Through the Sapphire Sky

The power of the color red

2012-01-19T23:07:00.022+09:00

Lots of strawberries are now on sale at grocery stores and supermarkets. Since the new year’s holiday, there has been a steady increase in sales of them. I’m quite skeptical though about buying them in winter as they were grown in vinyl greenhouses that need heating oil. At patisseries, a variety of strawberry cakes and tarts are on sale along with my favorite treat, strawberry shortcake.

2012, the year of the dragon －Oriental dragons in art

2012-01-09T21:27:00.008+09:00

2012 has started. I wish you all the best for the new year! It is the year of the dragon for many countries in the East. I bought a small dragon figurine last December and have placed it on a shelf along with some lucky cats. Every year during the new year's holiday, I decorate my house with an ornament which represents the year's zodiac sign. I suppose this dragon doesn’t look dignified or

The Gardens of the Shugaku-in Imperial Villa (修学院離宮）

2011-12-17T17:40:00.015+09:00

A red carpet of maple leaves welcomed us when we entered the gate of the Shugaku-in Imperial villa（修学院離宮）. To our relief, some maple leaves still remained on the trees. The Shugaku-in was originally built by the retired Emperor Go-Mizunoo (後水尾上皇：1596~1680) in the 17th century. You may associate the name "imperial villa” with some large scale buildings, however, no such buildings are there.

Visit to the Katsura Imperial Villa (桂離宮）in Kyoto

2011-12-12T23:36:00.013+09:00

The Katsura Imperial Villa (桂離宮：also known as the Katsura Detached Palace) is set in wooded surroundings within the ancient imperial capital, Kyoto. It is located on the west bank of the Katsura-River and is one of the finest and loveliest buildings and gardens Japan has ever produced. The villa, which was originally constructed for Prince Hachijo Toshihito （八条宮智仁親王） in the early 17th century,

The Secret Life of Plants －future possibilities of communicating with plants

2011-11-29T00:01:00.010+09:00

Many years ago I read The Secret Life of Plants by Peter Tompkins and Christopher Bird and found it very intriguing. Do you think plants that lack brains and nervous or sensory organs can feel? Most people think that animals are sentient but plants are not. The book however claims that plants experience emotions and thoughts and that plants can read human minds. The Washington Post and Newsweek

Eating Baku, eater of dreams - from Netsuke: The H.I.H. Prince Takamado Collection

2011-11-15T00:01:00.015+09:00

When you have a nightmare, what do you do when you wake up? I suppose most of you feel scared because of it. What if bad dreams could be eaten by the Eater of dreams? I imagine that many of you would be willing to cast them before the Eater as food. In Japan, a legendary creature called Baku has been believed to have the supernatural ability to devour bad dreams. On a lovely autumnal afternoon

Chrysanthemum Boy －chrysanthemum season has come

2011-11-01T00:09:00.006+09:00

Interestingly, chrysanthemum dew has been considered to confer perpetual youth and longevity (and sometimes immortality) in Japan as well as in China. Paradoxically, a dewdrop itself has always been a metaphor for an ephemeral life: Life like a falling dewdrop. The Chrysanthemum Boy(菊慈童 Kiku-jido in Japanese) you can see on the right is depicted on a maki-e tablet that I saw recently at Mitsui

Bittersweet October －autumn in the Shinjyuku Gyoen Gardens

2011-10-08T00:26:00.026+09:00

With each rainfall, autumn deepens. The crisp air is now redolent with the sweet scent of fragrant olive blossoms. Two types of fragrant olive can often be seen in my neighborhood; one blooms with gold-colored blossoms called Kin-mokusei (gold fragrant olives) and the other blooms with cream-colored blossoms called Gin-mokusei (Silver fragrant olives). In the Shinjyuku Gyoen Gardens I found the

The seven flowers of autumn - Aki-no-nanakusa(秋の七草）

2011-09-28T00:02:00.019+09:00

Seven, the fourth prime number, must have magic in it. I sometimes wonder why the number seven is so popular around the globe. The seven days of the week, the seven colors of the rainbow, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, etc.. In Japan Aki-no-nanakusa(秋の七草）, literally, the seven flowers of autumn, have been popular since the latter half of the eighth century when Manyo-shu( 万葉集：Collection of Ten

2011 Typhoon No.12 and No.15

2011-09-23T21:57:00.015+09:00

In September two typhoons hit Japan. On September 2 Typhoon 12 caused heavy damage mainly to Nara, Mie, and Wakayama prefectures in the southern part of the Kii Peninsula, leaving about 90 people dead or missing. The typhoons also caused deep-seated landslides in the mountainous areas which dammed up the streams there and formed ponds and small lakes. We are worried that these ponds and lakes

Tsumago-juku, an old post town - the flavor of the Edo period

2011-09-13T00:58:00.004+09:00

Like travelers did more than 150 years ago, we arrived on foot at a small town called Tsumago(妻籠）, which was a post town along the Nakasendo Road during the Edo period. "Is it a set for a historical drama?” Probably everyone who steps into the town would at first feel the same as I did and ask themselves this question. It looked like people from the Edo period could come out of the houses at

Walking the Nakasendo, the historical road connecting Edo to Kyoto

2011-09-05T00:23:00.006+09:00

"When you know the Universal Language, it’s easy to understand that someone in the world awaits you, whether it’s in the middle of the desert or in some great city." This passage from Paulo Coelho's The Alchemist, one of his international bestselling novels,　greatly enchanted me when I first read it when I was in high school. The book is a lovely fable about following your dreams. Ever since

