As the New Year approaches, maybe you’ve already made some new resolutions for the coming year. Perhaps one of your resolutions is to learn the Japanese language, or to travel to Japan. Have you thought about applying to a Japanese university in an effort to learn Japanese or live in Japan? If so, here is a rough list of Japanese universities that are very well known in Japan. Of course, you want to apply not just based on rankings, but how they accomodate foreign students, the cost, location, strength of the Japanese language program etc. Hopefully this list will get you started on your research if you haven’t done so already.
The University of Tokyo (東京大学)(とうきょうだいがく) is the foremost prestigious university of Japan. Many famous individuals, including prime ministers, have graduated from this university. This university is especially known for its research. The best and the brightest students of Japan all clamor to be accepted into this university. Here’s some more info (in English) at the university’s website: http://www.u-tokyo.ac.jp/index_e.html
Kyoto University (京都大学)(きょうとだいがく) is a major national university in Japan. Famous Nobel Laureates have graduated from this university. It is the second oldest university in Japan and is still partially controlled by the Japanese Ministry of Education (文部科学省)(もんぶかがくしょう). For more info check here: http://www.kyoto-u.ac.jp/en
Waseda University (早稲田大学)(わせだだいがく) is a private university with 学問の独立 (がくもんのどくりつ)(independence of learning) as its motto. Many famous CEOs of Japan and even celebrities have graduated from this university. More infor here: http://www.waseda.jp/top/index-e.html
Tokyo Institute of Technology (東京工業大学)(とうきょうこうぎょうだいがく) is the best university for students who want to matriculate in engineering and the sciences. Many famous Japanese scientists and inventors have graduated from this university: http://www.titech.ac.jp/english/index.html
Keio University (慶應義塾大学)(けいおうぎじゅくだいがく) is the oldest existing university in Japan. Keio also has one of the best baseball teams on the university level. Here’s the website: http://www.keio.ac.jp/
There are more nationally renown universities that are not covered in this list. I encourage you to do your own research and see what university will help you accomplish your goals!
あんみつ is a Japanese dessert composed of white translucent jelly made from seaweed. A small pot of sweet black syrup called みつ is poured over the jelly. Usually a sweet bean paste called あんこ and some fruits like peaches, cherries, grapes and orange slices are mixed together in this dessert. There is also a form of this dessert called みつまめ. みつまめ is あんみつ, but without the red bean paste.
あまなっとう is made of アズキ beans and covered with sugar. あまなっとう is basically a snack of cooked and sweetened beans. In other words, candied beans. The beans are soaked in water beforehand for extra softness. Some people just eat the あまなっとう by itself, or on top of ice cream and other desserts. There are even recipes online that can show you how to make this at home.
羊羹 (ようかん) is a type of jelly made of red bean paste, sugar and agar. Agar is made from seaweed. There are different kinds of ようかん, but the common type of ようかん contains ingredients like sweet potato paste, chestnuts, figs, brown sugar or honey. There are also ようかん made from white kidney beans 白餡 (しろあん) instead of red bean paste. The しろあん is milder in taste (green tea flavored) than the ようかん.
やつはし is made from a rice flour called ようしんこ. It is cinnamon flavored and coated with sugar. The やつはし is first made from dough that is flattened and cut into long rectangular strips. Then they are baked and cooled. Sometimes people eat やつはし as a snack with some red bean paste. やつはし is a popular みやげがし or “souvenir sweet” bought by tourists who come to きょうと.