Tuesday, 11 October 2011
Free tickets to J-land. Whoay! What’s the catch?
10,000 will be given away. Just sign up and if you happen to be one of the chosen ones, you’ll get a return ticket next April to J-land. All you have to do in return is write up a report of your trip. Kind of like being a ‘Wish you were here’ presenter, huh? Without it being televised of course. Well, don't just sit there! Check out the article.
Wednesday, 13 October 2010
Little World
I believe the whole concept of this resort is to bring the world here in J-land instead of physically travelling. I must admit the place needs some polishing. The condition of some of the facilities and attractions are either old or just plain out-of-date. Apparently from my source, Little World has been running for years – probably more than 25 years. In that respect, it has been loved. And therefore it works and to some extent, it’s still acceptable (just check some of the pics I took). There are buildings replicated or rebuilt from its original state. As I mentioned before, one doesn’t need to pay for one's airline ticket to see Peru, Indonesia or Germany. However, the admission will dent your wallet a mere 1,500 JPY per adult. If you’re lucky, some periodicals offer a bit of discount. So if you want to see the world, this place would offer something but very little I'm afraid. Well in that tone, at least the name somewhat reflects its philosophy.
Wednesday, 6 October 2010
Early Autumn
We just had the hottest ever summer in J-land. So you can imagine, autumn is a welcome change. Days are getting cooler and cooler. Don't you just love it.
Wednesday, 17 March 2010
Springtime.. Oh, yes!
Spring is around the corner… or is it?
All the signs are there from the scent of すいせん suisen (daffodils) to sunnier and longer days. April is here, finally.
So what’s on the agenda in J-land:
The main thing this time of year is the はなみ hanami (flower viewing) season. To enjoy this moment, all you have to do is grab yourself some びる biru (beer) or any さけ sake (alcohol) and have it under the さくらのき sakura no ki (cherry blossom trees), and have a light conversation with your friends. However, I advise you to bring a light jacket because it gets really nippy at night. So, when is the best time? Well, it’s between the end of March to the beginning of April. さくら (cherry blossom) is very sensitive so it’s best to follow the weather reports on the telly or newspapers first before heading off to see it.
April Fools Day, 1st April in Japan is fairly strange. J-peeps understand the concept of it but they haven’t actually grasped it in practice. Back home, in Blighty, pranks are used to the max but here it has very little or no effect at all. There maybe cultural differences but I can assure you J-peeps are good as using puns as the Brits.
Earth Day, 22nd April. I got this date online in fact. But I’m not 100% sure when it’s on in J-land as I believe it coincides Mother’s Day, which is in May. I had to mention this because there are various Earth Day events each year in Japan. It is usually in spring or summer.
Showa Day, 29th April is what everyone is waiting for, the first day of Golden Week. It also means heavy traffic and what I call ‘people-overload’ on public transport and in major tourist attractions.
All the signs are there from the scent of すいせん suisen (daffodils) to sunnier and longer days. April is here, finally.
So what’s on the agenda in J-land:
The main thing this time of year is the はなみ hanami (flower viewing) season. To enjoy this moment, all you have to do is grab yourself some びる biru (beer) or any さけ sake (alcohol) and have it under the さくらのき sakura no ki (cherry blossom trees), and have a light conversation with your friends. However, I advise you to bring a light jacket because it gets really nippy at night. So, when is the best time? Well, it’s between the end of March to the beginning of April. さくら (cherry blossom) is very sensitive so it’s best to follow the weather reports on the telly or newspapers first before heading off to see it.
April Fools Day, 1st April in Japan is fairly strange. J-peeps understand the concept of it but they haven’t actually grasped it in practice. Back home, in Blighty, pranks are used to the max but here it has very little or no effect at all. There maybe cultural differences but I can assure you J-peeps are good as using puns as the Brits.
Earth Day, 22nd April. I got this date online in fact. But I’m not 100% sure when it’s on in J-land as I believe it coincides Mother’s Day, which is in May. I had to mention this because there are various Earth Day events each year in Japan. It is usually in spring or summer.
Showa Day, 29th April is what everyone is waiting for, the first day of Golden Week. It also means heavy traffic and what I call ‘people-overload’ on public transport and in major tourist attractions.
Wednesday, 17 February 2010
Let's throw beans
Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!