Shrines and temples of Nikko －legacy of the Tokugawa Shogunate

2011-08-28T19:56:00.004+09:00

Life is like a long journey with a heavy burden. This is what Tokugawa Ieyasu ( 徳川家康 1542～1616 ）said in his old age. Ieyasu, the founder and the first Shogun of the Tokugawa Shogunate, was the last victor of the bloody civil wars that began in 1467. He created a foundation for peace internally and externally that lasted for about 250 years. The Edo period started when Ieyasu became Shogun in 1603

Travel to Nikko

2011-08-18T22:28:00.002+09:00

This summer is quite different from past summers because we have to save power as much as possible. I suppose the places where all of you live have weather forecasts and most of you check them in the morning. But do you check electricity (consumption) forecasts (Denki Yoho in Japanese)? I do so not only in the morning but also in the afternoon when electricity demand reaches a peak. Each

Grand wind chime market （風鈴市）

2011-07-19T00:13:00.001+09:00

Do you love listening to the tranquil sound of wind chimes? I do! The sound of a wind chime makes us feel cool on a hot summer day. When I was a kid, my Mom used to hang one under the eaves in summer. My sister and I would often fall asleep while listening to its sound in the afternoon. The breeze blew through the sudare, which is the Japanese name for a reed portiere, and a mosquito coil was

Summer exhibitions in Tokyo in 2011

2011-07-14T00:41:00.014+09:00

The rainy season is over and it is scorching hot in the daytime. On the streets, you can see many women putting up UV ray protection parasols. Since almost all the parasols, ( even one-coin<500 yen >ones )，have UV protection label, I suspect the UV coating on some of them may be useless. In spite of the sweltering heat, a lot of people are visiting museums in Tokyo from around the country, for a

Star Festival －Tanabata & celestial maidens in Japanese art

2011-07-04T23:22:00.017+09:00

Many colorful tanzaku (slips of fancy paper) are hung from sticks of bamboo for the Tanabata Festival(Star Festival: July 7th) under the eaves of Tokyo Daijingu Shrine. Wishes and prayers are written on them. In spite of its small scale, the shrine, which is a branch of Ise Jingu Shrine, is popular with young women as a place to worship a powerful matchmaking god in Tokyo. The bamboo leaves

Who would believe that such pleasure could come from a wee ball o' fur?

2011-06-27T00:06:00.002+09:00

On rainy days, I am often reminded of my former cat, Miichan. She passed away about a year ago. When she was a stray before she came to my house, I would often see her up on a thick branch of one of the huge camphor trees taking shelter from the rain. Ａfter the rain, I sometimes came across her sipping water from a tiny pool the rain had left. It has rained a lot since early June. I still miss

Hydrangeas in the forests of Mt. Rokko

2011-06-26T23:34:00.016+09:00

Hydrangeas are at present beautifully in bloom on Rokko-san(Mt. Rokko) in Kobe, my hometown. The hydrangea is also the official flower of the city. Enjoy these gem-like flowers! phantom mountain hydrangea flowers, Shichidan(七段花） Mountain hydrangeas ↓　↑ Rokko-san is actually a group of mountains called the Rokko mountains (the highest peak: 931m) and they are a part of the Seto Inland

The rainy season －hydrangeas and irises are in bloom

2011-06-18T16:00:00.013+09:00

The rainy season has come and it rains almost every day. Sometimes it drizzles all day and sometimes it comes down in buckets. We are concerned about torrential rains which may cause further disasters to Tohoku, an already affected area. No more disasters there! No more! Because of the rain, June flowers, hydrangeas and irises are now in full bloom around the country. As for hydrangeas, they have

Visiting the studio of Suminagashi maestro

2011-06-11T23:30:00.010+09:00

Today colors and designs can be created on a computer screen as you like without much difficulty. We live in a digital world, and designs created not solely by humans but in collaboration with water look very new and attractive. by Takahashi Takayuki 　 photo: Ginza Motoji (kimono fabric shop) *1 I visited the studio of the dyeing maestro, Mr. Takahashi Takayuki (高橋孝之） the other day in

The protector of cedar forests

2011-06-04T21:25:00.009+09:00

Whenever I walk through cedar forests or come across giant cedar trees, I find myself thinking of Humbaba ( who is also known as Huwawa ), the monstrous guardian spirit of the Cedar Forest where the gods lived. Humbaba is featured in the Epic of Gilgamesh in Sumerian/ Babylonian mythologies which contain the well known flood myths. I have been a big fan of Humbaba since childhood. I think one

Mt.Fuji morning shots

2011-05-27T01:32:00.008+09:00

The faint light silhouetted the outline of Mt. Fuji. Its snow-capped summit across the lake soared high above the clouds. The forests and village at the foot of the mountain were veiled in a dense fog. The whole world was peaceful and shaded bluish-monochrome. It was calm, very calm before dawn. Seeing this, I felt like I wandered off into another dimension. Lake Kawaguchi in Yamanashi

Alike in composition, unlike in meaning

2011-05-20T00:01:00.006+09:00

Interestingly, something that has one meaning in one culture, can have a completely different meaning in another. One such striking difference in meaning which can be found between the West and the East is about the legendary creatures, dragons, otherwise known as lóng. When I saw this beautiful painting by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo (1696–1770) on Aputsiaq 's blog, I doubted if the lady riding

Revival of the fallen Great Gingko in Kamakura

2011-05-14T02:50:00.007+09:00

Many yellow green shoots are now growing heavenward from a big ginkgo pollard which almost looks like an abstract art piece. The pollard, the cut trunk of the fallen Sacred Ginkgo, was transplanted to its present place last year. It must have taken root properly and the transplantation that was thought to be very difficult at first looks quite successful. On its right, more than ten sprouts with

