University of Tōkyō 東京大学

The University of Tōkyō, abbreviated as Todai, is a major research university that has five campuses in Hongo, Komaba, Kashiwa, Shirokane and Nakano and 10 faculties with a total of around 30,000 students, some 2,100 of them foreign (a large fraction by Japanese standards). While nearly all academic disciplines are taught at the university, it is perhaps best known for its faculties of law and literature.

Showa Day 昭和の日

Yesterday was Showa day a Japanese annual holiday and the birthday of former Emperor Showa (Hirohito). Showa was the reigning Emperor before, during and after World War II. The purpose of the holiday is to encourage public reflection on the turbulent 63 years of Hirohito's reign rather than glorifying the emperor himself. Did you spend anytime reflecting today?

Photograph on the University of Tōkyō Hongo campus.

Sanshiro Pond 三四郎池

Sanshiro Pond in the heart of Tōkyō University's Hongō campus which dates to 1615. The garden became known as one of the most beautiful gardens in Edo (now Tōkyō), with the traditional eight landscapes and eight borders and known for originality in artificial pond, hills, and pavilions. The pond's contours are in the shape of the character kokoro or shin (heart), and thus its official name is Ikutoku-en Shinjiike. The name Sanshiro comes from a novel of that name by Natsume Soseki set around Tōkyō University. The feeling of being in a city completely disappears as you wander into this tranquil spot.

Yanaka Cemetery 谷中霊園

I enjoy cemeteries, not as a morbid fascination, but for their silence, stillness, history and beauty. Humankind has lavished the dead with ornate structures and beautiful art, for instance the necropolis at the foot of Edinburgh castle in Scotland is an exceptional cemetery with lavish headstones some 30 feet tall and all excellent examples of dark and brooding baroque architecture. Yanaka Cemetery, a huge cemetery located north of Ueno in Tōkyō, is something else entirely. It is a gorgeous angular, organized, clean-lined garden populated with exquisite monuments which are, with rare exception, never more than 5 or 6 feet tall. Awe-inspiring not for their size and elaborateness, but for there tasteful simplicity and elegance. The cemetery is famous for its beautiful cherry blossoms that in April shade and blanket its 100 thousand square meters and 7 thousand graves. The cemetery has its own police station and a section dedicated to the Tokugawa clan, family of the 15 Tokugawa shoguns of Japan including the last shogun Tokugawa Yoshinobu, also known as Keiki. It’s also home to many famous Japanese luminaries, including the painter Yokoyama Taikan and the famous writer Ichiyo Higuchi (pictured on the 5000 yen note).

Tōkyō Sky Tree 東京スカイツリー

Tōkyō Sky Tree is a broadcasting, restaurant and observation tower under construction in the Sumida ward. As of 29 March 2010 it is the tallest artificial structure in Japan and when completed the tower will have a height of 634.00 m (2,080 ft) making it one of the tallest structures in the world. The current Tōkyō broadcasting tower, Tōkyō Tower, is not tall enough to give complete digital terrestrial television broadcasting coverage due to the construction of many nearby high-rise buildings.

Namjatown Magic Snow

Namco Namjatown is an indoor theme park in the Sunshine City shopping complex in east Ikebukuro, Tōkyō. Namco is a Japanese company best known for producing video games such as Pacman. However, the park itself does not focus on classic ventures but instead features themed dining including ice cream town, curry town and gyoza town, carnival-style games, a haunted house, and a line of character mascots exclusive to the park. On a hot day, or on a hectic day, or on any day, there’s nothing sweeter than cool, creamy ice cream; after all 'desserts' is just 'stressed' in reverse. While at ice cream town you can choose from Turkish soft cream, Italian gelato, Hokkaido ice cream crêpes or sweet named “Magic Snow.” Ice cream city is also the place to try some exotic ice cream flavors such as wasabi, potato, seafood, octopus, beef tongue, chargrilled seaweed and charcoal - just to name a few. Pictured is Magic Snow (shaved condensed frozen milk with a fruit topping) in the likeness of a Gintama anime character which was actually pretty bizarre in-so-far as I've never had anything like it. The texture is like cotton candy and melts on the tongue but the taste is different, it is subtle and pleasant - nom nom nom!

東京藝術劇場 Tōkyō Metropolitan Art Space

The Tōkyō Metropolitan Art Space is a Japanese concert hall and theater located in Ikebukuro. A recent addition to the Tōkyō music and drama scene, the largest hall with a capacity of 1999 features mainly orchestral concerts while the middle-sized hall hosts dramas, musicals, jazz and dance.

