音声読み上げ

For Foreigners
外国人向け情報

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Japanese version follows the English. 日本語版は英語版の後に続きます。

Natalia, Kasama City press and PR officer, writes about her experience of Kasama City.
グローバル枠採用の笠間市広報スタッフ ナターリアが笠間の魅力をを紹介します。

You can also find this corner in Kasama Magazine. The articles are written in Japanese with furigana reading aid.
笠間市広報紙でもこの記事を日本語で読めます。

 

Kasama Magazine version /「広報かさま」 (PDF)

English version

I was really looking forward to the demonstration because the culture of performing in a church would be unimaginable in my country. However, so many people, including tall foreigners, came to watch the demonstration that I could barely see anything.

After the festival, we had a picnic and mingled with other participants at the dojo, where azaleas were blooming beautifully. It was a great opportunity to learn about Japanese culture and a good memory for me.

Since I began living in Japan, I have been helping out with the Aiki Shrine Grand Festival as a regular student. Because of coronavirus, we could not host the event as before, but this year, for the first time in four years, it looks like we can hold it as usual. Please come and see it!

It is the last issue of "Rediscover Kasama." Thank you very much for rediscovering wonderful things about Kasama with me over the past year. I was happy to receive some postcards with your feedback. Starting this month, I am going to share what I like about Kasama with "#mykasama_jp" just as you do.

Please continue to support Kasama!

How do you say it in Japanese?

日本語版

#6 Getting to Know Ceramic Art (2023/2)
第6回　陶芸に親しむ

English version

Since I started living in Kasama City, I constantly hear about fascinating ceramic exhibitions and events. Little by little, my interest has sparked. So far, I have been to the Himatsuri Pottery Festival, the Irodori Hatsugama Ichi Pottery Market, Touen (Peach Banquet), Open Atrier, and other events.

Last February, I was curious about the Kasama Ceramic Hina Doll Festival "Touen" poster with a tiered display of ceramic Hina dolls, so I rented a bicycle to explore the participating stores.

I had read about the Hina Festival in a Japanese language textbook, but when I saw the ceramic Hina dolls for real, I was impressed by their beauty beyond my imagination. From finely crafted human figures and cute animal forms to more abstract and modern designs, the ceramic Hina dolls of rich individuality were arrayed in the shops. Interacting with the artists was also a great joy for me.

Also, at the end of February, I had a unique opportunity to observe students of the Kasama College of Ceramic Art firing pottery in the climbing kiln at Crafthills Kasama.
The firing took place over four days. The students took turns putting wood into the kiln day and night under the teachers' guidance. As they explained the climbing kiln structure and firing process, I thought it must have been even more difficult in the old days when there were no thermometers.

When I put on light-blocking glasses to reduce the glare and looked inside the kiln, the flames, dancing gracefully like living creatures, seemed to burn my worries away along with the wood. Also, while there were fierce flames inside the climbing kiln, the quiet atmosphere around it brought back my childhood memories of when I sat by a campfire and made me feel nostalgic.

Observing the climbing kiln during the firing process was a rare experience and a precious memory that made me feel even closer to the art of ceramics.

I look forward to your "#mykasama_jp" stories about pottery. Please share them with me!

How do you say it in Japanese?

Let me introduce Kasama Ceramic Hina Doll Festival "Touen".

You read the original name "かさまの陶雛『桃宴』" as "kasama no tōbina tōen."

陶雛 tōbina consists of 陶 "pottery/ceramic" and 雛 "hina (doll)." Being put after another kanji character, 雛 hina switches its first consonant and becomes bina. 

桃宴 tōen consists of 桃 "peach" and 宴 "banquet," however, you simply write it as "Touen."

By the way, in the Japanese language in most cases, if an "u" follows a vowel, you don't really pronounce the "u". The previous vowel becomes longer instead. So, if you write a transcription, you usually choose between "tōen" and "touen."

Kasama Magazine version (February 2023) /「広報かさま」令和5年2月号 (PDF)

英語でなんて言う?

