Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes

Since i decide to get Japan i decide to get one of the 2 places where the atom bombs was dropped

I picked Hiroshima just becouse it was more close to Kyoto  where i was staying so i thought to get Nagasaki for my Next Visiti in japan .Since I got .....Pace Memorial Park  a weird feeling of sadness keeps coming over me ........till i Saw those: .......a warm touch of Love, Hope & Pace .

Those Origami Cranes are Made by school children all over japan and from all over the world .

Meaning  About Thousand origami cranes 千羽鶴, Senbadsuru is a group of one thousand origami paper cranes held together by strings. An ancient Japanese legend promises that anyone who folds a thousand origami cranes will be granted a wish by a crane, such as long life or recovery from illness or injury. The crane in Japan is one of the mystical or holy creatures (others include the dragon and the tortoise), and is said to live for a thousand years. In Japan, it is commonly said that folding 1000 paper origami cranes makes a person's wish come true. This makes them popular gifts for special friends and family.

But There s something more About this Place and  千羽鶴, Senbadsuru ,and to be honest I didn t know about it till now but my deep love for  this Country and its culture made me always read and search about it so i discovered  it : It s  The Story About All This Thousand Origami & Sadako Sasaki.

 Sasaki Sadako  佐々木 禎子 January 7, 1943 – October 25, 1955) was a Japanese girl who was two years old when the atomic bomb was dropped on August 6, 1945, near her home by Misasa Bridge in Hiroshima, Japan. Sadako is remembered through the story of attempting to fold a thousand origami cranes before her death, a wish which was memorialized in popular culture.


Sadako was at home when the explosion occurred, about one mile from Ground Zero. In November 1954, Sadako developed swellings on her neck and behind her ears. In January 1955, purple spots had formed on her legs. Subsequently, she was diagnosed with leukemia (her mother referred to it as "an atom bomb disease").She was hospitalized on February 21, 1955, and given, at the most, a year to live.



On August 3, 1955, Sadako's best friend Chizuko Hamamoto came to the hospital to visit and cut a golden piece of paper into a square to fold it into a paper crane, in reference to the ancient Japanese story that promises that anyone who folds a thousand origami cranes will be granted a wish by a crane. A popular version of the story is that Sadako fell short of her goal of folding 1,000 cranes, having folded only 644 before her death, and that her friends completed the 1,000 and buried them all with her. This comes from the book Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes. An exhibit which appeared in the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum stated that by the end of August, 1955, Sadako had achieved her goal and continued to fold more cranes.


Though she had plenty of free time during her days in the hospital to fold the cranes, she lacked paper. She would use medicine wrappings and whatever else she could scrounge up. This included going to other patients' rooms to ask to use the paper from their get-well presents. Chizuko would bring paper from school for Sadako to use.


During her time in the hospital her condition progressively worsened. Around mid-October her left leg became swollen and turned purple. After her family urged her to eat something, Sadako requested tea on rice and remarked "It's good." Those were her last words. With her family around her, Sadako died on the morning of October 25, 1955 at the age of 12.

link In italiano http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sadako_Sasaki

akachōchin 。。。 Izakaya 居酒屋

Some traditional lighting u can find in japan are called akachōchin  赤ちょうちん it marks an Izakaya .

Izakaya 居酒屋  is a type of Japanese drinking establishment which also serves food to accompany the drinks. They are popular, casual places for after-work drinking.

The name "izakaya" is a compound word consisting of "i" (to sit) and "sakaya" (sake shop), showing that izakaya originate from sake shops that allowed customers to sit at the premises to drink.

Izakaya are sometimes called akachōchin  赤ちょうちん(red lantern) in daily conversation, because these paper lanterns are traditionally found in front of an izakaya.

Here 's Some Pictures i took in japan .......and of course i bought one ^_^ in kappabashi Street .

さくら。

ｶｽﾃﾗ Mattcha Green Tea Kasutera Or Castella

Finally I made ｶｽﾃﾗ  ^^  mogu mogu mogu!!


カステラ, Kasutera  or Castella is a popular Japanese sponge cake made of sugar, flour, eggs, and starch syrup, very common at festivals and as a street food.

Now a specialty of Nagasaki, the cake was brought by way of Portuguese merchants in the 16th century. The name is derived from Portuguese Pão de Castela, meaning "bread from Castile".
In the 16th century, the Portuguese reached Japan, and soon started trade and missionary work. Nagasaki was then the only Japanese port open for foreign commerce. The Portuguese introduced many then-unusual things, such as guns, tobacco, and pumpkins and castella. It was able to be preserved for a long period of time, and so was useful for the sailors who were out on the sea for months. In the Edo Period, in part due to the cost of sugar, it was an expensive dessert. When the Emperor of Japan's envoy was invited, the Tokugawa Shogunate presented the Castella.

 Ingredientes

This was my fisrt Experiment i m gonna Try other Recipe From japanese web site

2 Tbsp milk

2 Tbsp honey
4 eggs
3/4 cup sugar *180gr
3/4 cup bread flour, sifted **actually i used Whole meal Plain flour*
1Tbsp Mattcha Green Tea

Preheat the oven in 360 degrees F.

Mix honey in warm milk and set aside.


Whisk eggs in a large bowl using an electric hand-mixer, adding sugar gradually.
Place the bowl over warm water in another large bowl.
Further, whisk eggs until become almost white.

Mix the milk and honey mixture in the batter.

Add sifted flour in the bowl and mix gently with a spatula.

Pour the batter in the loaf pan and tap the pan gently on the table to release any air bubbles.

.Bake at 360 degrees F for about 10 minutes and turn down oven to 280-300 degrees F and bake for about 40 minutes.
 To check if the cake is done, poke it with a bamboo skewer. If it comes out clean it's done.

cool the cake.

Wrap the cake with plastic wrap and store until the next day. It tastes better the next day.
Cut the kasutera into  thick slices.
 
いただきます。
さくら