知ってる？ケンタッキー州

みなさんこんにちは!






今回は、ケンタッキー州を特集します。





赤いところがケンタッキー州




ケンタッキー？なんとなくお店を創造してしまうこの名前！
名前の由来については諸説あるそうですが、
「ケンタッキー」とは、現地の先住民、イロコイ族のイロコイ諸語で「平原」を指す言葉だそう。
ちなみに、｢ケンタッキーフライドチキン」はケンタッキー州生まれです！





ではみなさん、
ケンタッキー州の、クイズに挑戦してみてください
！
1. ケンタッキー州生まれの大統領は？


A. エイブラハム・リンカーン
B. ロナルド・レーガン 
C. ジミー・カーター




2. ケンタッキー州でさかんな生産物は？


A. コーラ
B. バーボン
C. ミネラルウォーター










☆答え☆
1. ケンタッキー州生まれの大統領は



第16代アメリカ合衆国大統領エイブラハム・リンカーン！

拡大を続けていた奴隷制に反対を表明し南北戦争を経て、彼は偉大な解放者 (the Great Emancipator)、奴隷解放の父と呼ばれた大統領。アメリカに新しい風を吹き込みました。
語りきれないほど彼についてのストーリーはありますが、ここで彼の名言をいくつか紹介します。


「人民の、人民による、人民のための政治」
（Government of the people, by the people, for the people）
あまりにも有名ですね！

準備しておこう。チャンスはいつか訪れるものだ
I will prepare and some day my chance will come


他人の自由を否定する者は、自らも自由になる資格はない
Those who deny freedom to others deserve it not for themselves


あなたが転んでしまったことに関心はない。そこから立ち上がることに関心があるのだ
I am not concerned that you have fallen / I am concerned that you arise

などなど。

今でも彼の写真を見ることができます。

それは、

これ！５ドル紙幣！

リンカーンの姿は、アメリカ本土でもたたえられているようですね！

そして、
2. ケンタッキー州でさかんな生産物は







バーボン！
ちなみにケンタッキー州はワインの生産も盛んだそう。
ワインやバーボン、ケンタッキーのチキンに合いそうですね！笑




州を代表するプレミアムバーボンが、上の写真の「ワイルドターキー」。
歴代米国大統領が愛飲したもので、職人の情熱と、ケンタッキーの自然が造り上げる本物のプレミアムバーボンなんですって。
そして、 ケンタッキー州は自然も豊か！だから観光でもたくさんの人がアメリカの大自然を満喫しています！



あまり日本からの観光地として有名ではないかもしれませんが、私たちが知っているもの、聞いたことが多い州ですね！









http://www.mrcusa.net/kentucky/ 
http://www.wildturkey.jp/

知ってる？カリフォルニア州SoCal編

前回にひきつづきBriannaによるカリフォルニア編！
今回は南部、
特にアメリカ人のみならず世界中の人々に大人気の都市、
ロサンジェルスをご紹介します！

Southern California (SoCal) has more of a big-city, trendy atmosphere.

 It's more highly populated because of the great weather: it rarely rains, the summer is dry and comfortable, and even the coldest day in winter is like spring in Japan.

 Going to the beach is the locals' favorite activity on a sunny day, but the beaches can be crowded in summer, and the water is very cold in the winter.

Besides the beaches, the most famous attraction is the original Disneyland.
 It's smaller and older than the one in Tokyo, but it's still worth visiting for real Disney fans.
 California Adventures, which is a new part of Disneyland (like Disney Sea in Japan), is actually not very interesting.

Disneyland's California Adventures

Also, there is Universal Studios Hollywood, but I heard it's not as good as the one in Osaka.


The main city that represents SoCal is Los Angeles.

This is a huge city,
but it doesn't have the metropolis feel of New York or Tokyo because it's very spread out.


In fact, unlike San Fransisco, you need a car to get around,
 because everything is too far to walk or bike, and the public transportation system is not very good.

Unfortunately, everyone has a car, and this is why LA is famous for traffic.
 If you drive in the LA area, please avoid rush hour - between 3:30 and 6 pm - because your car won't be moving very much at all!

 But once you're able to get around, you'll discover a lot of different areas, each with their own character.

West LA is the richer and prettier area.

 In Beverly Hills you can shop at expensive designer brand stores, and sometimes spot celebrities.
 In Bel Air you can see huge houses where celebrities live.
 (On the side of the street, a lot of people sell "star maps" so you can find your favorite celebrity's house.)

West Hollywood is famous for gay bars and clubs.