今回は「かさまの陶雛『桃宴』」を英語で覚えましょう！

「Kasama Ceramic Hina Doll Festival "Touen"」

「雛祭り」の英語訳の一つは「Doll Festival（人形祭り）」です。

「陶」を「ceramic」として訳し、「Hina」と「Touen」をそのままローマ字に変え、「Doll Festival」を追加しましょう。

How do you say it in Japanese?

Let me introduce azaleas this time.

Kasama Azalea Festival takes place at Kasama Azalea Park every year from around late April to early May.

"Kasama Azalea Festival" is "笠間つつじまつり" (kasama tsutsuji matsuri).
Let's review our old good friends 笠間 kasama and まつり matsuri, and add a new word.
As you could have guessed, つつじ tsutsuji means "azalea" in Japanese.

"Kasama Azalea Park" is "笠間つつじ公園" (kasama tsutsuji kōen).
So, another new word for you is 公園 kōen, which means a public park.

Kasama Magazine version (December 2022) / 「広報かさま」令和4年12月号 (PDF)

日本語版

私は2年前に水戸市に引っ越してきました。隣に「日本遺産の陶芸の街」があることを知り、笠間市内を観光しました。

JR笠間駅からレンタサイクルで市内を走ると、焼物の工房やギャラリーが数切きれないほどあり、他にも多くの魅力的な場所があることに感動しました！

歴史を感じる国内で最古の酒蔵や石切山脈、笠間つつじ公園、笠間稲荷神社など多くのインスタ映ばえスポットもあるので「県内屈指の観光の街なのでは？」と思っています。

日本人にも外国人にも、笠間の魅力をもっと発信していくと良いと思います。

まだまだ笠間について知らないことがいっぱいあるので、いろいろな場所を巡りたいです！

合気道道場で感じる季節などを投稿した鈴木さん

私は生まれも育ちも岩間で、今も市内で働いています。

私がお世話になっている合気道の道場には、毎年たくさんの外国人の方が稽古に来ていました。リピーターも多く、ここは平和を感じる特別な場所であるようです。コロナ禍で日本へ来る機会を失った岩間ファンの皆さんに、少しでも道場の季節や雰囲気を届けるために、写真や動画を投稿しています。

動画の中で聞こえる鳥の鳴声や砂利の上を歩く音などを懐なしむコメントをもらいました。

このようにたくさんの方に笠間市の良さを届けていきたいです。

今年は、久しぶりにたくさんのイベントが開催されました。笠間の魅力を楽しむことができましたか。来年も皆さんからの「＃笠間市民ニュース」の投稿をお待しています。

英語でなんて言う?

Where I come from, trees that we usually call "chestnuts" are horse chestnuts, and they are inedible. Also, the leaves and the fruits look different from Japanese chestnuts, which are actually pretty cute as they resemble little hedgehogs.

When I tried sweet chestnuts in my country, they tasted so bad that I thought "I will never eat them again". I have several friends who had similar experiences. However, ever since I tasted roasted chestnuts in Kasama, I look forward to the chestnut season from September to October every year. For me, such a sweet taste is unusual, and since I have a sweet tooth, whenever I find a new chestnut dessert, I end up buying it.

Three years ago, I participated in Kasama New Chestnut Festival held at Kasama Geijutsu-no-Mori Park as a kanban musume. "Kanban musume" is directly translated as "signboard daughter" and means an attractive girl or young woman who stands outside a store to attract customers. Though I was not used to the "Irasshaimase~ (Welcome!)" culture, it was a good experience to create a festival atmosphere simply by smiling and greeting people.
Vendors proudly promoted their food products, and customers lined up in front of their stores from early in the morning. It makes me nostalgic to recall the bustling atmosphere of the festival.

The store I was helping was baking a pizza with roasted chestnuts on top in a wood-fired oven. As it was quite an original recipe, I was happy to see that customers enjoyed it so much.

