Helloo, @lioncubstudies I’m your substitute santa for @langblrsecretsanta
You said you like Japanese and literature so I made a rec list of the top 10 Japanese books I’d recommend to everyone (though it’s entirely based on my own personal taste). One of the books is a manga but we studied it in the university in Japan and it’s worth a read. (+ you also said you like music recs so feel free to check out this Japanese music rec list I made for my other giftee in December!)
♡ 本 ♡
As I Crossed a Bridge of Dreams (aka Sarashina Nikki) by Lady Sarashina
“Night after night I lie awake, listening to the rustle of the bamboo leaves, and a strange sadness fills my heart.”
Born in A.D. 1008 at the height of the Heian period, Lady Sarashina (as she is known) probably wrote most of her work towards the end of her life, long after the events described. Thwarted and saddened by the real world with all its deaths and partings and frustrations, Lady Sarashina protected herself by a barrier of fantasy and so escaped from harsh reality into a rosier more congenial realm. She presents her vision of the world in beautiful prose, the sentences flowing along smoothly so that we feel we are watching a magnificent scroll being slowly unrolled.
Genres: historical, classics, autobiographical
Forbidden Colors by Mishima Yukio
“Beauty is something that burns the hand when you touch it.”
An aging, embittered novelist sets out to avenge himself on the women who have betrayed him. He finds the perfect instrument in Yuichi, a young man whose beauty makes him irresistible to women but who is just discovering his attraction to other men.
As Yuichi's mentor presses him into a loveless marriage and a series of equally loveless philanderings, his protégé enters the gay underworld of postwar Japan. In that hidden society of parks and tearooms, prostitutes and aristocratic blackmailers, Yuichi is as defenseless as any of the women he preys on.
Genres: lgbt, fiction
Confessions of a Mask by Mishima Yukio
“True pain can only come gradually. It is exactly like tuberculosis in that the disease has already progressed to a critical stage before the patient becomes aware of its symptoms.”
This autobiographical novel, regarded as Mishima's finest book, is the haunting story of a Japanese boy's development towards homosexuality during and after the Second World War.
Genres: lgbt, fiction, autobiographical
Out by Natsuo Kirino
“You know," she murmured, "we're all heading straight to hell."
"Yes," said Masako, giving her a bleak look. "It's like riding downhill with no brakes."
"You mean, there's no way to stop?"
"No, you stop all right - when you crash.”
A young mother who works a night shift making boxed lunches brutally strangles her deadbeat husband and then seeks the help of her co-workers to dispose of the body and cover up her crime.
The ringleader of this cover-up, Masako Katori, emerges as the emotional heart of Out and as one of the shrewdest, most clear-eyed creations in recent fiction. Masako's own search for a way out of the straitjacket of a dead-end life leads her, too, to take drastic action.
Genres: horror, crime, mystery
Coin Locker Babies by Murakami Ryu
“Every one of a hundred thousand cities around the world had its own special sunset and it was worth going there, just once, if only to see the sun go down.”
Abandoned at birth in adjacent train station lockers, two troubled boys spend their youth in an orphanage and with foster parents on a semi-deserted island before finally setting off for the city to find and destroy the women who first rejected them. Both are drawn to an area of freaks and hustlers called Toxitown. One becomes a bisexual rock singer, star of this exotic demimonde, while the other, a pole vaulter, seeks his revenge in the company of his girlfriend, Anemone, a model who has converted her condominium into a tropical swamp for her pet crocodile.
Genres: contemporary, horror
Kitchen (+Moonlight Shadow) by Banana Yoshimoto
“In the uncertain ebb and flow of time and emotions much of one's life history is etched in the senses.”
Mikage, the heroine of Kitchen, is an orphan raised by her grandmother, who has passed away. Grieving, she is taken in by her friend Yoichi and his mother (who was once his father), Eriko. As the three of them form an improvised family that soon weathers its own tragic losses, Yoshimoto spins a lovely, evocative tale that recalls early Marguerite Duras. Kitchen and its companion story, "Moonlight Shadow," are elegant tales whose seeming simplicity is the ruse of a writer whose voice echoes in the mind and the soul.
Genre: contemporary, short stories
Blue Bamboo by Osamu Dazai
“Any connoisseur knows you've got to be drunk to really enjoy a good romance.”
Stories that combine fantasy and romance with Osamu Dazai's own psychological concerns reveal the optimistic, humorous and idealistic side of a writer too often typecast as dark, pessimistic and self-absorbed.
Genre: short stories
To Terra by Takemiya Keiko
“The future. Having driven Terra to the brink of environmental collapse, humanity decides to reform itself by ushering in the age of Superior Domination (S.D.), a system of social control in which children are no longer the offspring of parents but progeny of a universal computer. The new social order, however, results in an unexpected byproduct: the Mu, a mutant race with extrasensory powers who are forced into exile by The System.”
