！ 年末年始のお知らせ

あと２週間ほどで２００５年も終わりですね。
クリスマス、大晦日、お正月の準備はなさっていますか？
ベラではクリスマスパーティも無事終わり、後は年末の大掃除！
新しい気分で１年を始められるように、お掃除頑張りましょう♪

誠に勝手ながら、１２月２７日（火）〜１月５日（木）までは休校とさせていただきます。２００６年もよろしくお願い致します。

☆ Holiday ideas

What are you going to do during your Christmas and New Year holidays? If you have no idea, here are some fun and economical suggestions:

　　　　　　

Read a book
Watch a movie
Do some cooking
Get some extra sleep
Paint your finger and toe nails
Get a new hair color or style
Go walking
Visit the museum
See friends and family members

These are just some ideas, of course there are many more to choose from, but holidays can be great to catch up on many activities.

Enjoy your holidays!

By Christina:)

☆ New Year's celebrations

Japan celebrates New Year's day in a very special way compared with Australia.

Young Australian's usually have a New Year's Eve party celebration with their friends only. There is no traditional food to eat, but sometimes on New Year's day both family and friends get together and have an outdoor barbeque, which is mostly meat with some salad. It's a time to relax and have fun, but there is no set tradition as to the way we celebrate the new year.

By Christina:)

☆ New expression

Have you ever heard of the expression: "What you see is what you get"? Do you know what it means?

In simple terms, it means you get nothing more than what you can see, there is nothing extra to get. This can sometimes be used in a situation with children. If a child doesn't like the food you have cooked, you can say "what you see is what you get". Or if a family member is expecting more gifts from you, you can say "what you see is what you get". I wouldn't recommend saying this in a business situation or at work, but with family members it is sometimes very handy to use.

by Christina

！ クリスマスパーティ

１２月１６日（金）１８時３０分より、当校にてクリスマスパーティを開催いたしました。
予想以上にたくさんの方が参加してくださり、パーティは大盛況！
参加してくださった皆様、ありがとうございました。
そして逃してしまった方、来年は是非ご参加くださいね♪

パーティの様子を見るには下をクリック↓

１８時４０分、クリスティーナの乾杯の挨拶でパーティは始まりました。
机一杯に広がった食事を楽しみながら、普段は顔を合わせることのない他の生徒さんや先生達との会話。
新しい出会いは嬉しいけれど、まだちょっと緊張気味？
そこで陽気なジョシュアがじゃんけんゲーム「Rock-paper-scissors」を開催し、会場内を一気に盛り上げました！

一人１００円を持ち、同じように１００円玉を持っている人とじゃんけんをします。
負けた人は買った人に１００円玉を渡す。
そうして最後に残った人が全員からの総額をもらえてしまうんです！
お金と運を掛けたゲームに皆さん大興奮でした。
その後は、「guess who?」ゲーム。

クリスティーナ、ジョシュア、ブレイク、ジェームズの４人が、スタッフの出す「誰か」を当てなければなりません。
先生４人は答えを見れず、生徒さん達がヒントを出します。
前もって予習をしていた（笑）ブレイクが連続で正解していました！
ホリエモンまで当てて、すごいです！！
クリスティーナは名前は分からなくても顔は分かる、と絵を描いていました♪
歓談を挟んで、最後はビンゴです。
ジェームズが玉を回して読み上げます。（これで後日声がかれてしまったそうです。）
当たった方から景品を選んで、皆さん最後までとっても楽しそうでした。
お帰り前には、それぞれ先生との記念撮影。

皆様の良い思い出になれば嬉しいです。
こんなに盛り上がっていただき、準備した我々スタッフは大満足です。
本当に皆様ありがとうございました。
また来年を楽しみにしていてくださいね♪

☆ Fun with English

Are you sometimes bored with your English learning? Write down some things you are interested in learning and research about them on the Internet.

For example, if you are interested in space, type in NASA and then read up on it. Keep a diary or a journal book with all the things you have researched about. This will help you remember what you've learnt and read, and it will also make learning English more fun too!