I looked around other stalls and found chestnut rice, desserts, sweets, and many other delicious things. I also saw a roasting machine for the first time and was surprised by the huge cloud of steam coming out when the chestnuts are ready.
The festival was not only about food. Many people enjoyed chestnut-picking activities, games, and a concert.

My friends from overseas also came to buy souvenirs before leaving Japan. Since moving here and getting to eat regional delicacies, I have come to think that local specialties are the best gifts to bring back home.

Let me introduce the "Kasama New Chestnut Festival."

You read the original name "かさま新栗まつり" as "kasama shinkuri matsuri."

This time, the words かさま kasama and まつり matsuri, which we have already learned are written in hiragana. I guess the characters' balance looks fancier this way.

新しい atarashii means "new," and 栗 kuri means "chestnut." However, if you put them together as 新栗, they change their reading to shinkuri.
新 becomes shin, like in 新宿 shinjuku or 新幹線 shinkansen.

As a bonus, マロン maron is an easy word for you to remember. It comes from the French word "marron" and means nut fruit of the sweet chestnut.

Kasama Magazine version (October 2022) /「広報かさま」令和4年10月号 (PDF)

日本語版

笠間市は、栗を育てる土地が日本で一番広く、私がよく散歩する岩間地区もあちこちに栗畑があります。
私の出身地で「クリ」と呼ばれるのは「セイヨウトチノキ」と言い、日本の栗とは葉も実も全く違います。日本の栗の実はハリネズミのようでかわいいです。

私の国で栗を食てみたときは、「二度と食べない」と思うくらいひどい味でした。同じような経験をした友だちが何人もいます。しかし、笠間の焼栗を食べて以来、9月から10月までの栗のシーズンを毎年楽しみにしています。私にとってこんなに甘くておいしい栗は珍しく、甘いものが大好きなので、新しい栗のデザートを見つけると、つい買ってしまいます。

3年前、笠間芸術の森公園で行われた「かさま新栗まつり」のときにお店の看板娘として参加しました。「いらっしゃいませ～」の文化に不慣れでしたが、笑顔で挨拶するだけでまつりの気分を作り出すのは良い経験でした。出店する人は誇りをもって自分の食品をPRし、お客さんは朝早くからそれぞれのお店の前に並んでいました。まつりの賑わいを思い出すと懐かしくなります。

私がお手伝いしていたお店では、焼き栗がのったピザを窯で焼いていました。珍しいメニューですが、お客さんがおいしそうに食べてくれてとても嬉しかったです。他のお店を覗いてみると、栗ご飯はん、デザート、お菓子などおいしそうなものがいっぱいでした。そして、初めて焼き栗を作る機械を見ましたが、できあがる時に水蒸気が勢おいよくでて、すごく面白かったです。食べ物のほかにも、コンサートや栗拾体験、ゲームなどを楽しむ人が多かったです。

海外から来た友だちも、帰国前に栗のお土産を買っていきました。私も日本にきてその地域のおいしいものを食べるようになってからは、お土産なら地域の名物が一番だと思うようになりました。

皆さんも栗のストーリーを「＃笠間市民ニュース」でぜひシェアしてください。

英語でなんて言う?

今回は「かさま新栗まつり」を英語で覚えましょう！

「Kasama New Chestnut Festival」

New（ニュー）=「新しい」、chestnut（チェスナット）=「栗」、festival（フェスティバル）＝「祭り」

#3 Hiking with Tengu (2022/8)
第3回　天狗とハイキング

English version

When I first visited Kasama City nine years ago, I climbed Mt. Atago and saw large tengu masks and themed omamori amulets at the Atago Jinja Shrine for the first time in my life. That's how I learned about these Japanese folklore creatures.

Recently, I have been reading a book called "Tales of Iwama" and watching a video series of "Kasama Folktales" on the Kasama Channel. It is said that in the old days, when Mt. Atago was called Mt. Iwama, tengu lived and did austere practices there. I was surprised to read the "Tengu's Sumo" story, as some techniques appeared to be just like aikido ones!

