Showing posts with label Tourism. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tourism. Show all posts
To protect Japan's cultural heritage, the country's government selects through the Agency for Cultural Affairs important items and designates them as Cultural Properties under the Law for the Protection of Cultural Properties. Designated items are classified in a number of categories one of which is Monuments (記念物 kinenbutsu?). This category includes historic locations such as shell mounds, ancient tombs, sites of palaces, sites of forts or castles, monumental dwelling houses and other sites of high historical or scientific value; gardens, bridges, gorges, mountains, and other places of great scenic beauty; and natural features such as animals, plants, and geological or mineral formations of high scientific value.
The government further designates "significant" monuments classifying them in three categories: Historic Sites (史跡 shiseki?), Places of Scenic Beauty (名勝 meishō?), and Natural Monuments (天然記念物 tennen kinenbutsu?). Items of particularly high significance receive higher classifications: Special Historic Sites (特別史跡 tokubetsu shiseki?), Special Places of Scenic Beauty (特別名勝 tokubetsu meishō?), and Special Natural Monuments (特別天然記念物 tokubetsu tennen kinenbutsu?) respectively. As of August 20, 2012 there are 919 Natural Monuments, 1632 Historic Sites, 333 Places of Scenic Beauty, 75 Special Natural Monuments, 61 Special Historic Sites and 36 Special Places of Scenic Beauty. Since a single item can fall under more than one of these categories, the total number of sites is less than the sum of designations.
4:41 AM
Tanabata (七夕, meaning "Evening of the seventh") is a Japanese star festival, originating from the Chinese Qixi Festival. It celebrates the meeting of the deities Orihime and Hikoboshi (represented by the stars Vega and Altair respectively). According to legend, the Milky Way separates these lovers, and they are allowed to meet only once a year on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month of the lunisolar calendar. The date of Tanabata varies by region of the country, but the first festivities begin on July 7 of the Gregorian calendar. The celebration is held at various days between July and August.

4:30 AM
Mangaka (漫画家) is the Japanese word for a comic artist or cartoonist. Outside of Japan, manga usually refers to a Japanese comic book and mangaka refers to the author of the manga, who is usually Japanese. As of 2006, about 3000 professional mangaka were working in Japan.
Most mangaka study at an art college, manga school, or take on an apprenticeship with another artist before entering the industry as a primary creator. More rarely a mangaka breaks into the industry directly, without previously being an assistant. For example, Naoko Takeuchi, author of Sailor Moon, won a contest sponsored by Kodansha, and manga pioneer Osamu Tezuka was first published while studying an unrelated degree, without ever working as an assistant.
A mangaka will rise to prominence through recognition of their ability when they spark the interest of institutions, individuals or a demographic of manga consumers. For example, there are contests which prospective mangaka may enter, sponsored by manga editors and publishers. They are also recognized for the number of manga they run at one time.
4:20 AM
Kabuki (歌舞伎) is a classical Japanese dance-drama. Kabuki theatre is known for the stylization of its drama and for the elaborate make-up worn by some of its performers.
The individual kanji, from left to right, mean sing (歌), dance (舞), and skill (伎). Kabuki is therefore sometimes translated as "the art of singing and dancing". These are, however, ateji characters which do not reflect actual etymology. The kanji of 'skill' generally refers to a performer in kabuki theatre. Since the word kabuki is believed to derive from the verb kabuku, meaning "to lean" or "to be out of the ordinary", kabuki can be interpreted as "avant-garde" or "bizarre" theatre.[1] The expression kabukimono (歌舞伎者) referred originally to those who were bizarrely dressed and swaggered on a street.

Famous plays

  • Kanadehon Chūshingura (Treasury of Loyal Retainers) is the famous story of the Forty-seven Ronin, led by Oishi Kuranosuke, who track down their enemy and exact revenge upon him before committing seppuku as required by their code of honor upon the death of their lord, Lord Takuminokami of the Asano clan.
  • Yoshitsune Senbon Zakura (Yoshitsune and the Thousand Cherry Trees) follows Minamoto no Yoshitsune as he flees from agents of his brother Yoritomo. Three Taira clan generals supposed killed in the Genpei War figure prominently, as their deaths ensure a complete end to the war and the arrival of peace, as does a kitsune named Genkurō.
  • Sugawara Denju Tenarai Kagami (Sugawara and the Secrets of Calligraphy) is based on the life of famed scholar Sugawara no Michizane (845–903), who is exiled from Kyoto, and upon his death causes a number of calamities in the capital. He is then deified, as Tenjin, kami (divine spirit) of scholarship, and worshipped in order to propitiate his angry spirit.
4:14 AM

