Authentic Japan in Gyakuten Saiban pt. 3
And we continue our acquaintance with authentic Japan accompanied by Naruhodo and case 3-5. And our guest today is Mei Karuma (Franziska von Karma).
naruhodō ryūichi. Kono kiiroi posutā wa nani kashira?
Naruhodo Ryuichi. What is this yellow poster?
ああ。それは《掛け軸》だよ。描かれている女のヒトは・・・.....
ā. Sore wa “kakejiku” da yo. Egaka rete iru on'na no hito wa.....
Ah, that's a hanging scroll. The woman depicted is...
Senbei Buton ga tata mare te iru.
The rice cracker butons are folded.
nanikashira? “Senbei buton” tte.
What is it? "Senbei Buton"
ウスくてペッタリした、おせんべいみたいなフトンだよ。
usu kute pettari shita, o senbei mitaina futon da yo.
It's a thin, sticky futon, like a rice cracker.
That's what we say in this country.
Amerika de ieba “bisuketto taoruketto” ka na.
In America, it would be... "Biscuit towel blanket."
-so,-sōna no. Benkyō ni natta wa.
Oh, that's right... I learned something.
If everything is clear with the scroll or, as Karuma called it, the "yellow poster", then the following dialogue simply blew my mind. Let's figure it out.
The first thing that causes misunderstanding is the "senbei buton" that Naruhodo talks about.
Senbei (煎餅), also spelled sembei, is a type of Japanese rice cracker.
It is served as a snack during tea ceremonies, festivals, and other celebrations.
Which, by the way, Naruhodo himself explains a little later.
This is a slang word meaning "futon".
The kanji for "futon" is written as 布団 [futon] and read as [buton]. There is also the spelling ぶとん, where ぶ is read as [bu].
The difference in pronunciation:
ブトン [buton] from the first sentence.
フトン [futon] where Naruhodo already explains the meaning of the word to Karma.
Shiki-buton which became hard and flat like a senbei (a Japanese rice cracker). That’s why it is called senbei-buton. A futon made of cotton tends to become a senbei-buton, because the cotton fibers get entangled after absorbing moisture.
Well, you know what a futon is without me.
Next is "bisuketto taoruketto" or Biscuit towel blanket.
ビスケット [bisuketto] - biscuit
タオルケット [taoruketto] - towel-blanket
To be honest, it seemed like a bunch of words to me. Because this is the first time I've encountered a "biscuit blanket". However, a little searching yielded the result - it's a synonym for Puff quilts.
Well, now everything has become clearer. For a bit. (And how on earth does Naruhodo know such things).
It turned out to be even worse with the towel blanket. However, the word タオルケット [taoruketto] has meanings:
● towel blanket (towel (blan)ket)
Well, how could I not have guessed that this was a terry blanket! And if you put everything together, then a terry-cloth quilted blanket. (Although, honestly, I couldn't even think of it, because I've only seen terry bedspreads and towels, but not blankets.)
Well, Karuma agreed, and okay, then she understood. Yes, and I agree with her last phrase, today I also learned something new.