I had thought that the Atago Jinja Shrine enshrines these supernatural beings. However, when I asked the staff, they told me that it was actually one of the three major fire prevention shrines in Japan. Behind it, at the Iitsuna Jinja Shrine, they worship the thirteen tengu of Iwama. I had wondered what these small buildings lined up in a row were, and was told that they were shrines to the thirteen tengu. Mystery solved! I also learned that the Iitsuna Shrine is famous for an extremely unusual Akutai Matsuri (Cursing Festival).

When the priest talked to me about the Atago Shrine, he also let me try my hand at writing a goshuin stamp! As it was hard to keep a good balance of kanji characters, my handwriting wasn’t that good. However, it was a gratifying experience I could not normally have.

Afterward, I walked along the "Kasama-Wagakuni Atago Hiking Course" to see what kind of mountain the tengu trained on. I wandered through a tunnel of tall trees and enjoyed the soothing birdsong and hummed the song I heard in the Tengu animation short movie. My legs were tired but my mind was refreshed as I reached the Minami-yama (South Mountain) resting spot. Next time, I will wear proper hiking shoes and try to walk the entire trail.

It seems that there are many folk tales and legends passed down in Kasama. Knowing them not only helps you understand local traditions and history, but it also becomes a topic of conversation with foreigners like me. Please let me know about opportunities to experience folk tales and hiking in the city through #mykasama_jp!

How do you say it in Japanese?

Let me introduce the shrine’s and mountain’s names in Japanese.

"Atago Jinja Shrine" is "愛宕 神社" (atago jinja).
Since the word “jinja” means "shrine," you just drop the English explanation. It’s easy, right?

"Mount Atago" is "愛宕 山" (atago san).

If you speak about mountains in general, you use the reading "yama" for the "山".
However, you usually read the same character as "san" in mountain names. So, no, in Japanese it’s not "Fujiyama," it’s "Fujisan."

Kasama Magazine version (August 2022) /「広報かさま」令和4年8月号 (PDF)

日本語版

9年前、笠間市に初めて来たとき愛宕山に登り、愛宕神社にあった天狗の大面やお守りを見てはじめて天狗のことを知りました。

最近は、「いわまの伝え話」という本を読んだり、笠間チャンネルで「笠間の民話」の動画シリーズを見たりしながら天狗の勉強をしています。昔、岩間山といわれた愛宕山には、天狗が暮らし、修行をしていたそうです。本で読んだ「天狗のすもう」の話ではまるで合気道のような技が出てきてびっくり！

愛宕神社は天狗を祀っていると思っていましたが、神社の方に聞いてみると、実は愛宕神社は、日本三大火防神社の一つだそうです。その奥にある飯綱神社では十三天狗を祀っているのだそうです。「ずらりと並ぶこの小さな建物は何だろう」と気になっていましたが、十三天狗の祠だそうです。謎が解けました！
ちなみに飯綱神社は、とても珍しい祭り「悪態祭」で有名だと知りました。

愛宕神社でいろいろな話を聞いた時、社務所で御朱印書きに挑戦させてもらいました。漢字のバランスが難しくて上手に書けませんでしたが、普段できないありがたい経験でした。

その後、天狗が修行をした山はどんなところなのかを確かめるために、「笠間・吾国愛宕ハイキングコース」を歩いてみました。高い木のトンネルを歩き、鳥の声に癒されながら、天狗の動画で聞いた歌を口ずさんでいました。南山広場まで歩いて、足は疲れましたが、心はリフレッシュできました。今度はちゃんとしたハイキングシューズを履いて、全コースにチャレンジします。

笠間では伝え話がたくさんあるようです。地元の民話や伝説を覚えると、伝統や歴史が理解できるだけでなく、私のような外国人との話題にもなります。皆さんも民話に触れる機会や市内でのハイキングについて「＃笠間市民ニュース」でぜひ教えてください。

英語でなんて言う?

