refreshing. On this day, three ladies showed up, and joined in for banana cake, tea & coffee:(There's no picture of the tea & coffee -please use your imagination!)
Today's topics were extremely "mature, adult topics": We talked about the crazy American priest who is planning to burn the Koran in commemoration of the 9/11 terror attacks, a little about last Tuesday's discussion abou... Continue reading ...
Tuesday's Cafe is my favourite Cafe, next to Thursday's and Saturday's! I guess that means that I like them all!
As Taifun no.7 (correct?) has made last night and this morning a little more comfortable to sleep, our chat began (as usual) with talking about the weather. People say, and they are probably right, that the Seishin New-Town area is about 2~3 degrees lower, than.... Than where? Central Osaka? Uo-No-Tana? Any ideas? The crux is, WHERE are these people comparing to? But as I said, th... Continue reading ...
Heeee~~~~~~~~yyyyy! Where were you all??? C'mon, it's not THAT hot! Loyal Tiffany showed up, totally alone, so she could enjoy a very intensive, educational privateCafe chat! We covered various topics: How animals have to suffer due to the human destruction of their habitat: A a bear cub got his head stuck in a jar for about ten days, but people couldn't help it, as its' mother (a BIG bear) didn't leave the site. Eventually, they tranquilized the mother, and they were able to help the little c... Continue reading ...
Already day two of September and the heat goes on! In Germany, they started talking about the "golden autumn"............. Well, at least here in Japan we always have something to say in case we run out of topics: あつ〜いですね．．．!In this sauna weather Miranda and Christina joined me, and we talked mostly about cars (yes, really!) and navigation systems. Kicking this topic off was Miranda's little "incident" where she came just a little too close to an electric pole and gave it a... Continue reading ...
Last day of August and still unbelievably HOT!We totally forgot going through the names, but of course, everybody picked one, and they were the following:Brittney, Alexandria and Sabrina! Thanks for showing up today! The main topic of the day: Vending machines. Why? Because I heard a report on the radio this morning about one of those convenient robots selling BANANAS in Tokyo! I found a picture on the web, although I'm not sure if this is the one the DJs were talking about: The design of th... Continue reading ...
Well, on this hot Saturday Crystal, Mya, Angela and me for some reason I forgot already talked about ghosts, spirits and supernatural phenomenons. It is a topic very popular in Japan during the hot, humid & mysterious "Obon season", although for that, we were a little "behind schedule"! I myself have never had an encounter with a ghost or anything of that sort, neither had Mya nor Crystal. Angela, too, BUT her son has lots of "special powers", and Angela told us about them. YES, her son can S... Continue reading ...
.......And the heat still goes on!
But nevertheless, three tough ladies made their way to my "not so cool" Cafe: Samantha (A "Tuesday spy"), Angela (quite simply "Ms. Thursday"), and Mya (Our "Wakling dictionary"). First, I told the group the unbelievable (stupid) news about the Japanese family living in America where the father got arrested for taking a bath together with his own daughter, the charge being child abuse.............Okay, so better don't takea peaceful bath with your own child, ... Continue reading ...
Despite it being another very hot Tuesday today, 4 "loyals" pleased me with their company: Kiara, Chelsea, Miranda and Crystal. As it was Crystal's and Miranda's first time after my holiday, I had to face some more questions about Germany, but our conversation soon drifted to "abroad in general" (most of our ladies here have one or another travel experience), and we discussed the Japanese custom of buying & giving souvenirs, which sometimes turns out to have a little "mandatory" feel to it. W... Continue reading ...
Hi, and sorry for the late posting.Naturally, I don't remember anything after the weekend! Lindsey, Alexandria, Angela and Isabella showed up - this is actually the highest number since my return from Germany:
A Saturday beating both Tuesday & Thursday in attendance!
Again of course, it was my turn to talk about Germany, but the chat was less one-sided as we could also enjoy Angela's interesting story about her visit to her friend's wedding in Korea. Did you know that by Korean custom one shoul... Continue reading ...
Three young ladies showed up in today's heat - Brittney, Angela, and Erica. I was happy to hear that you had missed the Cafe during my absence! Really! Today again, I explained about my experiences in Germany, differences (good & bad) between these two countries which share roughly about the same landmass, but are so totally diverse.Foodstuff, groceries & BEER is so much cheaper than in Japan - although it wasn't really hot while I was over there, I drank beer non-stop! I mean, wouldn't anyon... Continue reading ...
Hey, we were OPEN today - have you all forgotten?
Our "Tuesday Girl", aka "The Boss" had remembered, and so the two of us had a nice "date" - it was mainly me talking about my trip to Germany. In other words, nothing to report here today, as I'm sure you all would like to hear my stories "live" tomorrow or maybe Saturday, or maybe next week?So just look at our "paper" (you'll meet this one "in person" on Thursday), and our tasty, refreshing dessert you'll might have a chance to see soon, too... Continue reading ...
I'm back!
Hope to see many of you tomorrow!
The "Master" Continue reading ...
Laura, Samantha & Ashley - thanks so much for coming on the last day before the long summer vacation! I'll be off the ground tomorrow night at 23:15 (if everything goes as scheduled, that is!)We mainly talked about recent news as we see them on TV: A terrible accident at the "love parade" (a huge outdoor music dance festival in Germany) with many fatalities reminding us of the accident some years ago at the Fireworks
event at Akashi, Okura-Kaigan. Another story was about the rescue helicopter ... Continue reading ...
Thanks to "Tuesday-Girl" Emma (from Germany!!) today was really crowded! Five altogether: Catherine, Jade, Christina, Cassandra, and Emma. This is quite unusual, 'cause don't forget - it's a Saturday! Jade had some news about the famous question of which one was first, the chicken or the egg. Well, according to a British scientist, they finally found the answer - the chicken! Why? Because in order to produce the eggshell, protein is needed. Protein can be found inside the hen's (female chicke... Continue reading ...
I should really start writing the blog straight after the Cafe finishes....it's so hard to remember! Two "Thursdayers" showed up today, Ashley & Tiffany. After having the sure, confident feeling that nobody else would show up today (also as Ashley had some information about one absentee), we decided to "break the routine" and start the day with the mandatory "material":The contents of this passage led us to discussing the differences between ♀&♂. I had a very difficult time to explainto ... Continue reading ...
Tomorrow in one week I'll be in the air - on my way to Germany! Of course I'm excited, but also a little nervous....can I cover all the things on my "want-to-do-list" in just two weeks? Obviously, by Japanese standards, a 14-day-holiday is extremely long, but I have to catch up about 5 years! Yep. On this very nice & hot day, the Cafe saw the usual "Tuesday crowd" - Chelsea, Kelsey, Courtney and Lindsey. As you all know, Summer officially started yesterday, so we kicked off with: "Oh, it's so... Continue reading ...
Our "regular" Saturday crowd showed up today, exact same members, of course with different names: Brittney, Ashley, Isabella & Emma! Thanks for coming. Already about 5 hours have passed since the Cafe finished, I'm a little tired, and basically don't remember ANYTHING we talked about today! Sorry - but please forgive me! Oh, now I remember one topic: I told the group about a TV programme in which the Ikeなっんとか先生 explain several reasons why Japan is "in Danger", currently being ove... Continue reading ...
Terrible news! Samantha is leaving us! OMG!
This came as a big shock, and Emily, Monica, Lindsey & me just couldn't agree with the reason: A new lady joined Samantha's company, so Samantha had to change her days off! Please fight back! I feel so sad, just like after the football game Spain-Germany...
. We had a huge topic today: What does the expression "Asian" stand for? Under this expression, the Japanese apparently understand the area around Vietnam, Cambodia, India etc....Basically, countri... Continue reading ...
Let's see.....who came to the Cafe today? Yes, Erica, Mikayla, Briana, and Catherine. And how was the weather? Of course, raining! What did you expect - it's 梅雨, don't forget! Among the topics covered today was still a little "leftover" of the world cup (don't worry, it'll fade soon!), and I could share some good news with the crowd: The ranking list of the 10 best footballers in this tournament included TWO JAPANESE - Honda & Nakazawa! Congratulation! Mikayla had to add to this the great... Continue reading ...
Every now and then, there are days when we have a little hard time getting things into gear, getting the discussion rolling, so to speak. This Saturday was one of those days....however, we also made a "new record" - we could count four noses today, one more than last Thursday! Yes, it was Samantha, Alexandria, Ashley and Abigail who joined me on this beautiful Saturday afternoon (tomorrow's gonna rain!!). So, as I mentioned, we couldn't really get heated up on one subject. First, the nice ladi... Continue reading ...
It's the day after a short, unhappy night spent in front of the TV watching Germany losing a football match in which the other team (Spain) was clearly better, stronger, and more motivated. I am still proud of "our boys" - after all, they're one of the best four teams in the world! Good Job, and thanks for a lot of excitement! So, as it's (almost) over for me, too, Crystal, Mariah, Lindsey and me talked about the World Cup only as little. It was more like a "summary" of the event. Lindsey told... Continue reading ...
Wow, we worked on so many topics today we totally forgot to check the time, it was past four when we finally rounded up this hot discussion! Lindsey, Jamie & Brooklyn together with me dealt with following subjects: - Suicide of the Korean actor : We were surprised and most of us couldn't understand how the Japanese female fans could travel all the way to Korea to cry their hearts out. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't believe one can cry for somebody one doesn't really know! The fans have ...
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I suppose I should be satisfied seeing three young ladies on a day like this - in the middle of the rainy season, and of course, I am! Thank you Ashley (welcome back from down under), Cassandra and Jade. Today, I told the "crowd" why I NEED to go to Germany this summer, and subsequently about my son's experience at our local elementary school. And how he, my wife, me, and last but not least, the faculty at the school feel how different things are done.After Ashley's explanation on her stay in ... Continue reading ...
Hi, ladies! It's already almost 10pm - so I' m going to try to keep this one short. Also of course, because I have forgotten most of the day's topics.....think think think......Okay, Emma, Abigail, Amy, Kelsey, Chelsea and me talked about WET PUBLIC TOILET SEATS in Australia (OMG!) experienced by Kelsey, be careful on your next visit! Connecting to the "toilet subject", I shared the story of my friend who grabbed into a load of (human) poo while scuba diving in Okinawa (OMG again!). On the (mu... Continue reading ...
Hi, community! Sorry Japan having to leave the World Cup so soon - I would have loved seeing them beat a South American Nation. Now you have ALL THE TIME & ENERGY to keep your fingers crossed for Germany next Saturday!Regards, The "Master" Continue reading ...
I am a very happy GERMAN PERSON right now, enjoying the result of a one-sided football game against arch rival England, 4-1 (I will totally accept 4-2)!! You must know, England-Germany is like 阪神ー巨人, a "must-win" situation! Of course, when I get home tonight, I'll pick up some beer on the way and be behind Japan all the way when they BEAT Paraguay 1-0 in a nice, but tight game. That's my guess, 1-0. After requesting a realistic answer (NOT a hope answer!) from today's members, the gir... Continue reading ...
As I honestly didn't expect anybody to show up today in this terrible weather (seriously cats & dogs!), the more happy I was to be surprised by two happy faces, Alexandria and Crystal. REALLY thanks for coming in these conditions! We had some trouble getting things off the ground, getting the motor running so to speak....A little bit of football of course(CONGRATULATIONS JAPAN!!!), then talked a little bit about "patriotism" ( a term I really don't like too much, associating it with American f... Continue reading ...
