Hi,
1. 窓の外の景色を見ながら列車の中でその地方の駅弁を食べることは、日本人にとって旅の大きな楽しみの一つである。中には駅弁が食べたくて、列車の旅に出る人もいるらしい。そうした駅弁の魅力とはいったい何なのだろうか。
My translation: "For Japanese people, eating the regional 駅弁 on a train while looking out of the window at the local scenery is one of the great pleasures of travel. Among them, it seems there are also people who like eating 駅弁 while travelling by train. What could be the appeal of this 駅弁?"
a) My interpretation of the second sentence seems wrong. It seems to be simply repeating what has just been said, but as if it was new information. What is the contrasting, or new, information in the second sentence?
b) In the last sentence, is とはいったい = と (quoting) + は (topic) + いったい (emphasising question)?
2. その理由として、日本人はどんなおかずにも合う「白いご飯」を食べる習慣があり、その上、日本の米は冷めてもおいしく食べられることがあげられる。
My translation: "The reasons given [for the popularity of 弁当] are the Japanese people's habit of eating white rice with any sort of accompaniment, and, furthermore, the fact that Japanese rice is delicious when eaten cold."
a) Why is 「白いご飯」 in quotes?
b) Though readily translating to passive in natural English, 食べられる is potential form (lit. "one can eat"), right? (I know we've been here several times before; I'm applying the guideline that passive subjects would usually be animate.)
3. あなたの国にも駅弁の日のような（国の祝日にはなっていない）おもしろい記念日や特別な日がありますか。
My translation: "In your country, are there also interesting commemorative days, or other special days, like 駅弁の日 (other than national holidays)?"
Is my translation of 国の祝日にはなっていない reasonable?
4. 私たちが毎日作っている箸ですが、「お父さんの箸」、「お母さんの箸」、「私の箸」と言うように、たいていそれぞれが自分の箸を持っています。
My translation: "We use chopsticks every day, and usually we each use our own individual sets: 'father's chopsticks', 'mother's chopsticks' and 'my chopsticks'."
Is ですが simply introducing the topic, as I translated (as opposed to being a contrastive use of が)?
1. 窓の外の景色を見ながら列車の中でその地方の駅弁を食べることは、日本人にとって旅の大きな楽しみの一つである。中には駅弁が食べたくて、列車の旅に出る人もいるらしい。そうした駅弁の魅力とはいったい何なのだろうか。
My translation: "For Japanese people, eating the regional 駅弁 on a train while looking out of the window at the local scenery is one of the great pleasures of travel. Among them, it seems there are also people who like eating 駅弁 while travelling by train. What could be the appeal of this 駅弁?"
a) My interpretation of the second sentence seems wrong. It seems to be simply repeating what has just been said, but as if it was new information. What is the contrasting, or new, information in the second sentence?
b) In the last sentence, is とはいったい = と (quoting) + は (topic) + いったい (emphasising question)?
2. その理由として、日本人はどんなおかずにも合う「白いご飯」を食べる習慣があり、その上、日本の米は冷めてもおいしく食べられることがあげられる。
My translation: "The reasons given [for the popularity of 弁当] are the Japanese people's habit of eating white rice with any sort of accompaniment, and, furthermore, the fact that Japanese rice is delicious when eaten cold."
a) Why is 「白いご飯」 in quotes?
b) Though readily translating to passive in natural English, 食べられる is potential form (lit. "one can eat"), right? (I know we've been here several times before; I'm applying the guideline that passive subjects would usually be animate.)
3. あなたの国にも駅弁の日のような（国の祝日にはなっていない）おもしろい記念日や特別な日がありますか。
My translation: "In your country, are there also interesting commemorative days, or other special days, like 駅弁の日 (other than national holidays)?"
Is my translation of 国の祝日にはなっていない reasonable?
4. 私たちが毎日作っている箸ですが、「お父さんの箸」、「お母さんの箸」、「私の箸」と言うように、たいていそれぞれが自分の箸を持っています。
My translation: "We use chopsticks every day, and usually we each use our own individual sets: 'father's chopsticks', 'mother's chopsticks' and 'my chopsticks'."
Is ですが simply introducing the topic, as I translated (as opposed to being a contrastive use of が)?