McDonald's vs MosBurger (a comparison post)

Juicy succulent beef, fresh green lettuce, and bright red tomato packed between hamburger buns. Sounds delicious? Of course it does. Everybody loves a hamburger, especially when it has just been cooked for you. In Japan, two of the major hamburger brands are the ubiquitous American-born McDonald's and Japan's very own MosBurger. Both products have their fans and are helping to change the eating habits of Japanese people. Which is better? Well, this is a matter of personal opinion. By looking at three of the most important aspects of fast food - namely, convenience, price, and quality - I will assess which is the superior hamburger experience, McDonald's or MosBurger.

If it is convenience that you want then fast food cannot be beaten. When we compare McDonald's and MosBurger for convenience, then quite clearly McDonald's is the winner. Not only does McDonald's have many more stores (more than 30,000 worldwide) than MosBurger (less than 1,500), but it also serves customers much more quickly. Last time I was in MosBurger I had to wait nearly 10 minutes for my food. That is not fast food!

If money is a little tight, then the price of your hamburger is the most important factor. Once again, when we compare McDonald's and MosBurger then McDonald's comes out on top. An average meal in the American chain store costs about 500 ~ 600 yen, whereas in MosBurger you can add at least an extra 200 yen. So for convenience and cost, McDonald's is without doubt the winner.

However, how about the quality of the food? Well, for quality MosBurger wins hands down! Customers can feel safe about the produce. In these days of insecurity about where food is produced, it is great to know just where Mos's vegetables are grown. The food is fresh, and it tastes like true quality. In life, you pay for what you get. For the extra 200 yen, you get quality "fast" food at Mos. At McDonald's you just get fast "food"! If you want to see what too many Macs can do for your health, then watch the movie Supersize Me(to watch 4 very interesting minutes of the opening of this movie click here).

So, which is better McDonald's or MosBurger? Well it depends what your priorities are. But if you ask me, in spite of the extra cost and time, MosBurger is miles better than its American cousin.

5 Great Ways to Relax (a list post)

Tense? Nervous? Headache? Feeling stressed out? Life can seem tough from time to time. A boss at work that just won't leave you in peace. Too many college assignments to complete and not enough time. Too much noise and not enough peace in your life. Maybe it is time to slow down a little, before you tackle all those tasks you have to do in your life. Taking the time to relax is vital if you want to live a balanced life. Here are five ways to spend a relaxing time that will surely help to recharge your batteries.

1. Climb a mountain and surround yourself with peace

Mitaki is the place for you. You climb a gentle path through the temple grounds. Stop and ring the bell. Listen to the echo and feel some of the stress of daily life wash away. Sit and look at the faces of the Buddha statues - make your face as peaceful as theirs! Go and sit by the glorious waterfall. Then sit a bit more. Listen to the soothing sound of the water on rock. Finally, go and look at the bamboo forest, the trees swaying gently in the breeze with shafts of sunlight bathing your face.

2. Spend an hour in the bath

The key to this is preparation. Find your favorite music and get it ready in the bathroom. Make yourself a drink - some like green tea, others something icy cold. Don't use the bathroom lights - prepare some candles. Run the bath. Watch (and listen to) the water fill the tub. Enjoy the expectation of a relaxing time. Then when the water is ready, add some bath salts. Then just sit in the bath for an hour, enjoying the warmth and the flicker of light from the candles. Perfect!

3. Ice cold drinks overlooking the city

Everybody enjoys looking at the neon lights of a city, and there's no better way to do it than looking down on them from on high. Get a group of close friends together, find a cafe or restaurant with a view of the city, and sip your ice cold drinks while having a relaxing chat. You can relax while everyone in the city below you is rushing around like mad. Heaven!

4. Massage

Have your strains and tension squeezed out of your body with a wonderful massage. Japan is a great country for many kinds of massage. Treat yourself by spending some money on being pampered. A foot massage (reflexology) is one of the best ways to relax and refresh your body, making you feel like a new person for the next day.

5. At a cafe - spend a lazy Sunday morning

Picture the scene. You are sitting in a wonderfully comfortable chair. You have a great book in your hands, unbeatable coffee on your table. The decor is chic. The other customers are chatting happily. You look up from your book from time to time, just to watch the people walking past the cafe. You guess what kind of people they are, what kind of lives they lead. The answers don't matter. For this kind of relaxation you need a great book, a great cafe, some time, and nothing else.

One of these ways to relax should be perfect for you. Some require money, but others don't. Some require friends, others don't. For some you need a little exercise, for others none at all. However, all of them require a little time, and a little time that you spend on yourself. Take some time to relax!

English Study Links

There are many educators who are doing wonderful things on the Internet for language students. These websites (below) are interesting and helpful in various ways for studying English. Please browse them, and see which are useful for you.

English words that are used a lot (with example sentences).

Some bilingual sentence pairs.