A cherry blossom is the flower of any of several trees of genus Prunus, particularly the Japanese Cherry, Prunus serrulata, which is sometimes called sakura after the Japanese (桜 or 櫻; さくら).[1][2] Many of the varieties that have been cultivated for ornamental use do not produce fruit. Edible cherries generally come from cultivars of the related species Prunus avium and Prunus cerasus.

Flower viewing

"Hanami" is the centuries-old practice of picnicking under a blooming sakura or ume tree. The custom is said to have started during the Nara Period (710–794) when it was ume blossoms that people admired in the beginning. But by the Heian Period (794–1185), cherry blossoms came to attract more attention and hanami was synonymous with sakura.[3] From then on, in tanka and haiku, "flowers" meant "sakura." The custom was originally limited to the elite of the Imperial Court, but soon spread to samurai society and, by the Edo period, to the common people as well. Tokugawa Yoshimune planted areas of cherry blossom trees to encourage this. Under the sakura trees, people had lunch and drank sake in cheerful feasts.
11:20 AM
Ikebana (生け花?, "living flowers") is the Japanese art of flower arrangement, also known as kadō (華道?, the "way of flowers").
11:07 AM

Shinjuku (新宿区 Shinjuku-ku?, "New Lodge") is one of the 23 special wards of Tokyo, Japan. It is a major commercial and administrative centre, housing the busiest train station in the world (Shinjuku Station) and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, the administration centre for the government of Tokyo.
As of 2008, the ward has an estimated population of 312,418 and a population density of 17,140 persons per km². The total area is 18.23 km².[2]

Geography

Surrounding Shinjuku are six other wards: Chiyoda to the east; Bunkyo and Toshima to the north; Nakano to the west, andShibuya and Minato to the south.[3] In addition, Nerima is only a hundred meters away[citation needed]. The highest point in Shinjuku is Hakoneyama (箱根山?) in Toyama Park at 1200 m[4].
11:01 AM

Harajuku (原宿 "meadow lodging") About this sound listen (help·info) is the common name for the area around Harajuku Station on the Yamanote Line in theShibuya ward of Tokyo, Japan.
Every Sunday, young people dressed in a variety of styles including gothic lolita, visual kei, and decora, as well as cosplayers spend the day in Harajuku socializing. The fashion styles of these youths rarely conform to one particular style and are usually a mesh of many. Most young people gather on Jingu Bridge, which is a pedestrian bridge that connects Harajuku to the neighboring Meiji Shrine area.[1]
Harajuku is also a fashion capital of the world, renowned for its unique street fashion.[2] Harajuku street style is promoted in Japanese and international publications such as Kera, Tune, Gothic & Lolita Bible and Fruits. Many prominent designers and fashion ideas have sprung from Harajuku and incorporated themselves into other fashions throughout the world.
Harajuku is also a large shopping district that includes international brands, its own brands, and shops selling clothes young people can afford.

Location

Girls at Harajuku Station on a Sunday afternoon
Rockabilly dancers in Yoyogi Park
Harajuku is an area between Shinjuku and Shibuya. Local landmarks include the headquarters of NHK, Meiji Shrine, and Yoyogi Park.
The area has two main shopping streets, Omotesandō and Takeshita Street (Takeshita-dōri). The latter caters to youth fashions and has many small stores selling Gothic Lolita, visual kei, rockabilly, hip hop, and punk outfits,[3] in addition to fast food outlets and so forth.
Omotesandō has recently seen a rise in openings of up-scale fashion shops such as Louis Vuitton, Chanel, and Prada. The avenue is sometimes referred to as "Tokyo's Champs-Élysées".[4] Until 2004, one side of the avenue was occupied by the Dōjunkai Aoyama apāto,Bauhaus-inspired apartments built in 1927 after the 1923 Kantō earthquake. In 2006 the buildings were controversially destroyed by Mori Building and replaced with the "Omotesando Hills"[5] shopping mall, designed by Tadao Ando.[6] The area known as "Ura-Hara", back streets of Harajuku, is a center of Japanese fashion for younger people—brands such as A Bathing Ape and Undercover have shops in the area.[7]