Nice little crowd today, more or less our Thursday regulars, especially now since Katie is back from her stay in Australia, where she had visited her daughter. Welcome "home", and thanx for the おみやげ-chocolate, was not too sweet & quite yummy! Joining Katie today saw Jamie, Alexandria and Kelsey. We talked a little about everything, so I have to see what I remember...... Of course, there were some nice Australia memories we could listen to, and my urge to want to visit the place became ... Continue reading ...
Lot's of YOUNG GIRLS here today: The Kakogawa Sisters Madison & Elizabeth, Brittney (who calls the Kakogawa Sisters the Kakogawa Sisters!!), Kelly (aka Ms. Tuesday), and Lindsey, our "she'll show up anyday" girl! While eating this refreshing cheese cake looking like this - (Check out the table cloth!)
we talked about a lot of things today, snakes & gadgets.......... First, about the snake: Brittney was visited by a long, thin, greyish-coloured snake in her hallway. First she thought it was a ro... Continue reading ...
"Me & my girl" had a good, very quiet time on this hot and humid Saturday! One of the youngest members of our Cafe save my day today, and she had a lucky, private "lesson"!As she was alone, we didn't bother picking a name today.We talked about various topics, including football, of course, but it turned out that she wasn't interested. Instead, she had a serious query: She got invited by a Korean friend to attend her wedding (in Korea), and she isn't sure what to wear, and what kind of gift sh... Continue reading ...
We were a nice crowd today on this really hot & sunny Thursday - and although Emily and Briana were not really interested in today's topic, them, me and Lindsey, Alicia and Elisabeth couldn't help but talk about FOOTBALL! With all its' little problems: "Strange" ball, security guards going on strike, the tournaments' favourites not playing too strong (besides Germany, OF COURSE!)........etc........Besides the world's most popular sport (more about that later, in "the paper"), we also talked a... Continue reading ...
Congratulation on our first victories in the Football World Cup - 1 - 0 Japan, 4 - 0 Germany! The day today was so quiet & wet, that my two "Tuesday representatives" didn't even bother to pick names for the Cafe!Let's call them Anna & Claudia (or whatever!).We mainly listened to and talked about Anna's "secret" trip to Spain. Yes, that's right, she didn't mention it to anyone here!She had a good time with good food and sightseeing, this time traveling by package tour, which for Anna & her hus... Continue reading ...
Summer is coming, definitely, but today we managed with a wide-open door, and two fans. We stands for Valentino, Cassandra, Crystal and me.I tried to get just a little excited about the Football World Cup with the group, but today's members were difficult to get in the boat, Crystal cares more about Koshien (really, me too!).Cassandra had some story about students at Kyoto university who were given the unbelievably lucky chance to study abroad for one semester at all costs covered, but........... Continue reading ...
Today we talked about numbers, and their association with superstition, and probably religion. We, that were Emma, Monica and Heather (et moi!). A little quiet, but I guess it's to blame on the nice weather.......Nevertheless, we enjoyed a really mature discussion about above mentioned topics:13 is a unlucky number in western cultures, so you won't find "gate 13" at airports, for instance. 4 is considered unlucky due one of the many readings it can be read here in Japan, so you won't find "roo... Continue reading ...
Psssst.......quiet now.......pssst! Yes, it turned out to be unusual quiet Tuesday - only Emma & Mikayla showed up, two of our "loyal veterans"!
Emma brought in a interesting topic (she "stole" from a Sunday TV prgramme!) about several men finding themselves in the following situation: Their ship is sinking - they need to jump into the sea. What does the captain say to each of the men in order to get them to take that brave step?
1) To the American: You'll be a hero if you jump!
2) To the Italia... Continue reading ...
Yes! Finally some more people here today - Bill, Shelby, Brooklyn & Mikayla joined on this summer-like Saturday - thanks for letting your feet (and cars) take you here!Although I didn't really want to, we somehow ended up talking a little about the ridiculous Japanese government before changing lanes to some lighter subjects, and we had really good ones today:Bill new EVERYTHING about the turtles living in a nearby (extremely) dirty river, and Brooklyn had some top secret information about Mi... Continue reading ...
For Miranda, Lindsey & Jade - very sorry I had to rush off straight after the Cafe, but - I made in on time. I left here around 15:13, and arrived at my son's school on Rokko Island pretty much exactly at 16:00! Actually, I probably could have gotten there earlier, but I made two little mistakes: 1) I missed the junction near Maya which would have taken me onto the Harbour Highway, which again goes from Port Island directly to the other man-made piece of land. I didn't know a link existed, and... Continue reading ...
I suppose I can again call this a good start into the new month, June, the month of the rainy season. Although I somehow doubt the rain will come "as scheduled", as the weather has been more then strange lately, not reliable at all! We were 7 (which includes me, but sounds better then 6, doesn't it?):
Lot's of people from England today - Ashley, Alicia, Madison and Courtney, plus Brooklyn from America & Sabrina from the "Latin world".
Ashley, it was really nice to see you (two) again - I believe... Continue reading ...
What a lousy way to finish up the end of May - again only one nice lady on this Saturday! THANK YOU SO MUCH, JAMIE!!
Nevertheless, I feel we had a very good time today, talking about nothing other but gays! Yes, that's true! We started chatting about music, and after somehow ending up with Boy George (lead singer of Culture Club, a famous band in the 80s), nothing could stop us!
Has any of you ladies ever visited a gay bar/show pub? For men it is really disgusting, but women seem to enjoy a vi... Continue reading ...
Hi, "community"! Well, what a relieve to see so many happy (and not so happy) faces here today - I expected "the worse", so to speak,but five eager ladies showed up today: Jade (the "unfortunate" one, but more of that later), Christina (the "riddle lady" - it was her second time here this week!), Courtney (our "native American" & my big help), Emily (our "quiet beauty"), and Amy (THE Tuesday lady per se). The group started today by listening to my traffic accident story with all its' gloomy de... Continue reading ...
So, why is there a question mark behind Tuesday? Well, the answer to this one is easy: Because today just didn't "feel" like it - my two Tuesday regulars didn't show up, instead Shelby (a definite "Thursdayer") pleased me with her company, joined by Chelsea, Elisabeth and Jade. These three ladies do sometimes show up on other days, so I had a strange "Thursday feeling" today. This time, I started telling the group about my very bad news:
First, how a big truck ran into the back of my car last ... Continue reading ...
Ok, this will be short, as today saw Kelsey..............and..............eh, Kelsey....no, wait, that's one and the same person... right, it was ONLY Kelsey, and she had a lucky (?) private chat lesson!
Where were you, other Saturday (young) ladies? We missed you!
Today, Kelsey and me talked about getting forgettable, and how annoying it is. I was looking for my wallet yesterday, at home, here at the office, while the bloody piece of leather had been in my bag all the time......ngg... shoot me,... Continue reading ...
Hey friends! We were three beauties today - Kiara (Irish), Courtney and Katie (both English), and we talked about various topics:
Courtney, who is a member of a Hula Dance group had the chance to visit a performance by a group of "real" Hawaiian Hula Dancers, and this experience totally changed her view of the art - unfortunately negatively. That is, not that she suddenly stopped liking Hula (rather the opposite), but that she realized how "fake", how "copied" the performances of her group had ... Continue reading ...
Hi, group! I'm pleased to say that at a steady pace the Cafe was able to once again say hello to a new, cheerful lady - Kelly from Ireland! A warm welcome to you, we're pleased you decided to join the club (of the "wild ladies"!).
Our veterans Chelsea, Katie, Kelsey, Brooklyn, and our "still fresh" Heather took good care of her. But actually, Kelly turned out to be a very fluent speaker of the English language, and not nervous or shy at all! Great job, keep it up!
Among the subjects today was a... Continue reading ...
Konnichiwa! Hello - and once again, we were able to welcome a new (and YOUNG!) member to our crazy bunch: Shelby!
Say hello to Shelby, and a very warm welcome! She was "abducted" by Mya and brought to this fun place - thanx Mya!
Also joining were Erica, Alexandria, and Ashley. Recently, no "boys" are showing up (sorry, girls!).
I really, and once again, don't remember what topics were on the agenda today. Besides, of course, the usual questions for the "new face".
Our phrase today looked like th... Continue reading ...
So, as Emma (from Germany!) mentioned so appropriately, how am I going to summarize today's "heavy" and "light" discussions? Her, Crystal and Heather (who first said she was tired, so she would be on the receiving end, but eventually talked actively as usual!), first complained (as usual!) about the lying politicians around the world, later about high-speed trains after I mentioned that the new "Tohoku-Shinkasen" is REALLY ugly. The politician talk was triggered off by the news of the new lea... Continue reading ...
Hi, folks! We were a nice group of 5 today - Jade, Briana, Mikayla, Amy, and Courtney (et moi = and me, French).
We talked a little about the exhaustion suffered by our "older age group" after having to take care of hordes of
grandchildren during the Golden Week!
Other main topics today were foreign shopping establishments - IKEA & COSTCO, to be specific. Surprisingly, 4 out of our
5 girls here today had never visited Ikea. Ikea is a Swedish owned furniture store (nearest one on Port Island), w... Continue reading ...
Hi, young people! Yes, because today, 50% of our eager ladies were "under 30" - Kelly from Ireland, and Mya from Italy caused this unusual phenomenon. So today, these two girls and our Saturday regular, Elisabeth, were able to welcome yet another newcomer, Heather from England. Hi, Heather, don't be shy - I wish you a good time with the regular "herd"!
We talked about everybody's Golden Week activities - some went to libraries (to become even smarter?), another one was obeying to her dog's need... Continue reading ...
Ok, trying to get the life back to normal after enjoying a sunny, Golden Week! On Sunday I had my little concert at the "親父バンド祭り" in Kakogawa, and I'd like to thank all the loyal members who showed up for doing so. I hope you had a good time. On Monday I enjoyed a nice B-B-Q at home with my best friend, Ken, who I hadn't seen for over three years. How surprised I was when he said "初めまして" to my daughter (who'll be 4 in December!). But I guess it just shows that true frie... Continue reading ...
It was a good start into the beautiful month of May, especially as we could today welcome another "newbie", the type which really lowers our average age significantly - Briana is "below" 30 - enough said! A warm welcome to you from the Saturday bunch, the others, and of course, me! I hope you'll have a great time with the veterans!
As usually, a "new face" means bombarding with questions by the "oldies", and Shelby, Cassandra and Alexandria didn't hesitate at all to follow the tradition!
Afte... Continue reading ...
Hi crowd - thanks for coming on this happy (?) day for me, my "anniversary"! Elisabeth spoiled me with some rare foreign beer (for tonight, obviously!), Emma brought some eatable souvenir from Taiwan (she received from someone, she didn't go there), Angela treated us with a (she said 'easy') riddle, which I couldn't solve, due to not knowing the "other" meaning of fish: Why are fish smart?
Please spend some sleepless nights on this one - if you require help, don't hesitate to ask!
Gracie & Ja... Continue reading ...
For all you music lovers - on May 2nd, Sunday, there will be an event called 親父バンド祭り, held at 加古川非岡山公園. For people who are not too familiar with Kanji (Me!!), the place is called Hiokayama Koen in Kakogawa.
