Twentythree

Mysterious colour-changing cups and sparkly Bearista straw caps, inspired by a Japanese fireworks festival.

Summer in Japan is synonymous with fireworks festivals, where people dress in traditional yukata kimonos, cool themselves with flat fans known as “uchiwa”, and gaze towards the heavens to stare in awe at the sparkly displays.

It’s a beautiful time of year, and it’s one that Starbucks wants to honour with a new range dedicated to summertime fireworks. Covering a couple of cute mini gifts, a colour-changing cup, and sparkly Bearista straw caps, the range is perfectly designed to get us into the festive spirit of a Japanese summer.

▼ Fireworks Mystery Colour-Changing Reusable Cold Cup (710 millilitres [25 ounces]; 950 yen [US$5.85])

This reusable cup displays some very vibrant colour-changing effects, with not just the cup but the straw also changing colour with the addition of an icy cold beverage. Making things even more exciting is the fact that you won’t know what colour the cup will change into until you try it.

▼ Fireworks Mystery Colour-Changing Reusable Cold Cup with Mystery Pack Reusable Cup Sparkling Bearista Straw Cap (1,600 yen)

As the rather long name suggests, this colour-changing cup comes with a “Mystery Pack”, which contains a Bearista Straw Cap, in one of four possible colours.

▼ The caps, which feature a sparkly Bearista, slot onto the straw and seal it off to help prevent any annoying spills.

▼ Starbucks Fireworks Mini Cup Gift (with Drink Ticket) — 1,150 yen

This adorable gift set comes with a cute pouch for gifting, which can also be reused for keeping small accessories.

▼ The cup comes with a removable fireworks insert…

▼ …and it can also be reused as a small storage container.

▼ Fireworks Beverage Card (with Drink Ticket) — 750 yen

Summertime is traditionally a time when people in Japan send gifts and cards to friends and relatives, and this fireworks design captures the spirit of the season with a beautiful fireworls display.

What makes this card extra special is the fact that it comes with a free drink, which can be redeemed by 17 January.

▼ Starbucks Summer Mini Pouch Gift (with Drink Ticket) — 1,500 yen

Another sweet way to send a drink is with this cute pack, which comes with a drink ticket for any Starbucks beverage, in any size, up to the value of 700 yen for dine-in orders or 687 yen for to-go.

▼ It also includes a cup-shaped mini pouch, in a summery mint-green colour.

▼ The pouch is suited to holding small essentials like lip balm or even a few Starbucks coffee sticks.

▼ It comes with a carabiner clip, so you can attach it to your bag and carry it with you wherever you go.

All these products are only available for a limited time and can be purchased at Starbucks stores from 22 July. Online sales start a day earlier, on 21 July, so if you have your heart set on a certain item, you’ll want to have your finger poised and ready to make your purchase when sales start at 8 p.m.

Source: Starbucks Japan
Featured image: Starbucks Japan
Insert images: Starbucks Japan (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
● Want to hear about SoraNews24’s latest articles as soon as they’re published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!

And it’s one, two, three strikes you’re dead at the old ball game!

The rise of Shohei Ohtani has completely cemented Japan’s already famous reputation as a country that has wholly embraced the sport of baseball. However, there’s a common misconception that baseball came to Japan as a result of the American occupation following World War II, when in fact the sport’s roots here go back much further.

Baseball is said to have been introduced to Japan around the mid to late 19th century, just as Japan was undergoing the Meiji Restoration, in which the political system changed from feudal samurai lords to a Western style of government. At this time, the country was rapidly embracing foreign culture while also a product of its own history, and baseball served as a prime example of this crossroads in time.

▼ The Shinbashi Athletic Club, 1880, Japan’s first proper baseball team

The name of the sport itself in Japanese, “yakyu,” literally translates to “field ball,” which most would agree is a reasonable name for a sport played on a field with a ball. This name is often mistakenly credited to the famed haiku poet Masaoka Shiki, a dedicated fan and player of the sport who also coined several baseball terms still used in Japanese today, like “dasha” (batter) and “sosha” (runner). The mistaken credit stems from the fact that Masaoka’s childhood name was “Noboru” and later in life he adopted it as a pen name using the same kanji as “yakyu,” where “no” means “field” and “boru” is just a Japanese pronunciation of “ball.” The true credit for “yakyu” however, goes to teacher and baseball player Chuman Kanae, who officially used the term in 1894, a few years before Masaoka even wrote that “there is no translation” for the name of the sport.