May flowers and blossoms in Kamakura

2011-05-06T20:59:00.002+09:00

Kamakura, a small coastal city about 25 minutes by train from Tokyo Station, was once the political center of Japan. It was the seat of the first samurai (military) government for about 150 years from 1185/1192 to 1333 ( the Kamakura period ) though the emperors and aristocrats remained in Kyoto, which was the capital back then. Hasedera Iris japonica I love to walk around Kamakura, as it

Coloring Mandalas

2011-05-03T00:47:00.006+09:00

Do you remember the days when you were absorbed in coloring pictures? From the ages of 4～9, I would often do coloring. Do you sometimes still do coloring now? I certainly hope not. I feel a bit embarrassed to tell you that I sometimes do coloring at my age. You may think that I am childish. Strangely enough, coloring has been popular among ADULTS in recent years in Japan. Many coloring books

The season of fresh green foliage - traditional colors affect you

2011-04-27T22:11:00.022+09:00

The season of new green leaves has come. Mountains and hills are turning fresh green and we can see many different hues of green in nature. Filled with a breath of spring, maple tress are now entertaining us with their shining yellow green leaves. They look so delicate! The color of the leaves is called "ki-midori: yellow green” or sometimes "waka-midori: young green” depending on their hue.

Infatuated with gardening - brief notes about gardening in the Edo period

2011-04-19T01:26:00.016+09:00

Many of you probably buy some seeds and seedlings of new plants for your gardens at this time of the year. Isn’t it fun to look for them among various kinds of plants at garden stores? What I picked out for a terracotta pot yesterday are Petunias. I hope they will grow, be healthy, and bloom with lots more pretty flowers. 「芝居絵　一寸徳衛　市川門之助」 by kitao Masanobu(北尾政演), Natural History Museum and

Cherry blossom season 2011 －cherry blossoms are at their best

2011-04-10T22:30:00.010+09:00

Cherry blossom season has come. I particularly love this time of the year when the sun is warm and a cool spring breeze blows now and then and sends cherry blossoms fluttering. Somei Yoshino Koshino Higashi Saigyo(西行 1118 – March 23, 1190), my favorite 12th century waka-poet wrote numerous waka- poems on Sakura (cherry blossoms). Let me die in spring under the blossoming cherry trees. Let it

Nightscapes in the woodblock prints(Meiji, Taisho, Showa periods) － how I feel about the recent blackouts

2011-04-04T18:35:00.001+09:00

The moon shedding its sweet light into dark rooms and a family get-together with a candle-lit supper might sound atmospheric to you. They are so-called “scheduled rolling blackouts” and they have been brought to us recently. Evening at Itako, Kawase Hasui（川瀬巴水1883～ 1957） Hasui-blue is lovely! I suppose you have experienced a blackout for some reasons. How did you feel when the power

Signs of Hope after the Great Tohoku Earthquake

2011-03-22T22:43:00.007+09:00

11 days after the Earthquake and Tsunami, there are signs of hope in the affected area of Tohoku. One bit of good news is that the construction of regular relocation facilities has begun and 30,000 houses will be completed in two months. There are also plans to build 2,800 more. Furthermore, other prefectures such as Tokyo, Saitama, Hyogo, etc. have announced that they will take in refugees

The Great Tohoku Earthquake

2011-03-15T18:07:00.011+09:00

As you have already heard on the news, a massive earthquake of a magnitude of 9.0 and a giant tsunami of a height of more than 10 meters (33 feet) hit the extensive area of Tohoku, north east Japan, on the afternoon of last Friday, March 11. I'm really sorry that so many lives were lost and a great many people are missing still now. I was so sad and shocked by the incredibly devastating damage

The Hirayama Ikuo exhibition - depicting the far away Silk Road

2011-03-09T21:27:00.005+09:00

The evening sun colors the Deccan Plateau, and the moonlit Nalanda ruins awaken out of oblivion. An ancient caravan travels on camel back across the desert, and the snow-capped Qilian Mountains soar to the sky. There is definitely something that stirs our souls in these landscapes that Hirayama Ikuo (平山郁夫:1930~2003), one of the most well-known Japanese Nihon-ga(Japanese-style) painters, drew of

The Big Doll Festival in Katsuura －"Katsuura Big Hinamatsuri"

2011-03-01T10:57:00.005+09:00

Katsuura, a small fishing town at the tip of the Boso peninsula on the Pacific coast, is now sparkling with colorful Hina dolls. They are on display throughout the town for Hina-matsuri, the Doll Festival, from February 19 to March 3. The number of dolls is too huge to count. Almost all the shops in town have them on display. What's more, the post office and banks are decorated with them. People

Mothra, queen moth －Legacy from silk culture(raising silkworms)

2011-02-21T22:30:00.010+09:00

An odd egg-like object can be seen in the distance from the square in front of JR Takada-no-baba Station in Tokyo. When I saw it for the first time, it was poking the sky in the evening twilight. The entire scene had an unworldly atmosphere. “Is that Mothra’s egg?” This was my first impression. I later found out that many people around me described the object in almost the same way. Mothra

Spring Festival in Kobe Chinatown

2011-02-14T08:47:00.004+09:00

The Chinatown(神戸南京町）in Kobe is the second largest Chinatown in Japan. A Chinese New Year Festival or Spring Festival was grandly held there from February 3 to 6. Though the Chinatown is not as large and gorgeous as the one in Yokohama, its Chinese food is exquisitely delicious! The 2011 Chinese New Year started on February 4. This date is based on the lunar calendar, the lunisolar one to be