Genre: scifi, manga
Kappa by Akutagawa Ryûnosuke
“A Swiftian satire of Japanese society thinly disguised as the fictitious Kappaland. Peopled with creatures from Japanese folklore, Kappland serves as a vehicle for the humorous examination of the moral foibles of Japanese society in the early 20th century.“
Genre: fantasy, classics, satire
Hell Screen by Akutagawa Ryûnosuke
“Chained inside the carriage is a sinful woman. When we set the carriage afire, her flesh will be roasted, her bones will be charred: she will die an agonizing death. Never again will you have such a perfect model for the screen. Do not fail to watch as her snow-white flesh erupts in flames. See and remember her long black hair dancing in a whirl of sparks!”
One of the towering figures of modern Japanese writing, Akutagawa's early career was distinguished by imaginative, beautifully crafted stories of medieval Japan, rich with period detail. These two stories include his great masterpiece of that period, 'Hell Screen', and the parable of a thread-thin chance of escape for a sinner in the Pool of Blood.
Genre: short stories, horror
+a few more recs from Mishima Yukio and Murakami Ryu because I’ve read them the most:
Happy Holidays to my @langblrsecretsanta giftee, @tokumeino90! I heard you did kickboxing, and I do karate, so I had a good time looking for all the vocabulary in the different languages you study, and comparing the techniques used in kickboxing versus karate!
I can only vouch for the words in Japanese, and somewhat for Spanish- the other languages I’m not familiar with, so there might be mistakes.
My favorite find was that in Turkish, ‘geri tekme’ for ‘back kick’ sounded like Japanese, where ‘geri’ means kick!
Happy Holidays @byesexualmonster !
This is my gift for you as you secret santa. I made a moodboard of Ideal Finnish Christmas, wrote down some essential vocab you could use and added few festive playlists to check out! :)
When i think of Christmas here, i think of piles of snow and darkening days. Frostbite making my nose red. The smell of Glögi warming up in the stove, or warm Christmas dinner. I think of programs we watch each year like the snowman, Santa's hotline and Disney’s From All of Us to All of You. The sininen hetki (=blue moment) in the evening when everything seems calm and quiet. And of course, I also think of sauna, it wouldn’t be Christmas without it!
Joulu - Christmas
Joulukuu - Christmas (literally Christmas month)
Lahja - gift
Joulukuusi - Christmas tree
Koriste - decoration
Puuro - porridge
Lumi - Snow
Hanki - Pile of snow
Joulupukki - Santa
Tonttu - Elf
Olkipukki - Yule Goat
Tähti - star
Joulukirkko - Christmas church
Perhe - family
Ystävät - friends
Jouluaatto - Christmas eve (24th)
Joulupäivä - Christmas day (25th)
Loppiainen - Epiphany (holiday)
Kortti- Card
Joulusauna - Christmas sauna
Joululaulu - Christmas song
Joulukinkku - Christmas ham
Hyvää Joulua - Merry Christmas
Onnellista Uutta Vuotta - Happy New Year
Mitä haluat joululahjaksi?
What do you want for Christmas?
Mitä teit Joululomalla?
What did you do during Christmas holidays?
Minä vietin joulun perheeni luona
I spend Christmas with my family.
Me kävimme ..hautausmaalla sytyttämässä kynttilän
We visited ..the graveyard to light up a candle
..kirkossa laulamassa joululauluja
we sang christmas songs in the church
Also if you are not sick of hearing Christmas songs, here are some playlists of different styles.
Raskasta Joulua (Heavy Christmas) features covers of christmas songs in more “heavy” style
Joululauluja aattoiltaan (Christmas songs for christmas eve) has more traditional and pop style songs
Rock Joulu (Rock Christmas) i think this one should have more rock style christmas songs, but it seems to share quite few songs with the first one.
Rajaton Joulu (Limitless Christmas / Rajaton is also the name of the ensemble.) These songs have no instruments, just vocals. A cappella.
Vanhoja Joululauluja (Old christmas songs) the title speaks for itself, old songs kept quite close to the original style.
12 French Slang Phrases by jenfuenvivan on Genial.ly
Merry Christmas @aspoonfuloflanguage! For @langblrsecretsanta I decided to write up some french slang phrases that I learnt in my Erasmus year in France. I hope you learn something new with this!!
We had much fun last year, so I thought we could try and do the langblr posts exchange again, if anyone is still interested :)
This time I’ve prepared a proper sign up form (but the questions are mostly the same as last year) and you can find it here: click
The sign up form will be open till November 10, the assignments should be sent by November 17 and you’ll be asked to post your gifts between December 16-26.
