Studio Ghibli film recommendations

So as you all know, I am a huge Studio Ghibli fan. I love the films, the charming characters and most of all, the music. If you are new to the Studio Ghibli universe and do not know which one to watch, here is my list of recomended films. These are just films that I think people would enjoy watching the most and if you do not agree with my list, then please put your reccomendations in the comments below.

Also, as my Studio Ghibli Advent calendar was very popular, I have started to do my own drawings. Please comment and 1+ if you like them and would like to see more of them in the future. I know that these are not the best, I have just been experimenting and messing around with colour but they have been fun to do, I would love to do more of these in the future.

My Neighbour Totoro
Get your Morinaga caramels ready and watch My Neighbour Totoro. My Neighbour Totoro is probably the most iconic Studio Ghibli film. Totoro is even the mascot for Studio Ghibli itself. If you have never seen a Studio Ghibli film before, then this is a great place to start.

It starts with the Kusakabe family moving to the countryside where Mei (the younger sister) discovers a forest spirit called Totoro. This unravels a whole series of events and starts an adventure with their new forest friend.

In my opinion, this film is brilliant as it has a great plot and you also meet other creatures just as memorable as Totoro. You will probably start singing along to the main theme song as well at the end, I did!

My Neighbour Totoro

Kiki's Delivery Service

If you like witches or like flying, the. this film is for you. Kiki's Delivery Service is another great film.

A young witch called Kiki flies into the city to start her training as a witch with her black cat Jiji. A baker called Osono provides her with a room above the bakery and in return, she helps with the deliveries to the town. During her deliveries, she meets many different people which starts her new adventure in the city.

One of the memorable characters in this film is Jiji the cat. In the English version, Jiji is chatty and tends to be sarcastic but in the Japanese version, he is more cautious. Either way, he is a lovable cat who always accompanies Kiki.

Kiki's Delivery Service

Spirited Away

The main protagonist in this one was based on the daughter of the director's friend. He noticed that many films for girls were heavily based on romance so he wanted to make a film with the main character to be an ordinary girl to show that girls can be heroines too.

Chihiro is a ten year old girl who is unhappy that she is moving to a different town with her family. After getting lost in the forest and exploring a tunnel, they end up in an abandoned theme park. Her parents start to pig out at a deserted food stall and Chihiro goes exploring where she meets a boy who tells her to leave before nightfall. Chihiro goes to tell her parents to leave but it's too late, they are no longer human and she is trapped in the spirit world. Chihiro has to fend for herself against various spirits, creatures and a sorcerer who wants to stop her from returning to the human world and find a away to turn her parents back into humans.

This is a film that everyone should see. The piece 'One Summers Day' is probably one of the emotional and touching pieces in the film, perhaps the most touching out of all of the Studio Ghibli films. It also contains many moral lessons, like show gratitude and thank everyone who has helped you. It is a great film and you will not regret watching it.

Spirited Away 

The Cat Returns

This is a personal favourite of mine, being a cat person. (=^x^=)

Haru, is a quiet high school student who can talk to cats. One day, she rescues a cat with different colour eyes from being run over by a truck. This cat however, happens to be Prince Lune, the Prince of the Cat Kingdom. As a way of showing thanks, she was given gifts of catnip, mice and the Prince's hand in marriage which she does not want. She finds help from a statue of a cat who comes to life.

I absolutely love the song in the credits, its called Kaze ni naru (to become the wind) and I am trying to learn how to play it on piano. It's a beautiful and upbeat song and it is also good fun to sing along to.

Baron from the Cat Returns

Howl's Moving Castle

This is another great one, I absolutely love the piece of music called Merry go Round of Life, I am learning to play a part of it on the piano at the moment. I have also read the book, it is exciting and I would recommend it to anyone.

Sophie is an 18 year old girl who becomes cursed by the Witch of the Waste to have the body of an old woman. So, she goes to the mysterious moving castle and find a cure from the wizard Howl and a fire demon named Calcifer and a young boy called Markel.

Calcifer is also another iconic Studio Ghibli character. His most famous line is defnitely 'May all your bacon BURN!' 

Sophie and Calcifer from Howl's Moving Castle 

So there you have it, 5 recommended Studio Ghibli films. Please add in the comments about any of the films that you have enjoyed watching and would reccomend to others, I would love to see what you think too! If you enjoyed this post, please 1+ and subscribe to this blog to help it grow. Perhaps you could send this to a friend who is interested in watching Studio Ghibli films?

I will leave you all with this quite from The Cat Returns:

'Believe in yourself, do this and no matter where you are you will have nothing to fear.'

Hope that you all have a great day! :)

Konnyaku!

So, it's been 2017 for a bit now and I have had some Osechi. I already wrote a post on the Osechi last year so click here to check that out if you are unfamiliar with it. If you have ever had an Osechi, which was your favourite part of it? Put your thoughts in the comments below. My favourite part is the namasu, kamaboko and konnyaku.  But what on earth is konnyaku?

Konnyaku!

Konnyaku is made from the corm of the Konjac plant and it grows in Eastern Asia. But how  does it go from a corm to a rubbery grey jelly

• Wash it to remove the soil
• Boil it for 30 minutes 
• Cool it in water
• Peel the skin off the corm
• Use a food processor and add water to break the corm down
• Mix the mixture for around 10 minutes
• Wait for 30 minutes
• Add limestone water to the mixture to get its rubbery viscosity
• Boil the mixture

The final product is white but you can add hijiki seaweed during production, giving it a grey colour with black specks

 It is a vegan substitute for gelatin as it is from a plant. It contains almost no calories, no fat, contains glucomannan which is a dietary fibre and you will easily feel satisfied which is why konnyaku is considered a diet food. However it is very very very very very important that you eat other foods and have a balanced diet. 

So, what did we make with the konnyaku? First, we sliced it into strips and made a slit in the middle.

Then, we twisted and poured hot water on it to remove the smell. Afterwards, we put all of the konnyaku in a pot with all of the vegetables and cooked it. And it was delicious! 

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I hope that you all had a great begining to the New Year.