The concert starts at about 11 am, and closes around 5 pm. As 8 or 9 bands are going to play, the time will most probably shift little by little towards the evening. As this event is taking place in a park ,outdoors, why don't you bring a Bento and check it out... Continue reading ...
Hi! Today was S.Q.S (not S.O.S) - Super - Quiet - Saturday! Of course, I just made this up! Loyal Miya from Italy joined today. She had a very heart-warming story about a Slovakian couple who got stuck in Taiwan because of the volcanic eruption: Apparently they were planning to get married on the 24th of April (which would be today), but as they obviously couldn't get back on time, a hotel owner threw them a wedding party at his hotel, inviting strangers (probably other stuck people). The coup... Continue reading ...
On this lousy-weather-Thursday 6+me tried to "conquer" part two in the series "Pet Peeves" - see what annoys you!: We had a really, fun & heated-up discussion about all these examples above (there are, of course, LOT'S MORE!), some of us could reflect their daily lives, maybe me the most (because I'm married, right?)! Today it felt like Emma (and a little bit her husband) could be my wife - visitors today understand what I mean!Before the "peeves", our main topics today were....................... Continue reading ...
Hey, it's me! I will try to post something entertaining for you today - as usual, of course! Shelby, Brittney, Miranda and Ashley joined me today for this delicious, refreshing treat: This is signaling the beginning of the warmer season!
Somehow, today we had trouble to get going: First, usually very cheerful & powerful Shelby seemed a little exhausted. She told us that she had a ballet lesson before coming here, and also walked her dogs, so - no wonder! Miranda spent the whole of last Sunday r... Continue reading ...
What a CROWD! Well, at least compared to last Saturday. Three beautiful girls delighted my heart today (ehem!): Jamie from Spain, Shelby from England, and Crystal from some Latin place - thanks a lot for showing up on this beautiful day. I guess the heavy rain must have washed away even the most stubborn Sakura!
After going over the most recent news - volcanic eruption in Island crippling the entire air traffic over Europe, Shelby and Crystal for some unexplainable reason agreeing on that Engli... Continue reading ...
.....first I thought...oh oh....nobody's is going to show up? A thing that fortunately hasn't happened for quite a while now, knock on wood! But than, my favourite "Thursday Team" all showed up together: Gracie, Mya, Brittany, and Shelby. The group had lunch at my "competition" just round the corner (name cannot be given due to copyright reasons!). And guess what? Besides Shelby (who is a tea-drinker by nature), the other 3 "always-coffee-drinkers" all ordered tea! Yep, because they all had co... Continue reading ...
A very relaxed, settled-down Tuesday Cafe has passed with Briana, Chelsea, and Jamie - aka the "usual crowd". We didn't come up with a main topic today, so we ended up chatting about various "little" things. In other words, I don't really remember (neither did the ladies when I asked them to help me refresh my memory at the "玄関先").....Let's see, Briana proudly showed around a picture of her (adult) son, wearing a "Kendo-outfit", looking handsome & cool, and about an incident where Briana... Continue reading ...
Well people, this one is going to be REALLY short - what a quiet Saturday. I blame it on the weather & the Sakura! I bet you're all out getting drunk under the cherry trees!
One lady, Jamie (from Spain) visited me today, a first-timer, so a warm welcome to her, young & energetic from Uozumi!
As it was just us two today, we had a lot of time, so she was able to tell me all about her very interesting past! Please come and meet her next Saturday - you'll be pleased & surprised!
Our sweet (the one... Continue reading ...
We were a nice lot today - although one of our regular "Thursdayers" was absent, I could still count 5 happy noses! Thanks for coming & spicing up the various discussions - Katie, Isabella, Crystal, Abigail, and Alexandria. So, our main topics today? Very naturally, going to enjoy the Cherry Blossoms here & there. 4 out of 5 members told us about their visits to various nice and less nice destinations. Chrystal went all the way to Tokyo as she wanted to visit Yasukuni Shrine, Katie (I think i... Continue reading ...
Hey ladies, this is soooo cool, we had six beauties here today - Olivia, Jacqueline, Hannah, Isabelle, Michaela and Breanna (and me, but of course, I'm NOT a beauty!) - but only three main topics -
Number One (and you HAVE TO check this out) - "Terada Pond" - Join me on a walk around the famous pond!
I really think this is hilarious! No need to visit the place anymore! Second (and to no surprise) - 花見 - chatting about the very old, Japanese custom, which got a bit out of hand in recent years... Continue reading ...
One girl, one boy - and me! But the boy, Gary, was not our regular (German-loving) Saturday boy! He was a "second-timer",
came here about two month ago. But Alexandria (THE Miss Saturday!) had met him before.
Today, I shared my extremely limited knowledge about Easter, and we studied about the Easter Bunny:
If you need more information about Easter & the Bunny, please continue reading here - Happy Easter!Apposite to it, we enjoyed a very special, rare Carrot Cake with cheese creme topping, wow... Continue reading ...
What a great start for the new month, which, by the way, is my birthday month! We had  Yes, that's right, we had 7 people today!
Angela from the Acropolis, Ashley & Shelby from Westminster, Erica & Kelsey from Stockholm, Brooklyn from New York (Brooklyn), and Jade fell off the Sagrada Familia! By the way -and this is NOT an April Fool's joke- it was Shelby's birthday, so please join the choir:
Topics covered today were various, as many people obviously means many things co...
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Last day of March (for the Cafe, one more day to go in "real life"!), and hopefully last day of winter - we had a layer of snow this morning - an amazing 0.1 cm was covering my bike, my roof, my garden table etc!! A fairly quiet Tuesday with Jade from Spain, Laura from a Latin place, and Cassandra from Greece. Oh yes, and me, from Kobe, Japan!
All I remember is that we had "serious" talks. I don't really remember about what though, as it's already 22:51 now - the Cafe finished about 7 hours a... Continue reading ...
Now, somebody please tell me - is it REALLY Saturday today? Why? Well, because today Eddie, Briana (she preferred to be called Nancy), Samantha, Mariah, Gracie, and Catherine gathered today! This just might be a new record for Saturday (although I'm too lazy to check my records!). At the beginning, Eddie was really quiet. When asked if he was all right, he said he was okay, just very full! (Maybe he was nervous being surrounded by so many nice ladies!) He had 3 portions of curry for lunch! Nev... Continue reading ...
It was a crowded Thursday today, mainly thanks to Heather showing up after ages, and not alone! She brought two new girls with her by the names of Laura & Breanna! Welcome to the "chaos" called the "SilberCafe! As both of you seemed to have enjoyed today, and you both spoke very good English, we all expect to see you two again in the not too distant future! Once again - WELCOME!
Subjects varied, although most time was spent today asking each other the routine line-up of questions, as usual when... Continue reading ...
The weather is really playing games with us, don't you think? The 連休-long weekend I think we were lucky, because the forecast was quite different from the actual weather. Basically, all three days stayed dry! It was really important to me, as on Sunday I took my son on the back of my bike to Intex Osaka to check out the annual Motorcycle show! The weather was pleasant, also the temperature, but all the yellow stuff "made in China" (黄砂-"yellow dust") turned out to be pretty bad on tha... Continue reading ...
Hi, nice people! I am going to keep today's post really short - I have to go to Sannomiya tonight for some casual drinking with my
bike mates!
Today saw Felix (by now our regular "Saturday boy"), and Gracie, also very much a "Saturday face" - but I sure missed the
500+ other members today who didn't show up. Hanami already? Just kidding!
Our main topic today was about courage - Felix ran into some German-speaking people in Osaka the other day, and decided to talk to them! That's courage!! So, ple... Continue reading ...
What a CROWD! Wow! Well, not really, but as the Cafe is a bit quiet these days (especially on Thursdays), it sure felt like a crowd being surrounded by Kelly, Kiara, Jack (!), Heather, Brooklyn, and Laura. We talked about a scary dragon painting (its' eyes follow you wherever you go!!) on a ceiling in a shrine (temple?) somewhere in Kyoto. Sorry, but I couldn't catch the name. I think Heather went there. Also movies were discussed today:
Laura mentioned old, good quality movies being shown on ... Continue reading ...
Today was "very different", I felt. The atmosphere seemed really relaxed, so settled. Not dull or boring, though. We sure had fun, but it was more "adult fun" (please no misunderstanding here!), difficult to explain. Maybe thanks to our topics? We talked about how people (in this case the U.S) cannot write cursive handwriting anymore, and only learn block letters in school. So Christina asked us coffee-drinking members of the group if we could. It was also pointed out, that Japanese English te... Continue reading ...
Heeeello, crowd! It was Abigal, Cassandra, and "our man", Barret, today! When the Cafe started, the sky looked like it would start to rain any minute, but when people left, we had blue sky!
Again today, we talked a little bit about the "very small fish" (after all, it's the season), and Barret told me some interesting Japanese: "Sandeel-Poorness". He also told us that in season he catches a lot of octopus, which he boils, freezes, and then sends out to people, and so experiences "Octopus-Poorne... Continue reading ...
Well, it seems the "Winterstorm" is over! I had to go to various places on my bike yesterday, and I tell you - it was so cold & so wet! So, today the weather seems a lot friendlier, and matching the season (after all, it is March, Spring) our main topic, frankly, was this:
This of course is BEFORE hard-working Japanese ladies living in the Kansai region get behind their gas, natural gas, liquid gas, whatever gas or "all-denka" cooking stoves, get busy for about an hour, and create something lo... Continue reading ...
Our "usual" Tuesday crowd" showed up today, including our "Taiwan & India" girl! We were four altogether (excluding me): Mikayla from America, Monica, Catherine and Christina all from Greece. You three - please do something about the Euro!
One girl from Greece, Monica, forgot to bring a very important book about a delicate subject (I CAN'T SAY IT!), but nevertheless, we did talk about just this subject for a while, and I let everyone knew the "man's position" on the matter!
When I pointed out th... Continue reading ...
Well, first of all - Happy Birthday to Barret (today). Happy Birthday to Kiara (yesterday), and Happy Birthday to Michaela (next week). Also thanks for coming Crystal, THE Tuesday girl! Happy, Happy Birthday!
With all those birthday kids, it came only naturally that we ended up talking about our ages, the way we looked (younger, maybe older), the way we felt, and the conversation then drifted to talking about birthday celebrations in Japan & Germany,
and its' differences. Today's "birthday cake" ... Continue reading ...
Welcome back, Shelby (32co) - we missed you, worried about you, looked for you, thought about you all the time, had sleepless nights, placed a "missing person" ad in a world famous blog etc...... Thanks for your very interesting "report" on India, from an angle impossible to experience traveling by ordinary package tour! Great story!
I have visited India when I was about 15 (so, just a little kid, really), and it made me wanting to go again, this time with a more mature perspective.
Other inter... Continue reading ...
So, March has arrived - is it still cold, already warm, something in between? The weather seems to be playing games with us, isn't it? The first day of March at the Cafe was enjoyed (I hope!) by Jacqueline, Kelsey, Mariah, and Monica......oh yes, and me!
We talked about various topics: Naturally still a little bit about the Olympics (medal count etc), about Mariah's visit to the doctor who gave her the good news not to worry as she was getting better, Monica's yet another huge discovery - anoth... Continue reading ...