☆ Helping your English skills

Reading "The Japan Times" newspaper is an excellent way to help improve your English skills.

It will help you with more ideas about different topics, it will also help with learning more vocabulary, and it will help you to be able to communicate with knowledge about updated world subjects. Try reading the English newspaper each Monday, and get into a habit of doing this. You will be happily surprised at the positive results.

by Christina

☆ Saving time

Do you like ironing? If you don't or if you have no time to iron, there is a secret to saving your time.

After your clothes have been washed and dried, fold them up immediately or hang them up. This method of immediately putting away your clothes will save ironing them. It really works! I only have to iron a few things because of the material they are made of, but most of my things I don't have to iron.

☆ Alternative cleaners

Lemon Essence oil is an excellent alternative cleaner.

It cleans stains on kitchen benches and tables, it also cleans tiles on kitchen walls. It smells lovely because it has a lemon fragrance. You may be able to buy it at a supermarket in Japan, in the cooking section. You don't need to use much of it, only a few drops on a clean, damp cloth to wipe the dirty area. It is an excellent refridgerator cleaner too.

Vanilla Essence is also very good for cleaning refridgerators, used in the same way as Lemon Essence oil. It can be bought at a supermarket, in the cooking section. These two products are good, healthy cleaning alternatives to using chemical based cleaners. They can be safer to use if you have children or elderly people in your home.

by Christina

☆ Expanding on English words

One of the best ways to learn more exciting, interesting English words is to buy a Thesaurus Dictionary.

This particular dictionary will help show you words that can be used to replace simple words. For example, instead of saying "get" which is a very basic word, the dictionary may suggest "achieve", "gain", etc. It's a great way of improving your vocabulary and being able to communicate on a higher, more intelligent level.

by Christina

☆ Easy Lasagne Recipe

Ever wondered how to cook easy Lasagne? Here's a good recipe:

6 Lasagne sheets
1-2 cups of tomatoe pasta sauce (homemade)
Some shredded cheese
Some black pepper
1 medium sized saucepan
1 small sharp kitchen knife

Homemade Tomatoe Pasta Sauce:
6-7 big, ripe, juicy tomatoes - wash them, then cut them up and put them in a medium sized saucepan
Sprinkle some mixed, dried herbs in with the tomatoes to add some extra tasty flavor
1 large onion, diced or sliced
Alternative vegeables to add: 1 chopped clove of garlic, 1 zucchini diced up small
Cook for about 20 minutes on a medium to low gas stove
Blend it when it is half cold to make it smooth and thick

Place a small amount of tomatoe pasta sauce in the bottom of the lasange dish, and then put a lasagne sheet on top, then put some more tomatoe sauce on top of that sheet and then keep doing this until the 6 sheets are on top of each other, with each layer covered with the sauce.

Microwave this without cheese for about 15 minutes maximum to make it soft

Then take it out of the microwave oven and put some cheese on top of the lasange, with sprinkled pepper
Bake the lasagne for 20 minutes maximum

Serve with either brocolli or some side salad such as lettuce, sliced cucumber and small tomatoes

Dark grape juice is also very tasty to drink with the lasagne

By Christina

☆ Handy Hint for the week!

Here's another handy hint for the week...to save time, prepare the breakfast the night before, so you have more time in the morning to enjoy it!

Getting the plates, bowls, cups, glasses, spoons or knives ready for the next morning saves time and energy. Having the food ready on the table also helps you to wake up quicker in the morning.

by Christina

☆ Funny Book for Christmas

A funny book to read for Christmas is written by one of my favorite authors, John Grisham, called: "Skipping Christmas".
　　　　　

It is not a very long book, but it gives an insight into how American's celebrate Christmas, and how difficult it can be to keep buying lots of decorations, cards and gifts every year, because of the competition to buy bigger and better things every year. It's a funny story and I'm sure you would enjoy reading. I highly recommend the book to you.

By Christina:)

☆ Homemade Australian Casserole

Do you know what many Australians enjoy eating during the cold seasons? They like to eat a delicious dish called a "casserole", which is very similar to a British dish. It consists of mainly vegetables and tuna.