Treasure box of blogposts and orchids

2011-02-08T17:35:00.010+09:00

The second anniversary of my blog will soon come. Thank you so much all of you for supporting and encouraging me so far! I wrote the post “Gift from blogging -exploring the unknown and reviewing the known” for my first anniversary last year. Since then, I’ve discovered more blogs and I’ve enjoyed them a lot. The list you can see below is a collection of some beautiful posts which I'm very

Using cat paintings to rat proof - cat painters in Edo

2011-01-28T21:51:00.006+09:00

"When the cat's away, the mice will play." This saying must have hit home with people in the Edo period(1603~1868), who were worried about harm from mice and rats. Without poison and adhesive tape methods, they must have wished for the cats’ constant presence and their tireless vigilance against the long-tailed rodents in their homes. Kakurezato(Secret den), Utagawa Kuniteru(歌川国輝）, Edo period

Early bloomers －Ume blossoms and winter tree peonies

2011-01-17T08:36:00.013+09:00

Early in the New Year at many museums in Japan, you can find beautiful Ume trees, Prunus mumes, or Japanese apricots, flowering in the paintings as well as on the artifacts and kimonos of their collections. Even the sweets at the Museums’ cafes have Ume designs. It seems to be an annual ritual for them to imposingly display the works of art with Ume motifs to celebrate a New Year, for Ume have

Happy New Year! A new cat has arrived!

2011-01-04T22:53:00.010+09:00

2011, the year of the rabbit, has started! We can see lots of rabbit ornaments as well as New Year's decorations here and there in town. I’ve placed a clay rabbit on a shelf beside a vase of flowers at home. At Tokyo National Museum, many beautiful artifacts with rabbit designs are now on display to celebrate the New Year. The Moon and Rabbits (detail) Utagawa Hiroshige(1797 - 1858)

Season's greetings

2010-12-21T21:31:00.004+09:00

May your holidays be rich in love and friendship, and the year ahead be filled with joy and peace! 2011: The year of the Rabbit See you again in January!

Brief notes about egrets in Japanese culture

2010-12-14T18:34:00.007+09:00

In the evening glow a white egret is perched on a short pole in the river. I suppose this bird must be a type of egret(sagi in Japanese). I luckily had a chance to take the photo of this guy, for in modern cities we can scarcely see egrets which were once very common birds all around the country and also in Edo(Tokyo). Edo, in fact a kind of urban city at that time, was quite different from

The last glow of autumn

2010-11-27T10:54:00.003+09:00

Autumn is leaving. Leaves are now falling and the sidewalks and parks are covered with fallen leaves. The red, brown, yellow, and golden autumn leaves are so lovely that I sometimes hesitate to step on them. If you prerer, please read the page while listening to Pachelbel's Canon. I wanted to visit Kyoto, our old capital, to see red maple leaves in late fall, as Kyoto is

Duncan Jones' Moon & Henri Rousseau’s moons

2010-11-19T21:30:00.004+09:00

Duncan Jones’ Moon, a 2009 British science fiction film which I saw recently on DVD, is pretty interesting! The story which is set in the not too distant future on the far side of the moon is about a lonely lunar miner who makes a horrifying discovery. This stylistic, smart and thrilling film, though a little retro-flavored, has no guns, no violence, and no frightening aliens. If you are fed up

Chrysanthemums in bloom & Japanese autumn sweets

2010-11-07T20:42:00.010+09:00

Chrysanthemum season has come. At present, various kinds of mums are in bloom all around the country. When I was back in my hometown, Kobe, recently, I had a chance to visit Sorakuen Garden where the Kobe Chrysanthemum Festival was being held. Although the mums in the garden had not reached full bloom, they were quite pretty. My dad, who passed away 15 years ago, loved to take his family

Can Maneki-neko, lucky cats, bring you a good match!? Imado Shrine in Asakusa

2010-10-25T23:03:00.005+09:00

Two huge cats beckoning with upright paws sat on the terrace of the Imado Shrine in Asakusa in Tokyo. They were maneki-neko or lucky cats. Japanese Shinto shrines usually have a pair of A-hum koma-inu or lion-dogs at their gates and in their premises. I wondered why the shrine placed these cats on the terrace in addition to the lion-dogs which were in the premises. It was an uncommon scene to

A dragon or ryu showed up over the Lake Ashi & Hakone Glass Forest

2010-10-13T23:30:00.006+09:00

A small gray dragon had wound itself around the stem of the goblet. The wine-red cup above was decorated with fine glass lace-work. In the dim light, the goblet, which was created on Murano Island in Venice in the 19th century, lay alone near the exit of the Hakone Glass Museum. It was so lovely that I was fascinated by its exquisiteness for a while. It was one of the masterpieces of Murano

Can flowers get drunk? - Hibiscus mutabilis 'Versicolor' -

2010-10-01T10:40:00.002+09:00

The flowers of Sui-fuyo( 酔芙蓉 Hibiscus mutabilis 'Versicolor' ), a type of cotton rose/confederate rose, are very mysterious because they change colors little by little from pure white to deep pink in a day as time advances. Sui-fuyo literally means “drunken cotton roses/confederate roses”. They are called drunken flowers because they turn red just like Asian people do when they get drunk. I

The Uemura Shōen Exhibition －exquisite beauty expressed－

2010-09-22T23:35:00.006+09:00

The true, the good and the beautiful are what Uemura Shōen (上村松園 1875 - 1949）, the Japanese painter, explored in her "Bijinga” paintings. “Bijinga”, literally “pictures of beautiful women” is a genre in Japanese art, which is generally descended from ukiyo-e woodblock prints of the Edo period. It was established as an art movement in the latter half of the Meiji period (1868~1912) by Uemura

