CROSSROADSCROSSROA DS Language StudioÊs Newsletter October,October , 201
20 1 4Of theoriginal 54
eggs thatFaberge madeCall it what you will, dumb luck or for the RussianTsars, eight
divine intervention, but a missing Faberge were thought tohave been
egg has been found in, of all places, l o s t , including
the thirdAmerica. The history of this fabulous egg egg. Most of theother 45,
began in Tsarist Russia and ended in a with the additionof thehouse in Mid Western America just across recently foundthird egg,
the street from a Dunkin’ Donuts outlet.
are now in private
collections.
The egg’s finder could not be farther But, the remaining
seven lost
The recently found 3
removedfromimperial
Russian’s eggs may still beout there,Faberge Egg
ostentatious elite class or today’s world of somewhere....
fine art and antiques collectors. He is a
The American scrap metal dealer who foundhumble scrap metal dealer who spotted the this one had no idea of its value. He paid
8 cm high egg in a bric-a-brac stall while $14,000 for it. But, as scrap, he discovered hesearching for gold and other metals to resell had over-estimated its value, including thefor melting down and recycling.
“surprise” watch and gems tucked
Tsar
AlexanderIII
inside the egg. The price he needed tocommissioned Carl Faberge toask in order to make a profit was too
make the egg in 1887. The Tsarhigh and he was unable to find a buyer.
presented it to his wife MariaIn desperation he turned to theFedorovna as an Easter gift. ThisInternet. He typed the name of thewas the third Faberge egg that thewatch’s manufacturer and the word
Tsar had asked Faberge to“egg” into a Google search. It was thenproduce for him. The tradition ofthat he discovered his exceptional goodEmpress
MariaFedorovna
presenting his wife with one of thesefortune. Instead of the $500 profit he had
eggs every Easter continued throughout his rein hoped to make by reselling it for scrap, he wasand into that of his son’s, Nicholas II.
in possession of one of the most sought after
One interesting facet of these eggs is that items in theart world. How
they all opened to reveal a surprise inside; a much was
his egg worth?
golden hen, a necklace or various other “Only” a cool
$33,000,000!!
trinkets often studded with precious gems.
The difference
between theThe recently discovered egg was the third value of the egg’s
metal contentof 54 Faberge eggs made for the Russian and the finishedproduct is in
Imperial family between 1885 and 1916.
the Faberge
artistry.
Number3and
its
hiddensecret–asmallclock
However, 51 eggs after this third one waspresented to Empress Fedorovna, the Russian
Imperial family’s idyllic life-style came to asudden and violent end and in 1917, after the NET LESSONS: Too busy to come to CROSSROADS?
Bolshevik Revolution, the eggs disappeared. …. Try our lessons through the net!
The Bolsheviks took most of the eggs to the SITE OF THE MONTH:
Kremlin, where some are still kept to this For some images of the Imperial Faberge eggs, go here:
http://www.faberge.com/news/49-imperialeggs.aspx
day, others just vanished.
rdJoshua Says Traveling overseas to various places can expose us to some interestingexperiences. The most unexpected things can happen along the way, and we often get to see
not only the world but ourselves in the most unpredictable ways. How we react to different
situations can help us learn much about ourselves. Take Taro’s experiences in Spain, posted
this month on page 3, for instance. I’m looking forward to posting part 2 next month. His
adventures should be an inspiration for anyone planning an overseas trip.
Junko Says: : In an interview on the 7th, Nobel prize winner Prof Shuji Nakamura
warned Japanese business and industry that in spite of the excellent products Japanesecompanies produce, Japan has failed to keep pace with globalization, and the U.S.A. andChina have taken over the lead Japan once had in many areas. He points out that thebiggest reason for this is that the Japanese are not good English speakers. He then went
on to say that the Japanese economy will shrink even farther unless there is a drasticchange in this area. He even recommends that we make English our first language!