Recipe:
6-10 large potatoes
Cup of peas
1 medium carrot
Spiral pasta
1 tin of tuna

Alternative:
Chopped up broccoli
Cup of chopped green beans
Diced pumpkin

1 large saucepan
1 small saucepan
1 vegetable masher
2 pyrex baking dishes

Peel each potatoe and then cut it up in small cubes, place in large saucepan and boil until soft
Peel carrot and cut up in small cubes, with your choice of either green beans or peas, boil until half cooked
Boil pasta until soft, then rinse under hot water

Mash potatoes with a cup of milk, then place some of the potatoe in the bottom of the pyrex dish, about 3 dessert spoons
Put all of the cooked pasta on top of the thin layer of potatoe
Next, put all of the vegetables on top of the pasta
Rinse the tuna and place on top of the pasta
Now put the rest of the mashed potatoe on top of the pasta
Sprinkle cheese on top to cover the potatoe with some black ground pepper

Bake for approximately 20-30 minutes

Best served hot from the oven with a drink of your choice

☆ Food for a feast

The Christmas season is one of the busiest times of the year. It's also a time to eat lots of delicious food, which is rich in flavor and is usually eaten only on Christmas day or during the season.

In Australia, we celebrate Christmas by cooking not only a big turkey, but pork, chicken, and roast vegetables, and various sauces to go with the meats. The dessert and other foods are also an important part of the celebration. Fruit cakes with or without icing on top are part of the big day. There are so many fruit cake recipes to choose from, there are also so many fruit cakes to buy in stores too. Jelly slices, cookies, candies, and chocolates are very popular. One of the most popular desserts is the Pavlova cake. It looks like a huge merangue pie, with plenty of cream on top and around the sides of it, topped with passion fruit, sliced strawberries, kiwi fruit and bananas. These are usually expensive to buy and can only be bought once a year. There are lots of chips, dips and so many different kinds of pretzels to nibble on. People basically eat all day and night!
One of my family's favorite cakes is called the Chocolate Ripple Cake. It made of chocolate ripple biscuits and cream only. It's easy to make, and absolutely beautiful to eat!

By Christina:)

☆ Keeping warm in the winter

As the Autumn season is closing and the winter season is setting in, it is a great time to start thinking of how to keep warm.

Hot ginger tea and homemade curry is sure to make you more comfortable as you begin to feel the cold temperatures. Slice or grate some fresh ginger from the supermarket and place it in with your ordinary tea or ginger tea. Next, cook some rice and add some vegetables with a sprinkle of curry to add both flavor and warmth to your food. The Japanese white radish vegetable is an excellent vegetable to chop up and use with the curry and vegetable dish. Try wearing a thicker scarf and a wool hat with thick socks or stockings, as a loss of heat from the neck, head and feet is a major cause of coldness.

By Christina:)

☆ Christmas shopping & Gift ideas

It's never too soon to begin thinking and to start shopping for some lovely Christmas gifts for your friends, family or co-workers.

Sometimes Christmas chocolates, cookies, cakes and candies are perfect to wrap in appropriate Christmas paper to give to people. But if someone you know doesn't like receiving food for Christmas, how about a cute Christmas ornament or some very suitable Christmas cloths for the kitchen or bathroom. Music is a great gift to give for Christmas, or a dvd. This is a wonderful time of year to use your imagination with gift wrapping, cards, baskets, Christmas bags and colored pens, stickers, ribbons and bows. If you are very busy, perhaps you could buy some tickets to the theater or a book gift voucher. No matter how big or small the gift you buy is, it's the presentation of the wrapping which can make it sparkle. A surprise gift hidden in a Christmas card also creates fun and excitement too. And if you don't like shopping for Christmas gifts, but you would like to give something from your heart, how about making something instead. You could cook something, make a flower arrangement, sew something cute or even dry flowers and frame them. Christmas is a time of giving, not just of receiving, the best part of Christmas is making other people happy.

By Christina:)