14 August, 2010: Otete & Anyo Stamps
Right before Kohaku was born, I saw a link to a company that makes Japanese style stamps from a scan of your baby’s hand or foot.
I decided to buy one hand stamp and one foot stamp, placed my order, and quickly received a response from the company (in English). They were great to work with and the stamps arrived earlier than expected (around 10 days). The stamps, when finished, are the exact size of your baby’s hand/foot, are beautifully crafted, engraved with your baby’s name/birth date, and come in a paulownia wood box.
They do deliver to other countries, can work with customers in English, and their site can be found is at:
www.oteteanyo.com/index_en.html
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27 February, 2010: Ume (Plum) Blossoms
Every year the pink and white ume (plum) flowers precede the sakura (cherry) blossoms across Japan and their arrival marks the final cold weeks of winter here in the Yokohama and Tokyo areas.
As they are some of the first colors seen each spring, they are often associated with the start of spring and, as such, the event is marked with festivals (ume matsuri) in gardens, parks, shrines and temples where vendors will set up stalls selling traditional festival foods and artisans playing traditional music on the samisen and koto.
Plum Blossoms at Sankeien Garden in Yokohama:
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Plum Blossoms at Sumida Park in Tokyo:
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07 February, 2010: Tokyo Rockabilly Club
Went back to Yoyogi park today to check out the Tokyo Rockabilly Club (東京ﾛｶﾋﾞﾘｰｸﾗﾌﾞ).
In Tokyo and Yokohama, there are certain roads that are closed for traffic on Sundays to compensate for the lack of city squares. This allows for relief from overcrowded sidewalks, in areas like the Ginza, and also allows space for street performers.
One area that is historically famous for these street performers is the Harajuku area of Tokyo. Here the performers became known as the Takenokozoku (Bamboo Shoot Children) and, in the 1980s, more and more young performers poured in. As word spread about the Takenokozoku the area became a hot spot for visitors and tourists alike. Eventually, in 1992, the area was eventually deemed to be to chaotic, noisy, and dangerous so the government put a stop to the Takenokozoku through the use of public announcements, enforcement of street performance laws, and, eventually, riot police.
Despite the crackdown in central Harajuku, some of the performers moved to nearby Jingubashi bridge (cosplayers) and others moved into Yoyogi park where they still gather every Sunday. The Tokyo Rockabilly Club is one of the groups that moved into the park and now every Sunday morning they gather at the park entrance, set up their music system, and dance until sundown.
When I went today, there were over 20 rockabillies out dancing, socializing, and rocking out to their brand of music. I have read reports that in the heyday of the Takenokozoku there were over 200 rockabillies in the area on Sundays, but, despite a decline in numbers, each and every Sunday they are still here doing their thing.
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30 January, 2010: Musicians in Yoyogi Park
Went with my wife and daughter to Yoyogi Park in Tokyo to see if there were any musicians and/or performers out in the nice weather we are currently having.
Yoyogi is one of the largest parks in Tokyo and is pretty easy to get to, as it is right next to Harajuku Station (There is also a Yoyogi station, but it is a longer walk to get to the park from there than it is from Harajuku).
Historically, the first successful powered aircraft flight in Japan occurred on the grounds where the park currently sits (December 19 1910, by Captain Yoshitoshi Tokugawa) and during the occupation after World War II it was the site of the Washington Heights residence for U.S. officers.
Now, the park is a popular spot for younger people on weekends and during a walk around the park you will usually see groups of people playing music, singing, performing martial arts, dancing, and holding small open air flea markets; as well as numerous families picnicking.
There are also used to be several large homeless/day-laborer camps around the park’s periphery, but now those areas are roped off, patrolled, and, while there are some homeless dotted around the park, the communities appear to be gone.
In the early 2000s there were several hundred (estimates range from 200-350) people living in semi-permanent encampments in Yoyogi Park, but, starting around 2007, the municipal government began a campaign clear out these encampments. As Yoyogi Park was designated as the site of a new 100,000 seat stadium if Tokyo was to win the 2016 Olympic games bid, and is also the site of the Yoyogi National Gymnasium from the 1964 Olympics, most feel that the efforts to clean up the park have been directly related to that bid.
As Tokyo has lost the bid for the Olympics, it will be interesting to see if the efforts to keep the encampments away will continue or whether the homeless will be allowed to move back into the park.
These are not homeless, but just some random people enjoying the day and playing music on the park benches:
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24 January, 2010: Tokyo Sumo Tournament Finals
Received 2 tickets to the 2010 January Grand Sumo Tournament finals on Sunday when a co-worker had a trip to Okinawa come up suddenly. This was my first time going to one of the national tournaments (I had seen local and high school tournaments before) and it was a blast.
The origins of Sumo are religious and the linkages to Shinto can still be readily seen from the design of the stadium, entrance of the wrestlers, and conductance of each match.
Most of the Shinto rites that you see in sumo are symbolic – from the sand that covers the clay of the dohyo (ring) symbolizing purity to the yakata (roof above the ring) being made in the style of a traditional Shinto shrine. Additionally, even the gyoji (referee) himself resembles a Shinto priest in his traditional robes.
Each day of the basho (tournament), a ring entering ceremony is held, wherein each wrestler’s body and spirit undergoes purification. For the pre-fight ceremony the rikishi (sumo wrestler) are organized into two groups—East and West—and each group takes a turn entering the ring.
The lowest-ranked rikishi enter first and walk a complete circle around the dohyo followed by the other rikishi in ascending order according the rank. Once the last in the group has been introduced, the rikishi, who are facing the spectators, turn inward and face each other around the dohyo. After clapping their hands, in unison, they raise their right hand, lift their kesho-mawashi (decorative aprons), and then raise both hands in unison. This is a symbolic gesture that historically was done to show each other that they are unarmed before wrestling.
The Yokozuna (highest ranked rikishi) are notably absent from the main groups as they must perform their own individual ceremonies. When a Yokozuna performs his pre-fight ceremony (see picture below), he will wear a white tsuna, or zuna (braided rope with five zig-zag strips hanging from the front ), around his waist to signify his rank.
Once the actual bouts begin, the two rikishi spend several minutes before their match lifting their legs high in the air and stomping them down, to scare away any demons and throw several handfuls of salt into the dohyo, to purify it before they fight.
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