今回は「愛宕山」と「愛宕神社」を英語で覚えましょう！

「愛宕山」＝「Mount Atago」

書く時は、「Mt. Atago」と短く書くことが多いです。「山の名前」ではく、「山」を表す時は、「mountain」という言葉を使います。

「愛宕神社」＝「Atago Jinja Shrine」

「Shrine」は「神社」という意味です。人によっては、「Jinja」を言わず、「Atago Shrine」と言う時もあります。

#2 Escape the Heat in Kasama (2022/6)
第2回　笠間の避暑地

English version

It is getting hotter and hotter. There are not so many hot days where I come from, so I get tired of the muggy and humid season in Japan and instinctively want to escape to a cool place. Do you know any spots in Kasama where you can enjoy staying cool, among other things?

For me, they are art museums!

Kasama has surprisingly large museums, such as the Kasama Nichido Museum of Art and the Ibaraki Ceramic Art Museum.

Kasama Nichido Museum of Art is situated not far from Kasama Inari Jinja Shrine. You can enjoy special exhibitions of Picasso, Tsuguharu Foujita, and other renowned Japanese and foreign painters, a palette exhibition, and bronze sculptures by famous sculptors. Once you enter, it feels like you're in a different world. There are three exhibition buildings, a garden, a rooftop café, and a museum store. 
I love cats, so when I went to see the "A Cats' World II" exhibition, I enjoyed the entire museum at my leisure and was very satisfied. I spent three hours there, but it was so exciting that it felt like a blink of an eye.

The Ibaraki Ceramic Museum is located in Kasama Geijutsu-no-mori Park. Visitors can enjoy a variety of unique contemporary ceramic works, from traditional crafts to figurative works and even everyday tableware.

The museum boasts masterpieces by Kosei Matsui, designated as a Living National Treasure, and other renowned artists. You can also take a break in the museum store or restaurant.
I was not interested in ceramics before visiting the museum. However, I was deeply impressed by the beauty of the ceramic works at the "Blue or White - Blue, White, and Blue and White Porcelain" exhibition two years ago. Since then, I have visited the museum many times.

Dear Readers, please be careful in this hot weather!
If you know of any other places in Kasama where you can escape the heat, please let me know on social media by adding the hashtag #mykasama_jp to your post!

How do you say it in Japanese?

Let me introduce the museums' names in Japanese.

"Kasama Nichido Museum of Art" is "笠間 日動 美術館" (kasama nichidō bijutsukan).
Kasama is the name of the city, Nichido is the title, and bijutsukan means an "art museum."

"Ibaraki Ceramic Art Museum" is "茨城県 陶芸 美術館" (ibaraki-ken tōgei bijutsukan).
Ibaraki-ken means "Ibaraki Prefecture", and this museum is run by the prefecture, although located in Kasama City.
Tougei means "ceramic art, pottery".

While in English you can say just "museum," in the Japanese language, you have to choose between 美術館 bijutsukan, and 博物館 hakubutsukan.
As you may have noticed, bijutsukan is a fine art museum. You can find paintings, sculptures, ceramics, photography, and other works of art there.
Hakubutsukan is a general word for a museum. However, you usually use this word for an institution that displays artifacts and other historical, cultural, or scientific objects.

Kasama Magazine version (June 2022) /「広報かさま」令和4年6月号 (PDF)

日本語版

私にとって、それは美術館です！

笠間には、笠間日動美術館や茨城県陶芸美術館といったびっくりするほど大きい美術館があります。

笠間日動美術館は、笠間稲荷神社の近くにあり、ピカソや藤田嗣治をはじめとする国内外の有名な画家の企画展やパレット展、有名な彫刻家によるブロンズ像などが楽しめる美術館です。入ってみたら、別世界にいるようです。展示館が3館あり、庭園、屋上のカフェ、ミュージアムショップもあります。

私は猫好きなので「猫まみれ展」を見に行ったとき、美術館全館をゆっくりと楽しみ、大満足しました。3時間いましたが、見ごたえがあり、あっという間に感じました。

茨城県陶芸美術館は、笠間芸術の森公園の中にあり、人間国宝に認定された松井康成をはじめ、伝統工芸から造形的な作品、さらには日常の器まで個性豊かなさまざまな現代の陶芸作品が楽しめる美術館です。ミュージアムショップやレストランでゆっくりすることもできます。