 Westwood is home to UCLA, the most famous college in SoCal, and a small town where students like to shop, eat, and drink at bars.
 (A popular shop here is Diddy Reese, which sells ice cream sandwiches: ice cream between two cookies, for only 35 cents each.)

Santa Monica has an outdoor shopping center called 3rd Street Promenade, and famous beach with a pier.

My favorite part of LA is Venice Beach:

 if you start at the Santa Monica pier and walk for about 20 minutes south along the beach,
you'll reach a boardwalk with local artists selling their goods, and performers entertaining crowds.
 It's not as clean and rich as other places in West LA, but more artistic and there are more unique people.
 It's also the birthplace of skateboarding, so you will see a lot of people skating there.

Sunset at Venice Beach

If you start early, in one day you can see 3rd Street Promenade, Santa Monica Beach, and Venice Beach, and enjoy the beautiful sunset on the beach.
 This is one of my favorite views in LA.



East LA is more dangerous and dirty.

Hollywood is here, but some visitors might be disappointed, because there are a lot of homeless people, the souveniers are tacky, and there's not much to see besides the Walk of Fame and the Graumann's Theatre with the celebrities' handprints.
 The best part about Hollywood might be the night clubs. One of the best night views in LA is from the Griffith Park Observatory, from which you can also see the Hollywood sign.

The night view from Griffith Park Observatory, Hollywood

LA is only a few hours' drive from Mexico, so many students go to Mexico to party during school breaks.
One reason is because the legal drinking age in Mexico is only 18 (in California it's 21
and the laws are enforced strictly.)
 Lately, some areas of Mexico have been dangerous, though, so it's important to be careful.

BriannaはUCLAの卒業生。
彼女へのUCLAについてのインタビューもUP予定です：）

春休みも後半、楽しんでくださいね！

Chiaki


http://orangecountyhomeforsale.wordpress.com/2011/07/03/orange-county-homes-for-sale/
http://www.panoramio.com/photo/23673985
http://www.pachd.com/free-images/los-angeles.html
http://www.panoramio.com/photo/33074680
http://downtownsm.com/about/history.html
http://www.rickbucich.com/ucla-royce-hall-daytime/

知ってる？カリフォルニア州 NorCal編

３月も半ば。もう咲いている桜も発見しました！
今回から連続で、カリフォルニア州出身、日本在住のBriannaが同州を紹介してくれます。
英語の勉強にもなりますよ～
今回はサンフランシスコを主にご紹介！

California has about the same land area as Japan, and the distance from Los Angeles (in the south) to San Francisco (in the north) is about the same as the distance from Tokyo to Osaka. This means it's impossible to see everything in California in one day. People who visit California with limited time should focus on one area - the north or the south.



Northern California (called NorCal) is relaxed and natural. NorCal makes us think of "hippies", which are people in the 1960s who loved nature, love, and peace. The weather might be rainier

than the south, but the air is cleaner and there is more green. The culture in NorCal might be close to Oregon or Washington.
Hippies!!

NorCal has San Francisco as its biggest city. It's a historical city that became big in the 1800s when adventurous people went to look for gold. I think this history has influenced the character of the city, because people there are known for their progressiveness and diversity. For example, it's the city with the oldest Chinatown in the U.S. and the largest gay population in the world. The Gay Pride Parade is one of the most famous attractions.

 Another appealing part of the city is the appearance. The buildings are old-fashioned, colorful, and unique. The city is small enough that you can walk everywhere (I recommend this instead of using a car), but be careful, because it's also famous for lots of steep hills!


A visit to San Francisco would not be complete without fresh seafood from Fisherman's Wharf.


The most famous symbols of San Francisco are the Golden Gate Bridge and the cable cars.




The two most famous universities in NorCal are Stanford and UC Berkeley. The students at Stanford are more conservative and elite, but Berkeley is famous for progressive politics and student demonstrations.

Stanford

 Berkeley

次回はSoCal,南カリフォルニア、LAを主にご紹介します！Chiakiでした:)
http://hippiesincalifornia.wordpress.com/page/2/
http://www.ban.org/2012/02/23/san-francisco-joins-global-effort-to-tackle-electronic-waste/
http://anasepaulo.blogspot.com/2011/04/san-francisco-3-dia.html
http://www.fanpop.com/spots/san-francisco/images/1020074/title/golden-gate-bridge-wallpaper
http://www.coolipadwallpapers.com/travel/stanford-64-big.htm
http://philip.greenspun.com/images/200606-california-helicopter-trip/uc-berkeley-aerial-4