My favorite place I've been

My favorite place I have been is Kyoto. I went to Kyoto on a school trip when I was a high school student. I think Kyoto is the most old-fashioned place in Japan. Kyoto has a lot of temples and shrines. I went to Kinkakuji, Kiyomizu Temple and Kitano Tenmangu. Kinkakuji is a gold building, so it is so gorgeous. Kiyomizu Temple is famous in Japan. The scenery from there is also beautiful. Kitano Tenmangu is dedicated to God of study. As I went there, I practiced Zen medication. It was very hard for me. I also went shopping at Kawara Town. There are a lot of stores, so I enjoyed shopping! I first rode in a rickshaw. I saw Kyoto Tower too. My mother has lived for a few years when she was a young. She told me that she had a lot of memories in Kyoto. I want to  go to Kyoto with my mother. If I can go to Kyoto, I want to visit Arashiyama. It is a famous place in Kyoto.

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My favorite character

My favorite character is Donald Duck. I have loved Disney animation since I was a child. I also like Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse and Winnie the Pooh, but I especially like Donald Duck because he is very funny. I like his expressions, for example, smile, angry face, sad face, surprising face, and so on. I feel all of his expressions are so cute. I also like his voice. His voice is unique. Whenever I hear his voice, I started laughing. I have collected him goods since I liked Donald Duck. I have straps, mascots, puzzles, memo pads, mugs, and so on. Also, I have ever been to Tokyo Disney Land once. I met Minnie Mouse and Daisy Duck, but I could not see Donald Duck. I was looking forward to seeing him, so I was sad. I really want to go to Tokyo Disney Land again. I loved Donald Duck.

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My favorite elementary school memory

My favorite elementary school memory is a sports day. I especially remember when I was in the 6th grade. Students separated red team and white team. I was in the white team. Each team made cheering party, and we made an original fight song. Also, I took part in a lot of competitions, for example, footrace, tug of war, obstacle race, relay race, and so on. Our school has a special program. It was Bon dancing. The name is Kawachi Ondo. Not only students but also teachers and parents danced it. This Bon dancing was danced every year. This program was not related to competition of team, so I could enjoy with a lot of people. It was so fun. As a result of competition, our team won. I was so happy. I prepared for a sports day very hard, and I really enjoyed on the day. It was memorable day for me.

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My favorite dishes

I have two favorite dishes. One if them is chawan-mushi. I love chawan-mushi which my mother makes. My mother makes stock from dried shiitake mushrooms, and she mixed it with eggs. Then she put a lot of ingredients into it, for example, chickens, shiitake mushrooms, boiled fish pastes, shrimps ginkgo nuts, spinaches, udon, and so on. After that, she steams it. Eggs become soft. It was so delicious. My mother made it on special day: birthday, bon festival, New Year's Day. When I eat it, I become so happy. I want to make it very well like my mother. The other of my favorite dishes is omelet containing fried rice. I have loved since I was a child. I like both chicken pilaf and omelet. I like to put demi-glace sauce on it. I want to eat chawan-mushi and omelet containing fried rice right now.

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Essay 2-02b: My favorite place

There are a lot of places I like, but I think my hometown is the best place. My hometown is Yoshino. Yoshino is in Kawachi Town, Kumamoto City. My hometown has a lot of good points. I will introduce them to you.

One of good points is nature of my hometown. My hometown is full of nature. First, my hometown has Mt. Kinpo. The mountain is the highest mountain in Kumamoto City. Mt. Kinpo is magnificent. When you climb Mt. Kinpo, you can see beautiful scenery. Night view from the top of the mountain is so beautiful in particular. It is so touching.

Secondly, Sea Ariake can be seen from my hometown. Culture of laver prospers in the sea, and Sea Ariake’s laver is very famous. Moreover, when you see the sea on sunny day, you can see Shimabara in Nagasaki prefecture. Mt. Unzen in Nagasaki prefecture can bee seen beautifully. Night view of Nagasaki prefecture is so beautiful, so over the sea is shining brightly.

Thirdly, my hometown has special products. They are mandarin oranges and pears. Most of people who live in my hometown are farming families. My grandfather also makes mandarin oranges. Autumn is the best season for mandarin oranges and pears, so people are so busy now. However, mandarin oranges and pears that are made in my hometown are so delicious! These special products are one of brands, and they are famous in Kumamoto.

Fourthly, animals live in my hometown. Wild boars and wild rabbits can be seen in my hometown. The sing of birds can be heard very often. Furthermore, there are fireflies in the river. In summer, they glow at night. They are so beautiful.