Although February is only 3 days shorter than other months, this one really felt like it flew by! So fast! Already March from next Monday! And what have I achieved to "change my life" so far? Nothing, really! OMG! Today was another quite serious Cafe with Crystal, Alicia, and Isabella! Crystal, it was nice to see you in good shape after a short while. What a pity that you're moving to Tarumi next month......we'll miss you!And of course, Olympics on the agenda again - especially now, that it's ... Continue reading ...
Heeeeeeavy!! Yes, this was some SERIOUS Cafe today! Kelsey and me gave Isabelle a "スパルターlesson" on the subjects of the olympics being for a big part just business and politics, from there we drifted to Mr .Toyoda of Toyota being "barbequed" in America, and we all agreed the whole thing is just another "show", typical American style, and Kelsey (who happens to have some experience in that country) also added that it is part of election propaganda, which happens to be this year. I pe... Continue reading ...
Well, today I do remember what Emily, Cassandra, Isabella and me talked about: FOOD! What a nice subject! It started out with my explanation why I don't like Azuki, and how I was spoofed by an Azuki-Bar which I thought was (not very tasty) chocolate until the first "Bean" came through the ice to show it's true identity!
We also all agreed that "Natto" is rotten, and doesn't have a delicious appearance, although everybody but me liked it.
We asked the (maybe very famous?) question how human being... Continue reading ...
Of course, so much time has passed, so I have absolutely NO IDEA what we talked about on this day! Three "girls" showed up - Elisabeth, Alexandria and Courtney! Thanks for coming, I'm sure we had a great
time, with lots of laughter!
Sorry I am posting so late, but on Saturday, I had to rush off to do this in Sannomiya:
Yes, Rock'n Roll!!
Our cake was this one:
(What? You have seen this cake before somewhere? I wonder why!)... Continue reading ...
At first I thought: "Oh oh, I might be alone today", but then Angela dropped in, and my day was saved! Then, while talking about her Sanuki Udon "Hashigo" trip to Kagawa-ken, Jacqueline joined the party, a little past two o'clock. The serving style of the first Udon shop on Angela's list was really unique: Only noodles (NO soup), with a little soy sauce and some, I forgot now, green chili pepper or something! Angela said it was the best udon she had ever tasted! The other shops were more your... Continue reading ...
A very crowded Tuesday welcomed our new, "young girl", Kelly today! Hello, Kelly, welcome to the group, the team, the "club", the party! I'm sure you had a good time today, 'cause we noticed you smiling & laughing a lot! Great! Thanks to our "veterans" Crystal, Abigail, Kelsey, Jade and Briana taking "good care" of Kelly, today's chat was a success!
Of course, also contributing to this nice day was the cake, "Apple Yogurt":
It was really juicy & delicious.
Now, please take a guess what we talke... Continue reading ...
In a way, today was a little special, because a new member came in for a "trial". Why was this special? Well, because his name was Ian, from some Hebrew country. Yes, that's right, reinforcement for the male contigent! And he was kind of young, too! Maybe you ladies should come and "check him out", ha ha ha!
Saturday's members, Madison and Lindsey (both from England, they arrived together!) took excellent care of the new gentleman! I think we all had a good time - Welcome Ian, and please come ... Continue reading ...
We were quite a "big bunch" of people today, even Thursday-Faces showed up! I suppose that's because the Cafe will be closed due to a national holiday this week Thursday. Please don't forget:
!NO CAFE THURSDAY THIS WEEK!
Let's check the names & origins - Cassandra, Monica and Christina from Greece, Emily from some Latin place (I think she said Spain), Brittney from England, and Kelsey from Scandinavia.
Christina - Nice to see you again (first time this year) - Good that you were fine!
Kelsey -... Continue reading ...
Sorry to disappoint all of you who are always looking forward to the latest blog posting (which of course is ALL OF YOU!), but last Saturday I had to rush off. No, NOT to go drinking, my insurance salesman was coming to our house!
So, of course, today I don't have the slightest idea what we talked on this day - remember, I'm not getting any younger!
Naturally, Monica & Cassandra (both form Greece) had a splendid time, and so did I!
(I'm listening to "Ghostbusters" on iTunes radio right now - な... Continue reading ...
Our small, Thursday group today was formed of Sabrina, Kelly, and Laura! We started talking about movies as Laura had just seen Avatar - she said she was sitting in a row very far in the back, but thanks to the 3D effect, it felt like the third row! Wow! I got curious, but I won't go and watch the movie for ethic reasons. Later, Kelly told us about the fascinating broadcast of the Grammys - Lady GaGa, and how Pink got all wet, circling and singing at the same time. Boy, I can't even sing in a ... Continue reading ...
Hi, community! All participants today came from "the Island" up left in Europe:
Ashley, Alicia and Lindsey from England were joined by Kelly from Ireland.
Today, we chatted about the usage of personal computers, and I tried to tell the still
hesitant ones that computers are actually fairly easy to use. Basically, they tell you
everything you need to do, confirm all your actions (are you sure you want to delete this? Or:
This action cannot be reversed, etc.), and they only know what people taught t... Continue reading ...
Hey! Wow! Incredible! Unbelievable! For the first time in over three years it finally happened! What? The coffee maker broke, so no coffee? Wrong! Not a single word of Japanese was spoken? Wrong!
Too many people showed up, so I had to ask some guests to come back another time? No, wrong again, as
today's members were only Edward, Sabrina, and Ray. What did you say? Edward, Sabrina, and Ray?
Get it?
We ate delicious marble cake:
And did an idiom which was a little difficult, I'm sorry for that:
That'... Continue reading ...
One more Cafe to go, and we'll already be welcoming February - time really flies, doesn't it!? First, there were only two girls from England, so we were counting on a quiet Thursday, but at exactly 14:00 another happy face showed up, also from England: Heather, Alicia, and Courtney.
When the conversation got carried away about movies (I started it, mentioning Avatar), 3D, TV sets etc, and we were enjoying this,
the door opened (around 14:30) and another lady showed up - Abigail! She came for "... Continue reading ...
Close to full house today: Sabrina, Elizabeth, Mikayla, Emily, Amy, and Catherine all met here for the sole purpose of EATING this:
Ok, just kidding! The main purpose of course was to speak and learn a lot of new English, and today's phrase
everybody seemed to have enjoyed:
Our free conversation was about......was about........was about what? Boy, I forgot! Really!
I talked a little about my day at the skiing grounds, our "Kakogawa-team" chatted about the location of some
shop (was it a shop?), El... Continue reading ...
You know, I'm starting to run out of ideas of how to begin each posting...... Hello,........Ok,...........Today,.........any good suggestions? Maybe I should
change the language? Something like this, maybe:
Bonjour, aujourd 'hui Chelsea,Hannah, Alicia et Emily....
Ok, this of course, was French, but I'm sure you all know that today four people
showed up, and what their names were!
Although we DID try hard again to keep our topics "light & easy", we did end up talking politics, global
warming (is... Continue reading ...
Ok, folks, I'm going to try to keep this one short (AND interesting, of course!). On this very warm but rainy day, Crystal, Catherine, and Miranda joined me going down
memory lane - that is, we talked about the "good old days", and I started it! No ,NOT because
I'm getting old (which, of course, I am), but due to my job, where I meet a lot of young people,
students of mine, ranging from elementary school to university, and experiencing on a daily
basis how different they are from us at the same ag... Continue reading ...
Today, we were surprised by a lady who used to come here over a year ago! Ok, actually, I wasn't, because she had called beforehand, so I knew she was going to pay us a visit in the near future. Her "stage name" (her first one, as last time she chatted here with us, the "stage name system" hadn't been implemented yet!), was Isabelle, from France! Bonjour! She was joined by Jamie from Spain, Briana & Kiara from Ireland, and Brittney from England.
Today, I was trying hard to keep the topics relax... Continue reading ...
We had the perfect balance of "Man & Woman" today - Edward from England and Emma from Germany contributed to today's "crowd" (well......).
We talked about a lot, all mixed up, so it's hard to remember and to get it organized....Japanese politics (again!), earthquake in Haiti, and subsequently Kobe earthquake, it's anniversary coming up soon. I can't believe that 15 years have passed already. Time REALLY flies!
Our sweet today was quite special because it contained "Nutella". Without this, German... Continue reading ...
Brrrrr.......freeeeeezing!! Hello, there - today, we had the "usual" Thursday crowd, minus a few. Was is too cold to move?
For some reason, Hannah, Isabelle, Monica, Briana & me talked about really heavy stuff today:
Politics (and all its' unfairness & corruption) !!
When trying to change our topics to something "lighter", somehow we couldn't manage, and ended up
discussing the way times are changing, and modern technology is making us more and more lazy, and
maybe fatter (because of the fact we s... Continue reading ...
Abigail & Alicia came the first time today in 2010 - welcome "back"! Alexandria joined them, and today again, we talked mostly about how the past holidays were spent. Alicia visited Okinawa - it was her second time, she went alone, and she really enjoyed going about at her own pace, "feeling" Okinawa's history & it's rich nature. Abigail spent precious time with her family, taking them for a trip to Okayama, and doing all the Japanese new year "things". Alexandria was more on the "listening en... Continue reading ...
Briana from Ireland (that's a region in Kasai!) visited the Cafe after quite a while, together with Catherine, Kiara, David, Cassandra, and Chelsea.As you can see, it was a busy Saturday afternoon.....David was really full after a heavy Udon lunch, but, after carefully "checking", I realized that nobody had touched their cakes until the very end of the Cafe, although it was really tasty looking like this:  As all of today's members came here for the first time in the new year, we mainly chatted... Continue reading ...
The second Cafe for the day brought in Madison, Mikayla, Angela, and Cassandra, and we again talked about everyone's New Year's Holidays - pretty much "normal", everybody! Visiting family (or being visited BY family, the more exhausting option!), going to "hatsumode", hot springs etc....
Besides that, we talked about the fact that it seems that movies being showed at theatres are getting more and more 3D, so all the people in the audience have to wear funny glasses! Just imagine!! Connecting t... Continue reading ...
Helloooooo~ Happy New Year of the Tiger!
Today, I expected either a very busy Cafe (because of all the ladies who had to wait sooo long to come here), OR, a very quiet Cafe (because everybody needed to take a break from the "hyper time" with children & grandchildren)......
The second version became reality - Jamie from Spain, and Chelsea from England joined today to chat about how they spent the holidays, and to learn a little about the "Tiger", according to the Chinese Zodiac:
By the way, THIS ... Continue reading ...
Welcome to the last Blog-Posting for the year 2009! I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of you loyal, eager, and cheerful group of "young girls & boys" for your patronage throughout the year & of course beyond! Without you, it wouldn't be possible to create
this nice, cozy, and warm atmosphere. Thank you very much!
To round up the year, Brittney, Kelly and Mike showed up, and you won't believe what our main subject for the day was!
CARS! Yes, we mainly talked about the four-wh... Continue reading ...
Thanks for coming yesterday, and sorry that I had to rush off - Christmas vespers (in German) at the Kobe Union Church located in Rokko started a 16:00. No, I am not a dedicated christian, but for this special day I like to go to church to catch some christmas atmosphere, unfortunately very limited in Japan. And I took the Hanshin Kosoku all the way to Maya. Up to Yanagihara I was perfectly in time, but then, the highway showed its' "true face" - yes, a traffic jam with no end in sight! Luckil... Continue reading ...
