Bougainvillea ブーゲンビリア

Japanese follows English. 英語の後に日本語が続きます。

This is bougainvillea. I have heard of the flower many times, but I first saw it last week. The color pink is so bright, catching my eye!! 

Bougainvillea ブーゲンビリア

Pink "bracts" ピンクの「苞」

Cream yellow "petals"! 薄黄が花弁!

I like flowers whose not petals but bracts are showy, like bougainvillea and flowering dogwood. 

Bougainvillea was named after Louis Antoine de Bougainvillea, and it's called in Japanese also "bu-gainbiliya," Japanese pronunciation of bougainvillea, but it has other Japanese names. One is "ikada kazura," meaning a "raft vine" after the shape of the pink bract looking like a raft and the cream yellow petal a boatman. Another is "kokonoe kazura" or "multi-layered vine."  

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ブーゲンビリアです!聞いたことはありましたが見たのは初めて。色がホントに綺麗です!で気づいたことが一つ。私、花弁より苞が好きなようです。ハナミズキも苞が綺麗です。

ちなみに和名は筏葛(イカダカズラ)、九重葛(ココノエカズラ)。筏葛は苞を筏に、花弁を船頭に見立てています。

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Netsuke - Boss 根付 - ボス

英語の後に日本語が続きます。

Are you a boss, or do you have one? Either way, you definitely don't want a boss like this! 🤣 This is 'Boss,' an ebony netsuke sculpture carved by the Japanese artist Kozan Fukuyama.

A few months ago, Japanese virologist Takayuki Miyazawa warned, "Don't pick your nose!" to avoid catching coronavirus. Now, nose-picking has become a matter of life and death.

You can view this Fukurokuju netsuke at the Tokyo National Museum. If you love netsuke, check out A List of Netsuke to see more than 40 pieces!

Sponge Gourd ヘチマ

Japanese follows English. 英語の後に日本語が続きます。

This is a sponge gourd flower. The contrast between yellow and deep green is so beautiful!

The leaf is so green and large! 葉っぱ大きい!
   
Season of sponge gourd flowers へちまの花の季節

The color deep green is relaxing 深い緑に落ち着きました

As I wrote in "Gourds in Various Forms - Netsuke, Pickle....," Japan has various gourds and they are called different names without including the term "うり (uri) or gourd," which makes it difficult to see that they are all in the gourd family. The sponge gourd is not the exception, called "hechima" and has an interesting history on how it started to be called as such.

A sponge gourd was originally called (according to Wikipedia) "いとうり or "ito uri," meaning "thread gourd" and then changed as follows:

いとうり "ito uri" 
→とうり "to uri" 
→へちま "hechima"

First, "i" of "ito uri" disappeared, resulting in only "to" remaining with "uri," which means gourd.

The letter "to" is between "he (へ)" and "chi (ち)" in the old Japanese alphabet, i.e., いろは, as below.

い ろ は に ほ へ と ち り ぬ る を........
 i      ro     ha    ni     ho   he    to    chi    ri     nu    ru    wo.......

And between is in Japanese "ma" or "ま." So, all in all: 

"To" gourd is between "he" and "chi."
 と    うり   = ま(ma)   へ           ち  → へちま(hechima)Got it?😉

Sponge gourds have male and female flowers, but I haven't been able to find female flowers yet..... 

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近所のへちまです。黄色と緑のコントラストが鮮やかです!

「ひさごの根付、奈良漬け、炒め物」でも書きましたが、英語で「xxxx gourd」で済むものが、日本語だと、ひさご、瓢箪、ゴーヤ、苦瓜、へちま等、いろいろあるから大変、かつ、ウリ科であることが分かりにくい!でもおいしいから許します🥰

へちまの名は、いとうりが後に縮まって「とうり(と瓜)」と転訛し、「と」はいろは歌で「へ」と「ち」の間にあることから「へち間」の意で「へちま」と呼ばれるようになったそうです。(出典:Wikipedia)

ちなみに雄の花しかありませんでした。最近一生懸命雌の花を探しております。。。

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Netsuke - Sheep 根付「ひつじ」と不可算名詞

英語の後に日本語が続きます。

This is a netsuke titled Sheep, carved from amber with makie painting by Japanese artist Kinuyo Hariya.

It has a black sheep on it, so I searched for information about what the carver meant by it, but couldn't find anything and instead it reminded me of something.... Why can't we say two "sheeps" in English? It doesn't make sense (to me, who is Japanese) that sheep are uncountable. Why can't we say 'two sheeps' in English? As a Japanese speaker, it doesn't make sense to me that 'sheep' has the same form for both singular and plural.

Netsuke/Ojime - Wild Boar, Baby Boars 根付/緒締め - 猪, うりぼう

英語の後に日本語が続きます。

This is an ojime titled 'Wild Boar, Baby Boars.' It is carved from stag antler, boxwood, and buffalo horn by Nick Lamb.

Ojime are beads traditionally used to secure the inro, a small box worn at the waist for carrying personal belongings. 

Gourds in Various Forms - Netsuke, Pickle..... ひさごの根付、奈良漬け、炒め物

英語の後に日本語が続きます。

The two netsuke below are both titled 'Gourd.' The first is a boxwood netsuke carved by Kuya Nakamura, and the second is ivory, carved by Ichiro.