Lastly, it is said that Soseki Natsume visited my hometown. It is related to his novel “Kusamakura.” There are four stone monuments that are written haiku in my hometown. These haiku were made by him. One of the stone monuments is put in entrance to a stone pavement. My hometown has a stone pavement surrounded by bamboo. It is pleasantly cool and comfortable there.

Also, my hometown has a lot of memories for me. There are my nursery school, my elementary school and my junior high school. Each place has each memory, for example, playing with friends, school events, and so on. The best memory is 60th anniversary event in my junior high school. I was unforgettable beauty of mizu-akari. Mizu-akari is a light which are made of bamboo. Thanks to cooperation of people who live in my hometown, this event was a great success.

That is why my hometown is the best place in places I like. My hometown is full of nature and has a lot of memories for me. If anything, my hometown is rural, but the relationship between people is close. Everyone is on good terms with neighbors. I have known my oldest friend since I was in nursery school. I was born and grew up in my hometown. I’m proud of my hometown.

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My favorite high school memory

My favorite high school memory is school trip. I went to Kyoto and Tokyo. First, I went to Kyoto. I visited Kiyomizu Temple and Kinkaku Temple. They are so beautiful. When I visited Kiyomizu Temple, I saw comedians. This is Yajima Biyoushitsu. Do you know it? I was so happy, so I took many pictures. They taped TV program. I also visited a shrine, and I practiced Zen meditation sitting cross-legged. It was very hard for me. I enjoyed shopping at Kawara Town. On third day, I left for Kyoto to Tokyo by shinkansen. I could see Mt. Fuji. I went to Tokyo Disney Land. I saw white snow prince, Minney Mouse, Daisy, and so on. I enjoyed riding roller coasters and buying presents for my family and my friends. At night, Cinderella Castle was so beautiful. I stayed the hotel near Tokyo Disney land. The hotel was also beautiful, especially the courtyard was romantic. On last day, I went to Odaiba. I visited Fuji TV and near shopping mole. I had never been to Tokyo and Kyoto before, so this trip was so fun for me.

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My favorite club

My favorite club is basketball club. I am not in the basketball club at KGU, but I was in the basketball club at elementary school, junior high school and high school. I started to play basketball when I was ten years old. I entered the club with my best friends. I enjoyed playing basketball. I joined games many times. My uniform number was 7. However, when I was 12 years old, I was injured my knee in October, so I could not play the game that was held in this month. When I became a junior high school student, practicing became harder. I got a uniform number 9, and I play the games.  I often felt basketball was difficult, but I liked basketball. When I was a high school student, I became a vice captain of the club, and I got a uniform number 5. I practiced very hard. Our team was not strong, but I could meet good friends thorough the club activities.

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Draft Essay 2-02a: My favorite place

I will tell you about my favorite place. My favorite place is my hometown. My hometown is Yoshino. Yoshino is in Kawachi Town, Kumamoto City. My hometown has a lot of good points. I will introduce them to you.

One of good points is nature of my hometown. My hometown is full of nature. First, my hometown has Mt. Kinpo. The mountain is the highest mountain in Kumamoto City. When you climb Mt. Kinpo, you can see beautiful scenery. I especially like night view from top of the mountain. It was so beautiful. I’m touched whenever I see it. I want you to see it. Secondly, my hometown has special products. They are mandarin oranges and pears. Most of people who live in my hometown are farming family. My grandfather also makes mandarin oranges. Autumn is the best season for mandarin oranges and pears, so people are very busy now. However, mandarin oranges and pears that are made in my hometown are so delicious! I love them.

Thirdly, animals also live in my hometown. I have ever seen wild boars and wild rabbits. I often hear the song of birds. And more, there are fireflies in the river. In summer, they glow at night. They are so beautiful. Lastly, it is said that Soseki Natsume visited my hometown. It is related to his novel “Kusamakura.” There are four stone monuments that are written haiku in my hometown. These haiku were made by him.

Also, I have a lot of memories in my hometown. There are my nursery school, my elementary school and junior high school, and I have memories at each place. When I was a child, I really enjoyed playing with friends at nursery school. When I was an elementary school student, I reared larval fireflies and planted in the river. When I was a junior high school student, I held 60th anniversary events. I was unforgettable beauty of mizu-akari. Mizu-akari is a light which are made of bamboo. I had a good time with my friends who were from same town until I was in junior high school. I have known my oldest friend since I was in nursery school. 