The sea of jellyfish

2010-09-11T15:11:00.003+09:00

Late in August a lonely watchtower stands on a beach. No swimmers can be seen in the sea. Waves are breaking and recedingbeating the steady rhythm of the sea. A dad and his children are playing in the waves. Their shouts are drowned out by the boom of the sea. The bright sun is high in the sky on the last Sunday of August. The sea is filled with jellyfish.They are innocently at play in

Animals, ghosts and Yōkai depicted in Ukiyo-e

2010-09-01T10:10:00.010+09:00

It has been extremely hot after the rainy season in Japan and more than 300 people have died of heat stroke so far. Yesterday afternoon the mercury hit 35℃(95F) but it was not as hot here as it was in some other areas where the temperature has reached as high as 37℃(99F). Indian oleander flowers This heat has continued for more than three weeks. As a matter of course, rehydration and air

Cat stationmaster, Tama

2010-08-20T22:10:00.008+09:00

Sometimes funny extraordinary ideas have led businesses to success. And so has what was originally a mere inspiration of Mitsunobu Kojima, the president of a small Japanese railway company called Wakayama Electric Railway Co. The railway runs in the rural depopulated areas of Wakayama Prefecture. Stationmaster, Tama photo from Wikipedia Upon seeing Tama, a female cat, for the first time in

Walking in Oze Marsh

2010-08-11T09:30:00.007+09:00

Oze National Park, where we went on a hike during our holiday, is renowned for its beautiful highland marshes. Although there are many interesting walking trails and mountain climbing courses, we took an easy course for beginners because it was the first time for us and we didn’t want to become lost when exploring deep in the marshland. To tell you the truth, we were a little afraid of coming

A-hum dragons and Zen gardens in the Kenninji-temple in Kyoto

2010-08-03T21:45:00.012+09:00

With protruding horns and barbells and large round eyes staring to its left, the dragon in the monochrome shades of ink looked humorous in spite of its majestic figure. The dragon is called ”Un-ryu（雲龍）, a flying dragon in clouds”. It looked stylish as well. It was originally painted in the 16th century by Kaihō Yūshō（海北友松　1533-1615 ） on the four fusumas (sliding partitions), in the

Wonders of alien places

2010-07-12T12:32:00.013+09:00

July 7th was Tanabata, the Star Festival in Japan. Unfortunately, it was rainy so I could not see two bright stars; Orihime(Vega of Lyra) and Hikoboshi(Altair of the Eagle) on opposite sides of the Milky Way. In our legends they are lovers. You can read about their romance in my post of last July here. Speaking of the night sky, I’ve found some wonderful images on the NASA’s website: One is

Savoring "One Hundred Years of Solitude" & Umeshu, a type of fruit liqueur

2010-07-04T22:00:00.007+09:00

"One Hundred Years of Solitude: Cien Años de Soledad” is a well-known novel written by the Colombian novelist, Gabriel Garcia Márquez. It is one of my favorite novels and I like its title very much. Don’t you think the title is romantic? As I’ve been fascinated by the title for a long time, the Shōchū (a distilled beverage native to Japan) called “Hyakunen no Kodoku: One Hundred Years of

Hope of giant Ginkgo reviving -Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gu Shrine in Kamakura

2010-06-26T10:20:00.008+09:00

Long time no update. It’s been pretty tough for the last month. My Mom got hospitalized and my old cat has been seriously ill. Fortunately, Mom has recovered and is out of the hospital. As for my cat, the vet does not think she will live out this summer. I hope she spends her last days as comfortably as possible at home. I’d like to write something pleasant and nice to cheer me up and lift our

A treasure trove of Japanese folk art - The Japan Folk Crafts Museum (Nihon Mingeikan)

2010-06-06T00:25:00.006+09:00

Yanagi Soetsu’s collection of daily use ordinary wares are far from glittery luxury items. Instead they are rich in simple beauty and unsophisticated elegance. In addition, they were not expensive at all when they were produced by anonymous crafts people in large quantities. You can see interesting regional differences in color, design, material, and production process. Pot, iron glaze pattern

Trip to Amatsu-Kominato, a small fishing town of legends

2010-05-26T21:25:00.007+09:00

A week after Golden week, a Japanese long holiday from April 29 to May 5, my family and I visited Amatsu-kominato, a small local fishing town at the southern edge of the Boso peninsula. The town is blessed with a mild climate, beaches with clear blue water, abundant seafood, historical sites, and hot springs. Let me show you around the town. Amatsu-Kominato is known as the birthplace of

The Age of female dragon slayers －Tim Burton’s “Alice in Wonderland”

2010-05-19T20:00:00.006+09:00

Recently I saw Tim Burton’s “Alice in Wonderland”. In this 3D movie, Alice is 19 years old. She again chases after a rabbit in a waistcoat, falls down a hole, and finds herself in a world called Underland, the world of her dreams. Its DVDs will be released on June 1, 2010. → 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　What surprised me the most was that Alice slays a dragon-like dreadful creature, Jabberwocky. I

Bride and groom in the Meiji Jingu Shrine

2010-05-08T20:51:00.007+09:00

If you visit Meiji Jingu Shrine(明治神宮） in Tokyo, you are likely to come across traditional Japanese wedding processions led by Shinto priests and shrine maidens. The shrine, located in the midst of the metropolis, is the shrine with the largest number of visitors in Japan and is the most popular shrine to hold a wedding ceremony in Shinto rites. I've heard that more than 10 couples a day have