Netsuke and Jello - Goldfish 金魚の根付と和菓子

英語の後に日本語が続きます。

The netsuke in the first photo is a 4-cm-tall piece titled 'Goldfish.' Carved from amber, it features maki-e painting by Japanese netsuke carver and maki-e artist Masayuki Hariya. The netsuke in the second photo, also titled "Goldfish," was carved from ivory by Godo Abe. Both are on display at the Tokyo National Museum.

Netsuke - Muskmelon 根付 - メロン

英語の後に日本語が続きます。

This 3cm pale green ball is a netsuke titled 'Melon,' carved from boxwood with maki-e painting by Kinuyo Hariya, a Japanese netsuke carver and maki-e painter. It looks so real and fresh, doesn't it!

Netsuke - Jurojin God みんな寿老神!

英語の後に日本語が続きます。

These 4 cm-tall netsuke all depict Jurōjin, one of the Seven Lucky Gods, on display at the Tokyo National Museum.

Life of Lantana ランタナの一生

Japanese follows English. 英語の後に日本語が続きます。

I happened to see the beginning through to the end of the life of lantanas. The flower on these stages is all pretty respectively but differently.   

Still a bud まだつぼみ

An umbel consisting of star-shaped tiny flowers
星形の花から成る散形花序

Started to flower だんだん形が。。。

Almost in full bloom ほぼ満開

End of life 終わり

Lantana is called "seven changes" in Japan as its bright color changes as time goes by. Hydrangea is also called "seven changes" for the same reason. So confusing!!

Lantana symbolizes:
- "rigor" or a "lack of flexibility" in the UK, and
- "fickleness," "agreement," "cooperation," and "rigor" in Japan.

"Fickleness" makes sense because it changes color. "Agreement" and "cooperation" also make sense as its flower clusters can be interpreted as a symbol of agreement and/or cooperation, but why "rigor" or a "lack of flexibility"? I couldn't find the reason....

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ランタナの一生です。つぼみから散っているものまでそれぞれに美しいです。

ランタナの和名はシチヘンゲ(七変化)。時間とともに色が変わるからですが、紫陽花の別名も「七変化」。結構いい加減😜?

西洋の花言葉は「厳格」、「柔軟性の欠如」。
日本の花言葉は「心変わり」、「合意」、「協力」、「厳格」。

色が変わるので「心変わり」は納得、小さい花が集まっているので「合意」と「協力」も納得ですが、なぜ「厳格」、「柔軟性の欠如」? 分かりませんでした。。。。

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Busy Bugs! 虫は大忙し!

Japanese follows English. 英語の後に日本語が続きます。

We are busy fighting coronavirus. Bugs are also busy with their lives.  

Tiny caterpillars after the feast 宴の後

Stay Positive😉 - Lotus, Turtle, Carp in Shinobazu Pond, and Betendo Temple 不忍池辯天堂の蓮、亀、そして鯉

Japanese follows English. 英語の後に日本語が続きます。

This is a lotus flower which caught my eye first in the Shinobazu no ike pond near the Ueno park. I didn't expect to see such a beautiful flower, so it gave me a lovely surprise!

The pink stood out ピンクが清冽

Lotus leaves in Shinobazu no ike pond 不忍池

The Shinobazu no ike pond has not only lotus flowers but also many other family members (?), including turtles🐢 doing sumo and too friendly carp🐟 !!

You ready to fight? はっけよい!

Too friendly!! 人慣れしすぎ!

Basking in the sun 亀も日向ぼっこ

It was a beautiful day, but "chozuya," a place to wash the mouths and hands of visitors to purify themselves before entering the shrine was closed due to Covid-19. 

Chozuya was closed 手水舎は使えませんでした

Shinobazu no ike pond Bentendo temple 不忍池辯天堂

Everyone hopes everything goes back to normal soon!!
 コロナ、早く収束しますように!

Covid-19 cases in Japan have been increasing day by day, exceeding 350, being expected to reach 400 or even 800 in a week or so. I've been working from home without going out for non-essential reasons for the last five months, and it's been really tough for me to just stay home. That made me think hard about how I can enjoy weekends without being infected, and I decided to leave home early to come back before the place gets crowded.  

The strategy went well. I enjoyed the Ueno Park and surrounding areas, including such beautiful pond and temple and was able to come back home around 10:30 a.m. 

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上野の不忍池辯天堂です。早朝行ってきました。蓮の花、相撲の試合中の亀🐢、気持ち悪いぐらい人慣れしている鯉🐟、そして青い空、とてもきれいでした。

その後、おうちでお昼寝(朝寝?)しました。朝活なんて全く興味がなかったのですが、コロナになってまさかの朝活。人と会うことはできませんが、知恵を絞ってできる範囲で楽しみたいと思っています🙂

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Mask of a Drunken Persian King's Servant 伎楽面(酔胡従)

英語の後に日本語が続きます。 This is a mask of a drunken Persian king's servant, a 7th- or 8th-century Buddhist ritual mask. It used to belong to Hōry...