A trip to San Francisco Japantown サンフランシスコ　ジャパンタウン

One sunny day in San Francisco, I decided to take my new (secondhand) bike for a ride to Japantown. Just over 10 minutes downhill, I found myself  transported back in time to Japan of the 1960s. There was something vintage and quaint about this neighbourhood. It’s fitting that the Peace Plaza and Peace Pagoda serves as a meeting spot for the older generations of Japanese Americans.

天気の良いある日、新しい（中古）の自転車でジャパンタウンまで行くことにしました。坂道を下って十分後、６０年代の日本に戻ったようでした。

The restaurants in the Japan Center reminded me of the places run by sweet old ladies in northern rural Japan where my Obaachan (grandmother) lives.

ジャパンセンターの中のレストランを見て山形のおばあちゃんの近くにある店を思い出しました。懐かしいです。

Of course, modern Japan has crept in, including a Daiso discount store; everything is $1.50.

もちろん、現在の日本も明らかに。ダイソーもあります。全品$1.50です。

Lots of sewing, knitting and craft supplies;—all just $1.50 each. They had fabric too.

たくさんのクラフト用品すべて$1.50。生地もありました。

You have to stop by Kinokuniya and get lost in wonderful Japanese books.

紀伊国屋で日本の本の立ち読み。

All my favourite Japanese sewing books are sold at this bookstore too.

大好きな洋裁の本もたくさんありました。

How convenient; Japantown also has a Japanese supermarket, Nijiya. I stocked up on pantry essentials and bought myself an obento box for lunch. From the dozens of different types, I picked the Makunouchi, which is kind of the supreme pizza equivalent (you get a bit of everything).

ランチは日本食のスーパー、虹屋のお弁当にしました。幕の内弁当はピザで言えばサプリームみたいなものですね。

I had such a nice little trip to Japantown, I felt as though I was back in Japan, just for a little while. You probably also noticed that I have started writing the blog in Japanese. It’s really good practice for my deteriorating Japanese, and I thought it might be good to branch out a bit to a Japanese audience too.

ジャパンタウン楽しかったです。まるで短時間日本に戻った気分でした。今日から日本語でもブログを書くことにしましたのでよろしくお願いします。