Natsukusa ya (Summer grass)
Besu boru no (baseball)
Hito Toshi (players far off)
– Haiku by Masaoka Shiki (1898)

This was all still just at the cusp of the Westernization of Japan, and the concept of using katakana to create foreign loan words was not yet common practice. The elites playing in schools at the time were likely well enough versed in English to be able to use terms like “baseball,” “out,” and “safe,” but to reach the masses, translators had to use relatable terms that harkened back to the days of the samurai.

It made sense, since swinging a bat wasn’t far removed from swinging a sword. This feudal imagery is said to be why baseball caught on in Japan as opposed to other emerging sports of the time, like rugby or soccer. It’s also where a lot of the terms that we still see today came into being.

In Japanese baseball, an out is referred to as a “death” (shi), a fielder outing a batter by catching a fly ball or tagging them is called a “stab-kill” (shisatsu), a double play is a “combo kill” (heisatsu), and the lead batter is called the “shock troop captain” (kirikomi taicho). Some terms used in English could more easily be localized in Japan in this way, such as a “sacrifice” (gisei), while others took on slightly different meanings, like a “dead ball” (shikyu), which in English means a ball that is out of play but in Japan refers to hitting the batter with a pitch.

Over time, foreign loan words did catch on with the public, and terms like “strike” were adopted, but during World War II, Japan banned the use of American language and baseball reverted to the more classical terms. A strike officially became “seikyu” (correct ball), which evolved from “kokyu” (good ball), meaning a pitch that was good enough for a batter to hit properly. It didn’t really catch on, however, and “strike” endured through the language prohibition.

▼ By 1944, the Osaka Tigers (now Hanshin Tigers) changed their name to simply “Hanshin,” written on their uniform in kanji characters rather than using the English alphabet.

Adding in some terms also commonly used in English like “stealing” a base (“torui” in Japanese), baseball really began to sound like a nefarious pastime. Looking at it through a modern lens, it feels a little strange to have your kid’s little league coach shouting “Stab!” “Death!” “Combo kill!” and “Steal!” at them.

That’s why the Miyagi Prefecture High School Baseball Federation is currently forming a committee to review baseball terminology and consider changing it to something a little less homicidal. However, as with any break from tradition, opinion on the matter varies quite a bit.

“I don’t think the kids who play baseball give it that much thought. This is just over-policing language.”
“I think it would be better to teach kids the meanings behind the words and the history of how they came to be.”
“If they change the language, they have to change it everywhere rather than just Miyagi, or there will be communication problems.”
“Changing it to the English terms would make the most sense. But for the record, I’m not trying to pander to the US.”
“Soccer uses English terms like ‘corner kick’ and ‘offside,’ and no one has a problem. Why can’t baseball do the same?”
“Speaking as both a teacher and a parent, I’m in favor of this. But rather than flat out rejecting the terms of our predecessors, it would be a great idea to survey young players and see what terms would better suit our modern era.”
“I never heard of baseball players getting killed or stabbed, so I think it’s OK as it is.”
“They should change ‘kei-en’ too, then.”

In Japanese baseball, “kei-en” is the term used when a pitcher intentionally walks a batter. Oddly enough, in a sport filled with violent terminology, one of the more dishonorable acts in the game is actually given one of the most polite terms, meaning “respectfully keeping at a distance.”

With such a richly complex history, the suggestion of teaching players the stories behind the terms is probably the more valuable way to proceed. Then, with full understanding, if the players themselves feel a change is needed, it will likely come about organically. Otherwise, we can generally trust people to understand that words can have different meanings in different contexts.