All of you are invited! Having a langblr is not required, you can use your ordinary tumblr account.
Sign up and spread the word! If you need an encouragement, just look at all the fantastic posts from the last year’s event :)
If you have any questions - go to the FAQ page or contact me :)
this is my secret santa gift for @lipwigliest !! :D @langblrsecretsanta I hope you like it :)
You said that you'd like a few recommendations. Unfortunately for the first part, it's been a long, looong while since I actively watched anything from the German side of youtube... BUT I spent some time looking up/remembering a few channels you might enjoy!
Youtube
MarmeladenOma (This channel belongs to a lovely grandmother who reads fairy tales and tells stories from her life. She also livestreams!)
I’mJette (She’s an artist who does all kinds of creative stuff.)
coldmirror (Our German Queen of Youtube who has achieved the status of an absolute classic. She’s also made an animated parody series of Star Trek)
and because you said you liked gaming (but I don’t know anything about that..) here’s a video about someone’s top 5 German gaming channels
Music
and here are fifteen different German songs
Mark Forster - Sowieso / Namika - Lieblingsmensch / Revolverheld - Lass Uns Gehen / Glasperlenspiel - Geiles Leben / Alligatoah - Wie Zuhause / Roger Cicero - Frauen Regieren Die Welt / AnnenMayKantereit - Barfuß am Klavier / Kraftklub - Ich will nicht nach Berlin / Peter Fox - Haus am See / Tim Bendzko - Nur Noch Kurz Die Welt Retten / Frida Gold - Wovon Sollen Wir Träumen / Christina Stürmer - Immer An Euch Geglaubt / Wir Sind Helden - Nur Ein Wort
and because it fits so well: a song about wood!! (christmas edition)
Books/Movies
I’ll start with a few authors:
Cornelia Funke (I love the Tintenwelt-Trilogie with all my heart, although I desperately need to re-read the series because I’ve forgotten so much)
Andreas Eschbach (primarily sci-fi. I adored the Out-Series)
Ursula Poznanski (similar to Eschbach, she uses a lot of Sci-Fi elements)
Kerstin Gier (She wrote the YA Edelstein-Trilogie about time travel)
Kai Meyer (Fantasy, I liked his Die Seiten der Welt)
and movies:
Fack Ju Göthe (A comedy)
Die Welle
because at this point I realize I know absolutely nothing not nearly enough about German movies (which is a bit embarassing, I admit..) I’ll include a list with 55 German movies
Ich wünsche dir frohe Weihnachten und einen guten Rutsch ins neue Jahr! Hoffentlich hat dir mein Geschenk gefallen! And if you have any questions, feel free to message me :)
Hi, @unicorns-eat-pizza! I’m your substitute Secret Santa! I’m sorry you have to wait so long for your present, but I hope you like it! <3
A big thank you to @langblrsecretsanta for this!
As you said you are interested in the connection between Portuguese, Spanish and Arabic I thought of making a list of Spanish and Portuguese words which origin is an Arabic word. In the list I put the Spanish and Portuguese words and then the Arabic word they come from.
Spanish - Portuguese - Arabic
aceite - azeite - azzáyt
alcohol - álcool - kuḥúl
almohada - almofada - al-mukhaddâ
alfombra - alfombra - alḥánbal
ajedrez - xadrez - aššaṭranǧ
asesino - assassino - ḥaššāšīn
arroz - arroz - arráwz
azafrán - açafrão - azza‘farán
azúcar - açúcar - as-sukkar
azulejo - azulejo - azzuláyǧ[a]
cero - zero - ṣífr
guitarra - guitarra - qīṯārah
jarabe - xarope - šaráb
jarra - jarra - ǧárra
jinete - ginete - zanáti
limón - limão - laymūn
naranja - laranja - naranǧa
ojalá - oxalá (from Spanish) - law šá lláh
tarea - tarefa - ṭaríḥa
zanahoria - cenoura - safunnárya
The English translation of the words is under the cut.
It’s very interesting to see the relationship between English and Arabic too!
aceite - oil
alcohol - alcohol
almohada - pillow
alfombra - carpet
ajedrez - chess
asesino - killer (but you have the word assassin too!)
arroz - rice
azafrán - saffron
azúcar - sugar
azulejo - tile
cero - zero
guitarra - guitar
jarabe - syrup
jarra - jar
jinete - horseman/horsewoman
limón - lemon
naranja - orange
ojalá - I hope
tarea - job/task/work
zanahoria - carrot
Pictures:
La Alhambra taken from: https://www.alhambra.org/
Silves Castle taken from: https://www.algarvetips.com/cities/silves/