Pronunciation practice.

English sentences with audio.

An interesting language translation project, and if you want to go directly to the English examples, then click here.

Midnight Run - a review post

Friends or foes? This is the question that faces both an ex-cop and a criminal as they make their troubled way across America. Midnight Run is one of those movies that makes you feel good about life. It's a fun film that mixes the genres of comedy and action. It was made in 1988 and directed by Martin Brest, and the cast is full of famous names - Robert De Niro, Charles Grodin, Dennis Farina to name a few. I really recommend this movie because despite one or two weak points, it's a great movie due to the acting, the story, and the music.

Perhaps the strongest point of this movie is the acting. Everybody knows the name of Robert De Niro and he doesn't disappoint in this movie. He is perfect for the part of the ex-cop with his mixture of cool good looks and inner strength, and he combines wonderful action and comedy acting. Charles Grodin, as the lovable criminal, is superb. His facial expressions and the way he delivers his lines is a lesson for all young actors. The other minor characters in the movie such as Marvin, the police captain, and the Mafia boss all add to a wonderful cast, and wonderful acting performances.

The story is a typical good guy/bad guy story. However, in this movie the traditional "good guys" are not always the good guys. Midnight Run can be called a feel-good movie as it has a wonderful ending, after an action-packed journey across the USA. The story of this journey allows us to see just how varied and beautiful the United States is - the scenery is spectacular!

In addition to the acting and the story, another strong point of this movie is the music. The use of a soundtrack in movies has become extremely important and the wonderful music here adds to the tension in each scene. Each musical piece has been carefully picked to match the part of the USA in which the scene takes place. This greatly adds to the mood of the movie.

Midnight Run is not one of De Niro's most famous movies and there are a few weak points in this movie. The plot is not very complex and some people may dislike the bad language in the movie. However, the combination of wonderful acting, feel-good story and excellent soundtrack makes Midnight Run one of De Niro's most watchable movies. Watching this movie is time well-spent, and I guarantee you'll end up feeling good about life.

Writing clinic 1: Adjectives

Do you get confused between adjectives and adverbs?

If so, try this quiz.

Now try this one.

A lot of people make mistakes when using interesting or interested (or similar words). Try this quiz to see if you are confused!

Making comments on blogs

I want you to read other students' blogs and make comments on the posts they make. This is an important part of the course. To write a good comment you should:

1. be polite
2. say something worth reading (e.g: give an opinion with reasons)
3. add a question (to create some dialogue with the blog writer)

IMPORTANT
In this classroom, we have to download the google chrome Internet browser to be able to make comments. It is not difficult. Just type "google chrome download" into a search engine, and then you can download it for free. You will need to do this at the beginning of each class when we want to make comments on blogs.

To make a comment on another student's blog you must take the following steps:
1. read the student's post on their blog (see the list of blog addresses on the teacher's blog).
2. click on the COMMENT button at the bottom of the post
3. write your comment in the box where it says, "leave your comment"
4. type the characters in the WORD VERIFICATION box
5. choose your blogger identity so that I know who is making the comment (your handle name) - if you are logged on, then this is simpler.
6. preview your comment
7. publish your comment

To reply to comments on your blog, you should make your reply clear. For example, you could use this style:

To Shiho:
I agree with your comment. I believe it is really difficult to .....

To Ryoko:
It was really interesting to read your ideas about ....

Travel - a links post

One of my hobbies is to travel. I took each of the photos here while I was in each of the 5 native English-speaking countries. Can you tell which photo comes from which country?

When I was younger I spent a lot of time in other countries, experiencing the different lifestyles and cultures. I went to many non-English speaking countries, too. Unfortunately, these days I have less time to travel and visit exotic places. However, I still like to dream, and some Internet websites help me to dream of far-off places. Take a look at these websites and start dreaming, too.

I haven’t been to China even though it is so close to Japan. I have heard that travel in China is quite tough, but that it is getting easier every year. With the Beijing Olympics being such a success, China will become more popular as a travel destination. The photos here are truly wonderful and will make you want to jump on a plane right now.

If it is Europe that inspires you, then you may want to take a look at these photos from various parts of Europe. Europe is so diverse. I have visited many of these countries, but it is always good to rekindle memories.

Bridges are wonderful things. What will we find on the other side? Bridges set people’s imaginations racing – not only the architects that build them, but also the people who cross them. I have one friend who spends midnight of every New Year’s Eve on a different bridge somewhere in the world. Japan, of course, has lots of great bridges, but look at the wonderful architecture of these bridges from around the world.

If you have a few spare moments and you want to dream of expensive hotels, shopping in exotic locations, lying on a sunny beach, going on a cruise, or many other holiday possibilities, you could go to this website which has great photos of so many holiday destinations.

All of these websites help me to escape from everyday life. They remind me that the world is a big place, and that it has a never-ending supply of wonderful places to visit (or dream about).