JP gov videos, diverse subjects

thanks to Sachiko R:

...promotional videos about Japan. [examples]
http://nettv.gov-online.go.jp/eng/index.html

Japan. Tomorrow Starts Here is a 3-minute video about highlighting Japan's direction for the future.
http://nettv.gov-online.go.jp/eng/prg/prg2913.html

The Emperor and Empress' visits to various countries including his first visit to Canada and the US in 1953. 
http://nettv.gov-online.go.jp/eng/prg/prg2654.html

Souvenirs of Japan Contest, http://nettv.gov-online.go.jp/eng/prg/prg1784.html
Iwako Erasers,  http://www.iwako.com/
Irodori Edo Kiriko, http://www.edokiriko.com/irodori1.htm
Kenji Kumakura Channel, http://www.youtube.com/user/kikukagome?feature=watch

thanks to Dan C. for these two links,

On Japan's school lunch menu: A healthy meal made from scratch

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9chwTD-fOJg AND 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cefa8S6aRBY

website, 400 years of British - Japanese relations

cross-posted from H-Japan at www.h-net.org

2013 marks the 400th anniversary of Japan-British relations. King James l sent Tokugawa Ieyasu and Hidetada presents and a letter, which were
received in September, 1613. The letter survives in Tokyo University.
Ieyasu received a telescope - the first ever sent to Asia - and Hidetada a precious cup and cover. The Shogun reciprocated with two suits of armour
(which are extant), and Ieyasu gave five pairs of gold screens (lost) and a shuuinjo, which survives in Oxford University. A vast number of events is planned for 2013, including a major show at the British Museum which will open 400 to the day after the date of the shuuinjo. We aim for '400 connections for 400 years', 

http://www.japan400.com

2 ways for browser to do kanji look-up

Thanks to S.C. for the first mention:

Google Chrome is an alternative browser (others are Firefox, Internet Explorer, Opera, Safari, and so on) known for it's speed and security as well as "extensibility" - it supports apps, extensions (in browser functions), themes, and a webstore for finding these tools.
     Furigana Injector from Akira Kurogane is an extension to Chrome that (on a click) looks up the readings for kanji words and inserts them inline as furigana.
It also provides quick dictionary lookup (mousable), supports kanji levels (based on "most common kanji" count.
     You can find Google Chrome at http://google.com/chrome
Once you install Chrome, you can add the extension by visiting the Google Chrome Web Store
 - search for "furigana";
 - look under the extensions tab
 - install Furigana Injector from (Akira Kurogane)
 - the Injector waits for a Japanese Language page before "volunteering" to help 

And thanks to S.T. at Asia Pacific World for reply with even better alternative:

There is another plugin with similar functionality called rikaichan. I have used it for several years, and rather prefer it to Furigana Injector. Rikaichan was created for Firefox, but now there is a version for Chrome called Rikaikun.

After using Furigana Injector for just a few minutes, it is easy to see that rikaichan is substantially smoother and less glitchy. And even within the first few words of Furigana Injector's "welcome page", you can see an advantage of rikaichan / rikaikun. In the sample Japanese text there, Furigana Injector separates 医学生 into 医学 and 生, providing a separate pop-up translation for each part, whereas rikaichan / rikaikun recognizes the whole thing as one word, and translates it as a whole.

links page, "fun in Japanese"

Thanks to S. Renovich:

...a page of links called "Language Learning" on the Fun Japanese website.  

http://www.members.shaw.ca/renovich/funjapanese
 see also http://members.shaw.ca/funwithwordsinjapanese/

Nihongo E-na made by The Japan Foundation Language Institute in Kansai has a wealth of information about various websites and new sites are added on a regular basis.  I also like the fact that the feature website and e!Kore Q & A changes each time you click to go to the website.  The introductions to the websites are very useful in getting an overview to the sites, especially if you are visiting for the first time.

AJALT's website has an interactive section called "Life in Japan Mitokotto" which was quite entertaining.  You can explore so many places in the town and watch real-life situations such as asking for directions, listening to train announcements, and ordering food.  

For Japanese textbooks that have study material on-line, you will find their links.

On the Teachers page, I have also added a link to Tachibana-sensei's "Nihongo Ganbatte."