Gift from blogging -exploring the unknown and reviewing the known

2010-04-30T21:15:00.010+09:00

The dazzling fresh green of spring is now enveloping our town. Young leaves are soft and tinted with a variety of green hues. I sometimes see large carp streamers( koi-nobori ) swimming in the sky. They are put up to celebrate the Boys’ Festival on May 5. by Utagawa Hiroshige, Edo period More than a year has passed since I began blogging. Thank you so much all of you for supporting and

Painting shells to play Ka-awase, a pairing game, on a spring day

2010-04-18T22:24:00.010+09:00

I found these tiny pink shells scattered here and there on the beach when I was walking with a good friend of mine who lives on Zushi coast. They are called sakura-gai, cherry shells(Nitidotellina nitidula). Looking just like babies’ teeny-weeny nails or cherry blossom petals, they are so delicate and cute. They can be found in Japan, Korea, and China. In Haikus, cherry shells are used to

Delight in springtime

2010-04-08T17:47:00.006+09:00

Spring is nature's way of saying, "Let's party!" ～Robin Williams. This is true. Now cherry blossoms, camellias, rape blossoms(mustards), daffodils, magnolias, dandelions, meadow-sweets, and quinces, etc. are blooming in symphony. And trees have all put forth their buds. April is a month when every plant is bursting with life. When we went on a hike to a hill in the Boso peninsula, on

Sakura - cherry blossoms in bloom!

2010-03-30T22:50:00.007+09:00

On March 22nd, the Meteorological Agency declared that sakura, cherry blossoms, had opened in Tokyo. It is an annual ritual for the agency to make this declaration when four or five blossoms of the cherry trees in Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo bloom. It was reported throughout Japan as a top news item of the day. Interestingly, cherry blossom news is always given the highest priority over political

The fascination of rich colors and monochrome ink- The Hasegawa Tohaku Exhibition

2010-03-20T02:14:00.008+09:00

When El Greco(1541-1614), the first great genius of the Spanish School in the late Renaissance, was enjoying his painting career in the Spanish court, on the opposite side of the Earth, Hasegawa Tohaku(1539-1610), was developing his gifts of creating colorful paintings on gold backgrounds and of monochrome ink paintings in the Japanese art world. Maple, Hasegawa Tohaku, 1592Four panels, ink,

Nabemono - Enjoying this Japanese steamboat dish on a cold day

2010-03-11T15:53:00.005+09:00

Walking around the neighborhood in early spring, you can smell the scent of winter daphnes(daphne odora) wafting in the air. It smells so sweet and fragrant. The blossoms of winter daphnes which are native to the Himalayas, are just like Ume blossoms, harbingers of spring. After the rain, the moisture laden air makes the scent even stronger. I love this plant and have one in my backyard. It is

Ume Blossoms in Bloom 　－ harbinger of spring

2010-03-02T22:00:00.022+09:00

Spring is just around the corner! Every year we know this because Ume blossoms begin to bloom. Ume(Prunus mume), or which are commonly known as Japanese apricots or Chinese plums are widely cultivated around the country. Koishikawa Koraku-en Park, which is next to Tokyo Dome where I went to see the orchid festival, has lots of Ume trees. This is a weeping Ume tree in full bloom. I at first

2010 International Orchid Festival

2010-02-20T14:08:00.009+09:00

The sweet scent of orchids filled the Tokyo Dome Stadium which is the home field of the Tokyo Yomiuri Giants, the 2009 Japanese championship winning baseball team. A number of large plates which were decorated with colorful orchids lined the road and formed a passage to the venue. The 2010 International Orchid Festival is now being held at the Tokyo Dome Stadium. As I was given a

Magical Salamanders

2010-02-11T14:16:00.003+09:00

Speaking of salamanders, which are amphibians like frogs and toads, what images do you have of them? Many of you who live in North America, may have seen mudpuppies, also called waterdogs, which are one species of salamanders which live in water. And in Europe you may have seen fire salamanders which live in the forests and hills. I’ve seen images of fire salamanders on the Internet and I found

Great Wave Coincidence -The Great Waves of Turner and Hokusai

2010-02-01T08:20:00.016+09:00

It is very interesting to find that J. M. W. Turner(1775 - 1851), an English romantic landscape painter, and Katsushika Hokusai (葛飾北斎 1760 – 1849), a Japanese artist and Ukiyo-e painter, created their works called "Great Waves" during approximately the same time period in 1831. Although the two artists didn't know each other and lived on opposite sides of the earth, they happened to draw their

Diamond Oceans Possible on Uranus, Neptune

2010-01-20T21:10:00.008+09:00

"Oceans of liquid diamond, filled with solid diamond icebergs, could exist on Neptune and Uranus….” This is something I recently read in a fascinating article in the discovery news. If this is true, what awesome oceans the two distant planets possibly have! Neptune from Voyager 2　photo by NASA You can read the article here ↓Diamond Oceans Possible on Uranus, Neptune : Discovery News Posted using

Zen Gardens in Tofuku-ji Temple in Kyoto

2010-01-11T21:30:00.005+09:00

To express water without using water. That’s the essence of Karesansui (枯山水), which is one of the Japanese gardening styles. The term Karesansui means dry landscapes or seascapes artistically represented using only rocks and sand. Karesansui gardens are often called Zen gardens in that simplicity and abstraction are featured. Zen gardens are not for strolling around but for watching and

