Do you know the dish 'Tom Yum Goong'? 'Goong' means 'shrimp' in Thai. However, I don`t like* shrimp, so when I lived in Thailand, I asked restaurant cooks to use 'gai' (chicken) instead of 'goong'. This is an unusual request in Thailand. However, I found this 'Tom Yum Gai' packet curry in the supermarket, so maybe a lot of people are like** me, and prefer chicken to shrimp.
Grammar
* (don`t) like __ = _が好き(ではない)
** am/are/is (not) like __ = _のように(_のようではない)
I was cleaning my kids` bedroom and I found a New Year rice cake (かがみもち). It looked okay, so I made a small barbecue outside & grilled it. It tasted...great!
Pronunciation:
barbecue: バーベキュー
BBQの発音も『バーベキュー 』です (ネイティブは誰も『ビービーキュー』と言わない)
I found a stock cube with a heart mark on it. Maybe it`s a sign (気配) that my stocks will do well this year. Or maybe there will be a stock market crash and I will have a heart attack (心臓発作).
I hope it`s the former (前者), not the latter (後者).
stock cube = 固形スープの素
stocks = 株式
stock market = 株式市場
I live in Ichinomiya, Aichi. When I found out about this gin made nearby, in Kiyosu, I was like*, "Cool, I wanna try it!"
I like** gin & tonic, but tonic water is a little difficult to find in Japan, so I don`t often drink it. Also, tonic water in Japan isn`t like*** tonic water from countries like**** America & Australia, which contains a kind of medicine called quinine ( キニーネ ). Japanese tonic water doesn`t contain quinine, so it`s a little sweeter.
I have a friend from Kiyosu. I want to drink this gin with him, so I can be like*, "今清洲人と清洲ジン飲んでいます!"
Vocabulary:
* (be) like, "___" = 「__」と思う/言う [very casual style]
** like = 好き
*** (be) like = 似る
**** like = ような、例えば
Do you know SriRacha sauce? This factory was recently built near Hashima Costco, so on Monday, after shopping at Costco, I popped in to buy a bottle of sauce from a vending machine outside the factory.
So, what does 'Sri Racha' mean? Well, 'Sri Racha' is the name of a coastal town about 2 hours from Bangkok, in Thailand. This kind of sauce was first made there. When I lived in Thailand about 20 years ago, I visited Sri Racha several times to fish, swim, & explore.
Grammar:
OK: I`ve been there.
OK: When I was young/lived in Tokyo, I went there.
WRONG: When I was young/lived in Tokyo, I`ve been there.
I found this unusual pasta at a Liquor Mountain store. I`ve seen small shell-shaped pasta before, but not large ones like this. I asked my kids*, "Shall we try them?" and they said, "Yeh!!!"
As you can see, they are similar in size & appearance to golden apple snails (スクミリンゴガイ), which are common in waterways around here.
* Yes, I took my 3 kids to Liquor Mountain with me. Am I a bad father...?
Pronunciation:
- 'shell' と 'shall' は同じ発音です
A student gave this to me. Her friend in Kagoshima sent it to her. Do you know what it is? It`s about the size of a billiard ball, and it smells like passionfruit. My kids` guesses were: lemon, mango, pineapple, and lychee, but they were all wrong. The answer is below, in comments.
Vocabulary
- send = 送る (例えば郵便で)
- give = あげる, くれる, 渡す
Do you know Tim-Tams? Like me, they`re from Australia. Also like me, they`re pretty unhealthy... Check out that terrible health rating on the packet! If you`re like me & don`t mind that, you can buy these Manuka Honey ones at Kaldi.
Vocabulary:
- '(be) like me' = 私のように
The weather is getting cold* now, so some of the limes on my lime tree were turning yellow*, & a few had gone bad* (悪くなる), so I decided to pick all of them. I got more than I expected.
What will I do with them? Well, I like lime juice on dishes such as fried rice (like Thai people do), & my wife likes lime-sour alcoholic drinks. She said limes cost about ¥100 each at the supermarket, so she`s glad she can get them for free.
Grammar:
- *get/turn/go + 形容詞 = become + 形容詞
On the way out bush* we stopped at a small town called Oakey for lunch. My first son chose this to eat. What do you think it is? It`s deep-fried... No, not chicken. Not potato. Not kangaroo. The answer is in comments.
Vocabulary
- *In Australia & Africa, "bush" can mean the remote countryside.
- deep = 深い, deep-fried ___ = 揚げ物, pan-fried ___ = 炒め物
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