Tōkyō Street Art

Tōkyō street art in Shinjuku, the middle images are from an outside lift at Shinjuku station that has basically become a poster board for slaps.

Yabusame 流鏑馬 #1

The Yabusame Festival in Tokyo's Sumida Park is an impressive display of horseback archery. The fiendishly difficult ritual, a part of a Shinto rite, sees mounted archers wearing traditional hunting clothing of the Kamakura Period charge down a single narrow 208-meter-long track to shoot at three wooden targets arranged at certain intervals. It is believed that the sound of an arrow striking the wooden target transfers the courage of the archer to the audience. The archer mainly controls the horse with his knees, as he needs both hands to draw and shoot his bow. As he approaches a target, he brings his bow up and draws the arrow past his ear before letting the arrow fly with a deep shout. The arrow is blunt and turnip-shaped in order to make a louder sound when it strikes the board. If the board is struck, it will splinter and explode with a confetti-like shower of sakura petals as it falls to the ground. To hit all three targets is considered an admirable accomplishment.

Yabusame 流鏑馬 #2

There are two types of Yabusame: the one of the Kamakura Era is called Koshiki and the one of the Edo Era is called Kisha Hasamimonoshiki. The Shogun encouraged Yabusame as a necessary accomplishment of a samurai and at present, the head of the Ogasawara family holds these archery competitions in Kamakura, Nikko and Asakusa. Originally yabusame was designed as a way to please and entertain the myriad of gods that watch over Japan, thus encouraging their blessings for the prosperity of the land, the people, and the harvest. Pictured is an archer toward the end of the event dressed in ceremonial armor with bow unknocked and wrapped, a member of a parade ending with an awards ceremony.

Sensō-ji Pagoda & Sakura

Sensō-ji, a Buddhist temple dedicated to the bodhisattva Kannon who is associated with compassion. Dominating the entrance to the temple is the Kaminarimon or "Thunder Gate," this imposing Buddhist structure features a massive paper lantern dramatically painted in vivid red-and-black tones to suggest thunderclouds and lightning. Beyond the Kaminarimon is Nakamise-dori with its shops, followed by the Hōzōmon or "Treasure House Gate" which provides the entrance to the inner complex. Within the precincts stands this stately five-story pagoda and the main hall.

Sensō-ji 金龍山浅草寺

Massive cauldron of incense at the foot of the main hall of the Sensō-ji, a Buddhist temple in the Asakusa district of Tōkyō. Visitors waft the incense smoke, known as the "breath of the gods," over their heads endowing themselves with curative powers. Kōdō, the way of fragrance, is the Japanese art of appreciating incense and is counted as one of the three classical arts of refinement including chadō (way of tea) & kadō (way of flowers).

I breathe in the cool incense smoke from the metal brazier,

While thinking about a poem for my dear friend Lu Wa.

My sandalwood-hearted companion spits out plum blossoms of smoke,

Looking like the cloudy fog of the other world.

Perhaps it's the soul of my friend the old mountain man

In the smoke's dense patterns?

- Kan Po

Monkey Business

Road barriers from Rokkō Island, Ōsaka and Tōkyō adding a little cute to your daily construction delay induced commuter headaches. Fashioned like a monkey, frog and ???, well I actually have no idea what this last one is . . . any ideas? I personally think a pink elephant would be humorous especially if it was attached to the Japanese no drinking and driving campaign.

Super Dry Hall or Flamme d'Or

The Asahi Beer building located in Asakusa and conceived by interior designer turned architect Philippe Starck, is one of Tōkyō's most notable modern landmarks. It has earned itself several unflattering nicknames among those who disdain its flashy self-important style (one such name is "the golden turd" or kin no unchi) but it will please those who recognize its sleek modern flair. Perhaps most notable for the Asahi Flame, an enormous golden structure at the top, said to represent both the 'burning heart of Asahi beer' and a frothy head. The 360-ton golden flame was made by shipbuilders using submarine-construction techniques and is completely empty. The building itself is covered with highly polished black granite with small portholes for windows which are almost invisible from a distance. The walls of the building curve gently outward towards the top, creating in effect a giant pedestal or 'beer mug' for the gold flame on top.

