Visiting artists in Spain - Elena Odriozola

The artist and her works

My student recently travelled to northern Spain and met children's book illustrators. Her classmate & I were very interested to know more, so we kind of interviewed her to learn more, as she often meets really cool people all around the world. She told us about her visit with Elena Odriozola - this is my appreciation of our conversation, not verbatim. Any mistakes are mine.

The (homemade?) chocolate sandwich cookies were absolutely delicious, as we drank tea in Elena's lovely, quiet farmhouse & garden, which used to be her grandmother's.  Tucked away in the Basque countryside - maybe a forty minute or so drive from Pamplona, and a big difference to San Sebastian where she did not enjoy living, because of the noise. 

Elena's passionate about her work, yet calm, quiet, and strikingly sincere...the translator grew more & more concerned as she rooted about her studio enthusiastically finding works to share with us. Life is peaceful, and she's able to imbue 'presence' or atmosphere into her illustrations (mostly Spanish books, although her work can be found in Japan if you look hard enough) which convey mood, and a world beyond the text. She has a unique style, and sense, often using a stencil technique. 

 

Postcard from...Amsterdam, The Netherlands

 My first time visiting Amsterdam!!

The beautiful canals and iconic architecture make city so uniques and charming!

I'm especially glad I finally got to visit the Anne Frank house - it was something I'd been looking forward to for a long time. And of course seeing many masterpieces by Rembrandt and van Gogh made the trip even more special :)

Today I'm going to Barcelona!

Teruki

Postcard from Maroc - Morocco

 My dream came true at last!

I am travelling around Morocco!!

I feel like travelling different countries each day. What a exotic, wonderful country!!

Especially I was really excited to see the sun rise at the Sahara Desert. The colours of the sand  and sky were changing every moment. It was a unforgettable experience.

Teruki

A postcard from...Ulan Bator, Mongolia

 

I'm having really exciting days in Nomadic Mongolia, incredibly wide and wild. 

People are brave and powerful.

I have been having absolutely precious experiences, such a living ager of nomad, wild horse riding...

Also, I was able to enjoy the annual traditional national festival "Naadam".

My dear friends help everything. How lucky I am!!

I can't forget these lovely exciting days in Mongolia.

Teruki

Postcard from...Bologna, Italy.

 

Ciao, Tutti!!

From Bologna

It has been 10 days since I came here in Bologna. Taking Italian lesson is not easy, but I am enjoying life here. I found good small restaurants and a lovely bakery, market. Basically Italian people are nice, cheerful and very kind. After staying few more days, I am going to travel to Puglia southern part of Italy.

with love, Teruki

A lovely city, Florence in Italy

 

I have just read “Death of an English man”, written by Magdalen Nabb who was born in England in1947, and lived in Florence as well as Italy since 1975. The story is a murder mystery, set in Florence.

 

Florence is my favorite city! I have been there half a dozen times, and every time I visit, I feel excited again and recognize that I love the city passionately.

 

I think you must visit the Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore which is the symbol of the city it is amazingly beautiful. The exterior of white, green, and pink marble is stunning, hence the name “Cathedral of Flower”. You will be overwhelmed by the magnificent construction.

"Primavera" Uffizi Art Museum

 

Next you shouldn’t miss going to the Uffizi Art Museum (Galleria degli Uffizi). “Uffizi” means “offices” in Italian. This huge Renaissance style building used to be the municipal office of the House of Medici, who were the political dynasty in the Republic of Florence during the first half of the 15th century and collected numerous Renaissance art. Well known paintings such as “The Birth of Venus” and “Primavera” (Spring) by Botticelli , as well as amazing works by Leonard da Vinci are also parts of the collection. When I stood in front of the “Primavera” I was so impressed and couldn’t move for a while. You can appreciate many of the important art works there. There are many important artworks you should appreciate there.

 

Rivoire

If you feel tired, it’s a good idea to have a break at the cafe on the rooftop of the department store “Rinascente”. You can enjoy an espresso with a lovely city view. If you prefer a more elegant one, try “Rivoire”. It is an historical fancy cafe, facing the Signoria square. You can savour traditional chocolate and cakes with a fascinating atmosphere inside. They also have terrace seats. Their chocolate will be a special souvenir.