Setsubun, bean-throwing festival/ceremony, is celebrated across Japan on 3rd Feb. And understandably, it has its variations. But for the most, at their homes, people will chant the words “Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!” (Demons out! Luck in!) and throw fukumame (roasted soybeans) to the Oni (which is usually acted by the head of the household where an Oni mask is used) and outside the window. The bean throwing ritual (mamemaki) denotes cleansing and in the past, as it was followed in the lunar calendar, this day was celebrated like New Year’s Eve. And thereafter, due to its popularity, it’s now customary to eat ehomaki (an uncut makizushi) while facing the yearly lucky direction (depending on the zodiac animal of the year). As this is year is the year of the tiger, one had to eat it while facing, as said by a Japanese colleague, “west, southwest”. And after much deliberation, we both agreed on an 8 o’clock direction. Apparently, the gods are there. Strangely enough, everyone in Japan seems to know this piece of information. And another, one must eat it in peace. No chatting, no funny noises nor sounds. Otherwise, luck or rather your wish will not come to you.
Lastly, the next day is called risshun which means the first day of spring.
Setsubun, bean-throwing festival/ceremony, is celebrated across Japan on 3rd Feb. And understandably, it has its variations. But for the most, at their homes, people will chant the words “Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!” (Demons out! Luck in!) and throw fukumame (roasted soybeans) to the Oni (which is usually acted by the head of the household where an Oni mask is used) and outside the window. The bean throwing ritual (mamemaki) denotes cleansing and in the past, as it was followed in the lunar calendar, this day was celebrated like New Year’s Eve. And thereafter, due to its popularity, it’s now customary to eat ehomaki (an uncut makizushi) while facing the yearly lucky direction (depending on the zodiac animal of the year). As this is year is the year of the tiger, one had to eat it while facing, as said by a Japanese colleague, “west, southwest”. And after much deliberation, we both agreed on an 8 o’clock direction. Apparently, the gods are there. Strangely enough, everyone in Japan seems to know this piece of information. And another, one must eat it in peace. No chatting, no funny noises nor sounds. Otherwise, luck or rather your wish will not come to you.
Lastly, the next day is called risshun which means the first day of spring.
Sunday, 17 January 2010
Eto
Eto (as in Japanese animal zodiac) has twelve signs like the Western zodiac. The signs are yearly which come into 12-cycle. This year is the Year of the Tiger which is called とら tora (tiger). It symbolises family values and denotes forgiveness.
Thursday, 7 January 2010
Let there be 'cosplay!
Is this a message from the future? Well, one of the wackiest trends in Japan would have to be ‘cosplay’. The actual definition if we break it down is ‘costume play’ and it’s pronounced コスプレ, kosupure if you wanna be understood in J-land.
It is now perhaps one of Japan’s most popular arts. Yep, I said arts as it is classified as a type of performance art. It can be said that it is becoming a global phenomenon. Fans from all walks of life from school girls to fifty year old ojisans dress up in their favourite anime characters. Then, they’ll most likely act if they were the characters and fool around or go berserk. I'm telling you, they think they are some sort of superheroes. That’s where the art comes from. But one essential must have item to your collection of cosplay costumes would have to be wigs. And sales of wig are booming apparently. Before you queue up and order your wig size and choice of colour, all these are probably fairly unusual to the gaijin eyes. Don’t get me wrong, it is usually accepted here or considered ‘not unusual’ as one said. But others describe it as not normal nor abnormal so where does it belong exactly. Without a doubt with no particular genre, cosplay is branching out from cosplay English schools in Akihabara district to major cosplay events or even expo across the country or abroad where participants are entered to a free draw of who’s wearing the best cosplay costume of the day. So, what’s next? Who knows, maybe a cosplay World Cup? Don’t say I didn’t warn you.
It is now perhaps one of Japan’s most popular arts. Yep, I said arts as it is classified as a type of performance art. It can be said that it is becoming a global phenomenon. Fans from all walks of life from school girls to fifty year old ojisans dress up in their favourite anime characters. Then, they’ll most likely act if they were the characters and fool around or go berserk. I'm telling you, they think they are some sort of superheroes. That’s where the art comes from. But one essential must have item to your collection of cosplay costumes would have to be wigs. And sales of wig are booming apparently. Before you queue up and order your wig size and choice of colour, all these are probably fairly unusual to the gaijin eyes. Don’t get me wrong, it is usually accepted here or considered ‘not unusual’ as one said. But others describe it as not normal nor abnormal so where does it belong exactly. Without a doubt with no particular genre, cosplay is branching out from cosplay English schools in Akihabara district to major cosplay events or even expo across the country or abroad where participants are entered to a free draw of who’s wearing the best cosplay costume of the day. So, what’s next? Who knows, maybe a cosplay World Cup? Don’t say I didn’t warn you.
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