How do you keep cool in the summer?

ENTRY

2023.08.02

カテゴリー：ブログ

Hello everyone,

It’s the last day of July! So very soon, Obon week will be upon us. It’s a time when the ancestors’ spirits return to Earth, a similar idea to how Halloween began in Ireland. Recently, it’s been extremely hot outside. I’ve noticed people using many different ways to cool down in the summer heat. There are ice neck-coolers, hand held fans, shaved-ice (my daughter used all three last weekend). I’ve even started wearing a hat because, somehow, the top of my head got sunburned. I don’t know how the sun got past my hair! But I found a great way to cool down. Walking around in rivers! I went to Mishima yesterday and there is a shallow river that people can walk along, either via a walkway or actually in the river. The water comes from high up in the mountains, so it’s freezing cold. I was surprised at how cold it was, my feet felt like they were turning into ice! Usually, I stay away from cold water, but when it’s 35 degrees outside, it’s refreshing. In Ireland, whenever we went to the beach the sea was always extremely cold. The problem is that after you leave the water it’s still a cool 20 degrees outside, so it’s difficult to warm back up. That’s why the beach was never a popular choice for me back home.

Back to hot, hot Japan, and here at Hario all of our students are slaving away at their speeches now. There are well over 100 speeches being learned now, and we are already hearing the recitals of their first few lines. It’s an exciting time to see the first steps towards a finished speech, so good luck to everyone. Stay cool out there.

Alan

みなさん、こんにちは。

アラン・フィリップスです。

7月も最終日ですね！

さて、もうすぐお盆週間がやってきます。これは祖先の霊が地に戻る時期であり、アイルランドでハロウィーンが始まったのと同じ考えです。最近、外はとても暑いですね。夏の暑さを和らげるために人々がさまざまな方法を使っていることに気づきました。氷のネッククーラー、手持ち扇風機、かき氷があります（娘は先週末に3つすべてを使いました）。