The year is coming to an end, "Christmas is standing in front of the door" (direct translation from German, meaning " Christmas is just aorund the corner"), and the Cafe is accordingly quiet - today saw Lindsey, Mya, and Jade. We got excited talking about skiing, because Mya went here:
So, we talked about snow, more snow, and even more snow! I REALLY want to go!!
Besides that, we of course had our usual "study phrase":
Please watch out for this expression, because the Japanese 足ひっぱるhas ... Continue reading ...
Ok, this is what the people have missed who couldn't make it here today:  Mariah joined me here today, and she was a lucky (?) girl having a private lesson! We enjoyed chatting about her sons & her grandchildren, and about youth in general these days......I for my part feel that too many of today's youngsters are lacking motivation, are unenthusiastic, and sluggish.There's no spirit, really...... We studied this phrase, which Mariah seemed to have enjoyed very much: I personally like it, too. Th... Continue reading ...
Hello! Another quiet Thursday afternoon passed by peacefully, together with Christina and Brooklyn. Christina, thanx for calling on Brooklyn to join the Cafe today.
We talked about the media hype on various subjects including (of course!) Tiger Woods, and MJ. When Broolyn asked me what I thought about the TW incident, I replied that I think he's just "a man", who happened to be famous. We also talked about the MJ trials some years ago (child molesting charges against him), which apparently wer... Continue reading ...
The "we-are-busy-the-end-of-the-year-is-approaching" time seems to have kicked in. We had "just" three ladies today: Lindsey, Mariah, and Madison. But WOW, Lindsey's story about her "old man" (father) was so amusing! In today's Cafe, the rest of us were on the listening end. By request I won't go into details, but what do YOU think of a father who:
1) Goes out drinking & gets a little drunk (just comfortably)
2) On the way home asks 3 or 4 TOTAL STRANGERS to come home with him for "a drink"
3) W... Continue reading ...
The "Saturday Crowd" is beginning to form, today we had Catherine, Isabella, Isabelle (NOT a mistake - different origin!), and Felix!
Isabelle was telling us about a interesting book she read about "making toasts" (NOT the process of heating up bread in the morning!), but the one which requires (at least) two glasses, and two thirsty persons! Nowadays, we associate the "cheers" with happy moments, like birthdays or weddings etc, but originally it was used as a "secret sign", which eventually le... Continue reading ...
Hello, hello! Katie visited the Cafe the first time in this month, and she was really pleased with the Christmas decoration entertaining the eye (and soul, maybe?) since December! She even tried to "improve" the atmosphere by switching on & off various lights to create a cozyier feel, but it proved not to be a easy task!
We talked about people snorring so nosily that partners couldn't sleep, others again being kicked so strongly they would fall off the bed (NOW that's where you should have apo... Continue reading ...
Hello, nice group! It was quite crowded today (well, a little): Olivia, Courtney, Mariah, Kelly, Briana, and Christina showed up to enjoy a relaxing time with some English, this phrase:  And a nice sweet dessert, "half" Japanese & "half" Western, Milk Youkan Jelly:  And now I have to try to remember the topics which heated up our discussion today.....think think......One subject, of course, was Christmas: Courtney told us how she treats her grandchildren for the event, others joined in with thei... Continue reading ...
Hello, community! The people who were here last Saturday know that I wasn't, the people who couldn't be here, know now!
Well, I was absent - so I don't know what you chatted about, but I'm sure you all enjoyed!
I know who showed up, though: Briana, Alicia, Heather, Cassandra, and Gracie; and I believe that my substitute "Master" was called Felix! CORRECTION: "Felix" was a customer, NOT the substitute teacher! And one the "girls' names was the Japanese "Mama", although I don't know which (and she... Continue reading ...
A very quiet Thursday - two ladies and two cups of tea, but - maaaany stories! Brittney told us about her heartwarming birthday celebration for her (with her?) husband, and how she taught two elderly German ladies Japanese calligraphy and later served them 抹茶 at her house! How "international"! Cassandra today brought in her textbook from her English class with a little query - I hope I could be of help, and all "mysteries" are solved.Our cake (which many of you have missed, of course!) was... Continue reading ...
It was a good start for the beginning of the festive month: Isabella, Kelsey, Mariah, Angela and Lindsey spoiled me with their cheerful company! Thanks! We had various topics: Isabella (or was it Lindsey?) tried to visit Miki Horseland Park the other day but couldn't, as her car had a flat tire (of course I advised her she still could have gone there as three tires should be enough!), Kelsey went to see a movie in 3-D which requires the viewer to use special glasses which she brought in today ... Continue reading ...
Hello, "chat community"! Today saw many happy faces, 5 to be precise, Saturday seems to be catching on: Kiara from Ireland, Michaela, Hebrew, Angela from Greece, Erica from Scandinavia, and Mika from Japan (?).
We mostly talked about what people have been up to these days. Many people are enjoying the autumn season, taking day trips to places like Kyoto, others buy books in Osaka and visit the dentist, others again are busy "grandmothering" (正英語じゃないよ！) for 7-5-3....It's nice,... Continue reading ...
I am very glad about the fact that through the Cafe I am able to provide, next to the chance for practicing & using your English of course, a place for people to socialize & make new friends! Why am I saying this? Well, today there were 4 members altogether - Alicia, Isabelle, Mikayla, and Monica. And they all arrived here as a group, as they had a nice lunch before coming here. Although nobody drew an Italian name, they had a yummy-sounding pasta lunch (with lot's of Garlic, yes!!). Probabl... Continue reading ...
So, where was my "second" Tuesday-Girl" & her good friend? I hope both of you are fine......
So, today Shelby did a little bit of a "coming-out" - she really LOVES MJ! She brought in two phrases she had questions about (about English, of course!), and it turned out that both of them were statements related to MJ. Sorry, I neither remember the phrases nor any details!
Besides "him" (I still can't believe that his turning white was a disease, NOT done intentionally), we talked a little about albi... Continue reading ...
Is Saturday "filling up"? Well, at least it seems so, because today saw five happy faces - Kiara, Shelby, Kelsey, David, and Michaela! Michaela hadn't been here since May
this year, so I must admit, at first, I didn't remember her! Sorry! But after a short while, little by little familiarity
came back! Thanks for coming, please come again!
Today we talked about the jobs we were all doing, and I asked around, if today's members enjoyed what they were doing
every working day. To my surprise, 5 out o... Continue reading ...
Are you already busy writing your New Year Cards? Or preparing "Osechi"? Year-end cleaning your houses? It must be something, because today again was a fairly quiet day: I enjoyed the company of Shannon, Jamie, and Miranda,
and we chatted about movies, buses, green pepper etc.
Do you put green peppers into Yakisoba? Miranda and me, we do, but Shannon was a little surprised about this!
We studied the following:
I noticed somebody had stolen the "T", please put it back in its place.
In today's phrase... Continue reading ...
Although it was raining cats & dogs today, Ashley, Kiara, Jade, Briana and Isabella showed up, eager to study some new expressions - and this is what they got:  Did you know that both "vehicles" in the upper picture are called "scooter"?Today, among other things, Ashley told us about some "mysteries" she and her daughter experienced on their
trip to Taiwan with their "EasyCard", roughly the equal to the Japanese "ICOCA".
Also, our sweet today was something really special, I think I haven't seen ... Continue reading ...
Everyday, the Cafe can welcome a new member, is a nice day! If such a day falls on a Saturday, it's REALLY nice! So, hello Kelly! Kelly is a new member from Ireland (aka Uozumi), and she is one of those ladies who is in "charge of" keeping the average age down!!
Thanks for coming - I hope you had a good time (I know you had - you told us so!!).
As usual, with new members, we asked each other lot's of the "common" questions - where we live, why we are interested in English, and so on.
We enjoyed... Continue reading ...
It was a nice "Tuesday-like" Tuesday, I should say. Six Ladies showed up, two of them regular "Tuesday-Girls"! Today, we enjoyed "Pori Pori Matcha" cookies:
Plus, we were so lucky to receive a Taiwan-Souvenir from Miranda, but I think I was the only one who ate it here today,
all the ladies chose to take it home with them (maybe everybody was full?). Thanks!
Today, we talked about "going to the doctor" - I started this strange topic when I told the group that I cleaned my ears too much, so much, ... Continue reading ...
Hi! It was a quiet Saturday with Emma (the Tuesday girl), and Brooklyn from America.
As the number of attending people was small, we had a chance to cover many subjects (I already forgot half of them!),
mostly talking about foreign travel.This is a subject which will never run dry!
Our various members have visited so many different places - today we talked about how Korea was a little "boring" because the culture is quite similar to Japan (I had to say the same about my trip to Taiwan in Septemb... Continue reading ...
On the first day of November my true love gave to me Madison, Chelsea, Brittney all from England, Jade from Spain, and Emily from some "Latin place"! (In reference to the Christmas song: On the first dat of Christmas my true love gave to me.......blah blah blah.....)
Amazingly, due the showing of MJ's movie, even today we talked about him! I think it's already the third week! WoW!
Don't forget - He is dead, he is history! Unbelievable influential power!
Our second subject today was the surprisi... Continue reading ...
Is it Tuesday today? Eh.....no.....is it Thursday today? I don't think so - No, it's Saturday, but it felt like one of the other days! 6 people (in words: Six) showed up today to enjoy our little Halloween Party! Just kidding, there was no party, but as today's Cafe fell exactly on THAT day, I did prepare a little to create some "Halloween Mood", so to speak:  Can you tell that the pumpkin cake has the Jack-O-Lantern face? Of course you can!!Today, I tried to give Gracie, Courtney, Ian (a man!)... Continue reading ...
We had, I should say, a very comfortable number of "students" today: Alicia, Brittney, Abigail, Isabella & Emma. Today's main, "hot" topic was MJ! Michael Jackson! Why again? Because the limited-time (two weeks only) showing of the documentary movie has just started, and Emma already went to see it! She was moved, so she says. So if you like (or love?) MJ, maybe you should go and see the picture. Abigail & Brittney (or was it Alicia?) are going to see it tomorrow.
The interesting thing about th... Continue reading ...
And I tell you - it's a small world! Today, Olivia, Katie, Miranda, Alicia & Shannon came to our little Cafe. Olivia is like the "regular" of "regulars" (some people even call her the "boss"), she saw Miranda, Miranda saw her and -
they knew each other! This IS a coinicidence, because Miranda came to the Cafe for the very first time today!
Hello, welcome! I hope you will have a good time with our "herd"!
And (amazing story, part II), I went to Miki Shirin Koen last Sunday for BBQ. Four families... Continue reading ...
The Cafe has just finished - and I'm already "blogging"! You know why? Because the washing up went quickly, only three cups & three plates today:
Sabrina, Hannah, and.....and.......and.....YES, a new MAN came today, welcome, Gary!
Gary has actually been my German student for the last two years, but recently he realized that English is very
important, and (sadly) more useful than German. so he decided to give the Cafe a try!
Today we mainly talked about "weird American news" - first, the "balloon ... Continue reading ...
What a crowd today! Wow! Thanks for coming Brittney,Lindsey, Gracie, Katie (all from England!), Kelsey from Scandinavia, Kelly from Ireland, and Hannah from Germany! Almost "Full-House" today.