美術館に行くまでは陶芸に興味がありませんでしたが、2年前に行われた「青か、白か、－青磁×白磁×青白磁」の展覧会で陶芸作品の美しさにとても感動しました。それ以来何度も訪れています。

皆さん、暑さで体調を崩さないよう気をつけてください。

そして、他にも笠間で涼しく楽しめるスポットがあったら、ぜひ「＃笠間市民ニュース」で教えてください！

お待ちしています！

英語でなんて言う?

今回は「笠間日動美術館」と「茨城県陶芸美術館」を英語で覚えましょう！

#1 Nice to Meet You (2022/4)
第1回　初めまして

English version

My name is Natalia, and I work at Kasama City Hall in the Public Relations Office.

I came to Japan four years ago and have been living in Kasama for two years. Every day I discover new beautiful things about Kasama. In this column, I would like to introduce Kasama as seen through the eyes of a foreigner like me.

Let's rediscover Kasama together!

Kasama is rich in nature, has many museums and galleries, and has surprisingly many events.

Besides big events like the Himatsuri Pottery Festival, the New Chestnut Festival, and the Chrysanthemum Festival, small fairs and festivals also often take place, making Kasama a place where it is fun to live.

Although events have been decreasing because of the Covid-19 pandemic, I believe this is an excellent chance to realize the value of ordinary things. Therefore, I invite you to see life in Kasama with new eyes, and I hope you will find more things you like about this lovely place.

However, I am still a relative newcomer to Kasama, so please let me know about exciting things happening here by adding the hashtag #mykasama_jp to your post on social media if you like.

I will also tell you the names of local tourist attractions in English and Japanese.
Let's learn together!

How do you say it in Japanese?

Let me introduce the "Kasama Himatsuri Pottery Festival".

You read the original name "笠間の陶炎祭" as "kasama no himatsuri."

笠間 is Kasama, the name of the city.

陶炎祭 (himatsuri) is quite tricky. It consists of the characters "pottery," "flame" and "festival".

Please don't confuse it with fire festivals.

Kasama Magazine version (April 2022) /「広報かさま」令和4年4月号 (PDF)

日本語版

笠間市役所で市の広報をしているナターリアです。日本に来て4年、笠間に住みはじめて2年がたちました。日々、笠間のすばらしいところを発見しながらくらしています。このコラムでは、外国から来た私の目で見た笠間の魅力を紹介していきます。

皆さんも一緒に笠間の魅力を再発見していきましょう！

笠間は自然が豊かで、美術館やギャラリーもたくさんあり、イベントが驚くほど多いです。

陶炎祭や新栗まつり、菊まつりといった大きなイベントのほか、小さなフェアやフェスもよく行われるので、楽しく生活ができるまちだと思っています。今は、コロナ禍でイベントが減ってしまいましたが、だからこそ「当たり前」の価値に気づけるチャンスです。笠間でのくらしを新しい目で見てみませんか。皆さんの「笠間のここが好き」がもっと増えたら嬉しいです。

とは言いながら、笠間市民としてはまだまだ初心者なので、皆さんの笠間の話題もぜひ教えてください。SNSで「＃笠間市民ニュース」のハッシュタグをつけて記事を載せてください。

また、市民の皆さんが、海外から笠間に来た人にも道案内ができるように、英語での観光地の名前などもお伝えしますので、ぜひ覚えてください！

英語でなんて言う?

今回は「笠間の陶炎祭」を英語で覚えましょう！

「Kasama Himatsuri Pottery Festival」

Pottery（ポタリー）＝「陶芸」、festival（フェスティバル）＝「祭り」です。

「Pottery Festival」という単語をつけることで、焼き物のお祭りということが伝わりやすいです。

• 2023年4月6日
• 印刷する

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