 

Santa Maria Novella Firenze

I would like to tell you one more place that I go every time I visit the city. It is an ancient pharmacy “Santa Maria Novella Firenze”. The history of it goes back in 1221. Dominican friars of the convent of Santa Maria Novella, started to grow herbs in the garden and created natural preparations. Now we can buy their original skin care cosmetics, with fragrances based on essential principles of aromatic plants. Their products are fantastic! You can find the shops in some Italian cities but Florence is the original, and inside the store is marvelous.

 

Teruki

 

A postcard from...North Alps Arts Festival, Azumino, Nagano

 Another really badly publicised event in Nagano :(

I am lucky that one of my students is really into cultural & arty stuff, and is always trying to share! The Northern Alps Arts Festival (NAAF) had been going on all autumn, with installations in over 40 locations around Azumino (Omachi & Ikeda) but I doubt ANY information about this awesome event had filtered out into languages other than Japanese. FAIL!

What a waste! If ever there was a year to make sure you have maximum footfall from a very limited patronage, 2021 is it. I have lived here for donkeys' years - and I only found out about it during its last week, by accident.

On one gorgeous autumnal day, Amirah & I could only visit four installations with our tour guides from Chihiro Museum. Truly creative & breathtaking concepts, inspiring locations and generous backdrops...

What do you think? Check out all the rest on Flickr!

Ellis Island - "I've been there"

Ellis Island

I read “Ellis Island: Rosalia’s Story", which is about an immigrant’s journey from Italy to the U.S.A. in 1910.

A small island near New York City in the U.S.A., Ellis Island was where more than 12 million immigrants arrived between 1892 to 1954, for their health and immigration checks, before traveling into the city.

I have visited New York City several times, first in 1991 and most recently in 2019. When I got close to the area of Ellis Island, it seemed like a very little island, so I could not believe that such a lot of people arrived and stayed for several hours there. People must have been very worried and excited when they arrived there after their long journeys.

Liberty Island is close to Ellis Island. The Statue of Liberty, on Liberty Island, is one of the most famous things in the world. It has been standing in Liberty Island since 1886. I think the immigrants must have been encouraged by the symbol of liberty. Today it still stands magnificently. Every time I see it I get very excited.

The Statue of Liberty: Teruki, Liberty Island,1991

Teruki

Best eateries in Azumino - a local's Top 10

1. Auberge la vie tranquille Azumino 

“Marvelous French dishes with great views of Azumino. The first and only Auberge in Azumino”

“You can enjoy fancy French food”

2. Okina (Japanese Soba)

“You can enjoy some very good soba in the restaurant with a wonderful view of Azumino and Japanese Alps “

“It’s really popular and kind of a famous soba restaurant”

“In the restaurant, most of time, full of people”

3.Teatime Garni

“It’s a cozy cafe in the woods”

“My favorite place in this cafe is the terrace seat” 

“The morning plate: omelette and mushroom sauce and garlic rice or muffin, baked vegetables and fresh salad, is lovely!!”

4. Nishiya besso (accommodation and restaurant, shop)

“Amazing old house!!”

“You can enjoy the very traditional Japanese course dishes. They are beautiful and tasty. The rooms are really interesting old style “

“You can also enjoy hot spring. There’s a outside bath, which is fantastic “

5. Soup Curry Hanjiro

“Original soup style curry. Tasty and volume with meat and lots of vegetables”

“Really popular one. Most of the time, there is a queue in front of the restaurant “

6. Suehiro

“A Japanese style barbecue cooked in front of the customers. Traditional Japanese food, yakitori ( barbecue chicken) and karaage ( fried chicken) , cold or fried tofu…everything is good!!”

“Very old restaurant relaxed atmosphere”

7. Stagione 

“Nice Italian restaurant. They cook excellent food with their own vegetables from their garden. Especially antipasto plate in amazing!! “

“Nice, charming interior and a good view of the garden and mountains.

8. Cafe Olika

“It has just opened in this early summer. A kind of stylish cafe. You can enjoy some lunch plate. “

“ There’s a charming garden”

“On the weekend, sometimes it’s full of people. There’s parking “

9. Gappidou Seipan

“Excellent home made campagne bread and some hard bread. They are really tasty”

“The shop is in wood. It’s really nice place “

10. Azumino milk 

“There are some interesting products and food made by their fresh milk. Pudding, Ice cream, drinks. Fresh taste is unforgettable”

The Trojan Horse

The Greeks and the Romans had been at war for ten years. The exhausted Greek army had been camped around the important city of Troy in ancient Turkey.  The magnificent city walls were unbreakable, and the soldiers outside were desperate for victory. 