Today we talked a little about the movie "ES", which I had lent to Kelly. I was really curious to get her opinion on the movie....
now Hannah has it! let's see what she has to say about it later.
But today's main topic was (or rather should have been) this one:
As many of you are "world-travellers", I though... Continue reading ...
It's Tuesday today, right? It seems that I couldn't see the "BOSS"!! Hey, where were you?
Well, you've missed this top-class choco & coffee cake:
It was soooo delicious!
Right, Brooklyn, Olivia & Mariah? Oh, maybe Mariah took hers home.....so, how was it?
Please let me know next time.
Today, almost the entire time of the Cafe we talked about movies (Mariah, the "Pro" was here!). Good movies, bad movies, cheap movies, funny movies, dull movies, total time-waster movies, movies which make you thin... Continue reading ...
Another quiet Saturday with Abigail & Olivia! Our main topic today was the "the spice of life", or at least of them - BEER!
Recently I had the chance to enjoy a bottle of Budweis Beer from the Czech Republic (NO, not the water-taste American copy!), and a bottle of Austrian Kaiser Beer. And I must tell you: I had forgotten how good European beer tastes!
What can I do?
By the way: Did you know that most Japanese beer contains corn starch and rice?
Today we've learned:
So, I guess if you have too... Continue reading ...
Two big surprises today: "Monica" is back, after about six month! Of course you don't know who Monica is......I give you a little hint: One half of a set of two, always drinking hot coffee! Surprise no. 2: Today's main topic: GOYA! Yes, that strangely bitter tasting vegetable we usually associate with Okinawa, NOT with Akashi! Amazing, three ladies, Breanna (our "young girl"), Alicia (our "farmer"), and Monica were able to talk for about one hour mainly about goya, and a lot of other vergetab... Continue reading ...
Hey - almost "full house" today: Sabrina, Amy, Samantha, Angela, Courtney, Alexandria and me were able to welcome yet another "new face", Elisabeth, to our little Cafe! Thank you all for coming! I hope you had a good time today, and that you will come back soon, Elisabeth!
As it usually happens when we welcome a new member, today, too, many questions were going towards Elisabeth. As it turns out, she spent some time working on a farm in New Zealand. From there, our conversation took us to Aust... Continue reading ...
Hurry hurry! Got to get this done BEFORE the next Cafe kicks off! Actually, it's Tuesday now, around 13:15!!
Sorry I had to desert you last Saturday - but there was a very important school event in my son's school!
How important? Please judge yourself by the name: German Beer Festival!!
Obviously, I cannot comment on anything that happend here on that day (although I was told everybody had a good time!),
but I was informed that the cafe was able to welcome a new "member", Eddie, a man! I hope yo... Continue reading ...
Excellent weather after "Melor" passed by! Yes, that's the official English name for "typhoon no.18" - and naturally, today's topic was all about typhoons, tropical storms, tornadoes and the like. But see for yourself: I think if you drag this image to your desktop & save it there, you should be able increase its' size. It tells youall about tropical storms you'll ever need to know!Today's Cafe was very educational for Heather, Shelby, Olivia, Lindsey, and me! But not without this delicious "... Continue reading ...
Our main conversation today started with Crystal telling us about an event of "Yon-sama", which straight away led to a misunderstanding on my part - No way, a ticket for "Yon-sama" cannot be ¥ 80.000 (and, of course, it wasn't, it was a mere ¥8000 !). Sorry for that! I guess when I took a shower this morning, I forgot to wash my ears! From there, this topic took us to Michael Jackson, Diana, a little bit Mick Jagger, and it ended somewhere totally different. But that, I will tell you after i... Continue reading ...
Another quiet, but nice Saturday on which we were able to welcome our new, young member, Madison! For the time being, Madison can only join the Cafe on Saturdays, so please try to come, so she can meet many of you!
But of course 先輩 Mikayla managed to make the day at the Cafe a nice and enjoyable one for everyone! Thank you!
We talked about good & not so good beer, wine, about Madison and some other things. Our phrase today was this one:
Totally out of season, but this was the only decent pi... Continue reading ...
Happy Birthday, China! Yes, it's today - that huge country with its' extremely long & definitely highly interesting history is celebrating 60 years of being the PRC -
Peoples' Republic of China.
Naturally, one of our topics today was this great country (and its' paradoxes!).
Chatting about it were Elizabeth, Briana, Tiffany, Mikayla, and Monica, and of course, me!
Another highly interesting subject today was nudity, yes, that's right! See what you have missed!
No, seriously, we talked about ... Continue reading ...
September turned out to be a busy month for our little Cafe - 61 eager, information-hungry "boys & girls" visited in total! This actually is a new record in the history of the Cafe.
To commemorate the last day of the busiest month so far, our "cake lady" brought something really special, a sweet of the kind the Cafe has never seen before, check it out:
I was told it is called "Shibukawa Marron". I must admit, on the picture, it does look a little weird!
BUT: Mya, Isabella, Briana, Madison, Hann... Continue reading ...
If you want to enjoy a very "private", "settled" Cafe, why don't you come on Saturdays? Today, we saw Shannon from Ireland, and Laura from somewhere "Latin", who actually is a "Tuesday girl"!
Thanks for coming!
Our cake was a very delicious "Golden Apple Cake" (great name, isn't it?), posing for the camera just like this:
Unfortunately, both Shannon and Laura decided to wrap it up & take it home (not hungry?).
Our phrase was the same we used on September 3rd, although with a different example situ... Continue reading ...
Know what? It was so hot today, we had to switch on the airconditioner! Late summer, maybe? On this sunny & warm day, Monica, Kelly, Lindsey, Catherine, Emily, Crystal and Miya listened to my "おみやげばなし"of Taiwan, and (maybe?) enjoyed a little "piece of Taiwan", black sesame chocolate. Don't worry, there's still some left!
Our "main dessert" was this very yummy peach cake:
And our phrase today? Well, this one:
Cool picture, isn't it?
We also talked about some movies, had a couple of l... Continue reading ...
Hello, loyal group of fluent English-speaking ladies! Yes, that's right, I took the privilege of visiting Taiwan for 3 days, not with my family,
but with my cram-school colleagues! Taiwan was still very hot & humid - about 37 degrees!
We had a good time, but I can tell you more when you visit the Cafe next time. One thing, though:
Somebody must go to Taiwan and teach them how to brew good beer! "Taiwan Beer" is not very good, a little
like "third-generation beer" in Japan.
So, as I was not here, I... Continue reading ...
Today's main topics were "First Ladies", and what they do and what they shouldn't do! We learned today that Mr. Hatoyama's wife is actually an alien, her favourite food is the moon, and that she, of course,
can talk to other aliens (of course, in Japanese!!). Well, I hope these matters are not raised at the next G8 summit!
Other interesting discussions today were the differences of how we (We = Westerners & Japanese) look at the treatment of animals. This topic was triggered off by the lady sit... Continue reading ...
Finally it's raining! Yes, my garden was really waiting for this day (sorry, Lindsey!). She doesn't like the rain, but all the others - Emily, Ashley, Shannon & me appreciated the downpour for various reasons. Today's main subject we talked about were the numerous differences between American and British English, and Shannon (at least I think that's the right name) gave us all a very interesting example of two passages explaining exactly the same topic using totally different phrasing, expres... Continue reading ...
I guess we had the most "international" day the Cafe has ever seen (well, maybe...). Why? What happend?
Well, today we could welcome Katie, a Japanese lady (although "Katie" is a English name), who spent a big deal of her
life in the U.S, somewhere in Virginia (correct me if I'm wrong), and naturally spoke very "native" American English!
Obviously, Abigail, Jade, Ashley, Crystal and Alexandria probably did feel a little pressure (and Japanese "hesitation"?), but I think a special visitor like K... Continue reading ...
And then, there were only two left (of these):  This dessert goes by the name of "Cafe au lait Jelly", Cafe of course meaning coffee, au meaning with, and lait being milk in the French language, bien?And how many lucky people could enjoy this? Let's see......Eddie, a gentleman from England...no, wait....actually a lady from England keen on studying male names (I wonder why!), Lindsey also from the "island", Christina from Greece, Crystal from Italy (one can tell from the Latin name), Elisabeth... Continue reading ...
Nice & hot Saturday we had today! Everybody, please welcome our "new face" from Scandinavia, Kelsey! Clap clap clap.............The members who left a nice first impression on her were Elizabeth and Michaela from the "Middle East", and Jacqueline from France, and of course, me!! Clap clap clap again.......We all challenged the "Marshmallow Cake" in the picture below - all the marshmallows were melted (dissolved?) though, but it was sweet & tasty: And, anybody remember what we talked about toda... Continue reading ...
Today, six nice "young girls", Amy, Kelsey, Miranda, Hannah, Courtney & Chelsea, enjoyed a kind of a "和風"cake which answers to the name "Ama-Natto cake", baked by a person who knows very well that I can't stand 小豆, looking like this (NOT the person, the CAKE!):  I'm glad everybody seemed to have enjoyed it - I didn't even touch mine!And before going to our "routine study phrase", this one, we talked a little bit about "Satisfaction" (a documentary was broadcasted last night, I missed it,... Continue reading ...
What a great start for the new month - the place was crowded with English-loving (?) ladies! Eight eager "customers" filled the place today with smiles & laughter - Katie brought her friend Brittney, also from England.
A warm welcome to her - but unfortunately Brittney lives in Himeji (doesn't sound very English, I know!), so I'm not sure if we will see her again.......sniff....sniff.....
Other ladies were Emma (from Germany, just like me!), Kiara from Ireland, Cassandra from Greece, Abigail & M... Continue reading ...
I mean, can you believe it? Hannah & Courtney knew each other from before - in a small place like our little Cafe two people meet, two out of 一億二千万Japanese! WOW! I guess having common interests pulls people together!
Naturally, today's topics centered around these two girls, who both shared their occupation before. It was really interesting.
And, due to reasons beyond my control, today's sweet came from a shop (but was really tasty nevertheless):
We also had a complex discussion about... Continue reading ...
We had almost "Full House" today, 6 eager "members" were able to welcome our new (and very fluent, by the way!) lady, Brittney. HELLO, BRITTNEY! She`s from England, from Takasago!
Our delicious cake looked like this -
Today, Sabrina told us about her "new farming land" - a piece of land she`s renting to enjoy some hobby farming!
So, when you are short of vegetables, just give her a call!
My son`s school teachers name is Sabrina, as well! What a coincidence!
And our phrase today, well,.......I m... Continue reading ...
So it seems like the short summer is nearing its' end - since about two nights ago, I am using a light blanket when sleeping. Have you enjoyed the limited, hot days?
I missed going to Chikusa River, there's a really cool place ("cool" having two meanings in this particular case!) behind
ちくさ道の駅 where one can swim & play in the refreshing river....but this year there just weren't enough "killing hot" days.
And on top of that, of course, that area had some serious problems during the hea... Continue reading ...
So, now David (who is actually a WOMAN!!) knows all about my naughty high-school days!! On this very quiet Saturday David & me talked about our days as students, our favourite music and musicians,
school re-unions, ex-girlfriends (pssst!), and about the various differences the English language shows in pronounciation &
dialects from country to country. This meaning English speaking countries, of course.