Sand Fascination

2010-01-04T20:10:00.033+09:00

If a stranger comes up to you, shows you a book which is written in a mysterious language, and then he claims that the book is infinite “like the sands” and that it is impossible to open it twice in the same page, would you buy this strange book which seems to contain profound wisdom? Furthermore, neither sands nor this book has a beginning and an end. Thus begins "The Book of Sand”, a

The Power of Dogu: An exhibition of ceramic figures of ancient japan

2009-12-27T00:02:00.011+09:00

An ample female figure stands on short thick legs. Curving lines gently form a dogu woman who is titled “Jomon Venus”. What a powerful plump but small Venus! She looks like an earth mother who is pregnant and is about to give birth. 　Jomon Venus Middle Jomon (3000-2000BC) Tanabatake site, Nagano 　　 Chino City Board of Education Dogu（土偶）are human-shaped unglazed

Crop Circles and Rice Field Art

2009-12-06T00:47:00.008+09:00

One of the sites I always check before the harvest season has information about crop circles appearing from spring to autumn in fields. I like to see the stunning designs and the intricate and complex formations of the crop circles which are usually created in wheat fields in the UK on the Internet. photo from Wikipedia I’ve heard that most of them were man-made, probably by pranksters, however

Far East End Point of the Silk Road －Artworks from the Shosoin Treasure House

2009-11-25T22:45:00.020+09:00

A beautiful rosewood four-stringed lute, inlaid with white mother-of-pearl and red amber, jumped out at me . It was one of the Shosoin’s ancient musical instruments that I’d long wanted to see. Rosewood Chinese Lute with Mother-of-Pearl InalyNara period, 8th century The lute is thought to have been made in Tang China in the 8th century and the customer who ordered it is thought to have been

Ambassadors Travel in Style

2009-11-15T22:43:00.001+09:00

If you were a newly-appointed ambassador to Japan and were asked to choose between a classic horse drawn carriage or a fancy limousine for a ride to the Imperial Palace to present your credentials from the Head of state to the emperor, which one would you prefer? What would I choose ? Definitely the carriage! 　The only carriage I have ever ridden in is the pumpkin carriage of a merry-go-round.

Land of Chrysanthemums

2009-11-07T22:35:00.008+09:00

October and November are the months for chrysanthemums(kiku in Japanese) in Japan. Colorful mums are flowering here and there in my neighborhood. At this time of the year, lots of chrysanthemum festivals and exhibitions are being held around the country. I dropped in at one of the exhibitions on my way home from the office. On entering the site of Yushima Tenjin (Yushima Tenmangu Shrine) which

Where Budding Artists Hatch - Tokyo Design Festa

2009-10-31T00:10:00.008+09:00

The Tokyo Design Festa, a freestyle International Art Event open to all artists, was like a giant incubator where more than 8500 embryonic artists gathered together with their own original artworks. It was held from October 24th to 25th at the Tokyo Big Sight, the largest event hall in Japan. Tokyo Big Sight Of the artists who participated in it, I guess some will certainly hatch into birds,

Treasures of the Imperial Collections

2009-10-21T22:00:00.014+09:00

Majestic tigers roam in the woods, peacocks in old pine trees look down upon you, mythical phoenixes spread their shining wings, marine creatures rejoice in the sea, and a riotous profusion of seasonal flowers smile at you....... Chinese Lions (detail) by Kano Eitoku & Kano Tsunenobu, (Right)Azuchi-Momoyama period, 16th century (Left) Edo period, 17th century Sannomaru Shozokan(The Museum of

Muse Synchronicity - Winds of Change Shake Japan

2009-10-13T17:00:00.009+09:00

Muse is a very popular British band and their latest album, “The Resistance” was released on September 16th in Japan. I've heard it was released two days earlier in Europe on September 14th. Soon after its release, I bought the album. I was impressed by the operatic dynamics and I listened with a thrilled fascination. When I listened to the lyrics of the first track,"Uprising”, I was really

The Moon Viewing Festival and Moons in Ukiyo-e Woodblock Prints

2009-10-07T00:25:00.002+09:00

The mid-autumn full moon, which is also known as the harvest moon, came on the 3rd this month. I saw the beautiful full moon last Saturday night. Clouds sometimes came and went hiding the moon as if they were "giving us a chance to rest from looking at the moon” as Basho wrote in one of his haiku. The autumn air was clear and I enjoyed being bathed in the moonlight. Although, since I have been

Dragon Rider －An Impossible Dream? What's the Origin of Dragons 2

2009-09-27T21:00:00.009+09:00

Do you know that there have been many modern-day sightings of creatures that look like pterosaurs? Pterosaurs or winged reptiles that existed from the late Triassic to the end of the Cretaceous Period (220 to 65.5 million years ago) once ruled the Jurassic and Cretaceous skies. They are considered to have become extinct at the same time as the dinosaurs around 65 million years ago. Pterosaurs

Cosmos Butterflies

2009-09-20T23:55:00.012+09:00

The universe is full of magical things and the latest Hubble image of NGC 6302 (Butterfly Nebula, Bug Nebula) is a fascinating poem the universe has woven. NGC 6302, planetary nebula in Scorpius NASA, ESA, and the Hubble SM4 ERO Team NASA's Hubble Space Telescope is back in business and snapped this stunning shot. On September 9, 2009, the news section of the NASA website described this

My Cat and Cats in Ukiyo-e Woodblock Prints

2009-09-10T21:25:00.010+09:00

My old cat, Mie(mi:)chan, who I presume is 15 years old, has a kidney problem and is taken to the vet three times a month for a drip. She was a stray cat who prowled the neighborhood when we moved to our present house. As all of us had agreed to have a dog, we looked for a puppy in pet stores and made inquiries with dog breeders after the move. At that time we frequently saw her roaming around,