Early one morning, while he was having his traditional power breakfast with helpless generals, the old Greek king Odysseus had a brilliant idea.  

The king decided to have a huge, hollow wooden horse built, which would be big enough for a crack squad of brave soldiers to hide inside.

Eventually the enormous horse was built by the determined Greek soldiers. A corps of elite troops got into the well-built wooden horse. Others set fires to their shabby camp as they pretended to sail back to Greece. However, all of the courageous soldiers were hiding nearby. 

As the Trojans were tired of the endless fights, they were extremely delighted to see the Greeks had left.  When they came out from the never-opened gate, they found a breathtaking wooden horse which they had never seen before. Of course, they were very curious about it.  Meanwhile, the Trojans asked the sole remaining Greek soldier about the giant wooden horse.  He explained that the distinctive wooden horse was an offering to the goddess Athena.

The Trojans accepted the gift. They tried to pull the gigantic wooden horse into the city, but it was so big that they had to tear down a part of the impregnable city wall.  The Trojans took the mighty wooden horse to the temple of Athena in the centre of the city, and had a big party to celebrate the end of the war.

Finally, the Trojans relaxed and all the exhausted soldiers fell asleep.  Exactly at that time the patient Greek soldiers crept out from their hiding place in the fortress, the wooden horse, and killed all the Trojan guards at the gate before signalling the waiting Greeks to attack the sleeping city.  

The bloody battle finished soon. The Greeks had won the historic war. The miserable Trojan men were slaughtered; the women and children were taken back to Greece as hard-working slaves.

Posted for Sayuri & Teruki

The big father of the nation

 

Nelson Mandela was a social rights activist, politician and philanthropist who became South Africa’s first Black president from 1994 to 1999, after spending 27 years in prison for political offenses. Mandela was born on July 18, 1918, in the tiny village of Mvezo, in Transkei, South Africa. His father was a local chief and councilor to tribal chiefs. Mandela's African name "Rolihlahla" means "troublemaker." He studied at Wesleyan College, University of London, Clarkebury Boarding Institute, University College of Fort Hare, University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg.

At the start of his career, he believed in only peaceful and non-violent protests. In 1942 Mandela became actively involved in the anti-apartheid movement, joining the African National Congress. In 1961 he led a three-day national workers strike. For this, he was arrested. He was accused of treason against the government and put in prison. He was released 27 years later, in February 1990. 

 For 18 of his 27 years in prison he was on Robben Island, which is now a very famous tourist attraction. He lived in a small cell with no bed and no plumbing. He had to work very hard breaking limestone all day. While in prison he caught tuberculosis, but he received the worst kind of treatment and medication, being a black prisoner. In prison he continued his political work, corresponding with a worldwide audience. During this time, a global movement to have him released grew. There were demonstrations and protests in many different countries and the international community became more aware of the South African government’s apartheid laws.

In 1990, the new, non-racist South African president, Frederick de Klerk, ordered Mandela’s release. Mandela was at last a free man. The symbol of opposition to the repressive South African regime was welcomed by throngs of supporters - over half a million people, in Cape Town.

In 1993, both Mandela and de Klerk, won the Noble Peace Prize. Eventually, in 1994, South Africa held its first fully democratic election which was the first-time people of all races could vote. It was also the first time Mandela had ever voted in his life. Mandela became the first black president in the country on May 10th, 1994 at the age of 77. He tried to reconcile a united South Africa. In 1996 he signed a law which guaranteed and protected the civil rights as well as protecting the freedom of speech for all minority ethnic groups, and all races. He helped South Africa become more democratic, helping to give citizens a voice.

After he had retired, he raised money through his foundation to build schools and hospitals across the country. The foundation also tried to fight poverty and HIV. Additionally, he founded an organization called “The Elders “, which was a group of world leaders who worked publicly in trying to find solutions to some of the world’s most pressing problems.

 Mandela died on December 5, 2013 at the age 95 in Johannesburg. In South Africa. He is revered by people today as the “father of the nation”.

Teruki