Life in Fukuoka "English"

【Words to Take a Photo】

On August 22nd in Japan, there's a play on words known as "Hai, Cheese Day." When taking photos, what do you say to get people to smile? Different cultures have their own established cues, in the US, it's cheese but I remember in Korea often saying Kimchi!  I looked up what other countries use to get people to smile and in France and Thailand, the word Pepsi, is sometimes used. In a number of countries, like Turkey, Romania, Germany and Bulgaria, among others, people just stay 'smile' in their own language. In Japan, it's pretty common for the photographer to say, "Hai, Cheese!" ("Hai" meaning "yes" in Japanese), before taking the photo.

The origin of this practice seems to have come from the English-speaking world with the popular phrase "Say Cheese!" In English-speaking countries, after the photographer's cue, the subjects often repeat the phrase. However, in Japan, the person taking the photo gives the signal, and the person being photographed simply needs to put on a smile.

In addition to "Hai, Cheese!" in Japan, there's another photo-taking cue where the photographer asks, "What's 1+1?" and the subjects respond with "2 (ni)!" This playful interaction adds an extra element of fun to the experience.

When you're asked to take someone's photo or when you're taking photos with Japanese people, use these cues to get the best smiles from your photo subjects!

【Fukuoka City Information】

Eliminating Drunk Driving

Now, I have some important information from Fukuoka City.

If you are a recent resident of Fukuoka you may not know about this incident but for those of you who have been here for awhile....did you know about the drunk driving accident that occurred in Fukuoka City on August 25, 2006?

This year marks 17 years since that drunk driving accident which killed three children on the Umino-nakamichi-ohashi Bridge in the Higashi Ward.

In response to this tragedy, Fukuoka City has undertaken various initiatives to eliminate drunk driving, but it still persists.

However, drunk driving has not disappeared. In fact, in 2022, there were 28 accidents caused by drunk drivers.

Drunk driving is a crime.
You must not drive a car, motorcycle, or bicycle after drinking alcohol.
You must not lend your vehicle to a person who has been drinking alcohol, nor should you encourage or offer alcohol to someone who intends to drive.
You must not get into a car knowing that the driver has been drinking.

Driving under the influence of alcohol increases the risk of causing traffic accidents. For instance:

• Attention, judgment, and other faculties necessary for safe driving are impaired.
• Excessive speed and delayed recognition of danger can occur.
• The time it takes to press the brake pedal becomes longer.

Also, if you see someone driving in the way I'm going to describe, it's possible that person is driving drunk. If you see someone driving like this, please report it to emergency services by calling 110. Signs of a drunk driver include stopping the car well before the stop line when stopping at a stop sign, not starting the car up again when the traffic light turns green, weaving or unsteady driving and repeatedly accelerating or decelerating abruptly. Each and every person needs to take action and say “I will never drink and drive, I won't let others do it and I won't turn a blind eye!”
Let's all work together to eliminate drunk driving!