Tsukiji Fish Market

I went to Tsukiji Fish Market where is very popular for visitors to Japan. There, you can hear very high spirited voices, see fresh fish being carried around and big tuna being cut into pieces. It is definitely something that you get not to see in everyday lives.

The strongest impression that I have of Tsukiji is that everyone is quite energetic! At first they seem upset yelling in such loud voices, they also laugh pretty hard too while cutting the fish very gracefully.

Everyone is full of energy and it seemed like it is not affected by the rest of the bad economy. I got tons of energy from the people here, thanks for everyone in Tsukiji Market! When I was having such a thought, someone on a cart said “Hey you! Get out of the way!!!” Whoops. I better watch myself here.

- Shoji

Horan-enya

On May 24 I went back to my hometown, Matsue (Shimane Prefecture), to see ‘Horan-enya’, one of the three Shinto boat festivals, along with the Miyajima Kangen Festival and the Osaka Tenjin Festival.

‘Horan-enya’ is dated back to 1648 when the Lord of Matsue Castle, Naomasa Matsudaira, became concerned about the poor harvest due to adverse weather conditions experienced that year. Lord Naomasa took steps to pray to the Inari Shrine for a bountiful harvest. The chief priest of the Inari Shrine suggested that the spirit of the Inari Shrine should travel on a boat to be transferred to the Ashitaka Shrine for a grand ceremony. When Lord Naomasa conducted the 7-day-long ceremony, his prayer was answered and Matsue had had great harvest for many years. The ceremony developed into a boat festival and took place every 12 years.

The name ‘Horan-enya’ comes from its chorus. On the boat a chorus leader would cry out ‘Hora’, and those rowing the boat would shout back ‘Enya’. As this festival is to pray for a bountiful harvest, people use various Kanji characters, many of which mean good fortune (prosperity, plentiful, rich, treasure, etc.) to the phonic sound of ‘Horan-enya’.

It was heavily raining, but more than 400 thousand people enjoyed the great performance of dancers and musicians on the 100 boats. When the festival ended at 6 p.m., the sky was cleared up and I saw a good omen of a bountiful harvest.

- Ayumi

In June it rains a lot.

However, it is also the month when my favorite flower “hydrangea” is in full bloom.
Last weekend I went to Ajisai-no-sato (Hydrangea Village) in Kaisei Town (near Odawara City). Here is a photo I took there.

- Sam

Sugamo

Harajuku is well known as a fashion town for young people, but there is also a “Harajuku” for elderly women (Obaa-chan). I was always interested in the town, so I went on the weekend.

Obaa-chan`s Harajuku is located near Sugamo Station (JR Yamanote Line), which is only about 15 minutes away from Shinjuku. After you get off from the station, there are many elderly women as well as men, and they all walk very slowly compared to people in Shinjuku.

“Sugamo Jizou-dori” shopping street is the shopping street in Sugamo. You can find a traditional guardian statue called “Togenuki Jizou”, which many people visit to pour water hoping to get rid of their bad qualities within them.

You can find many shops with traditional Japanese sweets and clothes for elderly people, but it was quite surprising to find Red underwear shop. Red underwear is thought to improve health, so maybe longevity of Japanese people is not only depended on healthy food?!

You can definitely see the different face of Tokyo in Sugamo. If you have time, please stop by!

- Yukie

Peace Tokyo in Futako-tamagawa

I went to Peace Tokyo in Futako-tamagawa this past weekend for my friend`s engagement party. Futako-tamagawa is located right next to Tamagawa River and about 15 min away from Shibuya. Although it was a bit cloudy and rainy most of the day, we had a nice view over the river and also to the other side of Kanagawa River. Peace Tokyo is only open from spring to end of November. It is such a perfect location to get away from concrete jungle in summer. If you want to simply enjoy sky, grass, and good vibe, I highly recommend this place.

Either on the way or on the way back, you can find some really sweet little shops at the back of Takashimaya Department store. I just stopped by at the flower shop, tiny n, that has lovely selections of unique and exotic flowers, but I hope to explore the area more next time. Seems like the area started to flourish about 3 years ago. If you are not interested in shopping, I recommend for you to enjoy hand-held hanabi (fire works) at the river side!

- Haruna

Nogeyama Zoo in Yokohama

There are many zoo in Japan, but it is hard to find one without an entrance fee. Nogeyama Zoo, which is only about 15 min. walk from JR Sakuragicho Station, in Yokohama is free and very useful when you are on a tight budget. Although it is free, it does not mean that they have fewer animals. There are about 100 types of animals amounting to 1416, including giraffes and lesser pandas! If you ever go to Yokohama, we highly recommend for you to stop by.

- Shoji

Reasons to Climb Mt. Fuji More Than Once

Reason 1: There is no guarantee that you can see Goraiko (sunrise).
Last summer I climbed Mt. Fuji half a dozen times and I was able to see the sunrise only twice.
Like many people, I climbed the mountain hoping to see Goraiko from the summit.
When I climbed the mountain for the first time, I was not able to see the sunrise due to bad weather.
In order to see the sunrise from the summit, I had to leave the mountain hut around midnight.
It rained all night.
By the time I got to the summit, my clothes, shoes and gloves were drenched, even though they were supposed to be rainproof.
The temperature at the summit is around 20 degrees Celsius lower than at the foot of the mountain.
You can imagine how freezing it was at the summit.

The weather in the mountains is unpredictable and changes rapidly.
I would say you will have less than 50 percent chance of seeing Goraiko.

Reason 2: You will have a different view from the summit each time you climb the mountain. (See photos.)

- Sam

Tsukiji Market & Sushi Making

We had a wonderful visitor to Tsukiji Walk & Making Sushi at Home at the end of April. Carmina`s experience can be read on her blog and also seen as a video (see below). It is always a great pleasure to see Japan from visitors` eyes.

I accompanied her on that day, but as you can see on her video, fast moving carts were really scary. Although the working people in Tsukiji seem occupied with work and often thought as rude and pushy, I found them rather welcoming.

Although I didn`t get to make the sushi, I was able to join participants in eating sushi at the end. Thanks to the wonderful supplier who is full of Japanese hospitality! As Carmina has said, this tour isn`t really a regular tour that you just go pass by the tourists spots, but it is a true experience by being an active participant.

Hope you will enjoy the video!

- Haruna

I went to an Anime museum in Suginami-ku, Tokyo

Not many people know about this Anime museum, but it`s free and also a great place to collect many information about Japanese animation history and recent animations. You will be surprised how much content the museum has for free! Even if you are not much of an anime lover, it is a must go.

When I visited, they were playing “Keroro-gunso” in the mini theater. I don`t have much chance to see animation recently, watching the anime made me think back to when I was a child and the time when I would watch TV for a long time without getting bored.

Recent anime are not only for children but are also entertaining for adults. Once you get hooked onto the anime world, you might not be able to get out of it. Take this opportunity to explore worldly known Japanese anime culture!

-Shoji

Cherry Blossoms at Odawara Castle

I went to Odawara Castle last week to see cherry blossoms.
As you can see in the photos I took, cherry blossoms there were quite spectacular. It may be too late to go and see cherry blossoms in the Tokyo area this year.

If you are in the Tokyo area next year during the sakura season, consider visiting Odawara Castle (about 2 hours by train from Tokyo).
The photos were taken on April 7, 2009.

- Sam