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Read the page about おいしいお米にひとめぼれ・falling in love at first sight with delicious rice. Would have loved to know more about this produce, unfortunately the text doesn’t explain what’s so good about it.
Below are my translations and requests for help
宮城県の真ん中あたりには、たいらな土地が広がっていて、米作りがさかんです。
As for in the vicinity of Miyagiken’s center, flat soil is spread and rice production is flourishing.
ここで多くさいばいされている「ひとめぼれ」は、みやぎけんで生まれたいねのしゅるいの一つです。
As for “Hitomebare”, cultivation of which is plentily done because of this (flat soil), born in Miyagiken variety (???).
what’s the meaning of で in ここで ?
what’s 生まれたいねのしゅるい ?
「一目見ただけですきになる」といういみの「ひとめぼれ」。
“Becomes at one’s liking after only one glance” is the meaning of “Hitomebare”. “Hitomebare” means “love at first sight”.
what’s the function of という here? I only know it as “called”.
一口食べただけで、「おいしい！」と、すきになってほしい。
Merely after one eaten mouthful, (people say) “tasty”, it becomes to one’s liking and desirable.
what’s the meaning of と here?
そんなねがいをこめて作られているお米なのかもしれませんね。
Packed with such kind of desire and produced rice.
how does the て-form phrase and the rest fit together?
Yeah, that’s basically what’s going on here. "A meaning called ‘falling in love at first sight’ ", the only difference being that’s not really how we’d phrase it in English.
Miyagi-prefecture
The delicious rice is love at first sight. (liberal translation, also a pun of sorts)
In the middle of the Miyagi-prefecture, on peaceful lands spreading across the region, the rice manufacturing flourishes.
The “hitomebore” rice that’s grown in large numbers here is one of the several different rice plants living here.
The meaning of “Hitomebore” is “falling in love at first sight”. Just eating a mouthful makes you say “Delicious!” and you’re in love. Maybe the rice is made with this wish in mind.
Questions:
❶ What’s flourishing in the middle of the Miyagi-prefecture? Write in the three characters.
❷ With what wish in mind is “hitomebore” made? Fill in the blank.
「なぐごはいねが （なく子はいないか）！」おにが、木でできたほうちょうをふり回しながら、家に入ってきました。“Crying children will disappear!” saying demon, while swinging and rotating made from wood kitchen knife, entered houses.
What does はいないか mean?
家の人は、おさけなどを出して、おにをもてなします。House residents put outside sake and other things, and welcome the demon.
そして、おにはつぎの家へとむかいました。Then the demon went in the direction of next house.
What’s the function of と particle here?
村人がふんしているこのおには、「なまはげ」とよばれます。As for this demon who villagers treat harshly, it is called “Namahage”.
「なまはげ」はそれをいましめてくれます。As for “Namahage”, that is warned against.
What’s does それ refer to?
「なまはげ」は、こわいかっこうをしていますが、人びとにしあわせをもたらしてくれる、山のかみさまのつかいなのです。As for Namahage, it’s a messenger of the mountain gods, who is acting like a scary figure, but is bringing everyone happiness.
It’s the New year’s night.
“Are there any crying children?!” say the demons, brandishing wooden kitchen knives while coming into your house. The people in the house serve the demon sake and various alcohol (liberal translation) as a hospitality towards the demon. Afterwards it go to the next house.
The villagers call this dressed up demon “Namahage”. Slacking off, arguind, Namahage warn against these. Namahage look scary, but they bring happiness to the villagers as the messengers of the mountain god(s).
Questions:
❶ When do the Namahage enter houses? Fill in the blank.
❷ What do the Namahage do? Circle the correct one.
ア They serve the people in the house alcohol.
イ They warn lazy people and the like.
ウ They make people scary.
The king of fruits of Yamagata-prefecture. The beloved cherry (lit.: the cherry that’s popular above else) is harvested from the beginning of summer.
Cherry was originally brought in from foreign countries in the Meiji-era. Originally it was grown all across japan, however frost and wind damage is rare in Yamagata, so they grow well there. (liberal translation a bit)
The cultivation of cherry takes a surprising amount of labour. The red fruits that look like shiny stones are picked one by one, giving the farmers a lot of trouble.
Questions:
❶ Why does cherry grow so well in Yamagata?
❷ Which statement is true about cherries? (liberal a bit)
ア They are harvested from the beginning of winter
イ They were brought in from foreign countries
ウ The cultivation doesn’t require a lot of labour
Fukushima-prefecture
Fukushima-prefecture
The secrets of Goshikinuma
In the so called “Urabandai” region of the Fukushima-prefecture, with it’s beautiful nature, are countless ponds. The reddish “Akanuma”, “Aonuma” glowing blueish-white, “Rurinuma” with the watercolor changing based on where you look from and so on (big cop out, there’s plenty more). These ponds together are called the “Goshikinuma”.
How did the “Goshikinuma” come to be? The answer comes from the eruption of the Bandai mountain. It’s said, that the erupted mountain collapsed and the mud blocked the river, filling the basin. It’s wonderful, that an eruption like that can create these beautiful lakes, isn’t it?
❶ What is the lake called, that changes colour based on where you look at it from in the Urabandai region?
ア Akanuma
イ Aonuma
ウ Rurinuma
❷ How did Goshikinuma come to be?
TIL
there are some black dots here next to words is what the japanese do instead of underlining with a similar meaning behind it. If anyone has any idea why exactly it is done in chapter 7, please do tell about it
おいしいお米にひとめぼれ
Love at first sight with delicious rice
宮城県の真ん中あたりには、たいらな土地が広がっていて、米作りがさかんです。
Around the middle of Miyage prefecture is filled with flat land, and rice cultivation is prosperous.
ここで多くさいばいされている「ひとめぼれ」は、宮城県で生まれたいねのしゅるいの一つです。
“Hitomebore”, which is mostly cultivated here, is one variety of rice plant that was born in Miyage prefecture.
「一目見ただけですきになる」といういみの「ひとめぼれ」。
“Hitomebore” means “to fall in love at first sight”.
一口食べただけで、「おいしい！」と、すきになってほしい。
After only eating one bite, you’ll say “Delicious!” and fall in love.
そんなねがいをこめて作られているお米なのかもしれませんね。
Perhaps the rice is made with that kind of wish put into it, right?
The last line was the hardest. I understand that かもしれません means “might” or “perhaps”, but what is the なの part before it doing?
It’s just our old friend の the explanatory particle. It’s going to come up again and again! And it grammatically requires な before it if it comes after a noun.
If you have the means, you can order it from Amazon Japan. It only takes a few days for them to deliver worldwide, it seems. I’ve ordered a few Japanese books twice at that store, and both times it took only 3-4 days before I had them delivered in Denmark.
If you feel like you can catch up, amazon Japan only took a week or so to deliver my book. So if you order now, you’ll be able to join in next week and this one just started, it will be a couple of weeks before the next one