Kenneth Says: A couple of Nobel prize announcements have been subjects fordiscussion in many of my classes including the award in physics to ShujiNakamura, Hiroshi Amano and Isamu Akasaki for their invention of light-emitting
diodes (LED). And the Nobel Peace Prize 2014 was awarded jointly to Kailash
Satyarthi and Malala Yousafzai "for their struggle against the suppression ofchildren and young people and for the right of all children to education."
Danielle dit: Comme vous le savez, l'automne canadien est magnifique. Les érables sontrois ! Leurs feuilles deviennent très rouges. D'autres arbres sont plutôt jaunes. Toutes ces couleursmêlees aux conifères verts, c'est un spectacle a ne pas manquer. A l'automne, on peut faire debelles promenades en foret, les deux pieds dans les feuilles tombées ! Sinon, on peut aller cueillir
des pommes en famille et n'oublions pas la fete d'Halloween. Les enfants vont au marche choisir
leur belle grosse citrouille orange vif. J'adore l'automne, cette saison très colorée !
1ACROSS2
3

4 delightful, charmingly simple and serene
6 scattered with or adorned with
8 (usually) cheap, showy jewelry or ornament 6
9 action that brings about change
12 a distinct feature
8
13 male Emperor of Imperial Russia
14 place an order for a service or product15 lacking good sense or understanding

457

910

11DOWN12

1 far greater than the usual
2 control or rule (usually by royalty)
3 meek or modest, not arrogant
5 almost no hope left
6 nearly worthless material
7 skills obtained by study and practice
10 disappear
11 extremely pleasing

131415

www.CrosswordWeaver.com

Carefulness and Boldness by S(A)1’s Taro...
During the summer season, many people enjoy their summer
holidays. Some may spend their holidays in a foreign country.
However, many Japanese people regard this as dangerous. Istraveling abroad such an adventure?
Travel guidebooks published in Japan advise that we must be careful in other countries. I
admit these books are, by and large, instructive, but they often include ludicrous ideas. Forexample, one book says that we should avoid getting on elevators with strange people
because they might be robbers. I feel this is rediculous! When I went to Spain last year, I
was sometimes surrounded by people when I used elevators, but no one bothered me.
One day, I got into an elevator in a hotel in Barcelona. There was an Asian couple in theelevator with me. Not judging whether they were Japanese or not, I greeted them affably with,“Hola” (Spanish for “hello”). A Spanish man entered the elevator behind me. The Asian couple
talked to each other furtively until we reached the first floor. (They spoke in Japanese so I
realized they were fellow citizens of mine.) From what they were saying, I knew they suspected
me of being a Chinese burglar (pardon me, I have no intension of insulting my Chinese friends)
and they consulted with each other about how to escape! I found it interesting that they weretaking one of these guidebooks completely on trust. ..............CONTINUED NEXT MONTHP R O T A G O N I S TGPEUUR
SBSOE
E N C O U N T E RHPREIHVIR E S E M B L A N C E
OM
R
GTIPA
IIC R Y S T A L L I N EMCIEMCAEAAU N I M A G I N A B L YTESUE N V I S I O N E DNENOEDS L O S H I N GRAANTTP H E N O M E N A

Last Month’s Puzzle Solution
ACROSSDOWN

1 the main character in a work of fiction
6 come upon or meet as if by chance
8 similar in appearance
10 having the characteristics of a crystal
12 impossible to imagine
14 seen in the mind as a mental image
15 splashing (usually) water around16 a remarkable experience or event

2 a large or extra supply of something
3 beneath the surface of the earth
4 coming out suddenly and rapidly
5 predicting events before they happen
7 an inference or suggestion
9 great in size
11 great quantity of something
13 bring into existence

You might remember
Lou Lou, Danielle’s Basenji
pet dog, from last August’s Newsletter.
Well, Danielle has three dogs. Here is number
two, Nana-chan.
Nana chan is a 5 year old shiba and we call her "Baby Girl".
Although she's an adult dog, she has a baby face and acts likea puppy. She wants a lot of attention and smiles when wetell her that she's cute! She's pretty good at playing soccer
with us. Shiba dogs are friendly and playful, the perfect dog!
(We’ll meet #3, Hana-chan, next month)

Don’t forget… Our SPECIAL 1+1 Campaign offer! Up to 50% off!!
See our notice board, or ask Junko in our office, for the details.