And today, we enjoyed THIS piece of cake:
Unfortunately, as this one couldn't be eaten, we trie... Continue reading ...
And yet another "new face" - please welcome Cahterine from Greece (Takasago, actually!). Our "old, 先輩" members, Olivia (from some Latin place), Madison & Katie from England, and Kiara from neigbouring Ireland treated her warmly and welcoming! Thank you all!
As usual, whenever we welcome a new member, questions arise why the person is interested in English, or studying the language, and today again the very logical reason Cahterine gave us was to make her foreign travel more enjoyable and re... Continue reading ...
Hello, eager "Commenters", the comment function is back in business, however (and unfortunately) the old comments seem to be lost!
Sorry for that! I also don't know why the function suddenly decided to vanish.....I guess it's one of the main problems
with the "free stuff". Hope this time it'll stay with us a little longer!
Ok now, hit the keys!!
The "Master"
Continue reading ...
....and it's only ONE DAY before my wife's birhtday, and I have NO IDEA what to get her!!
Anyway, "Bon" is over, life is slowly going back to normal, and the summer has finally decided to stay!
My family and I enjoyed a short, but nice one-night-two-days stay on an island "overseas", known around here as Awaji!
That place is so close to Kobe, yet it feels like a tropical island far, far away....how come? The sea seems to be a lot cleaner than Okura-Kaigan or of course, Suma Beach! And they hav... Continue reading ...
We had close to full house today: Emily, Shannon, Cassandra, Courtney, Breanna, Kiara & me chatted about various things happening in the world these days, especially the tough times Japan is facing recently - Typhoon-rains and earthquakes coming at the time! Every now and then Mother Earth is complaining about the way the human race is treating her - this year she didn't even grant us a real summer...... Nevertheless, THIS was really tasty, not sure if sweet or bitter, but a real "adult taste... Continue reading ...
Listen - today we had a guest all the way from Wakayama! Her name is Kelsey (originally of course from Scandinavia). Her friend, Miya from Italy, brought her to our little Cafe. Ok, sorry I have to go now - going to watch the Inami-Cho Fireworks!
See you!
The "Master"
Continue reading ...
The quiet summer-time for the Cafe is continuing......today saw 3 people, actually one new boy - David! But Elizabeth & Emily were very kind to him, so I think he could enjoy a nice, interesting time with us! Welcome David, hope you will be back soon!
Today we talked about Clinton "just flying over to North Korea" and picking up the two captured journalist girls! And that we are a little disappointed that Japan doesn't do something like that to free the abducted Japanese still in the North!
Bu... Continue reading ...
Ladies & Gentlemen! It seems like the summer has finally arrived - is it going to be very short? If you "obey" the Japanese calendar, summer is officially over after "Obon", right? So about another two weeks? Well, I hope not! So today, we - that is Kiara, Brooklyn, Alicia & me - had some very heavy topics, ranging from stardom one can get thanks to ones' parents' names, to how extremely dirty politicians are! Terrible!! Better don't think about it!
And, by coincidence of course, this topic kind ... Continue reading ...
Hi, community! We had a very quiet, but special day today: It was the first time that the number of BOYS & GIRLS was equal!
Thanks for coming, Edward & Miranda! Edward forgot to bring his mother!
Miranda had a funny story for us, about Air New Zealand's safety video - please check it out yourself:
NAKED CABIN CREW!Our sweet was this (Yummy Tea Mousse): And today's phrase was about one of modern times' serious problems the... Continue reading ...
The last day of July, and finally (?) the weather was a little bit more "Summer-like" - I wouldn't say it was really hot, though! Something is REALLY wrongh this year (but actually nice & comfortable).
I enjoyed the company of Gracie, Jade, Madison & Samantha today, an we talked about how not to forget the joy life
but at the same time taking care of ones' health. The "joy of life" in this case stands for NICE, ICE-COLD BEER in the summer!!
Our study phrase was a steep one:
Pictures matching today... Continue reading ...
What a nice Tuesday- and thanks to the new seating arrangement, 7 people (that is 6 + me), were able to see each others' noses all the time!
What a "international" group we were today: Olivia and Miranda from the Latin world, Isabelle from France, Emma from Germany, Madison from England, and Briana all the way from Ireland!
Is it because of so much bad weather, or because the summer has not arrived yet - I don't know, but today our main topic was "natural disasters", tornadoes, landslides etc.... Continue reading ...
Hey, does anybody know where the summer is? This year seems very "un-Japanese"! But nevertheless, we had a very good Saturday today - loyal Katie showed up, Mikayla brought her friend, Monica,
and my signboard outside brought Chelsea.
Monica & Chelsea - welcome to the Cafe! Monica has "seen the world", but also Chelsea, "lover" of not-so-common pets,
has been abroad. I hope many of you will meet each other in the future!
As you can guess, today we mainly talked about pets, and about how to become... Continue reading ...
For some reason the Cafe has been very quiet this month.......is it too hot? I hope that is not the reason, because if is, I don't even want to think about August! Today, we had a good time with our loyal "customers", Heather from England, and Monica from Greece.Our main topic (actually maybe our only topic!) was a restaurant called "Kande Kande" ( http://r.tabelog.com/hyogo/A2802/A280205/28008873/) in, guess where, in Kande, Nishi-Ku! Both Monica and Heather have visited the place, and are re... Continue reading ...
Erica- thank you very much for coming all the way from Scandinavia! (Hey? What happend to my Tuesday-Team?)
Erica told me a lot of touching experiences she had when the huge Hanshin Earthquake struck.
One terrible natural disaster I was spared from, because at that time, I was working in London.
Erica "survived" her first private lesson at the Cafe - maybe thanks to this?
Refreshing "Pudding Jelly" - although today was not such a hot day!
By the way - were you all okay with the heavy rain, especia... Continue reading ...
Hello, "weekenders" We had the busiest Saturday to date - Brittany, Abigail & Jamie found their way here, and:
We were able to welcome our probably youngest member, Alexandria!
I hope that you had a good time with us, and of course hope to see you again soon.
Today's sweet was not a sweet, really, and it looked like this:
The person responsible for this (aka. "The Baker") called it "mochi mochi pan", which roughly
translates to "softy softy bread". In other words: We had bread today! Maybe for th... Continue reading ...
Hello! On this slightly "cooler" Thursday, I was able to welcome Crystal, Isabelle (The Queen!), Briana, Katie, and Samantha (actually a Tuesday Face) - Thank you!
Today we talked about the design of my shirt: My wife said it was Ok to wear it to work, my son mentioned that it was Ok to go to Hawaii or the beach, but NOT to work. Well, today I took my wife's advice - what do you think?
And we all had a tasty Yogurt & Milk dessert, cool and refreshing
after which we had to meddle with these funny... Continue reading ...
A Tuesday like "in the good old days" - Angela, Kiara, Sabrina & me enjoyed talking about various things, we indulged in a really yummy Tea Mousse dessert, looking like this  Perfect on a hot & humid day like today, and we studied the following phrase (for you to use on your husbands!) Can you see ME in the picture with all my girlfriends? Just kidding, unfortunately, I'm NOT a ladies' man!Hope to see more of you in the next "coffee sessions",The "Master" Continue reading ...
Yes, it's "only" 14:06, and I am already in front of my computer screen......how come? Because there's nothing to report today..... Blue!
This was my very first bike, when I was 16 years old - really good & fast Honda quality!
Hope to see you on Tuesday
The "Master"
Continue reading ...
Ok, today we did some catching up on the subject of Sumo, and came to the conclusion that Sumo wrestlers these days are a lot more healthy, and less "fat". Michaela told us about her experience of watching real-live Sumo in Osaka, and how beautiful she thought some wrestlers are seen from a short distance. Edward (YES, A MAN!!) told us about a "Maerchen" by Hermann Hesse in which a high mountain at the end disappears!
Wow!
Today, my "Summer Special Drink", Hawaiian Mango Orange Iced Tea, proofe... Continue reading ...
Did you know that: 1) "Tanabata" originated in China, and
2) That today is my 12th Wedding Anniversary?
On this very special day, Crystal (who is married to a soccer star for the MONEY!), Brittany (who soon is to marry a married man!), and Isabelle (who is really "まじめ”) together with me enjoyed a cool yogurt dessert:
And talked about so many things I actually forgot what....oh yes, I remember now, we don't agree that Mr. Mino Monta
should get paid so much, and that TV stations also feel ... Continue reading ...
Thank you for coming today - Brooklyn & Jamie! Is the Cafe becoming quiet? Or are you all busy? Well, I hope not!
Today, among other subjects, we yet again talked about M.J, Freddie Mecury, and other Stars who
basically killed themselves.....
Our study phrase was the following:
And what did we eat (although NOT out of each other's hands)?:
No, this is a group picture - there were two pieces for everyone!
Hope to see many more of you soon!
The "Master"
Continue reading ...
I have nothing to report..................nobody showed up today................. Cry cry cry................
The lonely "Master"
Continue reading ...
....yes, June it is: Sticky, rainy, wet, humid!! We are really in the middle of the Japanese rainy season! Did you know that, as Japan IS part of Asia, this rain is also called the "monsoon" - want to know more?
It's a bit long, but here you go ("stolen" from Wikipedia):
A monsoon is a seasonal prevailing wind that lasts for several months. The term was first used in English in India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and neighboring countries to refer to the big seasonal winds blowing from the Indian Ocean... Continue reading ...
If you want to experience a quiet, settled-down Cafe with heavy subjects to talk about, you should drop in on Saturdays! Erica, David & me today discussed the unfairness of world politics - WOW!
Of course, not entirely, we also studied the following:
And we enjoyed some "chinese desert", perfect on a hot day like this (although I know the really hot, Japanese summer days are still to come!):
Have a great weekend!
The "Master"
Continue reading ...
'Ello! On this quite quiet Thursday Angela, Ashley, Lindsey & me talked about Hiroshima, "English circles", how some of our "members" ages is about the age of my parents, and we studied following phrase:
I think this is a funny way of saying that someone is getting angry (like that cat, maybe?), and I must admit, I had heard it for the first time myself.
By the way, many, many years ago at the airport in Karachi (Pakistan) I was waiting for a connecting flight, and similar to the above example, ... Continue reading ...
So, today we had a "special guest", a reporter from yet another free paper, Sun Sun Asahi! Who was it again? Alexandria? - No....Alicia? - No......Angela? - No......Oh yes, I remenber now: It was Olivia from some Latin country. That means, all the other 3 Ladies whose names start with an "A"
will be famous very soon, lot's of pictures were taken!!
And what did we talk about today.....too many topics to remember! This is what we studied:
Yes, we talked about body parts!!
And as it was a really hot ... Continue reading ...
Dear "Cafe community!" Sorry for posting so late (it's already Monday evening, shame on me), but I had a busy, long weekend.
Heather, Alexandria & Angela, thank you for coming. You're the only people who know that I wasn't here on the 20th.
Now, of course, everyone knows!
Well, I'm sure you all enjoyed these:
Breakfast Cookies containing "Müesli" & Cornflakes, among other ingredients.
And, of course I'm sure you all studied the following phrase very hard:
WHAT A SCARY-LOOKING BOSS!
See many of you ... Continue reading ...
We had a very "quiet" day today - three ladies showed up (like in "the good old days"!), their names were Shannon from Ireland, Elizabeth (of course the Queen of England!), and another Irish girl, Breanna.
