チェダーチーズのふるさと Cheddar, birthplace of cheddar cheese

チェダーチーズのふるさと、チェダーを訪れました。今や全世界に広まったチェダーチーズは工場などで大量生産され、チェダーチーズの定義はよく分りませんが、ここ発祥地ではもちろん伝統的な味を守っています。かつてはチェダー峡谷の切り立った崖にある洞窟でチーズを保存、熟成させていたということです。

ショップで「洞窟保存」と書かれたチーズを発見。試食させてもらい、あまりの美味しさに、スーパーで買う１０倍の値段のするチェダーチーズを買いました。今までこんなにおいしいチェダーチーズは食べたことがありません。
峡谷では絶景が楽しめるので、チョコレートの代わりに絶品チーズを買ってハイキングを楽しむのが私のオススメです。夫はチョコも絶対必要と主張すると思いますが。

We visited Cheddar, the birthplace of cheddar cheese. Now that cheddar cheese production has spread all over the world and has become a mass market product, its definition is uncertain. However traditional cheddar cheese is still produced at Cheddar, whose nearby gorge has caves which once provided the perfect environment for storing and maturing the cheese. We found cave aged cheddar cheese at the oldest shop in the gorge. We tasted it and couldn't help buying it even though it cost 10 times as much as one which we can get at a supermarket. We hadn't had such delicious cheddar cheese ever before.

We enjoyed spectacular views at the gorge as well. I recommend hiking in and around the gorge with the superb eponymous cheese instead of chocolate. Although my husband would say chocolate is essential.

バースのローマンバス Roman baths in Bath

バースは古代ローマ帝国時代の温泉遺跡がある場所。バス（風呂）の名前が地名になっていて、温泉好きの日本人にはイギリスで有名な観光地だと思います。日本だとあちこちで温泉が湧き上がっていますが、ヨーロッパでは火山がないから珍しい。当時は驚異の的だったことでしょう。

The name of the city Bath, came from its　baths. Bath is famous for the remains of the natural hot spring baths built in the time of the Romans. The name of the city may be well-known among Japanese people, who are hot spring lovers. All over Japan, there are many natural hot springs, but in European countries they are very rare because of a lack of volcanoes. It must have been an object of wonder at that time.

ローマ人が侵入する以前から、この湧き上がるお湯は女神の仕業として崇められていました。伝説によると、ハンセン病で王から遠ざけられていた王子が、豚の皮膚病がその温かい泥につかっているうちに治るのを発見し、自分もそのお湯を試し、病気を克服、のちにその地の王となったとあります。

ローマ人もその不思議なお湯は神が湧きださせているとして神殿を建て、ローマ帝国の中でもすばらしい医療＆レジャースパ施設を作り上げました。そこには多くの人が訪れ、湯船のそばには露店も立ち、その店の前の敷石はなんとたくさんの人の靴によりすり減ってへこんでしまったと言われています。（実際見ると本当にへこんでいました。石がへこむだなんてどれだけたくさんの人が来たのでしょう・・・。）

Before the Romans arrived in Bath, the hot bubbling marshes had been held in awe. It was thought a goddess lived at the source. As legend has it, a prince, suffering from leprosy, who had been banished by the king, found that his pigs' skin disease disappeared after they dipped their flesh in the warm bubbling mud. So, he tried it himself. He was cured and was re-admitted to the court, and eventually became king.

The Romans also thought the mysterious bubbling of the water was a divine act. They built a temple by the source and erected one of the great medical and pleasure spas of the Roman world. Many people visited there and it's said that the pavement in the front of the stall, which was built near the bath tab, became hollow because of the wear and tear from the shoes of numerous visitors. It was definitely worn when we saw it, so we wondered how many people had visited in ancient times.