Styles

The term "Harajuku Girls" has been used by English-language media to describe teenagers dressed in any fashion style who are in the area of Harajuku.[10] This fashion infuses multiple looks and styles to create a unique form of dress. The cyber-punk look takes its influence from gothic fashion and incorporates neon and metallic colors.[9]
Harajuku Girls is also a fashion line created by Gwen Stefani in the U.S. It is considered a designer brand and is sold at various department stores.
Punk style in Harajuku is more of a fashion than a statement.[1] Its fashion mainly consists of dark colors, plaid, chains, and zippers. Punk style is also one of the more gender-neutral fashions in Harajuku.[1]
Ganguro is a style that symbolizes the average American teenager. The term translates to ‘black-faced’. The basic look is what Westerners would call a ‘California girl’, with bleached hair, dark skin, fake eyelashes and nails. It is not clear how Ganguro came to be. Many assume[who?] it originated in the early 1990s, and was meant as a way of rebelling against the traditional Japanese ideas of beauty (pale skin, dark hair, etc.)
Cosplay is more of a costume-based style. A cosplay enthusiast will usually dress as a fictional or iconic character from a band, game, movie, anime, or manga.[1]
Ura-Hara is another section of Harajuku, which caters to a mostly male population interested in a hip-hop, graffiti, and skater fashion and culture.[9] Ura-Hara is seen as the opposite of Harajuku in that it’s more hidden and reserved.[9]


10:54 AM

Japanese architecture has traditionally been typified by wooden structures, elevated slightly off the ground, with tiled or thatched roofs. Sliding doors (fusuma) were used in place of walls, allowing the internal configuration of a space to be customized to different occasions. People usually sat on cushions or otherwise on the floor, traditionally; chairs and high tables were not widely used until the 19th century. Since the 19th century, however, Japan has incorporated much of Western, modern, andpost-modern architecture into construction and design, and is today a leader in cutting-edge architectural design and technology.
12:21 PM
Lolita fashion (ロリータ・ファッション Rorīta fasshon?) is a fashion subculture originating in Japan that is based on Victorian-eraclothing as well as costumes from the Rococo period, but the style has expanded greatly beyond Japan. Companies such as Milk and Pretty (currently known as Angelic Pretty) sell various Lolita fashions. [1] The Lolita look began primarily as one of modesty with a focus on quality in both material and manufacture of garments. The original silhouette is of a knee length skirt or dress with a 'cupcake' shape assisted by petticoats, but has expanded into various types of garments including corsets and floor lengths skirts. Blouses, knee high socks or stockings and headdresses are also worn.[2] Lolita fashion has evolved into several different sub styles and has a subculture that is present in many parts of the world. Although many people point to Japan for the Lolita trend especially with the influence of Anime media, which made it more popular, as the creator of the “Lolita Fashion,” the origin of its meaning is complex, and remains unclear.[3] It is likely the movement started in the late 1970s when famous labels including Pink House, Milk and Pretty (later known as Angelic Pretty) began selling clothes that would be considered "Lolita" by today's standards. Shortly after that came Baby, The Stars Shine Bright, and Metamorphose temps de fille. In the 1990s, Lolita fashion became better recognized, with bands like Princess Princesscoming into popularity at the time. These bands wore intricate costumes, which fans began adopting as their own style.[4] The style soon spread and ultimately reached Tokyo where it became popularized throughout Japanese youth culture. Today, Lolita fashion has gained global popularity and can be found even in department stores in Japan.
12:06 PM

Noodles are a staple part of Japanese cuisine. They are often served chilled with dipping sauces, or in soups or hot dishes.[1]



11:57 AM

Wagashi (和菓子?) is a traditional Japanese confectionery which is often served with tea, especially the types made ofmochi, azuki bean paste, and fruits.
Wagashi is typically made from plant (often natural) ingredients.[1]
The names used for wagashi commonly fit a formula—a natural beauty and a word from ancient literature; they are thus often written with hyōgaiji (kanji that are not commonly used or known), and are glossed with furigana.
11:56 AM

Hokkaidō

[edit]Tōhoku region

[edit]Kantō region

[edit]Chūbu region

[edit]Kansai region

[edit]Chūgoku region

[edit]Shikoku

[edit]Kyūshū and Okinawa


11:16 AM
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