Late Summer in the Highlands

2009-09-04T23:59:00.021+09:00

Late in August, I stayed in the highlands in Nagano for some time with my family. While I was there I took a long walk through the larch woods. The air there was crisp and refreshing. Scattered in the woods were several ponds where I came across flocks of wild ducks with their babies. . This guy was intently searching for food by putting his head into the water. In one of the ponds I

Paul Gauguin Exhibition

2009-08-28T01:00:00.012+09:00

Currently, a Paul Gauguin Exhibition is being held at the National Museum of Modern Art in Tokyo. His masterpieces from several museums in Japan and overseas, including his very famous "Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going?" from the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston are on exhibit at the museum which is very near the Imperial Palace. The exhibition was pretty intense! Let me

Akashi Kaikyo Bridge, World's Longest Suspension Bridge

2009-08-21T22:05:00.020+09:00

Long time no update. During Obon/bon week I returned to my hometown and spent some time there. Since many people go back to their hometowns during the Bon period, trains, planes, and expressways are extremely crowded. We moved the trip forward so the Shinkansen bullet trains were not so crowded. During Bon week, people usually visit their ancestral graves, and so did we. After visiting our

Gardens in Kyoto

2009-08-07T08:45:00.029+09:00

Shortly after the Gion Festival, the number of people visiting the ancient capital of Kyoto dropped. Strangely, famous heritage sites and gardens were almost empty; the number of domestic tourists seemed to drastically decrease while tourists from abroad stood out, particularly, those from Europe with a Michelin Guide. It is extremely hot in summer in Japan and how to cool off on a hot summer

Lotus Pond in Kyoto　The Sacred Lotus is in Bloom

2009-07-30T20:25:00.008+09:00

Covered with leafy lotuses, the old pond of the Hokongoin Temple in Kyoto is calm and quiet. A dragonfly appears from the silence and settles on a white flower. Dew drops, caught in the breeze, roll and shine in the morning light. Don't scenes like this make you want to write a poem or haiku? I know they make me want to. Lotus flowers in a variety of colors were in bloom in the pond. Each

Are Henry Moore's Statues Safe? Hakone Open-Air Museum

2009-07-23T20:35:00.012+09:00

What do you think these are? These are Henry Moore's(1898-1986) bronze statues on display in the Hakone Open-Air Museum. Does the museum adopt satisfactory security measures to protect the statues in the grounds? I don't think so. I felt uneasy when I visited the Hakone Open-Air museum which has 26 of Henry Moore's artworks along with many masterpieces by world-famous modern sculptors,

The Dragon in the Lake　What's the Origin of Dragons? 1

2009-07-17T22:50:00.010+09:00

Kuzuryu Shrine on the shore of Lake Ashi (Ashinoko in Japanese) is a very small shrine where the Dragon god has been enshrined for over 1300 years. Kuzuryu means a nine-headed dragon or nine dragons. Located in a national park about two hours drive from Tokyo, the shrine is said to be the source of a lot of mystical energy and has very many visitors in spite of its small scale. The lane to

Casa Blanca White Lilies, a Prelude to Summer

2009-07-13T11:45:00.012+09:00

"If I had teeth of pearl and the breath of lilies..."　John Keats.　 Most lilies have a sweet scent, but Casa Blanca Oriental Lilies, in particular, give off an astonishingly divine perfume. Casa Blanca means 'White House' in Spanish. Casa Blanca Oriental Lilies( Lilium Casa Blanca) are currently flowering in my backyard. The white blooms are huge and wonderfully elegant. They are trouble

Tanabata, the Star Festival

2009-07-04T12:15:00.020+09:00

Have you ever wished upon a star? If so, then did your wish come true? My mother says that when I was a child, I would often tell her my dream of becoming an astronaut when looking up into the night sky. Astronaut? Because I often said this, she must have secretly expected me to become a scientist or something interesting. Look. What's become of me? O Poor Mother! I hope she didn't think this

Irises in Early Summer

2009-06-27T09:22:00.010+09:00

In Itako, a riverside district of the Tone River, narrow waterways, or canals, stretch around the city. In former days, the waterways served the function of roads and the banks of the waterways were connected by a number of tiny bridges. Some of the bridges still remain today. It was fun to sail along the riverside where irises, hydrangeas, and pink ice plants were blooming on the banks.

Rainy Day in June

2009-06-20T22:30:00.014+09:00

The rainy season has begun and it rains almost everyday. Sometimes it drizzles all day, sometimes it drizzles off and on, and sometimes there is torrential rain and thunderstorms. This is distinctive of June and early July in our country from time immemorial and it was the same in the Edo period (1603-1867). You can see how the rains lend a fantastic atmosphere to the "Ukiyo-e" woodblock prints

The Hydrangea Concerto

2009-06-11T20:19:00.001+09:00

Hydrangea season has come. That is, the rainy season is just around the corner. Now, lots of hydrangeas of various colors and types are flowering beautifully in my neighborhood. I have white and blue ones in my backyard. The most widely grown or cultivated hydrangeas in the world are Hydrangea macrophyllas which are native to our country and are a symbol of the rainy season. I love the misty

Pig-Dragon and the Dragon of Marduk　－Earliest Dragons in the Orient

2009-06-06T13:00:00.019+09:00

Where did dragons, those mythical/hypothetical creatures, come from? I sometimes think about this when looking at the drawings and sculptures of them. Maybe it's a waste of time to ponder over such unrealistic fluff, but I can't help it. What are they really? Of dragons, oriental dragons in particular have been described in most cases as good beings with charismatic charms and they have kindled