Omotesando Hills 表参道ヒルズ

Omotesando Hills is a large shopping and residential development on Omotesando Avenue in Shibuya-ku, one of Tōkyō's top fashion streets. Designed by Architect Tadao Ando (Yumebutai), the development has come with some controversy: firstly, for turning its back on the Avenue and creating what its own developers describe as 'another Omotesando' within its interior. Secondly, the building replaced the Bauhaus-inspired Dōjunkai Aoyama Apartments built in 1927 after the 1923 Kantō earthquake. The destruction of the apartments raised questions about Tōkyō's interest in preserving historic buildings. A small section of the old apartments is reconstructed in the South-East part of the new complex. Inside, the mall descends several stories beneath ground, but maintains daylight from a glazed roof over the triangular atrium. The interior floors follow a spiral arrangement (in the shape of giant triangles) that compensate for the gradual slope of Omotesando Avenue. As one triangle is descended one story has been climbed, so if you start at the top you can wander around the whole center without using an escalator.

Happy Earth Day アースデー

View of the Suma coast from atop the Rokkō mountains gazing out toward the Akashi Kaikyo bridge. I just returned from a trip to Tōkyō where, on Sunday, witnessed Earth Day Tōkyō 2010 at Yoyogi Park. The event was quite large and very well attended with many booths and tents covering all manner of goods, services, and information covering the environment and the outdoors. The event especially stressed environmental friendliness and food self-sufficiency, as well as celebrating the 40th anniversary of the campaign, which originated in the United States. It was crowded and for the most part like most Earth Day events in America or Europe with people enjoying music, joining various environmentally friendly activities and sampling organic foods. Some notable exceptions, many of the attendees dressed the part essentially like hippies that were somehow also very stylish in a 'Japanese' manner accessorized with frisbees, foot bags and juggling. Secondly, most of the drinks and eats required renting dishes or providing your own so no wood, paper, or plastic was used and huge panels were situated on either side of the food court area that absorb heat from the sun and the energy captured was used to warm water for visitors to wash their dishes.

Taxi Cabs Japan タクシー

Queue of taxi cabs outside of the extremely posh Imperial hotel Ōsaka. Japan has an estimated 260,000 taxis operating nationwide working from 333 different companies, however, the connivence of taxis does not come cheap. While all Japanese taxis have meters, when the left rear passenger door automatically opens for you have 710 yen (+ ~100 yen/500 meters traveled) handy for the driver (tipping is not expected). A vacant taxi displays 空車 in the front window, if occupied 賃走, and each company uses its own design to identify its vehicles and its drivers; who are dressed in the company livery including a hat and white gloves. Oh, and don't try to open or close the door yourself - that can stress the mechanism and make for a very unhappy driver.

ミスタードーナツ Mister Donut

Once an American icon, until being purchased by Dunkin' Donuts, the Mister Donut franchise now operates mainly in Asian markets and is the largest donut chain operating in Japan. The taste of the doughnuts has been tailored to the Japanese palate and the selection is varied leading most patrons (in my observations) to enjoy three different doughnuts per visit. Not a huge fan of most american doughnuts, that are often very sweet and heavy, I find myself in the Mister Donut more often then I would like to admit. Mister Donut offers light and tasty regional and seasonal specials, mochi flower, green tea cake and sweet bean filled doughnuts - just to name a few.

life is a Rubbishy Beach

The environment at Suma Beach really contradicts some of my preconceived notions about Japan, I believed that the Japanese truly respect their natural environment and are a nation prided on cleanliness and orderly behavior. And for the most part those conceptions hold true, however, I have also found that sometimes a strong sense of indifference is payed to common public spaces. The gardens of every shrine you encounter are impeccably clean and even most city streets are remarkably tidy. The beach is a different story - it is full of treasures but is also full of trash: fast food wrappers, empty cans and bottles, turds, broken glass, rotting fruit, streamers of video tape, a hundred plastic bags and a thousand cigarette butts. Perhaps Suma Beach, or all beaches, are simply a pressure valve for Japanese. . . where they can strip off not just their clothes but also respect for their surroundings?

e-Mook

The magazine section of your local bookstore might have quite a few magazines, if it is a megastore perhaps even lots of them, however, the average bookstore in Japan has them beat. Every - very specific - subject of any kind has a magazine, and probably has three different ones. Many magazines attach freebies, but the king of these is the mook. Mook or e-mook is a word for magazine + book and are identified by their thick paper stock, catalogue like content layout and some included item usually wrapped inside. Some e-mook's are specific to particular brands, most of them release a new edition every season and many are highly collectable. Pictured is the MonoMax e-mook which includes a sharp little Fred Perry branded leather pouch.