That is why I like my hometowns. My hometown is full of nature and has a lot of memories for me. If anything, my hometown is rural, but the relationship between people is close. I was born and grew up in my hometown. I’m proud of my hometown.

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Essay prep.: My favorite places

I will tell you about my favorite places. I have two favorite places. One of them is my house. The other is my hometown. They have a lot of good points. I introduce them to you.

My house was built five years ago. My house has living room, dining room, kitchen, bath room, drawing room, Japanese-style room, my grandfather’s room, my parents’ room, my sister’s room, my room and garden. I especially like 4 places. First, I like upstairs living room. This room has wooden floor and wall, so I was surrounded by wood. When I’m in the room, I become calm. I often watch TV and DVDs in the room because TV which is in this room is bigger than any other TVs which are in my house. And more, the room has a yellow sofa. I really like it. Secondly, I like garden because there is a basketball goal. My parents bought me and my younger sister when I was 10 years old. I practiced basketball hard by using the goal. Thirdly, I like bathroom. When I take a bath, I can feel relaxed. I sometimes sing a song at the bathroom, and I enjoy it. Lastly, I like my room because I can decorate the room freely. However, I’m not good at clearing the room, so my room is messy now. If my room was clean, I would become to like my room more. Nowadays, I want to change curtains of my room.

My hometown’s name is Yoshino. Yoshino is in Kawachi Town, Kumamoto City. My hometown is full of nature. First, there is Mt. Kinpo. The mountain is the highest mountain in Kumamoto City. When you climb Mt. Kinpo, you can see beautiful scenery. I especially like the night view of Kumamoto City. It is so beautiful. I want you to see it. Secondly, my hometown has special products. They are pears and mandarin oranges. Most of people who live in my hometown are farming family. My grandfather also makes mandarin oranges. Mandarin oranges and pears that were made in my hometown are so delicious. Thirdly, many creatures live in my hometown. For example, wild rabbits, wild boars and a lot of kind of birds. In the river, there are fireflies. In summer, they glow at night. It is so beautiful.

Also, there are my nursery school, elementary school and junior high school in my hometown, so my hometown has a lot of memories for me. I have known my oldest friend since I was in nursery school. I had a good time with my friends who were from same town until I was in junior high school. If anything, my hometown is rural, but the relationship between people is close. I was born and grew up in my hometown. I’m proud of my hometown.

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My favorite dessert

My favorite dessert is ice cream because there are many kinds of ice creams. I like vanilla, chocolate, green tea, and so on. I especially like ice cream which has chocolate chips, cookies and nuts in it. I usually eat more than an ice cream a day. I love ice cream very much. My favorite ice cream shops are Haagen-Dazs ans 31 ice cream. However, these ice creams cost high, so I seldom eat them. I eat these ice creams once or twice a month. When I eat these ice cream, I become very happy because they taste pretty good. I can't eat these ice creams very often, so I put up with them. I usually buy ice creams at supermarket, and I eat them. I like Supercup, Black Mont Blanc, Yukimi Daifuku, and so on. I want to eat ice cream right now!

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My favorite music

My favorite music is J-pop. I have my favorite singers. I often listen to their songs. First, I like Arashi. It is famous group in Japan. There are five people in the group. I was encouraged by their songs. I want to go to concert! Secondly, I like AKB48. AKB48 is a popular idol group. I enjoy singing its songs. I also like sister groups of AKB48. Thirdly, I like JUJU. I love her ballads. Her voice is very beautiful. When I listen to her songs, I am touched by them. Lastly, I like Kobukuro. It consists of two men. They wrtie words for themselves, so I think their songs have their love. When I listen to their songs, I often feel calm. I like their harmony very much. Kobukuro took a rest their activities for a year, but I was happy that they resume their activities.

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Essay prep: mind-maps of favorite places

My Favorite Places

• My house
  • My room
    • new table
  • My garden
    • basketball goal
  • Bathroom
  • living room
    • TV
      • DVD
      • HDD
    • sofa
• My hometown
• nursery school
• elementary school
• junior high school
• full of nature
• Mt.  Kinpo
• fruits
  • pears
  • mandarin oranges
• animals
• firefly
• wild rabbits
• wild boars

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My favorite junior high memory

My favorite junior high memory is culture festival. I was a chairperson of the executive committee when I was 3rd grade at junior high. Moreover, this culture festival was 60th anniversary festival. I had many work to prepare the culture festival, for example, deciding the slogan, choosing the theme song, making a speech at the beginning of culture festival, and so on. I cooperate with members of committee, and we worked harder.