We had a good time, enjoying blueberry cake
and talking a lot about the dfifferent customs and ways names are used in different cultures.
Our other topic of the day was this one:
Thanks for coming, and see you all soon!
The "Master"
Continue reading ...
Hey - check it out: Our first Japanese Sweet in over the 2 and a half years since the cafe is up & running:
These little "balls" made of rice (of course!) are known as "Mitarashi Dango" - and they were very much enjoyed by
Alexandria, Emily, Madison, Jade, Tiffany & Samantha. Not by me, as I'm not to keen on Sweets made of rice!
Today, we had an interesting topic on how much value a person would put on a genuine autograph of a celebrity he or she liked. Not surprisingly, autographs don't seem t... Continue reading ...
So, the second Saturday opening went quite well - three ladies were able to enjoy the excellent Banana & Choco Chip Cake, which looked like this:  And yet again were we able to welcome a new member: Everybody please say "hello" to Lindsey! Today, among other subjects, we discussed how to define the word "sport". What activity exactly can be called a sport? Well, my classic Oxford dictionary defines it the follwing way: A competitive activity; a game or pastime involving physical exertion.How com... Continue reading ...
As it seems, today we could already enjoy the first "rainy-season break" - we had lovely weather, with a nice, refreshing breeze!
So I guess it was hard for our members to stay home: Thanks for coming in such big numbers -
Monica, Brittany, Katie,Erica, Cassandra, Ray, Jacqueline,Crystal & Isabella!
A warm welcome to Ray, a nice gentleman from the neighbourhood, who has a daughter living in Canada,
and Crystal, another "friend" from the "English circle" - although you mentioned that you don't real... Continue reading ...
Four ladies showed up on this strange, cloudy day! Fortunately, the temperature wasn't too hot, and on TV last night there were saying something about the rainy season would kick in soon....bad news for motorbike-commuters, so bad news for me! Today, among other things, we talked about foreign travel, Fish'n Chips, and why they built Windsor Caslte under the flightpath of Heathrow Airport..........anybody know the answer to this very tricky question?! We enjoyed a piece of "Sweet Potato Pie", and... Continue reading ...
So, how was the first ever Weekend-Cafe?
Two ladies showed up today: Amy & Brooklyn!
Unfortunately, both arrived late due to (maybe)
a misunderstanding, so let me point out once more:
SATURDAY'S CAFE OPENING TIME DIFFERS FROM TUESDAY & THURSDAY!!
We start at 13:15, and finish at 14:30!!
I'm really sorry if my information was not clear before....
Nevertheless, I was very happy not to be alone on the first day!
And we had tasty peach cake & learned everything we need to know about Saturday:
I le... Continue reading ...
So, today's members were Amy, Emily, Laura, Christina, Mariah, Katie, Isabelle & Miranda! That makes.....let's see....8 happy ladies! Thanx for coming! Today we exchanged ideas about our different customs and habits when celebrating (or NOT celebrating!) our and our families' birthdays. Very revealing! I hope nobody came by car today, as today's cake apparently contained brandy!:  And we studied the phrase used when somebody doesn't really know what the latest news are:  So, the day after tomorrow is... Continue reading ...
There have been some changes to the Cafe fron this month -
amazing how difficult it is to notice some of them!
June has started off nicely - seven eager ladies showed up to brush
up on their English.
So, thank you for coming Lindsey, Isabella, Mikayla, Jade, Emily, Chelsea,
and Emma! Yes, that's right - from this month you're all given names!
Isabella, what is wrong with the name Jacqueline, then?
From there, one of our topics was a famous lady by that name - any idea?
I, of course, had no idea!
And... Continue reading ...
Hi! Today was the last day for May, and - it was a busy one! 10 eager English speakers found their way here. And again, we were able to welcome two "New Faces". I hope you will please us with your presence for many chat days to come! The following was on the "agenda" today:  Actually quite interesting, as オールナイトis used in Japanese as well, although a slightly different meaning. And, we had a "healthy" day today-  お豆 & 雑穀 cookies! Aren't we trendy? So, from next month we will be f... Continue reading ...
Another "New Face" - I'm glad you all find your way to the Cafe! Thanks for coming & bringing in your friends - "The more the merrier". The Choco & Cinnamon cake was delicious, this is how it looked like:  And today, the four of us studied the very useful slang, also used quite often in movies, "all ears":  This one is easy to remember, and can actually be used in daily life frequently - try it! The "Master" P.S. From next month, there will be a little new thing coming - please look forward! ... Continue reading ...
Yes, let's beat the scare together! It was very nice to see five happy faces today, and - guess what - 3 of those faces I had never met before! WELCOME TO OUR COZY CAFE FAMILY! We all enjoyed out first "summer sweet" this year, Yogurt Jelly:  And the cookies were baked by the daughter of my "Sweets Supplier" - she got so bored because she cannot go to school this week - Thank you! We studied a very popular slang often used in American movies:  Once again, thanks a lot for dropping in today & I hope ... Continue reading ...
....so the flu (or rather the power of the media!) beat the joy of the Cafe! Nobody showed up.....were you all scared, staying at home? Well, I must admit, it`s a little strange. The street in front of the Cafe is dead! Will I see anybody of you on Thursday? Well, I`ll be here! The "Master" Continue reading ...
As we are NOT a school, but a nice Cafe, we of course will BE OPEN tomorrow! Please don't be scared........and come to chat! The "Master" Continue reading ...
Hello! Thanks for coming in large numbers again today - we had "full house" - I had to sit on my "emergency chair" again! Today, we were able to welcome our maybe youngest member so far. Her age, of course, is a top secret, but our "age average" surely went down, down, down....... Today's sweet was called "Small, Round Cheesecake" (by me), and it looked like this:  And, for the first time, we studied a slang, but of course not a "dirty" one!:  Ok then, see you all next week! The "Master" Continue reading ...
Guess what? First day this year to use the airconditioner.....Summer is definitely approaching! It feels like the nicest season of the year (aka. SPRING) is getting shorter and shorter! Got your beachgear ready? Today we studied how it is to be "all thumbs":  And we all enjoyed a nice piece of "Choco Coffee Cake" - a sweet in our line-up which could be almost considered a "classic":  We were "just" 4 members today - a little quiet considering the recent trend, but it was a nice 1 hour & 15 minutes. Hop... Continue reading ...
Welcome "back" after the Golden Week Holidays! Could you all enjoy a relaxing week? I stayed home with my family - I'm very, very tired! My small children are too powerful for me! Apology: Today's cake was NOT home-made....we just couldn't find the time to bake (but it still looked yummy!):  And what have we all learned today?  Also, today we could once again welcome a new member to our group - I hope you will have a nice time with us! ★AND THE BIGGEST NEWS★ The Cafe will ALSO... Continue reading ...
Well, today is the blog's 1-month anniversary, clap clap clap! I can feel how the time flies, how about you? The very hot summer is just around the corner....... Today, we had a really "German" sweet - I simply called it "Burg" cookie, Burg meaning "castle" in German:  Also, today we studied the classic phrase, which, when translated directly to Japanese, means something entirely different:  Ok, friends, enjoy the Golden Week holidays & hope to see many of you in May! All the best The "Master" Continue reading ...
Well, today was another busy day - I have to get another table! BUT - there's no space in here, so I guess I really have to get to work on "Plan B" - opening an additional day! Today's main subject of our chat was about naked (!), drunk, Japanese T.V. personalities! Cheers! By the way: THE CAFE IS ONLY CLOSED FOR GOLDEN WEEK
ON TUESDAY, THE 5TH, こどもの日,OK?
We studied an Idiom today:  And (of course) we could all enjoy a nice piece of this yummy cake:  See you all soon - a... Continue reading ...
Well, Ladies, first there was this:  Then, many, many people had a good time, among other things, did this:  challenged a Tongue Twister (so, what happend to the bear, then?)  Did a little more of this:  And what was left after an hour an fifteen minutes? Well, this:  Thank you all very much for coming! See you next time (when I will be a year older!!!!) The "Master" Continue reading ...
So, as the weather is really unpredictable today, I expected the worst, but - oops, one chair short! 9 loyal ladies (no, to be precise, 8 ladies & 1 young gentleman) showed up today, and I think, had a good time! By the way, did you know where the saying "it's raining cats and dogs" originated from? Well, I don't, but one the many myths is this one:
And while it wasn't really raining at exactly this time, we enjoyed a piece of "mixed fruit tofu cake! Sounds healthy!
Until Thursday!
The "Master" Continue reading ...
Hello, nice people! Thanks for coming today - what a relieve! 6 ladies showed up - and we were able to welcome our latest "new face" all the way from NIshi-Akashi: I hope you have a great time with us!
Today's phrase was that of last Tuesday ( I "recylced" it!), today's yummy cake was this one:
See you all soon!
The "Master" Continue reading ...
Ladies - I'M SHOCKED!Nobody showed up today! Were you all too busy? No, it was probably the weather!
Today's phrase would have been this one - which we of course will be studying next Thursday!
Missed you !
The "Master" Continue reading ...
Hello Cafe-Class! Thanks to all of you who mananged to show up - we had almost "full-house". But eventually, I was able to sit down, too! So, today's cake was really something special - check out the picture:
Some of you have missed something there!
And our phrase today was "asking for directions" - now, what can be more useful than that?
Well, see you soon - enjoy the cherry blossoms!
The "Master" Continue reading ...
Hello everybody!
It seems like finally spring has arrived - what nice weather we have! Thank you all for coming to the Cafe today. We had an interesting chat about the future of the Cafe, there were various opinions.
This was today's phrase (a little out of season, I suppose!):
And this is a picture of today's delicious cake!
I think we all had a good time!
Hope to see many of you next Thursday!
The "Master"
Last Thursday's Cafe felt like a good start for the new month. One of our "regular" young mothers brought her (English-speaking) 6-year old son to join in with "the ladys". We were also able to welcome a new member to our continuously growing group. As this day was April 2, we studied about the origins and theories of "April Fools Day" - please take a look!
And the day's cake was a yummy Yogurt-Berry Cake! Delicious!
Hope to see many of you next Tuesday!
Have a great day! Continue reading ...
Hi, Cafe Community!
This is my first try to the Blog World - after all, I'll be getting one year older this month!
Please feel free to write anything (well, almost!) you like. Don't worry about the "quality" of your
English!
I hope you will make use of this blog to keep in touch with each other, check irregular opening times & days of
the Cafe, and - last but not least - use it as another opportunity to get in touch with the English langugage.
I will also try to post the "study phrase" of ea... Continue reading ...
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SilberBahn/SilberCafe 挨拶
SilberBahn＜ズィルバーバーン＞
はドイツ語、
SilverTrain＜シルバートレイン＞は英語、
日本語で＜銀色の列車＞を
意味するこの言葉には「乗ると
楽しい所に向かっていける」という
願いを込めました。
それはある日、私のところに
「ドイツ語を教えてほしい」と
女性が一人たずねてきたところ
から始まりました。
2000年１月に語学学校として
スタート、現在は翻訳通訳や海外
との商品取引の仲介等語学サービス
全般に関わる業務を行っております.。
SilberBahn＜ズィルバーバーン＞
の詳しい情報は下の青いリンクをクリック
して下さい。
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