Source: TBS News Dig, Yahoo! Japan News, Note 1, 2, Baseball and the Quest for National Dignity in Japan, Haiku Poets: Masaoka Shinji
Images: Pakutaso, Wikipedia/Ginza Futamikan, Wikipedia/Michiyoshi Nakano
● Want to hear about SoraNews24’s latest articles as soon as they’re published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!

Is it worth go going to Family Mart to try the convenience store version of Go Go Curry?

Go Go Curry has kind of an unusual spot in Japan’s curry pantheon. It’s considered by many foodies to be a representative chain of Ishikawa Prefecture and the city of Kanazawa, where the chain originated. At the same time, there are now close to 100 Go Go Curry branches in Japan, stretching far beyond the borders of Ishikawa, and the chain also has around 20 branches overseas now.

That said, 100 branches for all of Japan isn’t all that many, and a lot of the nation’s population doesn’t have a Go Go Curry within easily accessible distance if they get hit with sudden cravings. And similarly to how you could make an argument that Go Go Curry both is and isn’t a local chain, so too does its curry have a hazy status. On the one hand, it’s clearly curry in the Japanese style, as opposed to Indian or Thai versions, but Go Go Curry’s roux has stronger flavors, sharper spiciness, a subtle bitterness to its aftertaste, and even a more viscous mouthfeel and darker color than the more mellowly balanced Japanese curries served at most other restaurants.

▼ Go Go Curry is also famous for their gorilla mascot and use of metal plates for eat-in orders.

So while it’d be an exaggeration to call it a love-it-or-hate-it version of the dish, it is distinctive enough that when fans are in the mood for Go Go Curry, they probably won’t see the offerings from alternative curry providers as a suitable substitute, which makes the relatively modest number of Go Go Curry restaurants a problem. However, that’s a problem there might be a solution to, thanks to convenience store chain Family Mart, which has locations practically everywhere in Japan.

Family Mart is now offering a pork loin cutlet curry produced under supervision by Go Go Curry, and they’re not beating around the bush with its name: “Pork Loin Katsu Curry Produced Under Supervision by Go Go Curry.”

Again, though, curry rice itself isn’t at all hard to find in Japan, and every major convenience store chain already has their own in-house version that they sell. So if Family Mart’s Go Go Curry doesn’t actually taste like Go Go Curry, it doesn’t have much reason to be on store shelves or in our bellies. So to check its quality, we dispatched our Japanese-language reporter P.K. Sanjun, one of the biggest Go Go Curry fans in our office, to pick up the new Family Mart Go Go Curry…

…but he actually came pack with two containers of curry rice.

On the left is the Family Mart Go Go Curry, and on the right is a katsu curry takeout order from a regular Go Go Curry branch, as we’re fortunate enough to have one not far from SoraNews24 HQ in downtown Tokyo.

The cutlet was larger in the restaurant version, which also included Go Go Curry’s unique curry accompaniment of shredded cabbage, which is absent from the Family Mart version (as is pretty much the case for every non-Go Go Curry Japanese curry shop). Really, though, we wanted to see how the Family Mart Go Go Curry’s roux stacks up against the original restaurant version, since that’s what really makes Go Go Curry special.

P.K. started with a reacquainting spoonful of the restaurant version, and was immediately reminded of why Go Go Curry is so captivating for those who love it as the indulgently rich flavors seeped deep into his taste buds.

Now it was time to try the Family Mart Go Go Curry, and…hey, this is honestly really good!

It’s not an exact match, but the Family Mart Go Go Curry is very, very close to the restaurant’s roux. Even a long-time regular customer of the restaurant chain would have to admit that this is an almost perfect recreation, and P.K. came away extremely satisfied with the flavor. That’s even more impressive when you take into account that the Family Mart Go Go Curry is only 645 yen (US$4), while P.K.’s restaurant takeout order cost 1,100 yen, almost twice as much.

So while Family Mart’s Go Go Curry doesn’t make the restaurant version redundant, it is an excellent option for the common conundrum of having no Go Go Curry branch near you, but multiple Family Marts to choose from when you’re looking to pick up lunch or dinner.

Photos ©SoraNews24
● Want to hear about SoraNews24’s latest articles as soon as they’re published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!