他にも面白い話を、たまたま参加できたツアーで熟練のガイドさんから聞くことができました。興味深かったのは、温泉の湯気が床下、壁を通り、部屋を暖めていたというもの。２０００年も前にそんな床暖房の知恵があったなんて驚きです。
浴槽だけではなく、脱衣所、マッサージ部屋、蒸し風呂、水風呂などもありました。召使いは泥棒対策として主人の服を見はっていなければならなかったようです。また、剣闘士のマッサージに使われた汗、垢の交じったオイルはなんと女性の美肌オイルとして売られていたということです。

We heard many other interesting stories from a veteran guide in a tour which we were luckily to join. What amazed me was that the hot steam passed under the floor and through channels in the walls and kept the rooms warm. Can you imagine more than 2000 years ago the Romans had the skill to make central heating systems?
There were not only spa pools, but also changing, massage, steam and cold rooms. Servants had to keep their eye on the Romans' clothes because of thieves. Used massage oil which contained sweat and dirt from gladiators was sold as skin care oil for women.

ローマ人が去るとその建築技術、メンテナンスの技術も失われ、町は崩壊していきました。その後、また温泉の街として栄えることになりますが、今回残念ながら時間がなくて、ローマ風呂博物館しか見ることができませんでした。またぜひ来て観光したい町です。

After the Romans left Britain, taking their architectural and maintenance techniques with them, much of the city fell into ruin. Later the city was rebuilt and prospered as a spa city. This time we visited only the Roman Baths museum because we didn't have much time. We hope we go to Bath again, to see the many other interesting historical places some day.

イギリスでおせちを作る Making Japanese New Year food in the UK

イギリスではお正月に特別に食べる料理はありません。お正月らしく、ということで今回限りある材料で日本の伝統的料理を作ってみました。

There is no tradition of eating special food for New Year's Day in the UK. To create the atmosphere of a Japanese New Year celebration, I tried making traditional Japanese New Year food using the limited supplies obtainable here in the UK.

まず大みそかに長寿を願って食べる年越しそば。スーパーマーケットではそばが見つからず、色々な国の食材が置いている小さな自然食品ショップでようやく買うことができました。そば粉１００％のそば。でも香りはほとんどなく、ちょっとゴムみたいな感じでした（笑）。でもおいしくいただきました。

On New Year's Eve, we Japanese eat soba, buckwheat noodle, hoping for a long life. I couldn't find soba at any supermarket stores, but finally got it at a small natural food shop which sold food from diverse countries. It was made from 100% buckwheat but didn't have the normal smell and the texture was a bit like rubber, unfortunately. Anyway it turned out agreeable.

元旦にはおせち料理にチャレンジ。錦玉子、なます、筑前煮。大根がなかったのでなますにはセロリとにんじんを使いました。そして里芋、ごぼうも手に入らなかったので、代わりにサツマイモとにんじんと鶏肉で筑前煮らしきものを作りました。まあ気分だけでも、ということで。そしてデザートとして、栗きんとんならぬリンゴきんとん、アイスクリーム付。こちらのサツマイモはオレンジ色でした。オレンジ色でも金運よくなるのでしょうか。
ともあれ、全く違った料理を夫は楽しんでいました。おいしかったかは聞かないことにします。元々私はおせち料理なんてあまりおいしくはないと思っていましたが、日本を離れると食べたくなるから不思議です。おもちがないので芋団子でお雑煮も作ってみましたが、いまいち。やっぱりお正月にはおもちが食べたいものです。イギリスのクリスマスには欠かせないミンスパイのようなものでしょうか。

On New Year's Day, I made imitation special dishes, two colour egg, red and white pickles, and simmered chicken and vegetables. The pickles are supposed to be made from carrot and Japanese radish to provide red and white which are redolent of happiness, but I couldn't get radish so I used celery instead. Neither, could I find burdock roots or taros, so I made the simmered dish with carrots and sweet potatoes. Even though they were different from Japanese orthodox dishes, they still put me in a New Year mood. For dessert, I served a sweet potato paste and apple compote with ice cream, which is normally made from sweet potatoes and chestnuts and not eaten as a dessert. Here, sweet potatoes are not yellow, but orange. I hope the dish, which is supposed to be yellow to indicate gold, still brings us good luck with money.
My English husband seemed to enjoy the very different food, setting aside whether the taste was good or not.
I didn't like Japanese New Year food very much, but somehow, after leaving Japan, I miss it. I tried to make rice cake soup as well. Instead of rice cake, I used potato dumpling, which was not so nice. Rice cake is the taste of New Year for me, it may as important as mince pies are for Christmas in the UK.