In addition to preparation as the executive committee, I had to practice programs. I had 5 programs. My first program was English recitation. I read textbook again and again, and I memorized long sentences at home. I practiced with English teachers. After I recited, they advised me. I couldn't recite very well at first, but thanks to their advice, I could recite better than first. My second program was musical of tales of old Japan. The members practiced during classes. We acts urashima-taro and issun-boushi. We enjoyed singing and dancing on the stage, wearing yukata. My third program was English drama. It was first attempt at my school. I acts hero of the story. The story showed difference of American culture and Japanese culture. I practiced harder, but I memorized all of my lines, so I secretly attached cheat sheets on the stage before the drama started. However, audiences enjoyed our drama, so I was so happy.

Next program was class drama. The drama was made some students of the class. I joined it. It was difficult for me to make the scenario. I discussed a lot with the members. After we finished making the scenario, we decided each roles. Our class practice playing it again and again, and more, we made small tools and pictures of background for ourselves. On the day culture festival was held, we enjoyed playing the drama on the stage. While we played it, audiences often laughed. After we finished the drama, people who watched it said it was very interesting, so I was so happy. My last program was a chorus. The title of song our class sand was memories are full. It is a famous music in Japan. It was chosen by all members of my class. I practiced to sing harder. Before I sang a song, I was so nervous, but I could enjoy singing. After we sang a song on the stage, our class teacher said that your song was touching. We are very happy.

At night, lights were turned outside of school buildings. The lights were called mizu-akari, and they were made of bamboo. Some students made them. They were very beautiful. Many people who saw them said that it was beautiful scenery. This culture festival was the best memory of junior high. I'll never forget it forever.

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My favorite flower

My favorite flower is cherry blossom because it is very beautiful. There are some cherry trees near my house. I become happy as cherry blossoms come out in spring. I also like to see that cherry trees are in bud in March. When I was an elementary school and a junior high school student, I liked full of cherry blossoms on the way to school. The new teachers often said that cherry blossoms of my town were very beautiful. Also, I have ever been to Aso to see big cherry tree. It is called issingyou-no-sakura. It is very large and beautiful. I went there when I was a child, so I want to go to see it again.

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My favorite season

My favorite season is winter because winter has many interesting events, for example, Christmas, New Year's Day, and my birthday. I enjoy these events every year. I eat birthday cake and Christmas cake. I get presents on my birthday. I become 20 years old in December, so I will be participated is a coming-of-age celebration in January. I can't wait because I will meet my old friends wearing kimono. However, I become a woman, so I may not get a New Year's gift next year. I also like winter because it is cold and snows. I can't put up with hotness, but I can bear the cold. When it snows, I enjoy building a snowman.

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My favorite sport to watch

My Favorite sport to watch is soccer. I have loved to watch soccer game since I watched Asian Cup maybe two years ago. It is very exciting for me to watch soccer game. I was very excited to watch semi final at the Asian Cup in particular. This is the game between Japan and Korean. I watched it with all of my family. My favorite soccer player is Keisuke Honda. He is playing in Russian professional soccer team. He is cool and good at playing soccer. I also like Atsuto Uchida and Maya Yoshida. I heard they are very close each other. However, I have watched soccer game only on the TV, so I want to watch soccer game at the stadium.

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My faverite shoes

My favorite shoes are platform shoes. I bought them two weeks ago. The color is gray, and the height of the sole is four centimeters. Platform shoes are no heels, so it is easy to walk, and I don't get tired even if I walk a long time. I bought them at LEPSIM in AEON Mall Kumamoto. Before I went there, I look around for platform shoes everywhere, but I didn't meet platform shoes I like. When I found them at the store, I liked the shoes at a glance. There are three colors: gray, white and beige. I chose the color because I hadn't had gray shoes. Recently, I run around for cute sox that it suits the shoes.

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My favorite candy

I like three candies. They are Koume, Haichu and Puccho. I often eat them. Koume tastes like ume, so it is very sour. However, many Japanese love it. Haichu is so chewing. It has many kind of tastes, for example, strawberry, grape, apple, peach, and so on. I like green apple the best. Puccho is strange candy. It contains gumi, so the texture is so fun. It also has much kind of tastes, for example, coke, soda, grape, and so on. Haichu and Puccho have special tastes to local place. Okinawa makes pineapple taste. Hokkaido makes melon taste. Kumamoto makes Banpeiyu taste. It is a special product of Kumamoto. However, I have never eaten them, so I try to eat them.

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