EVACOMICS BLOG

Finally Fall is here as the weather gets cooler and cooler. Eating mackerels is a Japanese customs or habit to welcome the new season. This also marks the end of our simmering hot days! 秋季終於來了！ 吃秋刀魚是日本人歡迎新季節的習慣，也代表炎熱夏天的結束！

Discount ticket shops are shops where people sell their unwanted tickets, cards and vouchers, and where people can buy them at a discount of up to 5% off the original price. The shops are always located around major train stations with a shinkansen stop. In Shinjuku, there are many outside the West gate and I find that the furthest one provides the best savings, although negligible to most people. 折扣票店賣的是比市價便宜5%的各類門票，車票，讀書卡，電話卡，購物券等。因為這些都是那些不需要它們的人賣出去的，所以大家可放心購買，都沒問題的。店鋪通常都位於有新幹線的主要電車站附近。在新宿西口也有不少，越遠的會賣得越便宜。 These shops sell anything from concert and baseball match tickets, shinkansen tickets, rail passes, department store vouchers, to telephone and Tosho cards. 任何演奏票，演唱會入門票，賽票，新幹線車票，電車票，購物券，電話卡或圖書卡都能在這些店買到。

In Japan, oranges and apples are the major domestic fruits but the sales for them has been declining. Replacing them in the fruits sales chart is bananas from South-east Asia. I'm not a big fan of bananas, but if you want a convenient fruit to eat when you're lazy to wash hands or grab a knife, bananas are your best choice. 日本的土產水果主要是橙和蘋果。可惜的是他們的本土銷售額年年下跌，取代榜首的竟然是東南亞的香蕉大王！雖然我對香蕉沒什麼喜愛，但是當你不願洗手或拿刀子時，香蕉的確是很方便的健康水果。 Cherries　櫻桃 The cherries season is usually in the spring season around April. Japanese cherries are smaller and more reddish than the Californian cherries. Oddly, Japanese cherries are more expensive than their Californian counterparts and tasted more sour. For example, one small box of Japanese cherries costs 700yen but the Californian cherries costs 450yen. I'll prefer the Californian cherries anytime.  櫻桃季節通常在四月份的時候。日本櫻桃比加州的還要嬌小和紅潤。雖然日本櫻桃比較貴，但是比較酸-_-。一小盒的日本櫻桃可賣700yen，但是加州的只賣450yen。你說我會買哪兒一個呢...

Due to cost-cutting measures, I decided to walk all the way from my dorm to Shinjuku station to meet my friend. This would save me 130yen instead of taking a train and getting 35mins worth of walking exercise. This is equivalent to a plate of Kaiten (conveyor belt) sushi! And oh, I get to see the Danjiri Matsuri (Japanese: Festival) at the West exit of Shinjuku station as well! 因為要節省開支，所以我決定從宿舍一直走到新宿見朋友。 這讓我省下了130yen的電車費和得到35分鐘的運動，相等于一盤旋轉壽司店的壽司！ 而且在新宿西口巧遇日本的Danjiri祭！

Well for some time, I'd found it rather hard to get into sleep, so I asked the know-all Google on any holy advises. Here are some of its recommendations: Drink milk. Take a hot shower before sleeping. Use the bed only for sleeping. (except for those things which couples would do) Dim the lights to prepare your body for sleeping. Sleep at your regular time, even during weekends. Read a boring book. Do something boring until you're tired enough, then sleep. I don't like to drink milk and don't like to shower late, so I picked tip #6: Read a boring book. Now I know when to study my Japanese! P.S. IT WORKED!!! 有一段時間一直很難入睡，所以請教一下萬能的Google。以下是一些提議： 喝奶。 睡之前洗熱澡。 只有睡覺時才上床，不要躺在床上看電視或唸書。 把燈光調暗，讓身體意識要準備睡覺了。 即使在週末也要按照平時的時間睡覺。 讀一本很無聊的書。 做很無聊的事，直到很累才睡覺。 因為我不喜歡喝奶和晚洗澡，所以我選第6項：讀一本很無聊的書。現在我知道要幾點唸日語了！ P.S. 這方法果然有效！

I passed my Japanese Language Proficiency Test level 2 again!!! This time with higher rate than my just previous passing score of 240/400 taken 9 years ago. Everyone, including the teachers, thought that it was rather easy to pass this year's level 2 examination based on the higher passing rate than previous years. Looking at my results slip, grade B is actually between 34~66%. What this means is even if you failed your grammar, you can still receive a grade B. Strange isn't it? Moreover, they did not reveal the passing mark so no one knew exactly where the line was drawn. It was rumored that if you scored more than 19/60 for example, in Listening Comprehension, you could still pass, provided that the overall score was decent. For those of us who had taken the 5500yen test in Japan, we need to pay an additional 1000yen if we want to receive the A4 size certificate. I'll think about forking out that cash if I pass N1. 我又2級合格了!!! 這次的比率比9年前的240/400還高:P 因為今年獲得合格的學生比往年多，所...

This is what we eat every morning, buffet! :PPPP 這是我們每天的吃到飽！*開心 :P

Some of us visited the Cheese research center. What they do is to research on what kind of cheese that Japanese like. Based on their findings, Japanese typically like cheese which has 1)No strong fermented smell, 2)Not sticky, 3)White color. Although they were told by Europeans that their cheese is really bad, but they don't mind because Japanese likes it. 我們有些去參觀起司研究所。他們專門研究迎合日本人口味的起司。根據他們的研究結果，發現日本覺得好吃的起司是：1）沒有強烈的發酵味道，2）不黏牙，3）白色。即使歐洲人覺得他們的起司不好吃，他們還是覺得只要日本人喜歡就沒關係。

First day's lunch. 第一天的午餐。