ALT　ブレンダン先生からのﾒｯｾｰｼﾞ（3１）

ALTのブレンダン先生から、メッセージをいただきました。高高生の英語力の向上のため、定期的にさまざまなテーマを提供してくれています。 新しい年の始まり、さて、どんな内容でしょう！

Happy New Year! In Japan, I think that New Years is probably the most important holiday of the year, and many people spend time with their families. This is also very different from America! In America, people think of New Year’s Eve as a time to have parties with friends instead of families. We gather together and countdown until midnight (5, 4, 3, 2, 1, HAPPY NEW YEAR!). At midnight, there are fireworks and we listen to the song “Auld Lange Syne,” a Scottish song. It has the same tune as 蛍の光! The most famous event is the countdown in Times Square in New York City. I watch it almost every year on TV!

This year, I was able to experience New Year’s in Japan again! In America, we don’t have traditions like watching the first sunrise (初日の出) or getting お年玉, so I was interested to see those traditions. I also enjoyed “o-zōni” and “osechi” and I was impressed to learn that each type of food in the box has a meaning! I also watched part of “Kōhaku” on TV and enjoyed the music. On New Year’s Day, I went to a shrine for hatsumōde. I received 大吉! I did not count down until midnight this year. I actually fell asleep! I was very happy to have a very relaxing New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day. During winter vacation, I visited Shizuoka Prefecture and saw Mt. Fuji. I also traveled to Matsumoto, Nagano Prefecture and saw snow! I’m looking forward to another year in Japan!