Anna Matsushita

  About thirty years ago, in mid 1990’s, I was waiting for her at ticket gates of Kensington Underground station in London.   As I leaned on the stone object, which looked line a fountain, I noticed there was a young man   looking at me.   I was slightly startled, thinking why he was looking at me. Then he came forward with soft smile on his face   “ Anna ？”   I could not recognise his voice, but behind his adult face, I remembered his younger days Besides, there is no one who knew my name   “ Kamire ？”   Bingo.   He was brother of my best friend from a language unit of an international school in London. We sit at the same class, and we had lots of fun during the brake. 7 years passed since then   The boy who was a12 years old at that time, became 17 years old grown-up boy now. His voice changed, and was wearing thin beard. I nearly gave him a big hug, but realised that he is no longer the little b...

  31st March 2024 marks Easter, a celebration in Christianity commemorating the resurrection of Christ. This widely embraced Christian holiday, now quite prevalent in Japan, is a moveable feast, changing dates each year. Despite the uncertainties of the pandemic, places like Tokyo Disneyland used to host Easter events in pre-COVID times, featuring egg-shaped chocolates and festive treats. The Easter period spans about a month and a half. In Catholic tradition, it kicks off with Shrove Tuesday's Carnival, 41 days before Easter, followed by Ash Wednesday, marking the start of Lent – a period focusing on prayer, fasting, and charitable acts, sharing in the suffering of Christ. During Lent, individuals often undertake acts of kindness or give up indulgences such as sweets. On Shrove Tuesday, known in the UK as "Pancake Day," festivities involve making and flipping pancakes in a unique competition. Towns and villages host pancake-flipping challenges, and some even attempt the ...

Taste of forbidden drink Long time ago when I was living in the UK, I realized that cider (hard cider, or cidre) was available at pubs. However, when I go to the pubs with my English friends, they always tried to stop me drinking cider, saying “It’s not for young people” “Japanese won’t like it” “The Japanese people are weak on alcohol. Cider is too strong for the Japanese”. Those were their opinion, but I was baffled with their strong rejections. These English friends called themselves connoisseur of Japan, as all of them have lived in Japan for a bout year. They all rejected cider that it dose not match Japanese’ taste.  Looking back now, they probably experienced something uncomfortable when suggesting cider to the Japanese people. Possibly they did not want to let me down.  After long years passed from the incident, I finally found a chance to try British cider. A pub in Tokyo was displaying their drink menu on their website, and there were eight choices of cider. Recallin...